"If you're hungry, just eat some grass. You don't need to keep nagging like this," Xiaoqi said, both amused and exasperated.
Luo Wanya: "...Will we starve to death on the road?"
But just then, the family member who was in charge of reconnaissance suddenly ran back: "Old Luo! Old Luo!"
Luo Wanyi jumped to his feet: "What's wrong?! Is there enemy activity?"
“Oh, no, there’s someone waiting for us up ahead!” the family member said. “And he said he’s been waiting for us for months!”
Luo Wanya and Xiao Qi exchanged a glance, looking somewhat bewildered.
Did they run into a charlatan? They knew months ago that the parents' meeting procession would be forced to leave and then pass through here?!
Even they couldn't have imagined it, so who could have foreseen it?
"Where is he?" Xiao Qi asked.
“We’ve got him under control,” the family member said. “He seems like an ordinary person. Several of us pinned him to the ground, but he said he wanted to see Luo Wanya.”
"Hmm?" Luo Wanya frowned. Could this be some kind of trap?
He walked quickly, about three kilometers away, and saw a middle-aged man being held down on the ground by several family members.
The other party didn't struggle, but just waited quietly.
"Who are you?" Luo Wanya asked, squatting down beside him.
The middle-aged man looked up: "Shadow Force, number E1333."
“Nonsense,” Luo Wanya sneered, “I know all the people in the Shadow Force, but I’ve never seen you before.”
If they were from the Shadow Force, they would have already come to Qing Chen to pay their respects. How could there be any omissions?
The middle-aged man smiled and said, "I'm not part of this generation's shadow force, but rather the previous generation."
Luo Wanya and Xiao Qi were dumbfounded. What do you mean by this generation and the previous generation? Isn't the Shadow Army just this generation?
"Wait a minute," Luo Wanya suddenly remembered something, "You're one of the old man's men?"
“That’s right,” the middle-aged man said with a smile.
Everyone was shocked; the Qing clan actually had two shadow armies!
As Qingxun became the head of the family, the previous generation of Shadow Troops gradually faded from everyone's sight. Many people thought they had been scattered and incorporated into various units, but that was only a part of them.
The old man kept a small group of his most loyal followers, hiding them out of everyone's sight.
"How can you prove it?" Luo Wanya asked.
“No need for proof, I’m not here to harm you,” the middle-aged man said with a smile. “Four months ago, my unit received orders to secretly transport supplies along the southwestern mountain range. We’ve been waiting here ever since.”
"Huh?" Luo Wanyi was stunned for a moment: "Everyone, let him go. What supplies are you talking about?"
The middle-aged man twisted his wrists and neck, and said with a smile, "Come with me and you'll see."
As they spoke, the middle-aged man led Luo Wanya and the others forward. After walking for about a kilometer, they saw rows of boxes covered with dark green rainproof tarpaulins in a secluded mountain valley ahead.
Luo Wanya rushed up and opened the box, only to find boxes full of vitamins, antibiotics, and camouflage tin foil, with only a small portion containing protein bars and compressed biscuits.
These foods, when spread across more than 300,000 people, are still a drop in the ocean, barely enough to fill a tooth gap.
The middle-aged man smiled and said, "Don't look disappointed so quickly. When we received the order, it was already very urgent. We had four months to find these supplies quietly and transport them here quietly. Without any mechanized equipment, it was not easy to carry them here by manpower."
One family member muttered quietly, "Since they knew in advance, they should have at least sent more food..."
The middle-aged man continued, "The old man also said that these things are enough to keep you alive. If anyone really can't hold on, give them some food. Hardship and exhaustion are things your team has to go through, but you don't have to die here because of this meaningless disease and bombing. The Sibu is for you to hide from the airships so that you won't be bombed indiscriminately."
Luo Wanyi quickly said, "Thank you for your hard work, it's already very good, thank you very much!"
He was telling the truth. In this desolate wilderness, the sudden delivery of supplies was more exciting than winning the lottery. It was a lifesaver!
Hunger can be endured, but illness cannot.
However, Luo Wanya was somewhat puzzled. Was that old man too powerful? How could he have predicted all of this four months in advance?
This ability is almost like that of a god, with foresight.
Previously, Qingchen had also expressed his speculation that the other party did not even leave the house on Ginkgo Mountain, yet it seemed that he already knew what he would experience after being taken to Base A02 by Shendai Yunhe.
That ability to predict the future is like... the Fates' God's perspective.
That's amazing.
Looking at Luo Wanyi's puzzled expression, the middle-aged man smiled and said, "You don't need to look at me like that. I don't know how the old man did it either."
"Since the old man knew we would be forced into a long march and was able to prepare camouflage tin cloth for the corresponding number of people, why didn't he warn us of the danger in advance?" Luo Wanya asked, "For example, black magic, an invasion by the Roosevelt Kingdom, or the defection of the Li family?"
The middle-aged man smiled and shook his head: "How would I know these things? We were just following orders... But the old man did say that if you can accept the outcome of your life, then don't try to change it, because you don't know if it will get better or worse. Fate is beyond your control."
"I haven't asked yet, what's your name?" Xiao Qi asked.
“No need for such formalities, just call me E1333,” the middle-aged man said with a smile. “We’ve had no names since the day we joined the Shadow Force. We don’t marry, we don’t have children, we don’t want official positions or military ranks.”
The parents were stunned. These people were actually the real shadows, who voluntarily gave up everything and were willing to become an inconspicuous brick in this era, becoming the foundation stone of the Qing family edifice.
E1333 said, "Alright, you take the supplies, we'll withdraw. There must be quite a few sick people in your team, hurry up and send the medicine over. Looking forward to the day we meet again in the Southwest."
After he finished speaking, hundreds of members of the Shadow Army, clad in grass, suddenly stood up in the mountains. They had been guarding this place for four months and were finally able to retreat.
As Luo Wanyi watched the shadow soldiers leap and disappear into the mountains and forests, he suddenly said, "It seems there are still many things we don't know about this other world. However, the old man specially sent a unit to guard this place, afraid that we would all die... Does this mean that one day in the future, we will still be quite important?"
Just then, the family member responsible for bringing up the rear ran over: "Oh no! The Li family's airships are searching for us!"
Chapter 951, Baptism
"Stay hidden and don't make a sound!"
All the parents' association members lay in the mountains, covering their bodies with camouflage tin sheets, not daring to let out a breath of warmth.
Soon, a Class B airship belonging to the Li family flew quickly across the sky. Only after it had gone far away did everyone breathe a sigh of relief, stand up, fold the tin cloth, and stuff it into their pockets, waiting for the next use.
Aluminum cloth is also a great life-saving tool outdoors. If you are trapped in a very cold place, wrap yourself tightly in aluminum cloth, as it can reflect the heat radiation emitted by your body, thus keeping you warm.
This is the 'last night' in wilderness survival, because this piece of tin can help you get through a cold night. It's simple, yet practical.
The group stood up and continued forward.
"I've always heard that the old man on Ginkgo Mountain is ruthless, and now I've seen it for myself," Luo Wanya said, looking at the list of supplies that Xiao Qi had compiled. "He really didn't intend to let us have enough to eat."
The supplies included a wide variety of medicines; not only antibiotics, but even birth control pills were provided.
But the food was only enough to save a tiny number of people.
Seeing this, Luo Wanyi roughly understood that the old man was determined to make them go all the way, using this 7,000-kilometer journey to hone a usable, effective, and pure team.
“Go out, all of you, get out alive,” Luo Wanyi said with emotion. “Most of these people used to live in the city. When the rat infestation came, they had no choice but to face it. Now we are giving them a choice. If they want to run, they should run early. Those who should stay should stay. After they finish walking these 7,000 kilometers, they will probably have to fight a tough battle.”
Xiaoqi said, "But if there is no food or supplies at all, hundreds of thousands of people really won't be able to get out."
"Even if we can't get out, we have to go."
Right now.
City 5, Ginkgo Manor.
Li Kerou, dressed in a white formal suit, carrying an LCD screen, walked into the office in high heels. There was a key door open, and a cable connected from the other side of the key door all the way to a virtual pod.
She walked to the virtual pod and tapped the edge with her finger: "Grandpa, the mission on E1333 is complete."
The old man sat up inside: "Is it finished? Tell E1001 to speed up the progress even more."
Li Kerou nodded: "I understand. By the way, there is also a walkthrough here, which is a clue to clearing the 17th multiverse, but the person who posted the walkthrough has not cleared it himself."
"Okay, let me see," the old man said, taking the LCD screen and looking at it intently...
Li Kerou hesitated for a long time: "The situation in City 10 isn't very good, is it? The parents suffered a loss this time. Don't we need to do something?"
The old man replied without even looking up, "No need to do anything. With people watching us all around, the Qing family's military deployment cannot be touched. Don't worry, I've done what I needed to do. The rest is up to Qing Chen."
After saying that, the old man quickly finished reading the guide and then lay back down in the virtual pod.
...
...
In City 18, upon hearing that the Lee family was sending airships to search for the parents' association, the people immediately took to the streets to protest again.
Holding up signs that said they would not be slaves to a conquered nation, they marched through street after street, and the crowd grew larger and larger.
When they passed by a mobile phone company owned by the Li family, they even rushed in, dragged out all the company's employees, and burned the entire building down.
Inside the hillside manor, officers quickly walked into the deepest part of the Privy Council.
He arrived at Li Yunshou's office door and whispered, "Boss, if we continue to arrest members of the parents' association, it might incite a popular uprising."
Without looking up, Li Yunshou asked, "What are the garrison troops doing? What are the PCE and PCA agents doing?"
The officer hesitated for a moment: "They have already gone out into the streets to maintain order."
“It seems they haven’t maintained their position well enough,” Li Yunshou said calmly. “Go, issue the order to carry out a military crackdown. Also, conscript residents to build roads outside City 18 to ensure the mechanized troops can reach the southwest.”
The officer was stunned. The only possible purpose of building this road was to assist the Western Continent in fighting the Qing Clan!
He hesitated for a moment, then finally left with the orders.
Li Yunshou stood up and stood alone by the window, looking at Baopu Tower across the street, lost in thought.
On the streets, the garrison troops suddenly began firing tear gas at the crowd, forcibly dispersing them, and arresting many protesters to build roads.
Ordinary civilians had no chance against the garrison troops. For a time, everyone was afraid.
This once prosperous twin star of the Federation suddenly became desolate.
Inside the Never-Ending Bar, Li Dongze and the various leaders of the Heng Society gathered to discuss organizing a parade.
However, their goal was not to change Lee's stance through the march.
Instead, they intend to take advantage of the chaos in the city to gather up the civilian airships in the city.
In wartime, both civilian and military equipment can be put to use.
Li Dongze looked at Zhang Tianzhen: "How many civilian airships has Hengshe purchased so far?"
Zhang Tianzhen responded: "39 ships. Currently, the merchants in City 18 all know that war is coming. Prices in the city have skyrocketed, and most people are unwilling to sell their airships and are preparing to evacuate to the southwest by airship at any time."