It was September, and the nights at Fortress 178 were getting a little chilly. At this moment, the residents who were working outside the stronghold were gradually returning home with generous subsidies. Due to the generous benefits of working outside the stronghold, many of the residents would only work outside for half a year before returning home to rest. As a result, they would be idle for the entire winter.
Of course, it was also because the winter in the Northwest was exceptionally cold.
Right now, there were still a lot of residents working in the factories outside. By the end of October, the roads outside would be blocked by ice and snow.
At that time, only the soldiers at the border outpost of Fortress 178 would be left outside. They would have to guard the stronghold for the entire winter without any entertainment. In fact, they would even have to stand guard.
There were people who taught themselves to craft, to play the harmonica, to play the accordion, and to learn a lot of other strange skills.
It was not because they were eager to learn, but because they were lonely. This was just their way of relieving their loneliness at the border outpost.
In the evening, six off-road vehicles came from the southwest and headed straight for Fortress 178 like a sharp arrow.
When they were about 170 kilometers away, they were suddenly stopped by the patrol troops. The voice of the patrol troops from Fortress 178 came through the vehicle's walkie-talkie. "You've entered a radio-restricted area. Please turn off your radio and pull over for inspection."
In the vehicle, Luo Lan chuckled and said, "Then pull over. Fortress 178's defense system has always been more rigorous. Even our Kyung Clan can't compare to it. After all, their mission is to defend against foreign enemies."
The six off-road vehicles switched off their walkie-talkies and slowly stopped on the road. Next to them, three platoons climbed out of the wilderness and approached them in full armor.
Luo Lan got out of the vehicle first and raised his hands. He was wearing sunglasses and looked like a gangster who was involved in smuggling. "My friend, I'm Luo Lan of the Kyung Clan. I've already communicated with your Commander Zhang on this trip!"
The soldier from Fortress 178 said calmly, "Please wait a moment. I need to report this to the General Staff."
As they spoke, the soldiers kept their guns aimed at Luo Lan. However, Luo Lan did not panic at all.
Zhou Qi, who was at the side, curled his lips and said, "Why do you look like you're guarding against thieves? Let's quickly settle the matters here. We still have to hurry to the Central Plains. The situation there has already become turbulent."
"Don't be anxious, don't be anxious." Luo Lan looked at the black muzzle next to him and said with a smile, "Why don't you have any awareness as a subordinate? As a subordinate, you should understand that the matter regarding the Kyung Clan's leader is the most urgent."
Zhou Qi adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses. "I'm paid to do this, not a subordinate."
"Haha, that's not something we should be thinking about," Luo Lan laughed.
When the soldiers of Fortress 178 saw the fatty's calm demeanor, they also felt some admiration for him. He was a real man.
Suddenly, the company commander of the company behind them got in touch with the General Staff. After confirming that Luo Lan and the others were legitimate visitors to Fortress 178, they agreed to let them pass.
However, before they were allowed to enter, they had to confiscate all their firearms and transfer to the patrol team's vehicles.
When the convoy arrived at Fortress 178 that night, Zhang Jinglin did not come out to receive Luo Lan. Instead, it was Xu Xianchu who came to receive them.
Luo Lan looked at Xu Xianchu with a smile. He affectionately put his arm around Xu Xianchu's shoulder and praised him, "Little Brother Xu, you're really young and promising. You must have suffered a lot when you were in the private army of our Kyung Clan stronghold. How about you come with us to the Southwest? You'll definitely have a good life there and enjoy endless glory and wealth."
However, Xu Xianchu politely rejected him. "Dream on."
Luo Lan did not mind. He continued laughing and said, "It's so cold in the Northwest during winter, and the strongholds aren't as prosperous as we are in the South. When you go to the Southwest, I'll find you ten concubines!"
Next to him, Zhou Qi sighed and said, "Fatty Luo, you're really like the villain in a story right now."
Luo Lan said unhappily, "Although I've committed murder and arson, I'm still a good person."
"Ptui!" Zhou Qi and Xu Xianchu spat at the same time.
"Alright, let's not talk about anything else for now. Let's get down to business." Luo Lan said to Xu Xianchu, "Hurry up and find a place to exchange our documents so we can leave with them."
Xu Xianchu led Luo Lan and the others to a remote and quiet street. Xu Xianchu said, "Commander Zhang told me about today's matter alone, so y 'all don't have to worry about any leaks. Besides, Fortress 178 might not be comparable to others in other areas, but we definitely have the fewest spies in the world."
"Alright, stop bragging. I know what y 'all are capable of," Luo Lan said with a chuckle.
At this moment, Xu Xianchu asked, "Where's the hostage you brought? Is it that bespectacled man next to you? "
Zhou Qi said unhappily, "I have a name, so what do you mean bespectacled man?"
But at this moment, Luo Lan waved at a soldier behind him. Xu Xianchu was stunned. "So he's the hostage the Kyung Clan gave me to Fortress 178? Y 'all better not send someone who's not important here. "
The soldier took off the cap on his head, revealing a head of black hair that cascaded down his back like a waterfall.
Luo Lan said with a smile, "This is the girl that our leader of the Kyung Clan likes. Is that enough?"
Xu Xianchu frowned and looked behind him. A middle-aged soldier walked out and said, "It's enough."
Luo Lan was amused. "You must be Wang Fengyuan, right? I've heard a lot about you!"
Xu Xianchu did not say anything else. Since Wang Fengyuan said it was enough, it must be enough.
Wang Fengyuan did not continue. "Since y 'all sent her here, aren't you afraid that we'll turn against the Kyung Clan in the future?"
"Don't worry, our Kyung Clan has no intention of unifying the world. May we never have to fight each other!"
With that, Luo Lan turned around and left. Zhou Qi chased after him and asked curiously, "We're leaving just like that? Why didn't I know that Qing Zhen liked such a girl before? "
Luo Lan continued, "This girl was originally an opera singer at Stronghold 111. She was just a minor character. Back then, the Board wanted to find Qing Zhen's weakness, but they realized that Qing Zhen had never been to the same theater. He just let fate dictate which girls he chose to listen to.
"But what the Board didn't do wrong was that they did not know which one Qing Zhen liked, so they sealed off all the theaters and captured all the girls in one fell swoop. At that time, Qing Zhen realized it was useless even if he went to a different theater every day. Actually, when he stepped onto the stage, his opponents would be unimaginably fierce, and the opponents he would face in the future would definitely be even fiercer than before."
Zhou Qi sighed and said, "So Qing Zhen sent her here as a hostage? That's even more confusing to me. "
"Hehe, Zhang Jinglin is one of the few gentlemen in the world. It's safest to send her here as a hostage." Luo Lan grinned and said, "Our Kyung Clan won't be safe very soon. Qing Zhen won't be able to divert his attention to protect her anymore."
"But Fortress 178 didn't send us a hostage. Why should we give them one?" Zhou Qi wondered.
Luo Lan said firmly, "For the sake of the railroad, of course."
Previously, the Kyung Clan had wanted to connect the railroad to the Central Plains with Fortress 178, but Zhang Jinglin rejected the idea.
After two long months of negotiations, the two sides finally reached a consensus on this point. The Kyung Clan had paid a huge price, but Qing Zhen felt it was worth it. As such, he took the initiative to send a hostage over.
But Luo Lan understood that although it was called a hostage, it was actually meant for Fortress 178 to protect this girl. As long as the Kyung Clan did not declare war on Fortress 178, Fortress 178 would be the safest shelter for this girl.
Zhou Qi smacked his lips. "This girl isn't ordinary either. She's still so calm even after being sent here as a hostage."
"After all, she's the girl my brother likes, so she's definitely not ordinary."
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
