Typhoon

On March 10, Jiang Ci and her family were practicing self-defense in the living room as usual when they suddenly heard something scraping against the windows, while the door rattled along with it.

Si Beichen drew the curtains and lifted the blackout cloth, only to discover a typhoon raging outside!

The sudden, violent winds bent the trees every which way, sending dust, sand, stones, and garbage flying through the air.

Not only that, but torrential rain came pouring down with it.

After such a long stretch of extreme heat, there was finally wind and rain. Everyone cheered with joy.

They no longer cared about typhoons or downpours. All they could think was that it was raining. It was finally raining.

But Jiang Ci was very tense now, because she knew the typhoon was only just beginning. Before long, it would become a super typhoon, even reaching a catastrophic force 17.

The parking garage on the first and second basement levels was actually the safest shelter from a typhoon, but this was not just a typhoon. It came with torrential rain, which would soon flood the garage.

Once the true force-17 typhoon arrived, many people in the residential complex would definitely choose to take shelter in the garage. By the time they realized it would flood, so many people would be rushing upstairs that a stampede was certain to happen.

So although they could safely shelter from the typhoon underground, they could not escape the flooding. Going downstairs was not an option.

Staying in their own home was the wisest choice.

She had installed bulletproof glass, so she did not need to worry about the typhoon shattering it.

After her rebirth, she had investigated the buildings in Jiaxing Residential Complex. Only after confirming that no corners had been cut in their construction had she chosen to live here after the natural disasters began.

But areas near windows and walls were unsafe. In the entire two-bedroom apartment, the safest place was the hallway.

To be on the safe side, her family would have to stay in the hallway until the typhoon passed.

"Quick, check that all the doors and windows are shut properly."

Seeing the wind outside grow stronger and stronger, Si Beichen also sensed that something was wrong.

Jiang Ci ran into the bedroom and shut the door, then took two small tents and some food and drinks out of her space.

She dragged everything out and dumped it in the hallway.

Wen Qianyue asked in confusion, "What's all this for?"

As Jiang Ci began pitching a tent, she explained, "This wind doesn't look normal to me. It keeps getting stronger. We'll be in trouble if it turns into a super typhoon later. Let's camp in the hallway, away from the windows and exterior walls."

Si Jianhua suggested, "Should we take shelter in the underground parking garage for now?"

Before Jiang Ci could speak, Si Beichen said, "No. It's not just the wind getting stronger out there. The rain's getting heavier too. The underground garage could easily flood. It's too dangerous."

As he spoke, he quickly picked up the other tent and began setting it up.

After hearing what the two of them said, Dad Si and Mom Wen hurried over to help.

While pitching the tent, Si Beichen reassured them:

"I checked. All the doors and windows are shut properly, and Xiao Ci installed bulletproof glass throughout the apartment. We should be fine. Don't worry too much."

Working together, the four of them soon set up both tents in the hallway.

Fortunately, the hallway was long enough. Otherwise, the two tents would not have fit.

It was still a little cramped, but as long as they were safe, there was no room to be fussy.

They brought out all four people's quilts, pillows, sheets, sleeping mats, and lightweight summer quilts, arranging them in the two tents.

The food and drinks were piled in a corner. The bathroom was right beside the hallway, which was convenient too.

The wind battered the doors and windows louder and louder. The door rattled nonstop, as though it would fall apart at any moment.

There was also a constant clattering from things striking the window glass.

Just moments ago, people outside had been shrieking with joy. Now all that remained was the howling wind, the pounding rain, the cracking of trees, the tremendous crashes of billboards hitting the ground, and the sounds of vehicles overturning on the road.

After closing the doors to both bedrooms, Jiang Ci curiously lifted a corner of the curtain.

Large shards of glass fell from the floors above. Startled, Jiang Ci instinctively stepped back, treading on Si Beichen's foot.

Through the gaps between the falling shards, she saw the spectacular sight of the typhoon tearing the roofs off several old buildings opposite them.

Farther away, an entire shantytown was swept into the air by the typhoon and shredded to pieces.

The sky was gray, and the flying sand and stones made it difficult to see clearly. There even seemed to be people flying through the air.

All the trees in the complex had been uprooted, with dead branches and broken trunks flying through the sky.

After drinking its fill, the ground, which had been parched for half a year, could absorb no more water.

More and more rainwater began accumulating, forming puddles.

After watching for a while, Jiang Ci did not dare look any longer and obediently retreated into her tent.

Oh, no, that was not right. It was her and Si Beichen's tent.

Of the two tents, Dad Si and Mom Wen shared one, while she and Si Beichen squeezed into the other.

Although the temperature had dropped a little, it had not fallen that quickly, and it was still somewhat hot. Jiang Ci switched on the energy-saving camping light inside the tent, lay on her stomach on one side of the sleeping mat, and took out some dried fruit and her tablet to watch a show.

Si Beichen lay beside Jiang Ci with his arm under his head, staring at the top of the tent. There was no telling what he was thinking.

Jiang Ci politely asked her roommate, "Want to watch with me?"

Si Beichen rolled over with his back to Jiang Ci and said calmly, "Go ahead. I'm going to sleep for a bit."

Seeing that Si Beichen really intended to sleep, Jiang Ci took out her earphones and put them on, afraid of disturbing him.

The dried fruit made a crisp crunch when she bit into it, so she switched to a hawthorn fruit roll.

With Jiang Ci lying beside him, Si Beichen actually could not sleep at all.

As he listened to the girl behind him gradually fall silent for fear of disturbing his sleep, he felt an itch in his heart.

For the past two days, he had been thinking about a very serious question.

Were his feelings for Jiang Ci really just those of a brother toward a sister?

Although he had never been in a relationship, he had seen other people date, and he was not stupid. He carefully thought back over his various reactions to Jiang Ci.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong with him.

He had even done unspeakable things to Jiang Ci in his dreams.

Ever since he had accidentally touched Jiang Ci's waist that day, he had been unable to stop thinking about that slender waist he could encircle with his hands.

Whatever Jiang Ci did, he could not help secretly paying attention.

He felt as though he was turning into a pervert!

What kind of older brother was this perverted toward his own younger sister?

He felt he was done for...

At noon, Mom Wen used a portable gas stove to cook noodles with pickled mustard stems and shredded pork.

In the evening, she pan-fried steaks and made four Chinese-style burgers.

After dinner, Si Beichen felt that an even more torturous time had arrived.

Jiang Ci, on the other hand, thought nothing of it. After all, in an apocalypse of natural disasters, who still cared about keeping men and women separate?

Just staying alive was good enough.

Their current conditions were already quite good. Other people's windows had been shattered to pieces, while her bulletproof glass was still standing strong, shielding them from the wind and rain.

After a few rounds of offline games, Jiang Ci felt sleepy. She put away her tablet and phone, then lay down to sleep.

Listening to the steady breathing that soon came from beside him, Si Beichen tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

Their family had never lacked water. Even during the extreme heat and severe water shortages, Jiang Ci had remained clean and pretty every day.

Now that they were so close, he could even smell the girl's faint natural scent.

Her soft breathing was right beside his ear when a leg suddenly draped over his waist.

Si Beichen felt that if this continued, sooner or later he would be driven mad by the torment.