Chapter 165: Shoes, Pine Cones

Once the temperature climbed to thirty-five degrees, it wasn’t just the children—even the adults started suffering from heatstroke.

Evelyn Ford had planted some Gold and Silver Flower, and everyone brought things to trade for it. After taking the plants home, they all started cultivating them.

The rising temperature brought not just scorching sun, but also a suffocating, muggy heat.

Sweat beaded up and dripped from their pores. Fortunately, the safe zone was full of plants that blocked a good deal of the harsh winds and heatwaves.

Evelyn Ford picked a large watermelon and took it inside, intending to make some shaved ice.

She placed a spoonful of crushed ice in a bowl, spread small cubes of watermelon over it, added a variety of soaked beans, and drizzled it all with syrup and condensed milk. A final garnish of mint, and a simple bowl of shaved ice was ready.

Evelyn Ford placed it in front of Ronan Kendrick. He admired it for a long while before finally picking up his spoon and taking a small bite.

"How is it?"

Ronan Kendrick raised an eyebrow. "This is my first time trying this. The flavor is quite unique."

Evelyn Ford giggled. "With my skills, if I set up a street stall, a bowl of this could easily sell for twenty."

Evelyn Ford remembered that when she was in elementary school, shaved ice cost eight a bowl.

"In that case, I’d have to buy one to try." After one bite, Ronan Kendrick couldn’t stop. Soon, half the bowl was gone.

"Do you have any money?" Evelyn Ford asked, looking at him with amusement.

"Can I start a tab?"

"Not for anyone else. But you could work for me to pay it off."

Ronan Kendrick smiled, pressing his lips together. "I’ll work hard, Boss Ford."

Evelyn Ford and Ronan Kendrick ate the rest of the watermelon while watching TV. The pace of their lives had slowed to a crawl; they had practically become a pair of couch potatoes.

Evelyn Ford took out a needle, thread, and scissors. The tanned cowhide was still in her space, and she planned to put it to good use by making a few pairs of shoes.

Ronan Kendrick’s feet were huge. Next to his, Evelyn Ford’s size 37 feet seemed positively tiny.

Evelyn Ford had never made shoes before, but ’isn’t that how it is for everyone?’ You fumble your way through inexperience and gradually get the hang of it.

’For the soles, I could probably use tires. I think I have a few old tires in my space.’

"Are you making shoes for me?"

"Yeah. I don’t have many pairs in my space that would fit you."

Evelyn Ford pulled the old tires out and tossed them to him.

"Cut out a few templates for the soles based on your size. And don’t get too touched—I’m just using your shoes for practice."

Ronan Kendrick sat across from her and got to work seriously.

"For this kind of thing, you can just tell me what to do. I’ll handle it."

Evelyn Ford smiled. "I can’t sit still. Besides, this isn’t heavy labor. You’re already doing all the hard work inside and out. I have to pull my weight, too."

"I’m happy to let you relax."

"But I can’t stand being idle."

They chatted idly as Evelyn Ford cut the cowhide. Fortunately, when she had bought her sewing supplies, she’d also picked up the curved needles needed for shoemaking.

’I can line the inside with a layer of soft cloth, and I’ll need to make an insole, too. Otherwise, stepping on tire rubber in high temperatures would be unbearable.’

’Evelyn Ford had also stockpiled plenty of fabric; she could probably make him a few simple short-sleeved shirts. Now that the weather was hot, pretty much everyone was wearing short sleeves when they went out.’

Evelyn Ford was the exception; whether it was hot or cold, she preferred to keep herself completely covered.

It took Evelyn Ford about a week, but she finally finished a pair of shoes.

"I’m telling you, this pair of shoes will last you three years without wearing out."

Ronan Kendrick tried them on. The size was perfect, and they were very soft. ’He never expected Evelyn Ford to be so good with her hands that she could even make shoes.’

"Shoemaker Ford, at your service. What do you think, Mr. Kendrick? Can I get a five-star review?"

Ronan Kendrick smiled. "Thank you."

"Don’t be a stranger. Anyway, you’re on sheep-herding duty tomorrow. I’m sleeping in."

"Okay."

As the temperature rose, eagles started coming to forage more frequently. The people in the safe zone put up many scarecrows, but they couldn’t frighten off the bold creatures.

Evelyn Ford would sometimes go over to the apartment building and see that every household’s vegetable garden was full of produce and watermelons. In the newly cleared fields, the wheat had turned yellow; it was time for the harvest.

Wendy’s little vegetable garden was also shaping up nicely. When Evelyn Ford arrived, she found Wendy weeding and watering while reciting poetry and studying math.

"Wendy, what’s one hundred plus one hundred?"

Wendy first counted on her fingers, then announced in her small, sweet voice, "Two hundred! I’m not a dummy. I even know what five hundred plus five hundred is."

Evelyn Ford patted her pigtails. "Very impressive! Let me see how your watermelons are doing."

Wendy lifted a large leaf, revealing the watermelon hidden underneath.

"Miss Ford, this one is definitely going to be sweet. I’m saving it for you."

"Alright. When it’s ready, we’ll split it, half and half."

Wendy nodded. "Okay! And this one, this is for you too, Miss Ford."

Evelyn Ford smiled and took some malt candy out of her bag.

"I brought you a present, too."

"Is it candy?"

"Yep. I just made it. Go on, try some."

The two of them sat on a pile of hay, and Wendy told her all the latest gossip as she ate her candy.

"Yesterday, the couple next door had a fight. Oh, and the lady downstairs—her laundry got blown away by the wind. She cursed all day, saying someone stole her clothes, but then everyone found them in the bushes out back."

Evelyn Ford burst out laughing.

"Miss Ford, my ewe had lambs! I have five sheep now. Dad is so busy, so I have to herd them myself."

Officer Graham was indeed very busy. He had cleared a large field to plant corn and wheat. On top of that, he had to chop firewood, cook, do laundry, and teach Wendy how to read and write.

"Well, next time you take the sheep out, come find me. I’ll go with you."

Wendy’s face lit up. "Okay! I really like you, Miss Ford."

"And I like you the most, Wendy. I’ll take you out to play in a bit."

A wall and barbed wire fence had been erected around the safe zone. Every day, wild pheasants and snakes would get caught on it. You were bound to find something if you just took a walk along the perimeter.

After Wendy finished her candy, Evelyn Ford took her for a stroll. As soon as they reached the perimeter, they saw a pheasant caught on the wire. Evelyn Ford told Wendy to go get it. Wendy, who was both strong and brave, skipped over and yanked the bird right off.

"Miss Ford, look! What’s that?"

Evelyn Ford looked up. The pine tree was laden with cones, and Mina was perched right at the top, with Lola flitting about nearby.

’Those two rascals haven’t been home in days. To think they’ve been hiding here eating pine cones.’

"Those are pine cones, Wendy. I’ll climb up and get a couple for you."

Climbing trees was a piece of cake for Evelyn Ford. In a flash, she was up in the branches.

She snapped off two pine cones and tossed them down before glancing out at the world beyond.

The wind and sand were too thick to see through clearly, but she could tell the grass at the perimeter had grown taller, and the saplings had become small trees.

An oasis now extended for three kilometers around the safe zone.

"Miss Ford, can you eat pine cones?"

"You can. If you roast them over a fire, you can get the nuts out. Come on, I’ll show you how to roast them."