Chapter 137
The clearing of the vacant lot began in an orderly manner, and no one was lazy.
In fact, even if food is not provided, as long as Old Li says a word, everyone will definitely actively participate and dare not be negligent in the slightest.
After all, even Bashi, who had just arrived yesterday, didn't want to leave the Huangcheng Grocery Store and lose the chance to survive here.
Except for Old Li and Granny Guo, all other residents were born after the catastrophe.
Like Shugen, he is also in his thirties or forties - he himself doesn't actually know how old he is exactly.
Living in this apocalyptic world, where there is no tomorrow but today, every day is long and torturous. Who would deliberately keep track of their age?
Even if I try to remember, it will easily become vague.
In Shugen’s childhood and teenage memories, disasters always happened suddenly at any time.
Cold, high temperature, earthquakes, heavy rain, tornadoes... those memories of disasters were the main theme for a long time.
Because most of the time he could only dig up tree roots to eat, he named himself Tree Root.
I don’t know how long I endured this kind of life. Every day I was either suffering or on the way to suffering.
But he didn't want to die, just like the roots of a tree deeply rooted in the soil. Even when the tree has withered, the roots are still waiting in the dark for the day to grow again.
Then, he really waited.
At some point, he suddenly discovered that the power of the natural disaster was weakening.
Earthquakes that occurred almost every day became once every few days, once every ten days, once a month, and finally once in a very long time.
There is also the extremely irregular weather - the sun is blazing in the morning, it suddenly snows in the afternoon, and there is a storm at night.
There's a severe drought on this side of the mountain, and a flood on the other side...
This terrible and disorienting climate has a cycle that is gradually lengthening.
Life finally got a little better and I could finally breathe a sigh of relief. Although it was still hard, at least I wasn't on the brink of life and death every day.
He remembered that by the time his son Fireball was born, the climate had become much milder. Although it was still difficult for the new generation, Tree Root really felt it was okay.
Of course, when natural disasters become less frequent, the resurgent mutated plants and animals will also become a new disaster.
Faced with the terrifying and ferocious mutants, the tree roots didn't have much to do. Fireball's mother was dragged away by the mutants while she was digging wild vegetables in the mountains...
Fortunately, the management of Jufeng Town was pretty good. Under the protection of the guards, Jufeng Town was relatively safe. Later, they slowly cleared out all the mutant creatures in Jufeng Mountain.
Unfortunately, with the rapid increase in population in Jufeng Town, the edible food in the mountains has gradually become less and less.
Seeing that more and more people were leaving the mountains, about two or three months ago, Shugen also brought his son to the edge of the deserted city to make a living.
Two days before the flood, he actually had a premonition and wanted to take his son back to Jufeng Mountain, but he didn't expect to encounter a grocery store selling salt in the deserted city.
Because of my greed, I delayed my journey and was trapped here, but I didn't expect to have such an adventure.
In the grocery store in the deserted city, there are not only sturdy houses to live in, but also magical protective barriers. Although they cannot block low temperatures and high temperatures, they can block large-scale disasters and mutated creatures. It already makes people feel safe, okay?
Shugen thought that as long as he could live here forever, he would be willing to work like a slave.
However, he never expected that the owners of the grocery store in the deserted city were two young men who were a hundred times more kind than the managers of Jufeng Town.
They live here without having to do hard labor. As long as they pay rent and abide by the rules, no one will care about them, and no one will hurt them.
They just have to figure out how to get food and pay the rent.
Now, the grocery store owner is also planning to teach them how to make bricks and build a kang, teach his son how to read, and provide him with free purified water.
How could I have imagined such a beautiful life before?
The others felt the same as Shugen. Living in this apocalyptic world, it was a luxury to have a stable environment.
With everyone's concerted efforts, the yard was almost cleared in just one morning.
Old Li then instructed them to light a fire, put up a big pot, and start boiling water to cook soybeans.
These soybeans were naturally exchanged by Tang Yu'an and his friends from Hongli. After they were cooked, each person was given a bowl.
Even though only a little bit of salt was added as seasoning, it was a blessing to have something to eat, and everyone held their bowls and ate with great care.
"Dad, this water is different from the one we usually drink!" Fireball couldn't help but say.
Shugen nodded. It was Old Li from the Tiejin Gang who had just brought down the water. He had been watching from the side.
The water was really crystal clear, almost the same as the water from the mountains, and it didn't have any strange taste. It must be the pure water that Old Li mentioned.
"If you learn to read well with Mr. Li, you can drink such clean water every day!"
"good!"
After dinner, Granny Guo and Tiemuhua found Old Li and wanted to discuss renting land with him.
Old Li took them back to the 5th floor and discussed the matter in Room 502. In fact, Granny Guo and the others had no other choice, so basically whatever he said was the final word.
After Old Li finished writing it down in the notebook, Tiemuhua left and Granny Guo stayed for a while.
Only then did she have time to ask the questions in her heart.
"Why do you suddenly want to teach people to read?"
"The decision of those two children."
Granny Guo fell silent. She looked at the sturdy house and recalled the scene when she first met the two children, feeling filled with emotion.
"I never dared to imagine such a life before..."
Her son Kang Kang can also go to school.
Granny Guo thought about this and looked at Old Li and said, "I don't quite remember how to write. Can I use my knowledge and experience to exchange for water?"
She didn't know how many years she had left to live, so she gave this knowledge to the grocery store and asked them to record it. Perhaps it would be useful to Kang Kang when he could read in the future.
"Hey, can't you write?" Old Li pursed his lips, "I wanted you to do the record-keeping work."
Since becoming an employee of the Huangcheng Grocery Store, he has been getting busier day by day.
Those two guys are always trying to find things for him to do...
Even though he muttered like this, his bright eyes betrayed his good mood.
"How could I possibly do this kind of work?" Granny Guo waved her hands. "I only know how to farm, and the knowledge I've shared with you is mostly related to farming."
"Okay."
Old Li went to Room 501 next door to get a new notebook, wrote down the knowledge points shared by Grandma Guo, and then filled it with 1 liter of water for her.
Kang Kang was left behind, and soon Tie Jin came over with Jin Lili in his arms, while Huoqiu came by himself.
This is how the first lesson in life began for the children living in the grocery store in the deserted city.
"Let's start with the simplest number."
Old Li took the chalk that Tang Yu'an gave him and wrote the numbers "1", "2" and "3" on the small blackboard.
This small blackboard was naturally provided by Tang Yu'an. It was his childhood toy and now it is of great use.
"Repeat after me, 1—"
“1——”
The tender voice of a child mixed with Tie Jin's rough voice of repeating could be heard in Room 502.
Old Li looked at Tiejin and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.
However, looking at Tiejin's eyes full of curiosity, he quickly took a deep breath and continued teaching.
“2——”
“3——”
After asking them to repeat themselves several times, Old Li pointed to the numbers and asked them to read them. After making sure that everyone remembered the pronunciation, he announced the end of the class.
"Fireball, take them to the yard and use the sand on the ground to practice writing. I will test you tomorrow."
"No problem, leave it to me!"
Fireball patted his chest. He felt that learning to read was so easy and there was no pressure at all.
Kang Kang and Jin Lili had confused expressions on their faces, as if they still couldn't figure out the situation.
After taking the purified water they received back to their rooms, Fireball took Kang Kang and Lily downstairs to play, no, to practice writing.
Tiejin also smiled foolishly and went back to his room to continue producing metal. Soon, A Lian hurried downstairs and found the three children in the yard. She finally breathed a sigh of relief.
After a few days of rest, A-Lian felt that her body had recovered a lot. Apart from taking care of the children, cooking and cleaning the house, Tiejin didn't let her do anything else.
So A-Lian did not leave and took the initiative to stay and look after the children.
"Mother!"
Jin Lili would turn around and call her from time to time, and A Lian would look at her and smile.
But not long after, Kang Kang also turned around to look at her and called out in a baby voice: "Mom——"
Fireball looked at the two of them in confusion, and thinking that this was A-Lian's name, he looked at her and called out "Mom" in a crisp voice.
A-Lian: “…”
She took a deep breath and tried to correct herself: "I am Lily's mother."
"My mother was dragged away by a monster." said Fireball.
A-Lian paused.
In such a doomsday, children with both parents still alive are a minority.
"If you want, you can also follow Lily and call me mom." She looked at the two little boys and said gently.
Then she looked at Jin Lily again, "Lily, is it okay?"
Jin Lili looked at her confusedly, nodded under her gentle gaze, then ran over and threw herself into her arms.
She likes her current mother, who smiles at her every day, accompanies her every day, and speaks to her in a gentle voice.
"Mother!"
She buried herself in A-Lian's arms, rubbing against him happily like a kitten.
Huoqiu and Kang Kang both showed envious eyes, and then they also followed Jin Lili's shouting.
A-Lian reached out and touched their heads.
"Good kids, what were you playing just now?" she asked with a smile.
Both Huoqiu and Kangkang blushed.
"We are practicing writing. Old Li is teaching us!" Fireball shouted.
"It's Grandpa Li!"
Kang Kang looked at the fireball, his cheeks puffed up, "Brother said it was Grandpa Li!"
"Grandpa——" Jin Lili also shouted.
Fireball couldn't help scratching his hair. Seeing his two friends like this, he had no choice but to change his words: "Okay, okay, it was Grandpa Li who taught me."
A-Lian couldn't help but touch the three of their little heads again.
"Can you teach me?" she said.
"sure!"
So, A-Lian squatted on the ground and learned to write with several other children.
On the balcony upstairs, Old Li watched them for a while, then turned and went into the house to rest, but he didn't expect an unexpected person to walk in from outside.
"You also want to exchange for purified water?"
Old Li looked at the young man standing in front of him and asked, "Can you read?"
Langya nodded and said with a smile, "I can teach those children to read and do math."
"You came out of the fortress, right?" Old Li said directly.
This is an affirmative sentence.
Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi could both find that there was something wrong with him, so how could Old Li not see it?
However, everyone is trapped by the flood and is now on the same page. With the mysterious power of the night-staying rule, there is no need to worry about him causing any waves.
So Old Li reminded Tang Yu'an and the others, and when he found out that they didn't care much, he just watched silently.
But he didn't expect that Langya would be unable to sit still and come to exchange purified water with him.
Langya did not deny it. He came to find Old Li on his own initiative and had no intention of hiding his identity.
Before, he could convince himself to endure it, but now that he had the conditions, he really didn't want to drink that dirty water anymore.
Especially the bowl of boiled soybeans at noon. Although it was simple, he really felt that this was the food that people eat.
"I'm from the Fortress, so you should believe that I can definitely do this job," he said.
Old Li looked at him with suspicion.
Finally, he said, "You can make text annotations. Granny Guo comes every day to share her knowledge and experience. You can write it down for her."
"As long as you complete these two tasks, I will give you this much water."
Old Li picked up a 200ml mineral water bottle and showed it to him.
It is impossible to let Langya be a teacher. Old Li is afraid that he will teach the children bad things. Although people who come from the fortress have broader knowledge, they still have to be on guard.
After all, their grocery store has exposed so many good things, and it is still unknown whether it will be an enemy or a friend of the fortress in the future.
The profession of teacher has natural advantages. What if this Langya takes the children away?
Not to mention Jin Lili and Fireball, even Kang Kang, a planter with such high talent, must not make any mistakes.
Langya looked at the bottle of water and couldn't help but smile bitterly.
"Isn't this a bit too little?"
"Think it's too little? Then exchange it for something else." Old Li said with an indifferent attitude.
This was originally a benefit for the elderly and children. If he hadn't been so busy and unable to take care of everything, and Langya was the only literate resident, he would not have agreed to this deal.
"Okay, it's settled then!"
Because Granny Guo had completed her recording work, Old Li asked her to leave a two-word annotation before changing the water with her.
While writing, Langya kept asking Old Li questions.
"Who is your shop owner? Which fortress is he from? I've never heard of him before."
Old Li brushed it off perfunctorily. Tired of being asked, he turned cold and said, "Stop asking so many questions. You don't want to be thrown out to feed the fish, do you?"
Langya then shut his mouth awkwardly.
He also knew that he would definitely run into trouble with Old Li, but the two teenagers were so mysterious, and whenever they appeared in the building, they would definitely be accompanied by a mutant dog. He really didn't dare to ask for fear of a conflict.
"I'll come back tomorrow after I finish writing it."
Old Li checked what he wrote. This guy must be quite narcissistic as he actually wrote his own name.
[Wolf: A particularly ferocious creature]
Teeth: Teeth that grow in the mouth
Next to it was a wolf's head with its mouth open and sharp teeth showing.
You know what, it’s a pretty good painting.
Old Li decided that when he annotated text in the future, he should add pictures, so that it would be more intuitive.
He put the notebook away, then finally stood up and went back to Room 501 to get some water.
He sat by the window and saw Zhou Qi had come downstairs at some point and was directing the residents to make water purifiers.
Lin Zhen was among them. Now, none of the residents in the yard were not her acquaintances. Tiemuhua and Langya were the guests she recruited.
At this moment, a young boy's lively voice came from behind.
"grandfather!"
He turned around hurriedly and saw Tang Yu'an appear in front of him with a bruised face and nose.
Old Li was stunned for a moment, then frowned and asked angrily, "Who hit you?"
"No, no, I bumped into it accidentally."
Seeing that the young man was injured but had a pair of bright eyes filled with a happy smile, Old Li finally relaxed his expression.
"What are you so happy about?"
"Hey, of course it's a good thing!"
Tang Yu'an practiced flying for the whole morning. Although he was not very proficient yet, the feeling of flying was so great!
He first practiced on the 9th floor and hit the ceiling on his first test flight. Zhou Qi urgently made him protective equipment, but he still got bruises all over his body during the practice.
There is nothing we can do about this.
This skill is not like the Light Body Technique, which only makes the body lighter. In essence, it still needs to rely on support and its own bounce to gain strength.
When he performed the flying technique, his whole body floated in the air, just like an advanced version of the levitation technique. Whether flying or changing direction, he needed to rely on the power of the wind.
So this is why this skill requires affinity with the wind element.
Because his performance in the morning was so bad, Zhou Qi ordered him not to use this skill outside until he completely mastered the flying technique and could use it as easily as his fingers or arms.
Despite this, this still cannot reduce Tang Yu'an's excitement.
Because he had a feeling that as his abilities grew stronger, he might be able to break free from the limitations of the system and truly master this skill.
In other words, he will be able to fly whenever and wherever he wants in the future!
Just thinking of this, he felt that no matter how painful the collision was, he could bear it.
The main reason he came to see Old Li was because...
"Grandpa, I have something to tell you!" Tang Yu'an pulled Old Li aside to discuss.
"You want to recruit Lin Zhen as an employee?" Old Li asked in surprise.
"Well, now that we have more and more residents, there are a lot of miscellaneous tasks besides transactions. We think we need to hire another person to help you."
Old Li thought for a moment and nodded, "Miss Lin is indeed a good candidate."
She is lively and outgoing, very courageous, good at dealing with people, and young and in good health, so she doesn't get tired even when running around.
Of course, the most important reason is that he has watched this girl grow up, and she is a reliable person.
"As long as you agree!"
Because of the small population, the profits of No. 1 Store are actually far less than those of Jufeng Town, and even less than those of Haijing.
Adding another employee would have little impact on Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi, but would dilute Old Li's interests.
Old Li is also aware of this, but he doesn't care much about it.
Even if he didn't use the points, he could still have enough food and clothing, and he didn't need to go out hunting or adventure, as he would have grain, vegetables and meat for every meal.
What's there to be dissatisfied with in a life like this?
"As long as you don't dislike me."
"Grandpa, what are you talking about? We respect and appreciate you so much, how could we despise you?"
Tang Yu'an ran happily behind Old Li and pinched his shoulders as if he were a close family member.
He knew very well that if Grandpa Li had not helped them manage Store No. 1, he and Brother Xiaoqi would never have been able to have it as easy as they did now.
Old Li's body was obviously stiff, and then he slowly relaxed, with a kind smile on his face.
"Grandpa, you need to eat more. You are too thin now!"
But compared to the first time we met, her face was still healthier and rosier.
"knew."
Old Li responded softly. Although the boy's technique was ordinary, he had never felt so comfortable.
"Don't worry, this shop will be well looked after by you."
No one can try to sabotage it.
-
By the time the water purifier was almost finished, it was almost evening.
They made two in total, with a capacity more than three times that of Lin Zhen's. They are using them now and will make new ones later if they are not enough.
Watching the turbid sewage pour into the water purifier and lose its muddy yellow color when flowing out of the pipe, all those involved in the production gained an indescribable sense of accomplishment.
Of course, they also basically understood how to make the water purifier, but materials like gauze and activated carbon were in the hands of the boss.
Even if they knew the principle, if they wanted to make it, they would have to trade materials with the grocery store.
Everyone was lighting a fire and cooking in the yard again. When it was getting dark and they were about to go back to the house, Lin Zhen suddenly froze in place.
After a while, she said, "Lan Lin, go back upstairs first. I'm going to find the old man."
Lan Lin didn't say anything, but just followed her out of Room 501.
Old Li is already waiting.
He wasn't surprised to see Lan Lin and handed over two ice creams. "This is what Xiao An said he would give you. I'll have to trouble you again tonight."
"Wow, ice cream again? I want one too!" Lin Zhen shouted.
"Okay, I'll save one for you."
Lan Lin waved his hands impatiently. Seeing that Old Li and Lin Zhen seemed to have something to say, he curled his lips and turned away.
Old Li then pulled Lin Zhen into Room 501.
Lin Zhen's successful entry proved that she had accepted the recruitment of the mysterious businessman.
"Old man, I guessed it was you, right?" Lin Zhen said happily.
Old Li asked her to keep her voice down, then explained the situation to her, gave her a simple on-the-job training, and of course, assigned her future work.
"Although it sounds interesting, it seems to be a waste of time. What will happen if I slack off?" Lin Zhen started testing the bottom line before he even started working.
Old Li glanced at her and said, "You'll be fired."
Seeing that Lin Zhen still had no expression, he thought for a moment and then said quietly, "All memories of the grocery store will also disappear from your mind."
"Memories of the grocery store in the deserted city?" Lin Zhen's expression became serious.
Old Li looked at her and decided to speak more seriously.
"Memories of Xiaoan, Xiaoqi, and even me may disappear."
"Depend on!"
Lin Zhen cursed and said he was on a pirate ship.
If I had known this, I wouldn’t have accepted the job offer so quickly!
Seeing that she finally started to take it seriously, Old Li nodded with satisfaction.
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