Tonight's night did not seem that unbearable. Thousands of people gathered around their campfires to keep themselves warm, and countless sweet potatoes were thrown into the campfires.
Gradually, the entire campsite was filled with an intoxicating sweet smell.
In the dark of the night, it looked like countless lamps had suddenly been lit up in the wasteland. The yellow flames flickered, and many people were looking expectantly at the sweet potatoes that had yet to be roasted in the campfires.
The sweet potatoes were about the size of a wine bottle, but Chen Wudi ate three of them in one go. Ren Xiaosu was shocked when he saw this. He suddenly felt that Chen Wudi might have asked him to be his master because he wanted to eat until he became poor!
Chen Wudi wiped his mouth and looked at the people around him: Ren Xiaosu, Wang Fugui, Yan Liuyuan, Sister Xiaoyu, and Wang Dalong.
"What are you looking at?" Ren Xiaosu glanced at him.
"Master, don't you think our group is still lacking something?" Chen Wudi asked.
Ren Xiaosu was taken aback. "What are we lacking?"
Chen Wudi's gaze wandered back and forth between Yan Liuyuan and Sister Xiaoyu. "We're still lacking a White Dragon Horse."
Yan Liuyuan and Sister Xiaoyu immediately felt terrible. However, Chen Wudi had his own principles. He said, "You don't have to look at me like that. Neither of you is the White Dragon Horse, so I won't simply recognize you as one."
Wang Fugui and Wang Dalong felt terrible again. Could they really be Pigsy and Monk Sand?!
Ren Xiaosu felt a little melancholy. His group was originally quite normal, but why did it suddenly change after Chen Wudi joined them?
But what surprised Ren Xiaosu was that even though Chen Wudi was crazy, he still had his own internal logic. But why did he want to recognize him as his master?
He ignored Chen Wudi and silently calculated everyone's appetite. The sweet potatoes should last them for about two more days, and they might not go bad even if they were left for the entire winter.
However, it was a little tiring to carry them on the journey. After all, the sweet potatoes were quite heavy.
Right now, they were probably only about 100 kilometers away from Stronghold 109. If a normal person were to travel eight hours a day, they could probably walk about 40 kilometers. If the intensity was higher, they could walk 50 kilometers. However, Wang Fugui, Wang Dalong, and Sister Xiaoyu's bodies would probably not be able to take it.
In the afternoon, Sister Xiaoyu even used a needle and thread to help Yan Liuyuan remove the blisters on the soles of his feet. At that time, Yan Liuyuan quietly looked at Sister Xiaoyu's side profile and suddenly felt that it was really good to have such a sister.
At this time, the blisters on the soles of the refugees' feet had already rotted away before forming scabs again. After scabs formed, they rotted again. Escaping for their lives was not as simple as "how many kilometers can you walk in a day".
Therefore, Ren Xiaosu estimated it would take them at least another three to four days to reach Stronghold 109. If they ate the sweet potatoes sparingly, they wouldn't even have to go out and look for more food.
Suddenly, Ren Xiaosu heard Jiang Wu's voice not far behind them. "Everyone, hold on a little longer. We'll be able to reach Stronghold 109 very soon. Everyone, make sure to bring along the sweet potatoes we dug in the afternoon. It might be tiring walking, but it's better than going hungry."
The students had already passed the stage of homesickness and vulnerability. These greenhouse flowers were learning to be strong. Someone suddenly asked, "Teacher, can we really make it to Stronghold 109 safely?"
"We definitely can." Jiang Wu said, "As long as we follow that young man, we'll definitely make it."
At this moment, a student winked at Jiang Wu and reminded her to look behind her. When Jiang Wu turned around, she happened to meet Ren Xiaosu's gaze.
She screamed and quickly turned her face away. It seemed that the campfire was burning so brightly that it made her cheeks look especially red.
Jiang Wu lowered her voice and said to the students, "Why didn't you guys remind me!"
"Haha." The students started laughing. "Teacher, you're blushing."
When Ren Xiaosu saw this, he suddenly felt that humans were the most adept at finding joy in adversity. As long as they saw a glimmer of hope, they would be willing to live on.
After a while, the students on Jiang Wu's side started singing in low voices. It sounded like a school folk song.
Ren Xiaosu got a little carried away as he listened to the singing. He had also wanted to live in a carefree stronghold and enjoy the comforts of life.
But of course, life in the stronghold was probably not that comfortable anymore.
In the distance, at the Kyung Clan Consortium's base, Luo Lan could smell the sweet potatoes wafting over from afar. As he ate the rations the combat brigade had stored in the vehicles, he sighed, "These poor people really know how to live."
Next to him, Luo Lan's confidant asked, "Boss, do you think your brother will send someone to save you?"
"It's hard to say." Luo Lan was a little melancholy. "Instead, I'm a little worried about him. He was still in the Jing Mountains when something happened. Now, Qing Zhen's fate is also unknown."
Luo Lan's confidant muttered, "I don't think anything will happen to Boss Qing. He's always been a confident person."
"Confident?" Luo Lan sighed and said, "Didn't an accident still happen this time? Of course, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are considered natural disasters and can't be prevented."
"Do you think Stronghold 112 will also encounter the same problems as our stronghold?" His confidant asked, "After all, the distance between the two strongholds is about the same. If we can't withstand the earthquake here, it'll be the same for the other side."
"That's right." Luo Lan thought for a moment and said, "I'm afraid Stronghold 112 has also collapsed. The Kyung Clan Consortium has lost two strongholds all of a sudden, so Qing Zhen will probably have to receive a very severe punishment from the consortium."
"But it's not our fault either." His confidant whispered, "Wouldn't it still collapse no matter who it was?"
"Qing Zhen has made too many enemies within the consortium to begin with." Luo Lan said, "Besides, he killed a lot of people from the other consortiums a while ago. The consortium is probably worried that he won't be able to control the situation, so they're giving him the cold shoulder. But this is only temporary because the Kyung Clan Consortium still needs Qing Zhen to do things. The others can't do things as well as Qing Zhen … or rather, they're not as ruthless as him. "
At this moment, Qing Zhen was walking on the mountain path. His face had been blackened by the black smoke from the volcanic eruption, and his image could not be any worse.
Next to him, Xu Man said into the satellite phone, "Boss, the Board of the consortium wants to speak to you."
By this time, they had already walked out of the area covered by the volcanic clouds. The satellite phone's functionality had also been restored.
"Tell them I'm not free," Qing Zhen snapped.
Xu Man was put in a difficult position, but he still relayed the message. A few seconds later, he looked at Qing Zhen and said, "They want you to head to Stronghold 111 immediately for investigation after you leave the country. You're not allowed to leave Stronghold 111 without permission. Stronghold 112 and Stronghold 113 … are already gone … "
"Tell them I got it," Qing Zhen said nonchalantly.
Xu Man hung up after replying to the other side. He said to Qing Zhen, "Are they trying to put you under house arrest?"
"It's been a while since I've been back to Stronghold 111." Qing Zhen said, "Give Stronghold 109's Lu Yuan a call and get him to send someone to search for Luo Lan."
Xu Man hesitated for a moment before saying, "That's a stronghold controlled by the Li Consortium. As the stronghold's overseer, Lu Yuan might not have much say."
"He still has the authority to send some private troops. Stronghold 109 is the closest to Stronghold 113, so if Luo Lan has nothing to do, he'll definitely head to Lu Yuan's place." Qing Zhen looked back at the gray sky behind him and said, "Tell him that if he can't find Luo Lan, he'll have to die."
Xu Man suddenly felt that Qing Zhen did not seem like someone who would be placed under house arrest by the consortium at all. Moreover, the relationship between Qing Zhen and Luo Lan was even better than the rumors said.
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