"Over? No, this is just the prelude to the storm. The real hardship hasn't even started yet."
The warm steam from the milk tea swirled in the stagnant air of the dining room, but the words felt like a sudden draft of winter. In her past life, she had thought the same thing as everyone else. Everyone did. They all believed the apocalypse was finally ending after three endless years of suffocating darkness. People thought the cycle had naturally run its course. Surely, it had to be over.
She smiled faintly, her lips curving with a hint of irony that she couldn't quite hide. She didn't want to crush her family's flickering hope, but if they really believed that the worst was behind them, she had to pull them back to the harsh reality of their situation. Whether the apocalypse ended or not, they still had to live properly and prepare for the absolute worst-case scenario.
Jing An nodded hard, his face illuminated by the soft light of the villa. "I think so too. Food is getting tighter by the day, but the government keeps encouraging us. They have issued new orders, boosted poultry breeding, and even allocated a new batch of feed for the livestock. Nobody has eaten their fill for years, much less raised animals on a large scale, so this means they have made up their mind to recover."
Even Su Lanzhi looked hopeful as she leaned forward slightly. "It's getting colder, and crops are harder to grow in these conditions. The Agriculture Department is under a lot of pressure, but we have got a new plan now. We're told to plant as much as we can while there is no active disaster. They even used the artificial sun this season to provide much-needed warmth. The first batch of corn, potatoes, and soybeans will be harvested soon. Food is still scarce, but as long as no new disaster hits us, we will slowly recover."
Jing Lai sat down after wiping her damp hands on a towel. She took a few sips of the hot milk tea and rubbed her palms together for warmth before her brow furrowed. "The food supply for the canteen has been getting smaller and smaller lately, but at least Wu City still has worm patties, so people aren't starving to death in the streets. Other places aren't so lucky. Still, we haven't had any new disasters lately, so everyone is holding their breath, waiting for the light to return. No wonder the rumors keep spreading through the community."
Grandpa Jing sighed when he saw their hopeful faces. Even he couldn't help but want to believe the comforting lies, but deep down, his years of experience told him better. He shook his head, lit another precious cigarette, and turned toward the two younger women. "What do you two think?"
Wu You'ai was happily chewing on the savory fish balls. When she heard the question, she just shrugged her shoulders. "I doubt it. Everyone shouldn't get too happy too soon."
The old man turned his gaze to Jing Shu. The comfort and stability the family enjoyed all came from her efforts. Her words carried a weight that none of them could ignore.
She shook her head slowly. "Cousin is right. As long as the sun doesn't come back, the apocalypse isn't over. We can't relax just because it looks peaceful for a moment. We have to stay cautious and plan ahead. The only reason our life is still good now is because we prepared early and didn't wait for a miracle. As for what the news says, it isn't wrong, but that's just morale talk to keep people from losing hope entirely. It shouldn't be taken literally. If you ask me, things are only going to get worse from here. There's even a blizzard next. So, Mom, you need to take it easy. Don't expand too much too fast, or you will regret it later if something happens."
Su Lanzhi nodded, clasping her hands together in her lap with a look of worry. "Whatever happens, let's just pray for a good harvest this time. If Wu City can stock up on some grain, maybe we can all breathe a little easier during the winter."
Jing Shu couldn't reveal too much of what she knew. If she sounded too prophetic, people would start asking questions she couldn't answer. She could only nudge them in the right direction and let things unfold naturally.
Grandpa Jing finally smiled in relief, as if her words had grounded him. Her assessment hit home. He nodded, then glanced at his son with his usual sharp tongue. "You're a grown man and still can't see things as clearly as she does."
Then he sighed again, the smoke from his cigarette drifting between them. "Anyway, this family meeting is also to remind everyone that the New Year is almost here. We have had a few quiet months, but she is right. From an old farmer's eyes, this peace feels like the calm before a snowstorm. We need to get ready."
Jing An frowned, his expression thoughtful. "Dad, we finally got a few months of peace. Nobody wants another disaster. But… did you notice something?"
Grandpa Jing flicked his cigarette ash into a tray and pointed a weathered finger toward the yard. "Our crops. The yield has gone down! Haven't you noticed we have been eating fewer vegetables lately?"
Everyone turned to look at him. Grandma Jing muttered under her breath, "Heavens, what a curse."
He went on, "All these years, you have all been busy with work, so your grandma and I took care of the tomatoes, peppers, apple trees, and the greens on the third-floor balcony. We have always been careful with the plants. Even during the worst drought, we never ran short on water for them. During the floods two years ago, we still kept up with fertilizing and lighting for four hours a day. The crops grew beautifully back then, and the yield was amazing. But lately, the output has dropped hard. It took me days to find out why."
Jing Shu rubbed her chin, thinking deeply. She had been watering those vegetables with Spirit Spring water on a strict schedule, but only in small doses to avoid suspicion from her family. The yield should have been steady, not dropping so drastically.
Then her grandfather stood up, walked to the door, and came back with a heavy lump of soil he had taken from the yard.
Jing An scratched his head awkwardly. "Dad, what is going on? None of us understand farming like you do. Is there something wrong with the soil?"
He nodded seriously, his face grim. "If your grandma and I hadn't dug up the soil to save some seeds, we wouldn't have noticed. The yard is filled with this strange sandy mud. It's sticky, and it's badly affecting crop growth across the board. I checked other places around the property too. There is none on the concrete, but the hills and open land all have it. It looks normal at a glance, but it isn't."
Grandma Jing clasped her hands and groaned. "Our land was fine before! How did it turn into this sandy muck? Thank goodness the soil on the third-floor balcony is still clean. I was thinking maybe it's seeping up from underground. I'm not sure if it's just us or everyone, but I did ask around the neighborhood. Hardly anyone grows vegetables anymore, and those who do say yields are bad for all kinds of reasons. So who knows if it's the same thing."
No one really grew their own food in these desperate times, so nobody paid any attention to the soil anymore.
Jing Shu frowned as she looked at the mud. In her past life, she had been too poor and powerless at this point; she had no land, no crops, no light, and the temperatures were freezing. She had never even thought about what was happening underground while she was fighting just to stay alive. Now that she did, it made sense; the mud could have come up from deep below, changed by magma or chemicals, contaminating the soil and stunting growth.
She had overlooked this detail completely. It was time to adjust her long-term plans.
"This isn't something we can ignore," Grandpa Jing said gravely, his voice echoing in the quiet room. "Our family's livelihood depends on this. Oh, right…" He turned to Su Lanzhi. "You're in agriculture. Have you seen this kind of sandy mud anywhere else?"
Su Lanzhi frowned and shook her head. "To maximize efficiency, we mostly use soilless and framework cultivation in the labs. But around the artificial sun, we have planted some cold-resistant crops in the earth. I will go check tomorrow. If it's spreading there too, we will need to find a solution fast."
It was already late when they wrapped up the meeting. Everyone sat quietly for a while, the warmth of the milk tea fading into a lingering sense of unease.
The night outside was cold and still, like the world was holding its breath.
And Jing Shu knew deep down, this was no ending at all.
It was only the beginning of the storm.