CHAPTER 201: CHAPTER 199 PREPARATIONS BEFORE DEPARTURE

Returning home to pick up his parents is Chen Xin’s most urgent task right now.

The lack of a suitable vehicle was initially the biggest obstacle preventing him from doing this, but now that the car has been modified, this task has been scheduled and is something Chen Xin must prepare for immediately.

No matter how urgent his feelings are, this is still not a trip that can be undertaken on a whim.

Although there’s a mode of transport now, the journey is long, and water and food must be prepared adequately; other related supplies are also essential because he doesn’t know what the situation is like with his parents.

The last message Chen Xin received before the disaster was that his parents and relatives had already entered the village’s shelter.

Everyone in that village is a relative, and since the construction of the shelter began, Chen Xin has been advising them, telling them to prepare what he has prepared regarding various precautions and survival facilities.

Therefore, the survival conditions of that mountain village shelter are not bad, hardly different from Chen Xin’s shelter before its system upgrade, and because of its large size, it might be even more comfortable to live in.

Thus, Chen Xin is not worried that his parents and relatives are in any danger or trouble; the village is miles away from the nearest town and an hour’s drive from the county seat, so no one would be interested in such a remote and poor mountain village.

However, despite saying this, no one can predict what might happen; the mountain’s isolated environment, free from external interference, also brings significant inconvenience for the mountain village shelter’s communication with the outside world.

After all, the nearest town is miles from the village, and the mountain road is hard to travel; considering the situation now with heavy snow sealing the mountain, it’s no easy task to enter the mountain, and it’s also difficult for mountain dwellers to come out.

If anything happens in the mountains, whether it’s seeking aid or sending help, it’s extremely difficult.

Although Chen Xin doesn’t believe there will be major issues at the mountain village shelter, he cannot guarantee that nothing will happen there.

To handle potential situations, Chen Xin must make sufficient preparations before setting out.

This journey is more than six hundred kilometers, and no one knows what situations might arise; it’s difficult to say whether shelters will be encountered along the way, and Chen Xin must prepare for the worst.

The six hundred kilometers points to pre-disaster expressways, where there were service areas for rest and supplies, but now it’s very likely that even shelters may not be encountered unless Chen Xin specifically enters cities.

If he can’t resupply or find shelters along the way, he must prepare enough supplies on the vehicle to last the journey.

Thinking about supplies, Chen Xin couldn’t help but ask Qin Lan, "Lan, considering all that’s happening in the city, can the SWAT team still come to exchange supplies this month?"

"It should be possible, though things are indeed hectic recently; the supplies exchange itself shouldn’t be heavily affected, but the exchanged supplies might be less favorable," Qin Lan thought and concluded that this wouldn’t obstruct normal exchanges.

Chen Xin nodded to show understanding, but after considering, he said to Qin Lan, "Please contact Uncle Ding for me, and tell him I’ll use the next two months’ supplies as collateral to advance some supplies. I need to prepare adequate supplies to go home to pick up my parents."

"This might be a bit difficult," Qin Lan frowned upon hearing Chen Xin’s request, "While the supplies exchange can continue normally, the SWAT team is likely fully engaged in handling recent attacks and lacks extra manpower to gather supplies.

Exchanging food and such should be no problem, but other supplies might be tricky; I’ll try to speak to the captain, but I can’t guarantee what can be exchanged."

"Alright, I understand the SWAT team’s situation now. I’ll make a list for you later; primarily, I’ll need construction materials and steel, so exchange for whatever you can." Chen Xin understood the SWAT team’s current situation and knew Qin Lan’s limitations.

But he intends to complete a comprehensive upgrade of his shelter before going to pick up his parents, plus he needs to prepare traveling supplies, so materials and supplies are indispensable.

"Okay, give me the list later, and I’ll ask the captain." Qin Lan nodded and agreed to the matter.

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Since the car has been modified, Chen Xin now begins loading various supplies into the vehicle.

Water and food are naturally the first items to be loaded.

Food isn’t lacking for Chen Xin; his storage room currently has enough food to last him, as an individual, for nearly six months.

From the storage room, he took two unboxed shelter food containers and placed them in the car. Chen Xin estimated that the journey is more than six hundred kilometers one way and, considering both ways, would be between thirteen hundred to fourteen hundred kilometers.

If the road presents any issues requiring detours, it could extend to fifteen hundred kilometers.

Chen Xin conservatively calculates making fifty kilometers per day, which means the round trip would take about a month.

Two boxes of shelter food are meant to ensure his own basic rations during this month-long journey; if there’s no resupply along the way, this food serves as a fallback.

In addition to these two boxes of shelter food, Chen Xin also plans to plant lettuce in a cultivation box on the vehicle and carry a packet of seeds.

This lettuce serves as food and can be exchanged for resupply at shelters or points encountered along the way; although it’s possible not to encounter any resupply points, passing through four provinces and several cities makes it feasible to access shelters in these cities if necessary.

Of course, these are provisions for unexpected situations; Chen Xin’s actual plan for meals involves a box of luncheon meat and a box of self-heating food.

Moreover, he plans to prepare a hundred pounds of dehydrated vegetables and a hundred pounds of rice, and once this month’s supplies exchange is completed, he’ll prepare two more boxes of shelter food—as such, Chen Xin feels that even if he manages to pick up his parents, he’ll have enough food for the return journey.

As for living water along the way, Chen Xin is not worried about this at all. Considering he has a five-ton water tank, this amount of water, as long as it’s not wasted, is already sufficient.

Previously, just by himself, Chen Xin used only three tons of water per month; he also equipped the vehicle with a purification filter, so if necessary, roadside snow can be used as a water source.

Connecting a washing hose from the washing room next to the garage, while filling the tank with water, Chen Xin thought about whether there was anything else he hadn’t prepared.

He doesn’t need gasoline; the car has three Isotope Thermoelectric Batteries—one for the engine, one for the cabin, and one as a backup or to boost the engine when necessary.

Each Isotope Thermoelectric Battery has a lifespan of over ten years and a rated output of 200KW, so there’s no concern of "running out of fuel" on this journey.

Food has already filled the trunk; a hundred pounds of rice, a hundred pounds of dehydrated vegetables paired with a box of self-heating food and a box of canned goods are the main meals, while the four boxes of shelter food serve as emergency reserves, more than enough to handle any unexpected situations.

Water is being filled now; the outlet is connected to a purification filter, so if needed, roadside snow can be shoveled in as a supplementary water source, with no worry about potential contamination of the tank.

Other things to prepare...

As Chen Xin was calculating what else he needed to prepare, Qin Lan, having contacted the SWAT team, came to him and said, "I’ve spoken to the captain about the supplies exchange; the captain said your request is fine, and he’s willing to advance the supplies for two months, but there’s a condition."

"Condition? What condition?" Chen Xin looked at Qin Lan; Uncle Ding mentioning a condition for the supplies exchange didn’t surprise him or seem unacceptable.

"The city plans to open a previously closed small shelter, intending to use the ground-source heat pump technology you provided to the team as the heating and power supply," Qin Lan explained to Chen Xin, who appeared calm, "The small shelter is similar in size to the one allocated to Li Yulong by the city, so the captain wants to know how many ground-source heat pumps are needed to meet the heating and electrical needs for such a shelter, how long it’ll take you to deliver, and what materials are required."

After hearing Qin Lan’s explanation, Chen Xin raised an eyebrow, feeling surprised yet recognized its rationale, "Is the city planning to adopt a new model?"

"Perhaps influenced by the recent coal shortage, attempting to mitigate some risk," Qin Lan speculated, unaware of the city’s reasoning but saw nothing unusual in their action, "Are you able to solve this problem, Xin?"

"Meeting the heating needs of a small shelter isn’t difficult; as for electricity..." Chen Xin rubbed his chin, contemplating, "If we’re not considering setting up a greenhouse like Xiaolong, fifty ground-source heat pumps should be enough to cover heating and basic lighting needs, although this figure is just my estimate and I can’t guarantee sufficient supply. Delivery may require about two weeks, with materials the same as the previous transaction."