Chapter 18: The Flood Approaches

The light rain had drizzled steadily throughout the night, and the next day remained overcast, the low pressure making it hard to breathe.

“Mother, why is the rain getting heavier?” Warmth Gu looked up at the leaking roof.

“This is truly rain outside, and a little rain inside,” her mother replied. No sooner had she spoken than a crash came from the kitchen.

Ai-lian Hu stood up to check, but a muffled thunderclap rolled across the sky, as if the heavens had torn open, unleashing a torrential downpour.

“Mother, everything’s been taken out of the kitchen; there’s nothing left. Don’t go back in.”

“Sigh, what’s wrong with this year? It’s just the beginning of summer, and it’s already rained so much.”

They sat inside, staring at the dark, heavy clouds, worry etched on their faces, dreading that the relentless rain might bring down the house again.

The rain continued through the night. Gu Warmth’s room collapsed last night, pinning her beneath the rubble. Fortunately, she wasn’t seriously injured—thanks to her ability to slip into the space—but the house was utterly unlivable now.

“Eldest daughter-in-law, drink some red sugar water to chase away the cold.”

Wrapped in a quilt, Gu Warmth sat on the kang bed. At the moment the house collapsed, she had entered her space; otherwise, her body would have been crushed like a pancake.

“Mother, I’m fine. I hid under the table. Don’t worry, just get some sleep.”

Ai-lian Hu couldn’t sleep, fear gnawing at her as she gazed at the dark sky, dreading a dam breach.

The leaders of the Red Flag Commune were also restless. Several brigades lay around the river bend; if the dam broke, all would be flooded.

“The flood is coming! Run!”

The Toyota Brigade, closest to the river bend, stood guard all night. The young men held shovels, but the flood surged like a beast, rushing toward the village.

Awakened by the shouts, Ai-lian Hu roused everyone. They packed quickly, preparing to flee the flood.

“Mother, where are we going?”

“To the mountains. Hurry and carry the children.”

Gu Warmth hoisted Jia-yu Zhou onto her back; Qing Zhou carried Yaya, while Xi Zhou and Si Yue bore the food supplies. They moved with the crowd up the mountain, rain still pouring. Gu Warmth pulled raincoats from her space and draped them over the children.

All the villagers fled uphill, carrying grain and bedding. By dawn, the floodwaters swept into the village.

Standing atop the mountain, watching the flood swallow their homes, despair settled over everyone.

“Heaven above, please stop the rain. Spare us, the common folk.”

“Heaven, why do you want to take our lives?”

The villagers knelt, beseeching the skies for mercy.

Gu Warmth looked at the flood and the disaster unfolding before her eyes, powerless, her heart heavy with sorrow.

Before natural calamities, human strength seemed so fragile, only able to endure silently.

---

Gu Warmth watched the distant mountains as thunderous roars echoed like the apocalypse.

“Earthquake! Everyone, get down!”

Having witnessed the Tangshan earthquake, she recognized the signs.

All villagers dropped to the ground as more rumbles shook the earth, plunging them deeper into despair.

The quake was not severe; after one loud roar, it gradually subsided.

The sun rose, showering golden light on the land, but it could not dispel the hopelessness.

“Mother, can we go home now?” Jia-yu Zhou asked, voice trembling with tears.

“Jia-yu, we have no home anymore.”

Gu Warmth spoke the shared truth—their homes were gone that night.

Jia-yu seemed to mature overnight; all the calamities had shown the five-year-old the frailty of human life.

Chuan-gen Zhou gathered everyone, urging them not to wander in the mountains; the season was rife with wild beasts and venomous snakes. Watch the children closely.

“When will we return?” someone asked.

Chuan-gen didn’t know when the flood would recede.

“Wait. We’ll go home once the waters retreat.”

The damp woods after the rains stirred the wildlife into motion, turning the villagers into targets.

“Snake! Captain, my son was bitten!” Widow Wang sat on the ground, cradling her child.

“Quick, is it venomous?”

“A wild chicken neck snake.”

“Ah, God, please take me instead.”

Widow Wang had only this son, spoiled and cherished, the last hope for the Wang family. Now everything was lost.

“Step aside, lay the child down.”

Gu Warmth lifted the boy’s clothes, sliced the wound with a knife, bound a torn cloth tightly above the bite, and began to suck out the venom.

As she drew the poison, she dripped sacred spring water onto the wound to purify the blood.

Widow Wang sat stunned, watching Gu Warmth save her son. Though she had never liked Gu Warmth, at this moment, she was the boy’s savior.

Little Bao Wang’s complexion slowly returned; moments later, he awoke.

“Mother, what’s wrong with me?”

Widow Wang knelt and kowtowed.

“Thank you for saving my son. Thank you.”

Gu Warmth helped her up.

“Check on the child. I’ll go gather some herbs.”

---

Gu Warmth instructed Ai-lian Hu to watch the children while she went to collect hemostatic herbs.

*Ding dong,* a voice echoed in her mind: “User has successfully assisted two patients. System upgrading: gained the ability to store items at will.”

“Store items? What does that mean?”

But the voice vanished, offering no explanation.

“Storage?” Gu Warmth focused on the herbs, using her willpower to make them vanish and reappear in her space.

“So that’s how it works.”

She glanced at the flood below and quietly entered her space, creating a channel with her mind to draw the floodwaters into her storage.

“Captain, the water’s receding! Look, it’s going down!”

Gu Warmth didn’t store all the water at once—too much might arouse suspicion.

Returning with the herbs, the villagers prepared to descend. She crushed the herbs and applied the paste to the child’s wound, handing over a water bottle for him to sip the sacred spring water.

“Mother, I feel much better.”

Widow Wang took out the few remaining bills she had and offered them to Gu Warmth.

“Thank you, Warmth. I have little to give, but please take this.”

Gu Warmth declined. After the flood, every family needed to restock. In this time of hardship, she could not accept the money.

“Sister Wang, I can’t take this. We’re all from the same village. In times like this, we must help each other.”

Widow Wang was at a loss for words. She had often spoken ill of Gu Warmth before, but now, Gu Warmth’s kindness left her ashamed.

“When things settle, I’ll invite you for a meal,” Gu Warmth said, unable to refuse her this time.

Everyone packed up and hurried down the mountain under cover of darkness.

The floodwaters had receded, leaving chaos behind—mud, collapsed houses, broken trees. The villagers trudged home, sinking ankle-deep in the debris.

When Gu Warmth reached her doorstep with Jia-yu on her back, the house had been washed away.

“Mother, what do we do now?”

They stared at the ruins, hearts empty. Night was falling; where would they sleep?

“Warmth, come stay at my place. It’s big, just me and my son,” Widow Wang called out as she passed.

“Then we’ll trouble you, Sister Wang. We brought food and just need to stay one night.”

Together, they carried their supplies to Widow Wang’s home.