Chapter 227: The End Of Locust Plague
Seeing that the man had recovered after drinking the diluted lake water, Yao Ran stood up and returned to the 19th floor.
After closing the metal door, she took out disinfectant from her space and thoroughlyn/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
disinfected herself, Long Yu, the metal door, and the stairs. When she was done, she and Long Yu went back upstairs.
Behind them, the man picked up his torch and hid the bottle of water inside his dirty clothes. That bottle of water might be the only thing that could save his family.
At ten o'clock that evening, the military finally took action to control the locusts. They deployed a large-scale operation-using large vacuum machines to suck up the locusts and store them in containers.
Because of the military's efforts, by the time Yao Ran woke up the next day, the number of locusts had significantly decreased. The vacuum machines had sucked away some locusts, the survivors caught some of them, and the remaining locusts sensed the danger and left Juncheng City.
When Yao Ran opened the curtains and looked out, the sky was no longer dark with locusts. She watched the scattered locusts flying around for a moment before closing the curtain.
After taking a bath and having breakfast inside her space, she put on her protective suit and left her apartment. Although their numbers had decreased drastically, many locusts still covered the buildings and streets.
As she opened her door, Yao Ran noticed more bags piled in the corridor. Before she could knock on Long Yu's door to ask, she saw him returning with Shi Xuan, each carrying a few bags of locusts.
Long Yu placed the bags alongside the others before walking up to her. "Why are you up so early?" He asked.
Seeing his sweat-covered face, Yao Ran replied, "I had enough sleep. Why didn't you wake me?"
Noticing the guilt in her eyes, Shi Xuan said, "Your job is to clean and cook the locusts. Why wake you up when there is none to clean yet?"
She paused for a second and asked, "Will you go to work at the hospital?"
Yao Ran shook her head and replied, "I won't go. It's too dangerous working at the hospital right now. Besides, I'm not really a doctor."
Huang Zhihui nodded and said, "I see. I just came to tell you this. I'm heading back now."
Yao Ran smiled, "Thank you for taking the time to let me know."
Huang Zhihui grinned shyly, "It's nothing."
After saying that, she stood up and said, "Then I will see you later, Elder Sister Yao Ran."
"Wait." Yao Ran called her back, took a plastic bag, handed it to Huang Zhihui, and said, "Take this home and share it with the others."
When Huang Zhihui saw the cured beef inside, she swallowed her saliva and then returned the bag to Yao Ran. "Elder Sister Yao Ran, we still have some pork jerky left. You should keep this cured meat for yourself."
Yao Ran didn't take the plastic bag back and said, "I still have plenty. With this temperature, I'm afraid the meat will go bad if I keep it too long. Just take it back to nourish your body."
Hearing this, Huang Zhihui smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Elder Sister Yao Ran. I'm heading back now."
After sending Huang Zhihui off, Yao Ran went to find Long Yu. Since confirming their relationship, they have exchanged their apartment keys.
Yao Ran opened the door to Long Yu's apartment and went inside. Seeing he wasn't in the living room or the kitchen, she went to the small guest room he used as his bedroom. Before she could knock on the door, she heard the sound of a door opening.
When the bathroom door opened, Yao Ran turned around to see Long Yu step out, wearing only pants. His hair was still dripping with water, and he smiled when he saw her standing in front of his bedroom.
Long Yu hung the cotton towel around his neck and approached her.