Invasion of America

Chapter 145 Returning to China
Under the scorching sun, the men of Famvi town stepped out from behind the metal walls and surrounded the attacked motor convoy twice.

The body was dragged out of the ground and placed by the roadside. An excavator dug a pit more than two meters deep, waiting to bury the body in it.

The equipment on the body was removed, including the helmet, gear, and shoes. As for ammunition, firearms, and first-aid supplies, these were scarce items and could not have been used as burial goods.

Someone stood on tiptoe and saw several armed personnel from 'Holy Light' unloading a case of chilled Coke from an armored vehicle, and couldn't help but let out a low exclamation of "Wow!"

"The Richmond Guards are really living the high life; they even have Coke to drink at a time like this."

"Cola isn't expensive, the key is that it's ice-cold. How refreshing it would be to drink a can in this weather."

"Don't you think it's too cold-hearted of us just to watch? These are our own people who are dying."

"One of our own? You think the Richmond Guard would consider you one of their own?"

Listening to the chatter of the onlookers, Jiang Menglong, who was moving the supplies, felt extremely pleased. He hadn't expected that even a small enemy platoon would have cola in its logistical supplies.

And in order to enjoy their drink, the opposing major platoon leader didn't hesitate to waste precious diesel fuel to generate electricity for cooling—did he really think he was the world's number one, the United States?!
But with ice-cold cola in hand, why not drink it? Jiang Menglong gave a can to each of the team members who were working, and in high spirits, he even tossed a few cans out the door.

A few gasps suddenly rang out from the crowd. Some people were arguing over the Coca-Cola, which made Lao Jiang laugh out loud. He felt like a colonizer facing a group of ignorant and impoverished natives.
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However, the equipment of the mobile platoon is really good. The MK-19 grenade launcher mounted on the Humvee alone is a nightmare for infantry.

This thing has a good range, good power, and good accuracy. It can take out a large area at once, and it's convenient for both direct and indirect fire. It couldn't be better.

In addition, there were more than a dozen rocket launchers, such as the 'Gustav' M3 and the lightweight M72, which, when used in a platoon, provided an insane level of firepower.

If the 'swarm' hadn't been even more monstrous, relentlessly attacking such a mobile platoon, 'Holy Light' would have lost twenty or thirty men.

A 'Warthog' landed amidst a whirlwind, swallowed the looted weapons and equipment into its cabin, and then quickly flew away—there was no need to take these fuel-guzzling military vehicles, but the weapons and equipment on them would not be left behind.

Nearby, Mayor Ike of Famvi Town was having a heated argument with Marco. "We can provide you with electricity, and you must also open up the supply of goods to us."

But the most important thing now is to provide security for our town, which means stationing troops, understand? You can't just kill people and leave; you must take full responsibility.”

These words left Marcus speechless. He could understand the town leader's fear of the upcoming situation, especially whether the Richmond Guard would retaliate.
But what does it mean to station troops here?
Are the residents of this town planning to give up their right to self-defense?

"I need to discuss this with my superiors." Marco didn't dare to agree casually, so he went to Zhou Qingfeng to report the matter. The latter also looked surprised.

If this town were to relinquish its military power, it would be like meat on a chopping board. Surely they wouldn't be that foolish? But upon closer reflection, the other side might genuinely have its own difficulties.

In the post-apocalyptic world, resources are scarce, and maintaining a fully-fledged armed force is too costly.

Even with sufficient reserves accumulated before the apocalypse, 'Holy Light' can only dedicate one-tenth of its population to armed forces; otherwise, it would be unable to engage in production.

The Richmond Guard, on the other hand, was entirely composed of soldiers who relied on looting to survive. If they couldn't plunder enough supplies, they would collapse.

For Famwi town, last year's scavenging harvest was almost exhausted, and this year's potato planting was hampered by drought. They managed to maintain a militia, but they were no match for any of the surrounding forces.

Once they abandon their dignity and obsessions, they might as well live as vassals. This might have been a sudden whim of the town's leaders, but it also proves that they truly have no other way out.

Zhou Qingfeng put forward his conjecture and took the opportunity to contact Xiao Jinlang and Lin Anquan at the 'Holy Light' camp by radio—the two men in charge of military and political affairs were also greatly surprised.

Since the 'Holy Light' currently only has a few thousand members across the entire United States, and only five or six hundred in Virginia, it is clearly incapable of undertaking the defense tasks of other forces.

“Unless we abandon the other smaller shelters and concentrate our personnel in Virginia,” Old Xiao suddenly suggested. “I’ve actually been wanting to say this for a while now: the current population of ‘Holy Light’ is too scattered.”

In the early stages of the outbreak, dispersing the population was beneficial for survival, preventing the entire population from being wiped out if a single shelter encountered problems. But now that we need to develop, it is necessary to concentrate the population.

"Wait a minute," Zhou Qingfeng interrupted, "Don't think that far ahead. Right now, there's a town of eight hundred people who are asking us for safe haven because they're afraid of being attacked."

The 'Xihu' hydroelectric power station, which belongs to this town, can provide us with at least 10,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity every day. Should we agree to their request?

Our power supply is becoming increasingly strained.

“Agreed.” Lin Anquan, who was in charge of military affairs, answered readily. “We can take the initiative to strike the Richmond Guard, at least temporarily depriving them of their ability to threaten us.”

“I also want to fight, but how?” Zhou Qingfeng asked rhetorically. “Currently, there are only a little over 500 people in our camp, but our opponents have more than 3,000, and more than half of them are former professional soldiers.”

Lin Anquan said in a deep voice, "President Zhou, try to stall for two days. Your Kelly will be returning with reinforcements soon."

What?--
Just over a month ago, the rudimentary oil refining unit had just started up, producing two to three tons of low-quality fuel per day.

At the time, Zhou Qingfeng was worried because the oil tanks were almost full, but the equipment could not be stopped—could the excess oil be sold to the public?
This task was initially assigned to Kelly.

To be precise, it was handed over to the Connery family to take care of.

Jeff Connery, the father in his sixties, and his sister Jennifer Connery, both felt that doing business was their family's true calling.

Selling oil didn't go smoothly—selling it locally would only aid the enemy; selling it too far away would create transportation problems. So they simply stopped selling it and used the 'Katrina' to deliver the excess fuel to other shelters.

But Kelly was soon inspired—North America was in complete anarchy, 'vibrant and thriving,' but why focus on North America?

This place does have some remnants of 'high-tech' industries, but what is urgently needed in the apocalypse is not high-end goods, but basic survival supplies.

The world's leading producer of this kind of goods is located across the ocean. 'Holy Light' needs to find outside help!
Lin Anquan brought a group of "crew cut" guys with him, and also said that "Dongda" is recovering rapidly and is beginning to "maintain world peace".

If you're going to be a traitor to the US, why not go all the way? The Connery family aren't exactly pure-blooded Americans; they were immigrants in their early years, so they could just add some Eastern blood to it.

Satellite communications were not completely disrupted at the moment, and Zhou Qingfeng was also on the list. Kelly quickly contacted people in China and inquired about the situation from various levels of government.

The response was similar to Lin Anquan's—the situation was also very difficult domestically, with more than two-thirds of the population lost within a year, the economy severely damaged, and social operations almost at a standstill.

Fortunately, we are well-organized and recover quickly. Even with only 400 to 500 million people left, we still have a solid financial foundation. We are currently focused on maintaining peace between Japan and South Korea and then turning our attention to rebuilding Southeast Asia.

As for the United States, the government currently lacks the resources, but if 'Holy Light' is willing to return and organize manpower and resources, the country will not stop them and will actively cooperate.

As for 'Holy Light's' assets in China, especially 'Electric Flight', they still belong to Zhou Qingfeng and even the bank accounts are still retained.

Zhou Qingfeng provided information on the X virus, and the domestic authorities promised him 20% of any profits from the research—this promise remains valid.
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Confirming that 'Dongda' was recovering, Kelly did not hesitate and immediately boarded the 'Catalina', flying directly to the Los Angeles shelter. There, hundreds of 'Holy Light' core members were gathered, and a large amount of survival supplies that Zhou Qingfeng had purchased in advance were stockpiled.

With the active coordination and assistance of the local shelter, Kelly found a Gulfstream G650 private jet in good condition at the empty and quiet Los Angeles International Airport.

This streamlined luxury vehicle is not only incredibly comfortable, but also boasts an intercontinental range that can easily exceed 10,000 kilometers.

The cobbled-together ground crew carried out a meticulous inspection of the precious aircraft, and the pilot, hired with canned food and bread, carefully took off.

The Gulfstream G650 circled Los Angeles twice, with all its critical systems functioning normally.

Kelly then decisively arranged for people to secure more than a dozen heavy fuel drums in the spacious cabin of the Gulfstream G650 to ensure that the aircraft had enough fuel.

Once everything was ready, the private jet carrying hope took off from Los Angeles. After a silent flight of more than ten hours, it crossed the vast Pacific Ocean and finally landed at the Shanghai airport in the Far East.

Returning with Kelly was Xiao Jinlang, along with the half-ton of gold they had previously stockpiled. This batch of gleaming precious metals would serve as the initial capital to restart the massive machine of "electric flight."

Before the virus outbreak, Zhou Qingfeng showed great care for the employees and even suppliers of "Electric Flight". He used his own funds and influence to secure tens of thousands of precious doses of vaccine for them.

Despite the X virus's strong ability to evade immunity, this batch of vaccines at least helped the employees of "Electric Flight" successfully weather the first devastating wave of the outbreak, giving them a chance to face the second wave of impact.

Therefore, when Kelly's plane landed at the Shanghai airport, "Electric Flight" still had hundreds of employees at its Shanghai headquarters, and most of the employees of many key suppliers had also survived.

The company's general manager, Qiu Yongfeng, who remained at the airport, led a dozen or so haggard-looking subordinates with red, tear-filled eyes to the airport to greet them.

When they were reunited after so long, the moment they shook hands felt like a lifetime had passed, because so many familiar faces had been lost forever in this disaster.

“Ms. Kelly, it’s so…so hard to see you again.” Qiu Yongfeng’s voice choked with emotion.

"Wang, who was in charge of core technologies, passed away, and Qian, the secretary in the president's office, also left. More than fifty people died at headquarters, including the finance, legal and R&D departments."

"I was also admitted to the intensive care unit last year. I only managed to hold on because the president had given me a lot of bonuses beforehand, and I did everything I could to make it to the end. But many people around me... didn't make it."

This tearful outpouring touched everyone present, and an indescribable sadness filled the air.

No one anticipated that the devastation of this virus would be so brutal, setting back almost all of human civilization by decades.

Kelly offered a few words of reassurance to everyone, then asked with a hint of urgency, "Is 'electric flight' still operational? What's the situation with the suppliers?"

Manager Qiu nodded quickly and said, "The operation is still barely maintained. Although there are no new orders, the company's funds are still sufficient."

While we've lost a significant number of core employees, it's still possible to recruit new staff if we're willing to invest. The domestic economy needs to restart, and many people need to survive and work.

"As for the suppliers... they have definitely been severely impacted by the virus, and we need to investigate them carefully. But the whole country has realized the importance of the economy, and as long as there is investment, it should be able to gradually recover."

Hearing this, Kelly finally felt a huge weight lifted from her shoulders.

She originally thought the situation in China would be as bad as in North America, so she brought gold with her just in case.

It is a stroke of good fortune to know that the social system is still functioning.

Before the virus outbreak, the US stock market crashed, leaving a large amount of speculative capital with nowhere to go. Well-performing companies, such as Electric Flight, had the opportunity to obtain substantial dollar debt financing.

As a hot new technology star at the time, "Electric Flight" completed two large-scale financing rounds, each exceeding 10 billion US dollars.

Zhou Qingfeng used these funds to make a frenzy of purchases, and transferred a large portion of them to China, investing them in the "Electric Flight" account.

Due to domestic financial controls, this huge sum of US dollars was converted into RMB.

Today, the once-glorious US dollar has almost become worthless, while the RMB has become increasingly strong due to the relative stability of the domestic economy.

This precious fund is still here!

"First, we will provide a pension to the families of all the employees who have unfortunately passed away, and then we will provide a condolence payment to all the current employees."

With ample funds at her disposal, Kelly felt a bit more confident.

She spent a year in a refuge in North America, living in fear and anxiety, at one point believing that she would spend the rest of her life in the shadow of the apocalypse, and her spirit was on the verge of despair.

But now it seems that crises often contain opportunities for a turnaround.

There are very few large companies in the world that are still operating normally. Doesn't this give "Holy Light" a once-in-a-lifetime development opportunity?
"Manager Qiu, contact all suppliers immediately. Acquire those that can be acquired decisively, and inject capital into those that cannot be acquired. Make sure they get up and running as soon as possible."

"We must not only restore our original operations, but also seize the opportunity to expand our business scope." Kelly's eyes gleamed with a sharp light.

"What's the situation with domestic ocean shipping? Is it completely paralyzed?" she immediately followed up with.

"Has the petrochemical industry not recovered? Has the crude oil supply been disrupted?"

"Have the battery and chip production lines all stopped? Is there only a small amount of inventory left?"

On the way from the airport to the headquarters of "Electric Flight", Kelly bombarded him with questions.

At the same time, news of her return to Tokyo University on behalf of 'Holy Light' spread like wildfire in a very short time. She received several important phone calls while still in the car.

First, government departments warmly welcomed Kelly's return and pledged to do their utmost to assist in the restart of "Electric Flight".

Following closely behind were several large suppliers, who were almost moved to tears, celebrating the return of this important customer and foreshadowing a new era for the industry chain.

Major domestic media outlets also reported the news of Kelly, the vice president of "Holy Light," arriving in Shanghai immediately.

This news serves as a strong signal of recovery, indicating that the long-dormant industry and economy are about to restart and regain their vitality.

Xiao Jinlang, who returned with them, was rather quiet, because he had a special mission: to ask the country whether 'Holy Light' was allowed to get involved in the military industry.

(End of this chapter)