BEFORE THE WORLD FROZE, I BUILT MY OWN KINGDOM

Chapter 7: Building a Power Plant

(Author's note: A bit boring. Can be skipped.)

Ethan hadn't expected the man to be so alert, ready to haul him off to the police at the slightest excuse.

It made him nervous at once.

After all, he was nobody, and a nobody with almost no money. If he ended up at the police station, he'd never be able to explain what he was doing.

So he quickly pulled out his ID and held it out.

"Sir, you've misunderstood. I truly meant no harm. Here's my ID. I live in Oakridge District, not far from Riverglen."

Riverglen and Oakridge sat side by side, and both fell under the jurisdiction of Ravenmoor. One was a satellite city, the other a district of the main city.

The man took the ID with a wary look and studied it. When he saw the address, his brows loosened.

His tone softened a great deal. "Oakridge Orphanage?"

"Yes. I grew up in an orphanage. I've been out on my own for a while now, but since I've always rented, my registered address is still the orphanage," Ethan said.

Once Ethan confirmed it, every ounce of suspicion drained out of the man's face. He handed the ID back, a trace of sympathy in his eyes.

"I see. You've had it rough. But you should know Ravenmoor is a key national defense-industry city, and spies are a real problem here. Don't hold it against me for being suspicious. These days, things have become..."

He trailed off, feeling guilty. This young man was an orphan, and he had just accused him of being a spy. That was a cruel thing to do.

Ethan breathed a quiet sigh of relief and smiled.

"I understand. I understand completely. The Riverglen Power Plant is critical infrastructure. Of course you have to be careful."

Seeing that Ethan wasn't offended, the man relaxed and laughed.

"Ha! Ethan, right? My name's Walter Briggs. I used to be a recon soldier, and after I retired, I took a job as a security guard at the Riverglen Power Plant. I was too hasty today, I admit. Well, it's almost lunchtime, and I happen to be off today. How about a few drinks? My treat!"

Ethan's pulse quickened. Judging by the man's age, he had to have worked at the plant for at least twenty years. After all that time, he must know the power industry inside and out.

Rather than wander around like a headless fly, it would be far better to hear what Walter had to say.

So Ethan agreed at once, smiling warmly.

"So you're a veteran, Mr. Briggs! I respect soldiers more than anyone. I was the one at fault today, and I caused you trouble. Let me be the one to treat you!"

Walter immediately grew anxious. "Young man, that's too generous. You've come to Riverglen. It's only right that I play host. There's no reason for you to spend a dime."

Seeing how firmly he insisted, Ethan stopped arguing. After all, it would be a shame to ruin a friendship that had just been mended over a quarrel about who paid the bill.

A little while later, Walter led him to a local specialty restaurant in Riverglen.

After several rounds of drinks and a few dishes, Walter finally opened up completely.

"You said you were doing market research. Are you planning to start your own business?"

"Yes. I've always had a dream of owning a power plant of my own, one that lights up thousands of homes. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Ethan answered with a smile, his eyes shining with hope for the future.

And in truth, he wasn't lying this time. At the very least, he was serious about building a power plant.

His original plan had been to find an existing plant and build his bunker near it. But a plant wasn't under his control. Even in the most remote places, conflicts with other people were unavoidable, and he wanted none of that.

Instead, it would be better to find a remote mountain forest and build a power plant there, then build the bunker inside it. All he would have to do was clear out the plant before the apocalypse. By then, the cold would be bitter and the roads nearly impassable. Even if outsiders wanted to take it from him, they would be powerless to try.

Walter felt a pang of unease as he listened.

This young man was an orphan. He must have watched the lights of countless homes glowing every night and felt a deep ache of envy. That must be where this dream came from, planted when he was just a child.

He sighed inwardly. But even with all the drinks he'd had, his mind was still fairly clear, and he didn't let his sympathy show.

Instead, he smiled. "Lighting up thousands of homes and giving the city a steady supply of power is a great dream indeed. But the power industry isn't that simple. It takes a huge amount of money, serious technical know-how, and you have to navigate all kinds of policies and regulations."

Ethan nodded. "I know all that. As for funding, I've saved up some money over the years, and with a little extra investment, it shouldn't be a problem."

Walter was a bit startled. "You mean you've already found investors, and you're planning to build a coal-fired plant?"

"More or less. The money should be ready soon," Ethan replied.

And in his mind, he added, The lottery commission will be my investor.

Walter had no idea what Ethan was thinking. By now he was a little drunk, the perfect state for bragging, or for listening to someone else brag.

Hearing Ethan's explanation, he didn't doubt a word of it, and laughed. "Young man, you're impressive! I never imagined someone so young could do something like this!"

A coal-fired plant took hundreds of millions of dollars at the very least. How could he not be astonished?

"Ha, thank you for the kind words, Mr. Briggs. I'm still doing my research, so nothing is certain yet. But you've worked at the Riverglen Power Plant for so many years. You must understand this industry deeply. Could I ask for your advice?"

Ethan spoke modestly.

Walter shook his head with a wry smile. "I'm only a security guard, not an engineer. What advice could I give? But I can share a few thoughts for you to consider. Whether you use them is up to you."

"Please, speak freely," Ethan said.

Walter thought for a moment. "First, you need to understand the basic principles of how a power plant operates, from generation to transmission to distribution.

"Second, you need to think about funding. Building and running a plant takes enormous capital. It's a long-term investment, and you can't relax just because the plant is finished.

"Third, you need to understand the laws and regulations so your project can operate legally.

"And finally, the most important point. Electricity isn't like ordinary goods. A private individual can't just sell it directly. Whatever you generate has to be connected to the national grid, and you'll need to negotiate that with the authorities beforehand."

Ethan gave a slight nod, showing that he agreed deeply. Then he seized the chance to ask another question.

"Do you know of any good locations for a plant, Mr. Briggs? I'd want somewhere quiet and far from people, to keep pollution away from residents."

Walter grew serious. "Speaking of pollution, young man, are you really planning to build a coal-fired plant?

"Our country has been extremely strict about environmental protection lately. Even a big state-owned plant like Riverglen gets criticized all the time by the Environmental Agency.

"Forgive me for being blunt, but you should give up that idea. Don't even think about building a private coal plant!

"If you truly want to invest in power, consider green energy. Hydropower, solar, wind."

Ethan fell silent.

The plant he wanted was for the apocalypse, when every river would be frozen solid. How could water generate anything? The apocalypse itself began with the sudden drop in the sun's temperature, so solar power was hopeless. Wind came from temperature differences, and on a planet frozen from pole to pole, it would be too weak and unstable to generate steady power. Worse, wind turbines would be wrecked by the extreme cold. He ruled those out too.

He shook his head with a wry smile. "We don't get much sunshine in this region all year, so solar has no advantage here. The same goes for wind. The northwest has the edge on both. As for hydropower, our city already has plenty of dams. It's saturated. Output is low in winter and there's surplus in summer. I don't want to get tangled up in that mess."

Hearing his concerns, Walter nodded in partial agreement. Then he suddenly slapped his forehead.

"Young man, why not consider geothermal? It's an emerging energy source, very clean, and there's no seasonal swing to worry about. The government will definitely back it strongly!"

Ethan's eyes lit up.

In a frozen apocalypse, geothermal power was truly an excellent option.