Chapter 65 - 60: Grand Ice Sculpture Exhibition

Chapter 65: Chapter 60: Grand Ice Sculpture Exhibition

After seeing off the restaurant tour group, Ning He was practically running on fumes. She, Connie, and Ah Huai collapsed into their chairs, too tired to even speak.

"No way, we have to rest tomorrow. I really can’t go on like this!"

"She’s right, we can’t keep this up. It’s not worth it if we work ourselves sick," Ah Huai said seriously.

Connie felt a little ashamed. She knew everyone was exhausted, but the desire to make money always won out in her mind.

"Then let’s all sleep in tomorrow."

"Yes! I’m going to sleep until I forget what day it is!"

Ning He slapped her thigh and made her bold declaration. Unfortunately, she was woken up by a call before eight the next morning from Nancy, a nurse at the medical station, telling her to come in to have her bandages changed and removed. Ning He struggled out of her sleeping bag and headed to the medical station, her eyes still heavy with sleep.

Nancy was about the same age as Ning He, and the two had gotten to know each other well during Ning He’s previous hospital stay. Seeing Ning He hobble in alone on her crutch, she smiled and teased, "Made a killing yesterday, so you forgot all about your dressing change today?"

The commotion yesterday had been huge. Nancy had seen it herself when she went to the shantytown for a meal, so she was deliberately teasing her.

Ning He gave a wry smile. "It’s the life of a workhorse. Just hurry up and check if it’s any better."

Nancy took her to the doctor for a few check-ups. After confirming that the healing was progressing normally, they returned to the treatment room to remove the bandages and change the dressing. Bored, Ning He’s gaze fell on a sign on the door. The two words "Operating Room" made her remember something, and she asked:

"Did Doctor Lister happen to come by a few days ago?"

"How did you know?" Nancy was very surprised.

Ning He grinned. "He ate at my stall, and we chatted a bit."

"Oh, so that’s how. Doctor Lister was indeed here a few days ago for a free clinic. He even performed a few minor surgeries. All the surgeons at our station went to observe and learn from him," Nancy said.

"A free clinic?"

"Yes, Doctor Lister holds a free clinic once a month, and this time it just happened to be our turn."

’He does charity work? Then how is he still so rich?’

"So, are his regular consultations and surgeries really expensive?" Ning He gossiped.

"Expensive is an understatement. It’s astronomical," Nancy said, lowering her voice. "I hear he charges by the minute—1,000 original coins per minute!"

’Holy moly!’

Ning He had thought a 1,000-original-coin cup at a four-star restaurant was ridiculous enough, but this doctor’s rates were on another level entirely.

’And here I am, a skilled artisan with top-notch cooking abilities, and I can’t even make ten coins a minute...’

’It’s so infuriating!’

Ning He felt a bit salty, so she changed the subject.

"...All changed. Remember, don’t put pressure on it, don’t get it wet, and don’t massage it yourself. Come back for a follow-up in a week."

Ning He readily agreed. As she was leaving on her crutch, she spotted a row of foldable wheelchairs by the door. After a moment’s thought, she decided to just pay to rent one and save herself some effort.

Connie was startled to see Ning He wheeling herself back, thinking something had gone wrong with her foot. She only breathed a sigh of relief after asking what happened.

"Why didn’t you let me go with you? It must have been so inconvenient for you to walk alone," Connie chided gently.

"I wanted you guys to get more sleep. It’s not like I couldn’t manage on my own." Ning He picked up a cup and took a sip of water, then glanced behind Connie. "Did Ah Huai take Ding Xiang out for her exercises?"

The rest area was crowded. It was warm, but cramped, so Ah Huai always took Ding Xiang to the corridor next to the wash area for her walks and exercises.

"No, they went to help with the ice sculptures," Connie said.

"Ice sculptures?"

"Yeah, did you forget? Every cold snap, Beiluo City holds a big ice sculpture exhibition. They even have a food festival on the day of the awards ceremony. It’s really lively!"

Ning He quickly slapped her forehead. "Look at me, my brain’s all fuzzy. I almost forgot. I love ice sculptures."

As expected, Connie didn’t notice anything amiss and smiled. "That’s right. And for years, half the champions have come from the Fourth Ring, so everyone’s fired up to compete. But the first round of judging starts in less than two weeks, and our North Third District’s project is a bit behind schedule. The community sent out a notice for anyone with free time to go help. Ding Xiang has loved making ice sculptures since she was little, so Ah Huai took her."

The Fourth Ring was huge and divided into different sectors. The area where Ning He and Connie lived was designated as the North Third District, and assignments in the shelter followed the same districting.

Ning He’s interest was piqued. "So what are we sculpting?"

"I’m not sure, but we’ve got nothing to do today anyway, so it’s a perfect time to go see," Connie said.

The two hit it off and agreed at once. They first went to the shantytown for a meal of chicken giblet fried rice with corn soup, and then Connie pushed Ning He toward a nearby plaza.

The weather was decent today. Although it was overcast, the wind was light, and it wasn’t snowing. The temperature hovered around minus eighteen degrees Celsius. Dressed in a thick padded jacket, a hat with ear flaps, and heavy gloves, it didn’t feel too cold.

Snowplows had already cleared the main road, so the two of them reached the Ice Sculpture Square without much trouble.

The plaza was located at the entrance to a city block. It was quite large and often hosted the food festival. Right now, a man-high pile of ice blocks of various shapes—cylinders, discs, and squares—was stacked in the center. It was impossible to make out the overall design yet.

A group of people was gathered around the ice, discussing something. An old man standing in the middle had a furrowed brow, clearly troubled by something.

Ding Xiang noticed the two of them and happily waved, walking over with Ah Huai’s support.

"What are you guys doing here?" Ah Huai asked.

"We were bored, so we came to see what’s going on. Why isn’t anyone working? I thought you were running out of time?" Connie asked, puzzled.

Ah Huai sighed. "The Beiliu District is sculpting two giant dragons this time. Our original plan definitely can’t compete, so everyone’s trying to figure out how to change it."

"Dragons?" Connie’s eyes widened in disbelief.

The Fourth Ring wasn’t near any lakes or rivers, and unlike the deep-pocketed Inner Three Rings, they couldn’t afford to ship ice in from outside the city. All their ice had to be frozen themselves. How much effort would it take to sculpt two giant dragons?

"Yes. I heard they decided on this plan last year and started preparing the ice as soon as the cold snap hit, several days ahead of us."

Ding Xiang also looked worried. "There’s not much time left, and we don’t have that much ice. Grandpa Sochi is worried sick."

"If there’s enough ice, can you sculpt anything?" Ning He cut in.

"Yes!" Ding Xiang lifted her chin proudly. "Everyone in the Fourth Ring is a master craftsman. We’re the best workers, and when it comes to carving skills, we’re definitely the most outstanding."

’That made sense,’ Ning He thought.

Ice sculpting required both skill and stamina. The residents of the Fourth Ring typically did jobs that were technical and physically demanding, so ice sculpting was second nature to them. In contrast, most residents of the Inner Three Rings were pampered and lacked stamina, while the Fifth Ring had too few people and insufficient resources to be a real contender.

No wonder Connie said half the champions came from the Fourth Ring.

"So what’s the plan now? Dragging it out won’t solve anything."

"Right now, everyone is debating between sculpting a Water Spirit or a Snow Angel. But even though those two don’t require as much ice, they’re much harder to carve. Even if we finish one, it might not beat the Beiliu District. After all, everyone loves to see giant ice sculptures, and the number of visitors directly affects the award rankings," Ding Xiang said.

Connie didn’t have any good ideas on that front, but Ning He remembered something Ding Xiang had just said and asked a follow-up question:

"Do the people attracted by the food festival count?"

Ding Xiang paused for a moment. "The official visitor count requires people to actively scan a code. But if we can attract more people in general, and more people see our sculpture, that should have some effect."

Hearing Ding Xiang’s words, Connie’s eyes lit up as an idea struck her.

"Our malatang has been really popular lately. What if we run a promotion during the food festival to attract more customers?"

Ah Huai clapped his hands. "That’s a great idea. We can’t help much with the ice sculpture, and we have to participate in the food festival anyway. We might as well run a promotion and get some publicity."

Ning He was about to agree when a thought made her face fall.

"More than three hundred people yesterday nearly worked us to death. A food festival, plus a promotion? We wouldn’t be able to handle it even if we grew extra arms like an octopus."

"That is a problem," Ah Huai said. "Let’s go back and talk to the community administrator to see if there’s a solution."

Ning He was surprised by how proactive they were, springing into action immediately. Before she could say another word from her wheelchair, she was already being pushed back toward the shelter.

Fifteen minutes later, they were knocking on the door of the community administrator’s temporary office.