Chapter 156: It’s Raining, and Red Worms Are Falling (Requesting Subscriptions)

“It’s raining!”

“The damn sky finally opened up!”

On Sunday, December 31st, 2023, with the temperature at 37°C, after an entire year of drought, the skies finally unleashed a heavy downpour!

The day began as uneventful as ever, but at 1 p.m., the meteorological department, famed for forecasting weather up to 15 days in advance, urgently announced on all major platforms that there would be a heavy rainstorm across the country starting tomorrow.

As soon as the announcement was made, it was as if the skies across the nation had conspired, and torrential rain began to pour everywhere.

Netizens across the country joked about the weather forecast: “This season’s weather is hard to manage, huh? It keeps slapping them in the face.”

However, in Jing Shu’s view, the atmosphere had been accumulating water vapor for an entire year. The atmosphere couldn’t hold it any longer, and the rain had to fall sooner than predicted—like an overfilled water balloon bursting.

That day, Jing Shu’s parents, who rarely had a day off, were at home, and the family enjoyed a meal of lamb hotpot together.

They had butchered a sheep two days earlier, and after processing the meat, the lamb slices and offal were perfect for hotpot. Dipped in garlic, chopped chili, drizzled with sesame oil and vinegar, the chewy, flavorful tripe was an absolute delight. Washing it down with a cool sip of coconut milk was the ultimate indulgence. So delicious!

During the meal, Grandma mentioned that the water in the tank on the third-floor terrace was running low. Although they were still receiving the daily allotment of 30 liters, it was just enough for the cows. "At this rate, we’ll run out of water for the crops in less than a week."

Grandpa added, "Didn’t the news say it was going to rain heavily and flood? They’ve been saying that for months, but no rain so far."

Just as he finished speaking, there was a loud *pitter-patter* on the PVC plastic umbrella covering the house.

“Shhh…”

The whole family paused to listen carefully. Grandma, in disbelief, asked, “Is that...rain?”

Jing Shu sighed. It had arrived, right on time—no sooner, no later—exactly as it had in her previous life.

Grandma was the first to spring into action, rushing to the door. For her, this rain meant life-saving water for their crops.

The whole family grabbed their chopsticks and followed her out. Jing Shu casually filled her bowl with more meat before leisurely joining them. Wu Youai, unbothered, continued scrolling through her phone while eating hotpot.

When they turned on the courtyard lights, they saw Grandma already at the front door. Jing Shu called out, "Grandma, slow down! The dust outside is thick—don’t go into the rain!"

Jing Shu was mostly worried about Grandma getting soaked and bringing back a bunch of red worms. If those things got into her hair, the consequences would be disastrous...

As soon as the courtyard door opened, their plump chickens—who had been cooped up like restless huskies—rushed out excitedly, clucking and jumping around in the rain.

The earthy smell of rain hitting the dry ground wafted over. Jing Shu also caught a familiar foul odor. It was the same as it had been back then—nothing had changed.

Standing at the doorway, Grandma, looking out at the rain in the light, exclaimed, “Old man, do you see? It’s raining! The rain is here! The crops are saved!”

“Yes, the drought is finally over. As long as we have rain, we won’t have trouble growing crops,” Grandpa replied, equally excited. Famine had always followed drought.

Jing Shu was silent. Things weren’t as simple as that.

Meanwhile, Jing Shu’s phone buzzed non-stop as people in her group chats shared their excitement.

Wang Qiqi: “It’s raining! A heavy downpour!”

Fei Niu: “Oh my god, I’m going to finally take a proper bath! Dear heavens, please let this rain continue forever! I’d rather be drowned than die of thirst again!”

Luo Zhu: “Same! I’d rather be bloated with water than die of thirst.”

Jing Shu shook her head. The promises people made during desperate times always came back to haunt them.

Wang Cuihua sent a voice message: “Everyone, hurry up and take out all your dirty clothes and dishes to wash! Who knows when the rain will stop? Anyone want to team up for a group bath?”

Chou Chou: “I’m going to wash all my bedding—it’s so sour and smelly. The stains have been impossible to clean!”

Fei Niu: “Yes! Wash everything! Anyway, it’s hot, so things will dry quickly. We should also collect as much water as possible.”

Young Madam with a Child: “Exactly!”

In hindsight, anyone who did laundry now would regret it for the entire year, as nothing would dry, and everything would end up moldy and full of bugs. Those government-issued items would finally come in handy.

However, for people who hadn’t bathed or washed clothes in a year, the dirt on their bodies was probably thick enough to roll into noodles—thick as fingers. The discomfort from the accumulated grime made a bath absolutely necessary, even if the rain carried other living organisms.

Soon, small groups of people gathered downstairs with buckets, basins, and laundry. The temperature was 37°C, and though the rain wasn’t as cold as it would be later in the year, it was still pleasantly cool—perfect for a bath.

Many people chatted while washing their things. Chou Chou even took a big gulp of the rainwater.

“Hey, why does this rain feel so slippery?”

“When I drank a few sips earlier, it tasted really fishy, like something slid down my throat.”

“Be grateful. The water they’ve been giving us is barely enough to drink, let alone wash with.”

Because of the darkness and the intensity of the rain, it was hard to see anything beyond three meters. No one noticed anything strange about the rain at first.

But soon, people started to feel something was off. As they stood in the rain washing clothes or themselves, small red worms started to fall, sliding onto their skin, into their ears, clinging to their hair, and even into their mouths.

These red worms were tiny—less than a millimeter thick but up to 20 centimeters long.

But they all shared a few key characteristics: they were as thin as strands of hair, bright red, with black heads at both ends. They also loved to squirm and jump around.

The red worms had been studied before. Their distinctive behavior was due to their unique biology: they were hermaphroditic, with both male-male and female-female pairs sharing a single body.

What did that mean?

If one end of the worm was female, the other end was also female. They shared one body but had two distinct brains.

The red worms perfectly illustrated the principle that opposites attract and like repels like. Both ends of the worm sought mates, leading them to coil up in tangled clusters.

With two minds controlling one body, each end constantly struggled for dominance. One wanted to go east, the other west, and neither would yield. This constant tension made them squirm and jump continuously. This was why the red worms, despite being thin, were incredibly tough and chewy—almost impossible to bite through.

Their muscles were extremely strong, and their skin was tough and resilient.

The black ends of the worms were their organs and mouths. Since they shared a body, if one end died, the other couldn’t survive either, so their bodies had developed a high level of resilience. This was another reason they were so hard to kill.

So, as people stood in the rain, they soon realized something was wrong. Their entire bodies began to itch as if something was trying to burrow into their skin. Worse, their heads felt incredibly heavy.

Fei Niu, whose hair had grown thick and matted like felt, suddenly felt her head becoming even heavier—almost too heavy to lift. When she reached up to touch her hair, she felt something soft and slippery, wriggling and bouncing around in clumps...

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*Side Note:*

Thanks to *Little Ant Wants to Bite*, *wycx*, *Transcending the Ordinary Past*, *Gena*, *Star Flower*, *Gentle Wind and Poetic Grace*, and *Reader 161116102655092* for the support!