Disaster Apocalypse: Farming, Family, and My Hidden Secret Space

But now that food is so precious, everyone is hiding it away. Even if these children look pitiful, it's unlikely they'll share with strangers, even if they are a group of poor kids.

"Jin'er, actually my woodshed is quite spacious. Why not let them stay there for now?" Qin Dagen couldn't help but say as he looked at the polite group of children.

Mrs. Li, who was standing by after finishing the dishes, opened her mouth, but seeing the small children, she closed it again.

Looking at the shining eyes filled with trust, Hua Jin shook his head, "No need, Uncle Qin. Let them stay at my house for now, but the cellar might need Uncle Qin's help with some improvements."

There are two cellars at home, one in the open and one hidden, the hidden one is in the grandparents' room, mainly used for storage. It has an entrance suitable for only one person; short stays are okay, but long-term is definitely impossible.

Hua Jin looked at the cellar dug by Uncle Qin's house, which was quite nice, mainly because of the excellent ventilation. When the intense heat truly arrives, staying indoors is unbearable; underground would definitely be better.

Qin Dagen had actually anticipated this. Upon hearing, he nodded and agreed.

There's no hurry with the wall; first, let's tidy up the place where the children will be staying.

The children excitedly looked at Hua Jin as the elder sister arranged for them to stay in the home she once lived in.

It was a pleasant surprise. Even if it were just a shack, they would have been delighted.

"Let's go," Hua Jin gently touched Hua'er, who was closest to her. Hua'er smiled, eyes curved in a trusting gaze toward Hua Jin.

Qin Dagen stepped forward to take a wooden cart from Da Liu. With him as the adult present, it's no good to watch half-grown children pull the cart.

The move was swift; the distance between the two families was less than twenty zhang.

At this moment, Hua Village has two more fully intact side rooms compared to before, one of which was Hua Jin's former bedroom, and next to it are the boys' houses.

Even though it was noticed upon entering the village, a little surprise couldn't be helped once inside.

Regardless of how beautiful the house is built, the important thing is that the house from memory has reappeared, even if it's only partway.

"Thank you for your hard work, Uncle Qin," Hua Jin's disguised face suddenly lit up with a bright smile, shining lights glimmering in her curved eyes, making Qin Shu stunned.

"No problem at all. I figured you'd come back sooner or later, so I built it bit by bit in my spare time. I'm glad you don't mind," Qin Dagen said happily, his thick smile deepening even further.

"How could I? Uncle Qin's house-building skills are top-notch," Hua Jin said, gesturing to show just how great, making Qin Dagen reveal a clean set of teeth in a delighted smile.

It's hard for anyone not to be happy being praised like that!

Hua Jin then eagerly checked out the two newly built rooms and temporarily arranged for the children to stay in the boys' room.

The room temperature is manageable for now, so it's the perfect time to restore the cellar in the grandparents' room, ensuring the children have a place to cool down when the extreme heat truly arrives.

Of course, if willing to endure hardships, they could head into the mountains. Truthfully, the temperature in the mountains is several degrees lower than outside; finding a shady cave would surely be more comfortable than the cellar, but water sources could be a problem unless mass storing is done ahead of the extreme heat.

With the new accommodation, Da Liu, Gouzi, and the group of children kept their smiles going and unloaded the goods from the cart for real.

Seeing nearly four hundred jin of food being unloaded, Hua Jin felt even more positive about the children's future; with courage and wisdom, their days ahead would surely be fine as long as they stay alive.

Afterward, she let the children take care of their own tidying while she went with Uncle Qin and his sons to the grandparents' room, opening the cellar door.

Houses were built by the whole family, and naturally, the cellar hidden inside couldn't escape their eyes. It had already been renovated once before; storing food there was relatively easier.

The cellar was dug out fairly spacious, the size of a bedroom, easily accommodating a few children.

Hua Jin: "Uncle Qin, please refurbish it like the cellar in your house."

Qin Dagen didn't hesitate, nodding repeatedly, while Qin Shu subtly narrowed his eyes, suddenly deep in thought, quickly glancing at Hua Jin.

Interesting how Hua Jin knows what the cellar at home looks like, though she hasn't seen it... How could she know?

The more he got to know her, the more Qin Shu felt Hua Jin was an enigmatic girl; clearly small in stature, yet harboring unfathomable strength, suddenly appearing with bricks... her intelligence, kindness... they all made him subconsciously drawn to follow her gaze.

Hua Jin was unaware that she had revealed anything of interest, and even if she knew, she wouldn't care since there's no evidence, right?

Qin Shu silently stayed by, watching Hua Jin and his dad discuss, then soon got busy themselves.

Everything needed was available in the village, even lime, which his father and he had earlier stored quite a lot of.

Watching his father and Hua Jin busy themselves, Qin Shu dismissed the shadowiness in his eyes and quickly joined in.

In a moment of slight daze, his two younger brothers were faster, already back with the cart to help transport materials.

Upon knowing the cellar needed tidying, Da Liu, Gouzi, Caogen, and Hua'er, the bigger kids, all came to help.

Those smaller who couldn't help were led by Wan'er to go behind the village under the moonlight to dig wild vegetables.

The land behind Hua Village is vast, and with patches of forest around, the wild vegetables here are plentiful, even when Mrs. Li dug lots; it's just a drop in the ocean.

For these children, wild vegetables are the main food, and even though they've dug and dried quite a lot along the way, having experienced starvation, there's always an urgent desire to stockpile more food.

However, the wild vegetables are no longer as tender as a month ago, not yet finished wilting, but already far from their former freshness. Yet still, they are significantly more resilient than cultivated vegetables.

Thus, the children comfortably settled in Hua Village, Hua Jin did not rush to leave. Together with Qin family and Gouzi, they worked through three nights to complete the cellar renovation.

Like Qin family's cellar, split into two parts, storage, and living space.

Although somewhat smaller than Qin family's storage area, it's still ample enough for storing plenty of food.

Then after half a day's work, Hua Jin and Uncle Qin helped the children make several beds. Hua Jin had hoped to make space-saving bunk beds for comfortable sleep, but due to limited skills, if her father were here, it would surely be feasible.

Nevertheless, they didn't take up much space; the children had to pair up on each bed, but fortunately, they were slim, so it didn't feel crowded.

Four beds were placed against the wall to make the most of the space, with the smaller ones squeezed onto one bed, hence the four beds sufficed.