Chapter 130
On the way here, he was worried about the upcoming flash flood, his house, and where they would take refuge next. The mental stress consumed more energy than the physical stress, so after settling down temporarily, Mu Nan fell asleep in a short while. But after all, it was not time to sleep, so he slept soundly for more than an hour. After he mentally recovered, he was awakened by the increasingly noisy sounds in the cave.
As soon as Mu Nan woke up, he stretched out on the ground. He could even hear his bones crackling. He couldn't help but groan, "Hmm... This hard ground hurts my waist."
Qin Huai had woken up a long time ago. Seeing him stretching and turning over to lie on the mat, he reached out and rubbed his waist gently: "You usually sleep on a soft bed, so you won't be able to adapt to a slightly harder bed."
Mu Nan closed his eyes and enjoyed Qin Huai's massage: "It would be better if this mat was thicker." Then it wouldn't feel as hard as sleeping on the ground.
However, they could only take out two mats and spread them on the entire stone platform. They couldn't have their own mats at home and would rather fold them up and sleep on them softer than share them with their friends. That would be too selfish. So just bear with it. You'll get used to it in a few days.
Compared to the quietness when they first came here, the cave is now full of people. With so many people, the environment becomes particularly noisy.
They were in the deepest part of the cave, but because there were gaps for ventilation, it was not stuffy. The distance to the outside of the cave was full of twists and turns, and even with lighting, it took more than ten minutes to walk out. So when they slept inside, they had no idea what the situation was outside, whether it was raining or if a flood was coming.
But seeing many people sitting on the ground wet and children crying, I guess the situation outside must not be that good.
Mu Nan saw a family who had come in with them before and occupied the ventilated space as soon as they came in. They were now trying to move out, but more and more people were coming. Probably to make room for people from outside who would evacuate, so they lived very densely. There was no extra space to move, unless they lived outside.
But the current situation in the mountains is that you either live in the deepest part, where there are gaps for ventilation, and it is cool but not damp, or you live at the entrance of the cave, which may be hot and humid due to heavy rain, but at least it is breathable. Living in the middle of the cave has no advantages, it is not cool enough and there is no breathable.
If given a choice, no one would want to live in the middle of here, where it's so crowded and there's no way to breathe.
Although the cave was large and had a high ceiling so there was no lack of oxygen, it was not comfortable in such a dense and dark environment. So when the family saw that no one around was willing to switch with them and they did not want to move to the middle of the cave, they looked very unfriendly and seemed to be holding back their temper.
Seeing that no one was willing to change seats with that family, Mu Nan said while fanning himself: "What's wrong over there? It's very cool and it's so comfortable to be able to enjoy the breeze. Why do you want to change?" He had also spotted that place at first sight, but unfortunately he was not as quick as others and it was taken away by the family.
Qin Huai said, "Because it's too cold. It was hot when I first came in, so I went wherever was cooler. Now my temperature has dropped with the coolness of the cave, and the wind is blowing against me. With the cold air in this cave that has never seen the sun, I'm afraid my bones will ache. Of course I have to move to another place."
Qin Huai turned Mu Nan's head and said, "Don't look over there. What do you want to eat?"
The platform they occupied was very good and relatively high, so unless someone climbed up, they would not be crowded with others. The platform was also relatively close to the gap where the wind came from, but it was not directly against the wind, so it could be said to be quite comfortable. If there had not been too many stone spikes on the platform before, they would probably not have been able to occupy it.
But now that they occupy such a good place, they should keep a low profile. They can just watch the excitement secretly. If they watch too openly, they might be hated. Although they are not afraid, the less trouble they can get, the better.
Mu Nan climbed up from the mat. Song Jia leaned against the wall, stroking the dog's head lying on his legs in a daze. He was probably worried about his brother and seemed a little silent.
Jian Chu was still sleeping, and Yu Zibai also woke up. Seeing that they were up, he pulled his backpack over and said in a low voice, "I brought flour, oil, salt, and canned instant noodles. I only brought a small bag of rice, and the rest was water. I did bring a pot, but there was no fuel. For ready-made food, I quickly grabbed a bag of freshly made steamed buns. There was a power outage before, so I couldn't prepare too much, for fear that they would go bad overheating."
Song Jia also carefully walked around Jian Chu and crawled over, unzipping his backpack: "I brought canned food and a bunch of biscuits, just in case I can't start a fire."
Some of the biscuits he bought from the official website beforehand, they were the old snacks, not cheap, but at least they filled the stomach, they contained sugar and milk, now everything was lacking, eating some sandwich biscuits that he used to look down on was good for the body. Some of them he made at home, although there was no milk or eggs, but the flour and sugar were pretty good, mainly because they could be kept a little longer.
Qin Huai said, "I brought fuel, so I can cook, but forget about it today. Let's take a look at the conditions of the people around us. If everyone's conditions are not good, or even have nothing to eat, then try not to make a big noise by cooking. Let's just survive for a few days with what we have now."
Song Jia and Yu Zibai also felt that this was a better approach. What if other people had nothing to eat? If they started a fire and cooked here, especially in this semi-enclosed space of the cave, the smell would dissipate slowly and they would easily become the target of public criticism. It would be better for them to first look at other people's conditions. If their conditions were better, they could eat hot food and it wouldn't be too conspicuous.
Qin Huai asked Mu Nan to take out all the steamed buns in the bag. This stuff can only be eaten in the first two days. If it is the third day, no matter whether the temperature in the cave will go bad, it will definitely not remain soft. So there is no way to use the backpack as a cover to take it from the space. Just take some out first and eat it for two days. What to eat later will be decided later. I just hope that I won’t live in this cave for too long.
While they were discussing, Jian Chu also woke up, but he probably didn't sleep well, and he looked tired. Mu Nan said, "Jian Chu, what do you want to put in the steamed bun? There are canned luncheon meat and corn kernels."
Jian Chu said, "Corn kernels, I'll do it myself." He couldn't eat canned luncheon meat. He had eaten it at home before. He didn't know if it was because there was too much oil in it, but he had diarrhea all day after eating it. Now he was outside and it was not very convenient to go to the toilet, so he could only pray in his heart that he would not have diarrhea, otherwise it would be too much trouble.
Mu Nan handed a disposable glove to Jian Chu. Since there was no way to wash it with water, he had to wear gloves. Otherwise, it would be too dirty to handle it with his hands, and it would be fatal if he ate it.
Mu Nan ate two steamed buns. One bun was stuffed with beef sauce, the kind made by his brother, which was especially good with rice. The other bun was stuffed with spicy cabbage, which he made himself and was super delicious. As for luncheon meat, he was more accustomed to frying it in oil. Eating it directly like this always felt like eating raw meat.
Those with small appetites ate two, and those with large appetites ate three. Fortunately, none of them were big eaters, otherwise such a small amount of food would not be enough. Song Jia also took a steamed bun to feed Niu Niu, but he avoided people and covered her with a small blanket used to change clothes inside the stone wall, for fear of being seen. There are always some talkative people in this world. They feed dogs when people are about to starve to death. It is very annoying to meet such people.
Mu Nan handed Song Jia another steamed bun: "Tear off half for Niuniu, and throw the rest into the rabbit cage. Although I don't know if the rabbits will eat it."
Facts have proved that wild rabbits will eat anything as long as it is edible. The steamed buns thrown into the cage were eaten up in no time. Mu Nan was about to throw another one, but was stopped by Qin Huai: "Eat a little so that you won't starve to death. If you eat too much, you might get sick."
Mu Nan could only regretfully give up. There was no way to feed fresh grass outside. He didn't know if his rabbits would survive after this wave of evacuation. How many of them would survive? If the rabbits were not too small, he would have eaten one every few days. At least they would have gone into his stomach. If they died, it would be a waste of meat.
Before going to bed, several people went to the toilet one after another. The toilet was at another entrance of the cave. Although it was also inside the cave, it should have been renovated and a row of toilets were specially built. The only good thing now was that there was no shortage of water. There was too much rain outside. The toilet was flushed very clean last time, so at least there was not much smell and it was not too disgusting. It was just a bit far away.
In addition, there are more people in the cave now, and the entire cave is winding. One has to be careful on the road to avoid stepping on people. The lighting in the entire cave is also very dim. It takes almost twenty minutes to go back and forth. This makes Mu Nan extremely envious of Niu Niu, because Niu Niu can hold it in and get it done once a day.
Because the bathroom is very close to the cave entrance, the noise outside can be heard. Mu Nan came back from the bathroom and wiped his hands and feet with disinfectant tissues while saying, "The rain was too loud, a rumbling downpour. It's a pity that I could only hear the sound but not see the situation outside. I wonder if everyone has been evacuated."
Jian Chu said: "There are too many people. It may not be so smooth to transfer them all."
Mu Nan looked under the stone platform and said, "I don't know if Qin Bing and the others have completed their mission, or if anything happened to them. Will they come to find us? And whether Xu Ming and Wu Zheng have also been transferred here. When I went to the bathroom just now, I looked around and didn't see any familiar faces."
Yu Zibai smiled and said, "You rarely go out, so there aren't many familiar faces you see."
Mu Nan said: "The girls next door to us didn't see it either, and neither did the guy who lives in the back."
Song Jia sighed: "I hope everyone is safe and sound."
It was the first day after evacuation, and everyone was trying to find their way around the new environment, or perhaps they were all very tired after a day of running around. Some had gone to bed early, while others were still arranging their sleeping places. They all spoke carefully in low voices, and it seemed that no one was particularly difficult to get along with. When Mu Nan was lying on the mat, he vaguely heard words like "platform" and "good luck", and felt that someone was talking about them.
But they were really lucky. They arrived early and chose a place that was as far away from the crowd as possible. Although the stone platform was a bit small for five grown men, except for Song Jia who was single, the four of them could sleep in pairs, so it was not so bad.
The lights in the cave were always on. The lights were not very bright to begin with, and were dim enough. Keeping them on would not affect their rest. After most people had fallen asleep quietly, Mu Nan squeezed into Qin Huai's arms. Although the temperature in the cave was not low, it was still a little cold because the ground had not seen the sun for many years.
But Mu Nan and the others brought several blankets. The blanket was the smallest size they had bought online before. It was an ultra-thin blanket that cost three dollars and fifty cents each and included free shipping. Several of them rolled together were not even as big as a palm. At this temperature, it was just the right size to cover one's stomach in the cave. They brought exactly three blankets. One was given to Jian Chu and the others, and one had been hanging on the rock wall before, but now that he didn't need to change clothes, Song Jia took it down and used it to cover himself. The last blanket was of course used by Mu Nan and Qin Huai themselves.
Mu Nan heard some chattering and some snoring, and whispered to Qin Huai, "It's so noisy, brother, can you sleep? Do you want earplugs?"
Qin Huai covered his ears: "Close your eyes, and you won't make any noise when you fall asleep."
Mu Nan leaned into his arms. Although it was still a little hot to be so close, the familiar smell made him feel more at ease in the unfamiliar environment. "How long do you think we will live here? Will the house be in good condition after we go back?"
Qin Huai held a small electric fan and placed it behind Mu Nan so that both of them could get some fresh air. "If the house is gone, we can just rebuild it. Choose a place, hire people, buy materials, and build a house the way you want, two or three stories high, with as many rooms as you want and how to divide the upstairs and downstairs. Everything will be based on our own preferences and habits."
Mu Nan sighed: "If it was like this before, I would definitely be happy, but it's so hot now. Where can I go to escape the heat before the house is built?"
Qin Huai stroked his back gently and coaxed him to sleep while saying, "We can live on the mountain. There is a hole dug by someone before. We can rent a car and go over from time to time to check on the progress of the house. We can live in the mountains and sleep in a cool place during the day when the sun is strong. We can also watch the stars at night. We can eat barbecue when we want and hot pot when we want. It would be best to get a dog by then and train it to be as sensible and obedient as Niu Niu..."
The sound of Qin Huai whispering in Mu Nan's ear helped him block out a lot of noise from the outside world. As Mu Nan listened, he slowly fell asleep as if he was listening to a bedtime story.
Qin Huai covered him with a small blanket and stretched out one hand to use as a pillow for him. He found it a bit funny that Mu Nan fell asleep in a short while. He thought he was tired during the day. However, seeing that he was quite adapted to the current environment, Qin Huai felt relieved. He turned slightly to the side, covered Mu Nan's ears with one hand, held him in his arms and fell asleep with his eyes closed.
Mu Nan woke up once in the middle of the night, but he was in a daze. He heard silence in the cave. As soon as he moved, he felt Qin Huai holding him tighter and patting him gently to coax him to sleep like when he was a child. He couldn't help but smile, then changed his position, and fell asleep again on Qin Huai's chest.
He slept comfortably. Qin Huai was held down by him all night and had three nightmares. He either dreamed that Mu Nan was lost or that Mu Nan was washed away by a flood. When he woke up in the morning, his face was cold.
Mu Nan looked at Qin Huai and said, "You are not as good as me in adapting to the environment. Didn't you sleep well last night? Then you can take a nap in the afternoon. We don't know how long we will live in this cave. You should adapt quickly."
Qin Huai glanced at him, then went to the bathroom with toiletries in one hand and Mu Nan in the other.
The bathroom is a bit far away, so usually two or three people go together. There are things piled up here, so someone must stay. Jian Chu and the others woke up early, and Song Jia also wanted to take Niu Niu to solve the problem while it was still early and most people were not awake yet, so he went with Yu Zibai and the others. Now that they are back and Mu Nan has woken up, it is Qin Huai and the others' turn to go.
There are many people who get up early, some go to the bathroom, and some even take a bath by fetching water from the cave entrance. The rainwater that falls from the sky is always cleaner than the underground water source. At least there is no possibility of insect eggs in the sky.
Mu Nan and Qin Huai found an inconspicuous corner and washed themselves with the mineral water they brought with them. There were people next to them who were washing their hair and bathing directly in the rain. They were not afraid of catching a cold by washing like this early in the morning.
The place where they were was on a relatively high hillside. The situation at the foot of the mountain was not very clear because it was too high. But if you looked into the distance, you could see a muddy yellow water flowing downstream, but there was no way to determine how high the water had risen because there was no reference for comparison. Qin Huai and Mu Nan looked for a while, but really couldn't tell what was going on outside, so they had to go back into the cave.
As the two walked into the cave, they saw a man in military uniform and quickly stepped forward to ask, "Excuse me, is there any way to find someone now? We want to find a few friends, and we wonder if they have been transferred here."
The soldier shook his head and said, "We can't do anything right now. We are still transferring personnel. We don't have enough manpower to count the number of people who have been transferred here. You can look for it in the cave by yourselves. There is a refuge cave here, and there is another one above. If you can't find it here, it may be above."
Mu Nan said: "Do you know Qin Bing? He was the soldier who was responsible for patrolling the first five districts."
When asked about Qin Bing, the man actually knew him. Although they were not in the same class, they both lived in the Soldiers' Building: "I know him, but I haven't seen him here."
Mu Nan was a little disappointed. Qin Huai rubbed his hair and said to the soldier, "If you see Qin Bing, please tell him someone is looking for him. We live in the innermost part of the cave."
The soldier nodded, which was considered as agreement. Now that they were alone outside, it was a blessing to have someone thinking about them. It was not too much trouble to help convey a message.
They wound their way back to where they lived, and from afar they saw a man climbing halfway up the stone platform and talking to Yu Zibai.
Qin Huai and Mu Nan hurried over and heard Yu Zibai say, "Sorry, we have someone with poor health here too. You can find someone else to replace him."
The man wanted to say something, but Qin Huai stepped forward and said, "Please make way."
Mu Nan glanced at the man who was talking to Yu Zibai. He was a middle-aged man with greasy hair sticking to his head. His clothes were very worn out and hung on his body out of shape after being washed. He smelled heavily of sweat. Even if Mu Nan held his breath, the unbearable smell still rushed into his nose.
Given the current environment, he wouldn't judge people by their appearance, but he didn't have a good impression of this man at first sight, probably because his eyes were a little sneaky and obscene, and he always pretended to glance at the bags they put behind them. Mu Nan climbed onto the mat, picked up the blanket and shook it in the direction where the man was standing.
Sleeping on the floor, so close to the ground, even with an air mattress, there were still some small stones falling on the blanket. Naturally, they fell on the man. The pitiful expression that the man had originally put on changed instantly. He blocked it with his hands and said in a bad tone: "You..."
Before he could finish his unkind words, Qin Huai put his bag on the ground. There was a hammer or something inside, and it hit the ground heavily with a sound like metal collision. The man suddenly fell silent and subconsciously looked up at Qin Huai, but saw that Qin Huai's expression was cold and his eyes even revealed a fierceness. He couldn't help but take two steps back.
Qin Huai turned to look at Yu Zibai: "What's the matter?"
Yu Zibai said, "This man wants to switch places with us, saying that his daughter is not in good health."
Qin Huai turned his head and looked at the man: "What does your daughter's poor health have to do with us? I have already clearly rejected you, so please stop pestering me. If you bother me, don't blame me for being rude!"
The man didn't expect this group of people to be so difficult to talk to. They threatened without saying a word. He immediately became anxious: "Let's discuss it again. My daughter is not feeling well. She will cry and make a fuss when she is not feeling well. This crying and making a fuss will affect the people around her, even you..."
Song Jia whispered in Mu Nan's ear, "I just saw it. This guy pinched his daughter secretly before he came here, and the girl started crying. Then he pretended to coax her and apologized to the people next to him. Then he came over and said he wanted to change seats with us, saying that this place is a little further away from the crowd, so his daughter's crying won't disturb the people next to her too much."
After Song Jia finished speaking, he pointed his eyes and said, "My vision is very good, I can see everything clearly."
Although Song Jia's voice was not loud, everyone on the platform heard it, including the man, whose face suddenly changed. "No, how can you say such slanderous words? If you don't want to change, then don't change. Why do you accuse me like this? She's my daughter. Wouldn't I feel bad if she cried?"
Qin Huai said, "This is simple. Your child is crying and making a fuss. I will beat you every time she cries. Seeing her father being beaten, I think she will hold back her tears no matter how uncomfortable she is."
Without waiting for the man to say anything, Qin Huai picked him up and threw him out. However, the man's clothes might have been washed too many times, and there was a tearing sound when he picked him up, but at least he threw him out.
Mu Nan quickly took out disinfectant wipes to wipe Qin Huai's hands. Who knows how long that person hasn't taken a shower, so he has to disinfect them thoroughly.
Jian Chu at the side sighed: "Our position is too conspicuous."
Mu Nan comforted him: "Don't be afraid, at worst we can just have a fight!"
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