Chapter 486 [Heavy Rain]
Then it rained very quickly.
Suddenly a wind blew up in the originally quiet sky. It was a gentle breeze at first, but soon turned into a strong wind. The change was so fast that it was impossible to react. The tall thin tree next to it was bent over by the blow, and the big tree was shaking violently, with some broken leaves flying around.
The dust and fine sand on the ground were blown up by the wind and hit the pedestrians, making them rush to find a place to hide. The strong wind passed through the streets and alleys, making strange humming noises, as if some invisible beasts were hidden in them, so many timid children were scared to crawl into the quilts and dare not come out.
With the wind blowing sand and rocks, the clear sky also changed.
A few strands of dark clouds floated from nowhere, and quickly gathered in the middle of the original blue sky. The sun suddenly became dim and uncertain, and then became invisible. People on the street were already in a panic, packing up their things in a hurry, or running home in a hurry.
The sky has turned black, and the scenery near and far has changed to look like night. In the darkness, only the wind roars everywhere.
The wind finally subsided, but what followed was huge raindrops, crackling on the ground.
Every drop of rain falls, there will be a patch the size of a copper coin on the ground, and these patches will soon connect into pieces, and then water will accumulate in the low-lying places. Small flowers swayed on the water surface, and the ripples continued, which was the reaction of continuous raindrops hitting the water surface.
Fang Chang had already pulled out the oil-paper umbrella in his backpack, carefully opened it after the wind subsided, and placed it above his head. The umbrella made a pleasant sound in the rain, and the dense knocking sound was like when grain was poured into the grain hoard with a dustpan, but the sound was continuous.
An extremely bright line stretched from the clouds to the ground, splitting the sky in half instantly.
It was a flash of lightning that suddenly appeared. The trajectory of the lightning was very strange, twists and turns, and the end spread out like branches, caressing the ground, and then disappeared suddenly.
The rumbling thunder rolled in, shaking everything.
Fang Chang walked out of the city gate. The city gate hole is a rare place to shelter from the rain. Quite a few people who were too late to hide from the rain stayed in the city gate, watching the torrential rain outside. The soldiers guarding the city just put the money baskets away and quietly watched the rain outside. After all, no one would enter the city at this moment, and it was a break for them to rest.
In the wilderness outside, without the protection of the city wall, the wind seemed even stronger.
In the strong wind, the rain came in bursts, pouring from here to there, and from there to here. Fortunately, the crops in the field have just turned yellow. For the common people, the loss in the farmland will not be too great. Fang Chang gently grasped the oiled paper umbrella and adjusted the direction to prevent it from being blown apart in the wind.
There is already a layer of accumulated water under the feet, flowing rushingly, heading towards the ditch.
Fortunately, Ninghe Mansion has been building water conservancy projects and dredging river channels for many years. Otherwise, a hundred years ago, such heavy rain would have caused large-scale disasters and displaced many people. Today, this amount of rainfall is only enough to double the water volume of the Baigou River.
The heavy rain poured on the water surface, stirring up layers of mist, which drifted with the wind. The official road was already very muddy, and no one could be seen on it. There were horse-drawn carriages parked in tea sheds by the side of the road, and many people hid inside to avoid the rain.
Yun Zhongshan was also shrouded in the rain and could not be seen in the haze.
Another bolt of lightning strikes down, and it is about to touch a small hill not far away.
Fang Chang suddenly disappeared from the spot, and the next moment he was standing on the hill, he held the lightning bolt tightly in his hand, the lightning waved helplessly, trying to avoid his hand and get into the ground, but nothing happened. As a result, they were quickly grouped into small **** by Chang Fang, and they were conveniently put into the gourd.
...
When Fang Chang walked to Huqiao Town, the rain had passed and the sky was sunny.
Summer rain comes quickly and violently, but it also goes quickly. Even sometimes, under the dark clouds here, there is an unbearable torrential rain, and the sun hangs in a clear sky over there.
The rainbow was hanging in the air, and many children ran out excitedly, pointing at the rainbow in the sky. The adults also came out one after another to deal with some things that they hadn't had time to take care of before the rain, or things that hadn't been done before the rain continued.
Fang Chang put away the oiled paper umbrella, stuffed it back into the package, and then walked around the street.
There are quite a few people in Huqiao Town, but most of them are pedestrians who come to settle here from other places. Due to the strong demand, various service industries are very prosperous in the town.
The mutton noodle stall is reopening. It seems that it has just experienced a panic.
Fang Chang watched as Xu Lianrong refueled the fire in the stove and stoked it again. Then, together with her husband, she lifted the soup pot back to the stove, and then began to knead the dough again.
"A bowl of mutton noodles, double mutton, and a fried egg."
"Okay!" Xu Lianrong responded quickly when she saw a customer coming to her door.
Her husband waited for the mutton soup in the pot to boil again and splashed out, and then began to gently pull out thin slices of dough from the dough in his hand. The dough slices were thrown into the splash of water and floated up and down, and then they were picked out by Zhang Dali and served in rough porcelain bowls.
Pour two spoonfuls of mutton soup, then put two doubled pieces of juicy mutton on it, and then sprinkle some minced seasonings in the bowl, Xu Lianrong brought the bowl of mutton noodles over and placed it in front of Fang Chang.
Fang Chang nodded his thanks slightly, then took out his chopsticks and ate.
It still tastes the same as before. The soft and fragrant mutton noodles are eaten quickly. After Fang Chang ate it, he continued to walk around the town.
There is no need to go to the tavern anymore. Fang Chang has recently prepared to drink up all the wine in it and replace it all with sorghum wine brewed by himself. Fang Chang used the sorghum he grew on the cliff to ferment the wine he steamed. After cellaring in the caves of the back mountain rich in spiritual power, the taste far surpassed any kind of wine down the mountain.
Once the sea was too difficult for water, he decided not to store too much ordinary wine in the wine gourd. If he encounters it again on the road, it is enough to buy some early adopters.
He walked around in Huqiao Town, and picked a little piglet from a stall selling piglets.
The piglets were wet from the rain and put in a bamboo cage. Fang Chang picked it up with one hand and walked back. He plans to exchange the proceeds from the stall for pigs, cattle and sheep to be raised in the forest on the cliff, so that they can be caught and eaten in the future when needed. And in the production process, the leftover distiller's grains, soybean meal, etc. can also be fed to pigs for the most efficient use.
(end of this chapter)