Chapter 42 Chapter 42
One of the thieves was shot dead in the street, and the remaining two were so frightened that they lost the thought of resistance. If they were caught, at most they would be punished and have to return the food, but if they escaped, they would lose their lives.
Cold metal handcuffs were used to cuff the two men's wrists, and under the watchful eyes of the patrol team, they went to the place where they hid the stolen goods.
They hid the things in a ruin about 200 meters away from the base, in a collapsed convenience store, covered with torn cardboard, and did not attract anyone's attention. They did not take them home because they were thieves and naturally knew that thieves were hard to guard against. A home without the protection of a base was the most dangerous place.
The thief was caught in time and the three bags of grain were still intact. The patrol team carried the three bags of grain back and returned them to the family from whom the grain was stolen.
The two thieves were each given 30 lashes and then thrown out of the base. Currently, the information of the residents of each province's base is interoperable, which means that the stain of this theft will remain in the file and cannot be covered even after the end of the world. Other bases will also consider whether to approve their application to become official residents of the base based on this information.
Simply put, this life is over.
The four people who got the food back were filled with gratitude. They bowed deeply to the patrol team and Chen Guoan, and paused for a while before standing up.
Three days later, a silk banner sewn by an elderly person in the family was delivered to the house. On it were a few big words: Caring for the people and doing practical things, being close to the masses and solving their problems.
This made Chen Guoan very happy. He had worked hard for more than ten years before the end of the world, but no one paid attention to him. Nine months after the end of the world, he received the first silk banner in his life, and he had to frame it!
Of course, the above is all afterward.
The day after this incident was New Year's Eve. Red lanterns and red couplets were hung everywhere in the base. There was nothing else in the base, and there were so many of these things that they filled up an entire warehouse at the property management office.
On that day, the office was giving away meat for free, which were the tigers and wild wolves hunted by Ye Xun and his team.
The amount of meat is limited, so there are conditions. Families with children under 5 years old or elderly people over 70 years old can get half a pound of meat for free, but they must bring their household registration book to collect it, and they must come in person. No proxy collection is allowed, and no queue jumping is allowed.
Those who don’t get a share of the meat can trade privately; the base won’t take care of these trivial matters.
On festive days, we can eat meat for free, and everyone’s faces are filled with joyful smiles.
Chen Guoan was in the office's open space, holding a loud speaker and trying to maintain order: "Children stand on the left, elderly stand on the right, don't stand in the wrong line. Hey, hey, hey, whose child is this? Parents, take them away quickly, don't trip up the elderly."
There are always naughty kids in every time period. In the group of elderly people, there is a fat and strong little boy, estimated to be about ten years old, running around in the gaps between the crowd.
If a person in his seventies gets hit by a car, he may have to lie in bed for ten days or half a month if he is lucky, but if he is unlucky, he may have to lie in a coffin.
After a while, no one came to claim the child, so Chen Guoan got angry: "If you don't come to claim it, you will be disqualified from claiming the meat!"
After saying that, a couple finally came from the back of the line, grabbed the little boy and was about to leave. The kid was not happy and just rolled on the ground and threw a tantrum.
"I won't leave! Why should I leave? This is not his home!"
After hearing this, not only the elderly people in the queue, but even the accompanying family members could not stand it anymore. They looked at the couple and questioned how they raised their children.
The wife was the first to give in. The couple had been preparing for their son for ten years. The previous pregnancies all ended in miscarriage for various reasons. After this pregnancy, she basically stayed in bed to take care of the fetus. She finally gave birth to a boy, but the old man spoiled him to the point of lawlessness. She had tried to persuade him several times, but was accused of not loving the child, which led to her son not being close to her.
But this time it was too much. Did he think that everyone would spoil him like his grandparents? No, as a mother, she didn't want to spoil him.
He exploded immediately and pulled his dead son up from the ground like pulling a carrot. He punched his fat face left and right, and two red and swollen palm prints appeared on his face instantly.
The noisy air suddenly became quiet, and everyone turned their attention to this family.
The woman was still mad, and pointed at her son's nose and yelled, "You bastard, you don't need to eat today." After scolding her son, she turned her fire to her husband, "And you and your parents, if I find out that you are secretly giving food to this bastard, you will starve with him." After saying that, she left without looking back.
Ye Xun and Qin Wei happened to pass by and saw the whole farce from beginning to end.
Coincidentally, he knew this family, who lived in the next building. Every time he came back from school on holiday, he could hear the woman scolding the child. He even suspected that the child had an intellectual disability and could never learn well.
It turns out that it was all caused by the old bear in the family.
"It's a good thing that we can't have children. Otherwise, if we gave birth to a thing like this, I wouldn't feel satisfied even if I beat him three times a day." Ye Xun sighed.
Even Qin Wei had seen such a child for the first time. The children of family relatives were all well disciplined and would not do such uncultured things.
He could shoot without blinking when facing a ferocious enemy, but he was helpless against this kid rolling on the ground.
"Tell Wang Yu not to have any more children, or she will be left to us to raise." Qin Wei felt sympathetic.
They went out today to ask Chen Guoan for some lanterns to hang at the door of their house. They didn't ask for anything for free, so they brought some things to exchange.
But Chen Guoan was busy at that time, so the two had to walk around first.
The extreme cold has been here for nearly three months, and most people have gradually adapted to this low temperature climate. In order to survive, five or six people form a team, go to the ruins or forests to find supplies, and then sell them at the market at the base.
Among the supplies found, there was relatively little food, but more daily necessities and some dry firewood.
The market is organized by al-Qaeda. There will be three to five guards patrolling to prevent trouble. Those who cause trouble will not be allowed to set foot in the market for the next three months.
Ye Xun took Qin Wei to stroll around the market. The categories on the stalls were a bit monotonous. Basically, they had everything in the stalls, and the quality was even better.
The two of them stayed in front of each stall for a few minutes, and finally waited until Chen Guoan finished his work.
When Ye Xun and Qin Wei first arrived, Chen Guoan had already noticed them. Even though the two young men were wearing bulky down jackets, they were the focus of attention in the crowd.
"I see you two are hanging around nearby. Is there anything you want to talk to me about?" Chen Guoan put away the loudspeaker and asked Ye Xun and the others.
Ye Xun: "I want to exchange a few lanterns and two couplets from you. I'll use this in exchange."
He spread out his palm to let the other person see clearly what was in his palm. Chen Guoan leaned over to take a look, and his eyes widened. It turned out to be a box of antipyretic medicine. Western medicine was in short supply in the apocalypse. The medicines in hospitals and pharmacies had all gone bad in the extremely hot weather. Now, people in the foundation were using traditional Chinese medicine when they were sick, but the effect was far slower than that of Western medicine.
Although he was tempted, it was too expensive. It would be a waste to exchange it for a few inedible lanterns.
"Xiao Ye, if you want lanterns, I can give you a few. Just take the medicine back. You have already contributed a lot to the base. How can I justify taking your things away?" Chen Guoan suppressed the heartache and refused firmly.
The other party's heartbroken expression successfully amused Ye Xun. Their base leader was good in every way except that he was sometimes too stubborn.
"I stockpiled a lot of antipyretic drugs during the epidemic last year. It would be a waste to let them expire, so I might as well give them to people in need. You don't need them, but the soldiers in the patrol team must need them, right? It's inevitable to get injured and sick while on missions, and they will recover faster with medicine." Ye Xun appealed to Chen Guoan's emotions and reason, and was determined to get him to accept the medicine.
It’s not that he is so kind, but he is quite satisfied with his current base, so he wants to maintain his current comfort zone. Both Chen Guoan and the patrol team are an indispensable part of his comfort zone.
Chen Guoan was moved by Ye Xun's words. The patrol team has been on the front line for a long time, and injuries are commonplace. As long as there are medicines, there is protection. They cannot make decisions for others just because of the principles they have to uphold.
"I thank you on behalf of the comrades in the patrol team!" Chen Guoan stood up straight with his legs, raised his right hand to salute Ye Xun, and then carefully put the box of antipyretic drugs into his pocket.
"Don't let others know that there are medicines at home. If you don't show off your wealth, it will easily bring disaster." He knew that the two of them knew what they were doing, but he couldn't help but give them a few more words of advice. What good guys they were, he wanted to introduce his daughter to one of them.
"Don't worry, besides my family, you are the only one who knows about this." Ye Xun didn't know that he was only one step away from becoming the son-in-law of the base commander, and he was still making promises to others.
Chen Guoan: "That's fine. Do you want to take the lantern back yourself, or should I have someone deliver it to you? Just based on this box of medicine, it's their job to deliver it to you."
Ye Xun quickly refused, saying that having too close contact with the patrol team would easily arouse suspicion.
"We can just take it back ourselves. It's only a short walk. It would be a waste of their talents to ask them to deliver it."
Since the other party refused, Chen Guoan didn't say anything else.
After both parties said goodbye, they went about their own business. The new houses in the base were about to be completed, and it would take only a few days to arrange for the occupants. Thousands of application forms were still waiting for Chen Guoan to review.
Ye Xun and Qin Wei also had things to do. They didn't prepare the New Year's Eve dinner, didn't decorate the lanterns and couplets, and didn't send New Year's greetings to Ye's father and mother.
The two of them returned to the downstairs of the house, each holding two lanterns. The door and the elevator were posted with red couplets, and a festive feeling was overwhelming.
In just a few breaths, the elevator reached the fifteenth floor. Ye Xun was responsible for pasting couplets, and Qin Wei was responsible for hanging lanterns. After finishing, they pasted a big word "Fu" on the security door.
After entering the house, Wang Yu was wearing a bright red down jacket, preparing ingredients for tonight's New Year's Eve dinner. Bal was not spared either, wearing a God of Wealth down jacket of the same color, which was particularly suitable for the festival.
Qin Wei showed off his cooking skills and cooked a table of delicious dishes, including pickled cabbage dumplings, sweet and sour fish, stewed beef brisket with potatoes and three fresh vegetables, as well as a pot of yam and pork ribs soup. Even Ye Xun cooked himself and cooked a dish of boiled pork slices, which was rare without any seasoning packets.
Six dishes were too much for three people, so Ye Xun suggested inviting the family on the 10th floor to come and eat together.
Wang Yu and Xu Feng were not familiar with each other, but Qin Wei had no objection and let him do whatever he wanted, but the things in the room that shouldn't be seen by others should be put away.
Ye Xunbai gave him a look and said, "Do I need you to tell me? Go call someone and I'll put the things away." Then he put the air purifier and the kitchen freezer into the space and locked all the rooms. Zhang Tianxin was only five years old, and there was no guarantee that she would not wander around.
After doing all this, the doorbell rang.
Ye Xun muttered to himself as he went to open the door, but he didn't expect that he would arrive so quickly.
After opening the heavy security door, Qin Wei and three figures behind him appeared. Xu Feng was holding a piece of bacon, and Zhang Tianyu was holding his sister's hand.
"Brother Ye! Happy New Year, and all the best!" As soon as he saw him, Xu Feng shouted his blessing. Seeing Zhang Tianyu standing there like a wooden man, he grabbed his arm and pulled him over. "What did I tell you before we left? Remember to say hello to Brother Ye when you see me."
Zhang Tianyu hesitated for a while and whispered, "Brother Ye, Happy New Year."
"That's right, Brother Ye. There are nothing good at home. This is the gift I brought. You must accept it." Xu Feng stuffed the rope with bacon into Ye Xun's hand, as if he would take it back if Ye Xun didn't accept it.
Ye Xun had no choice but to accept it. The meat didn't look big, but it was heavy when he held it in his hand. It must be at least two kilograms. The other party must have spent a lot of money.
He stepped aside to make way for the passage. "It's cold outside. Don't stand outside. Come in. The slippers are in the shoe cabinet. You can pick your own."
Xu Feng and others took off their shoes at the entrance. As soon as they stepped in, they smelled the fragrance coming from the kitchen. After being a vegetarian for several months, he had developed the skill of judging the quality of dishes just by smelling them.
Walking into the kitchen, there were six bowls and plates on the small dining table. The fragrance wafted from there, making Xu Feng almost drool.
The two children with less concentration were staring at it and swallowing their saliva continuously.
Ye Xun didn't know whether to laugh or cry when watching this scene, and called them to come and eat, "Stop watching, wash your hands and eat quickly, the food won't taste good if it gets cold, come and try our Brother Qin's cooking."
Several people quickly took their seats and waited for Ye Xun to take the first bite before starting to eat.
Ye Xun wanted to tease them. He first slowly poured himself a cup of hot water, then used boiling water to scald the dishes and chopsticks. When the three people's eyes were almost green, he picked up a piece of beef brisket.
The three of them seemed to have received permission. They immediately picked up their bowls and chopsticks and quickly picked up the dishes. They ate dumplings one by one without fear of the heat because they all had iron mouths.
Ye Xun looked at Xu Feng's mouth, which was wide open to bite the dumplings, and suspected that he saw the little tongue in his mouth.
Wang Yu was even more stunned. Such a wild way of eating was last seen in an animation from an island country. It turns out that art really comes from life.
Only Qin Wei's expression was very calm, but his hand speed was amazing. He quickly picked up some food from each dish and put it into Ye Xun's bowl, and then picked it up for himself. As for Wang Yu, she could do whatever she wanted.
A good New Year's Eve dinner turned into an invisible war.
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