Shi Jiu didn't intend to be so rude, but who would have thought she would hear such words right at the door. Considering the scene in front of her, she still didn't know why those people ran away when they saw her before. She really was a fool.
She didn't expect that after the end of the world, people's hearts would become so sinister. She thought that what happened in City B was already the limit, but she didn't expect that there would be people who could break the limit. These guys are not worthy of being human beings at all.
Those people were lying on the ground, unable to react for a while after being hit by the sudden attack. The people around them were looking at them blankly, and they just stayed where they were without any intention of running away.
Shi Jiu looked around and said, "It's so weird here. These people don't seem to have any anger at all?" Could it be that the dried meat ate their brains away?
Moran, who followed them back, also frowned and looked at those people, then squatted down and patted the woman who had just been stared at.
"Are you okay?"
The woman, holding the child, stared blankly at the people who were knocked away. As if waking up from a dream, she immediately half stood up and knelt down.
"Please save my child. I... I am willing to work like a slave to repay you who saved my life. Please..." Her throat had long been dry and hoarse due to daily dehydration, and her hoarse voice echoed in the quiet base.
Shi Jiu looked at the child in front of her whose body was red. She didn't seem to have any medicine in her hands, and she didn't know if the first aid kit she had put away before could be used on the child. It was just that... they seemed to need to drink water first.
"Don't kneel down, drink some water first. This thing can cool the child down and is effective for six hours." Shi Jiu just threw a few bottles of water and an outdoor ice sticker over to see if the water replenishment would help.
The woman hurriedly took the drinking water and the ice patch and put them on the child's forehead. The child's breathing became visibly smoother. She was so shocked that she didn't even bother to drink the water first. She held the child and wanted to kowtow to Shi Jiu.
"Thank you so much, benefactor, thank you so much..." Tears unconsciously slid down her cheeks. She hugged the child tightly and felt hope for the first time.
"No need to kneel, just live well." Shi Jiu saw her posture and quickly put a mace in front of her to stop her behavior.
The few people over there also recovered. After getting up, they rushed over fiercely, "Where did you come from, you little bitch? I'll tie you up..."
Before he could finish his words, he was immediately knocked away by Shi Jiu's mace again, and several deep wounds appeared on his body.
"Mo Lan, where is your deputy leader? Let's just go and take care of him." Shi Jiu looked around. The people here didn't look like they could resist them. "Wait for us here, and take a look around here."
She asked Moran to stay here, keep an eye on those people and protect the mother and son, so that the bottles of water on them would not be stolen.
So when Zhang Fang was worrying about how to get the next meal, Shi Jiu knocked on his door openly.
"Are you Zhang Fang?" Shi Jiu looked at the ordinary man in front of him, his face still showing panic and confusion.
"Boss, why do you care who he is? Just tie him up." Li Xia beside him snorted coldly. Such a leader is not qualified at all. People outside say that he is still alive at best, but to put it bluntly, he has lost his soul and is just holding on.
"Who are you?!" Zhang Fang was shocked when he heard their words. Could they be the outsiders that the man in black mentioned?
"We are from Sifang Town, City B. We originally came here to cooperate with you in a business, but looking at your situation, I'm afraid..." These were Shi Jiu's true words. She just wanted to do a business.
"Si...Sifang Town..." Zhang Fang came back to his senses. He was not exposed, so what was there to be afraid of?
So he perked up and responded, "Oh...it's you. I mentioned this when I was in contact with Director Li before. I wonder what business you want to discuss?"
Shi Jiu is not in a hurry now, as the issues outside have not been resolved yet.
"Business is not urgent yet. We witnessed something not so good when we just came in. I wonder if the deputy leader knows about it?" Shi Jiu stared at him closely and repeated what happened at the door.
Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Zhang Fang breathed a sigh of relief and straightened up. "Oh, you're talking about the child. Actually, there's nothing we can do. You've seen what's happening in the apocalypse now. If this child dies, it will give us some more food."
He actually made it sound like a non-issue, as if he didn't take it to heart at all.
"Oh? Is this how all the children in your base are treated?" Shi Jiu didn't expect that he had no remorse at all, and what he said was creepy.
"Of course not. This isn't a special period..." Zhang Fang didn't think there was anything wrong with this. These days, it's all about the survival of the fittest. It's just a few kids, isn't it? He let them die naturally before taking action.
It was so hateful that I just mentioned this matter to the leader, but he scolded me and threatened to kick me out if I mentioned it again. That damn guy didn't even look at who brought back so much dried meat.
So when he wanted to take people out of City C two days ago, he finally couldn't help it and directly instigated a lot of people to follow him and locked up those who supported leaving. Speaking of which, no food had been sent over in the past few days, and he didn't know if they would starve to death. It was just in time...
While he was still thinking about things, countless vines tied him up. Only then did he come to his senses and found that everyone at the scene was under their control.
"You are just a beast in human skin!" Zhao Jin was not satisfied after tying the man up, so he slapped him twice. Chen Hua and the others were not polite either, and used their supernatural powers on him, making him howl in pain.
"What are you doing here? I have no grudge against you, why..." Zhang Fang did not reflect on his own behavior at all and felt a little puzzled.
"This is the first time I've seen such a shameless person. Who sent the dried meat you distributed recently?" Shi Jiu hit him on the thigh with a mace.
"I don't know what you are talking about...ah!" Before he could deny it, the severe pain in his thigh made his face grim.
"It's the man in black, right?" Shi Jiu didn't miss the panic in his eyes. "Where is the leader of the base?"
Shi Jiu didn't hope that the man in black would stay here. 001 had just told her that there was only the stench of dried meat here and nothing else unusual.
"Huh... You want to find them? Unfortunately, I have locked them up for a long time... It has been several days. Do you think they will starve to death?" Zhang Fang stopped struggling and looked at them with malice, as if to say, "What can you do to me?"
"Ah!" He was greeted by an even heavier stick. There was only a "crack" and the crisp sound of broken bones. Shi Jiu was too lazy to look at his miserable appearance. This kind of person would end up in the small dark room anyway.
"Keep a good eye on him. Chen Hua, you guys come with me to look for him." With 001 here, is she still afraid of not finding the person?
Soon, they found He Huai, the former leader of the Guangming Base, who had been imprisoned for several days in a secret room. There were also many other people inside.
"I didn't expect someone would come to rescue us." He Huai, who was in his thirties and in the prime of his life, was not surprised to see the newcomers. Zhang Fang outside had committed many evil deeds and would be wiped out sooner or later. "I just don't know who you are..."
"We are from City B. I'm Li Sui. I've contacted you before." Li Sui stepped forward and explained the whole story. He Huai didn't expect it to be such a coincidence that someone would come to the place he wanted to go.
"Captain He, did you eat the dried meat provided by Zhang Fang? I wonder if you felt any discomfort?"
After Shi Jiu came in, he found that the mental state of the survivors was very abnormal. They were all dull, and they seemed to be more energetic only when eating.
"We sensed something was amiss and checked it every way we could think of. There's nothing wrong with eating it, but we don't know what the aftereffects will be. Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do. There's practically nothing edible left in the base. We used to go out and hunt mutant animals, but the weather is so unpredictable, and the animals around us are becoming increasingly scarce."
He Huaiyi was also troubled by this problem. They had no choice but to accept the dried meat. "We have been locked up here for several days. With the physical strength of the superpowers, our physical strength can barely support our movements. I wonder what the situation is like in the base now?"
"Except for what that beast Zhang Fang wanted to do, the lack of a source of dried meat, and the fact that most people in the base have some mental problems, everything else is okay." Shi Jiu briefly recounted what happened outside.
After hearing this, the people present complained in their hearts, aren’t these a big deal?
"That bastard, I should have gotten rid of him the first time he was mentioned." He Huai was in a terrible mood after hearing what Zhang Fang had done. He had thought that he was just anxious about having no food and was thinking too much, but he didn't expect that he was just a rotten guy.
"That Zhang Fang is such a beast!"
"That's right. He looked so honest before."
"You can only know a person's face but not his heart!"
After hearing this, other people in the secret room also issued angry condemnations, and some even worried that their family and friends would suffer the same fate.
Shi Jiu looked at the noisy secret room and said to He Huai, "Chief He, why don't you come out and talk? I have a rough solution to the problem of dried meat."
001 has said before that if you eat dried meat for a long time, toxins may remain in the body. The solution is also very simple, which is to eat the things produced by the system. The current weather is not suitable for others to go back to the town with them, so it is a good opportunity to sell the things.
After He Huai went out, he didn't even have time to rest and tidy up, but went to check the status of those people in the base. After returning to the meeting room, his face was serious, and he also saw the problem.
"Shi... Boss, I wonder what the solution you mentioned before was?" There was no better way now. The food in their base was basically used up, and now they were out of ammunition and food. They could only pin their hopes on Shi Jiu.
Shi Jiu gestured to Qin Lou beside him. Qin Lou waved his hand, and a tall, large-capacity freezer appeared in front of them. The freezer had been carefully tidied, and the original empty space on it was now filled with food and drinks.
"Eat the food in our town, and the toxins remaining in the dried meat will slowly be cleared out." Shi Jiu looked at their shocked expressions and thought, it seems like they haven't eaten yet?
So they put out another self-service vending machine, and the instant noodles and sausages inside are really good, so let’s sponsor some this time.
"This is the first time we meet, and I believe you all tend to believe that seeing is believing. Let's eat something first and then talk."
Shi Jiu's backpack had everything he needed, and he had prepared hot water long ago. Soon, more than a dozen buckets of fragrant instant noodles were placed in front of them, constantly tempting them.
"This... Boss Shi, this is such a waste of money..." He Huai wanted to refuse, but the smell of instant noodles kept wafting out, constantly challenging his sanity, and he couldn't say the words of refusal.
Shi Jiu couldn't help but feel funny when he saw that their eyes were almost glued to the instant noodles and they looked embarrassed.
"Don't worry, Chief He. This stuff of mine is not like what those people do. These are all normal foods, and they are also good for the bodies of people with special abilities." Shi Jiu boasted without hesitation and pushed all the instant noodles to them.
He Huai was no longer polite and divided the instant noodles among the people and started to eat them with relish. They thought it was so delicious when they smelled it, but when they finished eating it, they found that the happiness in their hearts was about to overflow after entering their mouths.
The entire conference room was filled with the sound of slurping noodles. Shi Jiu relaxed, leaning back against the soft backrest, and whispered to Qin Lou beside him, "It seems that our cooperation later should be successful."
The sofas along the wall of the conference room all had long backrests. Shi Jiu was sitting quite close to them, and their clothes were rubbing against each other. Qin Lou said calmly, "It shouldn't be too difficult. It just requires a lot of work and may need to be discussed. Let me go and talk to them later, okay?"
Shi Jiu was naturally happy to hear that Qin Lou was willing to take over this matter. She didn't have to think about it anymore, which was great.
"Thank you for your help, Xiao Qin. I made some delicious food before I left. We can have it in the car tonight!"
Shi Jiu glanced at the time. It was only afternoon. It seemed that he should finish the matter in City C and stay here for one night. He would see the situation tomorrow morning. If there was no problem, he would go straight to the next city.
After He Huai and the others had eaten and drunk their fill and leaned back in their chairs with satisfied looks on their faces, Qin Lou stepped forward and laid out his plans for cooperation with them.
Shi Jiu was not idle either. He left a few people with Qin Lou and took Jiang Xiao out to check the situation.
When they arrived at the place where they had met the mother and son, the men had already been dealt with by Moran and were still unconscious on the ground.
Shi Jiu glanced at the people around him, and they still had dazed expressions. Shi Jiu had seen He Huai and the others before, and they seemed to be fine. Moran in front of him was also fine, and even Zhang Fang and the others were normal.
Moran learned from Shi Jiu that Zhang Fang had targeted her because he had previously caught him meeting the man in black. Moran was speechless, as she had no recollection of such a thing.
When Shi Jiu saw her expression, he guessed that it was probably an unexpected disaster. After all, it was possible that she just glanced at him casually at that time, but people imagined something strange.
"It's strange to say, didn't you eat dried meat before? Why do you look fine?" Jiang Xiao, who was standing nearby, realized that there was something wrong with the dried meat after looking around, and asked curiously.
"Maybe it's because I wash it with plenty of water before eating it. I really can't stand the taste, so I just light a fire and roast it until I have no other choice, then I take it down and eat it." Moran waved her hand. It would be a waste if she didn't use her special ability.
"As for other people, as far as I know, many people don't even wash them and just eat them raw." Moran said as he thought of that scene, and he felt very bad. After hearing this, Shi Jiu also felt that those people were really cruel people who could tolerate such a strong smell.
"But what can they do?"
The most Moran could do was help those around her clean up. She couldn't possibly provide that much power to the entire base. "You cleaned it more thoroughly. Chief He and his men haven't eaten in days. Zhang Fang before... they might not have eaten the jerky at all."
It seems that eating a certain amount of this dried meat can cause great harm to the human body.
"Don't worry, host. As long as they eat the system's food, they will slowly recover. They are just a little sluggish now, and it won't affect their eating." 001 popped up in his mind. It had checked and found no other abnormalities within a few kilometers. The mastermind behind it ran quite fast.
After hearing this, Shi Jiu handed the antipyretic medicine from his first aid kit to the mother, "This is antipyretic medicine. It says it's safe for all ages. Think about it. This isn't a good way for the child to continue like this."
Even after giving her the Ice Baby patch and drinking some water, the pain on her face improved a lot, but the child's breathing only became a little smoother and the illness was still there.
"Thank you..." The mother held the child in her arms and without hesitation, she crushed the medicine and fed it to the child. This was her last hope.
As they were watching the child's condition, Qin Lou walked out leisurely, "Boss, the deal has been finalized. They're willing to buy the machines and supplies."
In fact, there is no need to talk about it at all. Having supplies is already a great thing, and when they learned that they were purchased with crystal cores, they were overjoyed.
They fought countless zombies, but those exquisite crystal cores were of no use at all. Now they could be used to exchange for their survival, which was definitely worth the money. Moreover, even if Shi Jiu asked them to use other things in return, they would not be able to produce anything.
When Shi Jiu heard the good news, he immediately went to see the crystal cores he had received.
He Huai finally decided to install a series of equipment in his base. He calculated the crystal cores remaining in the base. Because they were of no use before, most people would give up digging for crystal cores after defeating the zombies.
But he already had some ideas in mind. At first, he thought he could do some research on it to see if he could find a way to crack it. He didn't expect that it would now become the key to saving his life.
He Huai directly ordered two air conditioners, two ice makers, a large-capacity freezer and matching starting energy, as well as two of the self-service vending machines that had been used for simple storage before, and asked Shi Jiu to stock the food inside.
The crystal cores will be handed over to Shi Jiu anyway, so it's better not to waste time and deal with the environment first. Of course, to avoid the other party worrying that they will run away and not be able to supply the goods, Qin Lou also provided the first wave of materials, which are now in the cabinet waiting for people to buy them.
"Are two air conditioners really enough?" Shi Jiu had just taken a walk around. There were quite a few people in this base. Although the air conditioner had a large range, it was probably too difficult for so many people to use it together.
"He Huai has done a rough inspection. Although the area is 500 square meters, the actual usage must be larger. He plans to have everyone sleep on the floor in the two halls during their breaks. He can barely fit in more than 10,000 people. He's probably more concerned about the food."
Qin Lou also watched from the side. He Huai wanted to keep more crystal cores to purchase food. As for the environment, as long as the temperature dropped a little to a level where normal life could be achieved, it would be fine.
Shi Jiu also put the outdoor ice baby sticker on the shelf, but asked them to buy it themselves if they needed it. He also took the price difference into consideration. When choosing food before, he chose big steamed buns, some eggs and other foods that were well produced in the town and put them on the shelf.
A bag of steamed buns can feed a person for a day, and she only sells them for 3 crystal cores. Of course, this is also because she produces them herself and the cost is quite low. However, this also ensures to some extent that they at least have something to eat and will not starve to death.
After He Huai was rescued, he ate something and negotiated a deal with Qin Lou. He immediately took people to decorate the two halls, roughly drawing the boundaries, and allowing those who were still struggling in the high temperature outside to come in quickly to rest and buy something to eat.
As for why they would rather stay outside than enter those buildings, it is naturally to find a cool place outside with a little breeze. It is really like an oven inside, stuffy and hot. After staying there for a while, you will be covered in sweat and feel sticky and uncomfortable.
The people who had been staying outside suddenly heard He Huai's voice and were still a little dazed. They had previously decided to follow He Huai to City B, but in the end, they found that the person leading them had been replaced.
Zhang Fang had been using food to control them from leaving. They could not find much edible food in the city, and even if they wanted to go to City B, they didn't know the direction. They had no choice but to stay and endure the small amount of food and hot weather every day.
"Is... is that the leader's voice? Am I dreaming?!"
"Has this weather made me crazy? I actually saw steamed buns!"
"Maybe we died together. I saw it and felt the coolness. I must be crazy..."
The people in the Guangming Base were in a bad mood due to the pressure of survival and the influence of the mild toxins in the dried meat. When they found He Huai and others standing in front of them, they thought they were hallucinating or had gone to see God. For a while, they shouted with their mouths, but their bodies did not move.
Finally, when they discovered that all this was not an illusion, the entire base was in an uproar. Although their bodies were not feeling well, they were in unexpectedly good spirits when they saw the normal food within their reach. The chattering instantly made the base lively.
Shi Jiu saw that their expressions were no longer as lifeless as they had been in the afternoon. Now they were full of energy and smiles, and their whole bodies were glowing with vitality. He secretly breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.
Fortunately it was solved.
The author has something to say:
I touched the little hand of the sixth girl and was so happy.
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