Some children, even wrapped in their mother's arms, wake up with purple lips and stiff limbs in the morning.
At the edge of the Red Residence District, a firmly installed Fire-backed Turtle stove stands, with a heavy iron shell beneath which the sound of bubbling steam can be heard.
Several heat rings are embedded at the top of the turtle shell, emitting heat flows day and night to ensure the surrounding buildings are not frozen.
Even such a strict heating system only covers the core of the city and limited collective housing.
In some resettlement areas farthest from the Fire-backed Turtle, the extreme cold finally begins to claim lives.
It selects the most vulnerable—the frail elderly, children with weak lungs, malnourished workers.
The first to fall was a sixty-year-old mason who suddenly had chest pains while inspecting water pipes on a cold night and never woke up again.
