Chapter 149

Su Jing's communicator screen suddenly lit up with a glaring pale red light, and the system notification echoed urgently in the control room: [Emergency Environmental Warning: The countdown to the extreme cold period ends in 10 days, and the global extreme heat period will begin simultaneously. The highest surface temperature is expected to reach 60°C, lasting for no less than 90 days!]

The risk of plant wilting is 92%, and the water evaporation rate has increased by 300%. Please immediately implement high-temperature protection measures to avoid resource depletion and a survival crisis!

She had just planted the last hemostatic herb seed into the spiritual soil when she heard the prompt and immediately sat up straight, her fingertips flying across the communicator: "All robots, assemble immediately and prioritize the high-temperature protection installation task!"

Before the words were even finished, five robots had already lined up and run out from beside the space transmission point—the robotic arms of robots No. 1 and No. 2 had been fitted with specially made wrenches and screwdrivers, while the displays of robots No. 3 and No. 4 showed "cooling equipment detection program".

Number 5 was pushing a metal cart full of sunshade parts, the tracks making a slight "crunching" sound on the cement ground.

"Number 1 and Number 2 are responsible for setting up the sunshade canopy in the spiritual herb planting area. First, fix the aluminum alloy frame with a spacing of 2 meters between each frame, and drive it into the spiritual soil to a depth of 30 centimeters to ensure wind resistance."

Numbers 3 and 4 went to inspect 10 solar cooling devices, focusing on adjusting the angle of the solar panels. They must be aligned with due south, and the photoelectric conversion rate must reach the standard of 25%.

"Number 5, come with me. We'll connect the energy storage batteries to the cooling equipment in the planting area to prevent power outages on cloudy days."

Su Jing spoke rapidly, clutching the sunshade installation blueprints in her hand, and strode towards the spatial transmission point. Xiao Jin followed closely at her feet, its short golden fur clinging to its body in the wind. Its voice in her mind was full of urgency: "Su Jing, what if we can't finish installing it? Will the spirit herbs wilt in the sun?"

"No, we'll speed things up, prioritize the planting area, and then set up the operating room."

Su Jing bent down and picked up an aluminum alloy support frame, handing it to Robot No. 1. The frame was 2.5 meters long, coated with an anti-oxidation layer, and gleamed coldly under the emergency lights of the control room. Robot No. 1 took the frame, and its robotic arm precisely positioned itself at the eastern edge of the planting area.

With a clang, the spikes at the bottom of the bracket pierced the soil, and the display screen popped up: "Fixed depth 30cm, verticality deviation ≤1°, meets the standard."

Robot No. 2 followed closely behind, using screws to connect the horizontal and vertical supports, its movements as smooth as an assembly line.

Su Jing led Robot No. 5 into the planting area and squatted down next to a solar-powered cooling device.

The solar panel on top of the device was level. She reached out and adjusted the angle: "Number 5, use the laser level to calibrate it. Adjust the tilt angle of the solar panel to 30 degrees. This angle is the most efficient at absorbing sunlight at our latitude."

Robot No. 5 immediately deployed a laser device, and the red laser line landed on the solar panel. The robotic arm gently pushed the panel until the display showed "Tilting angle 30°, southward deviation 0.5°, photoelectric conversion rate 25.2%, meeting the standard".

Xiao Jin squatted nearby, its little paws scratching at the equipment casing. Suddenly, it noticed a loose power cord, and a voice inside its head cried out urgently, "Su Jing! The cord here is loose! Robot No. 3 didn't see it when it checked!"

Su Jing looked in the direction it was pointing and sure enough, there was a tiny gap at the power cord interface. She immediately told No. 5 to reinforce it with insulating tape. "Thank goodness you have sharp eyes, otherwise it would have short-circuited when it was powered on and the equipment would have been damaged." Little Jin wagged its tail proudly and ran to the next piece of equipment to continue acting as "supervisor".

Halfway through the installation, Su Jing's communicator suddenly started ringing incessantly, a notification from the system chat area.

She clicked on it, and a flood of text appeared on the screen, filled with panic—"Uncle Zhang from the Flower Country" wrote in a tearful voice: "It's all over! The 50 jin of rice I stored at home was fine yesterday, but after drying it in the sun today, it's all moldy! The temperature is too high, and the wheat in the granary has started to sprout. It's only just started getting warm, how will it survive when it reaches 60 degrees Celsius!"

The news from "American Tom" was even more desperate: "It's already 35 degrees Celsius here! The river is almost dry, bottled water in the supermarkets is sold out, and yesterday someone stabbed someone to death in the street over half a bottle of Coke! Doctors say wounds are particularly prone to infection in high temperatures, and without antibiotics, getting injured is just waiting to die!"

A user named "Sister Li from China" posted a video showing parched and cracked farmland with wilted vegetables. The caption read: "My little vegetable garden at home turned into this after just one day without watering. It'll be hard to eat fresh vegetables in the future. Does anyone have any extra seeds? I'll trade them for canned goods!"

Su Jing quickly swiped the screen, understanding dawning on her—these people hadn't prepared cooling equipment in advance, nor had they stockpiled enough durable food, and they panicked when the extreme heat arrived.

She didn't speak in the chat area, but asked No. 5 to bring two more sets of energy storage batteries, "In case of a power outage outside, our solar panels can hold up, and the spiritual herbs and fawns can't be left without protection."

At this moment, Robot No. 1 issued a notification: "The shade canopy supports in the planting area have been fully secured. Please lay the shade cloth." Su Jing immediately went over to help. The shade cloth was made of polyester fiber with a silver coating. When unfolded, it looked like a huge silver curtain. Robots No. 1 and No. 2 held the two ends of the cloth and slowly stretched it to ensure that the cloth was flat and without wrinkles.

Little Jin ran back and forth, using its tiny paws to pull the edges of the cloth that were dangling to the ground back onto the frame. Its inner voice was filled with a sense of accomplishment: "Su Jing, look! The cloth is laid out! It's like covering the spirit herb with a silver blanket; the sun definitely won't be able to penetrate it!"

After the shade cloth was secured, Su Jing turned on a cooling device. Light blue cool air blew out from the vent, and the temperature in the planting area instantly dropped from 29°C to 25°C. The display screen simultaneously showed "Current temperature 25°C, humidity 60%, which meets the growth requirements of the medicinal herbs".

She then checked the four pieces of equipment in the control room to ensure that each one was operating normally before she breathed a sigh of relief.

Just as she was about to catch her breath, Su Jing suddenly remembered the moat surrounding the villa—the river was covered with thick ice during the extreme cold, but now that the temperature was rising, the ice was beginning to melt. If the ice cracked and caused the river to overflow, it would flood the foundation of the villa.

She ordered the robots, "Number 1 and Number 2, stay and guard the planting area. Number 3, Number 4, and Number 5, come with me to clear the remaining ice from the moat, and also check the outer metal mesh so it doesn't get damaged by the melting ice!" Little Jin immediately jumped up, her inner voice full of anticipation: "Outside? Will we be able to see the melting ice? I've never seen ice melt into water before!"

Su Jing smiled and nodded, then grabbed her coat and headed towards the door of the control room.