Chapter 913: Recruitment at the Ninth Planting Center

“Hello, everyone. I’m Xia Qing, Director of the Ninth Planting Center, Level 6 Strength Evolutionary and senior Sniper.”

Xia Qing walked into a meeting room on the second floor of the administrative building, took the main seat, introduced herself briefly, then began presenting her department to the 11 Magnetic Sense Evolvers who hadn’t yet chosen their assignments.

“The Ninth Planting Center is located in Section One of the North, 240 li north of the Safe Zone, covering a total area of 2,300 mu. Of that, 438 mu have already been cultivated, mainly planting rice and corn. Like other departments, Magnetic Sense Evolvers hired into the Ninth Planting Center get A-level employee benefits. Anyone who doesn’t want to join can leave now. If you want a position, stay for the interview.”

After waiting a full ten seconds, someone couldn’t hold back and spoke up. “Director Xia, that’s it?”

Xia Qing nodded, choosing not to say anything more.

On her way here, Xia Qing had memorized every b-class Evolver’s name, family background, work situation, and Base contribution points. All that info had cost her a good sum from Yang Jin. When she saw the eleven people left in the room, mostly folks scraping by at the bottom of the Safe Zone, she knew there was no need to waste words.

Xia Qing understood these people too well. If she started making lofty promises now, it would only make them feel uneasy and anxious.

But someone whose newfound status had clearly gone to their head couldn’t resist. “Director Xia, you don’t seem very sincere about this. Aren’t you worried we’ll all leave and no one will join the Ninth Planting Center?”

The speaker was Ma Xiaoyin. He ranked third in strength among the twenty b-class Magnetic Sense Evolvers, but he wasn’t on Xia Qing’s shortlist for recruitment. Xia Qing raised her hand toward the door, indicating Ma Xiaoyin was welcome to leave if he wasn’t satisfied.

Ma Xiaoyin shut his mouth, crossed his arms, and stubbornly stayed put.

A thin man wearing patched-up, threadbare clothes stood. He introduced himself, “Hello, Director Xia. I’m Wang Jun, vice captain of the third construction squad of Zhang Yong’s Building Team here in the Safe Zone. If I join the Ninth Planting Center, can I bring my child with me? Can my child enroll in the center’s elementary school?”

“The center’s own school covers everything from kindergarten through junior high,” Xia Qing explained, then promised, “You’re classed as urgently needed talent. By regulation, you can bring your direct family members to live here. Those with family can apply for a two-bedroom staff dorm. As long as your child meets the entry requirements, they can start school. Your kid, Shunkang, is seven this year—he’s eligible.”

Wang Jun heard Xia Qing still call him ‘Brother Jun,’ just like the old days. The anxiety that had gnawed at him since his arrest finally faded, and he relaxed. “Thank you, Director Xia. I’ll follow every arrangement and work hard. Can I bring my child to go with you when you head back?”

Wang Jun trusted Xia Qing far more than any bodyguard out there—they’d worked together for four years.

Xia Qing nodded. “Of course. Brother Jun, just sign this employment contract. Then you can go pack your things. After you’re ready, have a bodyguard drive you over to wait for me at the Azure Dragon Squad. We’ll take the helicopter back together.”

“Hold on!”

Ma Xiaoyin leapt up. “There’s still a bunch of us left. Isn’t the Ninth Center supposed to hire the best? Director Xia, aren’t you even going to ask about his ranking?”

Wang Jun immediately tensed. He was ranked dead last among the twenty b-class Magnetic Sense Evolvers—a fact he’d purposely kept quiet, worried Xia Qing might turn him down.

Xia Qing offered an explanation. “At the Ninth Center, your main job is to patrol the fields and spot any abnormal crops. If you’ve got strong abilities, you’ll do fewer rounds. If not, you’ll have to walk more. As long as you get the job done, that’s all that matters. I’ve worked side by side with Wang Jun in the same construction team for four years—I know exactly what kind of person he is. I trust him to do the work well.”

The weight in Wang Jun’s chest lifted instantly. He gave Xia Qing a deep bow, signed, and darted off, terrified someone would try to stop him.

“Director Xia, I’m…”

“Director Xia…”

“Director Xia…”

A few who’d already set their sights on the Ninth Planting Center saw how easily Xia Qing picked her first recruit. Eager not to miss their chance, they scrambled to stand up and introduce themselves.

Xia Qing raised her hand for silence, then gestured politely to the woman who’d spoken first. Her clothes were still relatively clean, but her hands bore obvious scars. “You go first.”

This woman was another Xia Qing had already chosen.

“Thank you, Director Xia.” The chosen woman stood right up. “My name is Wu Xinlian, I’m 31, married, and before the disaster I was a statistics major in college. My husband is Liu Ke, a level 3 Auditory Evolutionary. He’s got no criminal record, and his base contribution points total 8,351. If I join the Ninth Planting Center, could my husband join too?”

8,351 was about average for an Evolver. Xia Qing checked, “Is your husband a member of the Liangqing Squad?”

Wu Xinlian answered promptly, “He is now. But if you let him in, he’ll resign right away.”

Under the Squad Alliance regulations, if an Evolver leaves a squad for personal reasons and doesn’t get their original squad’s approval, they can’t apply to join a new squad. If Liu Ke quit the squad now, he clearly wasn’t planning on staying in the squad world.

Xia Qing nodded. “He can join. He’ll be a Ninth Center employee like you. But once you’re with us, you’ll have to follow the rules. Break staff regulations, and depending on the severity, you’ll be fined, demoted, fired, or kicked out of the center.”

“We understand and will follow every rule. Thank you, Director. I’ll go pack and come with you right away.” Wu Xinlian bowed and signed, afraid Xia Qing might change her mind.

Seeing another candidate quickly selected, the remaining people grew even more anxious. “Director Xia, how many are you recruiting total?”

Xia Qing calmly answered, “Four.”

“Director Xia Qing, it’s my turn…”

“Director Xia, I…”

“…”

Meanwhile, in another meeting room, other departments listening in through surveillance weren’t happy when they realized the Ninth Planting Center would get so many new hires.

Zhao Baolin, head of the Planting Division and director of the Safe Zone Planting Center, spoke up first. “Base Director, the Ninth Planting Center’s only developed 400-odd mu of farmland. Weren’t we supposed to send only one Magnetic Sense Evolver?”

Qi Zhongye, clutching a big mug of tea, stayed silent. The Territory Management Department’s head, Tian Jiawen, explained. “I requested from the Base Director that we assign the patrol duties for the Section One and Section Three northern territories to the Ninth Center’s Evolvers. It’s a more reasonable plan, and it’s safer for the Evolvers.”

To most departments, Magnetic Sense Evolvers were highly sought after. But for the Territory Management Department, not so much—the Base would hold them responsible if any hired Evolvers went missing, got hurt, or died on the job.

The Territory Management Department already had enough on its plate. Tian Jiawen had no desire to dispatch dedicated cars and staff to escort each Magnetic Sense Evolver into the territories for crop patrols every time Devastation Rain or Devastation Snow season hit.

So when Zhou Qianpeng suggested turning over the field patrol duties of the two farthest territories to the Ninth Planting Center’s Evolvers, Tian Jiawen immediately agreed and made a formal request to the Base Director.

Zhao Baolin muttered, “But four is too many—three tops! They’ve only cultivated a tiny patch of land. There are just twenty b-class Evolvers total, and the Ninth Center is the smallest and was set up last.”

He’d suspected as much—he could have handled recruitment directly but Xia Qing rushed over in such a hurry precisely to compete with him for talent.

Yu Jinghong, deputy director of the Hui Three Research Center, snorted. “You were supposed to have four, too. But if you can’t protect your people, that’s your problem.”

Zhao Baolin fell silent. His department’s Evolver was the first to go missing, after all. Now, the others didn’t want to stay under his management—they were fighting to join the Ninth Planting Center outside the Safe Zone.