novelraw Chapter 175: Finding Joy in Hardship
Chapter 175: Finding Joy in Hardship
When the temperature broke fifty-two degrees, Evelyn Ford decided to just slack off. Unless something important came up, she hardly ever left the house. The storage batteries couldn’t power the air conditioner. And while the generator she’d bought was the quietest model available, it still made some noise. The external AC unit also had to be placed outside. No matter how careful she was, there was always a risk of being discovered. If anyone found out, the consequences would be unimaginable. This was the downside of living in a communal environment—she just had to endure it.
But after a few days of acclimatizing, Evelyn Ford didn’t feel as miserable as she had at first. She was still unwilling to go out, though, not even at night.
After a few days of inactivity, Evelyn Ford couldn’t stand being idle any longer. She took out the hundred-plus rabbits she had slaughtered earlier, planning to cook them all up into a variety of delicious dishes.
"Aren’t you miserable, cooking in this heat?"
Evelyn Ford hmphed. "I have a unique constitution. I always feel awful during major temperature shifts, but after a few days of getting used to it, I’m immune."
"Rabbit with pickled greens, rabbit with spicy peppers, dry-fried rabbit, braised rabbit, spicy and numbing rabbit heads, spicy roasted rabbit... Which one do you want?"
Seeing Evelyn Ford full of energy again, Ronan Kendrick felt a great sense of relief.
And when he heard her rattling off the menu, of course he wanted everything. An adult doesn’t choose; they take it all.
"I want to eat all of them."
"You’re so greedy! Haha, but I am too."
Life is full of bitterness; only good food can soothe the soul.
Evelyn Ford hummed a tune as she chopped the meat, while Ronan Kendrick stood at the doorway, a smile playing on his lips as he watched her.
"What are you smiling silly for? Get in here and help me chop these peppers."
Ronan Kendrick raised an eyebrow. "Coming."
—
That evening, Evelyn Ford made a large basin of chilled jelly and a dipping sauce to go with it, then headed over to the earthen house where Quincy and the others lived with Ronan Kendrick.
She hadn’t been over in several days. Seeing the withered wheat in the fields made her heart ache.
"Quincy! Wyatt Vaughn!" Evelyn Ford called out twice at the door, and it opened.
"What brings you two here? Hurry, come in."
Evelyn Ford was carrying a jar of sauce, and Ronan Kendrick a large basin of chilled jelly. They stepped carefully into the house. The room was dark, so Quincy quickly fumbled for a kerosene lamp and lit it.
"I made some chilled jelly. Grab your bowls, and I’ll cut some for you."
"You came all this way just to bring us food?" Wyatt Vaughn’s eyes grew a little red.
"Wyatt Vaughn, don’t cry. It’s just some chilled jelly. Ronan Kendrick and I couldn’t sleep because of the heat anyway, so we came to check on you."
Quincy brought over two enamel bowls. Evelyn Ford cut a large piece of jelly for them and then ladled out a full bowl of sauce.
"Do you still have any Gold and Silver Flower? If not, feel free to come get some from my place anytime."
"We do, don’t worry about us. It’s been getting hotter and hotter. Do you two still have vegetables?"
Evelyn Ford nodded. "Yes, we have enough to eat."
After chatting with them for a while, Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick went to see Officer Graham.
Officer Graham was fanning Wendy with a hand fan. When the two arrived, Wendy was still studying math, listlessly working on her arithmetic.
"Wendy, look who’s here."
Hearing Evelyn Ford’s voice, Wendy scampered out in a flash.
"Miss Ford, I thought I was hearing things!"
"Haha, look what delicious treat I brought for you."
Officer Graham hurried out and invited them inside. Evelyn Ford showed them the chilled jelly.
"Chilled jelly?"
"That’s right. Wendy, go get a bowl."
"You got it!" Wendy was very quick and brought back a bowl in no time.
"It must have been such a hassle coming all this way. It’s still so hot, even at night. By the way, do you two still have any vegetables?"
A wave of warmth washed over Evelyn Ford. "We do, we do. We have enough to eat."
Wendy eagerly took a bite. "This is so delicious! Miss Ford, I like you so much!"
Evelyn Ford beamed at her. "I like you very much too, Wendy."
Children don’t understand hardship; as long as there’s food, all their worries vanish.
The two of them also visited Serena Lynch’s home, Taylor Vance and his group, and Roy Henderson and Owen Chapman.
There was still quite a bit left, which they gave to the young men on patrol on their way back.
When they got home, Evelyn Ford was surprisingly still full of energy and hadn’t even sweated much.
"Ronan Kendrick, I suddenly thought of a bunch of cold dishes! Chilled rice noodle rolls, cold noodles, cold rice vermicelli, liangpi, and also mung bean soup and sweet glutinous rice soup."
"You’re not planning to pull an all-nighter, are you?" Ronan Kendrick asked, glancing impassively toward the bedroom door.
"Mhm, I can’t sleep tonight anyway. I probably slept too much during the day. Come on, let’s make some delicious food together."
Ronan Kendrick... ’Did the heat make her stupid, or has it driven her crazy?’
Evelyn Ford also felt like she was on a high. Perhaps she was still feeling unsettled, always worrying that another disaster was just around the corner. It seemed only having enough food could put her at ease, and only by keeping busy could she stop her mind from wandering to anxious thoughts.
The two of them worked all night. By dawn, looking at the prepared sweet glutinous rice soup and over two hundred servings of cold noodles, Evelyn Ford went back to bed, completely satisfied.
In the extreme heat, the days were long and the nights were short. It got dark at ten in the evening and light again at four in the morning.
Since Evelyn Ford wanted to sleep, Ronan Kendrick naturally had to provide "personal service." Just as she was about to fall asleep, Evelyn suddenly slapped him across the face.
"Ronan Kendrick, I think you forgot to feed the goats, chickens, and ducks. Go quickly. And Mina and Lola—don’t forget to fill their bowls with water."
Ronan Kendrick had no choice but to get up and do the chores. An hour later, he came back inside the wooden house, washed up again, and returned to the bedroom. Evelyn Ford groggily opened her eyes to look at him.
"Hurry over, I’m dying from the heat."
Ronan Kendrick...
’So I’m just a tool, huh?’
For the next ten-plus days, Evelyn Ford once again holed up in the wooden house cooking. This time, she made nothing but cold dishes and chilled drinks.
When she finally went outside again, she discovered the temperature had risen to fifty-three degrees.
As her shoes touched the sandy soil, she could smell the acrid scent of their soles scorching.
Evelyn Ford quickly ducked back inside. Looking out at the listless trees and grass, she felt a sense of panic rising in her heart.
"If it goes over fifty-five degrees, people won’t be able to survive. We’d have to wear heat-resistant suits."
Ronan Kendrick stood behind her, quietly gazing outside. "It’s a good thing you had them all build earthen houses."
Earthen houses were a bit cooler and less likely to spontaneously combust. Right now, Evelyn Ford’s biggest worry was the forest catching fire on its own.
Sandstorms still hit every few days, but everyone was used to them by now. Even if they got a mouthful of sand, they could spit it out without a second thought.
At night, Evelyn Ford took out a ladder to make it easier for Ronan Kendrick to carry water up to the roof and sprinkle the wooden house, keeping it damp.
Evelyn Ford stood in the yard, kicking idly at the sandy soil out of sheer boredom.
"Huh, what’s this?"
Evelyn Ford looked at the white object she had kicked out of the soil, picked it up, and studied it for a long while.
"This looks like a desert mushroom! Ronan Kendrick, mushrooms are growing in the sand!"
Ronan Kendrick finished sprinkling the water and climbed down from the roof.
"Are they edible?"
"They are, but I’ve never eaten one before."
Evelyn Ford put on her night-vision goggles and began searching for more mushrooms. Wherever she saw a crack in a mound of sand, she was sure to find one if she dug.
Evelyn Ford looked at the plump, white mushrooms, her eyes shining with unusual brightness.
"These are a real treasure."