Reborn with Nothing but My Farm and Vengeance in the Apocalypse novel Chapter 30

Chapter 30: Chapter 30: Rising Temperatures

Melody Summers’s family finished clearing the debris from their villa’s entrance. They didn’t waste any time and immediately installed the solar panels on the roof.

Melody Summers knew this windstorm was just the beginning. It was like an advance warning to humanity from the heavens. With the end of the windstorm, a year-long period of extreme heat had quietly descended.

After finishing up, Melody Summers headed to Crystal Mart. She saw the store was already running on the generator she had left there earlier, and the freezers and refrigerators inside were operating smoothly.

A few other residents were in the supermarket, lined up in front of a power strip to charge their phones and power banks. They seemed a little sheepish about it, and all of them bought a lot of items in the store.

Just then, two trucks pulled up to the supermarket’s entrance, carrying a newly ordered shipment of food and supplies.

Finn Lynch and the others quickly went to help the delivery crew unload, hauling box after box of goods into the storeroom.

Just then, a woman shopping in the fresh produce section complained, "Hey, boss! Why are the vegetables so expensive today? Who can possibly afford to eat them?"

Crystal Lynch replied, "It’s because our own cost was high. We had to haul this batch back from the farmers’ market ourselves a few days ago, and now the market is completely out of stock. Once these are sold, we won’t be able to get any more."

Hearing this, the delivery driver chimed in, "You should buy vegetables while you can. The market next to my neighborhood is completely out. It’s not easy to find any for sale, so you’re lucky."

The woman asked doubtfully, "The tornadoes have passed, haven’t they? How could there be no vegetables?"

The delivery driver replied, "The recent tornadoes destroyed all the vegetable fields. The farmers have tilled the soil again, but they have to sow new seeds and plant seedlings. There won’t be any fresh vegetables on the market until the new crops are ready, and that will take at least twenty days or so."

"Leafy greens will need at least twenty-odd days, but legumes will take more than a month. Eggplants and the like will take even longer—over two months. So for the foreseeable future, vegetable prices are going to be high, and they could be out of stock at any moment."

’We won’t even have twenty days,’ Melody Summers thought. ’Once the extreme heat hits, the only vegetables available will be the expensive indoor-grown ones. There won’t be any affordable produce on the market.’

The woman huffed. "Well then, my family just won’t eat vegetables for a few days. We’ll figure it out later."

With that, the woman left the supermarket.

The delivery driver, however, grabbed a bag and filled it with plenty of vegetables. He brought them to the register to pay—he knew what was going on, and this price was already a steal.

After the driver checked out, Melody Summers thought for a moment before pulling Crystal Lynch aside to whisper, "Crystal, I’ve noticed the power grid in the complex isn’t very stable. We’ll probably have frequent outages during the peak usage period in the summer. Your family should really get a generator or some solar panels, just in case. A home generator isn’t too expensive these days, just a few thousand for one. They don’t run too loud and last a long time."

Crystal Lynch considered it for a moment, then nodded. "You have a point. This blackout has been a real headache. I’ll ask my dad to buy a generator, and we’ll stock up on some gasoline and diesel too."

Melody Summers was relieved to hear that. The Lynch Family was in the long-haul trucking business, so they surely had better access to gasoline and diesel than she did.

*

On her way home, Melody Summers saw a group of workers in coveralls huddled together, discussing something.

Curious, Melody Summers approached them and spotted Hollis from the sales office in the crowd.

Hollis remembered her and greeted her warmly, "Miss Summers! With the heavy winds these last few days, is your home okay?"

"Thanks for asking, we’re fine," Melody Summers said with a smile. "What’s going on here?"

"Electrical maintenance," Hollis replied. "The power has been out for several days, and the repair crew has finally made it to our complex. We’ve had electricians come to overhaul the entire electrical system and replace all the outdated equipment."

Melody Summers felt a sense of relief. The upcoming heatwave would inevitably lead to a massive surge in electricity consumption, putting a huge strain on the grid’s capacity. Having The Metropolis Residences arrange for an overhaul ahead of time would prevent a lot of potential problems.

As Melody Summers returned to the villa section of the complex, she saw a number of luxury cars driving in and out. She paused for a moment, then it dawned on her. The windstorm this week must have caused damage downtown, so some of the wealthier residents were remembering their unused villas in The Metropolis Residences and moving in temporarily.

Melody Summers harvested some of the ripe tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, eggplants, and green beans from her fields.

This was more than her family could possibly eat, so Melody decided to sell the surplus secretly at Crystal Mart. With vegetable prices being so high lately, it would be a shame not to cash in.

It was a far cry from her one-hundred-million goal, but it was income nonetheless.

Thinking of the one hundred million required to unlock the space, Melody Summers couldn’t help but sigh. Where on earth was she going to get that kind of money?

Melody then took some feed to the animal pens, filling every trough to the brim.

The chicks that had hatched previously were growing up strong. The young hens would start laying in a little while, which meant she would be able to harvest more eggs. As for the young roosters, she’d make them into soup once they were big enough.

The first batch of duck eggs had also hatched recently. A few little ducklings were now paddling around the pond after their mother.

The rabbits multiplied the fastest. She had started with only three, and now the colony had grown to over a dozen. Melody gave them a lot more licorice root.

The gestation periods for the cattle and sheep were longer, so there was no sign of any new arrivals yet.

The miniature pigs had also grown several sizes larger. Melody had been itching to butcher a few of the young boars for a while now. The old farmer who’d sold them to her said that miniature pigs were tastiest when roasted at this size. The young sows, of course, had to be kept for breeding.

But then she remembered the three freezers at home, all neatly packed with frozen meat they hadn’t even finished, and she decided against it.

The moment she exited the space, Melody Summers saw a small white cat perched on her bed, staring at her with a completely blank expression.

Melody: "..."