Chapter 256 - After the Fire

Chapter 256: After the Fire

Translator: Lonelytree
The raging fire continued burning for more than ten minutes before it was put out. There were no casualties, only the loss of property.
There were three reasons why the fire was put out so quickly.
First, there were many people. Each person had a bucket of water, and more than a hundred villagers participated in the fire-fighting operation.
Second, the fire-fighting measures were in place. Many fire extinguishers were stored in the shed, and a few water cisterns were dug. When the fire broke out, the water was pumped out by the engine.
Third, it was the geographical environment. There was no strong wind in the night. In addition, the field was next to a small river, so there was sufficient water.
When the last wisp of smoke was completely extinguished, everyone wiped the sweat on their foreheads and said with a smile, “The fire is finally out.”
“Yes, the fire is finally out. Otherwise, if it continues to burn like this, the entire field will be destroyed, and the loss will be huge.”
“However, based on the situation, the loss is not small either. The strawberries are very expensive. They are sold for 200 RMB per catty. Even if they lost 50 catties, that was already 10,000 RMB gone up in flames.”
“Based on estimation, they’ve lost more than 50 catties.” A villager said regretfully, “A few large sheds have been burned down, and the strawberries are gone.”
“Speaking of which, how did the fire start?” A villager asked in puzzlement, “The source of the fire isn’t at the strawberry field. In fact, I believe it came from that piece of land.” The person pointed at the patch where the weeds had been burned to ashes. “Look, the fire probably started here. The sheds closest to this patch are the most damaged.”
“You’re right.”
“This piece of land has been circled out, so this isn’t part of the strawberry field. Whose land is this?”
“In Tai Ping Field, only three or four families didn’t rent their land to Xiao Lingyu.”
“This piece of land belongs to Xiao Chengcai.”
“Oh, it’s Xiao Chengcai’s. He doesn’t grow anything here. It’s the middle of summer, and the grass is green. Why would a fire suddenly catch?”
“Were the night guards smoking, and they forgot to put out their cigarette butts? Didn’t the news on television say that a forest fire started because the lumberjack accidentally dropped a still-burning cigarette butt?”
Someone denied it immediately, “That’s because no one was on that mountain at the time. When they noticed the fire, it was already too late to do anything.
“Furthermore, that happened in the fall. The mountain was filled with dry twigs and fallen leaves.
“But we’re in the middle of summer. There are few dry weeds in the wild. Even a burning cigarette will have a hard time starting a fire with these conditions. Furthermore, if it was caused by a burning cigarette, the fire wouldn’t have accelerated so quickly. Chengbang and the others would have extinguished it easily. The whole village wouldn’t need to mobilize to help.”
“So, you mean someone did this on purpose?”
“Yes, that’s the only explanation.”
People were alarmed. “Someone deliberately set the fire? Who could be so evil?”
Father Xiao and Xiao Chengbang looked around to make sure there was no lingering ember. They were relieved not to find any.
However, the plastic tarp that covered the greenhouses had melted off, leaving behind only the steel skeletons.
The strawberries in the shed were charred. Mother Xiao’s heart ached terribly. She walked around and estimated that they had lost around one thousand kilograms of strawberries. And this was already the best result with everyone’s help putting out the fire.
Mother Xiao sighed. She gathered herself and said, “Thank you, everyone, for coming out so late at night to help. I didn’t mean to if it wasn’t truly necessary.”
Someone said, “Qiuying, you’re too polite. There was such a big fire. It is our responsibility to help. Do you think we’re going to stand there and watch the strawberries burn down?”
“That’s right, Qiuying.”
“Qiuying, the fire was ferocious. If we didn’t put it out, they would have spread through the field and into the village. The consequences would be unimaginable!”
Indeed, no one could guarantee that the fire wouldn’t injure their own properties.
Mother Xiao smiled. “Alright. I won’t stand on ceremony then. I’ll send two catties of strawberries to all the families who participated in the fire fighting tonight.”
“Ah, Qiuying, that… that is too much. We can’t want that.”
The villagers immediately thought of the strawberry’s price.
“Moreover, your house doesn’t even have enough strawberries to sell. How can you give them away?” Someone added.
“Instead of giving away the strawberries, Qiuying, you should cook a feast for the village. We all love your cooking. In fact, the smell of cooking from your house leaves me drooling every day!”
Mother Xiao chuckled. “That is no problem. After this incident is over, I’ll treat everyone to a feast.”
“Okay, that’s a deal!” Someone immediately shouted.
Mother Xiao smiled, “Everyone must be tired from all the work. Thank you. You should go back to rest.”
After that, everyone left one after another.
Only Xiao Zhengyang and his wife, Xiao Mingyang and his wife, Xiao Chengbang and his wife, and the other three night guards were left behind.
Zhou Yan exploded and scolded her husband, “Xiao Chengbang, what kind of night guard are you? How can you allow this to happen?”
The four night watchers lowered their heads slightly, feeling very guilty. They failed to protect the strawberry field and allowed the big fire to happen.
Xiao Chengbang smoked a cigarette and said, “Someone set the fire on purpose. The four of us would go on patrol every half an hour.
“Before the fire broke out, we had just returned from our patrol, and we received a call from Lingyu. She said that someone was starting a fire. When we heard that, we immediately rushed over to put out the fire. However, the culprit used kerosene, so the fire spread quickly. We tried our best, but the fire was too strong.”
When Zhou Yan heard that she immediately said in shock, “Someone deliberately set the fire? Who is the culprit? Who is so evil?”
Xiao Chengbang shook his head and said, “We don’t know yet.” After that, he turned to look at Xiao Zhengyang and his wife and said, “I’m really sorry. Zhengyang, Qiuying. This is our negligence.”
Xiao Zhengyang shook his head and said, “It’s not your fault. My Yu ‘Er has done many fireproofing measures, but the culprit has succeeded. Thankfully, you discovered the fire early, or else the damage would have been bigger.”
Hearing that Xiao Zhengyang did not blame them, the four felt even guiltier.
They knew that Xiao Lingyu hired them to be the night guards because she knew there were people who were jealous. They might come to cause destruction. However, the guards were careless and allowed the culprit to succeed.
Xiao Zhengyang and his wife looked at the four of them, not knowing what to say.
Xiao Zhengyang patted Xiao Chengbang’s shoulder and said, “We’ll have to trouble your team to keep watch for the rest of the night. We’ll go back first. We’ll clean up these things tomorrow.”
Xiao Chengbang and the other three nodded and said, “Of course, you must be tired too. Please go back to rest.”
On the way back, fourth aunt Xiao said angrily, “Who is the one who has a grudge against us? How could they do something like this?!”
Mother Xiao shook her head and said, “I don’t know. But we should be able to find out soon.”
Ever since their strawberries got popular, her daughter had set up surveillance cameras around the strawberry field. It was thanks to the cameras that Lingyu was about to discover the fire in time.
“The culprit is really hateful!” Liu Chunhua said angrily, “Doesn’t their conscience hurt?”
The others were angry too.. They had to find out who this person was.