CHAPTER 175: ZHANG LINGLING, YOUR VOWS HAVE COME TRUE

Wu You’ai hurriedly finished breakfast and then left.

Fortunately, just before the family had finished packing and were about to leave the villa yesterday morning, Jing Shu had thought that since they would return daily, she might as well leave some poisonous bees at the entrance. She never expected they would actually come in handy when someone tried to make a nefarious move on the villa that evening.

The poisonous bees compensated for the lack of lethality in the restraining traps. While some invaders were restrained and others were smashing the door, the bees successfully ensured the stung invaders succumbed to their poison.

It seems that one can never be too careful. My biggest weakness now is my vulnerability to ambushes. As our family’s assets grow, it could attract the attention of gunmen. Although the likelihood of such an event is very small, I still need to consider making the appropriate preparations.

This situation arose because Zhou Dafu coveted the fat chicken and wanted to forcefully take it. When she took Zhou Dafu’s handgun away, she anticipated he would seek revenge. But how could Zhou Dafu retaliate without his gun? Jing Shu originally thought that Zhou Dafu would hire someone to take revenge on her.

But unexpectedly, by helping Qin Feifei extract snake venom and then giving advice, she had intended just to scavenge the belongings of the deceased. In the end, she inadvertently trapped Zhou Dafu and had him captured, thereby giving Zhou Dasheng, the one who slipped through the net, an opportunity.

So, upon further thought, why did Zhou Dafu want to catch snakes? Jing Shu’s intuition told her it was to deal with her.

After all, why were these people so brazen?

Because I’m like a fat sheep—a harmless fat sheep!

Now that the material reserves were sufficient, Jing Shu decided to arm her family like fierce wolves so that anyone would know not to mess with them just by looking.

Perhaps raising a couple of Spiritual Spring Snakes would also serve as an excellent deterrent. The Little Snakes they produce—their venom, meat, snake wine, and skin—could all generate high value.

Imagine walking outside with several snakes coiled around your waist, constantly flicking their snake tongues at you. Wouldn’t you be scared?

Zhou Daheng’s luxurious folding light-steel container was still with Li Yuetian. Jing Shu planned to transport it after the floodwaters had receded.

Two snakes had also been delivered this morning by Li Yuetian’s people, in cages covered with black cloth. Since they had to be transported via public roads, Jing Shu could only wait until she returned to the villa to put them into the Magic Cube Space for training. I’ll then use the Spiritual Spring to quickly mature a batch to make snake wine.

After researching, Jing Shu found that snake reproduction required certain levels of humidity and temperature. Last year was too dry, but this year the rain provided just the right temperature. Plus, with the help of the Spiritual Spring, new Little Snakes would likely proliferate quickly.

Thinking of this, Jing Shu looked at the two Five-step Snakes flicking their snake tongues and felt increasingly fond of these adorable creatures.

The fat chicken drooled as it circled the two snakes, seeing them as nothing but larger insects. Although nearly two meters long, these snakes were not as thick as a wrist, so they posed no challenge to the fat chicken.

When Jing Shu’s family saw her bringing in the snakes auctioned from the neighboring cave #4, they were quite resistant, especially after hearing she planned to raise them to make snake wine.

"Make sure to keep the snakes confined well. If one bites, it’s all over."

"This thing is too dangerous. Can we kill it as soon as possible?"

Jing Shu slurped down two bowls of milk made with milk powder and ate seven or eight sandwiches, her speech unclear as she said, "Don’t worry. In the future, they will be kept on the second floor and will never be let out. Besides, well-raised snakes can also guard the house and intimidate people."

Mrs. Jing managed a forced smile; this time, she didn’t oppose her daughter.

Mr. Jing, who was smoking, erupted in violent coughs. He hesitated, wanting to say something. I’m an honest man; I can’t bring myself to tell a barefaced lie and agree with my daughter’s thinking. It’s better out of sight, out of mind. So, he ultimately decided to leave the room.

As of today, the main force of Wu City had completely retreated to the safe zone. Red Mountain Ecological Garden was crammed with over a hundred thousand people, making eating, drinking, elimination, and sleeping all problematic. Fortunately, as a refuge, its infrastructure was decent. There were even public toilets outside the caves, which could be kept clean as long as there was no shortage of water.

What was worrying, however, was that the torrential rain continued. The city center of Wu City was submerged with no sign of the waters receding. A million people were displaced. With no homes to return to, they were forced to take refuge in caves.

In less than a day, everyone’s mobile phones had run out of power, further complicating management. Red Mountain Ecological Garden also temporarily set up a free charging service.

The government held emergency meetings in succession.

"The shelters are already full, and they can hold out for a few days. But if the torrential rain continues and the center of Wu City remains flooded, what then? We can’t stay in shelters forever."

"The city center is flooded, but there are countless useful things inside. Without sunlight, it’ll be at least five years before any of this equipment can be produced again. What do we do?"

"Dragging this out is no solution."

So, while the people were idling in the caves, the Wu City Government issued an urgent directive and policy.

"The rain forecast for the next few days has come out. The most we’re expecting is the same as it’s been. The areas that haven’t been flooded so far are less likely to be in the future. West Mountain Old District, Development Zone, and North Outer Ring seem like they won’t be flooded. Let’s start moving the current three million people there tomorrow."

"If the flood doesn’t recede, we’ll just make the Development Zone the New District of Wu City."

"Surely there won’t be enough houses, but one household can accommodate more than a dozen people. Basements, underground garages, and warehouses can all be used for sleeping. The specific arrangements will be based on individual assets, with priority given to city residents who own homes. Moreover, those who still owe on their mortgages must resume interest payments, or people will be assigned to live in their properties as well."

"Lastly, there’s a lot of stuff in the city center that needs to be moved. In a few days, when the floodwaters have receded a bit, we can release Virtual Coins and add the job category of salvage workers."

"We must mobilize the power of the masses. First, to carry out their own belongings to continue using them and second, to collect any usable items in reserve warehouses, minimizing losses as much as possible."

"We must prepare for the possibility that the floodwaters may not recede for a long time when arranging for the population. To salvage what losses we can, we should release some of our grain reserves to boost morale. This disaster might not be as simple as it seems!"

「By noon,」 visiting specialists at the various shelters had finished taking stock, and nearly everyone had heard about the relocation to new homes, sparking a great deal of discussion.

Some were distressed, others were joyous, and there were those who practically blew their top upon learning that seven or eight people might be crammed into their homes.

Meanwhile, Jing Shu’s high school group chat was in an uproar.

"@everyone, I heard that our area is going to be moved to live in the Development Zone. Where is everyone else assigned to? Maybe we’ll all end up being assigned together, and we can all be together again!"

Mu Xiaoxuan: "I don’t know if we’ll be assigned together, but I do remember Zhang Lingling swearing that if she ever deceived us, her house would be submerged by floodwaters. Now not only is her house submerged, but almost the whole of Wu City is about to be. Zhang Lingling, the oath you made back then has come true."