Chapter 48 Chapter 48 [VIP]
It was already May, the season of spring, when flowers should be blooming, but the world was still shrouded in ice and snow, with temperatures hovering around -30 to -40 degrees Celsius. This seasonal anomaly had everyone panicking. After six months of consumption, most families had run out of their food reserves. A rush to borrow grain had swept through the village.
The "rich families" in the village were severely harassed, such as the Bai family. Everyone in the village knew that they raised many livestock and contracted 20 to 30 acres of land. Fortunately, before the ice disaster, the Bai family sold a lot of grain to the state in public, so it was not so conspicuous.
After lending a few grains to his relatives as a token of his gratitude, he also began to cry miserably to outsiders.
The dark side of human nature cannot be faced directly. People only want to see those around them living as badly as they do, or worse off. If you are better off than them, you will only be hated.
Realizing the weather was getting warmer, Bai He and Su Xing couldn't sleep. Bai He still had a lot of preparations to make, and Su Xing was also worried about whether the ice disaster would bring an epidemic. The two chatted until dawn.
By nine o'clock in the morning, the clouds in the sky had become much thinner, and the world was much brighter than before. The temperature had risen to more than ten degrees below zero, having risen by more than twenty degrees overnight.
On this day, countless people, wrapped up like bears, came out of their homes, laughing and crying. If the temperature didn't rise, they would not be able to survive.
The temperature is rising and their lives are about to return to normal. With such expectations, the villagers are more energetic.
By the next day, the temperature had risen above zero degrees Celsius, people could take off some of their heavy clothes, and the frozen snow on the ground was melting.
In the evening, Grandpa Bai and Uncle Bai came here. Both of them were people who had experienced a lot and seen a lot of the world. They knew that the temperature was rising so quickly, and there must be something wrong with the abnormal situation, so they asked the two to be more cautious.
By the fifth day, the temperature had reached over 20 degrees Celsius, and the snow had completely melted, leaving no time for anyone to prepare. The snow and water surged through like a torrent, flooding the first floor of some low-lying homes.
Those who had hoped to go out were dumbfounded when they saw the road was full of water.
When the temperature rose, the snow melted, and the roads became visible, the people in the city also went crazy. From high above, you could see them pouring out in large groups like ants.
The villages closer to the central city were initially surprised to see the outsiders, but after letting them in without any precautions, they realized it was a disaster. These starving people stole any food they saw and broke into any house they saw.
Sheshui Village was temporarily isolated because the melted snow flooded the road out of the village. People outside could not come in and people inside could not go out.
Those with family members away from home, especially parents whose children had been trapped in school for over six months without any news, could not stay. That same day, village officials used a loudspeaker to announce to the village that afternoon that a meeting would be held at the village office building.
The village office building was originally the Sheshui Village Primary School. At the time, the school had poor teaching staff and had suffered several serious accidents. Parents who could afford it sought to transfer their children to schools in the town or city. When Bai He was in third grade, Sheshui Village Primary School collapsed due to a severe lack of students, and all students were transferred to another village primary school.
The primary school was subsequently renovated and turned into the village office building and village activity area. The playground is large, so even if hundreds of villagers come, it's still not crowded.
I have been stuck at home for the past six months, and almost everyone who can move came to this village meeting. The faces and spirits of the villagers have changed dramatically over the past six months. It feels like a lifetime ago when so many people gathered together.
Grandma Bai and Grandpa Bai have lived in the village their entire lives. They know everyone in the village and have countless friends. But at this village meeting, the two attentive elderly people noticed that countless familiar faces had disappeared.
The elderly are weak, and some of them have frozen to death in their sleep without knowing it. Many of them have serious underlying diseases, but due to lack of medication, they are unable to fight the recurrence of the disease.
The two old people were actually mentally prepared before they came out, but when they really heard the bad news, they still couldn't help feeling sad.
The purpose of this village meeting was to appease personal emotions and to solve the water blockage problem at the village entrance that concerned countless people.
The village had several experienced elders who had participated in many infrastructure projects. After much discussion and communication, they finally planned a drainage channel.
Naturally, no one objected. After being trapped in the mountains for six months, everyone was eager to learn about the outside world. As required by the village, each family was to provide one able-bodied worker to dig the canal. Bai He's family naturally chose him, while Ning Zelan, from Bai's uncle's family, had to persuade his father-in-law to quit and enthusiastically accepted the task. After living off his wife's family for so long, he urgently needed to do something to show his appreciation.
Wearing Uncle Bai's fishing raincoat and carrying tools, Ning Zelan came to the village entrance with a heroic and proud look.
Ning Zelan originally thought that as a strong athlete, it would be easy for him to do these things, but the first step of picking up soil made him doubt himself.
Watching the skinny old man, a little over 1.6 meters tall, easily carrying two buckets filled with wet soil, Ning Zelan ignored the advice and placed a shoulder pole on his shoulder. The moment he stood up, he felt like the skin on his shoulder was about to burst, and the bones in his shoulder were creaking with pain. After walking a few steps with a grimace, Ning Zelan had to put down the shoulder pole.
Seeing his miserable appearance, a bunch of people around him laughed. An old man with gray hair, carrying a load that had been bent by the weight, walked steadily past him and said with a grin, "I told you kids that your shoulders are too weak to carry the load."
As he walked, the carrying pole moved slightly on his shoulders. Through his thin clothes, one could see palm-sized calluses on both sides of the old man's shoulders.
"Go dig!" the old man advised kindly.
Ning Zelan blushed and looked puzzledly at her brother-in-law who was easily carrying the burden on the other side.
Bai He naturally couldn't carry the burden before. His family had always spoiled him and would never let him do such work.
But during his most difficult period, to earn a living, he worked at a construction site, carrying bricks. Initially, his shoulders ached terribly from the moment he lifted a load, but his resentment was so strong that he stubbornly forced himself to work, using physical torture to counteract his mental turmoil. Even with the skin on his shoulders chafed, Bai He managed to carry two full baskets of bricks without batting an eyelid. Initially, Bai He's clothes often clung to his flesh, and his body would sometimes tremble as he carried the load, yet his spirits remained incredibly high. The people at the construction site could tell from his behavior and expression that something was wrong, and no one dared approach him. Consequently, Bai He worked there for nearly six months. As the wear and tear on his shoulders healed, calluses began to form. The calluses were then smoothed and thickened by the long work, and after repeated attempts, he no longer felt pain when he lifted the load.
With the joint efforts of the whole village, the drainage channel was dug in one day, but it took another day for the water to be completely drained.
The cadres of Sheshui Village were still very rational and cautious. Considering that the situation outside was not optimistic before the snowstorm, they communicated with the villagers on the same day. Each household sent someone to patrol the village entrance in turns and strictly control the entry of outsiders.
Their move really saved the villagers a lot of trouble.
The water in the village hadn't been completely drained yet. When it reached chest height, patrolman Fu Lei saw more than a dozen scruffy people wading through it. Although the temperature had risen and cotton jackets could be removed, the water was still cold.
Their behavior was not normal. Cautious, he blew his whistle and asked his companions to inform the villagers.
A dozen people staggered closer, and Fu Lei was immediately struck by a pungent odor. Their clothes hadn't been washed in who knows how long; they were so black it was hard to tell the color, and some spots were caked with lumps. They were all sallow and thin, looking as if the wind could blow them away, yet their eyes were shimmering with a terrifying light.
Fu Lei couldn't help but take a few steps back.
Several people in the crowd held iron bars tightly in their hands and moved forward quietly.
"Brother Lei" At this moment, a surprised call came from the crowd.
Fu Lei instinctively looked in the direction of the voice and saw a bearded man. He was very tall, but as thin as a bamboo pole and looked very weak. The clothes on his body were soaked with water and he couldn't even stand up straight.
Fu Lei felt that the person looked familiar, but he just couldn't think of it. Just when Fu Lei was racking his brains to think.
The man revealed his identity directly. "I'm Zhou Qiming! I'm Wang Qiming, who lives next door to you."
Wang Qiming pointed at his face crazily, crying and laughing. Fu Lei was shocked. He really couldn't connect the well-mannered boy next door with the homeless man now.
"Qiming, aren't you studying at a university in An City? How did you become like this?"
"School...study..." Returning to his home, a familiar place, and seeing familiar people, Wang Qiming's inner defenses crumbled. He sank to the ground, tears streaming uncontrollably. All the fear, panic, and grievances buried deep within him burst forth. This journey had truly been so difficult.
Wang Qiming, who was in his twenties, was crying and hiccuping like a child. Fu Lei remembered how high-spirited he was when he was admitted to university. He couldn't bear to see him and quickly ran over to help him up.
Looking at Fu Lei's defenseless back, the people nearby exchanged glances and tightened their grip on the iron bars.
“Someone’s coming outside.”
"Where?"
At this time, a group of people came running to the village entrance, looking at the people outside with wide eyes, curiosity and surprise.
The villagers looked healthy, and it was obvious that they had plenty of food and drink and were full of energy. Without hesitation, the men quickly withdrew their iron rods.
"Ah! It's Qiming from the Wang family who's back! Go back quickly! Your parents are back home repairing the house. They miss you every day, and your mom's eyes are swollen from crying."
When Wang Qiming was supported and surrounded by villagers as he walked into the village, outsiders also followed him into the village.
"Comrade, what are you doing in our village?" The village chief Baijiu and several class leaders stopped them.
Baijiu's tone was polite, but his eyes were wary. Baijiu was a veteran, and his instinct told him that something was wrong with the people here.
"Bang, bang, bang" a few times, and several people in the crowd knelt down heavily.
"We all live in the town. We haven't eaten for several days and are almost starving to death. Please give us something to eat." As he said this, he began to kowtow. He kowtowed so hard that his forehead turned purple in the blink of an eye.
The villagers had never seen such a scene before. They rushed over to support him as if they were on fire. "Hey! Comrade, what are you doing? Get up quickly..."
"I can't stand it, I can't stand it."
"If there are any difficulties, we can find a solution together."
Seeing that something was wrong, the village chief said to his youngest son, "Wangsheng, go home and get some sweet potatoes and radishes."
Wangsheng let out an "Ah" and ran home like a nimble rabbit.
When the others saw this scene, their eyes lit up on their dirty faces.
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