Chapter 187: Warning

Zhang Yong struck a pose as if he were very familiar with Xia Qing and that she would surely let him enter the territory. Tang Lu crossed her arms and leaned against the No. 2 road sign, waiting to enjoy the show.

From territories No. 4, 5, and 6, onlookers kept poking their heads out through the wild-grass walls, some even leaning halfway out.

Xia Qing didn't refuse Zhang Yong entry. She easily lifted the largest crate with her left hand. "I drove here—my vehicle's right behind the grass wall. Sister Juan, want to come into my territory for a bit?"

"I came here to find you anyway—where else would I go but your place?" Xu Juan secretly breathed a sigh of relief, cheerfully picked up two crates, and followed behind Xia Qing.

After passing through the wild-grass wall taller than a person and seeing the micro-tiller parked by the road, Xu Juan exclaimed, "Not bad, Xia Qing! In just half a year you've even got farm machinery."

Zhang Yong loaded the supplies into the cargo bed and climbed in himself. "You made this cargo bed yourself, didn't you?"

"Mm. Sister Juan, sit next to me." Xia Qing had already removed Sheep Boss's special seat, leaving just enough room for Xu Juan.

Fortunately, the "weakened" Sheep Boss couldn't see this scene—otherwise he'd have thrown a fit and fought Xia Qing for sure.

As the micro-tiller puttered back, clack-clack-clack, Xu Juan took the chance to look around and noticed Zhang Yong sitting with his back to them. She immediately turned toward the front and kept tracing two characters on Xia Qing's back with her finger:

Be careful.

After writing, Xu Juan raised her hand to steady her chest, which was bouncing up and down from the micro-tiller's jolts. Xia Qing caught it in her peripheral vision—Xu Juan's index and middle fingers were pressed together, both pointing below her neck.

Xia Qing understood Xu Juan was signaling her: the Sufeng Squad's camera or listening device was mounted on her neck. She nudged Xu Juan with her elbow to show she understood.

After Xia Qing drove back to the courtyard, Xu Juan jumped off and looked around. "Nice yard you've got here—really spacious. Where's the outhouse? I've been bouncing around in that cargo bed forever; I'm about to burst."

Apart from being spacious, her place had no other merits. Xia Qing opened the security door and led Xu Juan inside. "The one in the back-right is it."

After Xu Juan went to the bathroom, Xia Qing went out to help Zhang Yong unload. She found Zhang Yong with his back to her—a piece of cardboard torn from a packing crate was stuck to the back of his protective suit, with a few characters scratched into it using a screw:

There are cameras on our collars.

The Sufeng Squad was always overbearing and domineering. Once Xu Juan and Zhang Yong had been approached by them, they had no choice but to come—otherwise the two of them could forget about continuing to get by in Hui-Three Base.

Every man for himself, and heaven and earth will destroy you.

Even if they hadn't warned her, Xia Qing wouldn't have done anything to them. But the fact that they had risked danger to proactively warn her—Xia Qing appreciated that favor.

After she took off the cardboard and tucked it under the micro-tiller's seat cushion, she heard Zhang Yong ask, "Where are you planning to install the solar panels?"

There were already two solar panels on the slanted roof of Xia Qing's house, but she planned to install these six panels back in their original spot. "On the roof of the east warehouse."

Zhang Yong looked up, observing the rack-style building whose windows Xia Qing had blocked with wooden boards and iron plates. "Can this roof handle the weight?"

Xia Qing answered briefly, "It can. I replaced the corroded rebar, re-poured it with concrete, and laid another course of bricks on the roof with cement."

"Good." Zhang Yong picked up the welding gear and toolbox. "How do we get up there?"

"Take the stairs."

Xia Qing opened the warehouse door, used her left hand to lift the bundled solar panels and led the way. Zhang Yong followed with the welding torch and voltage stabilizer, and Xu Juan came out of the bathroom and joined them, shouldering an iron pipe.

The warehouse was large and the things inside were neatly arranged, but apart from junk salvaged from the ruins and dry grass, there was nothing of value.

Xu Juan asked, "What do you need all this dry grass for?"

"I'm raising a sheep."

Xu Juan grew interested. "Green-light or yellow-light?"

Xia Qing, walking ahead, answered, "Red-light, strength evolution. It can carry loads."

The three went up the cement stairs. This rack-style building had two floors, but a stairway exit had been built above the rooftop—presumably the original owner had wanted to make use of the roof.

Too bad the renovation wasn't finished before the disaster began.

"Nice work on this—leveling's spot-on too, rain won't pool up for sure." After praising Xia Qing's roof work, Zhang Yong began deftly assembling the solar panels.

Xu Juan wandered around the rooftop, looking about, chatting casually with Xia Qing. "Xia Qing, where's your sheep?"

Xia Qing, busy assembling the iron frame, answered without looking up, "It's sick, in the sheep pen."

"That little single-room shed in your yard? When I passed by just now I smelled something pretty foul coming from inside."

Xia Qing answered, "There's also a sick wolf in the sheep pen."

Both Xu Juan and Zhang Yong got a fright. "You're raising a wolf too? Keeping a wolf shut in with a sheep—aren't you afraid the wolf will eat the sheep?"

Xia Qing explained, "Picked it up on a mission. It was so sick it could barely move."

Hearing it was a sick wolf, the two of them breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhang Yong quickly assembled the solar panels and mounted them on the iron frame, then installed the battery and voltage stabilizer in the stairwell, connecting them with wires sheathed in iron pipe.

After testing the equipment and confirming it was fine, Zhang Yong asked, "How are you planning to run the wiring? Let me finish it all in one go before I leave."

Xia Qing knew how to do all this herself and didn't need Zhang Yong to install it. After going downstairs, she invited them both inside.

Xu Juan and Zhang Yong saw that even though they'd already warned her, Xia Qing still dared to let them in—meaning there was no tamed beast in her territory that Sufeng was looking for, and she wasn't afraid of them looking around. Both relaxed and followed Xia Qing quickly inside.

Mainly because the yard smelled too awful to be a place for talking.

Xia Qing boiled a pot of filtered water, made tea and brought it to the table, then set out a plate of dried fruit.

Xu Juan sighed, "You're living pretty well—tea and everything."

Xia Qing explained, "The tea was traded from another territory; the fruit is wild-picked from the buffer forest."

Seeing that Xia Qing's right hand was wrapped in bandages after she'd taken off her glove, Xu Juan immediately asked, "You're hurt? That explains why you weren't using your right hand just now."

"When the evolved bird attacked, the Hukou split open—I can't put any force on it." The wound was something Xia Qing had deliberately shown them, and the wolf was something she'd deliberately revealed.

She did this to let the people in Territory No. 2 see clearly that she had already been injured the day the pangolin went missing, so she couldn't have gone to catch it. There was no pangolin in her territory. She'd rather refuse twenty jin of grain than let the Sufeng people come in and search—because she had a wolf and a sheep in her territory.

After finishing the tea, Zhang Yong stood up. "You two chat—I need to go install equipment in Territory No. 2."

After seeing Zhang Yong out of Territory No. 3, Xu Juan threw an arm around Xia Qing's neck and laughed. "Come on, bring out all your good stuff!"

Xia Qing's voice softened a little. "There are cucumbers, tomatoes, and green beans in the field. Sister Juan, what do you want for lunch?"

Xu Juan's eyes lit up. "We can't eat lunch here—we have to head back right after unloading. Can I go look at your vegetable garden?"

Xia Qing took Xu Juan to the vegetable greenhouse south of the reservoir. Passing the small hut by the farmland, three members of Beard Feng's squad, who were resting inside, came out and greeted Xia Qing and Xu Juan.

Everyone had been living in the same base for ten years—even if they'd never spoken before, they all recognized each other's faces.

After passing the hut, Xu Juan asked Xia Qing in a low voice, "Beard Feng's squad?"

"Mm, I hired them to help guard my territory."

Xu Juan nudged Xia Qing's shoulder and teased, "Not bad! You can even afford to hire people from the Azure Dragon!"

Xia Qing explained, "I traded vegetables grown in my territory for it."

Watching the rows upon rows of things Xia Qing had grown, Xu Juan said nothing out loud but felt deep admiration in her heart. Even though Xia Qing was a strength-type evolver, growing this much grain and vegetables still required a great deal of time and effort.