Chapter 97 The Instant Noodles Wind is So Noisy

Ning Jia suddenly asked:

"By the way, do you know how koalas are weighed at the zoo?"

The little people stared wide-eyed:

What is a zoo? What is a koala? Is it a type of flatbread?

Ning Jia chuckled:

"It's okay, it's okay if you don't know. You'll find out eventually."

As she spoke, she stood up and searched around the living room. Suddenly, her gaze shifted and landed on the large mineral water bottle next to the little people's "water dispenser".

What a coincidence!

The little people don't usually drink much water, so this bottle of mineral water hadn't been opened, meaning it was exactly 5 liters.

So--

As we all know, a large bottle of mineral water is 5L, and the density of water is 1 gram per milliliter. One liter of water weighs 1 kg, so 5L of water weighs five kilograms.

Haha, I'm such a genius!

Ning Jia immediately carried the bucket of water over and placed it next to the weighing scale.

The little people looked blank and completely bewildered: Why did you bring the mineral water over here?

Ning Jia then waved to Shi Ying beside her, "You can come and weigh yourself now!"

Quartz quickly walked over, tilted his little head back, and looked at the several buckets of water as tall as himself next to the scale, completely bewildered:

"Ning Jia, do you want me to drink more water so I can get heavier?"

A hint of difficulty appeared on his round little face. "But, I just ate too much, and I can't drink any more water."

Ning Jia chuckled, "Don't worry, I won't let you drink water."

"This bucket of water is to reach the weighing threshold. Just follow my instructions from now on."

"……oh."

As they spoke, the other little people also looked at the huge mineral water barrel, their faces full of confusion, completely unaware of how to weigh it next.

Ning Jia had already put the mineral water bottle on the scale and checked the number. Sure enough, it was exactly 5 kilograms!

She smiled contentedly, took the water bottle off the scale, reset it to zero, and then said to the waiting quartz:

"Please climb onto the bucket."

Although confused, Quartz didn't waste a second and nimbly climbed onto the mineral water bucket, sitting down on the cap.

Ning Jia leaned down to confirm with him, "Are you seated securely?"

"Um."

Quartz wiggled its short legs, suddenly became a little nervous, and reached out its little hand to grab the plastic handle on the bucket.

"Okay, I'll begin!"

Ning Jia stepped on the scale, and when the display showed four zeros, she lifted a bucket of water and a little person onto the scale together.

This time, the scale finally reacted. Ning Jia looked at the numbers that had stopped changing, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, and then announced:

"The weight of quartz is... 42g!"

Wow, it actually weighs 42g... Ning Jia was shocked but tried her best to remain calm.

Although she knew very well that dwarfs were very small, her usual impression was still based on the concept of body size.

Now that she'd actually weighed herself, she felt her impression of the dwarfs had been completely shattered once again!

What does 42g mean?

Let's take snacks as an example. A small cup of yogurt typically weighs 100g, a bag of cucumber-flavored Lay's potato chips weighs 70g, and a single Oreo cookie weighs 11.3g...

In other words, a small human (heavier version) weighs about the same as four Oreo cookies, or even just three!

Suddenly, an image of three Oreos stacked together flashed into Ning Jia's mind.

Ugh, why do I suddenly crave Oreos?

...

"Ning Jia, was Shi Ying's weight calculated using subtraction?"

Bai Su, Ju Ye, and other top students had already discovered the secret and asked about it.

"……Um."

Ning Jia snapped out of her daze and gave them a thumbs up. "You got it right."

"Since the scale can only weigh objects weighing less than 5 kilograms, and this bucket of water weighs exactly that much, we can find out the weight of the quartz by weighing it together with the water."

"Oh, I see~"

The children understood and were eager to step forward when Ning Jia said again:

"However, this weighing method isn't always accurate. Quartz, could you please weigh it a few more times?"

Quartz, who was still sitting on the bucket lid, nodded upon hearing this.

So Ning Jia carried a bucket of water and quartz, weighed it several times, while the other onlookers gathered around the display screen, watching the numbers change.

After taking the average multiple times, the weight of the quartz changed from 42g in the first instance to an average of 43g.

He didn't really care about the number, but he did enjoy sitting on the bucket lid and being carried around by Ning Jia.

As the quartz reluctantly slid down the bucket, many little figures raised their hands, wanting to be weighed as well.

"I'm definitely heavier than quartz!" "I think I must weigh 80 grams!" "Then I'm 100 grams!"

Ning Jia couldn't help but chuckle. If they knew how heavy she was, they would be absolutely shocked!

But she would never weigh herself in front of the dwarves!

"Okay, HeMeng 42g, next!"

"Orange leaves, 40g, next!"

"...Who else wants to be weighed?"

After playing a weighing game with the little people for a while, Ning Jia successfully strengthened her arm muscles, and the little people also had a new topic to chat about:

Who actually weighs the most?

Currently, quartz still holds the record for the highest value ever recorded. He has lost his earlier tension, and his little face is filled with pride.

"It's because I eat so much all the time that I'm so heavy!"

He Meng, who is 1 gram lighter than him, is very dissatisfied:

"Ning Jia said that this method of weighing isn't very accurate; I might actually weigh more than you!"

"I weighed it several times, how come it's inaccurate?"

Seeing the two little ones bickering, Ning Jia chuckled:

"Don't worry, I've already ordered a food scale online that's perfect for you."

"That scale is more accurate and can even remove the tare. You two can compare them later."

...

Around 1 p.m., before the little ones had even woken up, Ning Jia had already set off on her electric scooter to begin the first delivery of the sachet blind boxes.

She wore a helmet, carried a bag, had a cardboard box in the basket, another on the pedals, and a cardboard box tied to the back of the bike, making it a four-in-one setup as she struggled to ride against the wind.

As she rode, she couldn't help but wonder:

Wait a minute, electric bikes don't require pedaling, so why are they so difficult to ride?

Ning Jia, still groggy from just waking up, struggled to ride in the wind for a while. She felt the wind whistling against her body and slapping against the clear visor of her helmet, which completely woke her up.

Ah! It turns out it was because the wind was getting stronger and stronger, and she was riding against the wind, which is why she was having so much trouble!

This wind feels strangely strong...

The weather seems especially muggy, which is really strange...

Let's get the goods delivered as soon as possible.

Ning Jia finally managed to ride through the wind to a nearby study room, and after delivering the first batch of orders, the cardboard boxes on the back of the bike were immediately gone.

She continued riding to the next delivery point, and soon, the cardboard boxes in her basket were gone too.

More than an hour later, nearly two hundred sachet blind boxes had been given away. Ning's Sachet business, which had not made any money for several days, successfully earned 25,000 yuan.

Although the cost of the new sachets has increased, such as the cost of fabric, needles and thread, and the cost of environmentally friendly packaging is also higher, the profit is still quite high because labor costs are not calculated (since it is a profit-sharing system).

Ning Jia happily rode her bike home, only to find the wind outside getting stronger and stronger, and couldn't help but feel fortunate:

Fortunately, she had already found a local courier service and sent out all the paid orders; otherwise, with so many orders, she didn't know when they would have arrived...

Orders for sachets will only increase in the future, so there are some necessary expenses that cannot be spared.

After Ning Jia made another delivery, on her way home, she was surprised to find:

Several branches were blown off the roadside trees by the wind, lying across the middle of the road. The leaves on the trees rustled and fell to the ground in a rush…

Although strong winds often blow in H City, the wind today is exceptionally noisy!

Ning Jia quickly stopped, checked the weather forecast on her phone, and was then shocked:

The weather forecast this morning only said it was a level 4 gale, but the latest forecast has changed to a typhoon warning!

The typhoon "Stardust," which has been the subject of much online discussion recently, was originally predicted not to pass through H City. However, "Stardust" is quite unpredictable and suddenly changed its travel route, heading straight for H City, intending to make landfall there for sightseeing.

Ning Jia: A typhoon?!

This was the first time in her life she had encountered a typhoon!

Go home, hurry home!

...

When Ning Jia finally managed to ride home through gusts of strong winds, she ran into several police officers who had come to Xinglong Lane.

The short-haired police officer leading the group was Song Ling, who immediately greeted Ning Jia upon seeing her:

"Ning Jia, you're back just in time. We were just looking for you."

Huh? The police are looking for me... What do they want?

Ning Jia's heart skipped a beat. She greeted Song Ling, then glanced guiltily at the courtyard wall, hesitating whether to open the gate.

With such strong winds, it doesn't seem right to let people stand outside and get their faces covered in dust...

While Ning Jia was struggling with her decision, Song Ling handed her a pamphlet on typhoon safety guidelines and told her that Typhoon Stardust might make landfall in H City tonight.

Several police officers stood outside the courtyard, looked at the two persimmon trees in the Ning family's yard, and reminded them:

“Your house is in an alley, so the wind might not be that strong, but the two trees in your yard are still a safety hazard. Make sure to close the doors and windows and don’t linger in the yard.”

Ning Jia nodded repeatedly, feeling a sense of relief.

Song Ling and her team were actually there to check for safety hazards during the typhoon and to inform residents not to wander around. She had thought...

"I know, thank you all. It's so windy, you must be exhausted."

Song Ling laughed in the strong wind, "It's not hard work, it's serving the people."

As he spoke, he called over a few more sandbags for flood control:

“Your location is relatively high, and drainage is not a problem, but it is still a single-story house. If there is a heavy rain, it could be disastrous. It would be better to take precautions.”

"This is so thoughtful!" Ning Jia said gratefully, thanking them again.

"You should already know about those protective measures, so we won't go into detail. There are still a few elderly people ahead of us that we need to help..."

After Song Ling finished speaking, she was about to leave when she suddenly noticed the folded empty cardboard box on her electric scooter:

"Did you just go out to deliver goods?"

"Um."

"Try not to deliver anymore, it's not safe on windy days."

"Okay, sure."

Ning Jia looked at Song Ling, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

In fact, Song Ling and her colleagues had also ordered a lot of sachet blind boxes. They even asked her this morning when the delivery would be made, but right now... it was indeed inconvenient to give them to her.

Never mind, I'll just drop them off at their workplace security guard's place when I go out later.

Song Ling solemnly explained some precautions to Ning Jia and told her to contact him immediately if she was in danger. Then she left in a hurry with a few colleagues.

Ning Jia waited until they were out of sight before opening the door and going home.

...

As soon as Ning Jia entered the house, without even taking a drink of water, she immediately told the little people the bad news:

"Everyone, stop making sachets! A typhoon is coming, we need to make some preparations quickly."

Seeing that everyone didn't quite understand, Ning Jia gave a simple explanation:

"Tonight, there might be really strong winds, the kind that can blow down big trees. There might also be a torrential downpour."

In an instant, all the little people were stunned, and the smiles on their faces disappeared.

The Lilliputians are no strangers to natural disasters such as typhoons.

Even in a seemingly beautiful forest, it is not always sunny and calm.

In their memories, they had experienced many terrible thunderstorms, wildfires, and mudslides...

These sudden disasters could destroy their homes and their people at any moment...

Fear and sadness occasionally flashed across the little people's faces, as if bad memories had been stirred up.

The little one's face turned deathly pale, and he was so frightened he almost cried.

"Then, then our home... will it be..."

This statement successfully triggered panic among the villains, leaving them all bewildered and in a state of chaos.

"Waaaaah, what are we going to do? Our home is going to be gone again!!"

"Chief, I'm so scared..."

"I don't want strong winds, strong winds are scary!"

"A strong wind is coming! The house is going to collapse! Everyone, run away quickly!!"

"Ningjia, Ningjia, let's run away together!"

Many little figures were also tugging at Ning Jia's trouser legs, urging her to escape the courtyard together...

Amidst the chaotic shouts, Canglan swiftly scrambled onto the cardboard box and made a "quiet" gesture that everyone could see:

"Everyone, don't panic. Things might not be that serious. Let's hear what Ning Jia has to say."

Ning Jia hadn't expected everyone to react so strongly to the news of the "typhoon approaching," and couldn't help but wonder if the little people had experienced similar disasters before.

A pang of sadness gripped her heart. She knelt down, gently placed little Luo Luo, who was crying loudly in fright, in her palm, comforted her, and then spoke softly to the children:

"By the Tree God, I swear on my own wallet that our home will never be destroyed, and no one will need to flee to another place."

Seeing that the little people seemed somewhat skeptical, she patiently explained:

"The house we live in now is made of concrete, it's very sturdy, unlike a big tree that can be easily blown down, I can guarantee that."

"Besides, the houses in our courtyard were built by the homeowner himself, using solid bricks. They're not very old, so they might even be sturdier than those commercial houses made of hollow bricks. Plus, they're single-story, so they're less affected by the wind. Therefore, there's absolutely no need to worry about the houses collapsing..."

The children listened with a mixture of understanding and confusion, but seeing that Ning Jia's expression remained calm and didn't seem to be making up lies, they immediately felt half relieved.

"but--"

Ning Jia added, "I can't lie to you either. Typhoon days aren't as safe as usual. We still need to take precautions and not let our guard down."

Upon hearing this, the other half of the children felt relieved.

If Ning Jia made any guarantees, they wouldn't believe him. Only by honestly informing them of the risks involved could he appear genuine and reliable.

Seeing that her people had quieted down and were no longer in a state of panic, Canglan smiled slightly, stroked her chin, and asked:

"Lord Ningjia, you just mentioned that protective measures are needed. Is there anything we can do to help?"

Ning Jia thought for a moment, but couldn't think of anything she could do. After all, with the small bodies of the dwarfs, they could be blown away by a slightly stronger wind...

"Ahem, you don't need to do anything. Just stay in your rooms and don't wander around."

Seeing the little people's disappointed faces, Ning Jia thought for a moment and actually came up with something they could do right now.

"Extreme weather could cause sudden water and power outages..."

Ning Jia checked the time; it was almost four o'clock. She then said to Cang Lan:

"Chief, please take everyone and give them a good hot bath, so that we won't be unable to bathe if the water is cut off tonight."

Canglan: "...Okay."

...

Soon, some of the little people went to the bathroom to take a shower together, while Ning Jia charged both of her power banks and a spare phone.

She rushed into the yard and quickly swept up the pebbles, clods of dirt, and small pieces of trash on the ground.

Fortunately, there are little cleaners who pick up trash every day, and the yard is quickly cleaned up.

Next, she pushed the tricycle from under the shed into the second bedroom. The rattan chair was moved into the living room.

She gradually moved the large water vat in the yard, which hadn't been used for a long time, to the carport.

After eliminating any safety hazards in the yard, Ning Jia told the little people in her family, "Don't come out," and then rode her bike out again.

One of the most important things to do during a typhoon is, of course, to stock up on supplies!

She rode her bike straight to the nearest fruit shop, and before she even entered, she saw that it was packed with people.

Fortunately, this area is an old residential area with not many residents, otherwise there probably wouldn't even be a piece of fruit peel left by now.

Ning Jia immediately joined the buying frenzy, first grabbing a large bunch of bananas, which the children love to eat, and then many oranges, tangerines, and apples, which keep relatively long.

Seeing that the lychees on the counter were on sale, Ning Jia hesitated for a moment, then took a basket. Anyway, there were many people in the family now, and if there was a power outage and they couldn't refrigerate them, it wouldn't be a problem to eat them immediately.

Oh right, our family has doubled in size now, so we need to buy more fruit!

Ning Jia, carrying a shopping basket piled high with fruit, squeezed through the crowd with difficulty and finally managed to grab some melons, small pears, and cheap, long-lasting pomelos that the little people loved.

When Ning Jia finally got to the cashier and paid, she heard the cashier say, "Today is members' day, 15% off." All her fatigue vanished instantly, and her goodwill towards the store increased dramatically!

At times like these, many stores would take the opportunity to raise prices. This store is so honest! Not only did it not raise prices, but it also offered all the discounts it was entitled to. It truly shows a store's character in times of trouble.

After loading and hanging fruit on all sides of the electric scooter, Ning Jia rode back, swaying precariously in the wind, pondering what to buy next:

We'll definitely need to buy more food.

Then there was water. And tape...

As for medicine, we always keep some at home, so we don't need to buy any. We also have a raincoat...and a flashlight...

Ning Jia didn't even need to calculate; she knew that today's expenses would definitely be high!

However, in extraordinary times, there's no time to worry about that.

...

As soon as Ning Jia entered the house, she piled all the fruit on the coffee table, eliciting gasps of surprise from the children:

Wow—so many fruits!

"I want to eat bananas!" "I want to eat pears!"

Having already washed herself clean and been sent by Chief Canglan to act as a supervisor, He Meng immediately ran over:

"Have you taken a shower? You're not allowed to eat fruit if you haven't."

The little ones went to the bathroom dejectedly, while He Meng immediately ran to the big bunch of bananas, grabbed the head of one banana, and kept running to the left and lifting it up. After struggling for a while, she finally managed to break the banana off.

Ning Jia, who was sitting on the sofa drinking water, reminded her:

"It's almost dinner time, eat less."

He Meng had already placed the banana peel on the coffee table, peeled off a strip, and taken a bite with a small spoon. Upon hearing this, she asked curiously:

"Hey, isn't this fruit for tonight's dinner?"

Ning Jia shook her head and told her:

"These fruits are food reserves for typhoon days. We can't go out during typhoons, and if we can't cook, we'll have to rely on these to make a living."

Ning Jia deliberately emphasized the words "cannot cook," but He Meng didn't take it seriously.

Listening to the howling wind outside, and looking at her peaceful and serene home, she suddenly chuckled:

As long as your home doesn't collapse, then this typhoon isn't such a big deal.

Moreover, you can buy so many delicious fruits at once!

The other little people, like He Meng, were also immersed in the joy of "fruit freedom".

When Ning Jia said that they would be going out to buy more supplies later, everyone kept saying "Be careful" and "Come back soon," but their little faces all showed a hint of excitement.

Ning Jia: I understand! Who doesn't understand the joy of hoarding food?

Ning Jia went out several more times despite the wind, bringing back tape, a flashlight, and a radio from the two-yuan supermarket, bottled water and two boxes of milk from the small supermarket, a large amount of easily stored ingredients from the vegetable market, and convenience foods ordered by delivery along the way...

The once spacious living room is now cluttered with things.

Most of these things are food and drink.

The little children looked in amazement at the supplies that seemed like small mountains to them, their faces filled with excitement.

What does it mean to become rich overnight? This is it!

Moreover, in addition to the fruits they were familiar with, there were many other things they were seeing for the first time.

"Ning Jia, what is this? Is it delicious?"

Xuecao pointed to a square red package and asked, her mouth watering at the tempting picture on it.

"Oh, this is instant noodles. It's a kind of deep-fried noodle. You can boil it or eat it dry."

The little ones had never eaten noodles before. Looking at the picture of braised beef noodles with lots of ingredients, they were all immediately drooling and started clamoring for food:

"Ningjia, I want to eat this!" "I want to eat Fangmian noodles!" "Me too!"

Instant noodles are something that shouldn't be given to children casually.

and--

Ning Jia reminded him with a smile:

"Don't look at that picture, that's not real instant noodles."

She pointed to a line of small print at the bottom of the packaging and read it aloud to the little ones:

"The pictures are for reference only. Please refer to the actual product."

"What this means is that only the noodles in this picture are real. As for the large chunks of beef and vegetables, they are not in instant noodles. They are just drawn to tell you that you can add these ingredients when you eat it."

What?

The little ones frowned in confusion, looking at the delicious-looking reference picture again in disbelief.

Daoya, who had just shouted the loudest, instantly sucked back the saliva from her mouth and said angrily:

"That instant noodle seller is so wicked!"

"They tricked me into wanting to eat it, then said it wasn't like the picture, which made me extremely disappointed! ...They were so mean!"

The utterly disappointed little people said one after another:

"Yeah, that's so mean! So mean!" "Absolutely awful!" "I don't want to eat instant noodles anymore, ugh!"

Ning Jia couldn't help but laugh.

Fortunately, the little people haven't learned how to shop online yet.

Otherwise, if you excitedly buy a bunch of things online, only to receive the actual items that are completely different from the pictures, the little ones would probably faint from anger on the spot...

-----------------------

Author's Note: Happy Monday, my darlings! [Sprinkling flowers][Sprinkling flowers]