Aunt Li took the key to the door from Aunt Liu's pocket and opened it to go inside. The room was as cold as it was outside.
He went over and put her on the bed. Dazhuang then found all the bedding in the house and covered Liu Da Niang with it.
Jian Ning went to the kitchen and saw that there were two bags of rice, half a bag of flour, and scallions growing in flower pots on the ground. They were growing quite well, but only half a basin of murky water in the pots had frozen.
Life is really too hard these days. He casually took out a large piece of ginger from his spatial storage and threw it on the stove.
Aunt Li followed closely behind: "Here's a piece of ginger, perfect for making her some ginger water to ward off the cold. Old man, go outside and get some clean snow."
"I'll go," Dazhuang said, running in quickly. He took a basin downstairs and returned shortly with a basin full of snow.
Aunt Li boiled a big bowl of brown sugar ginger water for me. Luckily, we still had quite a few seasonings at home. It seems like we're the kind of family who likes to keep things on hand.
After drinking the ginger water, Aunt Liu felt much better. She held Da Zhuang's hand and kept saying thank you.
“Aunt Liu, it’s so cold. Please wear more clothes when you go out. I can’t help with Jianming’s matter, so please try not to worry. We’re going back now.”
Dazhuang is just a child; he said these words through tears, and that's all he could do to help her. On the way back, Aunt Li kept sighing.
"My perfectly healthy son froze to death. How can a mother go on living like this!"
"Aunt Liu has a daughter who lives not far away, so we should be able to visit her," Da Zhuang said, though he wasn't entirely sure.
The group lost interest in wandering around outside and went straight back to Jinmao Mansion.
Going down from the 16th floor was easy, but going back was a real hassle. Aunt Li had to rest more than ten times before finally reaching the top.
As soon as I got home, I sat down on the sofa and didn't want to move: "I don't want to go out anymore unless I have to. This building is too tall. After going back and forth like this a few times, I don't think my body can take it."
Uncle Li wasn't much better off than her; he went straight to his room and lay down as soon as he got home.
"Mom, you should go back and rest too," Jian Anping said, walking over to help the old lady back to her bedroom.
As soon as they came out, he asked, "Xiao Ning, it's so cold outside, are we still going out to cut down trees today?"
"I'm not going. There will definitely be a lot of people on the mountain. None of them have anything to keep warm. All they can think of is using their wooden furniture to make a fire or going to the mountains to get firewood."
Let's just stay home and hibernate, eating and drinking whatever we need."
It's freezing cold, and Jian Ning doesn't want to go out and suffer.
"I'll go collect more snow from upstairs; it'll be convenient to melt it into water, and it'll be warm inside."
"Did you light the stove in your room? Shall I go and light it for you?" Jian Anping was worried that her younger sister couldn't do any chores and would get cold.
"No need, I can do it myself. You go and shovel the snow. I won't be coming over for meals for the next few days."
Jian Ning planned to stay in seclusion for a few days; she couldn't slack off on her training.
"It's too much trouble for you to cook at home. If you don't want to go out because it's cold, I'll cook here and bring it to you every day?"
"No need, brother. I'm a grown man, how could I not take care of myself? I have all kinds of food, I won't go hungry!"
Jian Ning opened the door and went home. The house was cold and completely dark. She didn't light a fire and went straight into the jade pendant space.
The spiritual energy here is abundant; I should strive to reach the sixth level of Qi Refining within the next few days.
This year's extreme cold weather arrived much earlier than I remember, and it's hard to say what the future holds. Improving my own capabilities is still the most important thing.
He remained in seclusion for over a week. He was woken up by the sound of banging on the door.
She came out wearing a down jacket and saw that the windows were covered in frost flowers. The room was like an ice cave. There was a loud banging on the door, and Jian Anping was shouting her name.
"Brother, what are you doing?" Jian Ning asked as she opened the door.
"Xiao Ning, why are you so quiet at home?"
He won't answer the walkie-talkie, and he won't open the door no matter how much I knock. It's been eight days. If you don't come out soon, I'm going to have to use a chainsaw to cut the door open and find you!"
"I'm fine. I was practicing my skills inside and didn't hear anything for a while," Jian Ning said, glancing at Jian Anping. He was still at the first level of Qi Refining, with no improvement whatsoever.
Although he has the worst mixed spiritual root, his progress is too slow. It's estimated that he hasn't practiced much at all.
"That's taking too long. The temperature has dropped drastically; it's gotten below minus forty degrees Celsius at night, and you're not even making a fire."
"There's no warmth in the house at all. Come to my place and I'll light the stove for you," Jian Anping said, squeezing in. He grabbed some wood and kindling and started a fire.
Jian Ning felt a warm glow inside; it felt good to be cared for.
She hasn't been eating properly these past few days, focusing instead on cultivation. She's already reached the peak of the sixth level of Qi Refining, just a little short of breaking through to the seventh level.
And there's good news: she can now vaguely sense the existence of the Immortal Abode. This is wonderful. Once the Immortal Abode is usable, she won't fear any natural disasters. Even a volcanic eruption will leave her unharmed.
He wrapped his coat tighter around himself and walked out in his cotton slippers: "Brother, lock the door when you come out later, I'm going to your house."
Before Jian Anping could speak, he pushed open the door and ran out. As he ran, he shouted into the walkie-talkie, "Sister-in-law, open the door quickly, it's so cold!"
"You silly girl, you haven't made a sound for so many days, we were so worried about you," Li Mengyao said as she opened the door for her.
The room was warm and cozy, with the living room reaching over 20 degrees Celsius, a stark contrast to the cold outside.
"Sister-in-law, where is everyone at home? Why are you all alone?" Jian Ning asked as soon as she arrived. She noticed that Aunt Li and Da Zhuang were not home.
"You haven't come out these days, so you don't know that the government has assigned a task to build a heated room over at the stadium. Anyone who knows how to build a heated kang can go and work there, and they can also provide food and water."
My parents couldn't stay still, so they went out with me, and they managed to bring back some food every day.
"How can they still have the energy to work after walking up and down such a tall building four times a day?" Jian Ning was a little confused.
"Power has been restored to our community, using a backup solar generator. It was only a few days ago that things were fixed, and the elevators are also working normally after emergency repairs."
The only problem is that the internet and communications haven't been restored yet. But I feel things are gradually returning to normal. Maybe once the water recedes, we can live our normal lives again!
Jian Ning never expected that the world would change so much in just over a week.
The government's efficiency is truly impressive. Now that there's electricity in the community, they should be able to keep warm. This winter won't be so difficult for the residents.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
