77 Chapter 77
"The results are in." Early in the morning, Wang Jie hurried out of the small island, holding a paper report in his hand: "Bhuto conducted tests overnight last night, and this mushroom is the same poisonous mushroom we encountered before, only it has evolved." Wang Jie's face showed an incredulous expression.
"evolution?"
"Yes. These mushrooms still release a toxic gas that can cause unconsciousness, but the mushroom gas is now colorless and odorless compared to before. Most people who see it for the first time will think that as long as they don't touch it, there won't be any problems, and then they will unknowingly be poisoned." The more Wang Jie thought about it, the more terrifying it became. In such a short time, these savage killers that appeared in the forest seemed to have gained intelligence, either appearing as new species or desperately evolving.
“The density of mushrooms here is much higher than what we encountered in Yangshan Village,” Tong Shu said. She looked at the newly fenced-off pigpen where piglets were frolicking. “Moreover, these plants seem to be deliberately targeting humans; other animals seem to have never been attacked.”
Wang Jie followed Tong Shu's gaze and froze: "...You mean, this is a deliberate attempt to expel humans?"
Tong Shu put his hands in his pockets and slowly stroked the engraved pattern on the hilt of the knife in his pocket: "Don't you find it strange? After several natural disasters, the temperature has returned to normal and the vegetation has begun to grow again, even more lush than before. On the way to G Province, we have passed through so many mountains. I don't know if you have noticed, but there have been a lot of wild animals along the way. It seems that only the number of humans has decreased sharply."
Wang Jie felt his limbs go weak. He plopped down in a folding chair and took a big gulp of water to calm himself: "...So is this nature's punishment for humanity? When will it end? Will the human population be suppressed to a certain level? Or... will it become extinct?"
"It's just a guess, no need to be so nervous." Tong Shu shrugged easily and said, "No matter what, we still have hope for the final mission reward on the island. We can't let humanity go extinct."
A noise came from not far away. Tong Songming and the others had returned from hauling timber in the woods. Upon hearing the noise, Tong Shu and Wang Jie immediately shut their mouths and began cleaning up the wood chips left on the ground.
"Why did you bring back so much?" The cart that Tong Songming had hastily made was piled high with timber that had already undergone preliminary processing. They had been busy since dawn, and this was already the third load.
“Your two aunts said they want to build a wooden house on the side. It’s really inconvenient for more than a dozen of us to live together. Building a few more houses will make it more comfortable for everyone,” Tong Songming explained.
Tong Shu thought it made sense. She rubbed her toes on the damp soil and asked Tong Songming, "Dad, why don't we pave this land with cement? You see, there aren't many trees growing here. If we pave the ground with cement, the killer vines won't be able to grow out, and we won't have to spread pesticides and dig fire ditches here every day."
Tong Songming patted his head. Although he agreed in his heart, he still looked a little embarrassed: "Indeed, I originally planned to use concrete to build a foundation, but we only bought cement. We'll have to find other ways to make things like red bricks and gravel."
“No problem,” Tong Shu said, not thinking it was a difficult issue. She pointed to the other side of the river and said, “So many buildings have collapsed over there. If we need materials, we can just cross the river.”
The G River is gently rippling. After a series of natural disasters, the river is only a few dozen meters wide, and a small boat is enough to cross it.
Tong Shu had actually wanted to go and see the other side for a long time. They had already investigated the situation on this side, but the other side of the river was still a hidden danger. She couldn't feel at ease staying here if she didn't go there herself.
Tong Songming could roughly guess his daughter's thoughts. After considering it for a moment, he nodded: "Just take out the assault boat to cross the river. The assault boat has a lot of horsepower and is fast, and it will be easier for people."
Tong Shu thought so too. They got right to work. The work at the camp was simply processing wood and bamboo. Tong Songming gave a few instructions to the people who stayed behind, and then he and Tong Shu took the speedboat to the other side of the river to scout out the area.
The scenery across the G River and where Tong Shu and his camp were located was completely different. After Tong Shu stepped onto this land, she could clearly feel the difference. Under her feet were not only soil turned up by plants, but also large chunks of broken cement road.
“This is the city, and that is the countryside,” Tong Songming said, pointing to both sides.
The place where they landed seemed to have been a riverside park. From a distance, Tong Shu could see a bunch of dilapidated fitness equipment scattered haphazardly among the grove of trees.
Tong Songming saw it too. His eyes lit up and he walked over, took a wrench and tapped it a few times, saying, "This material is good. We can take it back, melt it down, and use it to make steel bars."
Without saying a word, Tong Shu also took out a wrench and screwdriver, and the father and daughter began to disassemble the equipment on the spot.
Both of them came with backpacks. Tong Shu took off a piece and stuffed it into her bag, and Tong Songming followed suit. The two of them gradually emptied the pile of equipment.
"That's the children's playground over there, there are still quite a few left. I'll ask my uncle and the others to come and dismantle them together tomorrow," Tong Shu said to Tong Songming, who was packing up his tools, after walking around the park.
The two left the park and walked a little further in. Near the park was an old residential area, which was clearly not very tall to begin with. During the floods and the sharp drop in temperature, the entire residential area must have been buried under ice.
The moss-covered buildings leaned to the left and right, with ferns and vines growing on them, making the whole neighborhood look gloomy.
Tong Shu looked at the scene with some trepidation: "Dad, let's not go in for now...we can come back tomorrow when there are more people."
Tong Songming chuckled and teased, "You weren't afraid of those fugitives before, so why are you afraid to go into this empty building that looks deserted?"
"...How can that be the same?" Tong Shu retorted weakly.
Knowing that his daughter was afraid of ghosts, Tong Songming stopped teasing her, and the two changed direction and continued on their way.
Most of the shops and houses built near the various residential areas have collapsed into ruins, with exposed bricks and stones, and moss growing in places that are not exposed to the sun.
Tong Songming picked up the bricks he had climbed up from the ruins and stuffed them into his bag: "These can all be used. They can be laid on the ground, and if there are enough, they can be used to build houses. Houses built with bricks are much sturdier than houses built with wood."
“There’s plenty to collect. There are tons of collapsed houses around here. It should be enough to build a few houses for us.” Tong Shu had always loved playing house-building games since she was little, and she was happily following Tong Songming around picking up bricks.
"We'll build the wooden house first, then gather some bricks, and I'll make some steel bars. We'll try to get our whole family a proper house within six months," Tong Songming said energetically, rubbing his back and holding up a red brick.
"Then I need to find the design drawings I've saved! I've wanted to renovate my grandparents' old house for a long time, and I've saved quite a few drawings, but Grandpa has always been reluctant to tear it down and rebuild it. Now I finally have a chance," Tong Shu said excitedly.
Although many houses collapsed, intact bricks were hard to find. Tong Shu and Tong Songming spent half a day searching through the ruins but couldn't gather a hundred bricks. Seeing that the sun was about to set, the two dared not linger any longer and quickly returned to the riverbank along the way they came, taking a speedboat back.
"How's it going? After all that work, what's the situation on the other side?" Shu Hua saw them coming in a speedboat from afar, and as soon as Tong Shu's feet touched the ground, Shu Hua came to greet them.
"Let's talk about it when we get back," Tong Songming said, putting his arm around his wife as they walked toward the camp.
Dinner was ready, and everyone sat around the campfire, bowls in hand, eating as they listened to Tong Shu and Tong Songming explain their plans.
"Bricks are better! They're more sturdy than wooden houses!" Wang Jianye, who had been praising wooden houses yesterday, immediately switched sides. "Tomorrow I'll go with you to collect bricks."
"Why are you in such a hurry!" Shuli rolled her eyes at her husband. "Didn't you hear what my brother-in-law said? It will take several months to collect bricks and forge steel bars. We won't be able to move in anytime soon. We need to build the wooden house first, and then send more people to collect bricks from the other side."
“That’s exactly what my eldest sister meant,” Tong Songming agreed.
Wang Jianye chuckled. He was happy enough just to be able to build a house in the future. His wife's nagging didn't bother him. He happily ate a couple of bites of rice and started thinking about what kind of house he would build.
Wang Jie also brought good news. When he went for a walk in the forest during the day, he found a small hill. One side of the hill had been blasted open, which must have been used for quarrying.
“That’s perfect for us. I’ll bring over a few truckloads of gravel tomorrow and water the land in the next couple of days,” Qin Jiaqiang said.
...
The family worked together as one, and within two weeks, the first wooden house was completed.
Tong Songming also built a small house on the outside using wooden planks, hiding the generator inside. The small wooden house was connected to wires and equipped with lights. When the lights were turned on, the small wooden house was instantly bathed in warm orange light, and the wooden house instantly felt like home.
Thick straw mats were laid on the wooden floor, and everyone sat around a low table in the middle. An electric hot pot was bubbling away, and the fresh aroma of mushrooms wafted out of the pot, filling the entire room.
"...It's been so long since I've had hot pot." Qin Xiaoxiao stared blankly at the meat rolls curling up in the soup pot and said softly.
Shuya's eyes immediately welled up with tears. Qin Xiaoxiao used to love hot pot the most, and this was the first time in a long time that she had taken the initiative to express herself. She was so excited that she didn't know what to say.
"Let's all have a drink! To celebrate this hard-won hotpot, and to celebrate our new home!" Wang Jie raised his glass of cola and proposed loudly.
Upon hearing this, everyone raised their glasses and clinked them together in the air.
Congratulations on your new home!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
