Chapter 4: He, who would become the ancestral emperor, actually knelt before her!

Xiao Qidi's eyes were full of shock.

How can this room be so huge? Why did it suddenly light up?

Ning Jinli said with a chuckle: "There's still a lot of the grain, oil, rice, flour, and side products produced in the factory's food section; if you need more, I'll think of a way."

Adding them up at market price, they're worth about five hundred thousand; Ning Jinli thought, first use these to make up for the extra money she had earned earlier.

Then she would keep selling him things, striving to earn back that jade ring just now.

"All grain?" Xiao Qidi asked, looking at the stuff occupying about one-tenth of the warehouse.

"Of course!" Ning Jinli dragged over a sack of flour, opened it and showed him.

Xiao Qidi hurriedly squatted down and carefully scooped up some.

The color was clean, the feel fine, and the wheat aroma wafted up.

It was still the first time he had seen such fine flour, his eyes constantly trembling.

"Miss..." he asked, raising his head, "What's your name? Are you the ruler of this place?"

Ning Jinli puffed out a laugh: "My name is Ning Jinli, just an ordinary commoner."

Xiao Qidi's eye sockets suddenly reddened: "Your people here are truly blessed..."

"Let me help you move it," Ning Jinli said softly.

Xiao Qidi rubbed the corner of his eye, "How could I trouble Miss, I'll move it myself."

This sack of flour weighs several dozen jin; this girl's slender arms and legs probably lack the strength to move it.

Ning Jinli directly drove over an electric mini forklift.

She lifted several dozen bags stacked together of flour and drove lightly into the small warehouse.

Xiao Qidi was once again greatly shocked.

Starting that night, Xiao Qidi summoned the soldiers and villagers to clean out the mountain cave.

Ning Jinli here used the forklift to move things, dumping them all outside the back door of the small warehouse.

Inside the cave, rice, flour, sugar, salt, and edible oil kept appearing endlessly.

Xiao Qidi personally led several dozen soldiers to transport the items out of the cave, while telling the people what they were.

Outside the cave, thousands of villagers lined up, carrying loads on bamboo poles or on their shoulders.

Some were responsible for transporting using the horses that the soldiers had seized from the bandits.

Ning Jinli learned from Xiao Qidi that the villagers over there were still severely short of water; the little water source left had previously been occupied by the bandits and had now dried up.

Once the grain and such had been mostly moved, she plucked up courage and walked out the back door of the small warehouse.

The Fluorescent Vortex flowed over her body, and the scene before her eyes turned into the cave.

Torches were stuck in the rock walls, the air smelled of scorchedness, and the sky outside the cave already showed the morning sun.

Ning Jinli directly asked Xiao Qidi, "Little brother, is there a water channel here?"

The busy soldiers looked at her with astonishment, gazing curiously.

Xiao Qidi said: "About half a li from this cave mouth there is a diversion channel that draws water from the mountain streams, running down through the village; but even the village river has run dry, and the mountain streams have long had no water."

"As long as there's a water channel, just wait a moment!"

Ning Jinli turned and walked away.

As things stand, this channel linking two times and spaces, aside from objects, only Xiao Qidi and Ning Jinli can pass freely.

Others can't even see it.

"Your Majesty, is she the maiden you met in another world?"

"She's truly beautiful, like a fairy."

"Could that world be the celestial realm? She might really be a fairy!"

"Hehe, Your Majesty, she's quite a match for you..."

The soldiers chuckled foolishly, speaking all at once.

Xiao Qidi pulled a long face, "Hurry up and move the stuff!"

Ning Jinli went back to the warehouse, pulled out a fire hose, connected it to the fire hydrant outside the front door of the small warehouse, opened the valve, and ran into the cave holding the spray nozzle.

Xiao Qidi asked, "What is this again?"

Ning Jinli took a few breaths and said:

"My factory has several reservoirs; the reservoirs automatically draw water from the outside river for factory use, and the fire hydrant is also connected to the reservoirs. Although work has stopped now, it doesn't affect the reservoirs—I just hooked up the hydrant and dragged a pipe over, and this is it."

"Factory? Fire hydrant?" Xiao Qidi's face was full of bewilderment.

"Well, anyway... just turn on the spray nozzle and water comes out!" Ning Jinli scratched her head, "I guess it can barely reach the cave mouth; then it's up to you how to divert the water into the channel."

"Your Majesty, I'll go tell the villagers!"

A soldier immediately ran out of the cave.

Not long after, he returned to tell Xiao Qidi and Ning Jinli that they and the villagers were now digging a ditch leading to the water channel.

Xiao Qidi strode to the cave mouth.

Ning Jinli quickly followed, holding the water pipe.

The rising morning sun shone on the cracked earth; looking around, not a hint of green could be seen.

Thousands of villagers in ragged clothes, sallow and thin, formed a long line; everyone knelt on the ground, using a bamboo pole or both hands, slowly chipping away at the iron-hard, drought-parched soil.

Ning Jinli froze, her vision instantly blurred by tears.

She hurriedly twisted open the spray nozzle she was holding in her arms.

Gurgle-gurgle—the water pipe, thicker than an arm, quickly swelled.

Ning Jinli nearly got overturned by the pipe; Xiao Qidi immediately pulled her close, one hand firmly gripping the pipe.

Boom!

A huge stream of water gushed forth!

The water pressure was great; the stream shot out ten meters, drawing an arc like a waterfall in midair.

Under the morning sun it sparkled with dazzling light, gradually forming rings of rainbows.

"Water… water!"

"We have water!"

Cheers rose.

Soldiers and civilians gazed at the spraying water column, overjoyed to tears!

They couldn't help but all run over, crying as they cupped their hands to drink the water.

This water had only undergone simple filtration in the factory's reservoir, unsuitable for direct drinking, but Ning Jinli did not stop them; she knew these people were almost dying of thirst, and staying alive was more important than anything!

"You… hold onto it for now."

Ning Jinli handed the spray nozzle to Xiao Qidi, wiping her tears as she ran back to the warehouse.

Soon, box after box of biscuits and instant noodles appeared in the cave, almost filling it up!

Ning Jinli, eyes brimming with tears, opened the boxes, summoned several dozen soldiers to tell them how to eat, then had them help distribute the supplies.

First, don't let the civilians dig water channels; fill their stomachs first!

The grain, oil, rice, and flour just moved cannot be eaten directly, but biscuits and instant noodles can be eaten as is, high in calories, very suitable for emergencies.

Recalling how those ancient civilians I just saw were starved to skin and bone, my heart felt as if being twisted by a knife.

Such a scene was more soul‑shaking than anything she had ever seen in any TV show or movie!

Although she herself was imprisoned, she simply could not bear to see them suffer.

The civilians gathered at the cave entrance; even though they were starved to the point their fronts touched their backs, they still maintained order while receiving biscuits and instant noodles.

Then, one by one, they opened them according to the instructed method, carefully stuffing them into their mouths.

Even if a bit of crumbs fell, they picked them up to eat; the seasoning packets inside the instant noodle bags were treated like treasure and placed in their bosoms.

Ning Jinli stood at the cave mouth, watching this scene, crying uncontrollably.

Only now did she truly grasp how weighty Xiao Qidi's earlier remark, 'Your people here are truly happy,' actually was…

Xiao Qidi pressed the spray nozzle down with two stones, walked up to Ning Jinli, and took off his worn‑out battle armor.

"King of Xuan Guo, Xiao Qidi, here I bow in gratitude to Miss Ning."

Saying this, he dropped to both knees before Ning Jinli and performed the great kowtow.