Arrange the three apples in a triangle on a plate, then place it in front of the ancestral tablet.
These memorial tablets were made by them shortly after the disaster, when they were doing population statistics and personnel files. They made them as a way to find solace, otherwise, staying in the building day and night would really drive a person crazy.
Regarding such matters, aside from prohibiting the lighting of candles, burning incense, and burning paper money during worship, Tan Mingda and his group did not do much to stop them; they neither encouraged nor prohibited it.
After the simple, smokeless, and fireless offering, Zhou Tao and his family of three placed the apple on a stool and cut it with a knife.
The six-year-old boy watched excitedly from the side, constantly exclaiming. He had tasted a small piece of this sweet treat with his classmates before, and someone had said that this apple was very precious. He never expected to have the chance to eat it a second time.
Watching their child running and jumping around in their small home, Mr. and Mrs. Zhou Tao were not angry; on the contrary, they quite liked the child's energy.
"Here, eat up..." Zhou Tao cut the apple into three pieces with two cuts, giving the child the largest piece and his wife the other two.
His wife took the apple, took a bite, and suddenly asked, " A-Tao, is this one of the apples you brought back last time?"
Zhou Tao stopped chewing and shook his head. "How would I know?"
"We were just lucky to get one last time, don't overthink it."
"What could I be thinking? I just saw the kid liked it, and wanted to see if you could bring one back."
Seeing his wife looking a little sad, Zhou Tao patted her head and said, "Don't be like that. It's just an apple. Our lives will get better and better in the future. You must be tired from work tonight, so get some rest."
Once he calmed down a bit, he ate the apple in one bite, spitting the seeds into a plate, and then started putting on his protective suit.
"Okay, I have to go to work now. Son, have you finished eating? Go to school with Dad."
To ensure the children's health, their classes are usually scheduled during the day and they don't need to leave the building; each building houses both a primary school and a kindergarten.
After watching her husband and son leave, Zhou Tao's wife tidied up and then pulled out her own vegetable pot from under the bed. It contained a little soil and lettuce, which looked lush and green.
After thinking for a while, she pulled out a few of the best-growing lettuce leaves and carefully buried the apple seeds in the empty spaces she had just made.
After doing all this, she took the vegetable basin outside, intending to let the lettuce dry in the sun through the glass.
There's someone like her in almost every household in the building. When people meet in the stairwell, they'll look at each other's vegetable dishes and smile faintly.
Each person's vegetable bowl had some empty spaces, and there were traces of freshly dug soil on them.
"The current outside temperature is 42 degrees Celsius, and the UV index is level 5. Please wear protective clothing when going out and avoid direct sunlight..."
With a notification sound, the building doors slowly opened again, and Zhou Tao and his team, carrying cargo boxes, walked out of the double doors to begin their day's work.
It's still early, and there aren't many people outside.
Xue Liangping still can't hide his excitement.
As soon as he came out, he said to Zhou Tao, "Captain, are the apples we just received the same ones we saw last time?"
These team members were also aware of what happened last time, so Zhou Tao didn't need to give any riddles. "I think so too."
"However, it's good that you know this, but don't go around telling anyone about the Mutual Aid Society. Only a handful of people know about it, and if word gets out, they won't even need to investigate; they'll just come and arrest people."
Xue Liangping and the other two team members nodded repeatedly.
"Of course we knew. At the time, only a few of us Mutual Aid Society. Once the news got out, we definitely wouldn't be able to escape."
Xue Liangping had a new question, "But were there enough apples to go around last time?"
Needless to say, Zhou Tao and the others knew that Apple wouldn't just send the gifts to their building. Since they sent them, other buildings in the city must have received them too.
Now that this city has it, other cities will surely have it too, or at the very least, they'll find something to make up for it.
So sending apples to them means sending apples to the whole country.
"Not enough," Zhou Tao said, pushing the cart and adjusting his helmet. "But I think maybe President Zhang and the others brought us some new apples during this time?"
The other team members agreed with this statement.
By this time, the four men had pushed the cargo box onto the main road. More and more people were arriving, but most of them had somber faces and looked preoccupied.
Zhou Tao also chatted with a few acquaintances along the way.
However, these people weren't very interested. After a few words, they started sighing and complaining, and then the topic veered off to the approaching Ice Age.
After enjoying a sweet apple and leaving home, returning to work and facing the harsh reality, many people's thoughts immediately drifted back to the news they had just heard.
A new global catastrophe.
Such concerns cannot be completely masked by an apple.
"In my opinion, we probably can't hold on for much longer..."
Suddenly, a friend let out a low sigh.
As if in a chain reaction, the faces of those around him also darkened. "We've held on long enough; at least we're one of the last nations to survive, and we haven't disgraced our ancestors."
Looking at his old friends, Zhou Tao felt a pang of sadness. He slapped his cargo box twice to get their attention. "What are you two saying, so discouragingly?"
"Cheer up, everyone! Have you forgotten the times we drove around in trucks together rescuing people? Those were much tougher times, weren't they?"
However, in response to his encouragement, most of his other old friends simply waved their hands without saying a word, and silently pushed the cargo box with their heads down.
Zhou Tao sighed, his breath lingering on the helmet visor for a long time before dissipating.
Turning to look at his teammates, Zhou Tao realized that they seemed to have been infected as well, and their spirits had all dropped.
"You also feel there's no hope for the future?"
"Given our current situation, how can we possibly survive the next ice age...?"
"Have you forgotten who we met last time?" Zhou Tao reminded him. The Mutual Aid Society he had encountered once before was his greatest source of confidence, but he couldn't explain it to his old friends and family.
"We don't know if that Mutual Aid Society is real or fake; we haven't heard anything from them at all," one team member said.
"Is it true or false?" Zhou Tao suddenly pointed at his hand, "Don't you ever think about where the apple you just ate came from?"
"Do you really think apples can grow in buildings? Ninety-eighths of the time, Mutual Aid Society, just like last time."
Xue Liangping whispered, "That's possible. They sent us a lot of fruit last time."
To this day, he still remembers the excitement he felt when he first saw an apple in person.
Zhou Tao glanced at them. "Even if the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up. Let's wait a little longer; maybe the results will be out soon..."
At this moment.
In a conference room, Zhang Tianyuan was already seated. To his left were Tan Mingda and other people from Finch Spacetime, and to his right were the other branch presidents of the Mutual Aid Society. Elder Zhou, Tong Wenshi, and the other two were all present.
Tan Mingda was the first to stand up, cupping his hands in welcome to the members of the Mutual Aid Society: "It's a pleasure to meet you all here, but the situation in our current timeline is difficult, and we really can't muster any grand gestures to carry out your plans."
" Elder Tan, you're too kind." Zhang Tianyuan was already aware of the frugality of this era, so he smiled faintly and let the matter drop.
The others also said they didn't care.
The meeting room was indeed not as lively as when they had met in previous time periods, but it was still simple yet solemn.
Considering the circumstances of this timeline, the four branch presidents knew that this timeline had truly done its best.
"Now that everyone knows the details of No. 5 Spacetime, let's all share our thoughts."
Tong Wenshi was the first to speak, "If this timeline has indeed reached a dead end, then we can temporarily take them in, but that will probably have to wait until after the matter in No. 1 Spacetime is resolved."
His statement, while agreeing to take in the people of No. 5 Spacetime, also set two conditions: first, that Timeline 5 must be confirmed to be unable to continue operating; and second, that the refugees from No. 5 Spacetime must be accepted only after the people of No. 1 Spacetime have withdrawn.
Zhang Tianyuan nodded, quite satisfied with his statement; that was also his own plan.
"This is the last resort."
Then look at the others, especially Sun Deyi, who is Wandering Spacetime.
Zhang Tianyuan felt that this time, they would probably have to rely on this person again.
However, at this moment, Tan Mingda took the initiative to speak, first thanking Tong Wenshi for his kindness, and then saying:
"If possible, we still don't want to leave this land. Although leaving would be easy, land suitable for human habitation is extremely scarce in the universe. We would prefer to receive assistance in terms of technology or trade."
Everyone agreed with these words, especially Sun Deyi, who was Wandering Spacetime.
He also lamented, "Regardless of time or space, within the visible universe, we cannot find any other planets suitable for human habitation. This demonstrates just how precious a habitable planet is; otherwise, we wouldn't have initiated the Wandering Earth planet movement."
The ball is planned.
"No matter what, never abandon Earth easily, because we may not find a better place next..."
He looked at Tan Mingda with a sense of mutual respect, and, wanting to cultivate good relations with other timelines, Sun Deyi calmed himself down and said, "Actually, we've done similar simulations of the Ice Age before."
Tan Mingda immediately looked at him, her eyes filled with anticipation.
"During the execution of the Wandering Earth Project, the Earth's temperature will gradually decrease, eventually approaching -100 degrees Celsius or even lower, and the surface water will completely freeze."
Zhang Tianyuan listened quietly.
This is also why he previously believed that Wandering Spacetime could help solve the ice age.
The future situation in the Wandering Spacetime is far more severe than the ice age in this timeline.
Tan Mingda also understood the implication, and looking at Sun Deyi, he vaguely sensed that Sun Deyi wanted to say something to him.
Sure enough, after explaining the situation in his own timeline, Sun Deyi offered his solution. "So you guys dig an underground city."
"Underground city..." Tan Mingda was about to say that this plan was within their consideration, but they lacked experience in building large underground cities, but Sun Deyi did not pause and immediately continued.
"The underground city can not only keep you warm, but also help you avoid most surface disasters. Most importantly, we have extensive experience in this area, which we can provide as technical assistance."
"In addition, we can also lease nuclear fusion power plants from you to meet your energy needs!"
Upon hearing the word "nuclear fusion," Tan Mingda froze for a moment, then felt his heart race, as if all the blood in his body was pumping faster, and his aging blood vessels felt like they couldn't take it anymore.
"Nuclear fusion power plant?"
He exchanged an incredulous glance with Zhang Tianyuan, as if hoping to confirm the truth of the statement.
Zhang Tianyuan was also surprised by Sun Deyi's generosity.
Previously, he only agreed to export fusion energy to other timelines, and never mentioned anything about leasing nuclear fusion power plants.
He nodded to Tan Mingda, indicating that the Mutual Aid Society vouch for these words, and then gestured for the two to continue their conversation.
After receiving the assurance, Tan Mingda's joy could not be described as mere elation.
If they can successfully acquire a nuclear fusion power plant, many of the problems they are currently facing can be solved.
For example, if there is a water shortage, we can simply purify the seawater.
Energy is changing lives; it's not just a dream.
Tan Mingda immediately reciprocated, knowing what the Wandering Spacetime needed most. After a moment's consideration, he said, "Once our underground city is completed, our country can reserve 500 million refugee slots for you at any time."
Sun Deyi smiled and thanked him. Although this place wasn't much better than their time and space, it was still a way.
With the biggest problem solved, Ning Jihua Wandering Spacetime, then spoke up:
"We can handle the construction and building of the underground city."
As he spoke, he glanced at Zhang Tianyuan.
Zhang Tianyuan nodded in agreement. Now that No. 1 Spacetime needs to focus on evacuation, and the Wandering Spacetime can't possibly use its manpower and resources to cross over and help repair the underground city, only the Pacific Rim Spacetime can help.
He added, "Once the first underground city is completed, passes inspection, and is confirmed to have no design flaws, you can hand over the blueprints to me."
Then we can send the blueprints to the design institute for enchanting.
Although he didn't know why they did it, Tan Mingda thanked the two of them repeatedly, feeling a sense of happiness as if he had found a powerful patron and was being protected.
Seeing everyone expressing their opinions, Elder Zhou from the "2012" timeline paused for a moment before adding, "We can't help with manpower right now. There are still many projects to be built in No. 2 Spacetime, and our technology is probably quite outdated."
"As for resources, we must also save up food for the future..."
Previously, they directly donated enough food for six billion people for a year to the Wandering Spacetime, so the 2012 timeline is also not well-off in terms of food, since this kind of thing cannot be produced casually.
Just as Tan Mingda was about to express his understanding, he suddenly heard Elder Zhou say, "So we'll donate some fruit to you as a token of our appreciation."
"Last year, our domestic apple production was 30 million tons, so let's mobilize our time and space to donate 30 million tons of fruit to you, it doesn't necessarily have to be apples..."
Elder Zhou was still talking.
Tan Mingda was still listening.
But his two old buddies were already pinching their fingers.
Thirty million tons of fruit?
A tiny bit?