Chapter 91 Hidden Wealth
Gu Zefeng wasn't lying. The Royal Power Base had a unique location, and after the major crisis, many authoritative medical professionals had gathered there. The base not only housed leading medical experts but also possessed advanced laboratories and equipment. Royal Power's medical level far surpassed that of similar bases. Before Gu Zefeng sent the message to the Spark Base, Royal Power's hospital had never opened its doors to other bases.
Upon hearing this news, Jiang Rong couldn't sit still. If this was true, he had to take Xiao Heng to Huangquan immediately. Xiao Heng's condition couldn't be delayed any longer; if Huangquan couldn't cure him, the other bases probably wouldn't be able to help him either.
However, the Royal Power base isn't so easy to infiltrate. Gu Zefeng and Guan Shao don't get along; Guan Shao broke his arm during their last encounter, and they'll definitely fight whenever they meet. Although the two bases haven't openly broken ties, Gu Zefeng is very likely to have set up an ambush for them at the Royal Power base.
After much deliberation, Jiang Rong decided to take Xiao Heng to see a doctor herself. If Gu Zefeng had indeed set an ambush, only she and her son would be affected, and his companions would be safe.
Jiang Rong didn't reveal his plans to anyone; he knew his companions too well. If they knew he was going alone, they would definitely stay by his side without hesitation. How could he let his teammates put themselves in danger? The Starfire Base could still function normally without him, but without his teammates, the losses would be too devastating.
*
The rain continued to fall in a drizzle, and it hadn't stopped by the evening of the second day. Jiang Xiaoheng, who had been in the intensive care unit for more than half a month, couldn't take it anymore. He pleaded with the doctor and Jiang Rong: he wanted to go home, even if he could only stay at home for one night.
Considering the child's emotional state, the doctors agreed to let Xiao Heng go home, but he could only return after the healing-type ability users had taken proper precautions. After receiving the doctors' approval, Jiang Rong quickly completed the temporary discharge procedures for the child. By the time he carried the child, still enveloped in his ability, home, it was already dark.
The children, animals, and mutated plants in the house were overjoyed to see Xiao Heng return home.
Despite the heavy rain, the little fairy bloomed with flowers all over her head, and the little darling wrapped her body around the courtyard wall, casting a festive red hue over the entire yard. Junjun and Lele rubbed against Xiaoheng's body from time to time, Xiaohao and Yuanyuan greeted Xiaoheng with laughter, and even the usually aloof and mischievous cat unusually circled around Xiaoheng with its tail raised.
Guan Shao looked at the layers of supernatural power surrounding Xiao Heng and said worriedly, "Should we keep Xiao Hao and the others away from Xiao Heng?" Everyone in the family has supernatural abilities, and it would be bad if their abilities clashed with Xiao Heng's.
Jiang Rong laughed and said, "Let them play. Sister Chunlan said her ability can last for several days. With Xiao Hu's defensive ability, one night won't matter."
The family hadn't been this relaxed in a long time. The three children were laughing and playing in the living room, while Jiang Rong and Guan Shao were preparing dinner in the kitchen.
Jiang Rong opened the cupboard and looked inside. During his absence, the rice inside was almost gone. Watching Guan Shao's retreating figure as he folded vegetables, Jiang Rong's eyes hardened. "Guan Shao, come downstairs with me to get some rice."
Guan Shao turned around in surprise, "Going downstairs?"
Behind the freezer in the kitchen was a hidden door. Pushing open the door and walking a few steps down the stairs, the basement of Jiang Rong's house came into view for Guan Shao. Having lived in the house for so long, this was the first time Guan Shao had ever seen a basement.
The basement was filled with neatly arranged large shelves, crammed full of goods. Neatly arranged pallets sat on the floor between the shelves, each holding a large box containing countless items. All the items were vacuum-packed; an unsuspecting person might mistake it for a large supermarket warehouse.
Each box was labeled with information about its contents. Guan Shao glanced at it casually, then his pupils dilated in shock. "Preparing so many things must have taken a long time, right?"
Jiang Rong smiled slightly, "Yes, it took a lot of time and effort." Looking at the warehouse-sized room, he felt an indescribable sense of accomplishment.
If he hadn't awakened his supernatural abilities and hadn't met Guan Shao, these supplies would have been his and Xiao Heng's means of survival; the things here would have been enough for the father and son to last a lifetime. He worked tirelessly for three months to gather all these supplies. He can still vividly recall every tense day of that time.
Seeing so many supplies, Guan Shao wasn't excited at all; instead, he felt somewhat solemn. If it weren't for opening a supermarket, who would prepare so much stuff? And Jiang Rong's family lived deep in the mountains—who would come all the way there to shop?
Thinking back to how Jiang Rong had always been so prescient and prescient since they got together, Guan Shao had a vague suspicion in his heart, "Xiao Rong, are you...?"
Jiang Rong said softly, "Before the great crisis, I was browsing a forum and came across a strange post. The post accurately foreshadowed the existence of the great crisis, so I took a closer look."
Guan Shao frowned even more deeply. "Yes, I saw that post too."
On the night the major crisis occurred, the post was widely circulated on various websites. Unfortunately, when the post was published, most people thought the poster was talking nonsense and did not take it to heart. By the time they realized what was happening, they had already missed the best opportunity to stockpile supplies.
Is Jiang Rong one of the few who believes what the original poster said? No, based on Guan Shao's observation of Jiang Rong, Jiang Rong is calm and rational, and a post that is completely unfounded and can be considered a fantasy would never attract his attention.
According to Chu Qiang, Jiang Rong even sold her own house in City C to build this house. Most people read posts for fun, but Jiang Rong's behavior is highly unusual.
However, Jiang Rong refused to say more, and Guan Shao didn't press him. After looking around, he praised, "You've prepared everything perfectly." Daily necessities, staple foods, snacks, medicine, clothes... most supermarkets don't have this kind of scale.
The first time Jiang Rong took Guan Shao downstairs, she led him around to each shelf so that Guan Shao could easily access the items downstairs after she left. If he didn't come back, these items would be enough for Guan Shao to raise two children.
Jiang Rong explained, "The lighter items are on the basement level, and the heavier items are downstairs. You... take a look around when you have time, and you can help me move things in the future." He didn't dare to say too much, afraid that Guan Shao would notice something was off.
Guan Shao nodded. "Okay."
When the two reached the bottom of the revolving building, Guan Shao pointed to a dozen or so white plastic buckets. "What's in these? Gasoline?" Everything else was labeled, but these plastic buckets were completely bare, with nothing on them.
Jiang Rong gently bent down and tapped the plastic bucket. "This is the black rain I collected the night I met you. I thought it was strange that there could be such black rain, so I collected some. If you hadn't told me, I would have almost forgotten it existed."
Apart from the black rain, everything in the basement had been prepared before the major crisis. Jiang Rong couldn't find a suitable place to put them, so she placed them next to the gasoline.
At first, Jiang Rong wanted to study whether Black Rain could suppress the superpowers of superhumans, but later she was busy with the base construction and forgot about it.
Guan Shao and Jiang Rong clearly had the same idea: "It seems we should also set up our own research lab to study the mysteries of Black Rain."
Upon reaching the second basement level, a solar panel and a cold storage unit appeared before Guan Shao. Guan Shao gave him a thumbs-up in admiration, "You actually built a cold storage unit in your house?"
Jiang Rong raised her head proudly, "Yes, there's a lot of meat frozen in the freezer."
He personally selected livestock and poultry at the wholesale market, watching the butchers slaughter them and then vacuum-freeze them. Although the ice storage room didn't look big, it contained dozens of tons of meat and frozen food.
Besides food, the second basement level also contained many home appliances. Guan Shao discovered that the warehouse actually contained enough solar panels to last them for a hundred years.
Guan Shao sighed softly, "It really wasn't easy, Xiao Rong, you've worked so hard." He could already picture Jiang Rong driving a forklift, carrying supplies to the basement like a little ant, trip after trip. Such a huge project was all done by Xiao Jiang alone; he must have been under immense pressure.
Upon hearing Guan Shao's words, Jiang Rong froze, lowering his head to hide the tears in his eyes. "Yes..."
He remembered the despair he felt in his past life when he was being bitten by mutated rats while holding Xiao Heng. After being reborn, he vowed never to repeat his mistakes. He built a house, stockpiled supplies, and planned a lifetime for himself and his son.
In this life, he gained superpowers, met Guan Shao, had a warm home, and a particularly good base.
He thought it must be because he wanted too much that God punished him, causing Xiao Heng to suffer this hardship.
Today might be the last day he and his son stay at home; tomorrow they will embark on an unknown journey. He felt extremely reluctant to part with them, and there were so many things he wanted to say to Guan Shao, but he couldn't.
Guan Shao noticed Jiang Rong's unusual behavior and stepped forward. "Xiao Rong? What's wrong?"
Jiang Rong stepped forward and hugged Guan Shao. He raised his head and kissed Guan Shao's lips, his voice trembling, "Guan Shao, hug me, hug me tightly." Let him indulge one last time and feel the last bit of tenderness.
Guan Shao's supernatural abilities suddenly surged. He raised his hand, and the vacuum-sealed down comforter on the shelf unfolded. He leaned down and kissed his partner, "I'll definitely satisfy you."
Jiang Rong and Guan Shao's compatibility wasn't just spiritual, but also physical. A tiny electric current burned through the outer cover of the down comforter, and large down feathers danced slowly with their movements, covering them like snowflakes and scattering across the shelves and floor.
Jiang Rong hugged Guan Shao tightly, feeling Guan Shao's presence, and sobbed, "I love you!"
The greatest luck in his life was meeting Guan Shao. If there is a next life, and a life after that, he will find Guan Shao first and be with him forever.
Guan Shao kissed Jiang Rong's eyes and brows, "I love you." From the first moment he saw Jiang Rong, he found her pleasing to the eye in every way. He felt that being with Guan Shao must be something he had done in his past life.
*
At two in the morning, the rain was still drizzling. Jiang Rong led Jiang Xiaoheng, who was wearing protective clothing, out of the house. His SUV was parked in the yard, with a frame towed behind it. Xiao Guaiguai and the potted plant fairy were already secured to the frame.
Jiang Xiaoheng, holding a little yellow duck umbrella, carrying a small backpack, and clutching his favorite stuffed animal, saw the door slowly closing and his voice trembled with tears, "Daddy, I'm scared."
After leaving today, he and his father may never be able to go home again, and they will never see Uncle Guan, the little brother, and Yuanyuan again.
Jiang Rong took her son's hand and walked towards the SUV. "Don't be afraid, Dad will be with you."
He would not give up as long as there was a glimmer of hope. If the Imperial Power Base laid an ambush or could not rescue Xiao Heng, Jiang Rong would accompany his son all the way, so that he would have a companion on his journey to the underworld.
After the car door closed, Jiang Rong turned his head to look towards the bedroom, where his wife and beloved child were sleeping. Fortunately, the house was built with solid materials, so even if he made a lot of noise, the people inside the bedroom could still sleep peacefully.
After looking around the bedroom, Jiang Rong turned his gaze to the west side of the courtyard wall. The fairy's true form was leaning against the wall, two small spheres sprouting from either side of her body. She waved the spheres in greeting, "Jiang Gong~ Heng Heng~"
Jiang Rong rolled down the car window and shushed someone outside, "Little fairy, you and Little Darling have to be good from now on and protect the base well."
He only took away the smaller versions of Little Darling and Little Fairy on this trip; the two mutated plants' greatest fighting force should remain at the Starfire Base.
The little fairy twisted her body and said, "No problem!" After a year, the little fairy has finally learned to say "no problem," which is a truly delightful improvement.
Jiang Rong grinned. "Okay, I'll listen to you." He couldn't linger any longer; if he watched any longer, he really wouldn't want to leave.
The SUV drove along the mountain road, and the direction of home gradually blurred in the rearview mirror. After rounding two bends, the fairy's figure disappeared from sight. Jiang Rong stepped on the gas, and the taillights of the car faded into the distance on the mountain road.
Jiang Xiaoheng sat in his high chair, clutching a plush toy, tilting his head to look out the dark window. He remembered the first time he went out at night with his father; the road was pitch black on both sides, with only the car headlights illuminating the way ahead.
Now, every so often, villages illuminated by streetlights appear before him. With the Peace Base's electricity, the streetlights are much brighter than solar-powered ones. The base, sleeping under the streetlights, is so beautiful. Jiang Xiaoheng opened his eyes wide, carefully observing the Starfire Base, wanting to memorize every blade of grass and every tree.
After driving north for about half an hour, Jiang Rong saw a familiar figure appear by the roadside. He rolled down the window and exclaimed in surprise, "Old Zhang, what are you doing here?"
The old camphor tree emitted a faint bluish glow. "On behalf of all the mutated plants of the Spark Base, I bid you farewell. I hope you and your child will return soon."
The Spark Base does not reject mutated plants and animals; humans and mutated plants and animals coexist here. Since arriving at the Spark Base, the old camphor tree and the other mutated plants have been happy every day.
All of this was because of Jiang Rong. Because of Jiang Rong's existence, they didn't have to fight with humans and were able to find a place to live a good life in the wasteland. Now that Jiang Rong is about to embark on a long journey, the old camphor tree insists on seeing them off.
Jiang Rong smiled and nodded, "Thank you, Elder Zhang, please go back now." Being too far from your main body consumes a lot of your supernatural energy. The old camphor tree was planted in the southwest corner of the base; it must have taken a lot of energy to get it to the north side. This old camphor tree, which we've worked so hard to raise, will be used to teach the children in the future; it can't afford to have anything happen to it.
The old camphor tree raised its voice, bowed, and clasped its hands in farewell, saying, "Respectfully seeing you off, sir."
After the SUV had driven for a while, Jiang Rong and his son saw the old camphor tree still standing in the same spot in their rearview mirror. The night rain couldn't obscure the old camphor tree's radiance, and it seemed to bow in respect towards the car. Its figure didn't disappear from the rearview mirror until Jiang Rong and his son turned away.
The vehicle turned west at the intersection, and after leaving the Xinghuo Base area, the streetlights on both sides of the road went out. Jiang Xiaoheng stretched out his little hands and hugged the stuffed animal tightly. Jiang Rong said with heartache, "Xiaoheng, are you feeling a little stuffy? Can Daddy turn on the air conditioning for you for a while?"
It was stuffy inside the protective suit, and the child must have felt uncomfortable wearing it. Jiang Rong didn't want his child to suffer like that, but it was the best way he could think of to effectively protect the child.
Jiang Xiaoheng shook his head. "Dad, I'm not bored. I just miss my older brother and the others. We lied to them today. Will they be angry when we wake up tomorrow morning?"
Jiang Rong's lips curled up, her eyes bitter. "They'll probably be angry, but by then we'd already gone far enough away they couldn't catch us." In order to escape with his son, Jiang Rong and his father went to great lengths to avoid arousing their family's suspicion.
Jiang Xiaoheng responded listlessly. Jiang Rong said gently, "Xiaoheng, why don't you take a nap? We're going to be gone for several days, you need to get some rest."
Jiang Xiaoheng sat up straight. "No, I want to stay with Dad."
Even so, before long, Jiang Xiaoheng's little head was already resting against the back seat, and the toy in his hand had fallen under the seat.
After the child fell asleep, the only sounds inside the car were the engine and the tires rolling on the road. Jiang Rong turned on the radio, and soft music began to play.
Half an hour later, a gas station appeared ahead. Jiang Rong decided to stop there and let her son lie down and sleep. The child was weak, and they still had a long way to go, so he needed to get plenty of rest.
The SUV slowly drove into the gas station. Before it had even come to a complete stop, a dull thud came from the roof, startling Xiao Heng awake. "Ah!"
Jiang Rong looked up and saw that the roof of the SUV was dented; apparently, some mutated animal had jumped onto his vehicle. At this moment, all he needed to do was summon Little Darling…
Before Jiang Rong could react, a large, black and yellow paw reached down from the car window, while at the same time, a large, furry tail dangled from the rear window. Jiang Rong raised an eyebrow; that fist, the size of a sandbag, looked so familiar.
Xiao Heng exclaimed, "Dad, it's Jun Jun!" The big tiger on the roof of the car made a rumbling sound like a mixed engine. No doubt about it, it must be Jun Jun.
Jun Jun? How did Jun Jun end up here? Although felines can roam far at night, it's almost 70 or 80 kilometers from home to here. Is that really a distance a tiger can run?
A flash of yellow and white appeared under the headlights as Corgi Lele's tail flicked out of shape. Its paws were draped over the front of the SUV, with only the tip of its black nose visible.
Two small figures followed behind Lele, Xiaohao and Yuanyuan grinning from ear to ear, "Dad, you didn't expect that, did you? We're even faster than you!"
Jiang Rong followed the car headlights forward, and the previously dark gas station suddenly lit up. All the vehicles parked behind the gas station lit up simultaneously, and the superhumans from the Spark Base emerged, their backs to the lights.
Chu Qiang crossed his arms and chuckled twice. "I'm your childhood friend, after all. I know what you're up to the moment you wiggle your tail." Jiang Rong must be brewing something big when he's silent. Yesterday, they had such a heated discussion about the plan, but Xiao Jiang didn't say a word.
Pan Pan grinned broadly, "So, Jiang Tou'er, did you like our surprise?"
Ruan Hanyu blinked. "Captain Jiang, that's not right of you. How could you leave without saying goodbye?"
Wang Chunlan smiled and said, "Team Leader Jiang can handle it himself, but he also has to think about the children."
As everyone chatted amongst themselves, Jiang Rong, gripping the steering wheel, felt a slight warmth welling up in his eyes. His gaze fell on Guan Shao, who strode over and knocked on the car window.
Jiang Rong rolled down the car window and said apologetically, "When...did you guys arrive?" Guan Shao and the others had anticipated his actions and ambushed him on the very road he had carefully chosen. He thought he had fooled his teammates, but they had actually fooled him.
Guan Shao sighed helplessly, reached into the car window and ruffled Jiang Rong's hair, "We just arrived, don't do it again next time."
They understood Jiang Rong's thoughts; he feared they would be ambushed by the imperial power and never return. In Jiang Rong's heart, the lives of his teammates were more important than his own and his son's.
But in everyone's hearts, Jiang Rong and Xiao Heng are irreplaceable. They would rather take a gamble than lose Jiang Rong and Xiao Heng.
Everyone smiled and called to Jiang Rong and his son, "Jiang'er, Xiao Heng, come down and have something to eat. We'll set off together after we've eaten!"
Author's Note:
Sorry I'm late.
Just a reminder: you can now pre-order the bonus chapters!
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