Chapter 532: I Am Not Afraid

The heavy rain stopped under the reflection of the setting sun, so everyone took advantage of the last bit of time to wade through the mud and go to the fields to take a look; they dared not step on the dry land, so they could only see if the flooded paddy fields were severely damaged.

A rare double rainbow also appeared in the sky; the children still had the mood to look up and exclaim, while the adults frowned and hurried on their way. Baifeng knew what a double rainbow meant—it simply meant the air humidity was too high, and it would continue to rain for the next few days.

Sure enough, as expected, regardless of whether the rain was heavy or light, it rained almost every day; there was only one day it did not rain, but one could see rain in the distance. Lema City, which originally had not suffered any major disaster, was also facing a situation of severe crop reduction.

For many days in a row, everyone basically lay flat, because they knew that no matter how anxious you were or how busy you were, it was useless; it was better to look at the mood of Heaven. They had finally managed to survive the drought in the first half of the year, and now there were successive heavy rains.

Compared to the reduction in grain production, Baifeng was more worried about the Dahe at the entrance. The continuous heavy rain for several days caused the water level to rise constantly and began to erode the riverbanks. Several of their waterwheels had already been washed away by the water, and even the cement bases were of no help.

After many years, the water of the Dahe once again spread to the foot of the city wall. They had a feeling of being next to the Dahu, but today everyone felt something was wrong because the water level of the Dahe began to drop at an abnormal speed, which instantly alerted the Soldiers on the city wall.

After receiving the news, Baifeng's worried expression turned into panic. He asked how long this situation had been occurring, and fortunately, the Soldiers said it had not been long.

Baifeng immediately had someone contact the Navy, telling them to hurry up and drag several Large Ships ashore first, the further from the river, the better.

The boat port of Huaxia was extremely crude. With the water level surging from the heavy rain these past few days, Baifeng was already a bit worried, and Zisheng had a strong attitude of "the boat lives, I live; the boat dies, I die."

But this time, Baifeng would not allow them to take risks. A Quake Lake had already formed upstream; perhaps because of the terrain and topography upstream, it was easy to form a Quake Lake, and this was not the first time.

If they went to drag the boats ashore now, it would probably still be in time. The longer they dragged it out, the greater the power of the Quake Lake, and the more dangerous it would be. Although the water level had risen very quickly these past few days, it was basically rising at a constant speed, and the impact force was not that great, but once the Quake Lake was breached, its power would be stronger than their Bombs.

Zisheng also understood the danger at this moment and knew how to cherish his life. Plus, with the water level dropping, the original riverbank could be seen clearly, so the Navy and Soldiers from other places moved out together, rolling logs onto the soft and muddy riverbank, throwing ropes onto the shore, and everyone, along with dozens of oxen, pulled the Large Ships onto the riverbank together.

Work like placing logs was too dangerous for Soldiers from other places, so it was all done by the Navy, because at least after falling into the water, they still had the ability to save themselves and survive.

Through everyone's efforts, several Large Ships were slowly dragged ashore, though the riverbank also gradually collapsed under the pressure of the Large Ships.

They pulled the boats to a place far away from the river to avoid the impact of the flood; handling the small boats was very easy, as a few people could easily drag one up.

At this moment, Baifeng felt that the necessity of building a sturdy and reliable Matou was too great; there would always be more unpredictable risks in the future, and there must be emergency plans.

By nightfall, the Quake Lake still existed, and the water level of the Dahe was still dropping. Baifeng felt that there should not be conditions upstream to form an overly huge Quake Lake; one day should be the limit.

Most people did not sleep all night because they did not know if the flood would affect Huaxia City, as they were on a plain here. Although there was a river channel, the river channel did not have the capacity to share such a large volume of water, and the flood would rush everywhere like a wild horse gone mad.

It was not until the next day, when the sky was just beginning to brighten, that everything was still developing in a worse direction. Baifeng's lips were inflamed and his tongue was blistered from anxiety; he did not understand why major disasters had to come together—could they not give them a moment to breathe?

Baifeng felt he could not sit and wait for death, so he hurriedly summoned Xiong and Chi, and said to them in a serious tone: "Now, I need your Ministry of War to protect Huaxia. The Quake Lake upstream is still storing water, and I don't know when it will collapse, but the longer it takes, the greater the power, and the greater the threat to Huaxia.

Now, I need you to form a team, take Explosives, and go all the way up along the Dahe to find that Quake Lake and then blow it open. This mission is very dangerous; there is a possibility that everyone will not return. Perhaps they will die on the road to finding the Quake Lake."

The expressions of Xiong and Chi were not good either, but they both said very seriously: "Understood, we guarantee to complete the mission."

Afterwards, a dispute arose over who would lead the team. Xiong believed this mission was too important and concerned the survival of Huaxia, so he decided to lead the team himself. Chi was a bit dull, but he also felt he could not admit defeat and began to compete with Xiong.

Baifeng did not want to let either of them go: "Although it is dangerous, it is similar to us opening roads and blasting mountains. I will send Workers to go with you to guide them on how to set the Explosives. Whether you go or not is fine."

But Xiong did not think so: "For this mission, everyone might not come back. The Soldiers need a role model so they can be at ease. I think I am the best choice."

Chi hurriedly said: "Me too, I am the same."

Baifeng could not bear to lose either of them, but Xiong was right, so Baifeng turned around and broke one of his bamboo bookmarks into two halves and held them in his hand: "Let's draw lots. Whoever draws the long one goes."

Chi pushed Xiong aside and drew one. Baifeng's expression was sad because he had drawn the long one. Chi was very happy: "I'll go! I'm going!"

Xiong could not say anything else, but he was worried about letting Chi go and could only suggest to Baifeng: "King, you should find some skilled and experienced Workers. I am worried that Chi..."

Baifeng patted Xiong on the shoulder: "This time, the Workers will be in command, and the Soldiers just need to be responsible for the action. You choose which Soldiers go. Hurry and select the people; they need to be sharp. About forty or fifty people is enough. I will have the Ministry of Works prepare the Bombs; they have the large Explosive Packs for mountain blasting."

Chi also wanted to follow Xiong, but Baifeng held Chi back and promised him: "No matter whether you can come back alive this time or not, I will grant you the title of Marquis. The position of Marquis is only lower than the King and higher than any official. I will also give you a surname."

Chi opened his big mouth and grinned: "King, I don't want a reward. This is what I should do. I know I am stupid, but the Soldiers need someone to lead them. I am not afraid of anything."