Chapter 210
To avoid heatstroke, the welfare distribution happened in two time slots, from five to seven in the
morning and from seven to nine in the evening.
Jasper''s team was assigned the morning slot. They woke up at three in the morning, Ste coaxed
their dog, Cooper, with some fish and chips. "Cooper, guard the house, Okay? We''ll be back soon."
Cooper whimpered, and finally agreed.
With their backpacks slung over their shoulders and buckets in hand, they met with the other early
morning residents at the main gate. There were over seventy people, including elderly and children.
Everyone was nervous, but when they saw Jasper and Ste, they felt more at ease.
Mark took attendance and made sure everyone was present before they set off.
People who had survived two years of the apocalypse didn''t put on airs. They walked in the dark,
guided by their shlights. There were noints. After all, Jasper had a car, yet he chose to
walk with them.
Themunity center was quite a distance away. When they arrived at 4:30 am, there was already
a long line of people.
After arranging their team, Ste and her team queued at another window to update their residency
information.
At 5 am, the welfare window opened on time. There were police officers maintaining order. Despite
therge crowd, no one caused any trouble.
Who had the energy to cause trouble when they were hungry and thirsty anyway?
The people from Eastwood Eden didn''t arrive early. They waited for an hour and still hadn''t taken
their turn.
By 6 am, the sky was already bright. People were getting anxious, hoping to collect their supplies
and return before the heat of the sun hit.
The scorching sun was super hot. It could cause skin to redden and itch quickly, and even cause
sunburns and blisters that could lead to infections.
Ste estimated they had about ten more minutes to wait. They would likely return before 8 am,
which was ideal.
However, she felt something was off today. The eastern sky was usually bright by now, but today it
seemed gloomier and the air was bing more humid.
Just as she was about to speak to Jasper, a frantic sound echoed.
"Thud. Thud. Thud."
Then, screams erupted, and the crowd instantly panicked.
Before Ste could react, a sharp pain shot through her shoulder.
"Run, it''s hailing."
Jasper yelled, pulling Ste towards themunity center building.
Hailstones fell from the sky, some the size of pigeon eggs, chicken eggs, and even as big as fists.
In the chaos, Rosie slipped on a hailstone and fell. Fortunately, Jasper was holding her arm.
Otherwise, she might have been trampled.
Carrying Rosie and dragging Ste, Jasper pushed forward. The crowd was rushing towards the
community center, and it quickly filled up.
Jasper''s team was not too far away, and his quick reaction allowed them to get inside quickly.
Themunity center was small, and those who werete or slow could not squeeze in. Even if
they couldn''t get in, they tried, pushing and shoving until the ce was packed. Some children were
crying out of fear.
There were shouts, shoves, people being trampled on, and even those seizing the opportunity to
steal water and food. It was chaos.
Those who couldn''t get in covered their heads with their bags or water buckets and sought shelter
nearby.
The hailstorm came without warning, and many survivors were hit. Some were injured, some
bleeding from their heads, and some were struck by fist-sized hailstones, falling to the ground
clutching their water buckets, never to get up again.
Once inside themunity center office, Jasper didn''t stop. He pushed through the crowd to get
further inside. The restroom at the end was smelly due to theck of water. He kicked open the door
to a storage room nearby.
The storage room was small, filled with mops and brooms, just enough space for three people.
Ste''s shoulder hurt terribly. Just as she was about to check it, she noticed that Rosie''s forehead
was bleeding profusely.
"Rosie." Ste was shocked. "Where are you hurt?"
Rosie reached up to touch her wound, her hand came away covered in blood. She had been hit on
the forehead, and it hurt so much she forgot to cry. Her brother had told her not to cry, that tears
were useless.
Jasper looked back at Rosie, shocked.
Ste ignored the pain in her shoulder, quickly took out a first-aid kit from her bag, and started to
treat Rosie''s wound. She stopped the bleeding, disinfected the wound, and bandaged it.
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Rosie staggered. "Jasper, I feel dizzy."
Jasper held her in his arms, anxiously asking, "Ste, how is Rosie''s wound?"
Without medical equipment, Ste couldn''t tell the exact condition. If it was a concussion, Rosie
would recover with rest and care for the wound. If it was a brain hemorrhage or fluid umtion,
that would be troublesome.
With Jasper''s anxious expression, Ste didn''t dare to mention the worst-case scenario. "It might be
a concussion. Let''s stop the bleeding and medicate for now."
The disaster had just begun, and although the hospitals’ medicine was quickly used up, many
doctors were still at their posts, treating patients without prescribing medications. But there were too
many patients. Some who were dying due tock of medication or their family members became
extreme, believing that the hospital was withholding medication. They thought the hospital was only
willing to give medicine to the rich and influential, or if they thought the doctor''s attitude was bad,
there were many violent incidents.
Doctors were also ordinary people. Many died in various disasters. If they had the opportunity, they
would choose to go to the base.
So the hospitals had beenpletely closed. Even if it was open, the equipment could no longer
function.
Ste hoped it wasn''t the worst-case scenario, otherwise, she feared Jasper wouldn''t be able to
handle it.
"Rosie, how do you feel?"
Rosie leaned on her brother. "Ste, my head hurts so much. I feel like throwing up."
Steforted her. "You''re hurt, but you''ll be okay, don''t be afraid."
Jasper noticed Ste''s expression. "Are you hurt too?"
Ste nodded, pressing her swollen shoulder and took out two ice packs from her backpack to
apply.
Jasper took the ice packs and applied them to Rosie''s forehead, asking with concern. "Ste, are
you seriously hurt?"
She didn''t want him to worry too much. Ste applied an ice pack to her shoulder. "I was hit by hail,
but it should be fine."
Just as Jasper was about to suggest checking it, the storage room door was knocked. "Who''s in
there? Do you have medicine? I smell it. Open the door. Please give me some medicine. I''m hurt
too."
Jasper blocked the door with his body. "You''re mistaken. We don''t have any medicine."
"Why won''t you give us medicine if you have it?" The man kept knocking on the door, his voice
agitated. "I''ve lost a lot of blood. I''ll die if I don''t stop the bleeding and bandage it."
He saw the man pushing and kicking at the door, even shouting out loud, "They have medicines in
there. They just won''t give them up!"
Sure, Ste had some medicine, but there were so many injured people. How much difference
could it make even if they handed everything out?
If they gave it to them, what would they doter? Wait for death?
Rosie held her forehead, "Jasper, I''m scared."
"Don''t worry, I''ll protect you."
"I...I think I see Mom and Dad."
Jasper''s face turned pale, "No, Mom and Dad are gone, but you won''t die. I won''t let you."
As he said this, he turned anxiously to Ste.
Ste was at a loss too, "Rosie, don''t let your mind wander, and don''t sleep. Stay alert."
With this, she took out a bag of candied orange peels, pinched a small piece, and put it in Rosie''s
mouth, "Taste it, it''s delicious."
"It''s so sweet."
"I promise to feed you with delicious food every day. Don''t sleep. Stay with your brother and me
forever. Cooper is waiting for us to return."