Chapter 141 The Long Winter
"It seems like this winter is really going to be tough..."
The highly targeted nature of these drugs might mean that everything they were experiencing was orchestrated by someone else, someone who had already gotten ahead of them. They and the planet they were on were merely the "guinea pigs" and "petri dishes" in the other party's testing grounds.
In short, after further research results came out, various conspiracy theories suddenly broke out in the upper circles. But some people were pessimistic, while others were optimistic.
Rather than maliciously speculating, more people would rather believe that this is the goodwill released by this magical train. After all, so far, all the actions of the train have been to help them, and this help is real.
If the intention was to watch them perish, then why bother? Why give them the choice of train station locations? Why provide carriages to transport supplies? Why give them research data on various pharmaceuticals? Just to watch them struggle?
So, later on, this rumor died down.
This decision to purchase food from the train was a well-considered one, and it was also another step towards exploring the civilization behind the train.
In the past, it was always the train company that took the initiative to reach out for cooperation, but this time, they took the initiative. If this purchase plan is successful, it will add another weight to the balance of the train company's goodwill towards them.
…
Suddenly, the office phone rang rapidly.
The three people's hearts beat faster. The young man closest to the phone grabbed the receiver and said, "Hello, this is the meeting room of the train affairs working group."
The other two were too far away to hear what was said. They just stared at the young man's expression and held their breath.
The young man's face was first surprised, then he smiled with joy. Then, the other two heard the young man say, "We got it. We'll send someone over now."
After hanging up the phone, the quiet conference room erupted in joyful shouts. "Just now, a call came in from the station booth. They said they've agreed to provide three million kilograms of grain. They asked us to prepare the crystal cores in advance and set a time for pickup."
"real?"
The other two said in unison and stood up from their chairs in an instant.
"Very good!"
"It's not much, but every bit counts. Three million kilograms is enough to feed City N for three months."
"This is a good signal. The trading volume is still low right now. I'll see if I can trade more often in the future..."
The young man was originally in high spirits, but upon hearing this, his expression changed and he interrupted, "I don't think the trading volume will be that big in the future..."
"What's wrong?" the other two asked hurriedly, noticing his grim expression. "The team member on duty just now said there's a notice at the bottom of the screen saying that the food available for trade is limited. We should try to find ways to be self-reliant this winter."
The three of them looked at each other, and their mood became heavy.
The silver-haired team leader sighed and couldn't help but worry about the future. "It seems like this winter will really be difficult..."
…
Another person who is worried about the future is Jiang Qian, who also just learned the news.
Compared to the working group who only speculated on the future from the doomsday prophecies, she got much more information from the system.
In the history of interstellar people, this cold winter directly caused a sharp drop in the number of survivors, and nearly half of them died in this cold winter.
At that time, no one expected the winter to be so long and so cold. Even the Jiangnan region was hit by a rare snowstorm. Some people froze to death, some starved to death... When the temperature rose again, the world changed again...
Although it only stored the data from the interstellar record during this period, and the system itself "should not have any emotions," Jiang Qian could still hear the sorrow and grief in its voice.
[It was also after that that the ancestors of the interstellar people began to formulate the "Torch Plan", deciding to leave their home planet and search for new lands...]
"But is there nothing that can be done about this?"
Thinking about the future, Jiang Qian was distressed. "With current technology, we definitely can't artificially interfere with the weather in the next six months. There's no way to stop the arrival of winter. So, can we get more food?"
As soon as she said this, Jiang Qian realized that it wouldn't work.
"That won't work. It's freezing cold outside, what can we grow? If the snow keeps blowing, the greenhouse will collapse! How can we grow crops here?"
"Do we have no choice but to wait for the 'Torch Plan' to be implemented, Xiao Ling?" Jiang Qian thought of what the system had told her before. "When was the 'Torch Plan' implemented? Sixty years from now?"
【Um. 】
The system's voice is muffled.
The Torch Project took 63 years to prepare before it could be implemented. However, only a small number of people on this planet were taken away at that time, and many of them died during the space journey.
[If you are not selected by then, and I have enough energy, perhaps I can apply to take you and your family through the time tunnel directly to the interstellar space.]
"Sixty-three years later?" Jiang Qian smiled helplessly. "Whether I'll still be alive by then is a question!"
Although Life-7 brought disaster, subsequent research revealed that its effects on the human body weren't entirely harmful. Because of it, many people, like your father, developed special abilities. Besides these abilities, their physical strength was enhanced, and their lifespans were extended. It was because of this effect that some people in the interstellar space took the risk of continuing this research. Therefore, there's a good chance you'll survive until the implementation of the Torch Project.
"Even if I can really live to that day, what's the point of me going to the interstellar space?" Jiang Qian looked at the mountains and rivers outside the window. "No matter how stable your interstellar space is, it's not the home I'm familiar with!"
What attracted her to this broken planet was never the stable life, but those people who would laugh and cry with her, stand up for her when she encountered difficulties, think about her and watch her grow up!
If these people are gone, then what’s the point of being here!
The train gradually slowed down, and she could no longer recognize familiar faces in the places flashing outside the window.
The airport, which had been a desolate wasteland when they first landed, now resembled a large base. Helicopters were parked around the land cleared for train operations, and the once sparsely populated villages on the outskirts had somehow become one large area, surrounding the entire airport.
The land around the village was all covered with a layer of white snow, but on the small road in the middle, which was pressed into gray and black by wheels, there were still vehicles and pedestrians passing by.
They were all busy working for the future. Jiang Qian looked at them and suddenly felt that maybe she shouldn't be discouraged.
"There has to be another way, there has to be!" Jiang Qian perked up. Seeing the long rows of granaries flashing by outside the window, a light bulb went off in her head. "Xiao Ling, do you think I can spare an empty carriage on the train to grow crops?"
The system in my mind flashed slowly, then stopped flashing violently and frequently.
[It should be possible. The train compartments are temperature-controlled, so all you have to do is replace the seats with planter boxes. Some interstellar planets have surface temperatures unsuitable for human habitation and crop growth, so the staff also grow crops indoors in temperature-controlled rooms, just like on the train!]
[Last time, I applied for a lot of space expansion equipment. This time, I can also use it in the car, so the planting area will be larger...]
"We can make our own soil and planting boxes. Soil is everywhere, but are the crops grown on polluted land edible? How about hydroponics? No, the water source is definitely more polluted than the soil..."
【It’s okay, I have a solution. 】
Jiang Qian came over feeling a little discouraged. After hearing what the system said, she quickly asked, "What's the solution?"
The icon in her mind flickered, and Jiang Qian heard a hint of pride in its voice.
Interstellar recently discovered a new fungus capable of completely decomposing and eliminating Life-7. It's this fungus that the Interstellar people used to clean their home planet. Shortly after I bonded with you, I realized I might need it in the future, so I applied to Interstellar. They should have cultivated a large quantity of this fungus by now, perfect for purifying soil and water.
Jiang Qian hadn't expected the system to have considered this and implemented it so early, and she was extremely surprised. "Great, Xiao Ling, you're awesome!"
"Once the soil and water issues are resolved, everything else will be easy. We can also recruit some experienced farmers or children to help with the trucks and help them get through the winter..."
They talked one sentence after another, and soon they had a plan almost complete. Jiang Qian was very excited and wanted to do it right away, but it was clear that this matter needed a more detailed plan.
At noon, Jiang Qian, who had figured something out, went to the dining car in a good mood to eat, but she didn't expect to hear the conversation at the next table, and the topic of discussion was the newly added family suites.
"...The train carriages are getting more and more fancy, but the prices are getting more and more expensive. Who can afford to stay in them?"
"That's right. Before, a small studio room cost thirty crystal cores, so a few people could get together and enjoy it. But now that this apartment has come out, I wonder how many people can afford it!"
"There are quite a few affordable places to stay there. I heard they were all booked right after they came out. There's not a single ticket left. This apartment isn't meant for us."
"Then this train should have some provisions for ordinary people like us, right? It's fine for short trips, but for long trips or if you want to sleep at night, you have to book a private room. Each stop costs thirty crystal cores, which averages out to seven or eight magic crystals per person. For a long trip, how many zombies would we ordinary people have to risk killing to earn enough? The problem is, sometimes we can't even find people, and sharing a room with strangers is awkward. But thirty crystal cores is really too much to pay for."
"Well, don't complain. At least it's safe on the train. Just think of it as insurance for your life!"
"I know, I'm just saying that. But it would be nice if there were sleeper cars suitable for ordinary people like us."
"I guess... Xuan, but now that the weather is cold, I heard that the zombies' movements seem to have become stiff due to the low temperature. It's a good time to save crystals. I heard that going on a mission with the rescue team can yield a lot."
“…”
After the big brothers at the next table finished their meal, they got up and went back to the carriage, but Jiang Qian, who was sitting and eating nearby, was communicating with the system in her mind.
"Xiao Ling, didn't I apply for a sleeper car before?"
Ever since the big brother next to her started talking about this, Jiang Qian has been thinking about it in her mind. After thinking about it, she found that she seemed to have never exchanged for a sleeper berth.
The system also gave an answer that was consistent with her memory.
【No. 】
When the young master of the Chen family boarded the train, Jiang Qian saw the large bag of crystal cores in his bag and immediately exchanged it for a higher-level family room. Later, she got so busy with other things that she forgot about the ordinary sleeper compartment.
Jiang Qian suddenly felt a little guilty, so before preparing the ecological carriage for planting, she asked the system to exchange crystal cores for five sleeper carriages.
As for how surprised the long-distance passengers on the train were to find that there were suddenly sleeper cars with cheaper fares, Jiang Qian, who was busy working on the ecological cars, had no idea.
To build an ecological carriage, we not only need to hire people to plant, but also build a large number of planting boxes. Although the system can directly release a water pump with purification function that can be directly connected to the train water tank into the sea to solve the water problem during irrigation, it cannot solve the soil problem.
After much deliberation, Jiang Qian decided to cooperate with the rescue team. The rescue team would be responsible for preparing and transporting the soil-filled planting boxes to the train, as well as recruiting and arranging the planting staff. The train would provide food and lodging for these staff, and the train and rescue team would each receive half of the ecological carriage's output.
Jiang Qian felt that this was a win-win situation and the rescue team should not disagree.
But in the eyes of the rescue team, this was clearly a one-sided help from the train, especially when they saw the age requirements for recruitment.
We are all smart people. We can figure out the purpose of this rule just by moving our toes.
In the meeting room of the Jingmingshan Working Group, the large screen on the wall was lighting up one by one. A meeting was in progress, and the discussion was about how to grow crops this winter.
Therefore, when the emergency call came from the foot of the mountain, everyone connected on the screen heard it and was surprised for a moment.
【Author’s words】
Thank you for your support. I have applied for the list next week. If I make it to the list, I should update 15,000+
I sorted out the outline last week and am now gradually finishing it. It is expected to be completed with about 100,000 words. If I am in good shape, I will update it once a day and it will be completed around early September.
If the situation is not good, it will probably be at the end of September or early October? I am not sure.
Let’s see if I can make it to the list on Thursday. If so, the next chapter should be the day after tomorrow. I will work hard on writing on Thursday.
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