Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick jumped off their horses and went to the blueberry grove behind a snowdrift. The blueberry bushes were laden with fruit. Evelyn took the basin Quincy handed her and began to pick them.

Everyone was excited. For people on a long journey, finding fruit trees felt like a small comfort for their weary souls.

"Even though it’s cold now, the fruit won’t last for too long, will it?"

"We can make it into blueberry jam to preserve it."

Blueberries have many benefits, such as improving eyesight, enhancing memory, and providing antioxidants.

If made into jam and sealed, it could be preserved for several years.

Evelyn decided to dig up a few blueberry bushes. She was more interested in the bushes themselves than the fruit.

Behind the blueberry grove was a small courtyard. The group decided to spend the night there and look for some food to restock their supplies.

This place must have been a blueberry farm before. Behind the courtyard were several more acres of blueberry bushes.

"There’s a small woodlot nearby. We’ll go chop some firewood." Officer Graham grabbed a machete and went to chop wood with Peter Owens.

Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick dug up more than ten blueberry bushes, then returned to the courtyard and started a fire to boil water.

The courtyard was small. Since it was a single-story building, it hadn’t been severely affected by the earthquake; only one wall had collapsed. The house was very clean, with nothing left inside. Either someone had already scavenged it clean, or the owners had fled.

Rural northern courtyards usually have a cellar. Evelyn searched for a long time and actually found a small one in the yard. It was clean inside, with nothing left but a rusty hoe.

"There’s a small village back there. We’ll go check it out later. Rural areas usually have fruit trees, so we’ll see if we can find any more fruit." Quincy and Wyatt Vaughn returned to the courtyard carrying two basins of blueberries. They found a plastic bucket, planning to head to the village behind them.

"Be careful." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"Got it."

Just as the two of them left, Officer Graham and the others returned with the firewood. Evelyn had boiled some snowmelt and brought it over for the horses and the Mammoth to drink.

The blueberries were very clean and didn’t need to be washed. She put them directly into a large iron pot to cook down. The blueberries had their own moisture, so no extra water was needed.

Ronan Kendrick helped by her side. Thick smoke billowed up in the courtyard, instantly giving it the lively feel of a home.

The blueberries began to release their juices. Evelyn took out a bag of white sugar, poured it in, and started stirring continuously. Once the jam began to thicken, she could squeeze in the juice of two lemons, then pour it out to cool.

The first batch was ready, and Evelyn started on the second.

Evelyn had placed several large vats in the shipping container, and now they came in handy.

After cooking down all the blueberries, they ended up with three large vats of jam.

Quincy and Wyatt Vaughn, who had gone to the small village, also returned. They brought back a bucket of red persimmons.

"All the houses in the village have collapsed. Only a few persimmon trees are still standing, all crooked. We shook one and collected a full bucket. There are still a few more we haven’t shaken. We can go back later to get more."

"We’ll all go later and pick all the persimmons." Evelyn picked one up. It was frozen solid and had a fresh, fragrant scent.

Taylor Vance and Zion Lowell had already cleaned the house. Tonight, everyone could finally sleep indoors, out of the cold wind.

With the blueberry jam finished, it was time to cook dinner. After they ate, everyone grabbed buckets and basins and headed to the village to pick persimmons.

The path to the village was difficult to walk. It was riddled with pits, and if you weren’t careful, you could fall into one, making it very hard to climb out.

Just as Quincy had said, the village houses had all been flattened by the earthquake. Only a few persimmon trees were still standing strong.

Just then, a light flurry began to drift down from the sky. Evelyn raised her hand, and the snowflakes landed on her glove—translucent, crystalline, and beautifully shaped.

"It’s snowing again. The temperature is bound to drop even more."

Evelyn took out her thermometer and glanced at it. The temperature had suddenly dropped to negative sixty-four degrees.

After picking the persimmons, the group headed back, their buckets full.

The fire in the courtyard was still burning, so they moved the embers inside. The small house had only two rooms, each with a heated brick bed, or *kang*. It would be a tight squeeze, but everyone could fit. They lit a fire inside the *kang* and spread their quilts on top, and the room quickly warmed up.

Wyatt Vaughn, Quincy, Wendy, Evelyn Ford, and Ronan Kendrick stayed in one room. Officer Graham, Miles Vaughn, Peter Owens, Taylor Vance, and Zion Lowell stayed in the other.

Wendy and Wyatt Vaughn slept on the very inside, followed by Evelyn, Ronan Kendrick, and Quincy.

The outhouse in the courtyard hadn’t collapsed, so using the toilet was still convenient. They fed leaves to the horses, elk, and the Mammoth, then let them roam freely in the yard. The six small animals were brought inside to keep warm.

Night fell. Exhausted from the day, everyone lay down to rest. They had to be on the road again tomorrow. It would probably take three or four days to reach the next city.

Outside, the light flurry gradually turned into a blizzard. Under the covers, Ronan Kendrick pulled Evelyn’s hand to him and buried his head in the crook of her neck.

The firewood under the *kang* was still burning. The people on top of it began to fall into a deep sleep. After such a long journey, they could finally get a peaceful night’s rest.

「The next morning」

Evelyn awoke to find Wendy staring at her with wide eyes.

"Miss Ford, you’re so pretty. And I just realized, your eyes are brown."

Evelyn paused. "Brown?"

"Yeah."

Evelyn hadn’t looked in a mirror for a long time. ’Maybe after I got shot last time, Ronan gave me his blood, and it changed my eye color again.’

Evelyn smiled. "Your eyes are very pretty too, Wendy. Need to use the restroom?"

"Yes, but it’s so cold. I don’t want to move."

Evelyn didn’t feel like getting up either. ’It really is like the old saying goes: it’s easy to get used to comfort, but hard to go back to hardship. Once your spirit relaxes, you just want to enjoy the feeling.’

The *kang* wasn’t very warm anymore. Evelyn glanced back and saw Ronan Kendrick was still asleep, his hand clasped tightly around her waist. She whispered his name to wake him. When Ronan woke up, he seemed a bit dazed, staring at Evelyn with squinted eyes.

"Time to get up. Let’s eat and get on the road."

"It’s still snowing outside."

Evelyn could already see it through the window. A blizzard was raging, and the snow had piled up even thicker. If you stepped in it, you’d sink right down.

Taylor Vance and Zion Lowell went out to take a look and agreed that this weather was unsuitable for travel. They woke everyone up to discuss what to do.

"Should we wait for the snow to stop before we leave? Traveling in this weather would be dangerous. The wind is too strong."

Evelyn glanced at her thermometer. It was negative sixty-five degrees.

Everyone got off the *kang* and went out to check. The fire in the courtyard was buried under snow. The Mammoth and the horses had taken shelter in the room on the left, while the two elk were hiding in the kitchen.

"Let’s wait for the snow to stop. Even the Mammoth can’t handle this weather. If we hit the road, we’d probably freeze to death in an hour," Evelyn said, shrinking her neck into her collar as she watched the heavy snow outside.

"Everyone, let’s first get up and go to the small woodlot behind the house to chop more firewood. Clean up the kitchen. We can’t cook in the courtyard anymore."

Evelyn assigned tasks to everyone, and they all left the house to get to work.