Chapter Forty-One: If You Are Ruthless, Then I Will Go Mad

Immediately, a hollow space formed around them, even the jewelry vendors from before all retreated. Drawing a gun in this base—especially as an outsider—meant certain arrest.

Jiang Huan had two guns. One, with barely two bullets left, she had seized from a thug when rescuing the goldsmith’s family; the other she had exchanged for with a backpack full of cigarettes and liquor, gaining twenty-five bullets along with it.

Now, she pulled out the one with fewer bullets. But no one knew how many bullets it actually held—just drawing it was enough to win.

“Still blocking the way?” she asked.

“No, no, just a misunderstanding, please, go ahead, please,” the fat boss stammered, inwardly flustered as if a herd of llamas were stampeding through his mind.

Gu Ling withdrew her hand from her pocket and looked at the hawkers standing several meters away. “Anyone who still wants to trade, come to the gate. If not, I won’t force you.”

How tedious. She hadn’t wanted to cause trouble, but she was sick to death of dealing with such scum.

Jiang Huan started walking away. The monkey had already been paid for guiding them by the meal she’d treated him to, so he could have left. Yet he called out, “She keeps her word! She treated me to a meal just for leading the way. Her prices are fair, and she pays in full. Are you really going to let all that rice go?”

After thinking of the sweets in her pocket, the woman hurried after them.

Once the first one moved, so did the second, and then the rest followed. Jiang Huan, hearing the commotion, saw that most of the jewelry buyers were trailing after her. She quickly walked to her car, where she had already prepared rice, flour, oil, and ready-to-eat meals, and began exchanging them one by one.

All the food she had was traded for gold, silver, and other jewelry. Those who made trades left in a hurry.

Jiang Huan stopped one of them. “Monkey, right? Here’s your payment.” She handed him a packet of instant noodles.

Monkey was stunned. “But you already bought me a meal.”

“Oh, I was eating anyway, it wasn’t especially for you. Take the noodles. Next time—”

“She’s the one! The woman who threatened everyone with a gun and disrupted the base’s prices, stirring up panic,” someone shouted before Jiang Huan could finish.

She saw five or six men running toward her, with the panting, disheveled, yet triumphant fat man trailing behind, malice blazing in his eyes. How dare she humiliate him! He was determined to seize all her gold for his shop, take her guns, and teach her a lesson she wouldn’t forget.

“What’s going on?” Xiao Yi and his companion, who had been about to get in the car, stepped to Jiang Huan’s side.

Jiang Huan clicked her tongue. “Stray dogs blocking the way. I scared them off, and now they’ve run back with their masters.”

As she spoke, her hand slipped into her pocket, just in case.

“Don’t move! Hand over your weapons! Causing trouble in the base—are you tired of living?” The leader, clad in olive green, pointed a gun at Jiang Huan’s head as he approached.

Jiang Huan raised both her guns, aiming straight at his head.

“How dare you!”

“I haven’t caused any trouble. It’s you people who keep harassing me—first blocking my way to rob me, and when that failed, ganging up on me. Hand over my weapons? Who do you think you are to demand that?”

Jiang Huan was furious. She released the safety, wild-eyed and ready to die with them if it came to that, making the men feel suddenly outmatched.

Moreover, it was a busy time of day—many people were out, and the onlookers heard Jiang Huan’s explanation. If the men acted, they’d have a hard time justifying it.

In the past, their punishments had always been meted out in secret.

Who would have guessed this madwoman would draw two guns and be unafraid of death?

The leader signaled the fat man to speak.

“Nonsense! When did I try to rob you? You’re the one upsetting the prices of gold and silver, acting like a con artist, pulling a gun to rob me! You’re nothing but trouble! Arrest her—someone arrest her!” The fat man grew more animated, as if Jiang Huan had truly done those things.

“What am I robbing you of? The dead pig meat you call a body? Idiot, if you want to frame someone, at least think of a better excuse. I see now: your base survives by cheating and swindling, doesn’t it?”

“Liar!”

Jiang Huan aimed one gun at the fat man’s forehead, making him cower behind his brother-in-law.

His brother-in-law: …

Relying on the fat fool was hopeless, so he stepped forward himself. “We’ll investigate the alleged robbery later. But you’ve definitely disrupted the precious metals market and caused panic. Those charges aren’t false. Come with us for questioning, and don’t make trouble for yourself or your companions.”

Rage burned in Jiang Huan’s chest, impossible to suppress. She’d come to trade gold and silver, only to be waylaid by a fat pig, beset by thugs, and now even her companions were being threatened. “You really are scum. Fine, you want to play? Let’s play.”

Jiang Huan took a deep breath and shouted, “Everyone, I’m a survivor from another district. I heard the official base was in desperate need of food and supplies, so I brought over a ton as a donation, hoping to cooperate with the base. But now these men in green are blocking me, trying to keep everything for themselves. Whoever reports this to the base leadership for me, I’ll give them five hundred pounds of supplies! Even if you don’t report it yourself, I’ll still pay a reward for your trouble!”

A gasp swept through the crowd, and people immediately dashed off.

Five hundred pounds!

That much would feed a person for a year.

One after another, they raced toward the leadership office, terrified of missing out on the reward.

Jiang Huan sneered, watching as the faces of the men in green turned the same color as their uniforms.

She’d always been so brazen about collecting supplies because she knew the apocalypse was inevitable, and she wanted to protect what she’d gathered.

All the supplies she used had either been bought herself or scavenged after the disaster. One could be selfish and look out only for oneself in harsh times, but with such abundance, she had no intention of hoarding it all away.

She hadn’t expected the right opportunity to present itself, but now it had.

“You’re lying! We never intended that—you’re doing this on purpose to get us in trouble!”

Jiang Huan fell silent, studying the men before her. Calmly, she declared, “In the face of disaster, there are still those who scurry about for personal gain, ignoring human life for their own profit. Such people aren’t fit to be called human.”

The fat man was trembling all over.

Madwoman!

She must be mad—who would give away a ton of supplies just out of spite? No one but a lunatic would do this!

But when he saw his brother-in-law turn and meet his eyes, he was chilled to the bone. He tried to run, but his brother-in-law grabbed his collar and flung him to the ground.

Bang!

The fat man’s calf was immediately shattered. The man glared at Jiang Huan, his face fierce. “So it was for the greater good that Miss Jiang came here. This merchant misled us with his nonsense. Is this apology to your satisfaction? If not—”

He raised his gun to the fat man’s forehead. “If Miss Jiang is still not satisfied, perhaps his life can be offered as compensation.”

The fat man howled and wept uncontrollably.

Jiang Huan thought, A ruthless man. And quick to adapt.

He was trying to get her to retract her accusations before the leadership arrived and smooth things over.

She remained expressionless. “He wasn’t the one who pointed a gun at me.”

The man’s fierce expression faltered.

Before he could come up with another tactic, a loud voice rang out. “Li Pingchuan! What are you doing?!”

Behind them, a group of men in olive green hustled alongside several leaders, jogging toward them.