Chapter 33: Waterwheels and Reckonings

Huzi fixed a bicycle wheel, stripped of its rubber tire and left with just its rim, to a thick wooden plank about two meters long and the width of a palm. He nailed the plank into the reservoir so the surface of the water just covered the rim. Then he connected two iron pipes with a T-joint to make one long pipe, anchoring it on the bank. Next, he threaded a nylon rope—strung with round plastic paddles—through the pipe. Using this rope, he linked the submerged wheel rim to the rear wheel hub of the bicycle. Finally, he set up the bike frame solidly on the shore.

Huzi climbed onto the bike and started pedaling. Instantly Xia Qing watched as water from the reservoir, scooped up by the paddles on the nylon rope, was drawn into the iron pipe and rushed out of the T-joint with a steady splash. It was a sight she’d never seen before. “Qing-jie, all you have to do is pedal like you’re riding a bike, and water will flow right through the pipe. The faster you pedal, the faster the water comes out. It’s a lot easier than hauling buckets to water the fields.”

“Got it. This is brilliant.” Xia Qing couldn’t stop nodding as she stood nearby, then couldn’t help but praise, “Who came up with such a smart idea? This is genius!”

After the disaster, oil and electricity were hard to come by, so they cost a ton of points. An entirely human-powered waterwheel like this was absolutely perfect for her.

With Xia Qing’s praise, Huzi’s face flushed red and he didn’t even dare to look up. “There’s also something called a hydraulic ram pump that doesn’t need oil or electricity. It can push water up using nothing but the force of flowing water. But that thing’s way more complicated than this and needs a lot of parts, hard to dismantle too. If you leave it by the water, evolved rodents might bite through it, and, honestly, the hydraulic ram pump can’t move water as quickly as this setup can.”

Xia Qing couldn’t picture what a hydraulic ram pump looked like, but hearing that it needed lots of tricky parts and wasn’t easy to move told her it wasn’t practical right now. “This waterwheel is better—just put it together when you need it, then take it apart and bring it home when you’re done. Simple and reliable, way better than the ram pump.”

“I heard from Captain Tan you want Boss Sheep to power the waterwheel, Qing-jie.” Seeing how much Xia Qing liked the invention, Huzi pulled out a set of pedals specially modified to fit a sheep’s hooves and a huge seat, swapping them onto the bicycle in no time. He dropped the seat as low as it would go. “Boss Sheep’s strong and smart. If you can get him on the bike, I’m sure he’ll figure out how to pedal in no time.”

Boss Sheep lay far off on the highland beneath a toon tree, lazily chewing his cud while Xia Qing’s eyes practically sparkled at the reservoir’s edge.

Huzi gave Xia Qing a gentle warning. “Even though I picked the sturdiest bike frame I could find, Boss Sheep could still wreck it if he goes wild. Take it easy, Qing-jie.”

Xia Qing just nodded with a cheerful little smile.

Zhong Tao laughed along. “If you ask me, we shouldn’t bother attaching a long pipe to the outlet. It’s only about three or four hundred meters from here to your field—let’s just pile up some dirt and dig a little canal. That’ll do the trick.”

But Xia Qing wouldn’t trouble them. “I’ll dig the canal myself, no problem. I can finish it in half a day.”

Zhong Tao didn’t insist either. While Huzi tweaked the waterwheel, Zhong Tao and Xia Qing chatted. “Captain Luo from the Azure Dragon Unit just led his territory out of the Safe Zone. They’re set up in this area. You met him yet?”

“I know he’s around but haven’t had the chance to meet him.” Zhong Tao had just come from the Safe Zone himself and always kept his ear to the ground. Xia Qing seized the chance to ask, “Why’d Captain Luo leave the Safe Zone anyway?”

“Yeah.” Mentioning Luo Pei, Zhong Tao’s face turned stormy. “After the Xiang rain, some dangerous evolved plants and birds showed up in the east side of the Evolver Forest. Captain Luo took a mission to clear them out and somehow, some bastard set him up—he got hit with Xiang Synthesis Poison.”

Xiang Synthesis Poison is a concoction made from highly purified Xiang elements mixed with various toxins. Once it enters an animal or person that’s undergone Yi evolution, it causes severe physical damage, and the toxins are nearly impossible to remove. In short, after the Great Evolution on Blue Star, this is the cruellest and most vicious way of harming others, and the government has long since strictly banned its production and use.

With disaster everywhere, Captain Luo Pei—an advanced vision-evolved marksman—was Hui San Base’s greatest asset for fending off attacks by evolved flying beasts. Whoever used Xiang Synthesis Poison on him, whatever their reason, deserved to be dismembered alive.

Xia Qing’s whole body tensed, eyes sharp as a blade. “If Captain Luo’s poisoned, why didn’t he stay in the Safe Zone to detox?”

That set Zhong Tao off. “Treating Xiang Synthesis Poison takes a ton of unpolluted water. But some damned bastard started spreading rumors, saying the Base used all the hospital’s unpolluted water to treat Captain Luo and even drained the planting center’s supply set aside for top-grade evolved crops. Fired up by those lies, tens of thousands in the Safe Zone stormed the Azure Dragon Unit’s headquarters, demanding an explanation from Yang Boss, wanting to kill Captain Luo!”

Damn it all!

Xia Qing had to bite her tongue not to curse. “Sufeng Squad did this?”

“Who else but those bastards?” Zhong Tao’s anger only grew as he spat, “Sufeng Squad’s scumbags pretended to help maintain order when regular folks couldn’t break through the Azure Dragon Unit’s defenses, then tried forcing their way in, only to get a few of their own killed by Yang Boss before running off scared. Bah! Those rats! As if all the unpolluted water really went to Captain Luo—bullshit. Even Tang Lu, who turns her nose up at everyone, uses it just to bathe…”

“All set. Tao, let’s head back.” Huzi, hearing Zhong Tao veer into dangerous territory, quickly finished up with the waterwheel and called for them to go.

Xia Qing traded her captured evolved animals for some reagents and then handed over two small bundles of Evolved Perilla as a thank-you gift, sending them off her territory.

Even without Zhong Tao spelling it out, Xia Qing could guess the rest. Sufeng Squad didn’t want Luo Pei cured, so they spread rumors to stir up unrest and riots in the Safe Zone, forcing Luo Pei to leave.

Of course, Luo Pei didn’t leave because he was giving up on treatment—he just needed a better way to heal.

With the Azure Dragon Unit’s resources, they’d definitely track down enough unpolluted water to detox Luo Pei. Xia Qing had no doubt about that, but she knew they’d pay a heavy price for every drop they found.

One side rises as the other falls. Weakening the Azure Dragon Unit only makes Sufeng Squad stronger.

The stronger Sufeng Squad got, the harder it would be for Xia Qing to avenge her father.

Later, Xia Qing coaxed Boss Sheep into hauling soil and built a road level with her farmland. After digging a canal to bring water in, she stabbed her shovel deep into the ground. An enemy’s enemy could always be an ally.

That afternoon, Tan Junjie arrived at Xia Qing’s territory to pick up trade goods. Xia Qing handed over the Chinese Toon Shoots and Perilla, then asked after Luo Pei. “Captain Tan, is Captain Luo recovering at all?”

Recently, Luo Pei would sometimes say a word or two during the evening lord meetings, but Xia Qing still couldn’t tell how he was really doing from his voice. Since Tan Junjie was close with Yang Jin, Xia Qing figured he must’ve visited Plot One to check on Luo Pei.

Tan Junjie answered vaguely, “His wounds need lots of time to heal.”

So in other words, Luo Pei wouldn’t be getting better anytime soon. Xiang Synthesis Poison had to be dealt with fast—the longer it dragged on, the more harm it would do. Seemed like the Azure Dragon Unit hadn’t found enough clean water yet.