Typhoon's Coming

Mother Zhou nodded. "I did. It was broadcast all morning."

Jiang Xia thought of the events in the book. She only said that the typhoon would make landfall somewhere nearby, and that after it passed, the beach would be covered with shrimp.

Only the female lead, while chasing a fish, had nearly been swept away by the waves. The book hadn't mentioned any other casualties, though some families had lost their boats.

She felt a little more at ease.

Jiang Xia reminded him, "Then remember to moor our boat somewhere safe and tie it down securely."

Zhou Chenglei nodded. "I'll go take a look after I eat."

Jiang Xia felt there was one thing especially good about Zhou Chenglei: he was willing to listen to other people's opinions.

There was no need to explain much. As long as something was useful and good, he never minded the trouble.

After they finished eating, Mother Zhou took the initiative to clear away and wash the dishes.

Mother Zhou had always been diligent. She did all the household chores she could and never needed Jiang Xia to do them.

Zhou Chenglei went to moor the boat securely.

Jiang Xia went to cut a watermelon.

It was truly unbearably hot all day, stifling and sweltering, without even the slightest breeze. Eating some watermelon would help cool them down.

The next day, the wind and waves were fierce. The sky remained overcast all day, with no sunlight. There was probably a typhoon out at sea. The waves were huge, making it impossible to go out to sea. Zhou Chenglei stayed home, built the grape trellis, and checked the tiled roof again.

Sure enough, it began to rain that night. The raindrops went "drip, drip, patter" against the tiles. Sounds of things being blown down came from the courtyard, while the wind outside howled.

The racket was so loud that Jiang Xia, who had only just entered deep sleep, was awakened. She opened her eyes.

Zhou Chenglei's voice rang out. "It's fine. The typhoon's here. It's still early, so go back to sleep!"

The rain and wind outside grew louder and louder, and Jiang Xia couldn't fall asleep either.

Suddenly, she heard a dripping sound coming from the wardrobe.

Zhou Chenglei sat up.

Jiang Xia sat up as well and asked, "Is the roof leaking?"

Zhou Chenglei nodded. "Probably. I'll find a basin to catch the water."

It was, after all, a decades-old house. Although the leaking tiles had been repaired, even the tightest net had holes, and one couldn't know where it would leak until it had weathered a storm.

Zhou Chenglei got out of bed and switched on the light. He discovered that the roof above the wardrobe was leaking and quickly went outside.

Jiang Xia remained lying on the bed. After waiting a while without seeing Zhou Chenglei return, the lightbulb suddenly went out. The power had failed.

Not long afterward, she heard a series of loud, clattering crashes outside.

The tiles on the roof must have been blown off by the typhoon!

She was startled and worried that Zhou Chenglei might have been struck. She called out "Zhou Chenglei" several times, but no one answered.

She hurriedly got out of bed and ran outside.

The moment she stepped out of the room, a draft rushing through the house, mixed with rainwater, blew into the hall. The wind was so strong that she could barely keep her footing!

A flash of lightning lit up the sky. Jiang Xia saw everything in the courtyard blown askew, while a pile of shattered tiles lay on the ground. The tiles on the Firewood Shed had been blown off.

She couldn't see Zhou Chenglei anywhere. It shouldn't have taken him this long just to get a basin. Worried that he had been knocked unconscious in the Firewood Shed, she waited for one gust to pass, then hurried out. "Zhou Chenglei! Zhou Chenglei..."

She had only taken a few steps when the tiles from the Firewood Shed were lifted by the raging wind and came crashing straight toward Jiang Xia!

An Enamel Basin in the courtyard was also swept up by the wind and sent flying over! The evil gust drove Jiang Xia backward, and she couldn't control her body. She could only instinctively raise her hands to shield herself.

A figure darted out of nowhere, pulled her back, and shielded her entire body between the wall and his embrace.

Jiang Xia heard only a great barrage of tiles crashing "bang, bang, bang" onto the basin.

The tiles shattered all over the ground at their feet.

Before Jiang Xia could react, Zhou Chenglei had already scooped her up with one arm and rushed into the house. He set her down, then quickly shut the door, blocking out the raging wind and rain.

Jiang Xia came to her senses and hurriedly asked, "Are you all right?"

Zhou Chenglei was holding an Enamel Basin. He had just used it to shield his head, but his arm had been scratched. What did a minor injury like this matter?

He didn't take it seriously.

"I'm fine. I used the basin to shield my head. The typhoon's blowing, so why did you run outside?"

Jiang Xia said, "I heard the tiles being blown off and was afraid you'd been hurt."

Jiang Xia saw that his arm seemed to be bleeding, but the light was too dim for her to tell.

Father Zhou and Mother Zhou came out at this moment as well. "What happened? Is everything all right? Were you hurt?"

The power was out, and the two elders couldn't see Zhou Chenglei's injuries.

Zhou Chenglei said, "I'm fine. The room was leaking, so I went out to get a washbasin. Is your room leaking too? Should I bring another washbasin in? The wind outside is strong, and the tiles are being blown off. Don't go outside."

Father Zhou asked, "Our room isn't leaking. Which roof tiles flew off?"

"The Firewood Shed's roof tiles were blown away." He had gone up just yesterday to inspect and reinforce them, yet they had still been blown off. That showed just how fierce the typhoon was.

Mother Zhou went to look for an Electric Torch. "I'll check whether the other rooms are leaking. We can't let all the grain get soaked. Fortunately, we repaired the house beforehand. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been strange if every tile had been blown away. This typhoon is rather powerful!"

Zhou Chenglei said, "I've checked them all. There aren't any leaks. There's no need to look. Go back to sleep, and don't go outside. It's dangerous."

"Go back to sleep! We'll take another look. We won't go outside." Father Zhou and Mother Zhou were still uneasy, so they went to check Zhou Zhou's room and the other room.

Mother Zhou planned to sleep with Zhou Zhou. The child slept deeply and hadn't even woken up, but if she did wake up, Mother Zhou was afraid she would be frightened.

Zhou Chenglei reminded the two elders not to go outside, then pulled Jiang Xia back to their room.

When Zhou Chenglei returned to the room, he took out the Electric Torch and switched it on. He placed the basin in his hand on top of the wardrobe to catch the water, then wiped away the water that had pooled on the top.

With the Electric Torch shining, Jiang Xia immediately saw the several wounds on Zhou Chenglei's arm.

After he finished wiping, Jiang Xia pulled his hand over and used the Electric Torch to examine it. "Two of these wounds are quite deep, and they're still bleeding. You need some medicine."

The others were relatively shallow.

He should have wounds on his back too, because there was a little blood staining his clothes.

Jiang Xia said, "Take off your clothes. I'll treat your wounds."

While Jiang Xia examined Zhou Chenglei for injuries, Zhou Chenglei was also checking whether Jiang Xia had been hurt, worried that she might have been struck by the tiles.

Jiang Xia wasn't injured, but her clothes were soaked through. Her pajamas were white, and when wet, they clung to her skin, becoming especially sheer.

Under the Electric Torch's light, everything was laid bare. Zhou Chenglei took only one glance to confirm that she wasn't hurt, then looked away. "I'm fine. Change your clothes first and check whether you're injured. I'll go out for a bit."

"Where are you going? I'm fine. I'll apply the medicine for you first." Jiang Xia grabbed him and lowered her head to glance over herself as well.

"..."

"I-I'd better change my clothes first!" It was the first time she had been this embarrassed, and Jiang Xia even stammered. She quickly let go.

Zhou Chenglei went outside.

Jiang Xia changed clothes in under a minute. After hurriedly checking herself and finding nothing amiss, she got fully dressed, opened the door, and went out to call Zhou Chenglei inside. Her face was still a little hot.

Zhou Chenglei came in.

Jiang Xia casually shut the door securely. "Take off your clothes."