Magic Space: Struggling to Survive in the Apocalypse

Chapter 338: Farm Daily Life 10

While Evelyn was unconscious, Ronan was in no mood to check on the state of the space. She had been out for a full day and night, and he hadn’t dared to leave her side for a single moment, terrified that something terrible might happen.

Giving her his blood, performing acupuncture, begging... he had tried every method he could think of. If she didn’t wake up soon, Ronan felt like he would go mad.

"You heartless asshole."

Evelyn was shocked.

’Is Ronan cursing at me? "Heartless asshole," is he talking about me?’

"If you don’t wake up, I’m going to die. Evelyn, I really will die. Don’t scare me like this again... I’m begging you."

Evelyn cupped Ronan’s face in her hands, looking into his bloodshot eyes. Her heart felt tight and sore, as if it were soaking in lemon water.

"It was my fault. I’ll never do this again."

Ronan pressed his lips together, staring at Evelyn as if he wanted to carve her into his very bones and fuse her into his being.

"Alright. I believe you."

After comforting Ronan, they sent their consciousnesses into the space together. Evelyn was thrilled as she looked at the newly partitioned zone. "Ronan, look! This is the livestock zone. We can raise animals here now. I’m going to try hatching some chicks first. If that works, we can start developing this area. And from the newly expanded black soil, I plan to set aside another three *mu* to plant Four Seasons Green."

"Are there borders between the three zones?"

Evelyn nodded. "Yes. So we don’t need to build any dividers. The animals in the livestock zone can’t enter the other zones, and the smells from the other two can’t get into the storage zone."

"So it was a blessing in disguise."

Evelyn’s eyes curved into a smile. "Totally. I’ve always been lucky. Otherwise, how would I have met you?"

Ronan shot her a sidelong glance. "Little brown-noser."

"I’m just telling the truth, alright? I like Ronan the best."

Ronan’s ears turned bright red, and his eyes darted everywhere but at her. Evelyn stifled a giggle, and just as she was about to tease him further, a voice from outside made them instantly withdraw their consciousnesses.

"Ronan, is Evelyn feeling any better?"

It was Wyatt Vaughn and the others. Evelyn opened her eyes and gave Ronan a mischievous look. Ronan cleared his throat and stood up to open the door.

"She’s awake. Come on in."

The door opened, and Wyatt Vaughn, Wendy, and Officer Graham all filed in.

"Evelyn, you scared us to death! We came to see you yesterday, but Ronan said you were unwell and wouldn’t let us in. Then we didn’t see you this morning either," Wyatt Vaughn said, looking like he was about to cry.

"I’m totally fine now. I was just a little under the weather yesterday. See? I’m full of energy, my cheeks are rosy, and I could probably send Quincy flying with one kick. That should tell you how healthy I am."

Quincy snorted. "And I’m catching the stray shots again."

Wyatt Vaughn burst out laughing. "Evelyn, I fully support you in putting Quincy in his place. He’s been blasting his tapes every day and driving me crazy. I’m at my wit’s end."

"Ronan, get him."

Quincy scrambled to hide behind Officer Graham. "Evelyn, you fight dirty!"

Evelyn chuckled. "Well, who asked you to hold such a big grudge against me before? If I’m not picking on you, who should I pick on?"

The bedroom was crowded with people, everyone chattering at once about the events of the past couple of days. Evelyn listened quietly, chiming in with a word or two every now and then.

"I have no idea what the heavens are trying to pull. The weather’s been pretty decent these past few months, then last night it suddenly started snowing. It was just a light snowfall, but it feels a lot colder, and working outside is miserable. Good thing the farm’s greenhouses are all finished."

"Yeah, this morning an older man came by with firewood to trade for supplies. He wanted some duck down to make clothes for his grandson, so I made the trade."

"One of the patrollers told me that a few nights ago, a little girl froze to death. Her mother was so devastated she went mad, carried her daughter’s body into the mountains, and was never seen again."

"Are the heavens even going to let people live?"

The group chatted for several hours. That evening, when Evelyn went to the mess hall for dinner, everyone else was there too.

"It’s been a while since we all ate together. Food just tastes better when everyone’s here."

Seeing the feast of fish and meat on the table, Evelyn looked at the others. "Is it New Year’s today or something?"

"What are you talking about, New Year’s? This is to celebrate you getting better."

Evelyn felt her nose tingle again. "Thank you, everyone. I was starting to think I’d been sick for two days and slept through the turn of the year."

"I’m not a fan of New Year’s anymore. All of a sudden, I’m in my thirties," Quincy said with a touch of melancholy.

"When I met Evelyn, she was only nineteen. In the blink of an eye, she’s twenty-seven."

Evelyn shot him a glare. "Why are you calling me out on my age?"

"I was just marveling at how fast time flies. But don’t worry, you look no different than you did at nineteen. Still so young." Quincy’s survival instinct was now kicking into high gear.

"Lock the main gate to the farm. With the snow, we’re keeping it closed for the time being."

They had enough firewood to burn, and the stockpiled branches would be enough to feed the livestock for at least a year. With the sudden change in weather, the outside world would soon descend into chaos, and Evelyn didn’t want to attract any trouble.

"Got it. But what if people come to trade for supplies?"

"Make a sign. Write ’TRADES SUSPENDED’ on it in red ink and hang it on the main gate. Keep the farm’s perimeter under constant patrol. Watch out for anyone trying to break the fences to get in. Oh, and we also need to guard against anyone trying to tunnel their way in."

Everyone was a little surprised. "They wouldn’t be that bold, would they?"

Evelyn scoffed. "The farm is a huge target. The temperature has plummeted, food is scarce—there’s no telling if the refugees outside will band together and try to storm this place. Everyone needs to be vigilant. Report anything that seems out of place. If anyone spots a problem and fails to report it, I don’t care who it is, they’ll be thrown out of the farm. No exceptions."

When it came to security, Evelyn was merciless.

As far as she was concerned, everyone was equal and had to abide by the farm’s rules.

Taylor Vance nodded. "That’s right. Whether it’s now or in the future, if anyone comes around asking about the farm—for instance, its total area, where the livestock zone is, or the location of our living quarters—no one is to reveal that information."

Everyone understood the gravity of the situation. If something happened to the farm, their jobs here would vanish into thin air. The stable life they had worked so hard to achieve would be lost. No one wanted to go back to living on edge.

"Miss Ford, we’ll be sure to watch what we say and do," Chet Lawrence declared, the first to speak up. The others quickly chimed in with their agreement.

Evelyn had made her point, and that was enough.

"I trust all of you. Life is hard these days, which is all the more reason for us to stick together."

Evelyn always kept her word. As long as everyone followed the rules and worked diligently, she wouldn’t mistreat anyone.

The next day, the light snow turned heavy, and just as predicted, Fairgate descended into chaos.

That afternoon, a few refugees began riling up the others, gathering a large group with the intention of causing trouble at the farm. They planned to force the gates open and let all the refugees in for shelter.

A patroller came to deliver the urgent news while Evelyn was in a greenhouse, checking on how the winter wheat was heading.

"Miss Ford, we’ve got big trouble!"

Looking at the patroller Quincy had brought over, Evelyn already had a good guess as to what was happening.