Chapter 74 Snow Disaster (Part 1)
Since the beginning of winter, the Peace Base has sent four groups of people to the Spark Base, and now there are more than two thousand people supporting the Spark Base. The supporters initially thought they would live a life of hardship like serfs, but they did not expect to be able to eat and dress warmly at the Spark Base, and everyone is very motivated.
With the help of supporters, several villages at the Xinghuo Base have been connected to natural gas and heating pipes.
The Xinghuo base is too weak. Although the pipelines are in place, there is no supporting heating or natural gas. To provide heating and natural gas to everyone, more people and more time and effort are needed.
According to preliminary estimates from experts at the base, based on the current construction progress, most people at the Xinghuo base will be able to use central heating by next winter.
The premise was that no more natural or man-made disasters would occur before next winter, and that the two bases would not fall out. However, just a few days after these premises were stated, the Xinghuo Base issued a snow disaster warning.
On the 20th day of the twelfth lunar month, heavy snow began to fall. The damp, cold snowflakes quickly covered the entire base, and the outdoor thermometer reading kept dropping.
Jiang Rong brushed the snow off the thermometer, glanced at it, and exclaimed in surprise, "Guan Shao, guess what the temperature is now?"
Guan Shao's voice came from the rooftop: "What's the temperature?"
Jiang Rong took a few steps back and looked at the roof: "Minus fifteen degrees Celsius, we've never been this cold here before." The Xinghuo Base is located on the south bank of the river. According to historical records, the lowest temperature on the south bank used to be only around seven or eight degrees Celsius. Minus fifteen degrees Celsius is indeed a temperature never seen before.
And this is the temperature when it's snowing; the temperature will be even lower when the snow melts.
Guan Shao was sweeping snow off the roof. Their roof was covered with solar panels, and if they didn't clear the snow in time, the snow would bury the panels and they would have no electricity.
While talking to Jiang Rong, Guan Shao was sweeping the snow off the solar panels with a broom. "It's so cold." Fortunately, Jiang Rong had anticipated the cold wave and taken proactive measures; otherwise, the minus fifteen degree Celsius temperature could have killed the ordinary people at the Xinghuo Base.
Looking back now, everything the base did—reinforcing houses, distributing timber, and installing fireplaces—was preparation for the cold wave. These actions reinforced the people's belief that their leaders were prescient.
Jiang Rong lacked foresight; he only had the experience of his past life. In his previous life, he and his son shivered from the cold at the Peace Base. He never wanted to experience that kind of cold again.
The snow was falling heavier and heavier. Jiang Rong called out, "Let's come down and rest for a bit. It won't help even if you don't sleep all night. The snow is so heavy, even if you clear the front, the back will just get covered again. Our battery can last for six or seven days. We'll clear the snow together when it stops."
Based on his past life's experience, this snow will last three or four days, and his family's electricity should last until then. If it doesn't, it's okay; they have a heater, so at least the children won't go hungry or cold.
Guan Shao replied, "Okay, I'll clean the roof first." It had been several months since he last went up on the roof, and since then, some dry branches and leaves had accumulated. Guan Shao wanted to clear them away while the snow was still light, so that the falling snow would be clean and could be collected as a clean water source.
When Guan Shao came down from the roof, his down jacket was covered with a layer of snow. Jiang Rong raised her hand and patted the snow off Guan Shao's back and shoulders: "I made ginger soup, go and have a bowl."
Guan Shao wasn't the only one Jiang Rong called to drink ginger soup. When Guan Shao entered, he saw two children each holding a large bowl bigger than their heads, gulping down ginger soup.
The bowl was too big; the two children drank half and couldn't finish it. But that wasn't a problem. Jiang Xiaoheng offered his thermos: "Dad, could you put the ginger soup in the thermos for me?" He could drink it later when he got thirsty.
Jiang Hao had the same thought: "I want one too!"
Due to the heavy snow, major construction projects at the base have been suspended, and both the superhumans and the civilians have returned to their homes. However, the broadcasts have not stopped; with the freezing weather outside, staying indoors is boring, and the broadcasts are their source of entertainment.
Since helping Wan Xinran with an unsuccessful broadcast last time, Jiang Hao and Jiang Xiaoheng have had their own program on the base's radio.
Their program usually airs between 4 and 5 pm, but because of the snow today, the program time was moved up a few hours. Children's physical abilities can't compare to adults', so they can go home and rest earlier after this broadcast.
Jiang Rong took the small water bottle and smiled, "Can you tell Daddy what you're planning to say today?"
At first, when Jiang Rong asked them to broadcast, the two children refused. Faced with so many buttons on the radio, they had absolutely no idea what to say. Let alone ten minutes, even asking them to last one minute would be asking too much.
But as more people offered suggestions, Xiao Heng and his friends gradually expanded their program. They could sing, talk about what happened that day, and even tell everyone what they ate.
Now the two brothers can broadcast for fifteen minutes with laughter and conversation, and the program is getting better and better. Their program is now the most popular program in the entire base. As long as the tired people hear the children's innocent voices, their fatigue quickly disappears.
Upon hearing Jiang Rong's question, Jiang Xiaoheng covered his schoolbag: "No, this is a secret, I can't tell Dad."
Perhaps feeling that this was too heartless, Jiang Xiaoheng chuckled twice and explained, "Dad will find out in a little while!"
Jiang Rong smiled and filled the two children's water bottles with ginger soup: "Okay, Dad won't ask anymore. Go and get dressed, we're leaving soon."
Driving was difficult due to the slippery roads in the snow, so after all four of them were ready, they decided to walk to the activity center.
Two children skipped and hopped ahead, carrying small umbrellas, while Jiang Rong and Guan Shao walked slowly behind. The large black umbrella tilted towards Jiang Rong, who looked up and saw that white snowflakes had already fallen on Guan Shao's right shoulder.
Jiang Rong laughed and said, "There are so many umbrellas at home, why did you squeeze under one of them with me?"
Guan Shao looked directly into Jiang Rong's eyes with a half-smile: "Because this way I'm very close to you." Close enough to stand shoulder to shoulder with Jiang Rong, close enough to reach out and embrace her in his arms.
As he spoke, Guan Shao tilted the umbrella forward, obscuring their faces. He pressed Jiang Rong's head back with one hand and gave him a deep kiss. After the kiss, Jiang Rong's breathing was unsteady, and his cheeks began to flush: "The children are all here..."
Guan Shao and Jiang Rong touched foreheads. "They can't see us." The children were too busy playing in front of them to look at them, and besides, he had already shielded them with his umbrella.
Snowflakes fluttered down and landed on their hair. Guan Shao chuckled softly, "Look, if we keep walking like this, won't we grow old together?"
Jiang Rong's smile deepened: "Yes!" How lucky he was to have met someone with whom he could grow old together.
When Jiang Rong and her companion walked again, they were holding hands under the black umbrella. In the swirling snow, they shared one umbrella, leaving four rows of footprints—two large and two small—on the snow.
Jiang Xiaoheng glanced back and saw the two fathers holding hands. He followed suit and extended his hand to Jiang Hao: "Big brother, let's hold hands too. Holding hands won't make the road slippery!"
Jiang Hao turned his head to look at the bushes by the roadside: "Hmm..."
Jiang Xiaoheng asked in confusion, "What's wrong, little brother?"
Jiang Hao pointed to the bushes: "Did you hear a kitten meowing?"
The intermittent meows of a kitten came from the roadside bushes. Lele, with her sharp ears, had already run to the edge of the bushes and was searching. A moment later, Lele pulled a palm-sized black and white kitten from the bushes. It was unclear how long the kitten had been in the bushes; it was almost frozen stiff.
The two children paused for a moment, then crowded around: "Daddy, Daddy, Lele found a kitten!"
Lying stiffly in the bushes was a calico mother cat, her body curled up with her eyes half-open, unable to bear leaving her kittens to suffer in the world.
Guan Shao shook his head regretfully: "Bury it."
Winter brings exceptionally difficult times for stray cats and dogs. They used to be able to scavenge for food in human garbage cans to survive, but now humans are struggling to care for themselves, let alone others. When temperatures drop, stray cats and dogs can't find food or shelter, and they simply freeze to death.
Jiang Hao held the kitten close to his chest, warming it with his own body heat. Jiang Xiaoheng reached out and gently stroked the kitten's head: "Daddy, the kitten is so pitiful, it doesn't have a mother anymore..."
With the weather so cold, will the kitten survive?
After Jiang Rong and his wife buried the kitten, the two children, with tears in their eyes, pleaded with Jiang Rong, "Dad, can we adopt the kitten?"
After thinking for a moment, Jiang Rong said, "Xiao Hao, Xiao Heng, we already have so many pets. Aren't you worried that Lele and Junjun will be upset if we adopt another kitten?"
Lele is fine; it's just a silly goose, so having one or two more pets in the house is no problem. But Junjun is a large feline. Whether it will accept the kitten is a minor issue; the major issue is whether the kitten will be stressed when it sees Junjun.
Jiang Xiaoheng pouted: "But..." If no one takes care of the kitten, it will freeze to death.
Jiang Rong patted the children's heads: "Dad knows you are kind-hearted children, but we can't just adopt every kitten we see. How about this, you take the kitten to the activity center first, and Dad will try to find it an owner, okay?" There are so many people at Xinghuo Base, we're sure to find someone who wants to raise the kitten.
Jiang Xiaoheng nodded sullenly: "Dad, we need to find a good owner for the kitten."
Jiang Rong responded, "Okay." In fact, he had already thought of an excellent candidate.
Author's Note:
Hey hey, I suddenly updated a chapter, let's see how many of you noticed~
Yesterday was awful for me; I thought I had tested positive. Since I couldn't buy any antigens nearby, I could only scare myself.
After taking a nap, I felt that I probably just had a common cold, at least my body temperature didn't go up.
After the pandemic ends, everyone should take good care of themselves!
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