Chapter 37: The Deal

Chapter 37: Deal Done

During the years of the Great Catastrophe, China continued to strictly prohibit citizens from illegal firearm possession.

Of course, no one would care if you carried a rocket launcher outside the safety zones, but once you entered a safety zone, you had to undergo rigorous inspections. Therefore, the weapons Xia Qing had always used were machetes and slingshots.

After the Great Evolution of Blue Star's biology, to deal with the lethal dangers posed by evolved creatures, teams legally registered within the safety zones were permitted to own weapons, provided they were used in strict accordance with relevant regulations. Any violation would result not only in the confiscation of the weapons but also severe punishment.

Xia Qing was allowed to carry weapons when leaving the safety zone to farm, but since she had neither points nor a means of purchase, she had come up with the idea of trading unpolluted spring water with the Azure Dragon Team.

Her goal was to exchange it for a sniper rifle and two hundred rounds of ammunition, but she hadn't expected the terms Yang Jin offered to completely exceed her expectations.

Xia Qing steadied her pounding heart and looked directly into Yang Jin's eyes through the firelight. "How many liters of spring water do you want to exchange for this equipment and these weapons?"

Yang Jin was somewhat pleased by Xia Qing's caution. "Can you use these supplies to increase the total amount of spring water from fifteen thousand liters to seventeen thousand five hundred liters? The extra two thousand five hundred liters will be for Brother Luo's use during his treatment."

There was no definitive experimental data proving that humans could enhance their physical constitution by drinking unpolluted spring water—not because it was ineffective, but because there wasn't enough water to conduct experiments. The benefit of unpolluted spring water to humans was not a yes-or-no question, but rather a question of degree.

Ten Azure Dragon Team evolver security guards for one year, three sets of top-tier protective gear, three guns and nine hundred rounds of ammunition, plus hands-on instruction from the sharpshooter Luo Pei, in exchange for seventeen thousand five hundred liters of spring water over the next four months—this was a very fair deal for Xia Qing.

Yang Jin was a notorious "iron rooster" who never took a loss, and this transaction gave Xia Qing a direct sense of the true value of the spring water.

When trading with a big shot, even though Xia Qing mentally raised all four hooves of Boss Yang in agreement, she had to maintain her composure and act the part of a high-roller, nodding calmly. "Deal."

After adding two more logs to the fire, Yang Jin brought up the next transaction. "I have one more exchange; I wonder if you'd be interested."

A flurry of much-needed supplies flashed through Xia Qing's mind, and her expression became inscrutable. "Tell me first."

Yang Jin stated the terms: "If Brother Luo stays in Territory No. 1 to detoxify, the spring water in your territory will eventually be exposed, and your life will be disturbed by the outside world. Therefore, I want Brother Luo to enter your territory to recover from his injuries. He will only bring four people, and they can stay in this house or any place you arrange. Aside from collecting the supplies Brother Luo needs and fetching water, they will never step outside your designated boundaries. Once Brother Luo is mobile, he will start teaching you how to shoot. After four months, we guarantee they will leave. If you haven't learned by then, Brother Luo will stay in Territory No. 1 to continue teaching you until you do."

Seeing Xia Qing's brow still furrowed, the smile in Yang Jin's eyes deepened as he offered terms she could not refuse: "To facilitate this, we will provide two hundred liters of diesel and a small, multi-purpose tracked micro-tiller capable of rotary hoeing, furrowing, ridging, backfilling, weeding, and spraying. We will also provide two saplings each of edible apples, strawberries, jujubes, and grapes."

A micro-tiller, diesel, and tree saplings—every single item hit Xia Qing right in the heart. What more was there to say?

Xia Qing couldn't even maintain her "big shot" persona anymore and immediately nodded. "Deal. This village belongs to Brother Luo for the next four months."

"For the sake of security, can Brother Luo and his men come over now?"

"Yes."

"To ensure that the subsequent transport of supplies and medicine from Territory No. 1 to Territory No. 3 goes unnoticed, can we dig a tunnel from Brother Luo's residence to Territory No. 1? Once Brother Luo leaves, the tunnel will be filled in immediately."

"...Yes."

Yang Jin smiled. "Good. If any issues arise later, negotiate directly with Brother Luo."

Yang Jin's smile was so handsome that Xia Qing almost asked him to stay for a late-night snack. Fortunately, her rationality remained intact, and she saw Yang Jin out of the territory before dawn.

The Azure Dragon Team's efficiency was formidable. Half an hour later, Luo Pei was stealthily carried into Territory No. 3. Not long after daybreak, a small helicopter landed in Territory No. 1 for twenty minutes before taking off.

Two hours later, Tang Huai called Xu Pin, the vice-captain of the Suffix Wind Team. "...Yes, confirmed that Luo Pei was picked up by Yang Jin via helicopter. Territory No. 1 is currently undefended; the people inside have started clearing weeds and tilling the soil... Yes, we sent people in to check; confirmed Luo Pei is not in the territory... Yes, the helicopter headed west. It was only one helicopter."

After hanging up, the high-spirited Tang Huai called out to his brother, Tang Heng. "Let's go hunting. Today, we feast on roasted meat and wine!"

On the fourth day of Luo Pei's stay in the territory, six tree saplings and two strawberry plants were secretly delivered to Xia Qing's territory by the Azure Dragon Team. Xia Qing planted them all in the already tilled cultivation area and watered them thoroughly with mountain spring water.

To save enough spring water for the trees, Xia Qing had been extremely frugal with water these past few days, even hesitating to use it for her porridge.

The tree saplings were all one-year-old, bare stalks between one and two meters tall, and the strawberry plants had only five leaves each. Xia Qing couldn't even bring herself to pluck a leaf or snap a twig to test the sap, so she couldn't tell if these seedlings were "green light" or "yellow light" quality.

To prevent Boss Yang from nibbling on the seedlings, Xia Qing took the risk of going into the Evolved Forest to cut branches from the evolved sour jujube trees, which were covered in palm-sized thorns, to make a fence to protect the saplings.

Once the fence was secured, Xia Qing was in an incredibly good mood. She called Luo Pei's new mobile number and headed over to visit him with a basket of vegetables.

Luo Pei and his men had been staying there for four days and, just as Yang Jin had promised, they stayed quietly in the village. They even chose to fetch water at night, never disturbing Xia Qing's life in the slightest.

There were three abandoned villages arranged in a triangular pattern within Territory No. 3. Xia Qing lived in the northern village, and Luo Pei lived in the one to the southwest. The southeast village was still empty; Xia Qing planned to clear it out when she had time to raise some chickens, ducks, and geese—provided she could catch or trade for them.

Luo Pei was staying in the very courtyard where Xia Qing had negotiated with Yang Jin. Upon entering, Xia Qing discovered that although the exterior looked unchanged, they had actually dug several basements underneath, with the entrance located inside this room.

When did they dig them? Where did they put the dirt?

The walls of the basement were not only moisture-proof and soundproof but were also equipped with electric lights and various precision medical devices that seemed completely out of place in the post-catastrophe era.

When did they install them? How did they transport them in?

Seeing Xia Qing's bewildered expression, Wei Chengdong grinned widely. The blindfolded Luo Pei greeted her, "Xia Qing, come sit."

After only five days of sufficient spring water treatment, Luo Pei was already able to sit upright. Xia Qing handed the vegetable basket to Wei Chengdong, her voice laced with a smile. "It seems Brother Luo's treatment is working quite well."

"It's all thanks to you," Luo Pei said with a sincere smile. "The agricultural machinery is quite large, so we had to find a suitable opportunity to bring it over openly. The guns and ammunition have already been delivered. Since you are a strength-type evolver, I chose a small submachine pistol, an automatic rifle, and a semi-automatic sniper rifle."

Wei Chengdong opened the long wooden crate he had carried in, revealing three new guns smelling of machine oil. Although Xia Qing wasn't an expert, she recognized the sniper rifle in the box instantly—it was exactly the same as the one Luo Pei carried on his back during missions!

This was definitely the good stuff.

Luo Pei continued his introduction, "For the sake of stealth, all three guns are equipped with attachments to reduce muzzle flash, sound, and smoke; they are all in the crate. Today, I'll have Chengdong teach you how to use the pistol for self-defense. I'll teach you the other two once my vision has recovered."

"Thank you, Brother Luo. And thank you for the trouble, Brother Dong." Xia Qing didn't mention that she had used a rifle once during a mission with the Dongyang Team, because that ancient, homemade gun couldn't even compare to the three before her.

(End of Chapter)