Chapter 69: Extreme Heat 10
A group of patients were waiting for electricity, and the sudden power outage caused a commotion.
Technicians ran quickly down the corridors, and various emergency lights had already come on.
Chu Yian looked at the chaotic crowd around her.
What should she do now?
Shouldn’t she pay and get her medicine before leaving?
“I’ve already paid for your medical expenses, and here’s your medicine.”
If one looked closely, Lu Qingyuan held two bags of medicine, and one of them was hers.
While Chu Yian was unconscious, Lu Qingyuan had already taken care of everything.
The two walked out of the Hospital gate together, and a wave of scorching heat immediately hit them, making their bodies instantly break out in a sweat.
Chu Yian saw a shaded road sign nearby and quickly ducked into its shadow.
“Teacher Lu, hurry over!”
If she got any more sun, she would definitely suffer from heatstroke again.
Lu Qingyuan originally didn’t want to get too close to someone who was inexplicably over-familiar, even if she had saved him.
But even the coldest iceberg would melt in 48-degree outdoor temperatures.
Lu Qingyuan, who had planned to go their separate ways, was forced to stand in the shadow of the billboard.
There were very few taxis on the road, and any empty ones were snatched up by people ahead before they could even hail them.
It was extremely difficult for them to get a taxi, and due to the scarcity, they ended up in the same car again.
It must be a special kind of fate…
Somehow, an unfamiliar song lyric started playing in Chu Yian’s mind.
“Where are you going?”
Lu Qingyuan’s deep voice interrupted the melody in her heart.
“I’m going home, in the suburbs.”
Chu Yian quickly rattled off a detailed address, then looked at Lu Qingyuan.
“What about you, Teacher Lu?”
Teacher Lu?
Lu Qingyuan was momentarily stunned by the address but didn’t correct her.
“I’m going to a Hotel.”
He had originally planned to drop her off first before going to the Hotel, but since her destination was further, he directly gave the name of a Hotel he had stayed at before.
“Let’s go to the Hotel first; I’ll pay for the fare.”
In the extremely hot weather, taxi fares were three times higher than usual.
Yet, Teacher Lu spoke with an air of extravagance, as if he had money to spare.
Chu Yian put herself in the taxi driver’s shoes and imagined that if she were the driver, she would definitely overcharge him.
While Chu Yian was thinking, the vehicle had already taken them to the Hotel Lu Qingyuan mentioned.
“Sorry, we don’t have any empty rooms left.”
Fortunately, the driver was still waiting at the entrance, so they went to a second Hotel, then a third, and without exception, all were fully booked.
“With the power outage these past two days, Hotel bookings have surged.
The only rooms we might have available would be for check-in four days from now.”
The front desk staff at the fourth Hotel said, “If you need one, you might want to book quickly, as there are only two rooms left for check-in four days from now.”
“What about these four days, then?”
“If you’re looking for a suggestion, you could try booking a guesthouse.”
The reason Hotels were so popular was because they had electricity for air conditioning, offering a respite from the heat.
Guesthouses with electricity had long been snatched up; any guesthouses available now would surely be without power.
High-rise buildings had no electricity.
They were as hot as a steaming basket.
“Teacher Lu, if you don’t mind, you can stay at my place for a few days.”
Chu Yian watched him hit one wall after another and then invited him, “My house has several empty rooms, and it’s surrounded by large trees, so it’s quite cool.”
Lu Qingyuan looked at her.
A stranger he met for the first time not only saved him but was also inexplicably enthusiastic.
From Lu Qingyuan’s perspective, she did seem a bit overly eager to please.
Chu Yian realized her behavior was a bit too enthusiastic.
“Uh, how about… two hundred yuan a day?
Anyway, it’s like staying in a guesthouse, so you’d be helping out my business.”
Lu Qingyuan was silent for a moment upon hearing this, then nodded.
“Let’s go.”
The taxi took them all the way to the suburbs and charged them a thousand yuan.
Sure enough… Teacher Lu was still overcharged.
Chu Yian silently grumbled in her heart, then took out the key and opened the main door.
The house… was a mess!!
It looked like it had been robbed.
Bricks were scattered haphazardly in the yard, and the living room was piled with all sorts of food, mattresses, mats, and gasoline, to the point where there was barely any room to stand.
Lu Qingyuan stood at the doorway, looking at the living room, unwilling to step inside.
Chu Yian silently covered her face.
“Teacher Lu, let me explain.
I was doing construction when I left yesterday, which is why the living room and outside are so messy.
The bedroom is very clean, and there’s a generator, so you can have air conditioning tonight.”
“Trust me, for two hundred yuan, you won’t find a house as good as mine outside.”
She strenuously explained the good points of her house, then gave him a strong push from behind, practically forcing him inside.
“Teacher Lu, you can sit in my room for a while first.
Later, I’ll clean up the other room for you and put the new air conditioner in your room.”
Chu Yian found the generator, poured oil according to the manual, and started it.
It didn’t start successfully.
She squatted there, tinkering with it for a long time, working up a sweat, and was finally about to call the generator seller.
“Let me do it.”
Lu Qingyuan took over, read the instructions carefully, and then started working on it.
In the end, he managed to get both a refrigerator and an air conditioner working by himself.
“Thank you for your hard work, Teacher Lu!”
Chu Yian perfectly retreated to the sidelines, then brought out the last large watermelon she had hoarded.
Following her usual method, she drew water from the outdoor well to chill it.
Then she turned and went into the kitchen to prepare lunch.
She went into the kitchen.
Two minutes later, she ran out.
Oh my, it’s boiling hot!
In just a few minutes, Chu Yian felt as though she had been in a sauna.
She also turned on the kitchen air conditioner, but with two air conditioners and a refrigerator running, the diesel generator she bought seemed unable to handle the load.
Delicious food was out of the question.
Chu Yian casually made two bowls of noodles and brought them to the only air-conditioned bedroom.
“I still have to organize rooms this afternoon, Teacher Lu, so please make do and rest here for now.
I’ll definitely have your space ready by tonight.”
Having lost a day, she still had many things to do.
Immediately after lunch, she went downstairs to the basement to check on yesterday’s work.
As soon as she entered the basement, the temperature instantly became cool.
This coolness didn’t even require electricity.
Chu Yian instantly felt that she didn’t need to waste electricity; she could just move down here to live!
Now, she just needed to clear away the cement blocks on the ground and then move the items from upstairs down.
She found a bucket and painstakingly shoveled away the lumps of cement on the ground.
Since it hadn’t dried yet, shoveling the cement wasn’t difficult.
The most troublesome part was hauling these cement blocks out one bucket at a time; the cement was heavy, it was hot outside, and each trip out was absolutely grueling.
Fortunately, just as she was feeling a bit dizzy from the heat, an extra pair of hands suddenly appeared upstairs.
