Chapter 22: Building a Fortress

Chapter 22: Chapter 22: Building a Fortress The door of the apartment had also been changed to a bulletproof and shockproof one with double locks as well. There was also an extra door made of a diamond net on the outside. The window at the end of the corridor also had a diamond net on the outside, and the glass was changed to a bulletproof one. The interior designer in charge of the project was showing them all the changes made. She led them inside the house and one can already see the changes. There was new floor heating throughout the house and several air conditioners in the living room, kitchen, and bedroom. Since we installed a lot of solar panels, we thought that you might want to switch between electricity and solar energy so we included another switch that can change the floor heating and air conditioning from one to the other. You can also connect a generator if you want. Both Chu Miao and her mother were very satisfied with what the designer had done. Especially, the addition of an option to switch to a generator. It might prove useful in the future. "Thank you for your hard work, that was good thinking. What about the rest?" Mother Chu asked. They were led to the bathroom, where a solar-powered hot water tank was connected to the shower. "We also connected a hot water tank to the solar power and added a composting toilet next to the regular one." "Wow! This is a fantastic idea. When I asked you to see if you could add a toilet that didn’t need flashing with water, I actually didn’t know what to expect. But this is brilliant." In fact, Chu Miao had thought about simply using cat litter in case they had no water to flush the toilet with the portable toilets. But now she was glad she had only given a rough idea of what she wanted since she had not thought of the composting toilet. "You are going to need compost though. You can use powdered sawdust. It is a better compost than most, but you can also use cat litter." Hearing the designer say this, Mother Chu thought of the tons of cat litter she had purchased, but she still made a mental note to ask her husband to buy sawdust and any other type of compost for the toilet. "Thank you for the reminder." "Let me show you the windows. We followed your request, changed the glass to bulletproof, and added a diamond net on the outside. On the roof, we also created a greenhouse with both soil and hydroponics, and the glass used is also bulletproof." As the interior designer explained, they checked every corner of the house and we’re immensely satisfied. The designer had been wondering why they would make such weird requests but her professional ethics prevented her from voicing her thoughts. Once the tour was completed, the designer handed over all the keys, received a cheque for the balance, and left. "This will be the most comfortable place once the apocalypse starts. At least we won’t sweat or freeze to death." Mother Chu playfully hit Chu Miao in the arm when she heard that. "Don’t say such inauspicious words. It’s bad luck." Chu Miao found it funny that many people in the current era are still so superstitious. But the person saying that was her own mother, so she just had to agree. "Alright, mom. Now that we are done here, how about we go buy some formula milk. We bought so many baby stuff just in case, but we forgot that if a baby is really born, then they would need to eat." "That’s right, how could I forget that! Let’s go buy it now. We can also buy seeds and seedlings for planting while we are at it. There’s so much space in your ring that only has a few trees and all are fruits from ancient times. Let’s plant more of what we are used to and maybe some that can be shared in the future. After all, we can’t give people who are not cultivators spiritual fruits or vegetables." "That’s true. Although after growing in the space ring the fruits might contain a trace of spiritual energy, but it’s not enough to cause trouble for ordinary people, and might actually be good for them." "Okay, let’s go now. You go bring the truck from the parking lot while I call your father to remind him to buy sawdust for the toilet." "Okay." They parted ways in the elevator and Chu Miao went down to the parking lot. When she walked out of the elevator, she met a group of sturdy-looking men moving boxes to the next elevator. The building had two elevators for the convenience of the occupants. With the build of the men and the way they moved, she could already tell that they were soldiers. She had a whole lot of respect for soldiers because of her grandfather. So, she nodded towards them as a form of greeting before continuing to the parking lot. Even though she didn’t wait for their reply, the soldiers still stopped what they were doing and gave her a standard military salute before continuing to move their boxes. Chu Miao didn’t take this encounter to heart and just assumed that it was a one-time meeting, not knowing that these soldiers, and especially their leader who was absent at the scene, would become a big part of her life. By the time she drove the truck out of the parking lot, her mother was already waiting and talking to the soldiers she had just seen. Seeing the truck, Mother Chu said goodbye to the soldiers and got into the truck. They drove out of the community. "Do you know those soldiers, Mom?" Chu Miao had to ask because her mother acted too familiar with them. "No, it’s the first time I have met them, but they are soldiers and have put their lives at risk countless times so that the country can be safe and we, as normal citizens, can sleep peacefully. Showing them a little kindness is nothing, even if it is just talking to them for a while. Also, they are our neighbors and own the three floors below ours." "They own three of the lower floors? That’s at least good news. We don’t have to worry about morally twisted neighbors breaking into our house in the middle of the night. These soldiers are the best guardians." "You are right. We should be grateful that we won’t have to deal with such difficult issues."