Soon, Xu Xiaoka sent a cute sticker and messaged, "Momo, it's Xiao Ka! Thank you. If it weren't for you, I definitely would have frozen to death last night!"
As it turned out, the temperature had plummeted again after midnight. Despite having the heater on, Xu Xiaoka woke up several times from the cold. Finally, she had to add another cotton quilt to safely make it through the rest of the night.
When she woke up in the morning, her first thought was to thank Chen Momo for telling her to buy winter clothes and quilts. However, Chen Momo seemed very unapproachable and didn't seem interested in talking to her. Thus, Xu Xiaoka had to search for Momo's WeChat in the apartment building's group chat and add her as a friend. Through WeChat, Xu Xiaoka expressed her gratitude. Even though Chen Momo's reminder might have been unintentional, it helped her immensely. Otherwise, she would have frozen to death in the early hours of the morning.
"As long as you didn't freeze," Chen Momo replied briefly. She didn't want to get involved with too many people, so she usually acted quite aloof.
Xu Xiaoka sent another cute sticker. "Momo, I watched the news this morning. Experts say the heavy snow might last for three to seven days. I'm going to the supermarket later to stock up on some food. Do you need me to bring you anything?"
"No need."
"Okay, Momo. If you need anything, just send me a WeChat message. Love you!"
Xu Xiaoka was actually quite active on WeChat, completely lacking the shyness she had shown in person.
Chen Momo got up and poured herself a glass of warm water. She took a jar of honey from her space, stirred some in, and drank it. Standing by the window, she watched the heavy snow outside. People were bundled up in winter coats, trudging with difficulty through the snow. Those who hadn't prepared winter clothing could only huddle in their homes with the heater on, praying for the storm to stop soon.
Her son, Xiao Bao, also woke up. Pressing his little hands against the windowpane, he looked at the heavy snow outside. "Mommy, the snow is so heavy."
Chen Momo checked the current indoor temperature; it was fifteen degrees Celsius. As for the outside, it had to be around minus twenty or thirty degrees, and the accumulated snow was already past an adult's knees. Yet, there were still parents who couldn't withstand their children's nagging and had no choice but to take them downstairs to play in the snow.
Chen Momo said, "Xiao Bao, we can't go down. We have to stay in the apartment all the time, understand?" With the natural disaster descending, one never knew what would happen in the next second. It was safest to stay indoors. It was just a bit boring.
Unlike other children, Xiao Bao didn't make a fuss about going downstairs. He nodded obediently and said in a sweet voice, "Xiao Bao understands."
"Xiao Bao is so good," Chen Momo said, rubbing her son's head. "Mommy is going to make breakfast. Be a good boy by yourself, okay?"
Chen Xiaobao nodded. "Okay."
Chen Momo went to the kitchen and began preparing breakfast. She took out piping hot millet porridge from her space, along with boiled eggs, a small dish of pickled vegetables, and boiled greens. She also brought out four steamed buns—two stuffed with mushrooms and two with pork and cabbage. Next, she took an apple, peeled it with a fruit knife, cut it into bite-sized pieces, and pierced them with toothpicks. She put two glasses of milk in the microwave for a minute; when they came out, they were steaming hot.
Chen Momo set up the small table, placed the breakfast items on it one by one, and called her son to eat. After the mother and son finished their meal, their whole bodies warmed up, leaving them feeling incredibly comfortable.
With breakfast out of the way, they were free again. Chen Xiaobao held a children's book and began to read, while Chen Momo continued binge-watching *The Legend of Zhen Huan*. Once she finished *The Legend of Zhen Huan*, she moved straight on to *The Story of Minglan*. It was a female-centric TV drama starring Zhao Liying that had been wildly popular online, but she hadn't seen it yet.
Before the apocalypse, Chen Momo had downloaded 10,000 TV shows, 10,000 movies, and 100,000 other media resources from the internet. It was more than enough for her to kill time during the boring apocalypse.
At noon, she and Xiao Bao decided to have something nice to eat.
Chen Momo took a chicken out of her space and stewed an old hen soup. She also retrieved some sauce-flavored flatbread, cut it into six fan-shaped pieces, and arranged them on a plate. She popped them into the microwave for a few minutes to heat up. Soon, the mouthwatering aroma of the savory flatbread wafted out. She scooped a bowl of chicken soup for both herself and her son, and the two of them ate with great relish, pairing the soup with the flatbread.
By this time, some people in the building were already trapped indoors because they lacked winter clothes. With no stockpiled supplies, they couldn't cook and had to resort to eating instant noodles. Those who were slightly more extravagant would order takeout. However, due to the blizzard and severe cold, just the delivery fee alone had skyrocketed to fifty yuan. The delivery cost was almost as expensive as the meal itself. Since many residents in the neighborhood were working-class, they simply couldn't afford such exorbitant takeout prices and preferred eating instant noodles over ordering in.
The heavy snow continued to fall in flurries, growing heavier with no sign of stopping. Looking out the window, there were only a few sparse figures left braving the storm. Even bundled up tightly, they were still shivering violently in the snow.
Chen Momo took out a box of Zhou Hei Ya braised duck, gnawing on duck necks as she continued her drama. The plot was quite good, and the lead actress's performance was especially outstanding. After watching for a while, Chen Momo grew tired, dozed off, and fell asleep slouched on the sofa. She slept for a solid hour before waking up.
Upon waking, she noticed an extra air-conditioning quilt draped over her. It turned out that Xiao Bao had come out of his room, seen her sleeping on the sofa, and brought his own quilt to cover her. Looking at the blanket on her body and then at the little silhouette of her son sitting properly at his desk reading in his room, a warm current of happiness welled up in Chen Momo's heart. In this life, she would definitely take good care of her son and watch him grow up healthy and happy!
Perhaps because they were going crazy from being cooped up by the heavy snow, everyone was highly active in the group chat. Even the office workers who rarely spoke up were now chatting away.
Some complained that the snow had ruined their family's travel plans, while others hoped the storm would end soon. Then there were a few fools happily thanking the snow, saying that their companies had given everyone paid time off because of it.
One particular idiot named Liu Xiangdong even hoped the heavy snow would never stop so he could stay home and rest with pay forever.
Since the snow showed no signs of stopping, more and more people realized the need to stockpile supplies. With it being inconvenient for women and children to go out, the men—acting as the heads of their households—took on the responsibility of braving the supermarket to grab goods. Throughout the day, men steadily trudged out of the neighborhood against the blizzard, returning with large bags of groceries in their hands.