Bai opened a second gate for supply carts before the afternoon rush. He separated medicine from food and building materials, then placed a route card on each wagon. The south gate would keep the busiest foot passage clear.
Ning checked the clinic capacity list and directed each load to a shelter with staff on duty. The fever medicine went to the lower clinic. Blankets went to the school hall. Building parts remained in the locked depot until the engineers verified their sizes.
A driver arrived with a cart of regulators from a municipal store. He had no capital pass.
“The parts came from the city store, not the sealed central treasury,” he said. “The storekeeper says they fit the western relay.”
Wei asked the gate captain for a one-day movement order while the engineers checked the shipment. The captain said he could issue a temporary pass but would need a destination and a person responsible for the cart.
Qiao Wen arrived with a gauge and inspected the markings. He confirmed that the regulators matched the western relay. They were not the pair reserved for the northern tower, and Wuchen’s office had not authorized their installation.
“We can secure them without using them,” Qiao said. “The inspection should happen in view of both storekeepers.”
