Chapter 27: The First Shelter
At 9:11 on Wednesday morning, the six of them stood outside the unfinished Luming Mountain Hotel.
The development occupied the eastern side of a low ridge forty-two kilometers from the capital.
Three concrete accommodation wings rose around a central courtyard that had never been landscaped. Window openings stared out over bare earth, stacks of unused stone and construction equipment parked beneath weather-stained tarpaulins. The steel frame of the upper conference hall cut across the pale morning sky.
Nothing about the property suggested safety.
And that was what made it the most useful fo them.
Anyone searching for shelter after the heat began would look at the unfinished walls, exposed floors and abandoned machinery and continue toward somewhere that appeared to be more complete.
By the time the city understood that completed buildings were becoming ovens, the roads leading into the hills would already be softening.
Zhiyi got out of Hanchuan’s car and looked past the hotel.
The ridge rose another thirty-seven meters behind the construction site.
Most of the eastern slope was solid granite beneath a shallow layer of soil, while the western side descended toward the road and the river beyond it. The river was narrow now. During the flood, it would swallow the road, the unfinished hotel and most of the lower ridge.
None of that mattered if they left before the water arrived.
A white construction helmet entered her field of vision.
Zhiyi looked at the helmet, then at Hanchuan’s hand holding it. "Put it on," he said softly, smiling at her.
She accepted the helmet and fitted it over her head. The internal band had already been adjusted to her size.
Across the courtyard, Qinghe noticed.
His attention moved from the helmet to Hanchuan, then to the four unopened boxes of safety equipment beside Shichen’s vehicle.
Everyone else had been expected to choose and adjust their own.
Hanchuan had prepared Zhiyi’s before leaving the city.
Qinghe said nothing, but the conclusion appeared in the set of his mouth.
Zhiyi turned away from him. She had slept for four hours and twenty-three minutes. Hanchuan had arrived at her father’s house at 7:47 with breakfast, water and a suitcase containing clothes he had instructed Assistant Lin to purchase after seeing the size of the bag she had packed.
Her suitcase remained in his car.
He hadn’t asked whether she wanted to stay with him after the inspection. He had told her that she was staying with him because returning to the Qiao residence wasted seventy-six minutes of travel time each day.
Zhiyi had checked the calculation.
It was accurate.
Shichen handed out the remaining helmets before unfolding the site plan across the hood of his vehicle. He had changed since the previous night. The dark suit had been replaced by work trousers, steel-toed boots and a grey shirt with the sleeves folded neatly to his elbows.
Zeyu looked down at his own clothing.
His boots were new enough that the leather still resisted when he bent his ankles, and there was a faint rectangular mark on one sleeve where a price label had been removed.
"I was told we were inspecting a hotel," he said. "No one mentioned mountaineering."
"The entrance is twenty meters from where you’re standing," Shichen replied as he secured the plan beneath two metal clips.
"It was a comment about the boots," grumbled Zeyu, a slight pout on his face.
Shichen glanced at Zeyu’s boots before returning to the plans. "Then complain to the person who dressed you."
"My assistant dressed me," Zeyu replied. He shifted his weight when the new leather resisted around his ankles. "He’s never forgiven me for making him work during Fashion Week."
"Then he probably enjoyed the opportunity to buy you something ugly." Shichen secured the final corner of the plan against the hood without looking up.
Zeyu’s gaze dropped pointedly to Shichen’s scuffed work boots. "Those are uglier."
"They have reinforced soles," Shichen replied, as though practicality settled the question.
"Doesn’t make them any less ugly."
The exchange left Zhiyi examining both pairs. They were black, similarly shaped and entirely undecorated. Shichen’s boots contained additional material around the toes and ankles, but she couldn’t identify the characteristic Zeyu was using to measure ugliness.
Zhiyi looked between the two pairs. Both were black. Shichen’s boots had additional material over the toes and around the ankles, but neither pair contained a decorative element that would make one objectively less attractive.
Before she could ask how the ugliness had been measured, Hanchuan placed an opened bottle of water into her hand.
"Drink while Shichen explains the site," he murmured low, his lips inches from her ears.
The question closed without needing an answer so Zhiyi drank.
Shichen waited until Jingwei returned from the temporary security post near the road.
Twelve members of his company had arrived before dawn. They were inspecting the perimeter, recording every worker who entered and replacing the site’s existing cameras with equipment connected to an independent system.
None of them knew why five corporate heirs and a university student had appeared at an abandoned hotel before sunrise.
They had been told that the property was being acquired for a private development. That explanation would remain sufficient until the work became too unusual to hide.
Shichen pointed to the plans.
"The hotel has three wings above ground and four completed levels beneath the eastern wing. The first two underground levels were intended for parking, deliveries and staff facilities. The third contains mechanical systems, storage and the main kitchen preparation area. The fourth was designed as a spa, private theatre and emergency refuge for high-profile guests."
Zeyu leaned over the hood. "Someone designed an emergency refuge beneath a spa?"
"The original owner expected politicians to stay here."
"That explains it," Zeyu nodded sagely.
Shichen ignored him. "The refuge was never fitted out, but the concrete shell is complete. There’s a service reservoir under the eastern end, two grid connections and enough space for independent generators. We can reinforce and seal the lower structure without changing the exterior enough to attract attention."
"How much water does the reservoir hold?" Qinghe asked.
"Three million liters at maximum capacity."
"For six people?" Zeyu looked at Zhiyi. "Professor, I realize Hanchuan is difficult to live with, but how many showers are you planning to take?"
Hanchuan raised his eyes from the plan.
"I was referring to you," Zeyu told him.
"I know," Hanchuan replied, clearly unimpressed.