Chapter 57 The Typhoon Arrives

Zhong Yulan on the other end of the phone nodded. It seemed that Lu Mingyue treated the two children very well, which allowed them to accept the relationship so quickly.

Many people think that children are too young to understand anything, but in fact, children are the most sensitive. They can easily sense the kindness and malice of adults.

Zhong Yulan was genuinely happy that the two children truly accepted Lu Mingyue, and she was also happy for her son.

The two children reluctantly hung up the phone only after the person on the other end urged them to stop.

Huo Zheng went to the window to pay the phone bill, and the family of four walked home hand in hand.

Not far away, the sky seemed to be slowly spreading like ink, with thick, dark clouds rolling in from the horizon.

The sea breeze was stronger than usual, carrying a salty, damp scent.

Yao Yao and Lei Lei ran ahead, shouting as they went, "Mommy, it's so cool here!"

Looking at the unusual sea, Lu Mingyue had a bad feeling. She looked at Huo Zheng and said, "Could it be that a typhoon is coming?"

Even before she arrived on the island, Huo Zheng had told her that typhoons occasionally passed through the island.

Although Lu Mingyue has never experienced a typhoon, she has seen reports about typhoons online.

As the typhoon passed, residents stayed indoors to ensure their safety as much as possible.

Based on Huo Zheng's many years of experience on the island, there was a high probability that a typhoon was coming. However, since he had not received any notification yet, he could not be sure and could only say for the time being, "It is possible that it is a typhoon, but we still need to wait for notification from above."

Upon hearing that it might be a typhoon, Lu Mingyue immediately perked up and asked anxiously, "Does that mean we have to postpone our dinner party?"

Huo Zheng nodded.

Not long after returning home, Lu Mingyue noticed gusts of wind sweeping through the yard, making noise as they blew the clothes on the clothesline.

The chicks in the yard seemed to sense something was wrong and all hid in the chicken coop, no longer foraging for food.

The two children who were feeding the chicks didn't know what was happening. They thought the chicks were sick and ran to find their mother.

Looking at the dark clouds overhead, Lu Mingyue felt that the typhoon was really coming.

Sure enough, in the afternoon, Director Wang's voice came through the loudspeaker in the residential compound.

"Dear family members, good afternoon! According to the notice above, a new typhoon is coming. Please take precautions."

Fortunately, when Lu Mingyue returned, she had already brought all the harvestable vegetables from the garden into the house.

It's better to be safe than sorry.

If a typhoon comes unexpectedly, these things will be destroyed.

"Mingyue, have you packed your things yet?"

Wang Fengmei was worried that Lu Mingyue, who was visiting Shangdang for the first time and had never experienced a typhoon, might be afraid, so she made a special trip to visit her.

"Sister-in-law Wang, I've packed up all the vegetables and put them back inside. Let's bring the chicks back inside too."

Wang Fengmei nodded and said, "Is there enough food at home? If not, I have more at home."

"When the typhoon comes, we can't go out, so we need to stock up on dry food at home."

Lu Mingyue nodded, "We have rice and flour at home."

The grain they bought from the supply and marketing cooperative is still there; they haven't eaten much of it in the last couple of days.

Wang Fengmei looked at their windows and said, "When a typhoon comes, you must close these doors and windows tightly. It's best to fix them in place with something, otherwise they might be damaged by the wind."

"Huo Zheng said he'll be back this afternoon to do the binding, right? That should be enough time, right?"

Lu Mingyue thought to herself, if there really isn't enough time, he can fill in.

"There's still time, there's still time. Don't be fooled by all the dark clouds in the sky; the typhoon is still a while away."

Wang Fengmei passed on her experience to her.

"There might be a power outage in the residential compound, so please keep extra candles at home. If you don't have enough, you can still go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy more now."

Lu Mingyue quickly asked a few more questions, noted down what she wanted to buy, and told the two children to wait at home while she went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy the items.

On the way, they met Zheng Xiuzhi, who was also visiting the Huo family with Niu Niu, worried that Lu Mingyue might not be familiar with the situation since it was her first time on the island.

"Thank you, sister-in-law. I'm so grateful for your concern. Otherwise, I would have been completely at a loss."

They could have easily ignored it, but Lu Mingyue was very grateful for their kind help.

"There's no need for thanks. We're family, no need for formalities. My husband Lao Ji and your Huo Zheng are good brothers, and we're good sisters too. Helping each other is only right."

Niu Niu held his mother's hand, nodded, and said, "Lei Lei, Yao Yao, and I are good friends. It's only right."

The child's words made the two adults burst into laughter.

That afternoon, after Huo Zheng returned home from get off work, he urgently nailed all the doors and windows of his house shut.

"According to the report above, this typhoon is quite large and may last for several days. During this time, I may have to go out on patrol, and I will have to trouble you with the children then."

As soldiers, even during typhoons, they cannot sit comfortably at home and enjoy themselves; instead, they must be even more alert and prepared at all times.

Many bad elements want to take advantage of this time to land on the island and do bad things, which must not be allowed.

There are also some ordinary people whose homes may be at risk due to natural disasters, and as soldiers, they also need to go and help rescue the people.

Lu Mingyue said solemnly, "Don't worry, leave the children to me."

That evening, a light drizzle began to fall in the courtyard.

When Lu Mingyue woke up the next day, it was still raining.

Looking out the window, Huo Zheng had already dug a ditch in the yard where there was water, diverting all the water away.

Huo Zheng brought breakfast from the cafeteria. He delivered the food while wearing a raincoat and left quickly without staying long.

Lu Mingyue and her two children were drawing and writing at home.

As it approached mealtime, she went to the kitchen to cook. Although she didn't know if Huo Zheng would be back, Lu Mingyue still made an extra portion for him.

When she was a child, her favorite food on rainy days was homemade scallion pancakes, served with pumpkin porridge and pickled vegetables—an unforgettable childhood memory.

Since I grew up, I've never had that taste again.

Hearing that their mother was going to make fried pancakes, the two little ones were overjoyed and wanted to help.

Having learned from yesterday's dumpling-making experience, the two children are much more confident in their abilities.

Lu Mingyue reminded them that making oil pancakes was not an easy task.

"So Mom should do it herself."

Even though they weren't able to help, the two little ones weren't discouraged. Instead, one helped fetch water and the other handed things over, keeping themselves very busy.

When Huo Zheng returned at noon, Lu Mingyue thought to herself, "Luckily, I prepared his meal."

But Huo Zheng was leaving soon. He came back only to tell them not to stay in the room that night and to lock the door so he wouldn't be coming back.

Seeing this, Lu Mingyue took all the fried pancakes she had made to him and instructed him, "Eat more when you are hungry, don't let yourself go hungry."

Huo Zheng felt a warmth in his heart and left home carrying the heavy lunchbox.