Chapter 769: Farewell
Chapter 769: Chapter 769: Farewell
"I’m staying," Quincy said suddenly.
"This isn’t the time to argue about this," Evelyn said in a low voice. "Ronan and I can protect ourselves, but if we go into The Undercity, what about the people outside? The first problem is food and water. If I’m not here, what will they eat? Are we just going to let nearly forty thousand people starve to death out here?"
"Then we’ll all stay outside together. Everyone says we should share weal and woe. I’m not about to hide behind you two and enjoy that kind of safety. Mr. Graham, please take care of Zoe for me."
Quincy was dead set on staying outside. No one could persuade him otherwise.
Zoe stared at him with wide, hopeful eyes, seeming to know this would be a long separation. She didn’t cry or make a fuss, just watched Quincy quietly.
Others wanted to stay outside as well, but The Undercity needed some reliable adults to go inside and maintain order. No one trusted anyone else with the job, especially since Evelyn had stored a large amount of food and water in there.
"Quincy will stay. Everyone else, get into The Undercity. It’s closing soon. Take care, everyone."
"Joy Ford, Mr. Kendrick, Mr. Quincy. You all have to take care of yourselves. You must stay safe."
Evelyn hugged Wendy. "Don’t worry, nothing will happen to us."
After hugging everyone goodbye one by one, Evelyn had no idea when they would meet again—in six months, in a year, or perhaps never. She mused that the older she got, the more sentimental she became.
The Undercity was about to close. A red light at the entrance began to sound an alarm. As the final ten-second countdown began, the people inside waved goodbye to those outside.
"Take care."
"You too."
The great doors of The Undercity slowly closed, like a line drawn between life and death, completely separating the people inside from those outside. Evelyn and Ronan Kendrick exchanged a look. The parting was painful, but they had much to do.
Quincy stood his ground. Once all the red lights on the exterior of The Undercity had gone out, he turned his back and wiped his eyes.
"Let’s go. I still have to deliver the saplings."
"Are you okay?" Evelyn asked, looking at him with concern.
"I’m fine, don’t worry. It’s hard to say goodbye, but I think staying out here is more meaningful. Miles Vaughn and Mr. Graham will take care of Zoe, so I’m not worried. By the time we see her again, she’ll be all grown up."
Evelyn patted Quincy’s shoulder. "Don’t worry. We will meet again. None of us are going to die. We will all survive."
"Yeah, I know. From now on, it’s the three of us, relying on each other to survive."
Evelyn glanced at the dense crowd behind them. "Not just the three of us. All of us."
Looking at the pairs of eyes, lost yet resolute, Evelyn turned and walked into the crowd. She grabbed a megaphone and stood on a large boulder.
"Are you scared?"
"No!" a clear, powerful voice rang out. Evelyn looked and saw a woman in the crowd watching her with tears in her eyes.
"Miss Ford, we’re not afraid."
"That’s right, we’re not afraid! I’ve already lived longer than I expected, so it’s a win. If it weren’t for Miss Ford and Mr. Kendrick, we would’ve starved to death long ago. As long as we’re alive, we’ll risk everything to plant all these trees. If worse comes to worst, we’ll just perish along with Azure."
"It’s just one life, right? I’m willing to give it."
"It’s been almost fifteen years since the apocalypse. I’m so sick of it."
"Let’s give it our all! They say man can conquer nature. With so many of us, we can definitely beat fate and save Azure!"
...
Listening to the chorus of shouts, Evelyn’s gaze grew resolute.
"Alright! Let’s give it our all! Everyone, follow my lead. Grab your saplings and hoes, get with your teams, and let’s get to work."
The black soil and water were already prepared. Although everyone was curious about where the water came from, no one asked. Right now, everyone was united with a single purpose: to plant trees and fight the pollution. Every era has its unsung heroes who defy death. These people who stayed behind knew their chances of survival were slim, but they still chose to stay. Not a single person fled, not a single one objected.
In their own way, weren’t they heroes too?
Perhaps one day, Azure would be restored to its former vitality. Even if no one remembered their sacrifice, this land would.
"Quincy, go pick out three hundred strong, able-bodied young men."
"What for?"
"To dig an underground tunnel. Ronan said that in three months at most, we won’t be able to stay on the surface. The Undercity is only so big; we can only cram so many people in there. Are the rest supposed to just wait to die? We need an escape route. I’m going into my space for the next few days to prepare oxygen tanks. You keep an eye on things. If anything comes up, have Ronan contact me."
Quincy frowned. "Where do we start digging?"
"I’ve already drawn up the plans for the tunnel. The location is just ahead; I’ve marked it. If there’s anything you don’t understand, find Ronan. I need to prepare more oxygen tanks and bags, just in case."
Quincy made an OK sign with his hand. "Don’t worry, I can handle it."
Evelyn let Ronan Kendrick know, then returned to her tent. After entering her space, she found the micro-tiller. Evelyn planned to till the black soil and plant wheat. She had a habit of planning ahead. With half the grain supply allotted to The Undercity, their stock was no longer abundant, and that made her uneasy.
For the past few months, most people actually didn’t have tents. Although Evelyn had distributed clothes and shoes, she didn’t have enough tents in her space to give everyone. So, most of them rested in the open. When they got tired, they would lie down and sleep wherever they were, and when they woke up, they’d get back to work.
In the cultivation area, the Four Seasons Green had grown taller than Evelyn herself. Once the underground tunnel was dug, she planned to give each person twenty jin of hay. The hay could be woven into mats, which would make sleeping a bit more comfortable.
Evelyn wasn’t too worried about the people in The Undercity. As long as they behaved themselves, the fuel inside could keep The Undercity operational for fifty years.
The Undercity also had a cultivation area, so the people could be self-sufficient. As long as they were diligent, they wouldn’t have to worry about food.
The only thing they might lack would be water. However, there was a warehouse entrance on the outside of The Undercity. This entrance was one-way; people on the outside could deposit things inside. As long as Evelyn was alive, she could resupply them with water.
After finishing his work outside, Ronan Kendrick went into the space to help. He filled the water tanks, pulled up the saplings from the ground, and sorted them. Worried there wouldn’t be enough saplings, he found some pinecones and began to propagate new ones.
After tilling twenty mu, Evelyn was completely drained. She ate something quickly, and after returning to the wooden cabin, she didn’t even have the strength to wash up. She collapsed directly onto the living room sofa and fell asleep.
Four hours later, her alarm went off. Evelyn shot up with a carp-like leap, did a quick wash-up in the bathroom, ate breakfast, and went back to work in the fields.
To save time, the people working outside only ate noodles and compressed biscuits soaked in water. In just a few days, Quincy had already lost a noticeable amount of weight.
Meanwhile, the crew digging the underground tunnel had already finished the entrance. The inside was like a maze. To accommodate tens of thousands of people, Evelyn had designed it based on an air-raid shelter.