In late spring and early summer, after the ice and snow melt, the migrants will band together and flood into Shelter City.
"Slowly, step by step, tell the residents the real situation, keep raising expectations. Accepting thirty or fifty thousand people, and then accepting seventy or eighty thousand will be easier to understand. Accepting seventy or eighty thousand... followed by hundreds of thousands, wonât be too shocking, and it will likely be portrayed as a major opportunity for the cityâs development."
Cheng Ye pondered and put away the Defense Communication device, then boarded the bus.
"Master Zhang, letâs first go around the Central Inspection Station to check the situation."
"Sure thing."
The bus assigned to him didnât have to follow the usual fixed route.
On the way, there were already quite a few officers from the Public Security Bureau directing the crowds.
But no one stepped forward to question Master Zhangâs bus, after all, the staff had already marked its transit authority in the security system through the inspection station.
About a kilometer away from the Central Inspection Station, Cheng Ye rolled down the car window and could vaguely hear the noisy voices ahead.
The migrants, influenced by the Wanderer, had been rushing day and night, with many arriving last night.
Although the North-South Inspection Station was open all night, the Central Inspection Station was not, so the migrants who arrived at night could only camp outside the line, waiting to enter the city at dawn.
"Inspector Cheng, your vehicle canât go any further; the area ahead is under lockdown."
Three hundred meters from the inspection station, two guards from the Central Inspection Station approached, saluted Cheng Ye with precision, and spoke respectfully.
"Have the migrants arrived?"
"Yes!" The guard nodded in response.
"How many people?"
"The current notice from above says... forty-seven thousand."
Goodness.
Over forty thousand?
Cheng Ye didnât have a specific concept at the moment, so he motioned for Master Zhang to park the bus by the roadside, opened the door himself, and walked towards the Central Inspection Station.
This place, where he had been on duty for more than a month, was so familiar that he could find his way around with his eyes closed.
The closer he got, the clearer the noise outside became, with the buzzing voices surging like waves, mingled with crying children, shouting adults, and the clinking of metal objects.
After swiping through several isolation doors, Cheng Ye ascended the office building on the outer side of the inspection station, standing on the fourth-floor observation deck to gaze outside.
In an instant, he almost held his breath, his mind filled with a classic meme:
[So many people.jpg]
The Wilderness outside the inspection station, which used to be so desolate that the ruins of Chuan City could be seen, was now packed with heads stretching from outside the line to the edge of the ruins, a black mass with no end in sight.
Looking both left and right, there was no end.
The air above the crowd seemed warped by breath and body heat, even the sunlight through it shimmered with a blurred ripple.
Some people sat on the ground wrapped in tattered blankets, others were checking supplies in their backpacks, and there were children with bags running and playing in the gaps of the crowd, only to be scolded by adults and run back sheepishly.
Further away, temporary shelters sprang up in patches, with canvases, plastic sheets, and even old sacks becoming materials to shield against the elements, far grander than a tent camp!
"Is this... the first wave?"
Cheng Ye stood there in a daze, his Adamâs apple moved slightly.
Those armchair plans, when faced with so many living faces, suddenly seemed powerless.
Forty-seven thousand mouthsâhow much water and food will they consume today?
How many batches should enter the city for screening? How should they be settled?
How can the potential sources of infection be rooted out among this tide of people?
A series of questions instantly flooded his mind.
Cheng Ye couldnât help but rub his temples; this was much harder than simply dealing with an infection wave.
Even the Extraordinary canât suppress everything with martial power in the face of such a crowd.
Return to development, ultimately relying on the mind, wisdom, and... means!
"Fortunately, I still have to be on duty for three more days, so I donât have to face the first waveâs resettlement."
Cheng Ye let out a long breath and turned to walk out of the inspection station.
He wondered if the negotiations on Ding Yishanâs side had any results.
But even if the inspector contracting system is approved, the first batch certainly wouldnât be assigned to him, the intern.
Several Fifth-Phase, a bunch of Fourth-Phase and Third-Phase Inspectors, are the main force of the inspection station.
Facing the first wave of chaos, these anchors have to stabilize the situation before subsequent batches can be contracted out.
Returning to the car, Cheng Ye called over two guards to roughly understand the information about the migration wave.
Such as gender ratio, family ratio, original residence, whether thereâs an entire settlement, etc.
If the migrants need to be diverted to the South Inspection Station, this information is the focus of the inspection.
Inside the car, Master Zhang was fiddling with the radio, turning the knob through noisy channels, suddenly erupting with a burst of uplifting music accompanied by a clear voice singing.
Cheng Ye suddenly turned his head, inexplicably finding the voice familiar, listening again...
Hmm? Isnât this Wang Kangâs voice?
He paused in surprise; sure enough, after listening for less than two minutes, another slightly immature male voice joined in.
âThe moon is right above my head, the road is right below my feetâ
âFootprints connect to the clouds, the water bottle sway to half a song~â
Master Zhangâs hand paused, turning around in astonishment, just in time to meet Cheng Yeâs somewhat awkward smile.
"Itâs a hobby, one of my interests."
Cheng Ye touched his nose, never expecting to hear "himself" singing on the radio.
And it must be said, it sounded quite nice, with clear, youthful brightness.