Chapter 164: She Is Destined to Be the Boss Wherever She Goes

Xiaoliuzi is a lean young man, whose most prominent feature is a black birthmark on the tip of his nose, with a long, forked hair growing from the center. His face is large, but his features are very small, appearing as if they have all crowded around his nose to be closer to that birthmark.

He is only as tall as Liu Mu's shoulder, which reminds her of the Mutated Mountain Rats that work as helpers in the Coal Mine, his small eyes darting around restlessly.

"You?" Xiaoliuzi lets out a sharp, mocking laugh, like some kind of bird that dwells by the water, "I heard about it; you just arrived today and already killed one of our workers. Do you know that a worker's life is very valuable here!"

"How much is it worth?" Liu Mu moves a step without changing her expression, putting distance between herself and Ma Dajie, "How about you give that flabby man's job to me? I have great strength and work quickly."

"Just you? How much strength can a woman have? The rule here is: kill a worker and pay with your life. Besides, you're just a woman, no matter how tall you are."

To echo Xiaoliuzi, the people who came in with him burst into laughter, as if they had heard some kind of joke, "Hand over your gun and come with me obediently, otherwise none of you will live."

Liu Mu slowly purses her lips, thinking to herself how this person is stealing her lines; truly, what goes around comes around, and it is finally someone else's turn to threaten her like this.

"Are you sure you don't want to consider my proposal?" She finds it hard to understand; if one person dies, must they lose another laborer? This is not the rule-of-law society of the past; what is the point of upholding their so-called 'fairness'?

"Hmph, little girl, it seems you won't understand unless you're taught a lesson. Here, women are just tools. Today I'll let you know the power of a man. Brothers, get her!"

Seeing that these people are truly beyond communication, and with Ma Dajie beside her already pale with fear, Liu Mu grips her knife.

Yet, just a few steps away, Ma Dajie speaks up again, "Aren't you afraid I'll tell the Foreman if you do this? Let's see who dares to come over!"

One sees that the round-bodied Ma Dajie has somehow produced a kitchen knife and is hacking wildly at the people rushing toward her.

"Ma Hongmei, you dare meddle in our business? Don't think that just because your son works for the Foreman it makes a difference. Others might fear him, but I don't. Isn't he just a pretty boy who sells his ass? Sooner or later, I'm going to get a taste of him too!"

"You, you, nonsense!" Ma Dajie's son is insulted, and she turns red with rage, about to rush up and fight them to the death.

Liu Mu is quick-witted and fast-handed; she pushes the person aside, dodges a bullet, and the knife in her other hand has already flown out, cutting off Xiaoliuzi's gun-wielding hand amidst a shrill, miserable scream.

"Stinking hag, kill her, kill her!"

Xiaoliuzi's clamoring does not incite his subordinates to fight for him; Liu Mu's extreme speed and force just now have left them, even with guns in their hands, feeling deeply wary.

The knife that severed the hand has actually pierced the metal wall of the makeshift house and flown out, landing right on the long table where food is distributed, blood slowly dripping from the blade.

The food servers and the workers break into a cold sweat at the same time; hearing the gunshot and the scream, they all scatter away from the kitchen and the dining tables.

As the crowd recedes, four people holding their rice bowls are revealed; they are not surprised, but they still look a bit worried.

Niu Feng, the oldest among them, holds his empty rice bowl, "Little Zheng, should we go help the Boss?"

Zheng Tian takes advantage of the sparse crowd to add another half-bowl of braised beef tendon to his own, "No need. You guys probably don't know our Boss well enough yet; she is destined to be the boss wherever she goes. Back in our Mine, the big boss and the local thugs had a gang war, and she wiped out both sides all by herself. Guess what happened? That's right, she became the only boss."

These words stir the gossip-loving souls of the others, "Really? Tell us more!"

Zheng Tian has been observing Liu Mu for more than a day or two; with his seasoned experience in the underworld, the reason he insisted on joining Sea Soul Team One was specifically for Liu Mu.

Of course, the more important reason is that he couldn't get close to Liu Mu in other positions; at the very least, joining the team is a shortcut.

As Zheng Tian tells the story, the kitchen falls silent.

With a pitch-black gun muzzle pressed against his brow, Xiaoliuzi, trembling all over from the pain, doesn't dare to let out another whimper. At this moment, he resents his subordinates—a bunch of cowards—even more than he hates Liu Mu.

"Although I am very capable, I don't have much patience. I'll count to ten; you'd better think fast."

Liu Mu has already stated her demands, and it is unlikely Xiaoliuzi will agree with a look of resistance.

Of course, whether he agrees or not is unimportant.

"10, 8, 6..."

Hearing these numbers, sweat pours down Xiaoliuzi's forehead, "Why are you only counting even numbers? Didn't you say ten..."

"4, 2..."

"Fine! I agree to take you to see the Foreman, I agree!"

Seeing Liu Mu's index finger move, Xiaoliuzi realizes that if he waits even one more second, his life will truly be over.

"Alright," Liu Mu pinches Xiaoliuzi's shoulder, "you won't need your men to follow for what comes next."

Liu Mu pushes the man away as they leave; the others look at one another, and after a long while, they let out a long sigh of relief at having survived, unable to help but wonder, "Who exactly is this woman?"

Zheng Tian and a few others leave with Liu Mu and Xiaoliuzi; they aren't afraid of Liu Mu encountering danger, but are mainly going to back their Boss up.

Besides, the work of digging the mountain is too exhausting; if the Boss can climb the ranks, they wouldn't mind following to do lighter work like being supervisors or managers.

"The Foreman is the general manager of our project; behind him is the Pacific Rim Resource Development Company. It's said they contract mines and open them everywhere. I don't know the rest... can you really reattach my hand?"

On the way, Liu Mu asks about the specific situation here, but unfortunately, Xiaoliuzi doesn't know much; he is merely one of the guard team leaders.

He is a Survivor from the nearby area; like many others, after the disaster, he gathered a few people to loot everywhere, believing he could live freely.

Not long ago, he was found by people from this so-called Pacific Rim company, who gave them some supplies and hired them to come here.

However, his words still contain some useful information; for instance, they only started work a month ago, and they haven't dug up any ore yet. They all suspect that those foreigners might have gotten the wrong place.

That's right, the management of this Pacific Rim Resource Development Company are all foreigners; it is said they were investing in China before the disaster, and now they have started mining privately.

Why does Liu Mu know they are mining privately? Naturally, because the Barrier never issued any permits; before she took action, there were no relevant documents whatsoever.

With Xiaoliuzi leading the way and providing an 'introduction', Liu Mu meets the Foreman very smoothly.

The man lives in what is actually a brick house; the interior has even been simply renovated and is furnished with many household appliances common before the disaster.

In the middle of a three-meter-long sofa, a white man with black hair is half-sunken into the cushions, sizing Liu Mu up with the look of someone appraising a slave.