As Wen Qian was diligently steaming mixed grain buns every day, the distant ranch received orders to withdraw.
The company Wen Qian worked for began recalling its personnel, and the original ranch's sheep were to be disposed of. Sheep need to graze on grass, and with the coming snow, a large amount of hay and feed would be required, which the current situation did not allow. Thus, after the sheep were disposed of, they would all be eaten.
Afterwards, many machines were moved away, and the ranch would be abandoned.
At this time, Wen Qian was unaware of the ranch's situation, but she should have been able to guess that the ranch would become deserted in the future.
From then on, the people she knew would probably only be those in the valley of the Jade Mountain Range, as well as the station at Jade Mountain Pass.
Wen Qian thought of the Jade Mountain springs at this moment, this place should still be able to continue producing high-quality spring water.
But she was not interested in exploring further, after all, the current radio broadcasts were still in the preparatory stage, and there was no situation of gathering people in shelters yet.
Therefore, Wen Qian did not need to explore too many inhabited areas nearby.
At this time, the meaning of scenic spots was also not significant. Who would have the time to travel so far to appreciate the scenery when they couldn't even eat their fill?
People were being assigned to do other things.
Without sunlight, mushroom cultivation would become an important part, so some unemployed people would participate in mushroom cultivation training.
Similarly, there was also training on geothermal cultivation, and some places with thick underground environments would be given priority attention at this time.
Although Wen Qian didn't like eating mushrooms, she had mushroom bags in her possession.
These were the ones she had previously purchased online that could be cultivated at home. You cut open the bag and spray water according to the instructions, and different types of mushrooms could grow.
She had seen these when she was taking stock of her space, because sometimes when shopping online, she might accidentally click on these mushroom bags while buying vegetables, so she received the goods as well.
Before, when Wen Qian saw mushrooms on the mountain, she didn't dare pick them, for fear of picking poisonous mushrooms and poisoning herself.
But these mushroom bags sold in stores were guaranteed to be safe and edible, so Wen Qian cultivated them at home with a try-it-out attitude, carefully following the instructions step by step.
She didn't necessarily have to eat them right away, but they might come in handy.
Now she thought that if she managed to grow them, she would harvest the mushrooms and store them in her space, along with the mushroom bags.
When she was hungry later on, she should be able to eat anything, but now that she still had a choice, she wouldn't force herself to eat things she didn't like.
Isn't that how adults are? When making choices, they simply don't choose things they don't like to eat.
Although Wen Qian didn't like eating carrots, she had also stored some in her space, mainly because carrots were very cheap and abundant at the wholesale market that year.
And they were packed neatly, looking very appetizing.
Occasionally, she would take out a carrot, break it into a few segments, and slowly nibble on one small piece.
At the same time, Wen Qian would climb a ladder against the wall every day and use binoculars to observe the surrounding environment, just like Ding Manshu standing guard, she observed the surroundings every day.
Time came to October, and according to the original season change, it would gradually become cooler and winter would set in. The dry wind carried sand and dust as it blew past.
Wen Qian forgot to apply moisturizer at night, and her face was very dry when she woke up in the morning.
After the mixed grain buns came to an end, she spent her days patrolling the surrounding environment and tending to some plants at home.
In her other time, she started her daily exercise routine again, turning her daily walking exercise into practice for self-defense moves.
She had previously downloaded and printed an unrestricted martial arts manual, and every day she practiced with self-made props in her room as exercise.
It was best if she didn't have to use it, but if she did, being proficient at it wouldn't be a bad thing.
At the same time, Wen Qian was also preparing winter clothes for herself, and her learning method was to take out the thick clothes she had previously picked up, disassemble them, and then imitate them.
Of course, this also inevitably required her to read relevant books, but for Wen Qian, this was just practice, so she was very patient.
She didn't lack clothes to wear now, but she felt that she would have to wear thick clothes for a large amount of time in the future, so she still needed to prepare early.
Wen Qian had developed the habit of talking to herself, explaining how to do things and the reasons and benefits of doing them as she worked every day.
Far away in An Province, the village head went door-to-door in Xiaochenwa to record the current population for future planning.
When they asked about Wen Qian, Auntie Chen told them she couldn't be reached, and was probably in the city.
Since she hadn't returned, she would probably be receiving arrangements in the city later, so the village head didn't ask too many questions.
He also felt that young people should be contributing in the city.
Similarly, in the cities, people were also dividing into grids and registering the population.
Children were still going to school, but the relevant curriculum had changed, adding a lot of practical hands-on skills and content related to the volcanic winter.
Currently, students with self-care abilities were attending classes at schools with boarding conditions.
Those who were unable to take care of themselves or board could take online classes.
All changes needed to be gradual, not a one-size-fits-all approach that would be difficult for people to adapt to, so people had formulated ten-year, five-year, and one-year plans.
They would slowly move forward according to these plans.
When Wen Qian heard the news, she also felt that the domestic government was doing wise things, it just remained to be seen how the implementation would go in the later stages.
But there was still one problem: the super virus had not disappeared at this time, and other countries were the same.
The volcanic eruption had given the super virus a respite. Originally, in the summer heat, the virus would have a shorter survival time in the outside environment, but then the temperatures dropped.
Many plans were premised on the elimination of the super virus, so the medical field was also making an all-out effort to tackle it.
Before people were able to completely defeat the super virus, the death toll remained high.
Many people worried about the problems brought by climate change after the volcanic eruption, while also worrying that they might be reaped by the super virus before the harsh situation of the volcanic winter, unable to survive until then.
