51. Lacking morality

The convoy stopped not far from the RVs. The doors opened, and the people who got out were all dressed in dark camouflage uniforms and carrying rifles. At a glance, women made up the majority of them.

The last person to come down was a woman wearing a cheongsam with a snow-white fox fur coat over it; her every move exuded elegance.

She walked forward unhurriedly, brushing a stray hair from her temple. Two soldiers followed closely behind, each carrying a heavy box.

Surprisingly, she obediently stood at the end of the trading line, standing out conspicuously among a group of dusty survivors.

Since the other person was following the rules, they couldn't very well kick them out. Fu Yunong and the others pretended not to see anything and continued with their work.

About an hour later, it was finally the woman in the cheongsam's turn.

She bowed slightly, her voice soft yet firm, "I am Ru Feng from Yundian City, here to make a deal." As she spoke, she raised her fingertips, and the soldier on her left immediately handed over the box, "This is a small token of my appreciation."

With another gesture, a soldier on the right handed over another box, saying, "This contains the crystal cores and the transaction list."

Fu Yunong took the list and saw that it contained dozens of kinds of supplies, ranging from food and medicine to tools and parts.

She smiled and said, "Lord Ru, please rest for a while. You have too many things to ask for, so we need to take some time to prepare them."

Just now, Shi Dong quickly told her.

Ru Feng, the only female leader among the five major bases, is a level three superhuman.

However, Fu Yunong had long since lost faith in those so-called large bases, since the Watchers' base seemed to be just so-so.

Xiao Linfang stepped forward and invited Ru Feng to get into the car to rest. The soldier wanted to get in as well, but before Xiao Linfang could stop him, Ru Feng gently raised her hand, and the soldier immediately stopped and stood guard at the car door without moving.

Xiao Linfang led Ru Feng to sit down in the living room, poured her tea, set out some snacks, and then turned around to continue her work.

The others simply nodded to her and didn't come over to greet her.

Ru Feng didn't care at all. She slowly sipped her tea while openly looking around the interior of the RV. Her gaze swept over the group with a hint of inquiry, but it didn't offend anyone.

By the time the stall closed, including the time spent queuing, Ru Feng had waited for a full two hours, but there was no sign of impatience on her face.

"I'm sorry, City Lord Ru, for keeping you waiting." Fu Yunong sat down opposite her.

Ru Feng nodded gently, "It's alright."

"We can provide all the supplies you need, but we'll have to trouble you to send a few large trucks to load them."

Ru Feng smiled, her expression perfectly measured. "Alright, I'll make the arrangements." She gently crossed her right leg over her left, then changed the subject, "Would Miss Fu be interested in visiting our Cloud Peak City?"

Just as Fu Yunong was about to refuse, Ru Feng added, "You can rest assured that we are always honest with our guests, especially distinguished guests like you, and we would never play any tricks or schemes."

Fu Yunong shook her head again; she couldn't muster any goodwill towards any base right now.

Ru Feng showed a hint of regret. "Alright. How about we talk about collaboration?"

Fu Yunong's internal alarm bells rang: Another collaboration? She had no energy to engage in power struggles with these "politicians."

"Please don't be so quick to refuse. Listen to my story first," Ru Feng said, raising her hand to signal her to calm down before speaking slowly.

Before the disaster, Ru Feng was the top official in a certain region. Under her leadership, female entrepreneurs and scholars fared much better than in other places. But this didn't come out of thin air; it was the result of her relentless efforts at the negotiating table.

Before the disaster, survival was already difficult for women; now, it's an absolute catastrophe. With various factions vying for power, she has to pay a hundred times more than other base leaders to establish her own territory.

She frankly stated, "I admit I have a desire for power, but I am not ashamed of it. What I want to do more is to unify the current chaotic situation, lead everyone through the disaster, and provide women with a place to sleep peacefully without having to live in fear."

After Ru Feng finished speaking, the carriage fell silent.

Fu Yunong's face remained expressionless. These words sounded familiar, no different from the righteousness that Old Man Yin spoke of, only from a different perspective.

"How do you want to cooperate?" Fu Yunong asked.

"I hope you will join Cloud Peak City and work with me to develop and expand the base, break down the barriers of other forces, and create a new era in which women hold power." Ru Feng's eyes were burning with determination.

Fu Yunong refused without hesitation; she would no longer join any faction.

"If you want supplies, just exchange them for crystal cores like you did today. As for anything else, sorry, we don't want to get involved. Ah, I'll gladly accept that gift box."

Seeing her resolute attitude, Ru Feng stopped trying to persuade her and maintained her gentle demeanor. "In that case, I won't disturb you any longer. Even if the cooperation doesn't work out, you are still the most distinguished friends of Cloud Peak City, and you are always welcome to visit."

Ru Feng then entrusted the transportation and handover of supplies to her subordinates. Since they couldn't win them over, they should take advantage of the current situation to exchange for more supplies and widen the gap with other bases as soon as possible.

The crystal cores Ru Feng brought this time were worth four million points. After Fu Yunong prepared the supplies according to the list, he also added some firearms and ammunition as a reward for Ru Feng's personal visit and friendly attitude.

Five days after Ru Feng left, a sign was hung at the entrance of the "Conscience Supermarket": Three days until opening.

Three days later, Fu Yunong decided to move to a new location. Fewer and fewer survivors were coming here to exchange supplies, so it was time to leave.

Upon hearing the news, Lu Zhan ran over with a pained expression and asked, "Can you ladies take us with you? We'll serve you like slaves!"

He was able to eat his fill and stay warm with Fu Yunong every day. Just when things were getting better, they were leaving!

Fu Yunong refused, saying, "We don't need followers. We'll meet again if fate allows."

Three days later, the RV engine roared to life, and the "Conscience Supermarket" officially set off. Next stop: Cheetah Base.

They dared to send people to assassinate them; we'll settle this score with Tang Lan as well!

Before noon, the outline of the cheetah base appeared in the distance.

Compared to the Watchers' base, this place is like a simple earthen fortress; a single thunderstorm in the winter could level it to the ground.

They parked their RV in some ruins and prepared to have lunch before sneaking inside to investigate.

Suddenly, Fu Yunong was startled. The next second, the five people and the cat appeared in the space.

Shi Dong, Xiao Linfang, Lin Songsong, Huangfu Jinrang:

"???"

Where am I?

Apart from Fu Yunong, everyone else looked bewildered.

Fu Yunong had no time to explain. With a wave of her hand, a transparent display screen immediately appeared in the void, showing their location in real time.

"boom!!!"

Amidst the deafening explosion, the scene was filled with flames soaring into the sky, and mud and debris flying everywhere.

Shi Dong frowned deeply, "Grenade launcher!"

The bombing lasted a full ten minutes, and the ground shook violently, as if it were being turned upside down.

After the smoke cleared, the spot where the RV had been parked was now a bottomless crater, and the surrounding ruins were reduced to dust.

Fu Yunong couldn't help but curse, "These bastards have no sense of justice! Do they really need to go to such lengths to deal with just a few of us?!"

Shi Dong thought that a small base could not possibly have such heavy weapons; there must be someone behind it.

Fu Yunong gritted her teeth, put on her gas mask, and said, "You guys wait here."

As soon as she finished speaking, she appeared at the edge of the giant pit.

Before she could even get her footing, the whistling sound of artillery shells being fired came from afar.

"Whoosh—Boom!!!"

Fu Yunong was forced to teleport back to her spatial dimension, her face ashen. "They're going to keep us at bay!"

She took a deep breath and simply sat down on the sofa in the room. "I'm not going out! Let's see how long they can keep blowing things up!"

Xiao Linfang, Huangfu Jinrang, and Lin Songsong stood there, feeling their heads buzzing.

On one side was the devastating bombardment, and on the other was this unfamiliar space. For a moment, they didn't know which to be shocked about first.

Only Hua Hua, carefree and oblivious, began to survey this new territory, wagging her tail.

Seeing that the others were still in a daze, Fu Yunong patted the sofa and greeted them with a smile, "Don't just stand there, sit down and rest for a while."

After everyone was seated, Fu Yunong explained, "This is a space provided by the system. Let's stay here for a few days and wait until things calm down outside."

Shi Dong was the first to calm down, "The temperature here..."

“I’ve adjusted it.” Fu Yunong took off her fur coat. “It’s twenty degrees warmer than outside. It’s not exactly warm, but at least I won’t be shivering from the cold anymore.”

Shi Dong nodded; it was indeed much more comfortable than outside.

"Sister!" Huangfu Jinrang suddenly exclaimed, "What about our big RV?!"

Fu Yunong pointed to the storage room under the stairs, "It's inside. That room has a built-in shrinking function, so it can hold a lot!"

Upon hearing this, Huangfu Jinrang let out a wail and collapsed onto Xiao Linfang, saying, "My mind is blank, I need to faint for a while."

Once everyone had recovered, Fu Yunong led them on a tour of the space.

This is a duplex structure. Downstairs there is a living room, kitchen, gym and storage room, and upstairs there are four rooms with private bathrooms, fully furnished and equipped with appliances.

As they approached the restroom, Huangfu Jinrang asked curiously, "Sister, is it okay to use the restroom here?"

Fu Yunong smiled mysteriously, "Go ahead and go for it, you'll see then."

With curiosity, the group began assigning rooms. Hua Hua immediately took over the living room carpet, curled up in a ball, and slept soundly.

Outside, at the Cheetah Base's temporary command post, a square-faced man put down his binoculars, his brows furrowed. He spoke into the walkie-talkie in a deep voice, "Go check the situation."

Not long after, a report came through the walkie-talkie: "Boss, all that's left is a huge crater, not even a speck of dust! It must have been blown to smithereens!"

Just as the square-faced man relaxed a little, the woman beside him said, "These people are very strange; we must not let our guard down."

The square-faced man paused for a moment, then ordered, "Have the brothers set up camp around here and keep watch 24 hours a day!"

He sneered inwardly, thinking, "I'll see who can outlast whom."

A "yes" was answered on the walkie-talkie, and soon several tents were set up not far from the giant pit, with soldiers patrolling back and forth with guns all day long.