FID – Chapter 586

Chapter 586: No Work Means No Food

Feng Qingbai had left, but life had to go on.

A few days later, an imperial decree arrived in Yunzhou, along with 800,000 taels of disaster relief funds from the court.

Liu Zhixia became busier than ever, barely touching the ground as he ran from one task to another.

Liu Yusheng, Qian Wanjin, and the others also had no time to rest. Their winery needed to resume operations—due to the flood, previous orders had been left unfulfilled, causing temporary disruptions in trade. 

They had to quickly supply their customers again.

At the same time, the workers at the winery were in urgent need of work to earn money and sustain their families in the aftermath of the disaster.

They were responsible for the livelihoods of hundreds of households.

With so much to do, they barely had time to spend with their families.

Seeing how exhausted the children were—so tired they couldn’t even sit up straight—the Liu family’s elderly couple felt both distressed and helpless. Every day, they did their best to prepare delicious meals for them.

Moreover, with a pregnant woman in the house, the elders coordinated with the kitchen to ensure the meals were as nutritious as possible.

However, Yunzhou had just suffered a flood, and even in the capital city, the market had little to offer.

Things that were once common—chickens, ducks, and geese—were nowhere to be found, all washed away by the flood.

Even pork had become scarce. The moment it was put up for sale, it was snatched away instantly. If one arrived even a little late, there would be nothing left to buy.

The two elders were deeply worried.

That night, after the children had gone to bed, they finally returned to their room.

Sitting on the bed with a furrowed brow, Grandma Liu sighed, “The flood is over now. Husband, how much longer do you think it’ll take for life to return to normal?”

Grandpa Liu replied helplessly, “The flood washed everything away. To get things back to the way they were, it’ll take at least half a year. We’ll just have to endure it.”

“Endure it, yes, but look at the kids—they’re exhausted! In just half a month, their faces have thinned out, and they’re so busy they barely have time to rest. They can’t keep going like this. We need to think of something. We may not be able to help much, but if we can’t even put a decent meal on the table for them, what’s the point of us staying here?”

Grandpa Liu frowned and thought for a moment. “How about we take a trip to the countryside tomorrow? See if we can find some game. People in the mountains hunt when there aren’t enough vegetables to eat—we might be able to buy some good stuff.”

“That’s right!” Grandma Liu’s eyes lit up. “Why didn’t I think of that? Then let’s go tomorrow! Even if it’s expensive, we’ll buy whatever we can! Did you see Xiao Jinzi’s face tonight when he was eating that radish and cabbage stew? He looked as pale as the vegetables!”

Grandpa Liu nodded. “Alright, we’ll go. Right now, we’re the only two in the house who aren’t busy. Even Yuzheng, with her big belly, is discussing with the Four Great Families how to help Zhixia lighten his load. We’ve lived for decades—how can we be less capable than the kids?”

The decision was made. The next day, after all the children had left the house and making sure that Fu Yuzheng was asleep, the two elders quietly slipped out the door.

It wasn’t that they wanted to be sneaky—it’s just that the children kept a close watch on them. They had said that the city was still in chaos, with many displaced refugees and beggars wandering around, making the streets quite unsafe.

The children worried that the two elders might get hurt or run into trouble, so they had rarely let them go out alone during this time.

If the kids found out they were planning to go to the countryside to buy wild game, they wouldn’t even make it past the county office gates.

The streets were still busy with people coming and going, but there was no joy on their faces. Instead, their brows were furrowed with worry.

In the corners of the alleys, small groups of beggars and refugees huddled together, curling up against the walls with vacant eyes and numb expressions.

Only when someone passed by did a faint light flicker in their eyes, but as soon as the person walked away, that light dimmed again.

Having stayed in the prefecture capital for over half a month, the two elders had already become used to such sights. But even so, every time they saw it, they still felt uneasy, their hearts heavy with sorrow.

“It will slowly get better. Our Zhixia and the children will definitely rebuild the city even better and more prosperous than before. After this great disaster, Yunzhou will surely enjoy good weather and abundant harvests.” Grandpa Liu spoke in a low voice, though it was unclear whether he was comforting his wife or himself.

But the efforts their children had put into Yunzhou—they had seen it all. They believed that day would come.

At this moment, Liu Yusheng, Qian Wanjin, and Shi Xianrou had just arrived at Luxi Village.

Because they needed to reorganize the winery and restart production, they had been traveling daily between the prefecture capital and Cangwu Town, gathering village chiefs to discuss the next steps.

The flood had washed away everything in its path.

Houses were destroyed, livestock was completely swept away, and not a single crop survived in the fields. Even in Xinghua Village, where the rice plants had strong vitality, only the stalks remained—the flood had stripped the grains clean off.

The medicinal herbs used in the distillery were all soaked in water and rotted. The tea trees had not been spared either, their roots entirely decayed.

If the distillery was to resume production, they needed raw materials.

So, they gathered everyone to discuss temporarily purchasing supplies from other provinces to get through the immediate crisis.

Although this would greatly increase costs, it was still better than having no work available, with the winery workers left idle.

“I’ve already ordered a batch of tea leaves from Yuzhou. We’ll speed up production in the next few days. As for the medicinal herbs, we’ll need to buy them from the major pharmacies. It won’t be easy to gather enough in such a short time, so it will take a little longer,” Liu Yusheng said, also asking the village chiefs, “Have the damaged wineries been repaired?”

The village chief of Luxi nodded, “Yes, they’ve been repaired. Everyone in the village helped out, and within a few days, the shops were restored to their original condition, just waiting to start work.”

No work meant no food.

The workers had been growing anxious during this period.

As soon as they heard that work would resume as soon as the shop was ready, they all worked tirelessly, putting in their full efforts to finish the repairs as quickly as possible. Now, they were just waiting for a word from the bosses.

The situation in the other villages was the same.

Liu Yusheng nodded, “Then let’s set the time for the day after tomorrow. The raw materials will be delivered directly to the distilleries.”

Upon hearing this, the village chiefs were visibly pleased and nodded repeatedly.

“Great, we’ll start work the day after tomorrow!”

After finishing discussions with the village chiefs, Liu Yusheng still had some time, so she, along with Qian Wanjin and Shi Xianrou, took the carriage to inspect the wineries in each village.

Only after confirming the specific condition of the repairs could they feel more at ease.

After all, these buildings had been flooded, and no matter how sturdy they were, there would still be hidden risks.

The workers would be inside the winery while working, so any potential issues could pose a threat to their safety.

Such incidents must be completely eliminated.

During this period of travel, Shi Xianrou had been accompanying them.

When Feng Qingbai returned to the capital, she didn’t go back with him and temporarily stayed in Yunzhou.

Thus, when inspecting the shops, the three of them divided the work: Liu Yusheng and Qian Wanjin were responsible for checking the walls and corners, while Shi Xianrou took care of the roof.

By the time the three of them finished inspecting the shops and returned to the city, it was already nightfall.

Liu Zhixia had just finished his work as well.

The group met outside the yamen and headed back to the residence together.

As soon as they entered the door, they heard a loud commotion inside.