Chapter 109. During the peak of the extreme heat, Yunlu Village ushered in its second bumper harvest. ...
One hour later.
The villagers who stayed behind gathered in an open space not far from the underground river, eating with gusto around a large table of freshly prepared python meat dishes.
"We were worried that the python might hurt people, but we never expected it to become our food in the blink of an eye."
"The key is that the taste is just as good! I thought the meat from such a big python would be tough and gamey, but it's so tender! It's much better than wild boar or wolf meat!"
"After cleaning the giant python, we got a good 900 kilograms of meat. Each family can get 20 kilograms, which means we have a lot more meat to store. That's great!"
The viewers in the live stream had completely forgotten their disappointment from not long ago.
Forget about big battles, nothing beats the aroma of delicious food!
Braised snake chunks, salt and pepper snake ribs, spicy snake meat, snake soup, snake meat broth... there are so many delicious dishes, it's impossible to try them all.
As the villagers chatted, the topic turned to the underground cave.
Zhang Chengming looked around and said, "To be honest, it's quite cool in this cave even without air conditioning."
"Could we just move down here? That way we can save on the energy consumption of air conditioning."
Li Tie shook his head: "The humidity here is too high, it's not suitable for living. Besides, we don't know if there are any dangers in the areas we haven't explored yet."
Before they came down, Lu Xuan led his men back along the underground river to explore the other passages. They discovered that there were even more branching paths deep inside those passages, and those branching paths led to even more branching paths... seemingly endless.
The underground space is far larger than expected, and can even be described as an underground world. It is impossible to explore it all in a short time, and who knows what unknown dangers may exist in the unexplored areas.
Living in a large cave, they usually keep a close watch on the gaps so no danger can easily sneak up. But once everyone moves underground, there won't be enough time to escape if an accident happens.
However, the exploration team has already discovered a nutritious and edible mushroom in other areas, and also found a kind of algae with a good taste as they traveled downstream along the underground river.
It is evident that the seemingly rocky cave contained some valuable resources that they could obtain.
Provided that safety is ensured, it is still very worthwhile to explore.
...
Over the next few days, Lu Xuan led his team to explore a rather large area.
No further threats like the giant python were encountered; only some salamanders, spiders, and smaller water snakes were found.
In terms of resources, two more types of usable mushrooms with different flavors have been discovered, and a natural agate mine has also been found on a side road.
The agate mine is not large in scale, but in ancient times the value of agate was quite high.
The villagers dug out the raw stones and stored them away. Once the period of catastrophe was over, they would have no worries for the rest of their lives because of these agate stones.
The wealth is right in front of us, so we must seize it all!
Leaving out even a single piece is disrespectful to it.
The villagers excitedly dug for three consecutive days.
Then, the biggest and final test of the hottest season arrives.
·
According to the weather app, temperatures will soar from the 50s to the 60s, and could even reach 70s on the hottest days.
These temperatures will persist for nearly a month before gradually dropping, returning to normal summer temperatures after another half month, marking the end of the hottest season.
But it will be more than a month before it ends. Right now, with temperatures exceeding 60 degrees Celsius outside, even with bio-suits to cool down, it is still an environment that is not something ordinary people can tolerate.
Despite the villagers' efforts to choose the coolest time of day to work in the fields based on the real-time temperatures provided by Lu Xuan, more than half of them still experienced mild heatstroke and dehydration, requiring them to constantly drink cold drinks or take medication to alleviate the symptoms.
Weeding is manageable; pulling it every other day is enough. But watering is really impossible.
The hotter the weather, the faster the moisture evaporates.
During the first round of planting, we only watered the crops once every hour, but now we have to water them every half hour, otherwise the crops will definitely be scorched and die.
It already takes a lot of time to water the land once, but now it's even worse. You just finish watering and sit down to catch your breath, and then the land dries up again, so you have to water it again, and then it dries up again, and it never ends.
Not only during the day, but also at night, watering is needed; otherwise, the temperature at night can reach over 50 degrees Celsius, and the crops still won't be able to withstand it.
Only two days into the peak of the extreme heat, the people of Yunlu Village all looked completely exhausted.
I can't take it, I really can't take it.
I'm completely numb.
The viewers in the live stream were starting to feel sorry for them.
Now it was time for Lu Xuan to shine.
Just as the villagers began discussing whether to give up some of their harvest and reduce the area to be irrigated, Lu Xuan's silver blind box had reached 100 draws, and he got the guaranteed reward.
Fully automatic intelligent plant protection machine.
It integrates functions such as watering, fertilizing, and sowing, and can automatically replenish the water tank/seeds. It can also automatically avoid obstacles, transmit images in real time, and has an abnormal alarm device, etc.
As long as the range is set and enough energy is replenished, it can operate continuously for twelve hours a day, regardless of the temperature.
Seeing Lu Xuan operate the plant protection machine to water the crops in the field, the villagers immediately perked up.
"This agricultural drone is so useful!"
"Wouldn't having this completely free up our hands, so we wouldn't have to water the plants non-stop from morning till night anymore?"
Li Tie excitedly inquired about the consumption of Lu Xuan's plant protection drone.
Lu Xuan said, "Ten catties of grain per day."
Like the weeder, the plant protection machine can be charged with either stellar energy or energy stones. However, watering requires continuous operation for twelve hours, and stellar energy cannot be replenished in time, so energy stones can only be used.
It takes three days to consume one primary energy stone. Based on the point value of primary energy stones, ten catties of grain per day is already a fraction of the cost price.
A crop takes half a month to mature, and the cost of watering it is equivalent to 150 jin of grain.
It sounds like a lot, but compared to the villagers' frantic work over half a month and the subsequent harvest of tens of thousands of kilograms, it seems insignificant.
Moreover, since it comes from public resources, individuals don't need to contribute any money, so there's naturally no problem.
Li Tie immediately agreed to rent an agricultural machinery from Lu Xuan and also took over the watering work on Lu's land.
With the plant protection machine, villagers only need to weed manually and no longer need to worry about the work in the fields.
·
Inside an underground cave.
Dozens of large vats were lined up in a row, while the women stood on a long cutting board and began chopping up the mountain of cabbages and radishes.
After cutting the cabbage in half, blanch it in boiling water in a large iron pot, then rinse it with cold water. Finally, put it into a clean jar, adding a layer of cabbage and sprinkling a small handful of salt, then adding another layer and sprinkling salt again, until the jar is full. Finally, weigh it down with a large stone that you found beforehand. That's it.
The best time to make pickled cabbage is in autumn when the temperature is only in the teens, but the cave is cool, so installing an air conditioner to further lower the temperature can easily simulate the temperature of autumn.
Why not marinate some early for breakfast to add another delicious dish?
As for out-of-season dishes not tasting right, with superpowers to optimize them, it's not a big deal.
If you pickle it now, you can eat it at the end of the hottest season.
Besides sauerkraut, some cabbage was used to make kimchi.
Lu Xuan, a former rich kid, naturally didn't know how to make kimchi, but that didn't matter. He didn't know, but people who followed other ancient/ancient world live streams in the comments knew, and each one used slightly different ingredients.
Radishes can also be pickled in the same seasoning as kimchi.
This kind of pickled radish needs to be pickled for a month or so before it can be eaten. There is another similar way to pickled bamboo shoots, which is seasoned with sweet and sour millet peppers and made into a hot and sour soup. It can be pickled for two or three days before it can be eaten. It is appetizing and refreshing, and it is best eaten with porridge.
The remaining radishes were cut into thin strips and taken to the square to dry.
After the peak season arrived, many leaves fell from the trees in Giant Tree Square, and the shading effect was not as good as before. Since people usually cook and process by-products underground in the cave, the square has become a drying ground for everyone, filled with various shredded radishes, fruit slices, dried vegetables, etc. every day.
The dried radish strips are much smaller than fresh radishes. When eating, take an appropriate amount, soak it in water until it is rehydrated, and it can be used as a spicy radish side dish to accompany rice, or the radish strips can be diced and used to make stir-fried radish cubes.
Add cured pork, diced mushrooms, scallions, garlic, fermented black bean sauce, chili powder, and season with soy sauce. No other side dishes are needed; it's delicious enough to mix with rice.
Unlike sauerkraut and kimchi, stir-fried diced radish can be made and eaten immediately.
Once a large pot of hot, spicy, and savory stir-fried radish cubes was ready, and a bucket of steaming rice was placed on top, the viewers in the live stream cheered and couldn't wait to start eating.
[Waaaaah! It smells so good!]
[Crispy and spicy, with a wonderfully rich texture thanks to the added cured meat and mushrooms, it's so delicious!!!]
I can eat three bowls of rice with just stir-fried diced radish!
It's not just the audience who love it; the villagers also really enjoy it.
In previous years, after harvesting and drying the radishes, they would often make stir-fried radish cubes. Although each family's taste was slightly different, and some families were reluctant to part with their cured pork, it was still very delicious.
Especially after eating, having a glass of iced juice is so refreshing!
After eating and drinking their fill, they continued working.
While others were busy preparing radishes and cabbages, the elderly and children were not idle either.
Besides continuing to make baskets and sew shoe soles, they were responsible for feeding cattle, sheep, and pheasants, as well as milking cows.
Humans can hardly survive in such high temperatures, let alone animals with thick fur. After confirming the safety of the cave, the cattle, sheep and pheasants in the poultry pen were moved underground.
Lu Xuan brought back a total of twelve cattle and sheep, including one bull and one sheep for breeding, and five cows and five sheep for lactation.
The cattle and sheep are mainly fed fruit pulp, bean pulp, sweet potato pulp, and straw. Occasionally, Lu Xuan will also provide some fresh vegetables, radishes, and bamboo shoots as desserts.
In addition to boiled water, they also have sugar water for drinking, which is better than the conditions for many disaster victims who can't get enough to eat.
After being well-fed and cared for, these cattle and sheep have lived up to expectations, producing 120-130 catties of cow's milk and 10 catties of goat's milk every day.
One day, Lu Xuan gave them some mutated vegetables on a whim, and their production increased even further.
Now, the daily milk production of the five cows has increased to 200 jin (about 100 liters), and the goat milk production has also doubled to 20 jin.
Lu Xuan kept half of the milk produced, while the other half was distributed to the villagers by Li Tie, the village chief.
You can drink fresh milk directly, or add tea and sugar to make milk tea, mix it with soy milk to make soy milk, or make yogurt using a yogurt maker.
Besides that, it can also be used to knead dough and make milk-flavored steamed buns.
Made with freshly harvested flour from the first harvest, the flavors of the new grain and pure natural milk blend together wonderfully.
However, not all villagers are used to the smell of milk, and they can't possibly consume more than 100 jin of milk a day.
There were only four people on Lu Xuan's side, and there were many other drinks to choose from, so it was impossible for them to drink all that milk.
The excess milk was not only stored in storage spaces, but also processed into milk powder, which is easier to store for a longer period of time.
If the opportunity arises in the future, I might consider trading it to someone else.
·
After the peak of the extreme heat, the hunting team's work also came to a complete standstill, following the gathering team.
Not only because it was too hot to go out, but also because the animals were so hot that they had disappeared somewhere, so there was no way to catch anything.
The able-bodied men could only pass the time by constantly expanding their exploration of the caves and fishing in the underground rivers.
Occasionally, Lu Xuan would organize a barbecue for everyone.
Beef skewers, lamb skewers, vegetables and mushrooms, sweet potato slices, chili and corn—all set up on a large grill, accompanied by nearly-brewed fruit wine and yellow wine bought in Fucheng, make for a delicious meal.
Aside from the inability to go out, the peak season did not have a significant impact on the lives of the villagers in Yunlu Village. In fact, because most of the work in the fields was handled by plant protection machines, they were even living a more comfortable life.
The disaster victims next door were a different story.
Without biohazard suits, air conditioning, ice packs, or cold drinks, even though Li Tie had intentionally left them extra heatstroke medicine during the wolf attack, several members of the disaster relief team still died of heatstroke in the first few days of the peak season.
The other people only come out to fetch water; otherwise, they almost never leave their rooms.
But there was too little food nearby, and they dared not venture into Yunlu Village, so they couldn't hold on for more than a few days.
One day, the people of Yunlu Village accidentally discovered that the cave was deserted. Lu Xuan used a drone to circle around the area and found that the people had returned to the cave. The surviving disaster victims spent half of their time each day soaking in the waterfall pool, which had become slightly shallower, to cool off.
This method effectively slowed down the rate of death, but only slowed it down.
The high temperatures persist, and every three or four days, one or two people inevitably die.
Lei Shan, Zhou Shi, Zhao Shi, and Xu Dawu all unexpectedly survived.
However, on the tenth night of the peak period, Zhao Shi failed to keep an eye on Lei Tianbao and let him run out. By the time they found him, the child had already died of heatstroke not far from the cave.
Two weeks after the peak period began, the number of disaster victims had dwindled to only thirteen.
Meanwhile, Yunlu Village celebrated its second bumper harvest.
-----------------------
Author's Note: There will be 20 red envelopes dropping in the next chapter!
——
Thank you '=x='' beautiful as "Wow" for the landmine!
Thank you to "燕", "光", "==", "va", "坤二", "15294234", "哇哇", "镕", and "催更啊～" for the nutrient solution! [Heart][Heart][Heart]
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