Chapter 406: Negotiations and Tensions at the Border

After Tiger left, Xia Qing opened the notes sent by her various allies. She realized that not many of them had purchased grow lamps—each territory only bought five to eight, just enough to light up half a greenhouse, maybe a bit more.

That didn’t surprise her.

First, renting trucks to haul soil, buying plastic film and seeds had already drained the lords’ credits. If they wanted to buy more lamps, they’d probably have to sell crops just to scrape together enough credits.

It wasn’t just them—Xia Qing was strapped for credits too. She’d have to pay for lamps with supplies. Most of her credits were already spent on building walls and trading for Yi Stones.

Second, growing crops in greenhouses didn’t always require extra lighting. As long as the temperature and humidity were right, they could still grow low-light vegetables like spinach, garlic chives and celery.

Chives were especially valuable—chive shoots grown in the dark sold for even more than ordinary chives. The farming broadcast had been educating lords these past few days about the perks of cultivating chive shoots, and the Territory Management Department was also selling one-year-old chive roots.

Xia Qing had already called Zhong Tao to place an order for two hundred chive roots. Other lords likely ordered just as many, if not more.

But even if someone bought five hundred or a thousand chive roots and used their leftover chives, it still wasn’t enough to fill an entire greenhouse. So, they had to plant some vegetables that needed a lot of sunlight and long daylight hours. That explained why everyone still bought grow lamps.

Once Xia Qing sent the total grow lamp count to Yang Jin, she took the sweet potatoes back from the terraces. As she made her way home, her walkie-talkie crackled with the voice of Li Si, Lord of Territory Nine.

“Third Brother, are you there?”

Ji Li chimed in, “Our lord is still resting.”

Farmers always rose early. Xia Qing had already been busy, picking more than a hundred sweet potatoes, but it was only seven-thirty in the morning. It made sense that Zhang San was still asleep.

Li Si explained, her voice icy as ever, “Our squad’s vice captain brought thirty jin of fresh, frozen Green Lantern Cow ribeye and strip. We wanted to stop by Territory Seven to greet Third Brother.”

“Seriously…”

Xia Qing nearly drooled at the thought, her eyes drifting to Old Goat hauling baskets up ahead.

Fresh Green Lantern Cow ribeye and strip—come to think of it, maybe only the front leg and tenderloin of the Green Lantern Sheep walking before her could compare.

A gift like this from the Blazing Fire Squad was generous, but it still wouldn’t get them through the gate of Territory Seven.

Ji Li’s response was steady. “Our lord is very busy right now and isn’t accepting visitors.”

Li Si pressed on. “Could we trade the Green Lantern Cow beef for pesticide from Territory Nine?”

Ji Li didn’t refuse. “Which pesticide do you need?”

“Could we talk in person?”

“Sure.”

Their exchange ended and the lords’ channel went quiet again. Xia Qing finished storing most of the sweet potatoes in the underground storeroom, then grabbed her tools to start assembling the steel frame for the second greenhouse.

At eight, Hu Zifeng’s Squad joined her in Section Three, helping set up the second greenhouse frame and laying down plastic film.

With more people around, things felt lively. Er Yong talked endlessly about why ribeye was called snowflake beef, and the best way to cook beef with the strip.

Chen Cheng, meanwhile, filled Xia Qing in about Blazing Fire Squad’s vice captains. “There are six vice captains, each in charge of different things. This time, it’s Dan Ying, who oversees planting. She’s an Auditory Evolutionary, and the squad’s premium evolution spinach falls under her domain.”

Taking the crossbeam Chen Cheng handed over, Xia Qing asked, “Was Li Si from Dan Ying’s team before coming here?”

Chen Cheng shrugged. “Not sure. What I do know is that Dan Ying’s incredible. Fire Phoenix lured her away from the Hongcheng Base’s research institute with a high salary. She rarely leaves Fire Mountain. For her to personally visit Zhang San this time, something big must be going on.”

It made sense to have the squad’s planting specialist discuss Cordyceps with Zhang San. Xia Qing probed further, “Is there a vice captain named Liao in the Blazing Fire Squad?”

She remembered Li Si arguing with someone in Territory Nine about the compost starter price hike—it had been raised twice, both times at the direction of Vice Captain Liao. Perfect chance to ask.

Chen Cheng replied immediately. “Yes. His name’s Liao Wendong. He’s a Brain Evolutionary and handles finances and outside trade for the squad.”

Hu Zifeng, carrying a bundle of steel pipes, joined in. “Liao Wendong used to handle finances for a publicly listed company before the disaster. He’s sharp as a tack. The squad’s rolling in riches these days thanks to him.”

Xia Qing confirmed, “So Liao Wendong is a Brain Evolutionary?”

“Maybe not?” Hu Zifeng replied. “I heard before the disaster he and Fire Phoenix…”

“Zufeng, can you hear me?”

Yang Jin’s voice came through on Hu Zifeng’s walkie-talkie.

Hu Zifeng instantly pressed the talk button. “Yes, Boss, I can hear you.”

Yang Jin ordered, “Refugees from Territory Two have left their territory and are heading west, entering the buffer zone between Section Three and Hill Forty-Nine. Take your squad back to Hill Forty-Nine, Section Three, and wait for further instructions.”

Hill Forty-Nine belonged to the Azure Dragon Squad, while Section Three was Xia Qing’s turf. But the buffer zone was considered a ‘road,’ so people walking there didn’t need anyone’s permission.

“Understood.”

Hu Zifeng’s squad dropped their pipes and tools, assembled the whole team and hurried off to Section Three of Hill Forty-Nine. Few in the Azure Dragon Squad even realized this area technically fell under Xia Qing’s control. Officially, Hu Zifeng’s squad guarded this patch.

Xia Qing set her own tools aside and followed the squad up to the high slope of the buffer forest. While Hu Zifeng’s squad protected Section Three of Hill Forty-Nine, it was up to her to protect her own territory.

“Dong—”

The sharp clang of something heavy hitting the iron mesh wall rang through Section Three. Standing in the northern buffer forest, Xia Qing turned and walked toward the western buffer forest.

“Sister Qing!” Chen Cheng whispered as he slipped out of Section Three. “Stay calm—don’t fall for their tricks.”

These people were just here to stir up trouble. Xia Qing nodded to show she understood.

“Dong—”

Right after another loud bang, Xia Qing heard someone shout, putting on a mocking show, “Hollow, huh? The day I showed up, I saw them unloading like they ruled the place—hell, I actually thought this wall was solid!”

She recognized that voice. That was the same refugee who’d been eyeing her gun, back on Territory Two’s first day recruiting.

“Don’t cause trouble, just keep moving.” Someone else shot back, impatient.

“What, I’m not causing any trouble. Just banging on a wall, not a person.”

“If you wanted to hit someone, could you even reach them?”

“How do you know I wouldn’t try?” The first guy snickered and, unable to resist, struck the wall again with the back of his knife.

A racket like that was impossible for Xia Qing to ignore—if she did, outsiders might see it as fear.

Next time, they’d push even harder, probing her limits.

Xia Qing walked up to the wall and pressed her walkie-talkie. “Captain Tan, are you there?”

“Here,” Tan Junjie answered quickly over the lords’ channel.

Xia Qing, now right by the fence in the western buffer forest, stared down the ten-man team standing in the buffer zone. Her voice was crisp and even. “Someone in the buffer zone has struck my territory’s wall hard three times with a heavy object. Am I authorized to shoot them on the spot?”

Tan Junjie replied, “Procedure says you have to warn them first. If they ignore it and keep acting aggressively, you have the right to take effective measures to defend your territory.”

“Understood.” Xia Qing let go of the walkie-talkie and raised her gun, aiming straight at the Strength-Based Evolutionary who’d smashed her iron mesh wall.