Disaster Apocalypse: Farming, Family, and My Hidden Secret Space-Chapter 200. Countdown

When the door opened, appearing in the main room, the elderly couple was already certain it was their son’s voice, still calling out, seemingly in unbearable agony.

A grown man making such a sound made Hua Chengtian’s father’s temples throb with anger, prompting him to curse, "Useless."

Hua Chengtian’s voice faded away, simply because Silver covered his mouth.

"His father?" Silver was also startled, and upon hearing her mother-in-law’s voice outside, she instinctively covered her husband’s mouth.

"Keep it down, don’t wake up Mom and Dad." Silver glanced guiltily toward the door, feeling even more guilty seeing her husband’s pained grimace.

The action was a bit heavy-handed just now, but anyone waking up to find someone next to them would be quite startled, and wanting to eliminate the danger was instinctive.

Hua Chengtian also heard his parents’ voices and stopped making noise despite the pain, giving his wife a reproachful look; if he had known this would happen, he wouldn’t have feared waking his wife last night.

"Ouch," Hua Chengtian clutched his chest, thinking how his wife’s strength had grown again, truly making him feel... hurt.

"Did I hurt you, child’s father? It’s my fault, I should have checked more carefully. Are you alright?" After her initial guilt, seeing her husband’s pained appearance, Silver also began to feel heartache, fumbling with the clothes to check, even though it was too dark in the room to see anything.

"What’s wrong?" Upon vaguely hearing voices inside, especially sounding like his son’s voice, Hua Chengtian’s father couldn’t help but call out.

"It’s me, Dad, nothing’s wrong, just had a nightmare." Watching his wife, feeling both guilty and concerned, Hua Chengtian replied.

"It’s not your fault; I should have woken you up earlier. Were you really scared..."

After answering those outside, Hua Chengtian still had to console the one inside.

His wife was not at fault, it was only an instinctive reaction, just that her strength was quite something, as Hua Chengtian clutched his chest and grimaced in pain again.

He wasn’t sure if any bones were hurt; once it was daylight, he thought it best to let Uncle Sanshan take a look.

He really was at a loss with this fierce wife of his.

Being consoled by her husband’s words, Silver felt somewhat relieved but still uneasy, quickly getting up to light a lamp.

Seeing Hua Chengtian’s chest, bruised red, her eyes reddened instantly, blaming herself for not being more careful, as it all could have been avoided. Then, Hua Chengtian comforted her lovingly.

With their son’s voice quieted, there was nothing to worry about anymore; Hua Chengtian’s father and his wife, seeing no more movement from inside, shook their heads and went back into their room to rearrange things again, too hurried before to wear their clothes correctly.

As for whether the trip outside went smoothly, now that everyone was back home, there was plenty of time to ask.

On this side, Hua Chengtian was busy consoling his wife, and perhaps due to the distraction, his chest was no longer in pain.

"No matter how late you return, wake me up in the future," Silver chided gently.

...Otherwise, what happened this morning could have been avoided.

"Alright, alright, I’ll listen to you." No matter what was said, as long as his wife stopped crying and getting teary-eyed, Hua Chengtian nodded.

This in turn somewhat embarrassed Silver, prompting her to consider that she should care a bit more.

"Does it still hurt?"

"Not anymore, I was just startled. Your arms and hands couldn’t cause much harm; really, nothing to worry about." Hua Chengtian quietly lowered his hand from his chest.

Being coaxed by her husband, Silver felt much better, though she still thought about accompanying her husband to see Uncle Sanshan after dawn.

She wasn’t foolish; she knew the strength she possessed.

She picked up her clothes by the bed, quickly putting them on, aware that since her in-laws had already gotten up, it was improper for her as a daughter-in-law to still be sleeping.

By now, Hua Chengtian had lost his drowsiness and decided to get up too.

"You, child’s father, came back late, so continue to sleep," Silver said upon seeing Hua Chengtian getting up.

"No, I won’t sleep. I’ll sleep when I feel tired again."

Silver understood the reason, opened her mouth a bit, and went out with her husband.

As for the children in the family, they were all sound asleep, completely undisturbed.

Hua Jin was even less likely to be disturbed, as nothing could affect her in her space unless she wanted it to.

By the time Hua Jin woke up and emerged from her space full of energy, it was already well past dawn. Hua Chengtian and his wife had long returned from Uncle Sanshan’s house.

Though there was a large bruised area, luckily, no bones were hurt, and only then did the couple feel at ease.

Facing Uncle Sanshan’s concern, Hua Chengtian merely claimed he accidentally fell, leaving under Uncle Sanshan’s skeptical gaze.

"You rascal, clearly beaten, still trying to hide it from me," even after leaving, Uncle Sanshan’s muttering was audible, immediately turning Silver’s face red, which Hua Chengtian found rather amusing.

As for embarrassment, for the thick-skinned Hua Chengtian, it was non-existent.

Hua Chengtian’s father, knowing his son’s trip was successful, felt some relief from the pressure that had been weighing on him. Every day, he brought his son and grandsons back and forth, busy from home to the fields and back again; it was crucial to tend well to the last season’s crops, hoping to harvest as much as possible.

With the village chief as a leading example, other village families followed suit, tending to their fields with added care.

As the harvest season drew nearer, Hua Chengtian took the opportunity to visit his two sisters, advising them to buy more salt, sugar, needles, thread, oil cloths, and such, as these wouldn’t spoil.

Although the two families found it peculiar, their trust in him led them to believe there was a reason for his advice. They had earned some money over the past two years and didn’t take it lightly, buying a considerable amount — especially salt, buying ten pounds at a time, enough to last one or two years.

As the days drew nearer, Hua Chengtian stopped venturing into town. Taking advantage of his sons’ days off, he led them and the insistent Hua Jin up the mountain with self-made crossbows and weapons.

Regardless of whether their daughter’s dream would come true, they needed to be fully prepared. After discussing with his father, they set out to find a cave while there was still time.

It’s easier said than done; finding the right cave wasn’t so simple.

The rain in his daughter’s dream was substantial, lasting over two months. If a landslide occurred due to the sustained assault of rain on the soil, they’d be digging their own grave by hiding in it.

So, they sought a mountain with sparse vegetation and plenty of rocks, the higher the better.

Armed with dry food, he, his sons, his daughter, and the three dogs, Black, Gray, and Yellow, ventured into the mountains together.

These dogs, well-trained since growing up, could comprehend simple commands, which allowed them to alert the group to any danger in advance.

The old lady and Silver were reluctant to let Hua Chengtian and the children head up the mountain, aware of the great dangers and risks of encountering wild beasts, but they couldn’t change Hua Chengtian’s mind and could only repeatedly urge them to be careful. Luckily, they had the three dogs accompanying them.

The three hunting dogs, tall and mighty, often roamed the back mountain. After they started venturing up the mountain, their home never lacked for wild game, providing some reassurance.

Nobody was more excited than Hua Yunao and his brother, eager to follow their father into the mountains, not even considering refusing.

As for the sudden mountain expedition, Hua Yunxiang, careless as he often was, didn’t think much of it while Hua Yunao pondered, casting a thoughtful glance at their father.

He understood that this trip wasn’t merely for hunting.

Observing his father’s comings and goings recently, he noticed his father often away for days, and began to realize there definitely was something the family was hiding from them.

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