"Uncle Lin, what brings you here?" Lin Shuo invited him into the house to sit down.
Besides being a skilled farmer, Uncle Lin also knows how to observe the weather.
Having lost the land he had cultivated all his life, and having wandered around without a fixed abode, Uncle Lin looked distressed.
"Ah Shuo, it looks like it's going to snow today."
"Snowing?" Upon hearing this, Old Mrs. Zhao put down the clothes she was mending.
Zhang looked puzzled. "Uncle Lin, there are still two weeks until the Minor Snow solar term. You must be mistaken."
Uncle Lin glanced at her and puffed on his old pipe.
"It will snow in no more than seven days."
Lin Shuo was so frightened that he jumped up from his chair, staring intently at Uncle Lin.
"Uncle Lin, you're not seeing things?"
"When did I say I was wrong?" Old Lin asked instead of answering.
Lin Yinan immediately realized the seriousness of the problem. They had just settled down here and were not prepared for anything. If it suddenly snowed and the temperature dropped, who knows how many people would freeze to death.
"Grandpa Lin, have you told the village chief yet?"
Uncle Lin was seething with anger. He snorted coldly, "I just came from his house. That bastard wouldn't believe me."
Now it was Lin Yinan's turn to get restless, and she suddenly stood up.
"Brother, let's go find the Yun family."
It's better to believe it's true than not to believe it's not true; even if you bet wrong, you won't lose anything.
"Would the Yun family believe me?"
Now it was Uncle Lin's turn to lose his composure. His hand trembled, and he almost dropped his pipe.
Lin Yiheng helped him, and together with Lin Shuo and Lin Yinan, they went to the courtyard where the Yun family lived.
The room where Young Master Yun lived in their courtyard was almost deserted during the day, except when someone came back to sleep at night.
The guards led the four men into the main house, where they saw the two Yun brothers and several guard leaders sitting at a table, seemingly discussing something.
Lin Yiheng briefly explained his purpose.
Yunye quickly had the four of them sit down, then turned to the guards beside him and said, "Send a few men to invite the clan chief, village chief, and several elders of Linjia Village here."
Lin Yinan and her brother exchanged a glance; it seemed that someone in the Yun family was knowledgeable in observing celestial phenomena.
Yun Mo pointed to a cheerful-looking young man sitting at the table and said, "His name is Yun Liu. He is skilled in observing stars and predicting the weather, as well as the art of Qimen Dunjia. I wonder when this old gentleman thinks the first snow will fall."
When had Uncle Lin, who was addressed as "Old Master," ever received such respect? He hurriedly stood up and bowed slightly to him, saying, "I dare not accept such respect. I believe the snow will fall in no more than seven days."
Yun Liu, with his round head and face and gentle demeanor, nodded in agreement with Uncle Lin's words, "Uncle is right. I've calculated it several times, and the first snow will fall on the fifth night."
Lin Yinan was shocked. People in ancient times didn't have all kinds of advanced tools to help them, yet they were so amazing just by using deduction and calculation.
Uncle Lin finally relaxed, relieved that someone knowledgeable had taken care of the burden.
Before long, the clan chief arrived in a hurry, accompanied by the village chief and several clan elders.
When the village chief saw Lin Shuo and his nephew, along with Old Lin, inside the house, his heart tightened.
He knew that Old Lin was quite capable; could what he said be true?
The guards brought over chairs, and everyone sat down. Yunye then briefly recounted Yun Liu's predictions and deductions.
Upon hearing this, the village chief's hand, which was tucked under his sleeve, trembled. Old Lin had indeed guessed right.
The clan chief was furious at the sight of his quail-like appearance. No matter how big the family matter was, it couldn't compare to this. The village chief, feeling a lingering fear, shrank back and dared not utter a sound.
Lin Yinan took in the two's subtle actions and looked at Yun Ye, the head of the Yun family.
"Young Master Yun, what are your plans next?"
Yun Ye nodded slightly to Yun Mo, who coughed twice and said, "Time is of the essence. We must start preparing as soon as possible in terms of clothing, food, shelter, and transportation, and do our best to ensure that no one freezes to death."
“We are making winter clothes in large quantities. Adults and children in the village who know how to sew can come and help. They can get a winter coat as payment for completing the assigned tasks, which can be exchanged for food.”
"We will arrange for people to go into the mountains to hunt in the next two days. Villagers can go to the forests where there are no wild animals to dig up sweet potatoes and wild vegetables and do their best to store up more food."
"Reinforce the house and stockpile enough firewood for heating and cooking."
"Families with livestock should build livestock sheds as soon as possible to prevent their livestock from freezing to death, and they also need to stock up on a large amount of hay."
Yun Mo finished listing the necessary preparations in one breath, and the village chief, not daring to be careless, carefully wrote them down in his notebook.
Fearing that the people of Linjia Village might not take it seriously enough, Yunye added solemnly, "As you all know, many places have suffered from drought all year. As the saying goes, after a severe drought comes extreme cold. The reason I didn't lead you south but instead took this village is so that you can safely get through this extremely cold winter."
The clan chief stood up and solemnly bowed deeply to the Yunye brothers.
Upon seeing this, the village chief and other clan elders stood up and bowed in salute.
As they left the Yun family compound, they saw the Yun family's guards pushing dozens of carts of grain into the village.
The sense of urgency in everyone's hearts has intensified.
Upon returning, the village chief personally took a gong to call people.
Upon hearing this, the villagers felt a surge of panic and dared not slacken their efforts. They all grabbed their machetes and kitchen knives and followed the Yun family's secret guards into the mountains to chop firewood.
As for the woods in front of the village, they were there to conceal the village from being easily discovered. The bandits had lived there for so many years without cutting them down, and they wouldn't cut them down unless absolutely necessary.
Lin Yinan didn't go dig for wild vegetables; instead, she took Qianwu and followed the others to chop firewood.
Including the horse owned by Liu Ji and his sister, they now have a total of five horses and one cow in their yard. The livestock shed needs to be built larger, and they urgently need timber.
Everyone seemed tireless, going up the mountain before dawn and returning home after dark every day.
To take care of families in the village with many widows, widows, and children, the clan chief organized a team of able-bodied young men to help them repair and reinforce their houses.
On the fifth night, the temperature suddenly plummeted, and the first snow fell as expected.
The village chief, who had waited half the night without daring to sleep, looked at the swirling snowflakes and murmured, "It's snowing! It's really snowing!"
A chill blew in through the cracks in the window, and he shivered. Coming to his senses, he hurriedly said to his eldest son, "Quick! Go and get my gong."
The village chief put on his cotton-padded coat, struggled to climb off the kang (a heated brick bed), and put on his shoes.
Lin Fu brought over the gong, knowing what his father was going to do, and hurriedly said, "Dad, you stay at home, I'll go and inform the villagers."
"Go and light the torch, we'll go together, you and me, quick!"
Lin Siyang had already gotten up and dressed. "Grandpa, I'll go with you."
"Siyang, go and wake up your grandma and your mother, and heat up the kang (heated brick bed)."
"Okay, I'll go right away."
Lin Fu carried a torch, and the father and son walked on the dark hillside. The cold wind was biting, as if it could blow into one's bones.
"Clang! Clang!" A deafening gong sounded, followed by a series of urgent knocks on the door.
"Get up! It's snowing!"
"Get up and heat the kang (heated brick bed)!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
