Dark Ruins Dawn

Chapter 122 Inventory
Mao Shanwang directed several cat-men to cramm the last power armor into a military truck.

"Hurry up, tighten the sail!" Mao Shanwang urged, his cat-like eyes filled with anxiety.

According to the original plan, Mao Shanwang and the "aircraft artillery unit" would only take a small amount of spoils with them when they withdrew from the underground pipeline network.

But the harvest was too great, and with so many iron lumps, it was clear that they couldn't make it through the tunnel.

Chu Ningyan then made urgent arrangements and arranged a new retreat route for him.

Mao Shanwang waved his paw and made a decision: "You proceed with the pipeline as planned! I will personally drive this vehicle back!"

"Boss, this is too risky..."

"What's there to be afraid of! Fortune favors the bold!" Mao Shanwang scrambled into the driver's seat on all fours.

Chu Ningyan nodded to him: "The nuclear matter has been taken care of. Take care of yourself."

"rest assured!"

Mao Shanwang dared not delay, slammed on the ignition, and the truck kicked up a cloud of dust, rushing out of the stronghold and disappearing into the night.

However, just two blocks after the truck turned, a beam of searchlight suddenly swept over.

Three armored patrol vehicles bearing the "Security Bureau" logo and a small airship blocked the road ahead.

"Damn it, I still ran into it."

Mao Shanwang's heart skipped a beat. He slammed on the brakes and instinctively reached for the pistol at his waist.

Several fully armed patrolmen jumped out of the vehicle, guns raised, and moved quickly and precisely towards the truck.

A soldier's tactical flashlight swept across the driver's cab, the beam pausing for half a second on Mao Shanwang's masked cat face, clearly taken aback.

"Turn off the engine! Get out of the car! Submit for inspection!"

Mao Shanwang tried to remain calm, rolled down the car window, and recited his prepared remarks, "Have you ever tried roasted chicken with walnuts? If not, please move aside."

nuclear?

The captain immediately came over, walked around the truck, lifted the tarpaulin, and shone a flashlight into the back of the truck.

Mao Shanwang followed the beam of light and saw a partially obscured logistics number for the Nuclear Group.

The captain paused slightly, then remembered that his superior had reminded him of some things before he set off. So he put away his flashlight, stopped questioning him, and gave a routine salute.

"You've worked hard on your mission, please proceed."

“…Okay, okay.” Mao Shanwang nodded stiffly and slowly stepped on the electric switch.

The patrolmen quickly withdrew, and the armored vehicles and hovercraft made way, as if everything that had just happened was just a routine procedure.

Trucks and armored vehicle convoys passed each other.

It wasn't until they turned the next block that Mao Shanwang's hands on the steering wheel began to tremble slightly, and his back was soaked with cold sweat.

"That's exciting! Using the nuclear chicken's feathers as a weapon, that chicken is really useful. I'll have to get more compensation when we divide the spoils later..."

Mao Shanwang chuckled and cursed; he was also the last to return to the safe house.

The safe house was brightly lit and bustling with activity, with a faint smell of blood and disinfectant in the air.

Mao Shanwang jumped out of the car, just about to show off the treasures he had brought back, when he discovered that Chu Ningyan, Pipi, and others were urgently treating the wounded.

"how is the situation?"

"Twelve people were slightly injured, three were seriously injured, and one of them was just pulled back from the brink of death."

Pipi didn't even look up, her voice weary, "The cat people are all lightly injured, the seriously injured are the rat guards. They don't like wearing armor, you really can't be so reckless."

Jetta and Santana stood obediently to the side, and were scolded by Pipi.

The Jetta team and Mao Shanwang's "aircraft artillery unit" suffered the most casualties in this raid.

Most of them lacked powered armor, which led to them being wounded by stray bullets in the melee. Three of the rat guards were critically injured and had to be carried into a makeshift operating room.

Mao Shanwang went over to take a look and saw that the rat guards were indeed seriously injured. They had been hit in the abdomen and chest by stray bullets, bleeding profusely, and their faces were pale.

"This is an impact blast," Mao Shanwang frowned, recognizing it at a glance.

"Correct."

Chu Ningyan skillfully cut open the clothes next to the wound. "The bullet's impact was too strong, damaging the internal organs."

"Hold on! Don't move!"

Pipi's voice carried its usual sternness as she used medical forceps to remove a piece of shrapnel from the leg of a rat-man.

Zhuang Fan and Xiong Er dealt with another seriously wounded rat guard, whose chest and abdomen were pierced by bullets. At first, it was bleeding profusely, but it was later barely stopped with nanogel.

Looking at the tragic scene, Mao Shanwang's smugness faded somewhat, and he scratched his cat head.

"The equipment is still not enough. Next time, we'll definitely equip all the brothers with better gear."

"That's right, staying alive is the most important thing."

Zhuang Fan wiped the sweat from his forehead, stood up and said to him, "Old Cat, you've had a hard time on this trip too."

"Hey, it's nothing." Mao Shanwang said, feigning nonchalance.

Outside, Cole and the members of the Fireworks team began unloading the cargo.

"Quickly, move them all into the pool!"

"Be careful, don't bump into anything!"

One by one, the power armors covered in blood and bits of flesh were carried out, thrown into the nearby cleaning pool, and then rinsed clean with high-pressure water guns.

Zhuang Fan asked, "Did the security bureau stop you?"

Mao Shanwang chuckled: "They didn't check me and just let me go. Wuji was quite well prepared."

"Yes, the truck has been completely cleaned up, there won't be any problems. It's like they gave us a truck for free."

Zhuang Fan's gaze fell on the nuclear emblem. "However, the vehicle must be destroyed; the nuclear identity is a death warrant."

"I see."

Mao Shanwang was still shaken. "Using things from conglomerates always makes me feel uneasy."

At this moment, Chu Ningyan walked over, her tactical mask still stained with a few dried bloodstains, and whispered to Zhuang Fan:

"News has come from Wuji."

She put it succinctly: "Soren and his companion were drinking in the camp and gave him a three-kilogram gold bar."

"Wow, that's quite a generous offer." Zhuang Fan wasn't surprised.

Mao Shanwang pulled back the foot he had just taken, his cat-like eyes widening: "Hiss... three kilograms? That old bastard Soren really went all out!"

"But the black-boned chicken was not confiscated."

Chu Ningyan continued, "He said this is Fengmang's property and should be disposed of by Fengmang's people, so he will send someone to hand it over to me."

Zhuang Fan was somewhat surprised after hearing this: "Wuji has shown too much goodwill tonight, with the roast chicken feast, the car loan, and even the gold bars..."

Mao Shanwang was puzzled. He patted his round belly and said, "What's in it for him? He lent me the carriage and gave me gold bars. What benefit did he get out of it?"

Zhuang Fan glanced at him and said slowly, "Because the existence of the Grey Goose is also a threat to him."

"what?"

"Wuji is the head of Nuclear's station in Linhai City. Above him is Minister Edward."

Zhuang Fan analyzed the stakes, saying, "Edward admires Grey Goose and intends to promote her to the top echelons of the nuclear industry. It's impossible for Black Chicken not to know this."

"So, as long as Grey Goose doesn't compete with him for the supervisor's position, Black Chicken is willing to do anything to support him."

He stated his final conclusion: "In fact, more than any of us, Wuji hopes to see Grey Goose become the new leader of Fengmang. The deeper she penetrates Fengmang, the more secure her position will be."

"Holy crap!"

Mao Shanwang suddenly realized, "So this is where we were waiting all this way!"

Suddenly, Zhuang Fan and Chu Ningyan both stared at Mao Shanwang. The latter was taken aback and asked, "What are you looking at?"

Where did you learn that catchphrase?

Where did you learn that?

Mao Shanwang scratched the cat's head: "It was Chen Dapang who led the way, right? He's the president of the flintlock guild, and many mercenaries say the same thing."

Zhuang Fan and Chu Ningyan exchanged a glance, then stopped talking about the topic and started discussing Wuji again.

“Grey Goose, Black Chicken will be your hidden help. At the very least, you can gain a foothold within the Sharp Edge.”

Chu Ningyan frowned slightly. She had obviously thought of this as well, but she was not very clear about the future.

"After all, Wuji is one of Nuclear's people, Edward's eyes and ears, and there are many unstable factors involved."

Zhuang Fan nodded in agreement: "It is indeed like trying to get something from a tiger, but you are not fighting alone."

He pointed to the members of the Spark Foundation who were busy behind him, "You have us behind you, so don't worry too much, just go for it."

Chu Ningyan looked at him and finally nodded gently.

"Thank you."

Cole pulled the last power armor out of the cleaning pool, the water of which was now murky.

He walked up to Zhuang Fan and handed him a data board: "Boss, everything's been counted."

"Okay, you guys go and rest."

Zhuang Fan took the data panel and scanned it line by line.

The spoils of war captured this time were very substantial.

There were 23 sets of intact power armor, 18 sets that could be pieced together and repaired, 42 sets of protective shields and bulletproof vests, a number of weapons and ammunition, and gold bars and banknotes seized, with a total value of 350 million.

He looked up at Mao Shanwang beside him: "Old Cat, give me an estimate for these armors."

"Tsk tsk, Qiu Shan is really rich."

Mao Shanwang rubbed his fat paws. "These models are a bit old, but they're well-maintained. If we sell them all on the black market, it should fetch around seven million gold coins."

Zhuang Fan understood.

With 800 million worth of equipment and 350 million worth of hard currency, this trip will net you 1150 million.

1150 million... Cole and Maoshanwang's breath caught in their throats for a moment.

Zhuang Fan didn't hesitate for long and made the decision immediately.

"Of the total profit this time, the Jetta team and the Old Cat caravan each received two million, and the Xin Huo team received seven million."

Zhuang Fan finally looked at Chu Ningyan and said, "The remaining 500,000 is yours."

Everyone agreed that Chu Ningyan's provision of intelligence and planning assistance was worthy of the money.

Mao Shanwang picked up the palm-leaf fan from the ground, his cat-like face crinkling into a wide grin: "Boss, you're being too generous! If I'd known it was this profitable, I wouldn't have bothered with secondhand business; I should have just switched to smuggling!"

"Boss, we can't take this money."

Jetta stepped forward, his rat-like face resolute. "You have sponsored us so much before, we are unworthy of this money."

Zhuang Fan looked at Jetta and gestured for him to sit down.

“Jetta, this two million isn’t a reward; you can consider it an investment.”

"Investment?" Jetta looked puzzled.

"I'm not paying you a salary, I'm supporting a 'Jetta King'."

He looked into Jetta's eyes: "With these two million, Master Rat should be able to go all out to recruit more tribesmen, purchase better equipment, and even establish your production line."

"Boss..."

Zhuang Fan's tone became more serious: "But it also means that from today onwards, you will operate completely independently, responsible for your own profits and losses, and you will bear all the decisions and consequences on your own."

“Unless it is a matter of life and death, I will not interfere in your internal affairs. You need to learn how to manage a tribe, not how to be my subordinates.”

Jetta finally understood Zhuang Fan's intention: this was not charity, but "teaching a man to fish".

The eldest brother is pushing him to truly shoulder the responsibilities that a "king" should have.

Jetta no longer declined.

He slowly raised his head, a flame igniting in his black, rat-like eyes, and solemnly made a vow:

"Boss, I will not let you down. I will open up a new world for the ratmen." But in his heart, Zhuang Fan will always be the boss.

Zhuang Fan nodded seriously, and then sent the purchase list to Mao Shanwang.

“We have twenty-eight sets of power armor. Can you get me another twenty-two sets to make a total of fifty sets?”

"Twenty-two sets..."

Mao Shanwang stroked the cat's whiskers. "No problem. There's plenty of stock right now, and the quality is excellent."

He leaned closer and lowered his voice even further: "They all 'flowed' from the border defense warehouse."

A hint of surprise flashed in Zhuang Fan's eyes: "Border defense zone? Military stuff? Wouldn't that be easier to investigate?"

"Hey, you're overthinking it."

Mao Shanwang didn't take it seriously. "Those officers were very thoughtful. None of them installed tracking devices, and they didn't even change the outer coating. They're exactly the same as the civilian versions sold on the market. Who would know if you didn't tell them?"

Zhuang Fan found it unbelievable: "But illegally reselling weapons... if they get caught, aren't they afraid of being shot?"

"Being shot is better than starving now."

Mao Shanwang's voice turned somber, "You don't know, Linhai City is almost starving. The border guards have been owed wages for several months, and the food is so bad that it's hard to swallow."

"I heard there have been several major riots in the criminal camp and the mutant camp, resulting in many deaths. What can the officers do? They can only sell some of their inventory armor to pay salaries and keep the troops in line."

Zhuang Fan was stunned.

He originally thought that the border guards of Linhai City were Fein's direct subordinates, and that even if their treatment was bad, it wouldn't be too bad. He never expected them to be so corrupt.

His doubts deepened: "With zombie hordes every day, how dare they cut the salaries of those in the border defense zone? Do those people in Linhai City have a death wish?"

"This is something that Linhai City really can't decide."

Mao Shanwang shook his palm-leaf fan and whispered, "You know who 'Palm Brother' is, right?"

"I understand, Commander Lei Zheng." Zhuang Fan nodded.

Chu Ningyan, who was standing next to her, had a slight change in expression. She had been watching from a distance when Lei Zheng slapped Luo Luo on the spot.

"The problem lies in that slap."

Mao Shanwang clicked his tongue. "The Wirtgen family wields considerable influence in the Central Capital Council. One of their members is a member of the Fiscal Budget Review Committee."

"When that girl, Lolo, went back and complained, they immediately cut off the second half of Linhai City's budget."

He laughed gleefully, "The Wittgen family has made it clear that they will only allocate funds when Lei Zheng's head is delivered to Zhongdu. Now that old codger Fein is practically bald from worry."

When Zhuang Fan heard the words "Zhongdu Council" and "Finance Committee," he vaguely caught a glimpse of key information, but Xu Renyi's memory was still very limited.

The intelligence brought by Mao Shanwang undoubtedly unveiled another layer of darkness that he had not yet touched.

"Old Cat, please continue telling me about Zhongdu."

"Go on, um..."

Mao Shanwang scratched the short hair on his head, his palm-leaf fan hovering in mid-air: "Speaking of this matter, Fein not only offended the Wittgen family, but also offended the number one person in Zhongdu with his actions."

"Nan Canghong?"

"Yes, it's that Boss Nan. Finn ignored Boss Nan's instructions and ordered Nuclear to conduct a large-scale search in the city. Isn't that a blatant slap in Boss Nan's face?"

Zhuang Fan remained silent, but what he was thinking about was Nan Canghong's only daughter, the genius writer from Zhongdu, Nan Yiwei.

He and Watson had personally "received" this young lady who came to "collect folk songs" in the criminal camp.

"Nan Canghong, is there a conflict with nuclear weapons?" Zhuang Fan searched through Xu Renyi's memories but found nothing wrong.

"I don't know about that," said Mao Shanwang, who was only speaking from hearsay.

Chu Ningyan, who had been standing quietly to the side, interjected casually, "I know more about this."

Zhuang Fan and Mao Shanwang both looked at her.

"When I was escorting Luo Luo's convoy back to Zhongdu, she mentioned to Nan Yiwei that Nan Canghong was taking too big a step and needed to slow down."

“From the moment Nan Canghong took office, he tried to restrain the various overstepping behaviors of the financial groups, but he was weak and powerless, and those financial groups... didn’t take him, the puppet they had put on the surface, seriously at all.”

"Nan Yiwei and Luo Luo are good friends, but Nan Canghong may also have some ideas behind them. He probably wants to win over those old nobles who are kept in captivity to support his reforms, but... the effect is minimal."

Mao Shanwang pricked up his cat ears to listen; this was firsthand bragging news.

Zhuang Fan fell into deep thought.

The administrators of Linhai City, the governors of Zhongdu, the major financial groups, the old nobles, the council, the border guards... this water is more murky than he imagined.

He was unaware of the situation in Zhongdu, but Linhai City, a city built on a crystal mine, was already on the verge of collapse.

Before the zombie horde and the green tide have even truly arrived, this city is likely to collapse from within.

He might be able to exploit the conflict between the chaebols and the higher-ups to find a way out, or even an opportunity.

But the premise is... that he has enough chips in his hand.

He pulled himself out of his thoughts and looked back at Mao Shanwang, returning the conversation to the procurement:
"Old Cat, since you promised a 20% discount, the newly purchased power armor will be priced at 200,000 gold coins per set, right?"

"That won't do! I can't even get the goods for 200,000."

Mao Shanwang quickly explained, "If you're willing to wait, I can slowly find them through other channels."

Zhuang Fan, recalling the hidden threat posed by the Apocalypse Cult, shook his head slightly: "I definitely need it urgently, the sooner the better."

"Since you're in such a hurry, I'll have to go to the border defense warehouse to buy it. Those officers are really ruthless; they're asking for 250,000 yuan a set right off the bat. I won't make any money off you this time."

Mao Shanwang added, "Also, didn't you want to add a nano lining to every set? That would make each set cost 300,000 gold coins."

Seeing that Mao Shanwang wasn't lying, Zhuang Fan said slowly, "Twenty-two sets would cost 660 million..."

"Yes."

660 million... Zhuang Fan felt a tightness in his chest. This fortune, which he had taken from Qiu Shan's old lair, was about to be given away before he could even enjoy it.

He remembered something and called Cole over.

"Cole, you're saying we lack long-range demolition and close-combat suppression capabilities?"

"Yes, boss."

Cole recalled the recent battles, "The armor buster is useful, but it's too expensive and consumes a lot of resources. Our current problem is that we lack area-of-effect weapons that can quickly clear the field, and in close combat, we can only rely on our fists to smash things."

"I understand."

Zhuang Fan turned to Mao Shanwang, "Old Cat, the order needs to be changed."

"You said, service is paramount."

"In addition to the standard rotary machine gun, each one should be equipped with a grenade launcher and a flamethrower, plus a chainsaw."

"All of them?"

"Yes, equip all forty-five sets. Also, help me purchase a batch of armor-destroying weapons, drones, mechanical dogs, and various grenades... If it's not enough, you can pay me back later."

"Fine, you have plenty of money, so you get to decide."

Mao Shanwang quickly calculated the funds: "But your seven million... is really gone."

"The more you spend, the more you earn."

Looking at the long purchase list, Mao Shanwang clapped his paws and said, "After this job, my performance record is definitely secure. Let's see if that scarred guy still dares to be arrogant in front of me!"

……

Later that evening, Wuji's adjutant arrived at a pre-arranged location and met Chu Ningyan.

“Ms. Grey Goose, this is what Supervisor Wu asked me to give you.”

"Good work."

Chu Ningyan took the box; it was quite heavy.

The adjutant didn't dare linger. He bowed slightly and left in the hovercar.

Chu Ningyan walked to a corner without surveillance cameras, threw away the metal box, and used the Wasteland Traveler to examine the inside of the gold, confirming that there were no trackers inside.

After doing all this, she cautiously returned to the safe house and gave the gold bars to Zhuang Fan.

"Take the gold bars."

Zhuang Fan shook his head: "This is your private property and is not part of the spoils of this operation."

"The team needs money everywhere, to purchase equipment and expand manpower, which is more useful than keeping it here with me."

"But this is yours."

Chu Ningyan was a little displeased. "What difference does it make if the gold bars are with you? They're all family."

Zhuang Fan was taken aback and met her gaze.

own people.

These three words are heavier than three kilograms of gold.

This was the most reassuring sentence he had heard in the past few days.

Chu Ningyan, unaware of his strange gaze, took out another 500,000 gold coins.

"I fought for this 500,000 so that more could be left for you; I don't need it all myself."

Zhuang Fan was somewhat moved after hearing this.

He pondered for a moment, took back the 500,000, and then stuffed the gold bar back into Chu Ningyan's hand, making her wrist feel slightly heavy.

“You…” Chu Ningyan tried to pull her hand away.

"If you want to develop your career in Fengmang, win people over, and buy off informants, none of that will be done without money."

Zhuang Fan didn't let her refuse, saying, "We have a strong earning capacity here, so don't worry."

The two looked at each other for a moment.

Chu Ningyan ultimately did not refuse, nodded slightly, and withdrew her hand.

Not far away, Pipi happened to look up and saw Zhuang Fan stuffing the gold bars into Chu Ningyan's hand.

She smiled to herself, but her hands didn't stop moving.

The rat guard was already nervous, and her laughter made him shudder. He watched helplessly as the hemostat was poked into the wound.

"Dr. Pipi!"

The rat guard cried out, "You...you shouldn't be laughing now..."

"Just keep laughing! Who told you not to wear armor? You just want to show off, don't you!"

……

At the nuclear camp, the campfire had long since gone out.

Soren and Qiushan ended their "roasted chicken diplomacy," both carrying the lingering smell of burnt chicken and a hint of alcohol.

"This black-boned chicken..."

As Qiu Shan sat in the hovercar, he felt a wave of dizziness. "Damn it, it's even more cunning than a fox."

"Cut the nonsense."

Soren rubbed his throbbing temples. Although he had eaten a disgusting meal tonight, the outcome was still good.

The airship took off smoothly, flew out of the nuclear camp's area, and escaped the signal jammer's coverage.

"Buzz—buzz buzz buzz—!"

Qiu Shan's communicator vibrated wildly, the notification sound shattering the silence inside the car.

"Involved!"

He was so startled that he sobered up considerably.

"What are you doing?"

Soren opened his eyes impatiently.

Qiu Shan looked at the panel, and then froze.

(End of this chapter)