1.When dreams become reality（part 1）

The crimson sky.

The scorching road curls and turns into a burnt yellow.

Who is chasing after me?

When I turned around, all I saw was an endless stretch of asphalt road.

The buildings on both sides resemble discarded trash cans, randomly overturned by the roadside.

I abruptly lifted the blanket covering my face and sat up, staring blankly for a while.

Here it comes again.

About two months ago, I started having the same dream over and over.

I always dream of bodies scattered on the ground and limbs strewn about.

I dream of my face, covered in blood, reflecting in the shop window.

In my dream, my mouth opens and closes, but I can't hear the sound I'm making.

The electronic clock on the bedside table "ticks" with a sound.

Exactly seven o'clock.

I sighed and walked into the bathroom.

The girl's face in the mirror is pale.

I've lost count of how many times I've struggled to wake up from nightmares like this.

Ever since I became unemployed, I haven't had a good night's sleep. Sleep has gradually become something that exhausts me.

Perhaps, I should really see a psychologist...

After washing my face with clear water, I got ready to go out.

The garbage in the house has accumulated for a week.

I woke up early today, just in time for the garbage classification collection time.

There aren't many people in the elevator, only a woman taking her child to school.

There are bruises on her forehead, and her face bears wounds as well.

When she saw me entering, the woman tugged at her mask and turned her head away.

Suddenly, I remembered the sounds of arguing coming from the building last night. I discreetly averted my gaze, hoping it would make her feel more at ease.

As I stepped out of the elevator, the collection point was right downstairs.

The recycling staff was chatting with some elderly people who were exercising.

Judging by their frequent head-shaking, they must be gossiping about some homeowner.

I threw all the take-out packaging I had accumulated over the past few days into the general waste bin.

While tidying up the delivery boxes, a low exclamation suddenly came from the crowd.

"Oh dear! Is it true? No way!"

"It's true! Our daughter was supposed to come back this morning. But as soon as the plane landed, she was taken to the hospital for quarantine, saying it's for safety checks."

"Safety checks? What are they checking?"

"Blood tests, CT scans, ultrasounds... They're doing everything, I don't know what's going on."

Safety checks? Medical examinations?

For some reason, my heart started beating rapidly.

In that moment, scenes from my dream flashed through my mind.

The twisted road surface, the scattered roadblocks, the crimson sunset...

Seeing me standing still, the recycling staff stepped forward and took the garbage from my hand. "Oh dear, little sister, you look so well-organized. Why did you wait four or five days before throwing away the trash?"

Ignoring her teasing, I took out my phone.

On Weibo, everything seemed normal, just the usual celebrity gossip and social hot topics.

Strange...

Is it a resurgence of the epidemic?

Frowning, I quickened my pace to return home.

Only a few days have passed since Singles' Day, and our household supplies were just replenished.

I sat in front of the computer, browsing through the product pages.

A few years ago, a pandemic swept the world.

But as time went on, the virus became milder. To some extent, it has reached a state of coexistence with humans.

As an ordinary citizen who has been battling the virus for a long time, localized outbreaks have become commonplace.

I retrieved my order history and randomly selected some snacks, instant noodles, and sausages.

"Ding ding ding!" A message from Taobao customer service quickly popped up.

"Sorry, dear, but currently all express deliveries to and passing through Chunshen City have been suspended."

I was stunned, about to ask further questions when the customer service already posted announcements from major courier companies.

It clearly stated that starting from November 16th, which was yesterday, all express delivery services to Chunshen City have been temporarily halted.

What's going on?

Are they going to lock down the city?

Something doesn't seem right.

Even if the epidemic resurfaces, the situation always develops step by step.

There is no relevant information and no news about the unknown virus...

How is it possible to directly blockade a city?

November 17th, 12:37 pm.

I am starting to feel heavier concerns about the future: the government doesn't seem to be implementing ordinary epidemic prevention policies and we must make preparations as soon as possible.

After filtering out shops with the same city of origin for delivery, I start to carefully select.

Self-heating rice.

Packaged instant noodles.

And compressed biscuits.

The variety of individual self-heating meals is more abundant than I imagined, and the taste seems good as well.

Each package contains two servings, and each box contains twelve packages. I have stocked up ten boxes in total.

After marking all the orders with SF Express payment on delivery, I take out a mask from the drawer and prepare to go out.

The nearest supermarket is about 1 kilometer away from my home.

I plan to buy some fresh fruits and vegetables.

The weather in November has already turned cold.

The fallen leaves of the golden rain trees on the street have not been completely swept away and crunch under the feet of pedestrians.

From afar, I can see a Nongfu Spring water station surrounded by an unending stream of private cars.

The store clerks are busy loading water onto the long line of cars.

"What's going on?" someone asks the store owner standing on the side.

"The Q district has suspended water supply, so we have to rely on drinking water temporarily. The water reserves at that station over there are not enough."

"Water supply suspension? I haven't heard about it."

The owner shrugs, "Not only water supply suspension, I heard that there will be a power outage in a few days as well. My friend who does solar energy business has seen his orders multiply recently."

My heart sinks.

This is not good news at all.

According to the owner's tone, the Q district has seemingly been without water for quite some time.

Water and electricity are the most basic guarantees for people's livelihoods.

It is unimaginable to allow such a large-scale suspension of water and electricity.

Could this be because of the epidemic...

It doesn't make sense...

It seems that Chunshen City is really going to face big trouble.

I immediately change my mind.

Instead of going directly to the supermarket, I take a detour to a nearby vegetable market.

Since today is a workday, the market is deserted at this time.

I take out the list I just organized on my phone, which includes ten or so varieties of long-lasting vegetables.

Potatoes, corn, as well as cauliflower, cabbage, and other cruciferous vegetables are listed.

According to what I found online, if handled properly, these vegetables can last for several months.

After browsing through several stalls, I purchase two bags of potatoes and one bag of corn.

I also buy a few baskets of cauliflower, Chinese cabbage, and cabbage.

I order a medium-sized van for delivery on my phone, which will probably arrive in a while.

Coincidentally, there is a hardware store across the street, so I go in to take a look.

I buy three tall buckets with lids and faucets for water storage.

A PVC hose.

Three rolls of tape.

Four solid ABS pipes.

Two transparent rainproof cloths.

A hot glue gun and a few boxes of glue sticks.

I also buy a household toolbox.