Chapter 37: The Cruelty of the Scavengers, Check the Principles!
The value of minerals depends on whether they can serve the logic of survival.
As society degenerates into a pure competition for survival, the strategic position of lithium mines in Xingfu City has long surpassed a series of traditional precious metals.
For example, gold!
For the settlements, small tribes, and scattered organizations scattered around the city of refuge, a piece of gold bar found in the ruins of the city cannot change their survival difficulties at all.
But a 10kwh battery produced in Xingfu City can free a gathering place of a hundred people from darkness for a whole month.
Lithium ore is one of the core raw materials for manufacturing high-performance batteries.
"How many people were on the other side? How did you win?"
Cheng Ye did not worry about the authenticity and value of the mineral deposit, nor did he think about keeping the news to himself.
The top management of Happiness City had already taken this into consideration when the checkpoint was set up.
If the inspector could simply pocket the scavengers' discoveries, no one would have dared to venture out of the city.
Once you submit your mineral location, the inner city will have a very complete inquiry mechanism and on-site survey mechanism.
It is basically impossible for non-discoverers to pass through this mechanism.
Once it is found to be an impersonation, there is only one outcome.
Execution on the public execution ground!
"A total of 27 scavengers, they are from the Big Head Ghost of the Ruins Hundred Ghosts Gang."
Cole grinned, revealing his back teeth. "Those guys treated us like two-legged sheep, hoping to squeeze some money out of us. Unfortunately, the four of us have been crawling around in the ruins since we were young. We've seen this kind of scene many times, we're used to it. We're not afraid of them, and we've also prepared in advance."
He said it lightly, but there was murderous intent between the lines.
Cheng Ye had never heard of the Hundred Ghosts Gang, and he had no idea who the Big Head Ghost was, but he was able to break out of the trap set by 27 people, win the battle, dig up the samples and rush back.
As long as you don't lie.
This fighting ability is definitely much stronger than that of a half-baked inspector who has only trained for two months.
"Well, they were... shot?"
"Forehead..."
The smile on Cole's face froze instantly, and he shook his head hurriedly, "No, no... sir, they are all covered with scratches."
"Scratches?"
"It was a mutant beast that did it!"
"When we were fighting the Hundred Ghosts Gang, the mutant beasts suddenly intervened, allowing us to escape unscathed."
If it was a gunshot wound, with the lithium deposit as collateral, there was no need to worry about being detained by Cheng Ye.
But the nature of the scratches is completely different. If Cheng Ye insists on believing that there is a risk of infection and puts them in the isolation chamber, even if the top management of Xingfu City comes, they will have nothing to say.
This is the ironclad rule of the checkpoint and an unshakable principle.
"Sir, we are willing to give you a meteorite we received from the Bluestone Gathering Area in addition to six hundred coins..."
"Shut up!"
Cheng Ye shouted, interrupting Cole's unspoken bribe.
No matter how good something is, you need to be alive to spend it.
Although the Westerners in the checkpoint all look greedy and act as if they will let people pass for money, none of them dare to be vague when it comes to screening for infected people.
Even if it's the idiots in area B next door, they would rather kill the wrong person than let him go.
It is for this reason that the reputation of inspectors in the buffer zone remains stable and never collapses.
Anyone who dares to break this rule will be the enemy of all inspectors and the public enemy of all residents in the buffer zone!
"You go out and let the man with the injured arm come in."
"yes!"
Cole gritted his teeth and could only hope that the Eastern inspector in front of him would be able to see clearly.
Soon, the two exchanged positions.
When the new Westerner took off his clothes, Cheng Ye saw a shocking scratch.
From the shoulder to the forearm, the scratch is at least thirty centimeters long, with the skin and flesh turned up and the bone visible!
"Name?"
"Ram Waters."
"Are you brothers?"
"Yes sir, the four of us are brothers."
"Tell me how you got hurt. Be specific. Don't tell me some kid-friendly bedtime stories. My patience is limited."
"I understand."
Ram's eyes were determined, and he instantly realized that his life was now in his own hands.
"They are ant wolves. There are more than forty of them, and they are all adults."
Antwolf, one of the most common mutant beasts in the city ruins, is famous for its fertility.
A large amount of information flashed through Cheng Ye's mind instantly, including the standard description in the inspector's manual and sporadic records in the books in the survival library.
Its life form is similar to that of a gray wolf. An adult individual is about 1.2 meters tall at the shoulder, has sharp fangs, runs extremely fast, and its fur covered with a carbonized cuticle can effectively resist physical attacks.
The reason why the word "ant" is put before "wolf" is due to its alienated reproduction system.
Female antwolves go into heat every six months, and a giant brood sac similar to that of a queen ant develops on their abdomen, which can lay 15-20 eggs at a time.
It only takes three months for egg-laying wolf cubs to enter the growth period and one year to reach maturity.
As long as there is enough food and no natural enemies, a few ant wolves can reproduce into a large population within four or five years.
However, although the meat of the ant wolf tastes extremely bad, it is non-toxic and edible, which also means that it is difficult for them to spread in the wasteland world, especially within the borders of the Eastern Kingdom.
Because ant wolf meat will always be the main dish on the tables of scavengers and vagrants when they celebrate festivals.
"You know the value of lithium ore, sir. We didn't believe a wild lithium mine would be discovered by scavengers and let us know. But isn't the reason scavengers risk their lives just to get rich and get ahead? After much hesitation, we decided to explore the route. But before we left, we deliberately lured a group of ant wolves to follow behind the car, thinking that even if there was an ambush, the ant wolves would disrupt their rhythm."
"It turned out that our bet was right!"
A glint of cruelty flashed in his eyes. "The scavengers mentioned that there's indeed pegmatite-type lithium ore beneath the exposed exfoliation layer on the sunny side of the hill. The ambush wasn't unexpected... But those bastards from the Hundred Ghosts Gang never imagined we'd chase the ant wolves right over them. When they were crouching in the shade, the wolves swarmed over them. We seized the opportunity to attack them from the sunny side, and it didn't take long to knock them all down..."
"but..."
Ram paused, a wry smile crossing his face.
"We forgot to estimate the wolf cubs' appetite. Twenty-seven of us couldn't satisfy them. They turned around and treated us as prey. These wounds are from the fierce battle with the wolves."
Ram's narrative logic is not only clear, but also very smooth. You can tell from his listening that it was repeatedly choreographed and rehearsed on the road.
Cheng Ye nodded slightly, not resisting this like the other prosecutors.
It is not like in movies and TV shows, where there is no logic in thinking that "fluent" = "falsehood".
Before he went on stage for his graduate thesis defense, he had spent two days repeatedly simulating it in his dormitory. Now, it was a matter of life and death. If the four of them didn't straighten out their speeches in advance to prevent someone from saying something wrong, it would appear that they had something to hide.
"Four brothers, you have courage, you have means, and you have brains..."
"Only someone like this is worthy of discovering priceless lithium deposits."
Cheng Ye sighed in his heart.
There are countless heroes in the world. When walking in the wasteland in the future, no one can be underestimated.
After all, anyone who can survive in the ruins of a city is a ruthless character who has licked blood from the edge of a knife.
"Report your number."
"37.7/133/22"
Ram responded in a deep voice, but his heart sank slightly. This data was already on the edge of abnormality.
As long as their body temperature exceeds 38 degrees, the inspectors in front of them can throw them directly into the isolation chamber without any reason.
"Let the man with the injured leg come in, and the two of them will support him."
Cheng Ye spoke calmly, pointing to the corner of the isolation area with an expressionless face, "You, stand in the corner and don't move."
"Yes, sir."
The isolation door slid open, and two people walked in quickly with the injured person. Cole helped the person with a leg injury take off his clothes.
Good job.
Compared to the injury on Ram's arm, the wound on this man's right leg was more shocking.
From the calf to the thigh, there were large bite marks and blood on the flesh. Even if he was sent for emergency treatment immediately, it would be difficult to avoid amputation.
"grown ups..."
"Name?"
"Her Waters, Seamus Waters."
"Report your number."
Without any further explanation, Cole gritted his teeth and helped measure and count.
"36.9/10/18"
"38.7/162/26"
Hull's data is still normal, but Simo's three dangerous data are so dangerous that even a dog would shake his head.
"Sir..." Cole opened his mouth, but didn't know where to start.
If he asked Cheng Ye to show leniency at this moment, it would be tantamount to asking him to violate the principles of an inspector.
Although everyone understands that the abnormal data is likely to be an immune response of the body caused by severe injuries.
"Sir, please lock me up. I'm too seriously injured and there's no way I can be saved..."
Ximo clenched his teeth, blood foam seeping from the corners of his mouth. "Please, for the sake of the lithium mine, for the sake of our dedication to Happy City, let these three go!"
"What nonsense!"
Cole's face changed drastically, and he grabbed his shoulders. "Didn't the four of us brothers agree to live and die together? We finally have the chance to turn things around, and we can't leave anyone behind!"
"Shut up, Seamus. If you want to lock me up, lock me up..."
All right.
It seems that we have to retract the judgment made by these four brothers.
Cheng Ye sighed silently, thinking that art comes from life. Although he is not as stupid as the interrogators in movies and TV dramas, idiots being interrogated do exist.
Whether to detain someone is indeed up to the prosecutor. Even if Xi Mo's data showed three abnormalities, he had the right not to be quarantined.
But if they only detained one person and let the other three go, that would be a blatant violation.
Unless these four people are property owners in the inner city and have higher-level authority to endorse them, if he dares to do so, he will be suspended and investigated the next second.
Bang.
After a shot fired into the sky, the world finally became much quieter.
The annoying and sad scene was forcibly interrupted, and the four brothers froze in place for a moment, with only the buzzing echo of gunshots in their minds.
Putting away the inspector's standard pistol, Cheng Ye stood up and raised his chin towards the corner:
"Leave him here, and the rest of you go squat in the corner."
....
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