Chapter 7

“It is indeed expensive,” Jiang Zhi said. “However, we can take out a loan like before, but the condition for the loan is that the able-bodied young men in the family must sign up to do hard labor and infrastructure work for the base.”

Ye Qingyun clicked his tongue – this requirement was too demanding.

Jiang Shu couldn't help but ask, "A-Zhi, how many points can you earn in a day by doing hard labor at the base?"

Just as Jiang Zhi was about to speak, Ye Qingyun objected, "No, no, why do hard labor? It sounds like being exiled to the frontier in ancient times. No one in our family is allowed to go. We can just continue living in low-rent housing. No matter how bad this place is, it's still better than our previous post."

Jiang Shan reassured his wife, "Don't worry, it might not be a bad thing. Let's find out more tomorrow."

Ye Qingyun knew exactly what he was thinking and retorted angrily, "Jiang Dashan, don't think I don't know what you're thinking. If you dare to bring Dashu to register, I'll make sure you never have a wife!!"

Ye Qingyun wasn't afraid of hardship, but she was worried that the father and son would be assigned to build the city wall outside the city.

She had heard that the Ancheng base had been expanding.

She would rather live a less difficult life than let Jiang Shan and his son take risks.

Jiang Shan quickly smiled apologetically, "How could I? Without your permission as the head of the family, how could I dare to make such a decision on my own?"

After saying that, he winked at his youngest daughter.

Jiang Zhi, having received her father's hint, quickly tried to smooth things over: "Mom, don't you know Dad? Doesn't he know my brother? Is he the kind of person who can endure the hardship of carrying bricks?"

Jiang Shu was very dissatisfied: "A-Zhi, you underestimate me too much—why did you pinch me when I went to do that?"

Jiang Zhi glared at her brother and changed the subject, saying, "By the way, Dad, I remember our toolbox came with us, right?"

This was something she prepared specifically in case her car broke down on a road trip.

Jiang Shan: "It's in my backpack, what's wrong with it?"

"My brother just bought a weapon; it's highly poisonous, so we need to deal with it."

“Yes, yes, we need to deal with it.” Jiang Shu didn’t notice anything wrong with Jiang Zhi’s words and happily took out the bone stick: “A-Zhi said that this bone is very hard and easier to use than the daggers we have. Dad, can you sharpen this end for me?”

Jiang Shan put on his gloves and pondered for a while. "It's not difficult, but it takes a bit of effort."

He took out his toolbox, selected an electric grinder, and began to grind.

This thing is charged by solar energy, and it's a veteran product of the Jiang family.

Ye Qingyun stopped dwelling on the loan and asked while clearing the dishes, "This doesn't look particularly special. Are you sure it's better than the iron rod? How many points does it cost?"

Jiang Zhi: "70."

With a cost of 50, you should at least make a profit of 20.

Then she heard her mother's voice rise eight times: "What?! 70?!"

Ye Qingyun slammed down her bowl and chopsticks with a loud "smack" and slapped Jiang Shu across the face. "Jiang Shu, have you gotten too bold? You actually pestered your sister to buy you this thing! Don't you know what kind of situation our family is in right now?!"

Jiang Shu howled as he was beaten, "Mom, I didn't ask you to buy this, Azhi bought it and gave it to me!"

Ye Qingyun sneered, "Only a fool would believe your nonsense!"

The Nine Yin White Bone Palm followed, the sounds of "slap slap slap" stinging the flesh. Ye Qingyun gritted his teeth, "Next time I find out you're tricking your sister into buying you things, see how I deal with you!"

The ginger tree cast a pleading look at the ginger branch.

Jiang Zhi silently looked away, pretending not to see.

Jiang Shu endured everything with tears in her eyes.

As the biggest traitor in the Jiang family, he could choose not to expose his dearest sister, but he absolutely had to get a share of the 20 points he earned with his body!

The family of four argued for a while, and after the smell in the house dissipated, they went to the bathroom one after another to take a warm bath before finally lying down peacefully on the wooden plank.

It was already 9 p.m.

The lights at the base were turned off on time.

Looking out of the window of their small house, they could vaguely see the buildings across the street.

Many people lit candles to continue their nighttime activities.

The family of four didn't plan to continue cleaning, since they all had tasks to complete tomorrow.

There were two wooden plank beds. Jiangzhi and her mother lay on one, her father and brother lay on the other, and the couple lay in the middle.

They didn't have many things, but the 20-square-meter room was decorated to feel like home.

This rare peaceful night reminded Jiang Zhi of her family.

"Dad, do you think Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, and Sui Sui are still alive?"

Sui Sui is the grandson of her uncle's family.

Uncle Jiang Hai and Aunt Wu Xiu had a son, who was their cousin Jiang Jun. Before the catastrophe, Jiang Jun got married and had a son and a daughter. The eldest, Jiang Sui, was only 6 years old.

When they were young, the two siblings and their cousin Jiang Jun grew up together. Their relationship was almost like that of biological siblings. Not long after Jiang Jun's second child, Jiang Sui, was born, Jiang Jun got divorced, and Jiang Zhi helped take care of him for two years.

Jiang Shan opened his closed eyes. He was silent for a while before answering, "Your eldest and second uncles are both capable and filial. They must still be alive."

Jiang Zhi pursed her lips.

The next second, Ye Qingyun grasped her hand. "Azhi, don't think about it anymore, go to sleep early."

Jiang Zhi knew her mother was trying to comfort her, so she hummed in agreement and closed her eyes.

Perhaps due to too much work today, her body had reached its limit, and Jiang Zhi quickly fell into a deep sleep.

At five o'clock the next morning, the sky was just beginning to lighten.

In recent years, the weather has become increasingly hot, with midday temperatures reaching an astonishing 60 degrees Celsius.

Therefore, the working hours at the base are from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

When Jiang Zhi woke up, Jiang Shan had already left.

Ye Qingyun was preparing to cook.

Breakfast was instant noodles cooked with leftover rice water from yesterday.

Ye Qingyun stuffed the gap between the bed and the door with clothes and sprayed deodorizer in the room.

Jiang Zhi rubbed her eyes. "Where's my dad?"

"The meeting hall is already open. Your dad went to line up to get the testing equipment and also went to find that Captain Luo to find out what's going on."

Their top priority today is, of course, getting the SUV back.

Ye Qingyun: "Wake up your brother too, we still have things to do today."

Even without ginger twigs calling, the smell of instant noodles was enough to whet ginger twigs' appetites.

"Mom, did you eat such a big meal today?"

Nowadays, a single serving of instant noodles can be considered a feast for a family of four.

Ye Qingyun felt a pang of sadness, but fearing his children might notice, he put on a stern face and said, "We all have tasks to complete today, so hurry up and get ready to get up."

The brother and sister got up and washed their faces with the water they had prepared the night before.

Ye Qingyun said from the side, "Your dad and I have already discussed it. We'll go pick up the testing equipment together first, and then we'll discuss the specific arrangements for what comes next."

As they were talking, Ye Qingyun had already divided up the breakfast.

Actually, there wasn't much; it was mostly leftover rice porridge from yesterday.

Jiang Zhi wondered if it was just her imagination, but since eating meat porridge yesterday, she felt much lighter and her mind was clear. She seemed to have inexhaustible energy. If she concentrated, the terrain dashboard in her mind could even cover a radius of 500 meters.

Most importantly, even after a whole night, my stomach still felt very full.

But these unusual symptoms only appeared in Jiang Zhi.

Ye Qingyun and Jiang Shu only felt a significant feeling of fullness; otherwise, it was no different from usual.

Just then, Jiang Shan returned from outside.

Ye Qingyun poured him a bowl of noodles: "Dashan, how did it go? Did you ask?"

As Jiang Shan handed out the identification devices to the group, he said, "We're lucky today. Captain Luo isn't on a mission. He agreed to come with us to bring the car back, but he'll get 2,000 points as payment."

Ye Qingyun was startled: "2000 points! We don't have that many!"

Jiang Shan smiled and said, "I came back to discuss selling the car with you."

“I’ve thought it over. Ancheng base seems safe right now, so we can settle down here.”

“Our off-road vehicle is in perfect working order, and the base is in dire need of this kind of resource. If we can successfully bring it back, selling it will not only pay for the 2,000 points, but will most likely also be enough for us to buy a piece of land.”

Jiang Shu felt a pang of regret. "Are you really going to sell it? Can't we just keep it ourselves? Maybe we can find Grandpa, Grandma, and Uncle today. If they have land and houses, then we'll have bought it for free."

In Jiang Shu's memory, with his two uncles, both skilled in technology, the Jiang family was sure to have a good life.

Jiang Zhi pouted, "If we don't sell, even if we manage to get the car back, we might not be able to keep it."

This is indeed the main reason why Jiang Shan plans to sell the car.

The car was no small item, and after it was transported back to the base, the family became the target of everyone's criticism.

Jiang Shan smiled and said, "That's right, so selling it will maximize our profits, provided that the car can be safely transported back."

Ye Qingyun asked, "Are you planning to sell this to Chen Li?"

"I asked around, and the price he offered was fair. He's a good trading partner."

Jiang Zhi asked curiously, "Our cars are so expensive, how can he afford them?"

Jiang Shan explained, "His brother is a mutant, and he's part of an exploration team. They have a lot of people, and they just happen to be short of a vehicle."

In addition, their vehicles are off-road vehicles, which are easier to modify; otherwise, they wouldn't be able to sell for this price.

Jiang Zhi understood; it seemed that Chen Li was also a middleman.

The group ate breakfast while strapping the testing device to their hands.

This thing is very convenient; you can use it simply by registering your iris and fingerprint.

Jiang Zhi transferred the points from the found testing device to Ms. Ye Qingyun.

A total of 460 points.

Ye Qingyun asked doubtfully, "Are you sure they're all here?"

Jiang Zhi, without changing her expression, handed over the testing device she had found: "Why don't you check it, Mom?"

Ye Qingyun's doubts were dispelled by her youngest daughter's candid demeanor. "Alright, Mom doesn't trust you?"

Jiang Shan looked at the found detector and was still worried: "Azhi, you should cancel the identity of this found detector later, otherwise it will be troublesome if it is found later."

Jiang Zhi nodded.

After deciding to sell the car, the family quickly divided up the tasks for the day.

Ye Qingyun and Jiang Zhi were gathering information at the base and also looking for members of the Jiang family.

Jiang Shan led the mutants from the exploration team to retrieve the vehicle.

Jiang Shu, being the strongest man in the family, stayed behind to guard the low-rent housing area.

Jiang Shu wanted to object, but Jiang Zhi quickly spoke up: "Brother, with Dad gone, you are the pillar of our family. If the house is broken into, only you can keep it in check."

They have a lot of stuff; their complete camping gear alone is worth a lot of points.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu thought it made sense and reluctantly agreed: "Alright."

This place really wouldn't have survived without him.

After the family of four discussed it and made their own plans, they each set about their tasks.

As Jiang Shan was leaving, he handed the bone stick to his father, saying, "Dad, can you try out this new weapon for me?"

Last night, Jiang Shan sharpened one end of the bone stick into a cone. Because it was too hard, it wasn't very sharp. Although it wasn't finished yet, it would be more useful than a short dagger when he wore gloves.

Jiang Shan knew his son's intentions and jokingly scolded, "You brat."

After Jiang Shan left, Ye Qingyun and Jiang Zhi also went out.

Ye Qingyun instructed her son: "Stay at home and fix any broken things when you have time. Contact us directly if anything happens."

The detector also has a very important function: it can be used as a communicator in the base.

Jiang Shu studied mechanical repair before the disaster, which is quite useful in this wasteland era where "repairing and mending takes three years".

He responded listlessly.

While Ye Qingyun wasn't paying attention, Jiang Zhi, who was standing to the side,

I transferred 10 points to Jiang Shu.

He whispered to himself, "I'll come pick you up later."

Jiang Shu's mood brightened, and he grinned, giving her a knowing look.