EBE Chapter 64 Facing reality
Chapter 64 Facing reality
Unbeknownst to Lin Yue, outside her own neighborhood, large numbers of people died in other neighborhoods due to the severity of the epidemic. Many didn't even have time to be taken to the funeral home before their entire families perished—a tragedy never before witnessed. Only Lin Yue's neighborhood remained unscathed; other neighborhoods saw varying degrees of loss of life.
National government officials and the military discovered the problem and quickly mobilized troops from various regions to maintain the safety of Rongcheng, clear away the corpses, and dispose of, burn, and bury them. Because of the spiritual rice and noodles provided by Lin Yue, many people were saved, with the neighbors who lived in the same community as Lin Yue benefiting the most.
Unbeknownst to Lin Yue, some of her current neighbors in the community suddenly began receiving calls inquiring about their property ownership. With the outside security situation improving significantly, people started leaving the community for work again. Their homes were suddenly flooded with these kinds of calls. Previously, houses in Lin Yue's community were inexpensive and the market was sluggish. But this time, many neighbors were receiving these harassing calls, especially those who had defaulted on their mortgages, such as those in the townhouses and larger apartments behind the community. During the inquiries, those who had defaulted on their mortgages all wanted to sell, and soon, twenty or thirty units in the community were sold. Those who had been hesitant to sell due to their inability to repay their mortgages sold readily this time, as the buyers all paid in full upfront.
So many transactions were completed without Lin Yue's knowledge, and more are still ongoing. The reason is clear to everyone: living in the same neighborhood as Lin Yue, where there are very few deaths, and people want to benefit from her fame. Those conducting transactions in Rongcheng include retired high-ranking officials who were once residents of the city, retired military officers, and high-ranking armed police officers currently maintaining order in Rongcheng. Anyone who has defaulted on their mortgage, cannot repay it, and is planning to sell a property in Lin Yue's neighborhood is offered a cash purchase at the current price, with immediate transfer of ownership, but they are required to move out within a week.
What is Lin Yue busy with again? She is extremely busy, treating special soldiers on missions in that villa, completely unaware of the changes in the neighborhood, with Gong Yong running around following her.
Because Gong Yong's cultivation technique progressed rapidly, surpassing Lin Yue's, and Lin Yue's mental state stagnated, unable to break through, while Gong Yong, having worked outside for a long time and seen more of the world, had already successfully established his foundation. Therefore, whenever Lin Yue needed to rely on the power of the technique but lacked the ability herself, it was Gong Yong who helped her.
However, Lin Yue received two phone calls. One was from her cousin, whose neighborhood was facing arson, murder, and robbery, resulting in numerous deaths. The other was from her aunt, whose situation was equally dire. Her aunt and her cousin each had a family of three, and Lin Yue only had one vacant apartment in the neighborhood. When Lin Yue agreed to let both families come over, she found it was just the right size. The master bedroom was for her cousin and his wife, the second bedroom for her aunt and her husband, and both families had boys. The bunk beds in the study were just enough for one boy each, making the apartment perfectly adequate.
After receiving Lin Yue's consent, both families packed up everything they could take that evening. Lin Yue had them pack, and she and Gong Yong went to pick them up separately. In front of her cousin, Lin Yue told him to take his clothes and valuables, then conveniently used her spatial abilities to help them move. Although her cousin and his wife were surprised, they didn't say anything. After moving from her cousin's house, they went to her aunt's house and moved to another apartment in Lin Yue's complex in the same way. This apartment was originally not occupied by Lin Yue's parents, but was now given to her cousin's family and her aunt's family. This aunt was not Lin Yue's biological aunt, but a distant cousin from her grandfather's generation, but Lin Yue still let them move in.
The two families had previously run some training schools together and had a good relationship. There were no major conflicts while they lived in Lin Yue's house. Lin Yue provided all their food, drink, and other necessities, and the two families lived in peace.
Lin Yue was very busy, but since they lived there long-term, they couldn't just do nothing. Because these two families used to run tutoring businesses, they joined the community's online group to inquire which children needed expert guidance and instruction. During the pandemic, they only targeted residents of the community, quickly finding many children with nothing to do at home and starting tutoring sessions. This time, they proactively went to the children's homes for one-on-one private tutoring, providing them with some income and something to do.
During these difficult times, we supported each other, worked hard to make a living, and faced various difficulties together.
Two months passed in the blink of an eye as Lin Yue busied herself treating the wounded soldiers. When Gong Yong and Lin Yue returned to their apartment complex to rest and prepare to distribute some more rice and flour to their neighbors, they suddenly noticed that the residents of the next 10 and 20 buildings seemed to have all changed. Lin Yue hurriedly asked Gong Qiang, "What exactly happened in this complex?" Gong Qiang replied, "Many of the later-built houses were originally investment properties, but now many have defaulted on their mortgages. People have lost their source of income and are preparing to return to their hometowns. Many units have been sold, but I heard that most of the buyers are high-ranking officials from Rongcheng or people with connections."
Lin Yue and Gong Yong's hearts sank. Sigh, this had happened after all. From the neighbors, they learned that almost everyone who sold their houses had defaulted on their mortgages, couldn't live in the city, couldn't find work, either both spouses were laid off, or they had lost a fortune running their own businesses. They were forced to sell. The buyers, however, hadn't treated them badly; they all paid in full. Many neighbors left happily, at least they'd made some money and weren't stuck with it all. Lin Yue and Gong Yong felt these people handled things fairly well, so they didn't dwell on it too much. After all, almost half of their former neighbors, with whom they had struggled and supported each other, had suddenly changed, and the unfamiliar faces walking around the neighborhood made them feel very uncomfortable.
In this changing environment, Lin Yue and Gong Yong understand that life goes on, and no matter how the people around them change, they must hold fast to their lives and beliefs.
In fact, many of the neighbors who sold their houses already understood that their safety this time was due to the rice and flour provided by Lin Yue and Gong Yong. They understood the special significance of the houses, but unfortunately, they had no income and were forced to sell due to mortgage defaults. Some houses were originally intended as investments, so they sold them as well. Even more extreme cases involved houses that were originally bought for only five or six hundred thousand yuan in cash, but now that others were offering two or three times that price, they figured they were going back to the countryside anyway, so they sold them.
Before she knew it, the Lunar New Year was almost here again. Lin Yue had watched several families move out, meaning some neighbors were leaving and new ones were arriving. Lin Yue didn't know who the newcomers were, but some of the departing neighbors were familiar faces. Before they left, Lin Yue had asked them about their situation. They all said that the buyers had paid in full, a one-time payment, which was quite respectable, and they had been given good terms to leave. One neighbor shed tears and said, "If I could, I wouldn't want to leave either, but we have no choice. We want to go back to our hometown."
Lin Yue listened to these words, her heart filled with mixed emotions. In this ever-changing world, people are forced to make all sorts of helpless choices in order to survive and live a better life.
What Lin Yue didn't expect was that many villas in the same villa complex where her antique-style villa, used for treating special military personnel, was located had already changed hands. The reasons for the changes were varied: some had defaulted on their mortgages, some had suffered misfortune, some were relatives or friends of powerful figures wanting to move in, and even some long-established families were interested. There were also some extremely powerful individuals who valued their lives and longed to live there. Lin Yue bought one of the villas, and the remaining ones were quickly snapped up. Even some of the original residents moved out swiftly, lured by the high prices. Before she knew it, the courtyard of the 72 villas was almost entirely filled with new faces.
Looking at the dramatically changed villa area, Lin Yue was filled with mixed emotions. The turbulent times made everything unpredictable.
It's often said that a family's legacy lasts a hundred years, built up over generations. Even in this economic downturn, many people are still able to come up with huge sums of money to buy new properties. At this moment, Lin Yue truly understood that the poor are the poor, ordinary people are ordinary people, and the rich are the rich—a level that the poor can never reach.
Although Lin Yue and Gong Yong are quite wealthy and not short of money, they don't own a single designer garment and don't enjoy any privileged treatment. They are just ordinary people, without the arrogance of nouveau riche or the panic of ordinary people facing hardship; they simply live their quiet, uneventful lives.
In this ever-changing era, Lin Yue and Gong Yong maintain their inner peace and tranquility, unmoved by the glitz and glamour of the outside world, living a simple and happy life of their own.
However, this simple and ordinary life is what many ordinary families envy. Why envy them? Because, as the saying goes, when disaster strikes, everyone flees for their lives. With the economic downturn, many families are facing disintegration. Many men have suffered financial crises, their families' finances have fallen into disarray, and their personal finances have also become difficult.
Many housewives, busy taking care of their children at home, have no idea how much trouble their husbands are getting into outside the home. As a result, many families have fallen apart, and the children are the ones who suffer the most.
In this difficult world, once warm families have been torn apart, children have suffered innocently, people's lives have been thrown into chaos, and the happiness and peace of the past are gone forever.
As time went by, the unrest gradually subsided. People began to leave their neighborhoods, go to work, and do business in various places. All of this change was because Chengdu was now under strict control by the state. This was a mandatory measure; there was no other way. If it were not controlled, the chaos would have been even greater.
A large group of people were organized to dig up all the beautiful gardens that had been meticulously cultivated as city parks and plant rice, grains, and vegetables instead. The arrival of spring might solve some of the problems. Because of the pandemic, this year's Lunar New Year was mostly uneventful, with little joy and laughter.
After the start of spring, people pay more attention to food, knowing that food is the foundation of survival. The past prosperity and liveliness are temporarily put aside, and filling their stomachs and stabilizing their lives becomes everyone's top priority.
School has reopened. With a large military presence and armed police stationed at every school, elementary, kindergarten, and middle schools have resumed classes. The children returning to school this time found many seats missing; many classmates had either moved away or passed away. Suddenly, they realized at least half the class was empty. New neighbors applying for enrollment only filled about a third of the seats, meaning each class still had ten to twenty empty seats.
Some suggested merging classes, but the children didn't want to, so classes continued as they were. However, due to problems with the teachers, the classes were eventually merged, reducing the number of classes from fifteen or sixteen to seven or eight. At this time, the government began compiling statistics and discovered a large number of deaths, including children, in the two or three months surrounding the Spring Festival. This undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to the nation, and those who survived were extremely grateful to be alive.
Nowadays, if you ask whether anyone is pushing their children to excel, the answer is that everyone is content with just being alive; who has the energy to do so? In these difficult times, people are more focused on cherishing the present and are filled with confusion and uncertainty about the future.
Often, after seemingly peaceful days, even greater problems arise. Many countries are experiencing situations far more severe than ours; things that were once thought to be only recorded in ancient books are actually happening in other countries in modern society. Deaths from hunger, the erosion of humanity, the decline of morality—the various tragedies are shocking.
In this era of globalization, no country can remain unaffected. While we are grateful for the relatively good situation in our own country, we also feel sorrow and concern for the dire circumstances in other nations. The world seems to have fallen into darkness, and no one can know for sure what the future holds.
In these chaotic and confusing times, educating children truly leaves one feeling at a loss. It's unclear what to teach them to cope with this unpredictable future. Ultimately, the only solution is to ensure they focus on their current studies and practice their extracurricular activities whenever they have free time. Only then do I feel a little more at ease and less panicked.
However, the physical and mental exhaustion makes one long for a good night's sleep to forget all the troubles and worries. But reality does not allow for the slightest slackening; one can only persevere and, in these difficult times, strive to find that glimmer of hope for the children and family.
Lin Yue's family of five, except for Lin Yue herself, had all gradually reached the Foundation Establishment stage, even their child had successfully achieved it. This greatly worried the remnant soul Xue Yang, who often flew into a rage, saying, "Why haven't you reached the Foundation Establishment stage yet?" The late Emperor Huo Yun was also full of doubts, asking, "Lin Yue, why haven't you reached the Foundation Establishment stage yet?"
Urged on by everyone, Lin Yue reluctantly put down her work and ran to the villa where she had stayed before. She found the ginseng spirit and the willow spirit and asked them to protect her. She sat in the garden of the villa, focused her mind, adjusted her breathing, and entered a state of embryonic breathing. She absorbed spiritual energy step by step, channeling it into her dantian, preparing to establish her foundation.
The surroundings were quiet, save for the rustling of leaves in the breeze. Lin Yue was completely focused, her mind free of distractions, concentrating all her energy on the Foundation Establishment process. Success or failure hinged on this moment, and she knew how important this Foundation Establishment was for herself and her family.