northernbook Chapter 200 The Extremely Cold Doomsday: Qingshui Village
Chapter 200 The Extremely Cold Doomsday: Qingshui Village
Because he didn't sleep well the night before, Jiang Jiang was exhausted and slept soundly in the warm bed.
The sun rose as usual, but its light became very weak after passing through the thick clouds.
On a cloudy day, even the white snow becomes gray.
Fortunately, the temperature rose during the day, and the thermometer outside Jiang Jiang's door stabilized at minus ten degrees Celsius.
Several families whose houses were severely damaged were also arranged to temporarily live in other villagers' homes.
No one felt unlucky, as their houses were crushed by hail and snow.
Some time ago, they witnessed with their own eyes how their house was reinforced step by step.
If it weren't for this program, they would probably have trouble standing here safely now.
They were so lucky to have escaped a disaster that they were too busy to be thankful, so why would they complain?
Zhang Qiang ignored the dissuasion of his son and wife, braved the wind and snow, went to several families in distress, helped them move their belongings, and only returned home after seeing that these families were settled.
Wang Shufen's house has many rooms, and because Zhang Yang's brother Zhang Kai was getting married a few years ago, the houses were renovated and are bright and sturdy, so this time Zhang Zhang and his son Zhang Yuan are temporarily living in their house.
Originally, Zhang Shan had arranged for the brothers Zhang Kai and Zhang Yang to pick up Zhang Zhang and his son, but he didn't expect that the branch secretary, who was about the same age as him, would run along with them.
Wang Shufen sighed when she saw Zhang Qiang shivering from the cold after he arrived at their house.
"You are already quite old, why are you still showing off like you were when you were young? Can't you just let some young kids do this? It's so cold..."
If the younger generation said something about him, Zhang Qiang would definitely have to say something back, but Wang Shufen and Zhang Shan grew up with him and they have been friends for decades, so it was difficult for Zhang Qiang to say anything.
"I'm not saying this, but when I was young, I earned ten work points a day, and during the busy farming season, I didn't have a day off."
Wang Shufen shook her head:
"You know that's when you were young. Now look at how frozen you are. Wait, Zhang Shan is going to make ginger tea. Drink a bowl before you leave."
Speak of the devil, and here he appears. As soon as Wang Shufen finished her words, Zhang Shan came out with a few bowls of ginger tea. The one for Zhang Qiang was the biggest one.
After seeing Zhang Qiang drink up the ginger tea, Wang Shufen said nothing more and took her daughter-in-law to clean up the room for Zhang Zhang and his son.
It snowed these two days. Zhang Shan has rheumatism and his legs and waist hurt. He spent most of his time lying on the kang at home, helping to take care of Zhang Wang. Wang Shufen was mostly responsible for taking care of the house. As for Zhang Qiang, he only expressed a little concern.
This old guy seems to be in much better health than him, why should he care about him so much?
"It's getting late, I'll go back first."
After warming himself up at Zhang Shan's house, Zhang Qiang soon asked to leave.
"Why did you leave so suddenly? You should at least have lunch."
After making the bed, Wang Shufen came out and didn't see the branch secretary, so she started mumbling.
The wind was strong in the mountains, so in order to make it easier to walk, Zhang Qiang did not carry an umbrella, or even if he did, the umbrella would easily be blown away.
It snowed all day and all night again. Zhang Qiang walked on an unrecognizable mountain road, the soft snow reaching above his knees.
As he walked, he thought that he would have to ask everyone to put a rope or something on the side of the road tomorrow. If someone accidentally stepped on empty air on this mountain road, falling would be a small matter. But if someone got hurt, there would be no one around to call for help.
Zhang Qiang rubbed his frozen cheeks and felt that the breath he exhaled could not turn into white mist.
Before he reached home, he heard voices coming from inside the house.
Zhang Qiang pushed the door open and the people inside who were talking immediately stopped talking.
When Zhang Qiang's wife saw him, she breathed a sigh of relief and came to Zhang Qiang as if she was being chased.
"You must be cold. Go change into some thick clothes. Don't catch a cold."
She reached out to help Zhang Qiang take off his outer coat, and pushed him in front of the stove to warm him up.
Zhang Qiang knew that his wife must have encountered some difficulties, otherwise she would not have such an attitude.
When he told them in the morning that he was going out, he was scolded to pieces and was no longer in the state he is now.
Zhang Qiang looked at the people who came to their house. Hey, they were all acquaintances.
Zhang Qiang's wife is named Li Hui, and she is from Qingshui Village next door. However, since his father-in-law and mother-in-law passed away a few years ago, the frequency of their return to Qingshui Village has become less frequent.
For example, now that Li Hui’s two brothers and some cousins have come, it is even rarer.
Zhang Qiang had some guesses in his mind, but he was still unsure, so he asked:
"Brother, brother, it's freezing cold, why are you here, and you brought my cousin and the others with you?"
On normal days, it might only take one or two hours to walk from Qingshui Village to Qingshan Village, but it was snowing heavily, not to mention there were so many twists and turns on the road. Zhang Qiang estimated that it would take at least three hours for several people to get here.
Liu Jianguo is Liu Hui's elder brother and the oldest person present. After Zhang Qiang spoke, several people from Qingshui Village looked at him.
Liu Jianguo is 59 years old this year. According to the custom in Liaocheng, men celebrate the ninth birthday and women the tenth. He just held a banquet to celebrate his 59th birthday two months ago.
Due to the inconvenience of getting in and out, although it was called a big event, in fact only a few relatives were invited, and there were about five or six tables. The chef was a good friend from the same village who helped cook.
Liu Hui and Zhang Qiang also attended the event and gave gifts of 200 yuan, making them the guests who gave the most gifts.
Liu Jianguo was wearing a military coat with several cotton-padded jackets underneath that he found out of nowhere. He wore the fitted ones inside and the loose ones outside, making him look like a bear.
He wore a pair of knee-high rubber shoes and several pairs of thick socks underneath. He even wrapped them with cloth strips for two weeks to prevent wind from blowing in.
In response to Zhang Qiang's question, Liu Jianguo rubbed the edge of his trouser legs with his calloused hands for a few times before he spoke:
"Qiangzi, to be honest, we came to you to ask for your help."
"Brother, there is nothing to ask for. If there is anything I can do to help, I will definitely help. We are all brothers, but I can only do my best. If it really doesn't work, there is nothing I can do."
Zhang Qiang didn't dare to say anything. They were all relatives and they would see each other every day. He would definitely be willing to help if he could.
But seeing how Liu Hui looked just now, I’m afraid it won’t be easy to help.
Liu Jianguo sighed and began to talk about the situation in Qingshui Village.
"God has given me no way to survive. During this period of time..."