March 15th, 342 AD, 19:00.
After four days of stopping and starting, Tang Li finally arrived in Jiangcheng with Tang Guo.
As soon as they entered Jiangcheng's territory, Tang Li saw that the snow-covered passage had become wider, and the streetlights on both sides were also lit.
There was still some distance to the Jiangcheng toll station, but Tang Li could see a bright expanse of lights ahead and many vehicles forming a long queue.
Even though it was late, people were still flocking to Jiangcheng from all directions.
Shortly after Tang Li's car stopped, several official personnel walked over from the front and knocked on Tang Li's car window.
Tang Li cooperatively rolled down the window.
The official personnel were surprised to see only two young girls in the car and paused for a moment.
They quickly reacted and stated professionally, "Hello, please present your identification cards and passes."
Tang Li cooperated by producing her pass, as well as her and Tang Guo's identification cards.
After checking the documents, the official personnel asked, "Are you passing through or staying permanently?"
Tang Li replied, "Staying permanently."
Upon hearing this, the official personnel issued two slips to Tang Li and handed them over, saying, "These are temporary residency permits, valid for 24 hours."
Tang Li understood and accepted them.
The seven cities they had passed through previously also required such temporary residency permits upon entry.
The official personnel continued, "You don't need to enter the city center tonight. Please go to Exchange No. 5 in the suburbs to temporarily reside. Within 24 hours, after completing the long-term residency procedures at the Civil Affairs Bureau, you will be allowed to enter the city center."
Tang Li was somewhat surprised by this.
The other cities Tang Li had visited only had one exchange each. She hadn't expected Jiangcheng to have exchanges numbered up to five, indicating at least five such facilities.
Furthermore, this exchange was not located within the city but in the suburbs.
This was likely intended for those passing through Jiangcheng or those without the qualifications to enter the city center.
After the official personnel finished speaking, they left to attend to the vehicles behind Tang Li.
Tang Li then started her vehicle again and slowly moved forward, following the convoy.
Upon reaching the East Jiangcheng toll station, Tang Li noticed that a ring of floodlights was installed on the surrounding dome, illuminating the entire toll station as if it were daylight.
Jiangcheng was the central city of China's eastern region, not only the political, economic, and cultural hub of the east but also the headquarters of one of China's four major military regions, the Jiangcheng Military Region.
Before the apocalypse, it was already a densely populated city with a complete industrial base.
Even though the power equipment was damaged after the freezing rain, with full-scale production, they quickly manufactured sufficient power equipment and restored the city's power supply.
In addition, Jiangcheng was adjacent to the great river and had a nuclear power plant, so it naturally had no shortage of electricity.
Precisely because of this, people from China's eastern region all wished to enter Jiangcheng.
However, Jiangcheng had a limited capacity for population, and it was naturally impossible to accept everyone. The qualifications for residency within the city were also strictly controlled and not easily obtained.
While Tang Li was queuing at the toll station, individuals from a car behind them were directly taken away.
Simultaneously, a voice came from the loudspeaker: "Temporary residency permits cannot be reissued without cause. Please leave immediately upon expiration; no loitering! Violators will be fined 100 points each and repatriated to their place of origin!"
It turned out that the individuals in the car behind them had their temporary residency permits expire that day, and they had not yet completed the long-term residency procedures, so they had to leave.
However, after leaving, they cleverly attempted to find an excuse to obtain another temporary residency permit and remain in Jiangcheng, resulting in their immediate apprehension.
Seeing this, Tang Guo nervously asked, "Lili, can we stay?"
Tang Li reassured her, "Don't worry, as long as we have enough supply allocation vouchers, we can definitely stay."
After passing through the East Jiangcheng toll station, Tang Li drove directly towards Jiangcheng Exchange No. 5.
Soon, they arrived at Exchange No. 5 and entered the underground parking garage. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
Exchange No. 5 was located in the eastern suburbs of Jiangcheng. Before the apocalypse, it was also a large hotel, and its scale was immense, with one main building and five auxiliary buildings, connected by a lower-level annex.
The main building stood 42 stories tall, the five auxiliary buildings were 34 stories each, and the lower-level annex was 6 stories, arranged in a pentagonal shape.
However, the main building was not accessible to those with only temporary residency permits, even if their points met the VIP conditions of other cities.
Therefore, Tang Li had to take Tang Guo to stay in one of the auxiliary buildings and booked a suite.
Tang Guo glanced at the price and quickly refused, "100 points per night? No, that's too expensive. I'll just take a single room."
Tang Li said helplessly, "Sister Guo, why are you doing this again?"
"How could I possibly stay in a suite myself and let you stay in a single room? Besides, we came together; what kind of situation is it if we stay separately?"
"What's more, don't you want to stay in Jiangcheng? If you want to stay in Jiangcheng, then listen to me!"