CHAPTER 73: CHAPTER 73: SUDDEN DOWNPOUR

The weather in midsummer really changes just like that; at noon it was a clear sky, but after a meal at home, it suddenly became overcast.

Jiang Hu, who was originally giving Tie Dan a bath, put the child down casually: "Er Nian, come watch over Tie Dan. Da Wa, come with me to gather the sorghum!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Hu was already in the yard. With one hand, he pulled up the oilcloth, yanked it with force, and brought the sorghum ears together, then did the same on the other side.

Da Wa practically ran into the oilcloth and, without a second thought, picked up a large bunch of sorghum ears and rushed under the eaves.

Er Niang, who was washing dishes, also came out, wiped her hands on her clothes, and began to move the sorghum ears under the eaves.

Er Nian was dozing off and got a startle from her dad’s voice. She then saw Tie Dan sitting alone in the washbasin, and noticed the once sunny weather had turned gloomy.

"Er Jie, Tie Dan, bring him out." Xiao Mi quickly spoke out to bring Er Nian back to her senses.

Xiao Mi was originally watching her dad give Tie Dan a bath. Who knew the sky would change so suddenly? It gave her quite a scare.

Not only that, but now there was also a strong wind blowing, a gust that completely dispersed the previous heat, even bringing a bit of chill.

She was fine, but Tie Dan, having just been tossed into the water and now with a wet body, could catch a cold in this wind.

Unfortunately, although she was anxious, she couldn’t get out of the little chair herself, so she had to summon her second sister.

Fortunately, once Er Nian came back to herself, she quickly jogged over and brought Tie Dan out of the water basin.

"Tie Dan is so cold," Er Nian murmured to herself, and then took Tie Dan into the house.

Soon after, she came out again to carry Xiao Mi, who couldn’t get out of the chair, back into the house.

"Don’t worry, Xiao Mi, dad and mom will be back soon," Er Nian comforted Xiao Mi while pulling a little blanket over to wrap Tie Dan.

However, Tie Dan was clearly not cooperating, flailing his arms and legs, and was eventually stopped by Xiao Mi with a gentle press.

Xiao Mi was second only to their mother in importance, so Tie Dan was obedient to her.

This raging storm was already the third time they’d encountered it this year; they were experienced and not worried, even if the thatched hut creaked.

But soon, raindrops as big as beans began to fall, and within a few breaths, it turned into a downpour.

Even though Jiang Hu and Er Niang reacted swiftly and worked quickly, half of the sorghum still hadn’t been retrieved.

In the end, Jiang Hu directly lifted the oilcloth, holding it over his head with both hands, and pulled it over to shield the remaining sorghum from the rain.

Jiang Hu acted as a human pole, while Er Niang and Da Wa, soaked to the skin, still tirelessly brought back the remaining sorghum.

Fortunately, Jiang Hu reacted promptly, so the remaining sorghum, though getting wet, avoided being soaked through.

The wet sorghum was placed separately, and after everything was gathered, Jiang Hu and Er Niang shook out the oilcloth and covered it over the sorghum under the eaves to prevent rain from blowing onto them.

After all the busywork, less than a quarter-hour went by, but their clothes and hair were dripping with water, showing how heavy the rain was.

Er Niang stood at the doorway, looking at the dark sky, feeling anxious; it was clearly noon, but it suddenly seemed like evening, which was especially scary.

"There are still quite a lot of sorghum left in the field. With such heavy rain, I’m afraid a lot of sorghum has been knocked down."

How excited and thrilled they were before was how anxious they are now.

Jiang Hu casually found a cloth to wipe his face: "Don’t think too much, it’s not just us. Fortunately, we gathered some yesterday afternoon. Those who haven’t started harvesting yet, they are the ones really losing out."

Xiao Mi sat on the bed, watching her dad, mom, and brother all soaked in rain, quickly shouting, "Dad, mom, change your clothes."

They’ll catch a cold if they don’t change.

Er Niang came to her senses and quickly found clothes for Da Wa to change into.

Then, she took clothes for herself and went to a slightly farther spot.

Even though the family all lived in the same room, considering Da Wa and Er Nian are getting older, when he wasn’t busy, Jiang Hu specifically made a bamboo partition as a divider to create a little cubicle.

Once Er Niang and Jiang Hu changed into clean clothes, the rain showed no sign of stopping, pouring down as if someone were dousing it from the sky.

The ditches in the vegetable garden were filled to the brim, and the water pouring from the roof was as thick as a wrist. The loud noise made it so you had to raise your voice to be heard.

The splashing water had already reached the doorway, and the folds of the oilcloth under the eaves quickly filled with rainwater too.

Luckily, Jiang Hu and Er Niang braved the rain to cover the sorghum under the eaves earlier; otherwise, the recovered sorghum would have been as good as lost.

Er Niang sat by the bed, toweling off Da Wa’s hair while observing the rain outside.

"Good thing we brought all the corn inside the house yesterday. If we had waited one more day, we might not have been able to save even the corn."

With such heavy rain, if it was left out there, not considering if it would be washed away, just being soaked would ruin its appearance and taste even after drying.

Jiang Hu was already getting Tie Dan dressed. When he saw the weather change earlier, they hadn’t even finished the bath.

"This morning while I was in the fields, I saw some households in the village still had corn drying in the yard, but I forgot who they were."

Er Niang looked regretful: "I wonder if they managed to bring it back in."

Thinking of the fields, with so much sorghum left unharvested, made her feel more distressed.

Whether it was their own or others’ grains, if it was wasted, she felt it was a pity.

Jiang Hu dressed Tie Dan and placed him beside Xiao Mi. This little one obeyed Xiao Mi second only to his mother.

Then he took a cloth to wipe Er Niang’s hair: "I feel it’s fortunate we moved slowly and settled far from the densely populated areas. It’s peaceful."

Er Niang understood Jiang Hu’s implication and nodded in agreement.

Just like now, because they had less land, they could bring in the corn early, and much of the sorghum too. Even with a heavy rain, the losses wouldn’t be too big.

But if those with bigger losses saw this, surely they’d have a thing or two to say.

Though it’s harmless, hearing such comments is uncomfortable, it’s better not to hear them at all.

"But it’s also fortunate that this year everyone made quite a bit from hunting, so we can afford to buy a little less grain."

Er Niang quickly turned the conversation to something else.

"By the way, Brother Hu, I heard from Wang Xiang a few days ago that many people in the village have started raising rabbits themselves, and it seems to be going well."