Plummeting Temperature, the Cold Winter Is Coming! Part 2
Sitting at a table near the cafeteria window, one older man and three young men quickly consumed the meals on their plates.
A few moments later, there was a large amount of snow hitting the window.
The older man in his forties raised his head and worriedly said to the younger man beside him, “Han Wa, there are only two days left before the big cooling disaster, but the shelter leader doesn’t seem to be coming back any time soon. It’s freezing outside right now. What should we do?
“Look at the strong winds! It’s worrying me to death!”
“Don’t worry, uncle. The shelter leader is incredibly strong, and he has an elite team with him. What are you worrying about?” the young man subconsciously comforted him but sighed after speaking.
“Sigh, you’re right. The big cooling disaster is coming soon, and the shelter leader has been gone for almost twenty days. Why hasn’t there been any news from him yet?”
“Everyone would’ve spontaneously decided to take our instant food and go out to search for him if not for the village chief who stopped us. We wouldn’t be sitting here waiting impatiently.”
Time passed day by day.
It was the first disaster without Su Mo in command, and there was no news from him at all.
Although most people maintained a calm appearance, they were all anxious and panicking inside.
The village development had increased dozens of times faster, with building complexes improving gradually toward a small town.
Unfortunately, the development progress was unable to increase their peace of mind.
There was only one reason—Su Mo was not here to witness and compliment their growth.
They constructed these buildings from the ground, and these resources piled up in the warehouse, and extra infrastructures in the village meant nothing to them.
The villagers felt as if they would turn into ruins after the disaster.
Positivity was contagious, and so was pessimism. The four men sighed, and the atmosphere in the canteen became dull again.
The chattering voices gradually reduced until there was only the sound of eating resonating in the canteen.
…
The newly expanded second-floor canteen.
With the expansion of the canteen, the village leadership had officially moved upstairs to dine and have their morning meetings.
They watched the villagers come and go with sadness written all over their faces.
Li Hu broke apart his wild vegetable steamed bun and soaked it inside his soup. Then, he could not help but glance toward Chen Shen who was sitting in the center.
Compared to the others, Chen Shen’s status was inevitably elevated by a few levels after he returned from the negotiation with the murloc tribe.
Previously, Su Mo had single-handedly appointed him as the village chief despite his young age.
Although most who were older and had more experience were not dissatisfied with the decision, they always were competitive against him in their hearts.
This time, he single-handedly entered the murloc tribe and walked out in one piece. Additionally, he even signed a series of agreements to form an ally to help each other develop.
Even those who were still unconvinced in the past gradually came to acknowledge Chen Shen’s capabilities.
Meanwhile, Chen Shen seemed to have matured ever since that encounter with the murlocs. While everyone else was anxious, his mentality was very calm.
According to plan, he steadily promoted the village developments one after another.
Li Hu secretly observed Chen Shen for a few minutes and could not help but suggest, “Village chief, I think it’s time we release the news about the shelter leader.”
Li Hu’s face was full of worry as he pointed to the first floor, where the atmosphere had changed drastically.
He was not worried that someone would mutiny and cause trouble because of the circumstances, nor was he worried that someone would try to subvert the power structure in the village while Su Mo was not present.
As the village force’s representative, the criminal offense punishment presented to his desk every day remained mostly at zero.
There were only an occasional few cases of quarrels between villagers over trivial matters which they handled between themselves without the intervention of the newly established patrol team.
His current worries were very simple but very funny to say out loud.
“At this rate, the pressure put on me is too significant. There were four to five people who tried to sneak out to look for our shelter leader.
“I’m worried that more people would attempt to leave to find him today or tomorrow. I’m afraid they might get lost outside if they successfully slip past me!”
It sounded outrageous but it was something really happening in the village.
Moreover, the people that tried to sneak out were not the youngsters of the village but the older men and women.
To them, even though Su Mo was their respected shelter leader, he was still a child in their hearts.
They were driven by an inexplicable force to go out to search for Su Mo on their feet before the cold winter struck.
Li Hu might have missed the four to five people trying to sneak out from different directions if not for someone that hurriedly tipped him off.
“Have you tried to convince them to think positively?” Chen Shen asked with a smile.
“Of course! You have no idea how stubborn they are! They weren’t listening to anything I was saying at all!” Li Hu replied gloomily and took a sip of his soup.
“Don’t worry. Hold on for one more day! Just one more day!”
“Are we still going to hold on? It’s been four to five days already. Village chief, you better stop bluffing a rough man like me.”
Li Hu felt deceived after hearing the familiar answer again, and it made those burst out laughing seeing his reaction.
After all, most of the leadership members were very wise. Everyone, including Li Hu, could vaguely guess the reason for Chen Shen’s actions.
It was a choice between being fully dependent on Su Mo or being able to develop independently when Su Mo was not around.
It was very easy for them to choose the former. They would only need to maintain a stable environment as much as possible and wait for Su Mo to return.
Choosing the latter would require them to go through the most difficult obstacle, which was happening right now.
One would not grow without experiencing pain.
