The neighborhood group chat was flooded with complaints:

"4-1209 Slacking Off: Are you kidding me? A power outage now? I’m going to die from the heat without AC!"

"6-2702 Holly: What are we going to do? My baby won’t stop crying from the heat."

"2-1408 Bella Grant: My kid’s school was canceled because of the high temperature, so now the elderly and children are all at home. How are they supposed to handle this heat without air conditioning? @Property Management, what’s going on?"

"2-1908 Coco: The last power outage was because of the tornado. What’s the reason this time? Don’t tell me the power equipment got fried by the sun." 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"4-2009 Nina: Didn’t our complex’s power equipment just get inspected and repaired after the tornado? It’s all new stuff, how could it break? Did the property management embezzle the funds?"

"Property Management: @All Residents, per a government notice, the weather is extremely hot. Droughts and water shortages are occurring in various regions, making hydropower generation difficult. Meanwhile, residential electricity consumption has skyrocketed, creating a major power shortage. Starting today, all residential areas in Anworth will have a rationed power supply. Power will be supplied daily from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM. Please plan your electricity usage accordingly and charge your devices in time."

"4-1209 Slacking Off: No!!! The ice cream bars I just put in the freezer are going to melt!!!"

"6-702 The Lover: No way, so no power at night either?"

"5-2602 SoloByNorthWindow: There are elderly people at my home; they can’t take it without AC. Can we turn on the complex’s backup generator? @Property Management."

"Property Management: @5-2002 SoloByNorthWindow, we apologize, resident, but the government has implemented controls on gasoline and diesel. Each residential complex is given a fixed quota. The complex’s backup power system can only supply enough electricity to ensure the elevators and fire safety systems are operational."

"3-1007 Kiki, Mom of Two: My kids can’t stand the heat. I’m thinking of taking them to the mall; at least they have free AC there. Does any neighbor want to go together? Taxis are really expensive right now, we could share a ride!"

"..."

Melody Summers knew that the current power rationing in residential areas was to ensure electricity for industrial production, especially for food processing plants.

The government must have foreseen something, so they were giving factories a few weeks to ramp up production and stockpile enough supplies for the difficult times ahead.

With the sudden power rationing, Melody Summers was a little worried about Winnie Summers and decided to go check on her at Crystal Mart.

*

Robert Lancaster had been on edge for the past few days. Back in mid-April, he had been happy that summer arrived early, thinking the peak tourist season might start sooner.

But now, it was just too hot!

Several of the country’s famous summer resorts had reached forty to fifty degrees Celsius, which was simply unimaginable. Who would go on vacation to a place that hot? The attractions were deserted, and most scenic areas had shut down completely.

In the last couple of days, the bank had been demanding payment, but he couldn’t recoup the project funds. The Sutton Family’s attitude was ambiguous; they had talked about injecting capital, but had yet to make a move.

Out of options, Robert Lancaster had no choice but to start borrowing from loan sharks, at least to pay off the interest owed to the bank.

Just then, the villa’s central air conditioning suddenly stopped working.

"Why is the power out!" Robert Lancaster slammed his hand on the table, his voice full of anger.

"Oh, don’t worry. I’ll have the maid switch to the generator right now," Elaine Hughes quickly soothed him.

Just then, the maid, Miss Warren, came over and said, "Madam, the generator is out of gasoline."

Robert Lancaster froze, then a wave of regret washed over him. He suddenly remembered someone had warned him a while ago that power was tight. To guarantee electricity for the factories, the government was going to start rationing power to residential areas soon.

The wealthy circles had gotten the news in advance and were all hoarding power generators and fuel like gasoline and diesel. For a time, prices skyrocketed, and the demand for fuel far outstripped the supply.

He had been so busy with the company these past few days that he had completely forgotten about it.

Robert Lancaster frowned and called his assistant, telling him to purchase gasoline and diesel. However, he was told that the state had now implemented controls on fuel. Not only was gasoline hard to buy, but even diesel, which used to be readily available, was no longer sold easily. The black market still had some stock from private trades, but the price had already soared to about twenty times what it used to be.

Robert Lancaster slammed the table in frustration. The household expenses had been ballooning these past few days. He had glanced at the family’s April bill earlier. The month wasn’t even over, yet the cumulative spending was already approaching half of last year’s total expenses.

"You’re home all day, every day. How could you spend so much money? The company is tight on funds right now, don’t you know how to save me some money?" Robert Lancaster said to Elaine Hughes, his voice full of dissatisfaction.

Elaine Hughes felt wronged. She argued back, "Don’t take it out on me again. Have you even looked at how much the prices of fruits and vegetables have gone up? A family has to eat. The other day, the luxury boutiques sent over this season’s new arrivals, and I didn’t dare keep a single thing. To save money, I’ve canceled several of my club memberships. How can you say that to me?"

After speaking, Elaine Hughes began to sob quietly.

Robert Lancaster could only sigh and console her. "The company’s having cash flow problems lately. I know it’s been hard on you. Things will get better once the temperature drops in a few days and the tourism industry recovers."

After a moment’s thought, he added, "Let’s tighten our spending for a while. Don’t buy anything unnecessary. Fruits and vegetables are expensive, so be more frugal. Just enough to eat each day is fine. Don’t be wasteful."

Hearing this, Elaine Hughes could only nod with tears in her eyes. Robert Lancaster was the one who earned the money in this family; she had very little say in front of him.

*

The moment Melody Summers stepped outside, a wave of heat hit her. Holding a sun umbrella and a handheld fan, she walked toward Crystal Mart, fanning herself the entire way. By the time she reached the supermarket entrance, her back was completely soaked in sweat, the fabric clinging to her skin. She deeply regretted her decision to go out after three in the afternoon.

Crystal Mart was packed with people. A few were renting shared power banks near the checkout counter.

Other residents were squatting quietly by the shelves, discreetly enjoying the free air conditioning.

The freezers were empty of ice cream bars and cold drinks. The price of ice cream had multiplied several times, but every new shipment was still snatched up instantly. Crystal Lynch was stocking a new batch of mineral water in a freezer to chill.

Seeing Melody, Winnie Summers quickly grabbed a bottle of water for her. "Why did you come all the way over here at this time? The sun is brutal right now."

Melody wiped her face and shook her head. "I’m fine. I was a little worried about you guys, so I came to check."

"We turned on the generator as soon as the power went out, so the AC is running. I’ll head back in the evening when it’s cooler. Don’t keep running over here every day. Be careful you don’t get heatstroke," Winnie Summers said with a frown.

An older man who was enjoying the AC looked up and said, "You really can’t afford to get heatstroke now. The hospitals are packed with people who have it."

An older woman next to him added, "That’s right, it’s been too hot these last few days. Many of the residential buildings damaged in the tornado still haven’t been repaired. But the construction crews don’t dare to work now because it’s too hot. Too many people couldn’t handle the high temperatures and got heatstroke, so now they can only rest during the day and work at night."

"Then what about the people in those damaged complexes? It’s so hot outside, how can they stand it out there?" Crystal Lynch asked.