When Tommy and Sarah heard from the person delivering fodder that one of the five new arrivals was a sick, frail young child who needed care, they were changing the bedding for a cow that had gone slightly lame from the cold.
Sarah sighed sympathetically. "Trying to survive the apocalypse with a child that small... that can't be easy. I hope she gets better."
Tommy was more practical.
He threw a bundle of hay into the cattle pen, brushed the bits of straw from his hands, and frowned slightly. "It's not easy. But... that's five more mouths, Sarah.
It's so cold right now that we have to count every bit of fodder, just to make sure the livestock don't go hungry. People's rations have to be even tighter.
Mr. Rickson only lowered the heating in non-core areas a few days ago, and now more people show up..."
Tommy did not finish, but his worry was obvious.
Their conversation was overheard by two people nearby who were cleaning the sheep pen.
One of them was blunt by nature and immediately cut in. "Tommy's right!
We work ourselves half to death taking care of these animals, hoping they'll give birth to more young and produce more milk so everyone can have a better life.
Now a few people just show up from outside, and they get to take a share of what we worked so hard to save?
That old teacher, and that woman from the community service center, dragging a kid along too. None of them sound like they can do heavy work!
And that half-grown boy probably eats more than he does!"
The other man was more timid and tugged at his sleeve, whispering, "Say less. It won't be good if people hear you..."
"What's there to be afraid of?" The man shook off his hand, his voice rising instead. "Am I not telling the truth?
This damn weather is colder than previous years. No air conditioning, no heating, all we have is firewood. One more person means more firewood burned and another mouth to feed!
Who knows if they're really clean?
What if they brought in some disease and it spreads to the livestock?
Wouldn't all our hard work be wasted?!"
His complaints sounded especially harsh across the open pasture.
Not far away, Little Jimmy was adding the herbs Ming had prepared to the chicken coop. Hearing him, he could not help arguing back. "That little girl is pitiful! She's sick! Dr. Evans said she needs nutrition!"
The man glared at Little Jimmy. "What does a brat like you know? There are plenty of pitiful people out there! We don't even know if we can keep ourselves alive!"
Tommy's frown deepened, and he stepped in to stop it. "Enough, enough. Keep it down. Miss Norton and Mr. Rickson have their own arrangements. We just need to do our jobs."
After all, he was one of the main people in charge of the livestock team and carried some authority.
The man cleaning the sheep pen shut his mouth resentfully, but the dissatisfaction on his face was clear.
This subtle mood was not an isolated case.
During dinner distribution, some of the established residents noticed that when the newcomer Lisa received her ration, the kitchen staff seemed to scoop an extra half spoonful of stew for her out of sympathy for her sick child.
That tiny difference was immediately caught by the people waiting in line nearby.
"See? I told you..."
Someone muttered under their breath. No one dared to protest loudly, but dissatisfied looks and whispers kept falling on the new family, making it even harder for them to eat and leaving them under even more pressure.
When survival resources were tight, even the smallest difference could spark conflict.
However, the fairness of the rules and the real value of skills were also beginning to show.
David the plumber's first assignment was to inspect and repair a frozen outdoor pipe joint in the livestock watering area at Blackberry Ranch.
Normally, it would not have been a serious problem, but in the bitter cold, dripping water froze quickly, forming a dangerous sheet of ice beside the trough and wasting precious clean water.
The maintenance workers had tried sealing it with hemp rope and grease, but it had not worked well.
David followed the person in charge to the site, carefully checked the crack and the layout of the pipe, then went back to the tool shed and found several replacement parts and special sealing tape from storage.
Under the supervisor's doubtful gaze, David's movements were a little stiff and nervous at first, but as the work went on, his skill gradually showed.
David cleverly used a small blowtorch to warm the joint, preventing brittle cracking. Then he neatly replaced the part, wrapped the sealing tape, and finished the whole process in one smooth sequence.
In less than half an hour, the leak was completely sealed.
The mechanic in charge of the ranch's infrastructure watched David work and could not help nodding. "Hey, man, you know what you're doing."
"If anything like this comes up again, you can come straight to me," David said with a smile.
At the same time, in the library converted from a conference room in the former resort hotel at Blackberry Ranch, old teacher Jim had already started working.
He carefully sorted the scattered books one by one, wiped off the dust, recorded them in the simple catalog Ellie had provided, and then entered them into an old computer placed there.
Over the course of the morning, Jim found several books, including Fundamentals of Mechanical Principles and Wilderness Survival Guide. He pulled them out separately and placed them in the most visible spot in the library.
In the afternoon, several children from the base gradually arrived.
Jim stood in front of a smooth wooden board, holding a small piece of soft stone that could leave pale white marks, using it as chalk.
In front of him sat the base's first students: Duane, Little Jimmy, and Alan.
The children sat on "seats" made from wooden crates, wrapped in thick clothes, their small faces reddened by the low temperature.
"Children," Jim said gently, his elderly voice slightly hoarse but carrying a reassuring steadiness, "in classrooms before, we learned about cell structure, photosynthesis, and ecosystems. But now, we're going to learn things that are more direct, things that can help us survive."
He drew a simple, somewhat abstract outline of a plant on the wooden board, then wrote "Dandelion" beside it.
"Does anyone recognize this?" Jim asked.
Little Jimmy tilted his head and studied it, then said uncertainly, "Is it that little white flower that flies away when you blow on it?"
"That's right." Jim nodded approvingly. "That common weed, the dandelion."
He pointed at the drawing with the stone. "But in the world we live in now, it's not just a weed. Its tender leaves can be eaten in spring. They're a little bitter, but rich in vitamins."
Jim drew a circle around the plant's root. "Its root can be dried and ground into powder. In a way, it can substitute for coffee. Of course, it won't wake you up the same way, but it can offer some flavor and comfort. Even more than that..."
He paused and looked at the children. "The whole plant is believed to help reduce heat, fight inflammation, ease swelling, and soothe minor infections. It may help with small inflamed wounds or a sore throat."
...
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