Chapter 369: Shelter Walls and Hidden Strategies

When his father slowly opened his eyes Tang Huai immediately leaned in. “Dad, do you need to pee or want some water? Does your wound still hurt?”

Tang Zhengbo didn’t want to pee, didn’t want water either, and the pain was still sharp. But he still took a couple careful sips from his son’s hand before asking, “What time is it?”

“It’s four o’clock. Still way too early. You should get some more sleep.” Tang Huai replied right away.

Tang Zhengbo gave a soft response, then comforted his eldest son, who looked like he was about to cry. “We had the Azure Dragon Squad protecting us when we went to get the wheat seed this time. It was just a surface wound—no infection, no evolution spores. With Zhang San’s miracle medicine, I’ll be back on my feet in a few days.”

“Dad…” Tears started spilling before Tang Huai could stop them. He hated how useless he was.

“Who says my son’s useless?” Tang Zhengbo said firmly. “You’ve always been bright and sensible, never gave your mom or me a single worry about your studies. If it weren’t for the disaster, by now you’d probably be an archaeologist leading a team all over the place.”

“Dad…” Being an archaeologist had always been Tang Huai’s dream since he was a kid, supported by everyone at home. He’d always chased that dream.

But who could’ve seen it coming? The disaster completely changed Blue Star. Corpses everywhere, constant hunger—archaeology suddenly became worthless.

Tang Zhengbo’s tone softened. “Once we got these seeds back, I used up every favor I had left at Hui One Base. From now on, we’ll have to rely on our own strengths for supplies. Your sister’s got the business mind, she’ll keep running the restaurant. You and Ah Heng stay in Territory Two. I can still manage our family territory for a few more years.”

Tang Huai wiped his tears away. “Once the wheat in our territory sprouts, those two are going to know we tricked them. Is there still a reason for me and Ah Heng to stay with the Sufeng Squad or remain in Territory Two?”

“The territory isn’t finished yet. Your grandma, mom, and sister still need to stay in the inner Safe Zone for now, so we can’t outright turn our backs on Tang Zhengrong just yet.” Even though Tang Zhengbo was weak, his mind was sharp.

“When they realize you and the Azure Dragon Squad brought the seed back, they’ll be even more unwilling to let you two leave Territory Two. Because when the people in Territory Two mess up, they need scapegoats—plus they have their eyes on our premium wheat back home.”

“Blue Star has changed, but the basic rules of survival haven’t. Power still decides everything. Before the territory policy, evolvers ruled the bases. Now with the territory policy, even regular people might rise to power.”

“So, Ah Huai, this is our big chance to turn things around.”

Tang Zhengbo’s voice was weak, yet steady; his words carried conviction. “Tang Zhengsu is just Tang Zhengrong’s weapon, nothing more. As long as we’re still in the Safe Zone, we can’t fight Tang Zhengrong. But the territories are guarded by the military, so he can’t control everything there.”

“It’s like the old saying goes: in this world, there are no everlasting friends—only everlasting interests. You need to use that drive you had for archaeology and bug digging to truly understand what those hundred-plus refugees in Territory Two need. Stirring up trouble against Territory One isn’t the refugees’ real goal—or that of the Gui San Squad mixed in with them. That’s something Tang Zhengrong and his brother want.”

“Figure out what the refugees actually need and link that with our own goals. That way, we’ll be in it together, working toward the same purpose even if we differ elsewhere—surviving and thriving together.” Tang Zhengbo’s words were earnest and heavy with meaning. “It all comes down to you brothers now. Once you manage the refugees in Territory Two, that’s when I can finally set my burdens down and enjoy proper retirement.”

Tang Huai tucked his father in, making a promise from the heart. “Don’t worry about a thing. Between me and Ah Heng, we can handle those hundred or so people. I even traded with Xia Qing for thirty Green Lantern Eggs a few days ago. We’ll be hatching Green Lantern Chicks before the year’s out. When you’re up and moving again, you can raise chickens and birds in our territory. Leave all the tough stuff to us.”

“Good.” Tang Zhengbo smiled. Then he asked, “Did Zhou Zhaoping enter Territory Eight yet?”

Tang Huai nodded. “Yeah. He came in with the cargo flight—looks like he’s going to stay in Territory Eight to manage the factory.”

“Your ears are pretty sharp—pay attention to how he runs the factory and deals with the refugees, you’ll learn a lot. Don’t argue with Xin Yu, make sure you get along with Xia Qing and Zhang San. When you go to Territory Seven tomorrow, keep quiet and do whatever Zhang San tells you…”

After his father had finished rambling and drifted off to sleep, Tang Huai turned off the lamp and lay down on the small cot next to him. In no time, snoring loudly.

The snoring was so loud it woke Tang Zhengbo. He stayed there with his eyes closed, quietly laughing.

“Sis, I meant to mention this last time we dropped off refugees—your new walls are seriously awesome!”

Once all the refugees had been settled, Zhong Tao drove the patrol cart over with rapeseed and supplies. As soon as he hopped out, his eyes lit up at the sight of Section Three’s new iron mesh wall. “These wires are even thicker than the ones at the Safe Zone’s planting center. Not even a car could crash through.”

The south wall of the territory was finished now, and Xia Qing looked on with growing satisfaction. “The planting center has the Safe Zone’s wall and so many guards, so they don’t need anything sturdier. I can’t get away with that here—anything thinner would fall apart.”

Zheng Kui shared some news with Xia Qing. “Hui One Base just developed a new coating material—supposedly, it can hugely boost metal’s durability, corrosion resistance, and oxidation resistance. I don’t have any contacts for that, but you could ask Azure Dragon Squad.”

“Thanks, Kui.” Xia Qing admitted her challenge. “I barely squeezed enough from selling this season’s grain just to finish the wall. Once I harvest the wheat and rapeseed next year, I’ll look into that coating.”

Zheng Kui nodded his understanding.

Zhong Tao added, “You did the right thing getting the wall up. Several territories near the Safe Zone have been invaded by refugees—nobody could stop them.”

When you’ve got starving, desperate refugees on the edge, laws just don’t matter. That’s why Zhong Tao’s group had been reassigned to resettle refugees recently and couldn’t patrol the area.

“Oh, and Sis, maybe you haven’t heard?” Zhong Tao lowered his voice, clearly taking satisfaction in the news. “Territory Forty-Nine got hit too—their worm farming greenhouses got smashed up, more than a dozen trashed.”

Territory Forty-Nine had snatched the earthworm casting business from Sun Zhe and Zhong Tao’s cousin, so their trouble was great news for Zhong Tao.

After chatting a bit more, Zhong Tao handed Xia Qing the package he brought. “Here’s the wheat seed you stored in the Safe Zone’s depot. And here’s a pound of Yellow Lantern Rapeseed—half a pound as your reward, the other half you can swap for veggies or grain. Want the seeds, Sis?”

Back in July at the Crop Trade Fair, Xia Qing had set aside forty pounds of Yellow Lantern Wheat for seed, paying to store it in the Safe Zone’s food depot. Now that it was time to sow winter wheat, of course she needed the seed back.

After making sure both the wheat and rapeseed were good, Xia Qing listed the vegetable seeds she wanted for trade. “I’ll take another hundred seeds each of leaf lettuce and celery. Can you still get crab shell fertilizer these days, Tao?”

There were four types of vegetables available to trade, but Xia Qing already had two of them.

Zhong Tao collected the few giant Yellow Lantern Pumpkins Xia Qing offered in exchange for veggie and rapeseed seeds, then asked, “There’s one last batch of crab shell fertilizer shipped from Gui San Base. How much do you want, Sis?”