Chapter 470: Chapter 470

So, what does diverting this flow and buying this piece of land have to do with each other? There is, indeed, a huge connection!

This brings us to next year’s mudslides. The entire world is predicted to endure another year-long mudslide disaster. According to experts’ wild guesses, this disaster will stem from the great floods that submerged many parts of the world in the second year of the apocalypse. Then, in the third year, tornadoes and earthquakes will have sucked up and swallowed vast amounts of floodwater and buildings. For instance, the floodwaters that submerged more than half of Wu City receded swiftly within days, dragging half of Wu City into a black hole along with them.

These peculiar mudslides, after brewing, creeping, and digesting for a full year, would then be discharged from the higher terrains of the Mountain Pass.

This type of mudslide was partly dry and hard, partly sludge, and also contained debris from human structures, undegraded plastics, door frames, and other assorted garbage. You could find any kind of trash imaginable in it; nothing was missing!

Jing Shu remembered very clearly what a geology ’expert’ once said:

"We need to view these apocalyptic phenomena correctly and objectively. These are normal natural occurrences. Nature occasionally gets sick, much like if someone forcibly poured water into your stomach, stuffed you with all sorts of indigestible things, and then shook you around for a year or a year and a half.

"Wouldn’t you get diarrhea? Wouldn’t you vomit?

"Therefore, this type of mudslide is simply Earth’s way of excreting waste. Don’t panic. Once it has expelled all the garbage, it will heal, and the apocalypse will end. All we need to do is quietly let it comfortably relieve itself and recover, just like after a good visit to the toilet."

I don’t believe you one bit, you awful old coot! Every year you claim the apocalypse is about to end. Now, thanks to you, I can’t help but imagine every mudslide as a giant taking a dump.

Jing Shu’s villa was located at the foot of a mountain. One could only imagine the sheer volume of mud that would flow down. Fortunately, it was a low mountain, not a towering peak. She spared a thought for the densely populated mountain regions.

This coming year, another substantial portion of buildings would be submerged by mudslides, forever entombed underground like reinforced concrete. Crucially, many fields would be destroyed. Land that was once barely arable would become completely covered by mud and rocks. How could anyone farm on such stony ground?

This greatly added to the Government’s burden. People had thought the extreme heat of the first year, the floods of the second, and the earthquakes of the third would prevent farming. They never expected the fourth year to literally bury the land. Soilless cultivation, already challenging, became even more costly due to the pervasive resource scarcity.

So, to get back to the point, if Jing Shu wanted to divert the flow, she absolutely needed a ’Bottomless Pit’ to contain the mudslide coming down from her mountain. Otherwise, once the weather cooled and the mudslide’s advance slowed, it could solidify. This might flood her villa or block the diversion path, potentially redirecting it towards other residential areas.

This was, of course, unacceptable, as it would lead to widespread complaints. Since she intended to divert the mudslide, she couldn’t harm others’ interests, lest they use it as leverage against her. Thus, these several black holes were essential.

If Jing Shu didn’t want her villa to be submerged one and a half floors deep, as it was in her past life, diverting the mudslide into the black holes was the solution.

Besides, she couldn’t block the mudslides erupting from the mountaintop. Even if she could, frankly, could one stop diarrhea?

Sooner or later, it would burst out from somewhere else. Jing Shu also considered changing its direction, but unfortunately, it was an entire mountain range. Unless she could flatten several kilometers of mountains, mudslides would inevitably flow over.

Right, she also needed to dig a new riverbed. This was a massive undertaking. However, Jing Shu planned to wait until the mudslide actually arrived before starting the excavation, which should still give her enough time. For now, she had to focus on other diversion preparations.

With that decided, Jing Shu immediately contacted Li Yuetian.

"Jing Shu, I haven’t properly thanked you yet. You’ve done so much for our Banana District, instantly lightening our load considerably. If you need anything, just say the word," Li Yuetian said very politely. He had been looking for an opportunity to express his gratitude to Jing Shu.

"You’re too kind, Captain Li. It’s : buildings 26 and 27 in the Banana District, along with the one in front of them, all collapsed, didn’t they? I’d like to acquire the usage rights for that sunken land."

"Oh... Jing Shu, are you referring to the treasure digging trend that’s so popular right now? It usually costs 5,000 Virtual Coins to lease an entire collapsed plot. However, for you, we’ll even provide five treasure diggers free of charge. Anything valuable you unearth is yours, and you’ll have ownership of this plot for one year. In other districts, people have found rare minerals like Earth Core Stones. Finding just one can make you a fortune! What do you say? Want to give it a shot? I can give you a massive discount."

There’s such an amazing deal? Even if it’s just a lease, having ownership for a year is more than enough.

Jing Shu had never heard of this in her previous life, perhaps due to her ignorance back then. After all, she couldn’t even afford a steamed bun, and it seemed no one had ever dug for treasure in that particular area.

"Alright, what’s this massive discount then?"

"2,000 Virtual Coins."

Jing Shu hadn’t expected to secure the land so quickly. She was, of course, out of Virtual Coins. So, she decided to use the wheat she had brought back from the United States—the supply smuggled through the Black Market. It was old grain and probably didn’t taste great anymore, making it perfect for trading away.

Now that the mudslide had a designated destination, the first major problem was solved, bringing Jing Shu one step closer to her next plan.

At dinner, the family inevitably sighed with a mixture of relief and lingering fear as they discussed the day’s events. Wu You’ai was particularly shaken; she’d had a close call. During her lunch break, she had gone to her mentor’s office to discuss the latest research topics. Fortunately, the incident hadn’t occurred in her jurisdiction; otherwise, her absence could have led to serious trouble.

What kind of trouble could it have been?

"If something happens within a visiting specialist’s jurisdiction, regardless of whether it’s during work hours, your absence to manage and arrange affairs could lead to being reported by temporary staff. And the consequences... well..."

Wu You’ai had barely finished speaking when Mrs. Jing walked in. She was accompanied by a dejected Uncle and Aunt, along with Su Long’s family of three, who had only left two days prior. The first thing Mrs. Jing said upon entering was:

"Sigh, they weren’t at the scene during the earthquake. Even though it was nighttime and they were sleeping—not official work hours—they were still reported by the temporary staff. Thankfully, the higher-ups took into account their active participation in the subsequent relief efforts. As a result, only one of them was fired, while the other was allowed to stay on as temporary staff. If they perform well, they might be reinstated. That’s what they were discussing. But today, they even lost their housing in the regular workers’ area in the square, so they’ve come to stay here for the night." This update ıs available on 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⚑𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖⚑𝕟𝕖𝕥

Wu You’ai shrugged, as if to say, That’s just how things are, especially if you don’t have connections. One reported mistake, and you can lose all the benefits of being a regular worker.

Aunt was teary-eyed, trying to hold back her sobs. They had lost their house, their accommodations, everything—even their jobs.

Uncle, while apologizing for the intrusion, also reprimanded her, "What are you crying for, woman? Such shortsightedness! If Jing Shu hadn’t called us over, we wouldn’t even be alive right now, let alone worrying about such things! Material possessions lost can be earned again. It’s normal to be dismissed if you don’t fulfill the responsibilities of a regular worker. We’ve escaped with our lives; that’s a huge win already!"