[BBGCD] Chapter 6

 Building the greenhouse was not easy. What's more, Su Jiao's physical condition had not been worn down by the apocalypse. Even with the help of his abilities, he had only managed to build the greenhouse frame after spending most of the day working on it.

Su Jiao got up and checked the time. The takeaway had already been delivered. He yawned and left the space, just as his phone began to ring.

After answering the call, he told the delivery driver where to leave the food. Then Su Jiao waited by the courtyard gate to receive tonight's late-night snack: more than 700 yuan worth of barbecue.

As he walked back with the takeaway, Su Jiao realized that he had almost missed the delivery. He had been so busy inside the space that he hadn't come out in time to answer the driver's calls.

Fortunately, they had already spoken on the phone two or three times.

Working inside the space did not make him feel hungry from using his abilities, but the long hours of physical labor were enough to leave him starving.

He took out all the barbecue and laid it out, then opened the variety show he had been watching on his phone and continued where he had left off.

Coincidentally, it was a survival-themed variety show. Su Jiao was bored and too lazy to switch to something else. Gradually, though, his attention shifted away from the show and toward the food.

There was no way he could finish more than 700 yuan worth of barbecue in one sitting. He packed up what was left and put it in the space, planning to eat it later when he got hungry.

The water tank in the room was almost full. Su Jiao waited a little longer, changed the tank, and then returned to the space.

The main frame was already in place. Su Jiao took out the greenhouse film and began covering it.

The greenhouse kit he had bought came with three sheets of film. Installing them was more troublesome than assembling the frame.

Following the instructions, Su Jiao handled the film step by step and attached it to the frame. By the time he had finished, it was already 4:30 a.m.

With his ability, sleep wasn't a necessity for the time being.

After finishing the greenhouse, Su Jiao used his power to dig a large pit about five meters in diameter beside the farmland.

He poured the water from the storage containers directly into the pit, then emptied the seafood he had bought into it, without bothering to separate the different species.

Once the seafood was taken care of, he planted a row of the fruit trees he had bought down the middle of the farmland.

Using his abilities twice in succession made his stomach demand attention again. Su Jiao left the space to find something to eat.

Seeing that it was already dawn, he went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. He also cleaned out the refrigerator and kitchen, planning to move the ingredients from the space outside that evening.

There was no need to keep so many things piled up in the space. Once the temperature dropped, the food would keep for a long time outdoors without going bad.

If it weren't for the high temperatures outside, Su Jiao would have bought several more refrigerators and stored everything in them. The space could block most of the outside temperature and maintain an internal temperature of around twenty degrees.

Later, he would have to visit a brick factory to buy some bricks. The space could indeed insulate against some of the temperature changes, and with the greenhouse in place, growing basic crops should not be a problem.

The only thing he needed to worry about was the unexpected temperature drop after the extreme cold began.

If he remembered correctly, during the first few years of the Age of Extreme Cold, there had been a prolonged, drastic drop in temperature. It had become impossible to continue growing crops in the space.

If he wanted to keep the farmland productive, Su Jiao would have to install a boiler in the planting area.

That would be easy to build. He had done it many times before and was practically an old hand at it. There wasn't much he needed to prepare.

For now, he could only deal with the remaining tasks as the time came. Su Jiao prepared his food and continued cooking the things that needed more time. In between, he went into the space to feed the little animals he had raised there.

He tossed two shovelfuls of corn into the corner of the compartment shared by the chickens and ducks, then set down a large basin of water for them to drink.

He wasn't sure what to feed the pigs, cows, and sheep, so he decided to give them some vegetables and fruit.

There were plenty of supplies stored in the space, but they might not be enough to raise all these animals to maturity without difficulty.

He would still have to buy some animal feed. He wanted to raise them properly, after all.

He had already decided what else he needed to buy. He just wasn't sure whether the little money he had left would be enough. He could only hope the supplies would be cheap.

After breakfast, it was not yet six o'clock. Su Jiao drove out of the courtyard and headed toward the brick factory on the outskirts of the city.

There was also a livestock farm about one or two kilometers from the brick factory. Su Jiao planned his route in the car, making sure he could buy both things in one trip before heading straight home.

The brick factory offered several types of bricks. Su Jiao chose the most ordinary red bricks because they were cheap. A thousand bricks cost nearly 20,000 yuan. After thinking it over, he decided he might need them later anyway, so he ordered a thousand and asked the factory to deliver them to the warehouse first.

While the workers loaded the bricks, Su Jiao drove to the livestock farm and bought various kinds of regular animal feed with the money he had left.

After spending nearly all his remaining cash, leaving himself with only 1,500 yuan, Su Jiao went to the warehouse and opened the door. Less than an hour later, he received a call from the workers saying the delivery had arrived.

He paid them a little extra to help move the red bricks into the warehouse. Once everyone had left, he pulled down the warehouse door, transferred the bricks into his space, locked up, and drove away.

On the way home, the sky outside began to darken. Su Jiao glanced at the time. It was already one in the afternoon.

The extreme cold would arrive in less than two hours. On the way, Su Jiao spent the rest of his money on a few more supplies.

He was about to meet the person he had been thinking about for so many years. He felt a little nervous, yet at the same time, he seemed remarkably calm.

He pulled down the car's sunshade to block the sunlight, then took a large box from the living room. He cleared out the ingredients in the space and placed them inside the box. Once the extreme cold arrived, he would be able to keep these things for a long time without a refrigerator.

"Ding-ding-ding-ding—!"

His phone suddenly rang, startling Su Jiao as he carefully sorted through his supplies. He picked it up and saw that it was the alarm he had set for 2:45 p.m.

He quickly grabbed the folding stool from the living room and hurried to the courtyard gate. He took a thick cotton coat out of the space and put it on, then held up a large umbrella to block the view from above.

Su Jiao watched the minutes pass, his eyes fixed on every figure that walked past the gate.

In his previous life, he hadn't paid much attention to what was happening outside. By the time the extreme cold arrived, the temperature had already dropped considerably. When he finally found Brother Gu, it was past six in the evening. The water pipes had frozen, and Gu Lingye had planned to go out and buy something to eat.

No matter how strong a grown man was, lying outside in thin summer clothes for three hours in such low temperatures would leave him half-dead. Even Gu Lingye's powerful ability couldn't protect him during his most vulnerable moment.

It wasn't until the two-month warm period afterward that Gu Lingye's health gradually improved. Before then, he had looked so pale that he seemed as if he could lose his life at any moment.

Since he had been given another chance, Su Jiao thought he should at least make sure this person's health was preserved.

As for everything else, people's hearts were unpredictable. As long as he did not act against his own conscience, that was enough.

Su Jiao watched the time pass. The white mist from his breath grew thicker, and he realized that the extreme cold did not arrive all at once. It was simply that humans had too little time to react.

An old man walking his dog outside began to feel cold. He rubbed his arm and pulled the dog toward the building, muttering, "My health gets worse every day. It's the middle of the dog days, and I'm already feeling cold. What's going on..."

Two fifty-five.

The cold had begun to penetrate his thick coat and touch his skin. Su Jiao took out another quilt, wrapped it around himself, and continued staring blankly at the scenery outside.

The old men and other people who usually wandered around the neighborhood had returned home early. The area, which was never particularly lively to begin with, had fallen completely silent.

Two fifty-seven.

Su Jiao felt his face growing stiff. From a nearby building came the sound of someone swearing.

He rubbed his face, forcing himself to stay alert, and kept his eyes fixed on the building where the shouting had not stopped.

At two fifty-nine, a tall man in a suit came out of the building. He was caught off guard by the cold air and froze for a moment. Then he turned around, as if he were about to go back inside.

But just before he could turn completely around, his steps stopped.

The man stepped into the freezing wind without hesitation.

Su Jiao recognized that familiar figure. He couldn't care less about keeping himself hidden behind the umbrella anymore. He reached out and opened the courtyard gate.

Gu Lingye heard the gate opening and looked over. He saw a blond young man bundled up in so many layers that only his head was visible, peeking out toward him. The young man looked warm and well-protected.

Thinking about his own condition, Gu Lingye stepped forward, intending to borrow some clothes from the other person.

Three o'clock.

The cold current swept down from the upper atmosphere, freezing every liquid in its path. Water vapor high above condensed into hailstones, which came crashing down along with the sudden cold.

The tall man was caught off guard by the hail and fainted on the spot. Just before losing consciousness, he vaguely saw the young man nearby jump in fright.

Strangely cute.

Su Jiao had no idea that Gu Lingye had found his startled reaction cute. He had jumped up and covered his head with the quilt. Dragging the thick quilt over to Gu Lingye, he wrapped it tightly around the man's body.

The hailstones falling with the cold current were so large that even a thick quilt couldn't stop the cold from making him shiver.

Su Jiao took two deep breaths, then brought the unconscious Gu Lingye into the space. He took out a large stuffed toy from the house and pretended to drag the man inside.

He wasn't particularly strong. Trying to drag a big man like Gu Lingye, who exercised regularly, would have been foolish.

Besides, outsiders had no idea how strong he really was. It was better to pretend to struggle for a while as he brought the man into the space.

The cold had left his hands and feet numb. Su Jiao didn't stay outside for long before returning to the courtyard. He first brought the quilt and stuffed toy into the living room, then drew all the curtains.

He put on a thicker fleece top and corduroy trousers, then checked on the man in the space to make sure he was still unconscious.

After putting on his coat again, he went outside to close the courtyard gate. He secured it with an iron chain and lock before returning home to take care of Gu Lingye.

The temperature inside the space was much higher than outside. Su Jiao planned to help the man change his clothes before he woke up, then check whether he needed any medicine for the places where the hail had hit him.

Come to think of it, if Su Jiao hadn't witnessed it with his own eyes, he would never have imagined that this man had actually been knocked unconscious.