My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 983

"I'll go with you."

Wang Susu quickly replied.

When it comes to crucial moments, the young wife can't do without Chen Ling.

"You stay home and take good care of the children and the elderly."

Chen Ling comforted and instructed, "Check the valuables again, and make sure the doors and windows are closed."

After saying that, he followed Sanwazi and quickly left the farm, heading towards the reservoir.

"Ouch."

At this moment, Afu and Ashou caught up.

They are not tigers from the mountains and forests, and this slight change in weather is not enough to cause them to behave abnormally.

Chen Ling patted their heads: "Okay, it's good that you two come along."

Along the way, one could hear the restless cries of livestock from each household, and the barking of dogs rising and falling.

Some villagers stood at their doorsteps, looking around with confusion and worry on their faces.

"What's wrong? Have the livestock been possessed?"

"Who knows? My donkey is impossible to restrain; it just won't stop itself from going out."

Chen Ling didn't stop and headed straight for the dam.

A large number of people have already gathered on the dam.

Dark clouds loomed overhead, and the sky grew gloomy.

The workers did not stop working; they all gathered by the dam, shining flashlights into the reservoir.

Wang Laishun and Lao Niwai were also there, and Zhao Yubao and Professor Zhong hadn't left either. The two old professors were standing at the front of the crowd, discussing something in hushed tones.

"Wealth and fortune are coming!"

Someone shouted.

Everyone makes way.

Chen Ling walked to the edge of the dam and looked in the direction everyone was pointing.

The beam of the flashlight pierced through the dim light of the swans and illuminated the surface of the lake in the deep waters of the reservoir.

Even with his extensive experience, Chen Ling was still taken aback by the sight before him.

About 100 meters from the dam, several huge dark shadows were seen slowly floating on the water.

The largest one had a dark blue carapace that shimmered in the water, and its diameter was estimated to be over three meters, just as Sanwazi had said.

It looks like a small house floating on the water.

That's garlic.

It was identified in the news as a giant softshell turtle that is thousands of years old.

Locally known as "Lord Turtle," it is the most mysterious entity deep within the reservoir.

Around the giant softshell turtle, there were three or four smaller ones, whose carapaces were also over 1.5 meters long.

These creatures, which usually hide deep in the water, have all surfaced and are slowly paddling their limbs.

What's even more alarming is that the finless porpoises were also darting across the surface of the water, not in their usual playful manner, but leaping out of the water rapidly, making sharp "chirping" sounds.

The Chinese sturgeon’s massive dorsal fin slices through the water, and occasionally their slender bodies can be seen flashing underwater.

"My God..." Wang Laishun murmured, "Even the Turtle King has come out, this is going to be a big deal."

Old Niwai's face turned pale: "The Turtle King is helping us to control this river. With him around, there won't be any problems."

Zhao Yubao and Professor Zhong were also shocked.

The two professors had traveled all over the country and seen many amazing sights, but this was the first time they had ever seen such a dense concentration of large aquatic creatures appearing at the same time.

“Wealthy, even the Turtle Prince sensed the changes in the celestial phenomena…” Zhao Yubao looked at Chen Ling.

Chen Ling didn't speak; he squinted and carefully observed the movements on the water's surface.

The giant softshell turtle's floating is erratic; it is neither foraging nor playing.

They shouldn't be on the water at this time.

The frequency of jumping by the finless porpoise was significantly higher than usual, and the swimming trajectory of the Chinese sturgeon also appeared chaotic.

These are all stress responses that animals take when they perceive drastic changes in their environment.

Garlic, in particular, was staring at Chen Ling from a distance, clearly trying to tell him about some changes.

"Fugui, what's going on?" an old craftsman asked, his voice trembling. "Is...an earthquake coming?"

These words caused a stir among the crowd.

Chen Ling shook his head: "It's not an earthquake. Before an earthquake, livestock will panic and run away, and birds will fly away. The birds in our village have all returned to their nests and are very quiet. The livestock are restless, but not panicked."

He paused, then pointed to the water's surface: "Look, these aquatic creatures are all running towards the surface, not hiding in the depths. This shows the problem isn't underwater, but above water."

"You mean..." Professor Zhong seemed to be thinking.

"weather."

Chen Ling stated definitively, "Sudden changes in air pressure, a surge in humidity, abnormal water temperature... all of these can affect aquatic life. They sense environmental changes much earlier than we do."

As if to confirm his words, a tiny flash of lightning suddenly streaked across the southeastern horizon.

There was no thunder; it merely illuminated the thick clouds for a fleeting moment before plunging them into deeper darkness.

The wind has picked up again sometime ago.

It wasn't a gentle breeze, but a gust of wind carrying a damp chill, causing the clothes of the people on the dam to flutter.

Fine ripples began to appear on the surface of the reservoir. The giant turtles seemed even more uneasy. One of them even turned around and swam towards the depths of the reservoir, but after swimming a dozen meters, it turned back and circled in the same spot.

"Shine all your flashlights on the water."

Chen Ling suddenly ordered, "Check the water level."

More than a dozen beams of flashlight light were concentrated on the junction of the dam and the water surface.

The murky waterline was clearly visible under the light.

Old Niwai squatted down, took a closer look, and his expression changed: "It's grown, it's grown about five centimeters since this afternoon."

“It’s only been a few hours…” Wang Laishun’s voice was dry.

Chen Ling was calculating in his mind.

At this rate, the water level could rise by 20 to 30 centimeters overnight.

According to the weather forecast, there will be more rain tonight and tomorrow.

"Fifth Uncle." Chen Ling turned around, his tone serious: "Make all the workers work overtime today."

Wang Laishun was taken aback: "But it's already dark, and the clouds are so thick, it's about to rain..."

"Shine the light on to dry it."

Chen Ling: "Set up all the prepared searchlights and focus on reinforcing the 50-meter weak section on the east side. Pile up as many sandbags and stones as you can."

He then looked at Old Niwai: "Uncle Niwai, take a few people and check the floodgates again to make sure they can be opened at any time. Clean the drainage ditches again, especially the downstream river channel, and clear any possible blockages."

"Uncle Zhao, Uncle Zhong."

Chen Ling said to the two professors, "Please make another call to the city and province and give a detailed report on the situation here... especially the abnormal animal behavior and water level changes."

For example, there might be discrepancies between the observations made at the grassroots level and the actual data.

Zhao Yubao nodded emphatically: "Okay, let's fight now."

Professor Zhong added, "I know a reporter from the provincial newspaper; we can get in touch. Sometimes, media reports can attract attention more quickly."

The group split up and began to act.

Three high-powered searchlights were quickly erected on the dam, their bright beams illuminating the construction area as if it were daytime.

The roar of tractors resumed, and the workers chanted as they moved stones and piled up sandbags.

Chen Ling did not participate in any actual labor, but instead patrolled the dam again.

He walked slowly, carefully feeling the vibrations of the dam with each step and observing the changes in the water surface.

He stopped when he reached the east side of the dam.

This was the most challenging section during last year's reinforcement. The foundation was already weak, and it was only supported by the thickened stones and concrete added later. At this moment, he could feel a subtle, continuous vibration emanating from the dam body... not from construction, but from the resonance caused by the impact of the water flow.

He squatted down and touched the stones at the junction of the dam and the water surface.

It was cold and damp, and fine water droplets had seeped from the surface of some of the stones.

This is not a good sign.

"Aling."

Chen Ling looked up and saw Wang Susu walking over carrying a bamboo basket containing pancakes and hot water.

"Why are you here?" Chen Ling stood up.

"You didn't eat breakfast, so I brought you some food."

Wang Susu put down the basket and looked at the brightly lit construction site. "Is the situation bad?"

Chen Ling didn't hide anything: "It's worse than I imagined. The livestock are restless, a giant turtle has appeared, and the water level is rising faster than expected... These are not good omens."

He took the hot water Wang Susu handed him, took a sip, and felt much better as the warm water flowed into his stomach.

"How's your life at home?"

"Everything is settled."

Wang Susu said, "My parents are upstairs with the children; they've moved all the valuables up. Heiwa and Xiaojin are guarding the yard; I told them to keep an eye out for any noise."

Chen Ling nodded and held his wife's hand: "Susu, I might not be able to come back for a while. Please take good care of the house and make sure the doors and windows are locked..."

Wang Susu's hand trembled slightly, but she quickly regained her composure: "I understand. You should be careful too."

"rest assured."

Wang Susu is gone.

Chen Ling stood on the dam, watching the beam of her flashlight gradually disappear into the dim sky as it moved further and further away along the village road.

He turned and looked into the depths of the reservoir.

The beam of the searchlight swept across the water's surface; the giant softshell turtles had vanished, and the finless porpoises and Chinese sturgeon had also disappeared underwater.

The water surface returned to calm, with only ripples caused by the night breeze.

But Chen Ling knew that this calm was an illusion.

Animals' unusual reactions don't lie.

Those water buffalo from the coast of Hong Kong Island, those giant softshell turtles hiding deep in the water, those sensitive finless porpoises and Chinese sturgeon...

They issued a warning using their most primal instincts.

He understood the warning.

"Uncle Fugui!"

Chen Yuqiang ran over, holding a roll of blueprints in his hand. "Grandpa Wu asked me to send this over. He said it's the original design blueprint for the reservoir."

Chen Ling took the blueprints and unfolded them under the searchlight.

On the yellowed drawings, the lines drawn with blue ink have become somewhat blurred, but the outline of the reservoir, the dam structure, and the location of the spillway can still be clearly seen.

At this moment, the southeast wind suddenly turned into a northeast wind, and the wind force increased significantly.

White waves began to rise on the surface of the reservoir, crashing against the dam and making a "whoosh" sound.

Chen Ling stood on the dam, facing the wind, gazing at the dark sky.

The little white ox had also arrived at the dam at some point and stood quietly beside Chen Ling.

Ah Fu and Ah Shou squatted down on either side of each other, watching the water warily.

The children, oblivious to the adults' worries, continued to chase and play in the village.

But the adults' expressions made them tone down their playfulness a bit.

At 10 a.m., Zhao Dahai and Shanmao also returned to the village.

We arrived at the reservoir dam.

The construction site was bustling with activity, with tractors chugging along as they transported stones.

The workers chanted as they piled stones onto the weakest points of the dam.

Old Niwai led a few people to inspect the flood discharge channel, using shovels to clear away the accumulated silt and weeds.

"Uncle Niwai, how's the situation?" Chen Ling walked over and asked.

"Not bad." Old Niwei straightened up and wiped his sweat. "The flood discharge channel is basically clear, but the gate is a bit rusty, so we've already applied oil. We cleared two tractors' worth of silt from the drainage ditch, and now the water is flowing much more smoothly."

Chen Ling crouched down and carefully examined the flood discharge channel.

The cement-poured channel has cracked in some places, but the overall structure is intact.

The water flowed smoothly without any blockage.

"Thank you for your hard work, Uncle Niwai." Chen Ling patted Old Niwai on the shoulder.

"It should."

Old Niwai lit a pipe of tobacco: "Fugui, to be honest, nobody can say for sure what the weather will be like. Let's do as much as we can, and the rest is up to God."

"If I had no other choice, I really wouldn't want to go to the city to escape the disaster. It's so frustrating."

There was a flood in 1995, and another one at the beginning of this year.

Chen Ling nodded without saying anything.

He walked to the edge of the dam and looked at the surface of the reservoir.

The water level rose again, and the muddy river water flowed down from upstream, forming small whirlpools at the reservoir entrance.

This proves that it has already started raining elsewhere.

Chen Ling ate lunch on the dam.

He, Zhao Dahai, and Shanmao also joined the work team.

Many children in the village couldn't stay at home. They would sit by the dam, watching the adults work, their eyes sparkling.

"Dad, are you building a dam?" Rui Rui asked.

“Yes, make sure the dam is built solidly.” Chen Lingchong’s son smiled.

"Why do we need to fix it?" Xiaoming asked curiously.

"because……"

Chen Ling thought for a moment and explained in a way that the child could understand: "The dam is like the wall around our house. If the wall is strong, the house will be safe when it rains."

The two children nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Little Iron Egg was running around on the dam when Heiwa gave him a low growl, and he obediently lay down at Rui Rui's feet.

In the afternoon, the sky darkened further.

The clouds gathered again, hanging low as if within reach. The air was hot and humid, making everyone feel uncomfortable.

Zhao Yubao and Professor Zhong kept making phone calls to the outside world, but the signal was intermittent.

The two professors carefully examined the reinforcement project and inquired about the water level changes.

"Fugui, you've done a great job preparing these things," Zhao Yubao said with admiration. "Whether or not we end up using them, your sense of responsibility is admirable."

Professor Zhong focused more on the technical details: "The dam reinforcement uses ginger stone and local stone, which are hard enough and resistant to erosion. The dredging of the flood discharge channel is also timely. These tasks may seem ordinary, but they can play a big role at critical moments."

Chen Ling smiled wryly: "Don't praise me, elders. I'm just a farmer, trying to protect my fellow villagers and the village with a clear conscience. Whether it's effective or not depends on whether God will be kind to me."

Just then, Wang Laishun hurried over, his face beaming with delight: "Fugui, I just heard Township Head Liu say that county leaders are coming to inspect the flood prevention work later and will give us their full support."

"Okay, it has to be Fugui. Fugui's calls always work."

The construction site instantly became abuzz with enthusiasm.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, the first drop of rain finally fell.

It wasn't a downpour, but a light, almost inaudible drizzle.

Fine and dense, like silkworms spinning silk.

"Thank God it didn't rain heavily right away, so our prevention work can continue."

At this time, not only the workers who were originally repairing and improving the dam, but also the workers who were building the school had already arrived and started helping with the work.

They piled up the dikes high.