Lu Yuan was led to a room, and his father-in-law handed him a bottle of mineral water.
"Do you need water where you are? Take some back with you when you leave! Don't keep bringing water here, your grandparents and your parents all need water!"
As he was saying this, he started setting up the chessboard again. Lu Yuan felt a headache coming on when he saw the chessboard. Putting aside everything else, his skill in taking back moves was absolutely unique. Every time Lu Yuan checked his pieces, he would quickly grab Lu Yuan and ask to start over.
Lu Yuan was thinking about when to let him go back and talk to the old man.
"Uncle! I called you here today because I have something to ask you." Lu Yuan quickly stopped him. This game of chess would take at least two hours to finish.
"Hmm? Something's up? I knew something was wrong. Tell me! What is it?" Xiaoshan's dad stopped and sat back down on the sofa, asking.
So Lu Yuan told his father-in-law his idea, but he was always afraid that his father-in-law would disagree, since this thing was considered a controlled item.
Unexpectedly, Xiaoshan's father stroked his chin and thought for a while before saying, "Hmm! It's quite chaotic outside now. Since the polar day started, robberies have been happening frequently. A while ago, your aunt's braised meat shop was robbed of several pork knuckles! It really broke her heart for a long time!"
"Yeah, that's what I was thinking too. Getting guns or anything like that isn't realistic. I just want to be able to protect my family. Do you know anyone suitable?"
"Yes, there was one. Many years ago, there was a master craftsman whose skills were quite excellent. His blacksmithing skills were top-notch! Later, in order to make a living, the steel mill imported a lot of foreign CNC equipment, and gradually those craftsmen became less sought after."
Furthermore, the impact of modern industry on handicrafts is enormous. Only those with exceptional skills can remain in the factory. A few years ago, that old master craftsman retired due to health reasons, and the factory has had no more handicrafts since.
When Xiaoshan's father spoke of these things, his eyes were somewhat glazed over, as if he was recalling the good old days before the apocalypse.
"I'll try to find out for you! But it's been so many years, I don't know if I can get in touch with them. But this must be kept a secret, you can't tell anyone else!"
Lu Yuan quickly nodded and said, "Don't worry, Uncle, I know what I'm doing!"
So the two chatted for a while longer. At his father-in-law's insistence, Lu Yuan finally played two games with him. However, to save face for his father-in-law, Lu Yuan deliberately let him win a few moves. In the end, he lost to his father-in-law, who was a terrible chess player, and was able to leave.
Before he even got home, Lu Yuan saw a group of people gathered at the village entrance, whispering and talking amongst themselves.
Lu Yuan leaned closer and saw several police cars parked not far away, but the police officers inside were nowhere to be seen.
"Aunt Liu, what's going on? These police officers haven't left yet?" Lu Yuan asked a neighbor nearby.
"Hey! They caught someone! Everyone's watching the show!" The auntie said, cracking sunflower seeds as she looked into the distance.
Lu Yuan couldn't help but complain when he saw the sunflower seeds in the aunt's hand. It's so hot that it's hard to even drink water, and you're still eating sunflower seeds. Don't you feel thirsty?
"You caught them? So fast? Whose is it?" Lu Yuan asked again.
"It's not from our District 3. I heard it's from District 2. A group of people saw online that a group of robbers hijacked a water truck, saying they were upholding justice. But they never announced what happened to them. So some of the bolder ones organized a group to rob water. Unexpectedly, the higher-ups organized a large number of people to arrest them, and they caught them in less than twelve hours!" The aunt continued eating sunflower seeds.
"Uh...where are they? Why are the police cars still parked here?"
"They're interrogating them right now! I heard a few escaped, and the police are going to round them all up!"
As they were talking, they saw several police officers escorting a few people out of a house.
"Alright, everyone disperse! There's nothing to see here!" a police officer shouted as soon as he saw the villagers who had gathered around.
However, one busybody asked a question loudly.
"Officer, have they all been caught?"
"Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask! Just watch the news tomorrow!" After saying that, several police officers escorted the water robbers into the car and drove towards District Two.
He didn't know if it was the next day, but when Lu Yuan woke up and opened his phone, he saw a news notification.
"The gang that robbed water in the No. 3 New District was completely apprehended within twelve hours thanks to the police officers' relentless pursuit, and they are currently undergoing trial."
"Holy crap! That's incredibly fast!" Upon seeing the news, Lu Yuan immediately sat up straight.
I felt a bit emotional. It's been so long since the incident where the balding factory owner was beaten to death by the crowd for causing a fire that damaged the transformer while illegally operating his factory, and there's still no response from the authorities. But this water-grabbing case was resolved in just twelve hours.
In this apocalyptic world, human life seems less important; instead, the attention garnered by a truckload of water is far more significant than human life itself.
With a touch of melancholy, Lu Yuan got up, brushed his teeth, and washed his face. He then followed his mother to pick fruit in the backyard. The few empty rooms in the house were almost full, and Lu Yuan had rejected his mother's idea of opening a fruit stand several times.
These days, with the arrival of the apocalypse, fresh fruit is practically nonexistent. Occasionally, you can find some shriveled fruit on supermarket shelves, which has lost much of its moisture.
If you take the fruit from home out to sell, you can definitely get a good price, but it will also attract some people who covet it. If it gets stolen, that's not a big deal, but if it gets hurt, that would be troublesome.
If you really want to sell them, you should wait until fresh fruit is available before selling them. This way, you won't attract other people's attention and you can still make some money.
The case of the water robbery was considered closed, but in the following days, the villagers continued to talk about it. After all, there was basically no entertainment left for the masses, and they could only pass the time by talking about these things happening around them.
Lu Yuan calculated the time; it was already the beginning of the third month of the apocalypse. The food problem wasn't too serious yet. Some experts had analyzed the situation and proposed a plan to stockpile food. Many people had bought a lot of food before the apocalypse, so each household should have enough food now. The only problem was the lack of water.
Lying on the sofa watching his busy father, Lu Yuan felt that he should also do something, otherwise he would become a useless person if he was idle every day.
Although he is currently unemployed, he is not short of money. In his spare time, he tidies up the land in his space, herds sheep, feeds pigs, raises cows, feeds fish, and learns to cook with his mother. His family has not said anything, but Lu Yuan himself is getting a little tired of doing this every day.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
