Chapter 162: Rebuilding Stronghold 113
Translator: Legge Editor: Legge
In the end, Ren Xiaosu did not tell Luo Lan the truth about Dong Funan. He thought it would be better to wait for the seven-day deadline to pass before saying anything to him. What if Luo Lan caused a ruckus when he saw Dong Funan with a bloody nose and bruised face?
At this moment, Dong Funan, who was locked up in the room, wanted nothing more than to get married to Luo Lan on the spot as long as he could take her away. But Chen Wudi had tied her up too securely this time. Moreover, Wang Fugui even found some medicinal herbs and stuffed them into her mouth. It numbed her mouth so much so that she could not make a sound!
There were plenty of medicinal herbs in the shop to spare. However, what Dong Funan couldn’t understand was why everyone in this family was so proficient at what they did!
Even though Wang Fugui was a kind person, he had lived as a refugee for a long time. So he definitely had a few tricks up his sleeve.
The refugees were different from the stronghold’s residents as they faced imminent danger the day they were born.
Luo Lan chatted with Dong Funan for a while through the door but found that it was meaningless to keep talking by himself. He got bored after a while.
Ren Xiaosu chuckled, “Drink some water if you’re thirsty.”
Luo Lan sat in a chair in the yard and sighed. “It’s a little surprising that Li Shentan broke out of the psychiatric hospital. I was trying to be really careful when I went there since I was afraid he would get out and cause trouble.”
“I’m curious about something.” Ren Xiaosu asked, “Didn’t y’all know that he’s from the Li Consortium?”
At this moment, Luo Lan carefully recalled the past records he had read about Li Shentan. He confirmed there was no mention of the Li Consortium in the intel he received. However, he suddenly remembered the three video clips he watched. At that time, he could even feel the person’s sense of loneliness and abandonment through the television screen.
Luo Lan said, “Did you hear him describing himself as the abandoned son of the Li Consortium? Could it be possible that he was institutionalized by the Li Consortium?”
“Why would the Li Consortium imprison one of their own?” Ren Xiaosu asked.
“How would I know?” Luo Lan said disconsolately, “The inner workings of an org aren’t as perfect as you think. Infighting and plotting can be found everywhere. If you want to come out on top within the ‘family,’ you have to sacrifice brothers and sisters to advance.”
“Then how many brothers and sisters have you and Qing Zhen sacrificed?” Ren Xiaosu asked with a smile.
Luo Lan replied in a suddenly solemn voice, “Qing Zhen and I don’t have any other choice. He was born to be a leader, so he should get to the top of the mountain to view the scenery from up there.”
“What about you then?” Ren Xiaosu said, slightly stunned. He realized just how protective Luo Lan was of his younger brother.
Luo Lan had said his life was not worth a thing when Wang Fugui requested to get rewarded for their lifesaving favor to them. But when Qing Zhen’s name was brought up, Luo Lan immediately turned generous.
“Me?” Luo Lan smiled. “All I have is this worthless life. I’ll live no matter what happens.” Luo Lan did not sound indignant at all. It was as though he thought it was right and proper of him to do so. His younger brother should be regarded as high and mighty, while he was just a worthless person.
“Oh, yes.” Luo Lan glanced at Ren Xiaosu. “Don’t be too conspicuous these days. Even the Yang Consortium has arrived in this stronghold, and there are still people from the Pyro Company hiding somewhere as well. Now that the Demon Whisperer has come out to make trouble, who knows what’s going to happen?”
Ren Xiaosu stared blankly at him. “Do you think it’s right for you to say this to me? Aren’t you the most conspicuous person in the stronghold right now!”
“Hahahaha, is that so?” Luo Lan started laughing. “Am I that outstanding?”
Ren Xiaosu was taken aback. ‘Why are you so proud of that!’
“By the way, the people from the Saboteurs are here too.” Luo Lan got furious. “Someone targeted and destroyed two of my two vehicles from a distance. It must be those people from the Saboteurs since they’re the only ones who would do such things with no apparent reason!”
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It was at this moment that Ren Xiaosu finally found out that Yang Xiaojin might be a member of the Saboteurs. But he thought of a question. Luo Lan had mentioned earlier that the Yang Consortium was also here, so could Yang Xiaojin have anything to do with the Yang Consortium too?
“What about your Qing Consortium?” Ren Xiaosu looked at Luo Lan. “Has the Qing Consortium sent you alone?”
“Who are you looking down on?” Luo Lan snapped, “So what if it’s only me? I can take on 1,000 people, alright?”
“Sure, sure, I meant to say, didn’t the Qing Consortium send anyone to support you?” Ren Xiaosu asked.
“No, they’re busy dealing with matters in Stronghold 113 and the Jing Mountains.”
…
The terrain of Stronghold 111 was neither flat nor regular. The landscape’s topography was higher in the west and got lower towards the east, with the entire stronghold built next to a mountain. The mountain at Stronghold 111 was called Mt. Ginkgo. When the ginkgo leaves turned yellow in autumn, the entire mountain would turn golden. The Qing Consortium’s headquarters were located here on the mountainside.
At this moment, a large convoy set off from the city towards Mt. Ginkgo. The pedestrians in the stronghold pushed and shoved to get to the front to have a look. They knew these big shots of the Qing Consortium were members of the board of directors.
At this time each month, these executives of the Qing Consortium would usually drive to Mt. Ginkgo to attend a meeting. They would discuss matters that determined the life of the organization.
By evening, the huge manor atop Mt. Ginkgo was brightly lit. There were 13 men, made up of the young, middle-aged, and old, seated quietly within the conference room.
A huge tiger head made into a specimen from a dead tiger hung above them on the wall of the conference room. Humans had always enjoyed such repulsive hobbies. Before it died, the tiger was considered the king of beasts. However, it ended up becoming humanity’s plaything after its death. This was the power of humanity.
The entire conference room looked magnificent and grand. It was as though this place was never affected by The Cataclysm, and those who were here had always held authority in their hands.
The elder seated in the seat of honor was tapping his fingers on the table. “How is Qing Huai’s progress?”
“They’ve went around the Jing Mountains two days ago, and it’s estimated they’ll reach Stronghold 113 by today.” A middle-aged man said, “When the post-disaster rebuilding team arrives, they’ll head with them to the Jing Mountains to locate the creature that appeared in the volcano’s crater. Now that the creature has fallen back into a slumber, it seems like it doesn’t intend to leave the crater anymore. We suspect it has some sort of reliance on the temperature within the volcano.”
“Can Qing Huai handle it?” the elder in the seat of honor asked calmly. “The coal mines near Stronghold 113 are extremely important, so they must be rebuilt as soon as possible.”
“Qing Huai has already gone there with a combat brigade. It shouldn’t be a problem dealing with a few hundred Experimentals,” the middle-aged man replied.
“Since the resources near Stronghold 113 are extremely important, the post-disaster rebuilding work must be completed as quickly as possible. Qing Yun, coordinate with them to allocate some refugees to work over there,” the elder said.
A young man who was sitting at the end of the table smiled and said, “Alright, I understand.” The young man’s hair was neatly slicked back. Under the lighting, his smooth hair appeared elegant and crystalline.
“You’ve got to adopt a cautious attitude when handling this matter. If anything goes wrong, you won’t be sitting here in the future.” The elder frowned.
The young man lowered his head. “I understand.”
Someone nearby laughed and said, “You don’t have to be that harsh on the young ones.”
The elder did not answer. Instead, he switched topics and asked, “What is Qing Zhen doing now?”
“He doesn’t have anything to do other than go to the theater to listen to songs every day,” someone replied. “He listens to random songs with nothing specific in mind, nor does he have a favorite performer he watches.”
“OK.” The elder nodded calmly. “Let’s leave him out to dry for now. That young man is getting too arrogant and needs to be suppressed. He needs to learn that the power of money might come from an exchange system, but the power of authority is given by the consortium. Without a home, there will be no rules, nor will there be any authority to speak of.”
The others did not express their views on this. But at this moment, someone knocked on the door of the conference room.
The elder said softly, “Come in.”
The person who walked in was a secretary. The elder’s frown deepened as the secretary whispered something into his ear. He looked up at the others present in the meeting and said, “The 7th Combat Brigade led by Qing Huai was attacked by the Experimentals. They’re currently retreating with more than half of their force having taken casualties.”