Armored train in the apocalypse

Chapter 209 District Twelve

"Clap clap..."

Eight 50-centimeter-long metal trays were placed on the long table.

Wan Xing helped Yu Yue pack the steaming hot braised food into several trays. Lao San and Lin Jin, who had just come in, were also busy helping to get bowls and chopsticks.

As Director Xu and Professor Ma walked, they argued with Huang Hai about something.

Xiao Ba, sitting in a wheelchair, followed behind a somewhat reserved boy. When the boy saw the decorations inside the food cart and the braised food on the table, his eyes lit up noticeably.

If it weren't for the vehicle swaying slightly with the floodwaters outside the windows, the dining car would have looked more like a family canteen.

Su Huan sat at the end of the long table, resting his chin on one hand and flipping through the various documents that Hu Shuo handed him with the other.

Seeing this, the others did not disturb him and quietly took their seats.

The train conductor doesn't like overly quiet environments; a moderate amount of noise makes him feel at ease.

The train conductor grew impatient as he flipped through the pages, snapped his fingers, and Shu Wei, who was helping Yu Yue set out the dishes, suddenly trembled, calmly walked to Su Huan's side, and bowed slightly.

"Can you understand it?" Su Huan asked.

Shu Wei glanced at the cover page in his hand, which contained data on personnel and supplies. A focused light flashed in her eyes, and even her demeanor turned cold.

Hu Shuo, standing to the side, looked serious, a sense of impending crisis creeping in.

“No problem,” Shu Wei replied calmly.

"Read it all, and then tell me the key points."

"Understood, I will summarize and organize the information and point out the problems."

"Ah."

Su Huan responded softly.

As more and more things happened on the bus, the data and tables compiled by Hu Shuo became increasingly large and professional, sometimes even accompanied by pictures for explanation. At first, it was a bit novel, but the more you looked at it, the more headache-inducing it became.

Before his death, Shu Wei was at least the president of a listed company. As long as there was no exaggeration, dealing with these documents would be a piece of cake.

He can also feel a lot more relaxed.

……

On the other side, Wan Xing saw the boy next to Xiao Ba and quickly stepped forward to stop them. Xiao Ba looked up at Wan Xing, his clear black and white eyes showing confusion.

"What's wrong, Sister Xingzi?"

Wan Xing said in a low voice, "It's not appropriate."

Xiao Ba was taken aback for a moment. Although she didn't understand, she lowered her voice and said, "Didn't we say we were coming to eat? I wanted to take Hao Hao to eat something nice..."

Wan Xing shook her head helplessly, "Which one of you brought a family member?"

Although the message was about having a meal, it was actually the train conductor holding a meeting with the train's senior management.

Although Xiao Ba is smart, he can't understand so many of the subtle things adults say.

Moreover, the little boy's identity is sensitive...

Thinking of this, Wan Xing sighed inwardly.

Seeing the two talking, the little boy stood there, looking confused and reserved, clutching the hem of Xiao Ba's clothes with one hand.

Although he couldn't understand it, he could vaguely sense that he couldn't go in.

Yu Yue walked over, squatted down, and gently stroked the little boy's head, saying softly, "Auntie made a lot of delicious food. Little boy, can you eat spicy food?"

The little boy relaxed a lot. "I can't eat spicy food, not a lot of it."

"How about Auntie packs you some extra non-spicy food and takes you back to your room to eat?"

"Since you're already here, why send them back? That's so rude. Come on, sit next to me." Su Huan's calm voice came from the end of the table. At that moment, he had just handed his work to Shu Wei, who was sitting next to him, and gave the little boy a warm smile.

Yu Yue's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly. Looking at Su Huan's smiling face, she knew he had no good intentions.

But with everyone present, she couldn't refuse the train conductor.

Helpless, he led the little boy over and sat him to Su Huan's left, then had Xiao Ba sit next to the little boy, while he stood between Su Huan and the little boy, serving them food.

Su Huan looked at the woman's behavior and was slightly speechless. Why was she being so wary of him?

In this strange atmosphere, everyone started eating.

Su Huan enjoyed the deboned meat that Yu Yue had brought him while talking with Vice President Deng.

After all, there are many details involved in train modification, which cannot be understood simply by glancing at data and reports.

Just like the balancing system and detection system of a train, there are many intricacies involved.

When he was about three or five tenths full, Su Huan cleared his throat.

"There are two things in total. The first is Shu Wei."

Standing behind Su Huan, Shu Wei could only focus her attention on the data in her hands and ignore the group of people having a pleasant meal.

But a pang of sadness inevitably lingered in my heart.

It wasn't that the braised food was particularly tempting, but the sudden drop from being the center of attention to being relegated to a mere side dish at the dinner table inevitably caused a sense of loss.

Upon hearing Su Huan's voice, he immediately composed himself and stepped forward.

In everyone's eyes, she is still the aloof and cold commander of Black Kite.

"From now on, I'll be considered a secretary, with functions equivalent to a flight attendant, but my salary will be delayed... and will be paid after a period of time."

Su Huan issued the appointment.

Everyone had different expressions. Wasn't this just working for nothing?

However, once you think about the other party's identity and purpose, it doesn't matter anymore. The train conductor was already very generous to turn prisoners into his own people.

Throughout history, there have been very few people who received high-ranking official positions and generous salaries immediately after surrendering.

Most of them were killed.

Moreover, as the train conductor's secretary, she held a relatively high position.

Originally, this task was handled by Yu Yue and the various flight attendants.

The reason why Hu said he was always reporting was because the logistics team also handled a lot of administrative matters.

Professor Ma and a few other old men thought even deeper. If she did a good job and kept doing it, wouldn't she be equivalent to the chief flight attendant?

Although the armed train only has a little over a thousand people and is still a makeshift operation, its resources, information, and future evolutionary potential, if it maintains this momentum, will definitely make it one of the most important pillars of human civilization.

On this point, Professor Ma and Director Xu, the older men, were more certain than the younger men like Lin Jin and Xiao Zhao.

These young people still believed they were survivors and refugees of a natural disaster.

But now, the armed trains that have entered the flood zone have turned the tables and taken the initiative.

The offensive and defensive dynamics are different.

“The second thing is the situation we will face next, Shu Wei,” Su Huan said calmly.

He died too young in his previous life; he didn't know anything about storm zones, let alone flood zones.

All eyes were on Shu Wei's face, assuming that the train conductor was testing the new secretary.

Shu Wei herself thought so too.

In an instant, many thoughts flashed through her mind. Normally, she could speak freely about such a small matter, but considering that the opportunity only came once, she became much more cautious.

After quickly analyzing all the situations, he calmly analyzed the situation.

"The crises currently facing armed trains can be divided into two types: natural disasters and man-made disasters."

The clear sound is like an underground river beneath a glacier, carrying the magnetism of colliding ice shards.

Upon hearing this, Su Huan also became slightly focused.

"The man-made disaster originated from Black Kite and other unknown powerful forces. For some reason, the news that the armed train possessed dual-gene progenitors was not spread but was concealed until the headquarters learned about it during the Battle of Wangjiang Peak."

"Then why would there be an unknown force?" He Jie asked, frowning. "At most, it's just a Black Kite and a Deep Blue Data, isn't it?"

Shu Wei's gray-blue pupils fell on He Jie's face, looking at him very carefully, as if she wanted to print his face out. There was no extra emotion in her eyes, only a kind of ruthless focus.

"The problem lies with Deep Blue Data. They didn't seem to know about the Primarch at first; they were just curious why we Black Kite were overstepping our bounds—"

"Here's a little information: every major power has its own territory. For example, the Steel Council is in the Acid Rain Zone, while Black Kite and Deep Blue Data are headquartered in the Storm Zone. At this stage, each power is developing the resources within its own region. If the two Primarchs weren't so valuable, we wouldn't have traveled all the way across the Flood Zone to the Acid Rain Zone to capture people."

"While Primarchs are also attractive to Deep Blue Data, their principle is to avoid unnecessary conflicts with other factions. After the Armed Train destroyed the Steel Council, it has already entered the standard of a [small faction], but that doesn't mean they will keep the Armed Train's secrets. In their style, the news that the Train has two Primarchs and a mutated plant that increases life force has already spread throughout many regions."

"Black Kite suffered a great loss at Wangjiang Peak, losing a special operations team. They will certainly not let this go easily. They will not venture deep into the flood area, but they have probably already set up a blockade outside the flood area and are waiting."

The third brother considered carefully and said, "With the current defensive capabilities of the train, we shouldn't be afraid of a blockade, right?"

The leader sitting next to him hesitated to speak. He had seen the weapons captured from the Black Kite Squad. They were all the latest electromagnetic equipment, and apart from some spares, there were almost no traditional gunpowder bullets.

The blockade network they mentioned is probably not simple either.

"Black Kite inherited all the assets of a military region, not just a few guns..."

Shu Wei's eyelashes drooped, casting a sharp shadow under her eyelids.

He Jie gasped, his eyes widening in shock. "A military region? My goodness, isn't this cheating?!"

"Tsk, that's cheating." Su Huan's eyes were deep, a cold smile playing on his lips. "But what I'm more curious about is, how many regions are there in total, and why do you think natural disasters are the main danger to the train?"

"It is said that there are twelve, but Black Kite has only come into contact with floods, storms, spores, and gravity zones so far. If it weren't for this operation, it wouldn't have come into contact with acid rain zones either."

"Have you all noticed that the intensity of natural disasters is not evenly distributed?"

As Shu Wei spoke, her confidence and professionalism in managing the listed company gradually returned. Every word and every sentence carried a convincing aura.

If temperament is a combination of a person's knowledge and appearance, then aura is the influence one exerts on the surroundings through their temperament and language.

When the audience is infected by this aura, they are willing to believe her even if she is talking nonsense.

As for some painters who failed the exam, it can no longer be called an aura, but rather an aura that combines personal will and the will of the times. Even if they don't say anything, wherever they stand, people will shout for them and go crazy for them.

But Shu Wei's aura was clearly no match for the rebellious train conductor.

Are you asking me?

Su Huan asked indifferently.

If you're going to give a report, then give a proper report. What's the point of constantly asking a question?
Am I listening to your speech?
Seeing the cold, dark blue light in Su Huan's eyes, Shu Wei recalled her hellish experience in the room, her pupils trembled, and she quickly tried to salvage the situation.

"Natural disasters are arranged in order of increasing intensity. For example, the acid rain zone in Qingchuan is much milder than the flood zone. Even ordinary people can survive in such disaster zones if they are careful. However, they cannot survive in the flood zone or the spore zone."

Listening to her words, another mystery in Su Huan's heart was solved.

No wonder the high-temperature areas in Yunnan are so intense, while the acid rain areas are excessively mild.

So there's a pattern to this.

If that's the case, then if the flood zone is intense, the subsequent storm zone will be more moderate, and then the spore zone will be more severe.

One strong, one weak...

This seems more like something that was done by humans.

"Um, could I ask what the gravity zone is all about?"

Professor Ma, who was sitting to the side, suddenly raised his hand and asked with a smile.

"We mainly learned about the gravity zones from another faction. Black Kite doesn't know much about them either. She only knows that the main natural disaster in the gravity zones is gravity imbalance, with some places having high gravity and others having very low gravity..."

Next, several researchers from Huanghai asked some questions about the disaster-stricken area.

Su Huan didn't interrupt, but sat down beside him, eating spicy edamame while listening.

We also gained an understanding of the flood-affected areas.

The terror of the flood zone lies not only in the raging floodwaters, but also in the unpredictable eddies, waves, and terrifying mutated beasts that connect to the depths of the ocean.

While humans could still dominate the land thanks to their civilization, mutated beasts in the sea have become the absolute overlords.

Large marine creatures, for example, have enormous bodies, and the amount of energy they consume during evolution is even more astonishing.

A level one blue whale can easily crush hundreds or thousands of bloodhounds with a simple roll.

And those deep seas that humanity never explored even in its golden age—who knows what ancient creatures might be lurking within?

Now, thanks to the explosion of general energy, it's possible that all of it has surfaced.

Shu Wei had just reviewed a lot of data and had a basic understanding of the armed train. He believed that with the current strength of the armed train, there was a high chance that it could safely pass through the flood zone without lingering. He should focus his efforts on the Black Kite and other organizations beyond the flood zone.

Su Huan somewhat agreed with this conclusion.

But he felt it was not good to pass the suggestion too quickly.

He now feels that every district is a treasure trove, such as the high-temperature zone with its abundant zombie resources and various supplies that haven't been seized by major powers beforehand.

Crown pear trees in acid rain zones, and legacy talents, etc.

The armed train aims to better prepare for the apocalypse and the dangers that follow.

We shouldn't just run away; we should seize every opportunity to improve our strength and grow stronger.

They're so fat they can't eat anymore, so fat they're terrified just looking at them!

"What do you think is the biggest deficiency in armed trains right now?"

Seeing that everyone had finished their discussion, Su Huan suddenly asked a question.

Everyone pondered in silence.

Su Huan's gaze swept around, but it still landed on Shu Wei's face.

The latter gritted her teeth. Actually, she hadn't thought it through either, but if she couldn't give a good answer, or if her answer was worse than others, Su Huan would definitely not let her off the hook.

(End of this chapter)