MTLNOVEL Chapter 406: Reminder
Shui Huajin made them two multi-layer wooden racks for storing things and some tables that don't take up space, which can be directly shoved under the bed when not in use, because several large original jars that were moved out were brought back into the cellar to store grain and water for the children.
When it came to water storage, Shui Huajin specifically reminded Uncle Qin, Xiao Liu, and the other children.
The unusual heat was obvious to everyone, and the conversation was about getting the Qin family and Xiao Liu to prepare more wooden barrels and bamboo buckets or other containers that can store water to store as much water as possible.
Thinking of the few jars in her own cellar, this gave Shui Huajin a significant insight. Does this mean that many families in the village have jars in their cellars?
Therefore, Shui Huajin, who was originally planning to leave, decided to stay a while longer, saying everyone worked hard for a night, found many cellars in the village, and indeed found quite a few large jars.
Readymade water jars... are available.
There were even other gains; like the Qin family, many families left things they couldn't take away in cellars or jars. Some were completely spoiled, while others were well preserved and usable, luckily not foods, so they were easy to store.
Therefore, even after finding them, Shui Huajin properly hid them again, waiting for their future owners to dig them out.
As for the jars, they also need to be returned after the extreme heat. In any case, they can't be wasted at this moment.
After working the entire night, it was thanks to Shui Huajin contributing a few shovels and hoes; otherwise, there wouldn't be such quick efficiency, knowing the Qin family had only one hoe and one shovel, and the sickles and machetes in the children's hands were intentionally left by Shui Huajin during the last visit.
Just like that, they dug out more than twenty large jars, and this was just digging from a very few households in the village.
After cleaning them, they were all transported to the Qin family and Shui Huajin's home. Every house and cellar were stuffed, barely fitting these.
It's also fortunate that the Qin family was diligent and built so many houses, or else they would have had to put them in the yard.
Then it was time to store water. Regarding water storage, Shui Huajin also specifically mentioned to remind Uncle Qin and Xiao Liu to store boiled water; the microorganisms and bacteria inside have been killed, making it easier to preserve; just need to seal it well.
For this, Shui Huajin disappeared for an entire day, giving the Qin family and Xiao Liu the illusion that she went back to the mountain, as her speed had been witnessed by both Qin family and Xiao Liu.
When she returned, she came with a small mountain on her back, all clean and new oilcloth. With it, sealing the water jars was no longer a problem, and with wooden and stone lids, water could be used sparingly to survive the extreme heat.
The Qin family and Xiao Liu were naturally overjoyed with so much oilcloth, although they also felt increasingly indebted to Shui Huajin.
After everything was arranged, seeing the children were settled too, and having stored a large amount of wild vegetables in just a few days, Shui Huajin truly felt relieved. However, upon leaving, she still left a hundred pounds of sweet potatoes and potatoes for the children, suggesting they plant a few in the backyard and water them occasionally; they might yield some harvest. The rest should be stored; it was enough for the children for a month or two. With the children's reluctant gaze, she left.
After Shui Huajin left, Qin Dagen and the children felt even more urgency, fetching, boiling, and storing water whenever they had time.
Fortunately, the Hua family had a well, and the village had wells too, so they weren't worried about having no water. It took a few days to fill and seal all the water jars, and every apparent water jar and bucket was filled to the brim, all placed inside the house.
Despite this, Xiao Liu still took the time to plant over ten pounds of sweet potatoes, taking advantage of the available water to water them every night.
A few short days later, during the day, no one could stand outside anymore. Stepping out for a moment, despite wearing thick clothing, people's skin felt like it was being scalded, staying a bit longer resulted in blisters, just from the heat.
However, this didn't affect Shui Huajin much, as she had a protective film created by spiritual power around her, allowing her to stroll in the sun freely. Although Shui Huajin didn't know the principle behind it—unscientific as it may be—her existence was unscientific itself, especially her space, to which Shui Huajin adapted well.
But this sudden climate change wasn't friendly to the invaders from several countries who wanted to seize food and territory. They initially planned to store food quickly but underestimated the severity of the disaster.
They couldn't even find food or wild vegetables without traveling far to remote locations.
Even more unexpectedly, the sudden weather change made staying in shady spots tolerable initially during the day, but even nights became unbearable, severely affecting their marching speed—they couldn't travel more than a few miles overnight.
No water, no food, the heat was lethal, and seeing more soldiers collapse, commanders from all countries had to change plans and head for the mountains; otherwise, the Ancient Yan soldiers needed not fight, the sun would do the job.
Another important point was the mountains' rich vegetation, and their own limited food supplies. Now the Ancient Yan Country was ravaged, finding food was impossible, leaving only remnants in some counties; but these counties were also short of food. The best option was to venture into the mountains to find water sources.
The Beicang Tatars who had occupied Yun City faced the same challenge. Although they captured Yun City, what awaited them was an empty city with not even many intact houses, let alone food. Their rage was palpable, heightened by the Ancient Yan soldiers destroying the suspension bridge connecting the moat—watching the dozens of meters wide moat rendered them helpless with anger.
By the time they built a bridge across the moat, the weather was already unbearably hot. After finally crossing the moat, even before they could celebrate for a day, numerous soldiers suffered heatstroke and burns; forget about pursuing, even a quick step was impossible.
The days following saw things become impossibly difficult, ultimately forcing them like many other commanders to lead their troops to the nearest mountain range from Yun City. Though seemingly close, it took nearly a day to reach, with soldiers collapsing from heat exhaustion one after another, making them wish they could devour the Yun City soldiers blocking their path in fury.
Meanwhile, the remnants of Yun City, whom they wished to see dead, had already reached Lingyun State, integrating with the state city soldiers to raise walls and fortify defenses.
Then one night, both Lingyun State and New Moon City received a flying arrow with a letter attached, the arrow firmly lodged in the city gate.
Upon receiving this letter, Lord Governor jumped from his seat, causing the heavy circle chair behind him to crash down.
This scene didn't just unfold in the capital of the state; even the county magistrate in Shanggu Town witnessed it.
The lords of New Moon City and Shanggu Town, recognizing the familiar handwriting, had no doubt, bowing deeply in an unknown direction, quickly spreading news of extreme heat.
They made public all the information on how to store water as suggested in the letter, urging citizens to take advantage of available water for self-rescue and dig cellars to store water.
These were what Shui Huajin accomplished on that day she took an entire day for.
Only by having more people survive could they better resist invasions from various countries.
Shui Huajin also believed the news of extreme heat would spread quickly across the country, hoping everyone could prepare in advance.