Chapter 138 - 137: Chen Fei’s Friendly Gesture
Chapter 138: Chapter 137: Chen Fei’s Friendly Gesture
Lu Feng wasn’t the least bit surprised that He Jin had been caught.
This was a society governed by law, after all. When you ran an illegal online business, you either stayed off the radar, or you prepared to be toast the moment you were discovered.
That’s why taking shady shortcuts could only bring you fleeting glory.
"Okay, let’s hear Brother Zhui’s plan first," Lu Feng said, nodding at Ah Ji.
The guy had some skills for an ordinary person; he might be useful someday. Since Brother Zhui had brought him along, Lu Feng would show him some courtesy.
Huang Chui hurried to get Lu Feng seated and then ordered the food to be served.
What followed was a series of toasts along with the meal. Naturally, they had Yang Ming recount his exploits in Tianzhou City.
After all, even though he’d gone to Tianzhou City, his reputation had to be maintained back in Youcheng.
He didn’t have to say much. Yang Ming just had to mention the entertainment complex and the few hundred million from the electronics company deal, and it was enough to make everyone around them gasp in astonishment.
After the meal, Lu Feng went back to the fruit shop to check on his mom, then went home with her.
His mother had been consistently drinking the bone-strengthening wine made from the Striped Bull bones he brought back from the game. Her health was improving daily, which put Lu Feng’s mind at ease.
His mother, on the other hand, was constantly asking about him and Yang Qingxue.
「The next day.」
Lu Feng drove alone to the rented warehouse. Just as he arrived, he saw Master Lin walking out, clearly having just delivered a batch of modified gas canisters.
"Boss Lu!" Master Lin was startled for a moment when he saw Lu Feng, but he quickly greeted him.
The man had been in Tianzhou City and hadn’t been seen for quite some time.
But the work of modifying gas canisters hadn’t stopped; he had been steadily working on them.
Lu Feng said, "Master Lin, barring any surprises, these canisters aren’t coming back. You’ll definitely need to buy more. Talk to my cousin about the numbers!"
"Alright, Boss Lu." Master Lin nodded and left. He wasn’t curious about what Boss Lu wanted with the canisters and had no intention of prying.
His current income was excellent, putting him at the top of the heap among the old-timers in Youcheng. On top of that, Boss Yang Ming had put in a good word for him, so even the most arrogant young punks had to treat him with respect.
So, when he went to the public square to dance with the old ladies, he carried himself with more swagger, more confidence. The other old men had to meekly step aside whenever he set his sights on a dance partner.
After Master Lin left, Lu Feng entered the warehouse, bolted the door from the inside, and inspected the gas canisters.
There were a little over 40 of them.
But when he thought about the terrifying zombie tide, he knew this wasn’t nearly enough. He needed more.
So, he immediately called Yang Ming. The moment the call connected, he said, "Cousin, I need more gas canisters. Unmodified ones are fine too. Figure something out on your end."
On the other end, Yang Ming hung up, feeling a bit perplexed. ’My cousin seems to need so many gas canisters every time.’
But he didn’t let his curiosity get the better of him.
Because it was so strange, he knew he had to help his cousin keep it a secret and prevent anyone else from getting curious.
He immediately drove to find Master Lin and asked, "Master Lin, we need more gas canisters, unmodified. Any ideas? Buying them requires registration these days."
Master Lin replied instantly, "Brother Ming, just have your boys use their own IDs to register for them. Nothing wrong with their families needing a gas canister, is there? And if the canister later goes ’missing’ or they ’forget’ where it is, that’s not a problem either, right?"
Hearing this, Yang Ming didn’t hesitate. He picked up his phone and started making calls.
Before long, scores of tattooed young men from Youcheng could be seen heading to the gas utility management office, IDs in hand, to register.
In a small county like this, as long as they spaced out their visits and avoided the same clerk, the bored civil servants just looking to get through the day wouldn’t bother questioning if it was all above board.
And so, Yang Ming and Master Lin transported more and more canisters to the warehouse. After they were done, the count inside had reached over 200. "Xiaofeng, this is as many as I can get for now," Yang Ming explained. "Any more and we risk attracting unwanted attention."
"Okay." Lu Feng nodded. This would have to do for now.
After Yang Ming and Master Lin left, Lu Feng bolted the door as usual and used his detector watch to scan the area. Once he confirmed everything was clear, a single thought sent him into the game world.
A day and a night passed in the game, and Qingfeng Base was now bustling with activity.
Lin Jiao had already arranged accommodations for everyone from Red Leaf Base. However, she hadn’t assigned any jobs yet; this was a process that couldn’t be rushed.
The people from Red Leaf Base needed to integrate slowly, and there had to be an adjustment period. Rushing things would inevitably lead to problems.
However, when Lu Feng found Lin Jiao, he discovered Chen Fei approaching him.
He had a vivid memory of Chen Fei, especially the scene where he had dropped to his knees without a moment’s hesitation.
But Chen Fei’s subsequent actions convinced Lu Feng that he wasn’t a coward; he simply understood the power of a Mecha. The capabilities he had demonstrated were far beyond that of an ordinary person.
Therefore, Lu Feng didn’t look down on him for kneeling. ’Knowing the power of a Mecha and choosing not to kneel—or worse, trying to resist—that would be true stupidity.’
Chen Fei came before Lu Feng and said immediately, "Mr. Lu, I’ve already spoken with most of the people from Red Leaf Base. We ask that you assign someone to arrange work for us. We don’t want to be idle; we want to earn our keep through labor."
Lu Feng looked at Chen Fei in surprise. He had just been pondering this very issue, and here was Chen Fei, not only bringing it up proactively but also having already gotten the people from Red Leaf Base on board.
Then, it dawned on Lu Feng. ’He’s demonstrating his capabilities, making a gesture of goodwill toward me.’
’He saw that I intended to absorb Red Leaf Base, so he’s assisting me from the sidelines, helping me win over its people.’
As expected, this Chen Fei was no simple character.
Lu Feng gladly accepted Chen Fei’s proactive gesture. In this apocalypse, strength was supreme, and he wasn’t afraid of any tricks Chen Fei might try to pull.
If his goodwill was genuine, his abilities would undoubtedly be a great asset to Qingfeng Base.
So, he immediately summoned Guo Zhen and had Chen Fei coordinate with him to arrange work for the people from Red Leaf Base.
With this step taken, once the people of Red Leaf Base grew accustomed to trading labor for food, that stability would solidify their decision to stay.
Lu Feng then turned to Lin Jiao. "Gather some people and come with me to the old Red Leaf Base. With that many zombies there, I have a feeling they’ll cause more trouble. We need to eliminate them all."
Lin Jiao nodded.
She also felt it was too risky to leave those zombies there. After all, frenzied and mutated zombies had already made their way to Qingfeng Base before.
Plus, a Hexagonal Beast capable of controlling zombies had also escaped.
The place was just too close to Qingfeng Base.
Lin Jiao gathered a group of people and followed Lu Feng back to the site of Red Leaf Base.