◎Happy 83rd Day: An Unexpected Surprise◎
The road from the hill where they lived to the small river was quite desolate.
There are not many buildings, not many tall trees, and the occasional undulating terrain cannot be called mountains, but just some piles of earth.
This kind of desert made it convenient for them to travel back and forth without having to take frequent detours, but it also made it difficult for them to find a place to hide.
Chu Buwen and Zhao Jiahao in front could hardly open their eyes. The heavy rain obscured their vision and everything in front of them became blurry.
Chu Buwen discerned the faintly visible strange blocks of color in his sight. To be on the safe side, he stopped and tried to fish out Dabai, who was eating safely among a pile of stainless steel barrels, to identify his location.
Dabai could maintain a peaceful appearance while staying in the car in calm weather, but he got furious as soon as Chu Buwen pulled him out of his safe haven.
It was so tiny that when Chu Buwen picked it up, the whole cat floated in the wind like a kite. Dabai was so scared that he screamed and kicked his four short legs everywhere.
Forget about finding the way, it’s good enough if Chu Buwen isn’t even scratched.
Chu Buwen had no choice but to put Dabai back.
After returning to the safe haven, Dabai wiped his face and shook his fur as if he was still in shock, and kept cursing.
Jiang Muyun pursed his lips tightly, raised his arm against the resistance, and pulled the brim of his sun hat to block the debris. He quickly looked up and glanced around.
At this time, finding shelter, whether it can block the rain is secondary, the key is to block the wind.
She remembered that there were several small mounds on the way they came. They were of average height and had a gentle slope, which was not suitable for hiding at this time.
If protruding obstructions don’t work, what about concave ones?
Jiang Muyun and Chu Buwen thought of the same place at the same time.
Chu Buwen bent his waist and held the bicycle to the side of Jiang Muyun. Jiang Muyun saw blood on his face washed away by the rain, which should have seeped from the scratch on the side of his forehead.
Not only on the forehead, there were also small scratches on Chu Buwen's neck.
The gravel was extremely rampant under the blessing of the strong wind. Chu Buwen and Zhao Jiahao were always walking in the front facing the wind, and the parts of their bodies that were not protected by clothes were inevitably damaged.
Speaking openly at this time was a bit like gambling with one's life. If he wanted to convey information, he could only lean close to Jiang Muyun's ear and use his hand to block out the strange and tiny words.
"Go to the ridge of the field?" Chu Buwen's voice was still slightly panting.
Near the ridge that Chu Buwen mentioned was a piece of farmland that had been abandoned for a long time. It was now covered with weeds, and the shadows of ditches could still be vaguely seen under the weeds.
The ridges of the fields are not like those naturally formed earthen hills. They have a large slope and can provide them with a corner to block the wind as long as the wind direction remains unchanged.
At that time, Jiang Muyun even joked that he wanted to go to the fields to look for any food that had gone wild from being domesticated.
Jiang Muyun nodded silently. Not only did she remember where it was, she also raised her hand and pointed Chu Buwen in a direction.
Chu Buwen looked in the direction of her finger and vaguely saw a group of dark shadows in that direction.
Chu Buwen couldn’t tell what those black shadows were now, but Jiang Muyun guessed that it should be a forest composed of some low trees.
Jiang Muyun remembered that there was a slope leading down to the edge of the farmland, and near the slope was a group of small trees.
When she looked up, she had already decided on a refuge point in her mind, and she had just intentionally looked for this patch of bushes to help her confirm the location of the slope.
Chu Buwen took note of this landmark so that it would be easier for him to find his way later.
Jiang Muyun held the car board with one hand to stabilize his body, and loosened the strap of the sun hat with the other hand. He successfully pressed down the top of the hat when it was blown up by the wind, and then put the hat on Chu Buwen's head.
Chu Buwen raised his hand to stop her, put the hat back on Jiang Muyun's head, and turned around to leave.
Jiang Muyun grabbed Chu Buwen.
She held her hat with one hand and pulled the person with the other, and was now a little unsteady on her feet.
Chu Buwen was anxious and pushed Jiang Muyun back to the back of the car where it was covered by the car body and the stainless steel barrel: "Be careful not to get hurt."
Jiang Muyun was about to speak when she felt a sharp pain in her philtrum, and then she smelled a faint smell of blood lingering at the tip of her nose.
It must have been some debris that just passed by.
Chu Buwen subconsciously raised his hand to block her face, wanting to wipe off the blood for her but afraid that something dirty on his hands would contaminate the wound.
Jiang Muyun put the hat back on Chu Buwen, and while he was shielding her with his hands, she said, "Tighten it tight and hold the brim of your hat to keep out the rain. You have to find your way ahead."
In this double disturbance of heavy rain and strong wind, it is almost impossible to open your eyes by just covering them with your hands, and you must use external objects to help.
Jiang Muyun wore this fisherman's hat just for fun on a whim. The brim wasn't very wide, but it was better than covering it with her hands anyway.
Without the hat, Jiang Muyun completely became a blind player. Chu Buwen patted her on the shoulder to reassure her, tightened the straps with one hand, pressed the brim of the hat, and fumbled his way back to its original position.
Jiang Muyun leaned over to Zhou Ying's ear and quickly told her their plan. Zhou Ying closed her eyes and nodded, her lips slightly parted as she spoke in a muffled voice, "Just follow me."
It’s not that she doesn’t want to help at this time, but with her small body, she’s afraid that she will be blown away by the wind if she lets go.
Instead of trying to be brave and causing trouble for others, it is better to just close your eyes and follow. The greatest contribution is to protect yourself and not bother your companions to rescue you.
The debris in the wind hit the stainless steel barrel, and the muffled sound of clinking never stopped. Even the fish in the barrel began to make endless noises, jumping out of the water from time to time, making the lid of the barrel bang.
After eating the fish, the big white cat surrounded by the stainless steel barrels finally became afraid and began to circle back and forth in the small space in the middle. When it heard any movement in the barrel containing the fish, it would rush over and meow fiercely.
I don’t know if the food chain suppression in biological nature really exists, but after being meowed so many times, the fish actually tend to stop making noise.
Like Zhou Ying, Jiang Muyun, who was pushing the cart with his head down, did not try to check the surrounding situation.
She still had some trust in Chu Buwen. She had pointed out the direction, and he would definitely find the landmarks and would not lead them into trouble.
Jiang Muyun didn't know how long she had been pushing. When she felt the car body in her hand tilt slightly and tend to slide forward, Jiang Muyun knew they had arrived.
Jiang Muyun and Zhou Ying leaned back to try to hold the car up. Jiang Muyun underestimated its inertia. Not only did her pull fail to stop the car's downward slide, but she nearly fell down herself.
Fortunately, there were two tall men in front. After stumbling a few steps, Chu Buwen and Zhao Jiahao quickly stabilized their bodies. They took advantage of the momentary gap created by Jiang Muyun and Zhou Ying's pull to hold the car body again, preventing the fruits of their labor today from falling to the ground.
This area is all mud, and it is quite soft after days of rain.
Jiang Muyun felt like he was stepping into a pit with every step he took on the slope. It was not until he stepped down from the slope and stepped on a bunch of weeds that he realized the intricate plant roots supporting the land, and the soft touch disappeared from under his feet.
After a clear turn, Jiang Muyun felt that the vehicle in front had stopped.
Not long after, the hat was back on Jiang Muyun's head. Chu Buwen led her along the side of the car. Only when the terrifying thrust completely disappeared did Jiang Muyun finally stand up straight.
Thanks to the strong wind, the raindrops are now almost sweeping sideways.
They hid at the corner between the ridge of the field and the slope, avoiding the strong wind and the main force of the rainstorm. Only fine water droplets fell on their bodies.
Jiang Muyun twisted his fisherman's hat with both hands, squeezed out the water, and wiped the water off his face. It took a while for his sore eyes to relax before he could open them normally.
A fisherman's hat soaked by the rain became a wrinkled makeshift towel, passed around in the hands of several people, and was finally placed on a cart to be rinsed by a natural shower.
The few people in the corner struggled to wring out the hems of their clothes. Jiang Muyun breathed a sigh of relief: "I feel much better after getting caught in the rain."
Zhou Ying laughed and said, "You're just going to give up, right?"
Zhao Jiahao put down the trouser legs he had just wrung dry and sat down cross-legged on the ridge of the field. "I feel much more comfortable now. They were half-dry and wet all day before. It's better to just let them dry out."
Chu Buwen leaned out half of his body to pull Dabai out. After seeing Dabai circling around under the ridge without any reaction, he simply sat down cross-legged.
The ridges here are not high. Jiang Muyun can feel the wind blowing over his head when he stands up straight. If Zhao Jiahao and Chu Buwen also stand up straight, their hairlines will be blown back five centimeters.
It's just a muddy field. Who hasn't sat there before? Jiang Muyun and Zhou Ying were also very tired, so the four of them simply sat in a row at the bottom of the field, with their cart in front of them, which provided some protection from the wind and rain.
"I don't know when the rain will stop. I hope it won't rain for ten days in a row." Zhou Ying said, supporting his chin.
"It won't rain for too long." Jiang Muyun said.
It is one thing for a rainstorm to pass through a country, but it is another thing for the rainstorm to cause a disaster.
Judging from the reactions of the two cubs at home, this rainstorm is probably just a normal weather change and will not reach the level of a disaster. It will pass after a while. Otherwise, how could Dabai be so brave as to happily follow them out to eat fish.
Jiang Muyun wiped his face again as he spoke.
Although the rain is not heavy here, there is nothing to block the rain overhead, so it is unrealistic to expect no rain at all.
As for our companions who are heading to the city center of Yi City, they can just find a building on the side of the road to hide.
Jiang Muyun reached into his trouser pocket and took out a small red bag the size of a palm.
She unzipped the small bag and pulled out a sealed bag containing a thermal blanket.
Zhou Ying was impressed: "You brought this with you when you came out to fetch water?"
She also carried emergency items with her, but only a small amount of medicine, which was convenient for bandaging injuries at any time. This was a habit she developed when she went to the city to collect supplies.
Before Zhou Ying could finish being surprised, she found that Zhao Jiahao and Chu Buwen also took out similar small bags.
There were even a few candies in Zhao Jiahao's bag, some of which were unknown whether they had expired or not, as well as a small packet of white powder. Zhou Ying guessed it might be salt.
It was normal for them to carry weapons and medicine when they went out, but carrying even salt and sugar was a bit overly cautious from time to time!
Jiang Muyun shook out the thermal blanket and said, "I can tell you don't have any sense of emergency preparedness. At this stage in Blue Star's history, accidents are the least of our worries. How can we not be fully prepared?"
Not to mention the sudden rainstorm in the wild, Jiang Muyun even encountered a sandstorm while he was walking.
Anyone walking on the road after the end of the world will not forget to bring an emergency kit when going out. The size of the emergency kit depends on the distance from home.
Zhao Jiahao nodded vigorously while wrapped in a thermal blanket.
He and Li Anxuan ran all the way back to Nanshi, and encountered many accidents on the way. The most dangerous one was the heavy smog.
At that time, Li Anxuan was guarding the supplies while Zhao Jiahao went out to find firewood. When the heavy haze came, Zhao Jiahao failed to come back in time, and the two were separated.
If Zhao Jiahao hadn't been lucky enough to find an underground garage and some food in the garage manager's lounge, he probably wouldn't have been able to come back.
From then on, he got into the habit of carrying a small bag wherever he went.
Jiang Muyun shielded his eyes with his hands and looked up at the sky. His sharp eyes spotted a light-colored area buried in the weeds not far away.
She patted Chu Buwen and motioned him to go and look.
Chu Buwen squinted his eyes and said, "It looks like plastic. It might be a shed built by farmers who used to watch over the fields here to rest, but it collapsed after the apocalypse."
Jiang Muyun and Chu Buwen looked at each other. Chu Buwen moved out half of the thermal blanket, and Jiang Muyun jumped over. The two of them bent over and trotted to the location of the plastic sheet.
"It has indeed been abandoned for a long time." Jiang Muyun squatted down and looked at the plastic cloth that had been punctured by various plants.
These plastic sheets are stacked layer by layer and feel quite thick.
There was a thick layer of dust on the plastic sheet, and underneath the dust were some black, greasy stains, like pollutants left behind by the smog.
There was a small part of the raised plastic sheet that was not covered by plants. Its true color was revealed under the heavy rain and was recognized by Jiang Muyun.
Since he was free anyway, Chu Buwen took out a knife. Jiang Muyun freed up one hand to hold the plastic sheet for him. Chu Buwen tried a few times and successfully found the angle to cut the raised part of the plastic sheet.
The moment the plastic sheet was cut open, a muddy and rotten smell gushed out.
Fortunately, there should be no dead animals here, just rotting plants, and the smell is not so bad that even Jiang Muyun cannot accept it.
Chu Buwen waved his hands a few times, held the cut, bent down and tried to look inside.
"Is there anything?" Jiang Muyun asked.
Chu Buwen stood up and shook his head: "It's too dark, I can't see clearly."
"Hold on." Jiang Muyun shook the thermal blanket in his hand and signaled Chu Buwen to take over.
Chu Buwen stretched out his arms as he was told, but his whole body stiffened for a moment.
This action was as if he was holding Jiang Muyun in his arms.
If we ignore the fact that only his left knee was in contact with Jiang Muyun.
Jiang Muyun took out her small bag and took out a small flashlight the size of a pinky finger. After turning it on, she bent down and reached under the plastic sheet.
The plastic sheet was entangled with the plant roots, and they could only lift a small part of it.
But that's enough.
In the dim light of the small flashlight, Jiang Muyun could clearly see what was covered under the plastic sheet.
They were two blue plastic bottles that looked a little strange.
Jiang Muyun cut a piece of cloth from the hem of his clothes and picked up the plastic bottle through the cloth.
"Phenylephrine·Chlorpheniramine·Thiazolin?" Jiang Muyun could barely make out the unclear words on the bottle.
This format is too weird.
Jiang Muyun took a corner of the thermal blanket and held it up, motioning Chu Buwen to step back.
There was a blank space between the two of them. Jiang Muyun held the bottle, and Chu Buwen understood and reached out to unscrew the bottle cap.
Fortunately, there is no special smell.
Jiang Muyun tilted the bottle mouth towards himself.
"How strange." Jiang Muyun said.
She reached out and took out something from the bottle. It was a tightly tied plastic bag containing some purple-red...seeds?
"Is this a seed?" Chu Buwen carefully identified the blurred words on the bottle: "The words on the bottle look like some kind of pesticide ingredient."
Jiang Muyun stuffed the plastic bag back into the bottle without untying it. "I don't know, it looks like it. Let's take it back to Zhou Ying to see. We've never properly farmed before, so how can we tell the difference between seeds and seeds?"
Chu Buwen opened his palm, and Jiang Muyun wrapped two bottles in a piece of cloth and placed them in his hand.
These two bottles are not small, and Chu Buwen can just hold them both in one hand and walk.
Zhou Ying and Zhao Jiahao were a little curious when they saw them trotting out and coming back with two bottles in their hands not long after.
"What did you find?" Zhou Ying asked.
Chu Buwen didn't rush to hand the bottle to them, but first went up to Dabai.
The cat-shaped biological poison detector stretched out its claws and fiddled with it twice. Just when it thought that this rolling thing was quite interesting, the bottle was taken away by Chu Buwen and handed to Zhou Ying.
Chu Buwen said, "I found it under the plastic sheet over there. It looks like seeds, but it looks weird. I don't know if it can be planted."
Zhou Ying unscrewed the bottle cap, took out the contents and exclaimed in surprise, "It's castor bean!"
Zhao Jiahao was curious: "Castor? What is that? Why is it this color? Can this thing still be grown?"
Zhou Ying shook the bag and said, "This is the bottle of coating agent. Judging from its color, it should also be mixed with coating agent."
Seeing the bewildered expressions of the three people around him, Zhou Ying changed the subject and said, "It's a medicine to protect seeds."
Zhou Ying paused here, her surprise fading slightly. "But this medicine is harmful to the seeds if left for too long."
Zhou Ying couldn't compare to those experienced farmers. She looked a little distressed. "Also, I don't know if castor seeds need to be coated. The only live castor beans I've seen are wild. I don't know if this batch of seeds can be grown."
But since they found it in the ruins of a shed beside the field, the original owner of this packet of seeds should be an experienced farmer. He wouldn't mix the seeds with pesticides, right?
After saying that, Zhou Ying thought for a moment and said, "Castor can be used for medicinal purposes and can also be used to extract oil. However, we hardly use castor oil here. We grow castor... probably more in the northwest. Here, they might be grown for medicinal purposes."
Jiang Muyun felt like joy had fallen from the sky.
She and Chu Buwen were just looking for opportunities to win the grand prize, as they wanted to search wherever they saw something wrong. They didn't expect that they would have a chance to win the special prize.
"Anyway, there are so many seeds. If we can't grow them, there are professionals next door." Jiang Muyun said that he was calm.
At least it can be used as medicine and can be used to extract oil. It can also be grown as a wild crop in the northwest and is probably drought-resistant.
If these seeds are really still alive, they would rather plant fewer potatoes and sweet potatoes, and free up soil, water, light and other resources to plant castor oil plants.
In the later stage, you will not lose money whether you consume the oil yourself or trade it.
In his previous life, after simple trade exchanges had been established between various places, Jiang Muyun had seen caravans coming from the southwest and northwest of China. The natural environment there was relatively not mild, and more crops survived after the end of the world.
What they brought from afar to sell were mainly various kinds of oil.
The reason why Jiang Muyun didn't know what specific types of goods they sold was that she definitely couldn't afford them. She heard people talk about it and felt envious, so there was no need to ask.
These things are traded directly between the caravan and the base. Ordinary survivors cannot access them at all. If they want to buy them, they have to pay the base.
But when it comes to trade between bases, Chu Buwen turned his head slightly and whispered, "Returning to South City?"
Their supplies have been almost used up, and the supplies in Nanshi are not meant to be kept there, they have to be used.
Chu Buwen didn't know that Jiang Muyun carried all his belongings with him, so it was normal for him to ask this question.
Jiang Muyun thought for a moment, then turned aside and whispered, "Wait for the caravan."
At this point in time, there should be quite a few survival bases that have begun to take shape. They can go out with the caravan and bring back more supplies.
The voices of the two were drowned out by the heavy rain, and the other two did not respond at all.
Jiang Muyun knew the bottle was harmless and took it with his bare hands: "When we get back, let's find a chance to go to the next base and ask."
Professor Chen and Captain Yu next door even gave them the method of growing mycelium, so it is only right that we share some seeds with them.
Moreover, if they kept the crops secret, even if they did produce any fruits, they would probably only be able to eat them secretly. Otherwise, if the news got out, they would definitely not be able to keep the oil-bearing crops.
However, Chu Buwen's words reminded her.
Jiang Muyun didn't like the feeling of living off the fat of the land, so even though she had enough food to last her a lifetime, she still actively planted vegetables and raised rabbits every day, and was even particularly active when digging an ice cellar.
Although you still need to eat and drink after closing the door when you get home, that's all you can do. At most, you can use a floating room to soundproof and generate electricity, giving you the freedom to turn on the lights and watch TV shows.
This standard of living was better than hers, not to mention before the apocalypse, even some of the powerful people after the apocalypse lived better than her—except for food and drink. In this regard, probably no one could compare to Jiang Muyun, who had her own refrigerator.
Jiang Muyun thought that although he was no longer alone in the mountains and forests, living the way he wanted, with the floating house, an unexpected surprise in the Nanshan warehouse, it seemed that he could experience living alone.
The double sound insulation effect is there, the sound of the engine cannot be heard outside, so how can other sounds reach the sky?
Jiang Muyun decided to give it a try when he got back.
The rain outside continued to fall, but the wind died down within two hours.
They dragged their belongings and hit the road as soon as the wind slowed down.
Once the wind subsides, they will have to endure the same torrential rain as outside. It doesn't make much sense to hide or not. It's better to go home early to avoid catching a cold.
The thermoses around could no longer shelter Dabai. Dabai meowed in the rain. This time, Chu Buwen didn't even need to rescue it. It consciously and actively crawled into Chu Buwen's pocket.
Several people braved the wind and rain to travel. Now there was no danger and they were used to getting wet in the rain.
But when Jiang Muyun looked back after reaching the foot of the mountain, these few kilometers of road were tinged with sadness in her memory.
The rain stopped just as they reached the foot of the mountain.
They carried the items up the mountain in silence. Zhou Ying held it in for a long moment before saying quietly, "We're going to get wet in the rain anyway, but I just feel really unconvinced."
Jiang Muyun was also very dissatisfied.
So when she was tinkering with the floating house in the cave at night, she banged everything around.
Jiang Muyun tossed and turned in the cave for a long time, and then ran to ask Chu Buwen, who lived closest to her, if he had heard any noise. After getting a negative answer, Jiang Muyun was satisfied.
Chu Buwen was a little curious: "What are you doing? If I can hear it, it must be a big noise."
Jiang Muyun held up the hammer in his hand and showed it to him: "I want to carve out a separate storage room for dirty clothes. Otherwise, if we pile them up together, I'm afraid they won't get moldy but ferment. I'm just afraid that if I make too much noise, you'll come and hit me, so I'm asking specifically."
Jiang Muyun certainly didn't want to carve out a storage room.
The ping-pong noise she just made was to drill holes in the floating house and the openings for the pipes.
Thanks to Chu Buwen's friendly reminder, Jiang Muyun recalled what the real extravagant and debauched doomsday version was like.
People can dig out air conditioners from ruins and collect fuel oil from all over the country, so there is no reason why she cannot use the ready-made ones in her space.
It would be nice to turn on the dehumidifier.
While studying the air conditioner installation instructions, Jiang Muyun lamented that he was so used to living a hard life that he wouldn't spend money even if he had it.
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