Disaster Apocalypse: Farming, Family, and My Hidden Secret Space-Chapter 193. Follow the village chief

In this way, the newly acquired grain seeds and cotton seeds bought from the village chief’s home were all sown in the wasteland.

Everything was developing in a positive direction, and everyone was filled with hope for the future. However, as the days went by, only Hua Chengtian furrowed his brows more tightly, and his body, which had finally gained a little weight, returned to its original state.

Although the weather was normal, how could it be normal to transition directly from wearing cotton clothes to single-layer clothes?

Some of the more calculative folks in the village saw that the weather seemed to be returning to normal and thought they might have overthought it, planning to sell their stored grain at home. But how could their schemes get past Hua Chengtian? With his constant reminders and repeated emphasis on giving him face as the village chief, these households finally gave up on the idea.

The main reason was still because they earned a lot during the winter, so even if they didn’t sell the grain, they wouldn’t worry about not having enough to eat.

As time went by and April arrived, the weather felt more like May or June, which made Hua Chengtian even more convinced of his granddaughter’s dream.

A sense of urgency weighed on Hua Chengtian’s mind. Even though he knew his son and granddaughter’s storage space had plenty of grain, he still urged his son to go to town to buy grains, daily necessities, medicines, fabrics, and so on.

Together with his granddaughter, they coaxed his wife and daughter-in-law into making more food and storing everything in the son and granddaughter’s space.

He even encouraged his wife and daughter-in-law to make thicker cotton clothes and bedding whenever they had time. Last autumn, they harvested over a thousand catties of cotton from two acres, not to mention what was in the granddaughter’s space, which was enough for their family and to be used by the daughter’s family.

How could Hua Chengtian’s unusual behavior go unnoticed by his wife and Qi Shi?

Although they didn’t know the reason, their trust in the old man (father-in-law) made them comply, always feeling that he must have a purpose.

So, over the course of more than a month, the mother and daughter not only made two sets of winter clothes and cotton outfits for each family member but also didn’t leave out the daughter’s family. They made more than twenty quilts, the lightest weighing ten catties. After finishing for their own family, they still had plenty left, and following the old man’s suggestion, they made more. Not only did they use up all the cotton, but the granddaughter also contributed a lot.

As Hua Chengtian put it, they were prepared for any possibility since they had the space and nothing would spoil there.

This led Hua Chengtian’s wife to keep complaining about how wasteful he was. If it weren’t for the fortune their granddaughter made from selling the stone last year, Hua Chengtian’s wife wouldn’t agree to such extravagance.

In the days that followed, even their ignorant milk grandmother, and the brothers and sisters of their daughter, kept collecting materials endlessly with Hua Jin and her father, especially storing extra supplies during the impending disaster.

To collect more and avoid attention, they not only visited nearby villages and towns but also left for Liang City, the city nearest New Moon City.

Since they had a car, it wasn’t too laborious.

The father and son duo, disguised, spent a few days in Liang City, leaving early and returning late, scouring almost every nook and cranny of the city. Particularly, they bought hundreds of stones of each type of grain, and whatever they could think of that might be useful, they obtained in large quantities. After spending over 10,000 Silver Taels, the duo was satisfied enough to head home.

By then, Hua Chengtian’s space was nearly full, with a little space intentionally left for emergencies. Even Hua Jin’s space was packed layer upon layer.

Back then, their Silver Coin reserve had dwindled to less than 8,000 taels, and they decided not to touch it anymore.

With what they had prepared in their spaces, even if the farmland in Hua Jin’s space lay fallow, it was enough for their family to live well for several generations, and they decided to save some Silver Coin for future plans.

After several tiring days, once back home, the father and son duo slept soundly for a day and a night, then returned to normalcy, ignoring the peculiar stares from milk grandmother and the brothers and sisters. They didn’t intend to tell them until it was necessary. Since it was only a dream, they weren’t sure enough to worry everyone else unnecessarily.

By this time, it was already the end of May, less than half a month before the farming season started. The temperature, initially normal, grew increasingly hotter, causing much distress among the farmers who still had no choice but to tend to the fields diligently for the sake of the grain.

Even so, due to the weather, the grain production was markedly reduced this season. The usual golden waves of wheat and rice fields were nowhere to be seen, replaced by sparse growth in the fields, mostly drooping and wilting, but the farmers didn’t dare slack off, hoping to harvest as much as possible.

Hua Village faced the same reduction; actually, the whole land’s many nations were either facing reduced grain production.

News from various countries had long been reported to the court. Despite this, not a grain less in taxes could be exempted. While the nations appeared peaceful on the surface, they were already restless. Without grain, the troops couldn’t eat their fill, and without sustenance, they lacked the energy and strength to protect the borders, only hoping the gods would look upon them kindly in the second half of the year for normal weather and a good harvest.

The people of Hua Village were still lucky because they had the village chief.

They were most grateful for heeding the village chief’s advice to leave half of their land to plant sweet potatoes and potatoes. Without that, looking at the sparse grain, they wouldn’t know how to survive the days to come.

Time always passed quickly. As Hua Jin continued to flatter and coax grandma and mother, more and more delicious food filled the space, and the farming season began.

Though mentally prepared, the yield, even from the best fields, barely reached a stone, making the people feel on the verge of tears.

The people of Hua Village were no exception. Even the largest land owner in Hua Village, the village chief, harvested only a thousand catties from the eight acres of fine-grain fields.

Fortunately, the remaining eight acres were planted entirely with sweet potatoes, potatoes, and a few acres at the foot of Qinggu Mountain, totaling nearly twenty thousand pounds.

At this moment, everyone was incredibly grateful they followed the village chief’s lead to open up wasteland together, every family harvesting a few thousand catties of sweet potatoes and potatoes, more or less.

Fortunately, they had Silver on hand, coupled with leftovers from last year, so they weren’t too worried.

This time, the villagers had even more faith in the village chief, determined to follow closely. If not for the village chief and clan elders suppressing them from selling grain and leading them to earn money, one could only imagine how difficult this year’s life would have been.

Next came the question of how to store the grain?

But just then Hua Chengtian informed everyone that Luo Song, whom they hadn’t seen for a month, reappeared with their caravan.

Seeing the Hua family, Luo Song couldn’t help but feel cheerful, the corners of his mouth curving upward.

"Grandpa Hua, Uncle Hua..." His voice was unmistakably joyful.

"Come, let’s go home," Hua Chengtian and Hua Chengtian were also very pleased, seeing this scene as more money coming their way, quickly leading them home.

"Yun Ao is still at the Academy," Hua Chengtian thought for a moment and said.

"I know, I just came from there," Luo Song smiled.

"Old woman, look who’s here," Hua Chengtian called happily towards the kitchen.

"Who is it?"

Replying, the old lady of the Hua family, coaxed by the granddaughter to cook in the kitchen, handed her spoon to the daughter-in-law, curiously went out and laughed when she looked up.

"So it’s Xiao Song, come in quickly," she hurried back into the kitchen to pour tea for the child.

At this moment, Hua Jin was lying on the bed in her space, watching TV comfortably.

"Sorry to trouble Grandpa Hua and Uncle Hua again."

"Trouble for what? But this is?" Hua Chengtian looked at the carriage parked outside the door.

"It’s about the sweet potatoes and potatoes," Luo Song had no desire to wear a mask or make small talk in front of the Hua father and son, speaking directly.

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