Chapter 58, Chapter 14: Female Supporting Character in an Apocalyptic Novel

The air in the council chamber seemed to freeze. The peace faction, led by the research director, finally realized that the military was about to rebel.

"Zhao Kun, are you crazy?!"

Commander Zhao raised his gun behind his back and pointed it at the dean, a cold smile playing on his lips.

"You're still somewhat useful, so I don't want to kill you for now. If you know what's good for you, just shut up."

The dean was furious; his frail body trembled as he pointed a trembling finger at Commander Zhao.

"you……"

Lord Su stood up, patted the dean on the shoulder, then took out a remote control from his pocket and skillfully pressed a few buttons.

A video began playing on the white projection screen hanging in the council chamber.

The image shows the scene in Zone E, taken from above.

The fields are lush and green, and clear water flows from the repaired pipes.

The city dwellers, bent over and busy weeding, and the children, running and playing freely in the streets, had all taken off their heavy oxygen tanks, their faces beaming with happiness and joy.

"This is what you call the old almanac?"

Lord Su's voice suddenly rose in pitch.

"Zhao Kun! Open your eyes and look! District E has accomplished in just one year what the dungeons have strived for for a hundred years but failed to achieve! Tell me why?!"

Commander Zhao's smile froze for a moment, and the soldiers behind him couldn't help but look at the projection, their eyes inevitably revealing a deep envy and dazed look.

"Don't similar scenarios exist in areas A and B?"

Mr. Wang spoke slowly, refuting Lord Su in a measured and unhurried manner.

Both in areas A and B, the animals have achieved the ability to breathe independently without oxygen tanks and are capable of planting.

"Sector E is just lucky. They stole the resources that should have belonged to Sectors A and B, which is why they have this illusion today. Without energy, they can't last long, can they?"

The dean looked extremely unwell.

"In your eyes, are all people outside of Zones A and B not human? Do they all deserve to die?!"

"He's not dead, is he?"

Commander Zhao retorted in a light tone, showing no regard for the people in Zones C and D.

This attitude made the city lord's faction extremely resentful.

Outside the council chamber, a commotion suddenly arose again, startling both Lord Su and Commander Zhao.

The Minister of the Interior rushed in, probably because of the urgency of the situation. He didn't even notice the tense atmosphere in the parliament hall and looked very anxious.

"Lord, something terrible has happened! Residents of District CD have started storming the energy distribution center! They're demanding the government return their fresh oxygen and allow them to allocate their own energy!"

Before Lord Su could react, Commander Zhao suddenly burst into laughter.

"Lord Su! Do you see this? This is the result of your indulgence of these lowly people! Once order collapses, the underground city will be doomed!"

He finally lost his patience and waved his hand dismissively.

"Guards! Invite the 'City Lord' to the lounge. The council will be temporarily taken over by the military!"

The soldiers hesitated for a moment, but under Commander Zhao's cold gaze, they still surrounded Lord Su.

Lord Su did not struggle. Leaning on his cane, he left the council hall under the guard of the soldiers.

Commander Zhao sat at the head of the table, a position reserved for the city lord.

He put his feet on the table, glanced at the officials below who were indignant but dared not speak out, and sneered.

"It seems you are all quite dissatisfied. Well then, you may all go and take a rest!"

After the city lord's men were all taken away, Mr. Wang took out what he had prepared long ago.

"Commander, here's what you requested."

The dean, with his sharp eyes, noticed what Mr. Wang was holding before leaving. His eyes widened in fury, and he began to resist violently.

"Zhao Kun! What have you done to the research institute?!"

Unfortunately, his question went unanswered, and he was quickly knocked unconscious and dragged away.

What Commander Zhao was holding was a uniquely designed communicator.

He glanced at it twice, and his expression relaxed.

"Well done."

Mr. Wang was sensible enough not to ask what the communicator was for, and just smiled demurely.

"Just don't forget what you promised me, Commander."

"Don't worry, once we take over Zone E, Xu Qingzhou and that Lin Xiaoman are both at your disposal!"

The power struggle in Area A ended with Commander Zhao, who had control of the military, emerging victorious.

The first thing he did after taking office was to send in the army and forcefully suppress the riots in the CD district.

With Commander Zhao's permission, the army acted with extreme arrogance, killing on the spot anyone who disobeyed orders.

They have an attitude of "those who obey me prosper, those who oppose me perish."

People died one after another in the CD area. Those who were still alive were all in danger. No matter how dissatisfied they were, they could only swallow their anger and dared not cause any more trouble.

Commander Zhao swiftly quelled the riots in Zone CD and completely took control of the underground city by force, without rushing to take action against Zone E.

He still had things to do.

When he arrived at the "rest room" with the communicator he had obtained from Mr. Wang, he found it completely empty.

The city lord, who should have been imprisoned here to "rest," is nowhere to be found.

Commander Zhao's face darkened instantly, and he kicked the soldier guarding the door.

Where are they?!

The soldier swayed, glanced at the empty room, and instantly broke out in a cold sweat.

"No...I don't know...No one has gone in or out..."

Just as Commander Zhao was about to get angry, another soldier rushed in.

"Commander! Something terrible has happened! The officials and researchers have been kidnapped by people from the black market!"

Commander Zhao, who was already angry about the city lord's disappearance, became even angrier.

"You couldn't even stop the black market people? What are you good for? A bunch of useless trash!"

The messenger was trembling with fear.

"They...they seem to have new types of weapons..."

Commander Zhao's face darkened even more.

"What are you standing there for? Go after them!"

But the people in the black market are like slippery eels, quick to act and decisive, and have already escaped through smuggling channels. How could they possibly catch up with them?

When Commander Zhao arrived at the Black Market headquarters in Area B with his men, the place was already deserted.

Meanwhile, the people from the black market were driving a large truck into Zone E.

Several large trucks roared and stopped outside the building in the city center, drawing curious glances from the residents of District E.

A person jumped out of the passenger seat of the lead car.

The man was in his forties, burly and imposing, and clearly not someone to be trifled with.

He closed the car door, grinned at the vigilant gatekeeper outside the building, revealing a set of gold-plated teeth.

"Please inform them that Hei San has returned from his mission!"

While the goalkeeper hesitated, Xu Qingzhou came down first.

"It's alright, you can go now."

The goalkeeper hesitated for a moment, nodded, and returned to his post.

Xu Qingzhou looked at Hei San.

"You've brought everyone?"

Hei San touched his nose, feeling somewhat guilty.

"There was someone we couldn't save..."

"who?"

Hei Sangeng felt guilty; the burly man was now somewhat hesitant.

"City Lord."

"???"

Xu Qingzhou's eyes turned cold.

"Our deal was primarily to rescue the city lord, and now you're telling me the city lord wasn't saved?"

Hei San hurriedly began to defend himself.

"It's not that we're useless! It's not that we didn't want to save them! It's just that by the time our men arrived, the city lord was already gone!"

Xu Qingzhou frowned, and Hei San didn't dare to delay, speaking rapidly.

"It's not that I didn't try my best! My men have practically searched the entire A district but still haven't found the city lord! You can't go back on your word!"

"So, who did you save?"

Hei San rubbed his hands together, revealing his little finger which was missing half, and chuckled. He then had someone open the back door of the truck and pointed at it.

"look!"

Xu Qingzhou looked over and saw carriages crammed with people, tied up and lying haphazardly, their fates unknown.

"..."

Who are these people?

Without him even asking, Hei San had already introduced himself.

"These are all the city lord's men. They refused to submit to that bastard Zhao Kun, so they were locked up!"

His rough voice carried a hint of ingratiation.

At the time, he couldn't find the city lord no matter what he did. He was afraid that Xu Qingzhou would change his mind and refuse to accept them into Zone E. So, he gritted his teeth and simply brought all of them out.

He went through a lot of trouble to get them all out!

“I didn’t tie them up! It was all Zhao Kun’s doing! We were in a hurry to leave and didn’t have time to untie them.”

"..."

Xu Qingzhou then looked at another carriage. The people inside were still awake, including men, women, and children, and their clothes showed that they were living well.

They were looking in this direction with alarm and vigilance.

"These too?"

Hei San scratched the back of his head.

"No, they are the family members of these officials. I thought I couldn't let them die without descendants, so I simply brought them out with me. However, the situation was urgent at the time, and there was no time to explain. For those who refused to cooperate, I used a little trick."

"..."

"So, we did a good deed, right? Let us stay in Zone E!"

Xu Qingzhou pressed his temples, his belly full of curses, not knowing where to begin.

The black market boss's style was completely different from what he had imagined, and also completely different from what the original owner remembered.

It's absolutely toxic.

He couldn't just abandon the people now that they'd been rescued, so he could only wave helplessly and call for people to bring them down, untie them one by one, and put them in the empty building.

The people from the black market stayed in Zone E.

Xu Qingzhou didn't hide their identities from the people in Zone E. He originally thought they would resist and refuse to accept it, but to his surprise, they accepted it very well.

It's not that they have no problem with the people in the black market, but rather that they have a blind admiration for Xu Qingzhou and Yu Wanwan.

They will obey and do whatever they say or ask without hesitation.

The people in the black market also abandoned their black market practices in Zone E, behaving no differently from ordinary people.

Nonsense! We can breathe fresh air, grow crops, and eat fresh ingredients without spending a penny. Why would we want to go back to the miserable days of risking our lives like before?

Both sides were willing to accept each other, and before long they became close friends and successfully integrated into one another.

If this group of people were to go out now, who would recognize them as ruthless, vicious black market operators who used to kill without blinking an eye?

This relieved Xu Qingzhou, at least he didn't have to mediate or give any advice.

But that's a story for another time.

At this time, Xu Qingzhou had made arrangements for the group of people in the black market and went to the building where the officials of District A were being housed.

After they woke up, he briefly explained the current situation and then began to inquire about the whereabouts of City Lord Su.

Unfortunately, these people were not imprisoned with City Lord Su. After City Lord Su was taken away from the council hall, they never saw him again, and Xu Qingzhou couldn't get any information out of him.

Having no other choice, he had to put the matter aside for the time being and, after inquiring about the identities of these officials, immediately assigned them to different positions.

Since we're already here and can't go back anyway, we might as well stay and shine.

These officials, still dazed and confused about their inexplicable arrival in Zone E, were overwhelmed by a deluge of work and plunged into a flurry of activity.

By the time they finally finished their busy work and returned to their assigned homes to sit with their families, they had already unconsciously integrated into Zone E.

A group of officials who were slow to realize the situation: "..."

A note from the author: I've been so busy with home renovations these past few days, I'm completely overwhelmed.

Fortunately, it's almost finished, and it seems that errors like this won't occur again.

Please help me find any typos or bugs! I was in such a rush that I didn't have time to check, hehehe [Let me see][Let me see][Let me see]