Chapter 346: Provisions Have Arrived

The people of the Scientific Expedition Team have completely given up; they are just hiding inside the house, with no intention of going out again. Now, the accumulated Snow outside has already surpassed their ankles. The wind is getting stronger, and the Snow is getting heavier; it is impossible for any supplies to be delivered. If there is truly no other way in the end, they are thinking about whether they can pull those few small horses into the house and save them using their own food, provided that the horses do not resist.

Their food is still sufficient, so they are not afraid of running out. It is impossible for this Snow to fall continuously for too long. As long as the Snow stops, even if there is accumulated Snow, they will still have a chance to receive supply aid from the Urban Area. In a situation where there is truly no other way, they can abandon this Kexiaozhan and walk to the New City. Now that the road has been opened, as long as they walk along places without trees, it is impossible for them to lose their way. Therefore, regarding the idea of saving a few horses at the end, they are not worried at all that it will lead to a shortage of food for themselves.

The herd of horses has slowed its movements. They have gradually gathered together, no longer foraging but huddling together for warmth. In this way, they can effectively avoid the loss of their body heat. However, there is already a lot of accumulated Snow on their backs and heads, and white water vapor is rising above the entire herd.

The people of the Scientific Expedition Team have fallen into a very difficult dilemma. They very much hope that this heavy Snow will stop after falling for a bit, giving this herd of horses a chance, but they also hope that this Snow will fall a bit heavier, so as to give them a chance to pick up leftovers. Anyway, they are staying in the room in such a contradictory state of mind, watching the herd of horses not far away.

They are just waiting like this, not knowing what they are waiting for, until their door is pounded on. Everyone is startled. But at this time, who would come? The Glass windows are now covered in mist; they quickly wipe them, but it is just a vast expanse of white, and they cannot see anything.

The sound of the door being pounded is getting heavier and louder, and the force and rhythm do not sound like a beast. When they all stand up and look at each other, the person outside speaks: "Are you all here? Hurry up and come out to help pull the carts. The carts are not far from here; they are trapped."

At this moment, the entire Scientific Expedition Team rushes to the doorway and opens the wooden door. As a result, as soon as it opens, the cold wind carrying snowflakes rushes in, and half of the heat in the room immediately escapes. Those of them in the room, because it was relatively warm and they were wearing little, shiver directly from this blast, and their heads feel a bit like they are about to split.

They quickly pull the three people outside in, and then close the door properly. The three are wearing thick robes, and their hats have already frozen. Their eyebrows and beards are covered in a layer of white frost; not long after entering, it melts into water and drops onto the ground.

After entering, they first take off their Masks and then roast them over the stove, wanting to dry the moisture on them; otherwise, they will immediately turn into ice once they go back out.

While roasting, they say: "We have already brought the supplies you wanted. Besides the Grass and feed, we also brought you a cart of food and a cart of coal, fearing that you wouldn't be able to hold out through this heavy Snow. The King has already said that this heavy Snow won't stop for three to five days; it will definitely be exceptionally large. Although it is not as fierce as that time that year, the duration will likely not be short."

After we loaded the things, we hurried as fast as we could, but we were still a bit late and it fell on the road. We threw away most of the supplies halfway. Now there is only food and coal; there are four carts of Grass and feed in total, and we even had to add the oxen from other carts just to pull them over.

They are still on the road now. You hurry up and prepare, and go quickly to meet them; otherwise, the road will become increasingly difficult to walk. If you are there, it should take about one hour to arrive."

Hearing the words of the three, everyone is still quite excited. Besides the herd of horses having a guarantee, the importance the Urban Area places on them is also evident. Thus, everyone quickly puts on their thick clothes; gloves, Boots, hats, and Masks are not left behind at all. Those who have Glass windproof goggles also put them on. Anyway, they wrap themselves up tightly.

The only tools they can use here are Iron shovels, which they also bring along—more than thirty in total—so they can clear the road when the time comes.

Prepared completely, their Masks are also basically dry. So, after putting them on, they immediately open the door. At this time, no one cares whether it is cold or not; anyway, they must rush. Twenty people are left at the station, firstly to watch the house, and secondly, they cannot let the fire go out. In the whole Platoon of ten wooden rooms, as well as several storage rooms, the fire in the rooms where they live cannot stop; they are not as cold-resistant as horses.

Furthermore, they still have to boil some hot water and hot tea. When the people who delivered the supplies to them arrive, they will definitely need to drink some. Food has also been cooked, just waiting for the people to arrive.

More than a hundred people swarm out of the wooden house, facing the wind and Snow toward the distance. The herd of horses is only slightly restless, but after snorting a few times and the horses on the outer circle shifting their positions, there is no further reaction.

The team pulling the supplies is still struggling forward in the Snow. Fortunately, the oxen are putting in great effort; otherwise, they really would have no way. Now the oxen are also almost on strike because of the cold.

There is a group of people in front of the carts treading the Snow, packing the Snow solid so that the carts behind can pass. They are not afraid of being trapped here; when it is truly impossible to move forward, they will definitely abandon the things and pull the oxen directly to the Kexiaozhan.

Those few people sent out to call for help set off an hour ago. Now, if there are no accidents, they should be arriving. Just as they are thinking this, noisy human voices come from afar, and they inadvertently heave a sigh of relief.

The arrival of a Large Team of people immediately replaces their work. After all, they have been on the road for so long and were already exhausted. After the people from the Scientific Expedition Team take over, they immediately divide the work. Dozens of people shovel Snow in front to clear the road; it doesn't need to be very clean, as long as the Snow is a bit thinner and packed solid, it will be much easier for them to pull the carts.

In the short time during the shift change, once the oxen relax, they refuse to work again when asked to go back on duty. Even when the ropes are tied, they do not move. There is no way; the oxen's stamina is almost at the bottom, and with the weather being so cold, they do not use violence, and they are even more reluctant to use violence.

Therefore, pulling the carts now relies purely on human power. Without the burden, the oxen also begin to move forward. They advance slowly toward the location of the Kexiaozhan in this way.

When they arrive at the Kexiaozhan, seventeen oxen are driven into the narrow woodshed because they truly have no place for them to stay. If they were left in the snowy field, they certainly could not endure it. Fortunately, the oxen are relatively obedient and go in as soon as they are driven. After being fed some feed, they kneel down to ruminate and rest.

The Grass and feed that were transported are piled up in the open, because after all, they do not have such a large storage room.

The people of the entire transport team enter the Kexiaozhan to rest. They will have to live here for a period of time afterward, perhaps until the spring comes, the Snow melts, and the road opens.