341 AD, December 1st, 8:00 AM.
Tang Li walked down the street, snowdrifts piled high on both sides.
Dump trucks continuously went back and forth, transporting snow out of the city.
The heavy snow had stopped the afternoon before yesterday, but Tang Li hadn't gone out so quickly.
Because she knew it would take time to clear the snow from the roads, and the snow piled up on the roadside could suddenly collapse.
After this heavy snowfall, the lowest night temperature had dropped to around minus 60 degrees Celsius, and the highest daytime temperature had fallen below minus 20 degrees Celsius, making it extremely cold.
However, it was precisely because of this that the snow piled along the roads quickly froze solid.
Any snow that couldn't be piled up was also transported to open areas.
Therefore, Tang Li only went out to the supermarket this morning.
As Tang Li walked, she thought about things in her mind.
She was very conflicted about whether or not to cooperate with the authorities.
Previously, she hadn't wanted to cooperate with the authorities because she feared that if her ability to replicate supplies was exposed, she would be constantly asked to replicate large amounts of supplies to save people, and her space would shrink until it disappeared.
She knew that official organizations in various places would gradually collapse, and she didn't understand the situation in the underground city, so she didn't dare to expose her ability, only wanting to protect herself.
Now that she had found a way to prevent the space from shrinking, cooperating with the authorities was naturally the best way to utilize this ability.
Under the protection of the authorities, she wouldn't have to struggle to survive and would be kept very safe.
However, she still had many concerns:
If she were to cooperate with the authorities, whom should she contact? And whom could she contact?
If she only contacted people from the A City authorities, such as Zhao Xiaoqing, would the A City authorities conceal her ability from the country, control her, and make her exclusively replicate supplies for A City?
Would someone question her about why she didn't hand over her space earlier?
When the great earthquake and tsunami arrive in the future, would she be able to escape in time?
If she revealed the news of these natural disasters in advance to escape, would people whose relatives and friends died in previous natural disasters blame her for not informing them of the situation earlier?
She didn't understand the internal politics of official circles, so would she unknowingly get caught up in the power struggles often depicted in television dramas?
If she didn't disclose the news of the natural disasters, when the tsunami arrived, and the evacuation team from the A City shelter to Jiang City collapsed on the way, would ambitious individuals try to hold her hostage to obtain her ability?
If those ambitious individuals took her to small civilian bases, would they use various humiliating methods to force her to replicate supplies for them?
If some people couldn't control her, would they adopt a "if I can't have it, I'll destroy it" mentality and act against her interests?
...
Tang Li had thought a lot these past few days, but she still hadn't made a final decision.
After all, rebirth was too rare, and she couldn't be sure if she would have another chance to be reborn.
Having lived a second life, she didn't want to be like a fish on a chopping block, at the mercy of others, as she had been in her previous life.
Moreover, she was unwilling to live under the control and attention of others.
Even if this control was for her protection, and this attention was for her care, she would still feel very uncomfortable.
Tang Li wondered if there was a way to cooperate with the authorities without exposing herself.
Lost in thought, Tang Li soon arrived at the supermarket.
Because the supermarket and the surrounding shops were places where official supplies were stored, the snow in this area had been cleared and not piled up on the roadside.
On the supermarket roof, people were still clearing snow from the solar panels.
Although the freezing rain had passed, many of A City's power facilities had also been damaged. Without the ability to repair these facilities, power could not be restored.
The authorities could only distribute fuel like coal to the public for heating and urged citizens to save fuel as much as possible.
The supermarket could only be powered by diesel generators and solar panels.
Although the authorities would provide diesel fuel for power generation to the "official business partners" in various areas, it was not unlimited.
Clearing the snow from the solar panels earlier could save more diesel fuel.
The supermarket doors were already open, and Tang Li walked straight in.
Inside the supermarket, everything was normal. Residents were queuing in an orderly manner to exchange or purchase supplies.
The supermarket was very warm. After entering, Tang Li took off the scarf and hat that covered her head and face, revealing her beautiful features.
Tang Li saw that at the counter, an official registrar was talking to a young man.
Tang Li ignored them and intended to find Tang Guo to inquire about the inventory.
However, she heard a flippant voice from the counter area:
"Wow! Sister Bai, who is this little beauty? Is she from your area? She's really pretty."