A power outage struck just as a hallway full of patients were relying on electricity. Panic broke out almost immediately. Technicians ran up and down the corridor, and emergency lights blinked on.
Chu Yian looked around at the chaotic scene.
What now?
Was she supposed to go pay for her meds before leaving?
"Your medical expenses are already covered. Here's your prescription."
If one looked closely, Lu Qingyuan was holding two pharmacy bags—one of them was hers.
While Chu Yian had been unconscious, Lu Qingyuan had taken care of everything.
The two of them exited the hospital together, only to be hit in the face by a wave of suffocating heat the moment they stepped outside.
Sweat instantly started pouring down.
Chu Yian spotted a shaded bus stop sign and immediately darted over.
"Teacher Lu, quick! Over here!"
If they stayed out in the sun much longer, they'd both be getting heatstroke again.
Lu Qingyuan wasn't the type to stand close to a stranger—especially one who acted overly familiar even though they'd just met.
But even the iciest man would melt under 48°C heat.
He'd originally planned to say goodbye here and go his own way, but under the circumstances, he had no choice but to join her in the sliver of shade beneath the billboard.
Taxis were nearly nonexistent.
Every time a vacant one appeared, it was snatched away before they could even wave it down.
It took them forever to finally get a ride.
And due to the taxi shortage, they had no choice but to ride together.
This must be fate…
For some reason, a random song lyric echoed in Chu Yian's head.
"Where are you headed?"
Lu Qingyuan's deep voice snapped her out of her thoughts.
"I'm going home—out in the suburbs," she said quickly, giving a full address. "What about you, Teacher Lu?"
Teacher Lu?
Lu Qingyuan paused at the title, but didn't correct her.
"I'm headed to a hotel."
Originally, he had intended to drop her off first and then find a hotel for himself.
But since her place was even farther, he reported the hotel he'd previously stayed at to the driver.
"We'll stop at the hotel first. I'll cover the fare."
Due to the extreme heat, taxi fares were now triple the normal rate.
Lu Qingyuan said it like it was nothing—rich-guy energy radiating from his every word.
Chu Yian imagined herself as a taxi driver for a second.
If someone talked like that?
Yeah, she'd absolutely gouge him.
By the time she finished this mental play, the car had already pulled up to the hotel.
"Sorry, we're fully booked," the receptionist said.
Luckily, their driver had waited for them outside.
So they went to a second hotel, then a third—
All fully booked.
"The power outage has caused a surge in hotel bookings," the fourth receptionist explained.
"The only rooms we have left won't be available until four days from now. And even then, only two rooms remain. I recommend reserving right away if you're interested."
"And what about the next four days?"
"We suggest looking into private rentals—maybe a homestay."
Hotels were fully booked because they had power—which meant air conditioning and a place to cool off.
As for available homestays?
Those had no power.
A high-rise apartment with no electricity?
Basically a human-sized steamer.
"Teacher Lu, if you don't mind, you can stay at my place for a few days," Chu Yian offered, watching him repeatedly hit dead ends.
"I've got a few spare rooms, lots of trees around—it's nice and cool."
Lu Qingyuan glanced at her.
A stranger he'd just met—not only had she saved him, now she was inviting him over with enthusiastic warmth.
From his perspective, she was being a little too generous.
Chu Yian realized she might have overdone it.
"I mean—how about this. Two hundred yuan per day. It's like a homestay, right? Gotta support local business."
Lu Qingyuan was silent for a moment, then nodded.
"Alright. Let's go."
The taxi dropped them off at her place in the suburbs.
Fare: one thousand yuan.
Yup, Chu Yian thought silently, Teacher Lu definitely got fleeced.
She unlocked the gate.
Inside the house…
It was a mess.
Looked like the aftermath of a robbery.
Bricks were scattered around the yard.
The living room was stacked with food, mattresses, mats, gasoline, and barely any room to walk.
Lu Qingyuan stood at the entrance, unmoving. He didn't even want to step inside.
Chu Yian covered her face in embarrassment.
"Teacher Lu, I can explain! I was in the middle of some renovations when I left yesterday. That's why the place looks like this. But the bedrooms are clean! And I have a generator—we can run the A/C at night!"
"Trust me, you won't find a better homestay than this for just 200 yuan!"
She babbled on, trying to sell the place—then gave him a shove from behind and pushed him inside.
"Teacher Lu, just rest in my room for a bit. I'll go clean up the guest room and move a new A/C in there for you."
She pulled out the generator, followed the manual, filled it with fuel, and tried to start it.
Nothing.
She squatted there, fiddling for ages, drenched in sweat, nearly about to call the seller to complain.
"I'll do it."
Lu Qingyuan took over, read the manual carefully, and handled everything himself.
In the end, he got both the fridge and the air conditioner up and running—all by himself.
"You're amazing, Teacher Lu!"
Chu Yian cheerfully stepped aside and let him take over.
Then she carried out her last watermelon from storage.
Following her usual method, she drew water from the outside well to chill it, then turned to the kitchen to prepare lunch.
Two minutes later, she ran back out.
Holy crap, it's hot!
Just a few minutes in the kitchen felt like a sauna.
She turned on the kitchen A/C, but her generator couldn't handle powering two air conditioners and a fridge at once.
So much for making anything fancy.
Chu Yian threw together two bowls of noodles and brought them to the only air-conditioned room in the house.
"I still need to clear out the guest room this afternoon," she said.
"For now, just make do in here, Teacher Lu. I promise I'll get your space ready by tonight."
She'd lost a full day and still had a ton left to do.
After lunch, she headed downstairs to check on yesterday's basement work.
The moment she stepped into the basement, the temperature dropped.
Cool.
Comfortable.
And completely off-grid.
Chu Yian instantly realized—she didn't even need to waste power.
She could just move down here!
All that was left was cleaning out the clumps of cement on the floor and moving her stuff down.
She grabbed a bucket and started scraping up the wet cement.
Since it hadn't fully dried, it wasn't too hard to remove.
The worst part was carrying the heavy cement buckets outside, one by one.
Heavy cement, brutal heat—every trip was torture.
Luckily, just when she was starting to feel dizzy from the heat, another pair of hands appeared upstairs.