Chapter 21 Radio
21. Radio
Uncle Li's orchard covered three nearby hills, planted with dozens of fruit trees. The scorching heat and the great crisis killed most of the fruit trees, but there are still over a thousand surviving trees.
Jiang Rong thought he would soon save the dying fruit trees in the orchard, but after turning just one hill, he felt dizzy and weak. He had always thought that the superpowers of those with special abilities were inexhaustible, but after transferring his abilities to more than a dozen fruit trees, he was shocked to realize that superpowers do eventually run out.
Seeing Jiang Rong's deathly pale face, Uncle Li and Aunt Li were both frightened. They helped Jiang Rong sit down, saying, "Xiao Rong, don't push yourself, you should rest."
Jiang Rong wiped the sweat from his brow and said apologetically, "This is the first time I've used so many superpowers, I couldn't quite control them." He needed to go back and study how long his superpowers could last and how long it would take to recover after using them.
However, it's impossible to save the orchard today; he needs to rest well for the night before trying again.
While Jiang Rong was tending to the fruit trees in the orchard, Jiang Xiaoheng stayed under the eaves of Uncle Li's house to play. With two mutant dogs guarding him, there was no need to worry about the little guy's safety. Seeing Jiang Rong return, Jiang Xiaoheng happily went to greet him, "Dad, are you done? Can we go to Uncle Chu's hometown now?"
Jiang Rong then remembered the important reason he had gone out today: he needed to go to Chu Qiang's house to see if Chu Qiang and the others had returned. He had to keep his promise to his son, so Jiang Rong perked up and said, "Dad will take you there now."
Uncle Li didn't know how to thank Jiang Rong, but upon hearing this, he immediately made arrangements: "You're going to the village? Come on, I'll take you there. I also need to go back for a bit."
Uncle Li's family has an electric tricycle, which they use to take the elderly couple up and down the mountain on weekdays. Aunt Li had a large basket of dark red bayberries wrapped in a cotton quilt in the back of the tricycle.
Seeing this, Jiang Rong smiled and asked, "Uncle Li, are you going down the mountain to deliver bayberries to people?"
Aunt Li smiled when she heard this, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. "My son and daughter-in-law came back from the city a few days ago. My daughter-in-law is pregnant and wants to eat something sour."
Jiang Rong cupped her hands in a respectful gesture and sincerely said, "Congratulations!"
Soon, Jiang Rong and her son were sitting in the back of the tricycle. Aunt Li held up an umbrella for them, worried that the father and son would get too hot, and she also took ice packs from the freezer and put them in the back. Of course, she also made sure to slip a bag of sweet and sour bayberries into Xiao Heng's hand so that the child could eat them as they walked.
The small tricycle was powerful, and once it started, the scenery along the roadside rushed past. After observing for a while, Jiang Rong asked with some doubt, "Uncle Li, isn't your village in Shandong? Why are we heading south?"
Uncle Li held the front of the car steadily, his back to Jiang Rong. His voice was slightly distorted when it reached Jiang Rong and his son, "Oh, a winding mountain road has been built to the south, which goes directly to our village. Although it's a bit more roundabout than taking the back roads, the road is wider and easier for cars to drive on."
Jiang Rong said thoughtfully, "I see."
Before long, the electric tricycle smoothly drove onto the mountain road. After driving down the mountain road for more than ten minutes, the terrain gradually became gentler, and a quiet village appeared in front of Jiang Rong.
The village has only twenty or thirty households, each a detached villa with its own yard. Chu Qiang's house is at the very back of the village. Uncle Li parked his tricycle directly in front of Chu Qiang's house, craning his neck to look at the locked gate. "They don't seem to be back yet. Xiao Rong, why don't you and the child come to my house for a while?"
Jiang Rong smiled and lifted Jiang Xiaoheng out of the truck bed. "No need, Uncle Li, you go ahead and do your work. Qiangzi gave me the house key, I'll go in and help them tidy up."
After thinking for a moment, Uncle Li pointed to a villa on the east side of the village. "Then I'll go back first. When you're done with your work, come to my house for a visit. I'll be waiting for you there."
Jiang Rong smiled and nodded, "Thank you, Uncle Li."
The electric tricycle started up quickly and headed east along the road. Jiang Rong took out a key from his pocket and stood in front of the Chu family's gate, looking around. Since his mutation, his five senses had been greatly enhanced, and he could feel several pairs of eyes watching him.
Jiang Rong lowered her eyes and inserted the key into the courtyard gate. With a click, the heavy gate slowly opened a crack, and Jiang Rong and her son slipped into the courtyard. They then locked the gate from the inside.
After walking a few steps in the yard, he noticed that the security window on the first floor of Chu Qiang's house had been damaged. The sturdy stainless steel window had a large hole in it, which looked like it was done by someone with superpowers.
However, even a mutated individual in the early stages of the mutation couldn't pry open Jiang Rong's specially designed bulletproof glass. Looking at the bloodstains on the glass, Jiang Rong's eyes darkened. Although he had specifically chosen to deliver supplies to Chu Qiang's house at night recently, he had still attracted the attention of those with ulterior motives.
If Chu Qiang's family doesn't come back soon, this house will eventually be broken into by people with superpowers.
Jiang Xiaoheng stood in the yard, staring blankly at the lavishly decorated villa. After a long while, he turned to his father and said, "Dad, Uncle Chu's house is so beautiful! Why don't we build a three-story house like Uncle Chu's?"
Jiang Rong sighed and rubbed his son's head. "Because Dad is poor." If he could, he would like to build a perfect house, but time and money are limited. He has already put in a lot of effort to build the house he has now.
Hearing Jiang Rong say that, Jiang Xiaoheng opened his arms and hugged his father's leg, "Dad is not poor, Dad is the most amazing!" His father is a superhuman who can control plants, even more amazing than Superman!
Jiang Rong had filled the room on the first floor of Chu Qiang's house with various supplies, trays of them neatly stacked, all in preparation for their return. After walking around up and down the stairs, Jiang Xiaoheng missed the Chu family even more: "Dad, when are Uncle Chu and the others coming back?"
Jiang Rong stopped outside Chu Qiang's bedroom: "It should be soon..."
Even so, he hadn't received any news from Chu Qiang for several days. He only knew Chu Qiang had taken the national highway, but Jiang Rong had no idea which exit he took, or which city or village he ended up in. If he rashly drove to look for them, he might put himself in danger, but missing them would be even worse.
If only he could get in touch with Chu Qiang's family and find out their address, he could pick them up if they encountered any difficulties.
But with the power outage for civilian use, all means of communication were also forced to stop. Without electricity, humanity was suddenly plunged back into a primitive state, utterly lost. Jiang Rong sighed softly, "If only your Uncle Chu had raised pigeons."
In this situation, only carrier pigeons can deliver messages, right?
Suddenly, Jiang Rong had a flash of inspiration. His usual means of communication were indeed unusable due to the power outage, but what about communication methods he wasn't familiar with?
As a child, Chu Qiang loved watching war movies, and he was particularly fascinated by the signal corps characters. For a time, he was obsessed with radios, and later even obtained a professional radio operator's license. He also had a registered radio at home. Once, he even placed a receiver at Jiang Rong's house, saying that he wouldn't have to pay for phone calls anymore.
However, the receiver emitted distorted sound with a lot of static, and Jiang Rong soon tossed it into a corner.
But Chu Qiang seems to have never given up this hobby over the years; he even modified his car with a portable radio when he bought it. Whenever Chu Qiang gets new equipment, he gives Jiang Rong a receiver. When they moved, Jiang Rong found a whole drawer full of them.
Jiang Rong's heart pounded, and her palms involuntarily became sweaty. Was it possible that Chu Qiang was trying to send a message out using a car-mounted mobile radio?
Upon realizing this possibility, Jiang Rong couldn't stand still. He wanted to go home immediately and search for those receivers.
However, he had to wait for Uncle Li to finish his work before he could go back. In the meantime, Jiang Rong used the little bit of his newly restored supernatural ability to control the roses in the courtyard to climb towards the doors and windows on the first floor. If anyone tried to pry open the security windows, these mutated roses would be more than enough to give them a hard time.
Seeing that the roses had sealed off the doors and windows on the first floor, Jiang Rong finally breathed a sigh of relief. He picked up Jiang Xiaoheng and walked towards the yard: "Let's go back first today, and come back after Uncle Chu and the others return, okay?"
Jiang Xiaoheng hugged his father's neck and obediently replied, "Okay~"
After locking the Chu family's gate, Jiang Rong and her son headed towards Uncle Li's house. As they approached the alley leading to Uncle Li's house, they faintly heard a young man's voice coming from inside: "Also, we don't have enough solar panels at home. It's unbearably hot. Could you bring two back from the mountain tomorrow?"
After a while, Uncle Li emerged from the alley, his back hunched. Seeing Jiang Rong and his son, Uncle Li forced a smile that looked more like a grimace. "Finished? Let's go back."
Author's Note:
Chu Qiang: Did you see that? A science and engineering guy's passion can be a lifesaver in a critical moment.
Jiang Rong: ...
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