Chapter Seventy-One: Last Time It Was an Excavator, This Time It’s a Wheelbarrow

The two of them signed up, and Wu Gang glanced back and forth at the siblings several times. He seemed unable to believe that Jiang Huan, who had always been fiercely protective of her brother, would willingly let him go out and do hard labor. This task was clearly exhausting, both physically and mentally, dangling the faint hope of resettlement to entice volunteers. Moreover, Jiang Huan had always been a person who acted on her whims—she kept those she liked close, and those she disliked could die before her eyes without earning so much as a glance. How had she suddenly grown a warm heart?

Jiang Huan’s reasoning was simple: she herself had survived the apocalypse and returned from a sea of blood and deep vendettas, but she didn’t expect her innocent brother to bear the same emotional burden. Kindness was a virtue, but some people tried to twist it into something else.

Now that they had registered, the siblings joined the group heading to the base the next day. Jiang Huan dressed as unobtrusively as ever, her clothes in dull shades of gray, while her brother stood out a bit more, his scarf and hat a warm yellow—very easy to spot. With the temperature-regulating coat on her brother, Jiang Huan felt at ease.

Someone came by with a megaphone to announce: twenty people per squad, dispersed across different districts. The task wouldn’t be completed in a single day—listen for instructions from your squad leader.

During team assignments, Jiang Huan and her brother’s names were listed together and should have placed them in the same squad, but as luck would have it, she became the twentieth member of the previous squad. Seeing her brother assigned to a group of strangers, Jiang Huan glanced at the circle of heavily armed base guards and, without hesitation, approached the leader of the next squad.

All the squad leaders were base personnel who had undergone training and planning meetings; not a single outsider held such a position.

Jiang Huan sought out the leader of Squad Eight, a burly middle-aged man with a scar on his eyelid, broad-shouldered and thick-waisted—his appearance alone warned he was not to be trifled with. Seeing Jiang Huan approach, he assumed she wanted to curry favor and ask for an easier assignment, and was already frowning in refusal when she spoke: “Captain, my brother is young. I’m worried he’ll be nervous going out with strangers. Our names are adjacent—could you please let us switch places?”

Nearly everyone in the previous squad was from Xingcheng Community. Even if they wouldn’t go out of their way to look after Jiang Xi, at least they’d be mindful that this young boy had a formidable sister behind him.

The captain of the eighth squad preferred men to women for labor and was reluctant to swap, but Jiang Huan discreetly revealed a corner of a cigarette pack from her pocket.

He nodded, readily agreeing, “Fine. Labor is labor; volunteers are all the same. No problem.”

Jiang Huan then informed the captain of the seventh squad. Seeing that the eighth squad had no objections, this captain was even pleased to have one more man and one less woman in his group.

Xiao Fang, standing nearby, leaned over and said, “Sister Jiang, I’ll look after Xiao Xi.”

“Thank you. When you’re done, come by for dinner.”

Xiao Fang grinned, his white teeth flashing. Being invited to Sister Jiang’s for a meal was as good as dining out—no, better, since it was free. Looking after Xiao Xi was no trouble at all.

After roll call, the squads set off. They boarded vehicles and left the official base, reaching their destination after a half-hour drive, where everyone disembarked for a second roll call.

Their squad leader was surprisingly ceremonial about it, having everyone count off, stand at attention, and line up in single file from tallest to shortest. Jiang Huan had five people behind her, all slightly shorter. Someone with a low threshold for laughter snickered a few times.

Their squad leader, surnamed Lei, had no intention of getting chummy with these combat-inept survivors. He simply wanted them to address him as “Captain” and leave it at that.

Once the lineup was done, tasks were assigned. Jiang Huan was given a relatively safe job: she was to sort through the collected items, separating the usable from the useless. The trash had to be carted away to clear the workspace for others.

At once, two short-tempered individuals cast her unfriendly looks, their lips curling in disdain. Jiang Huan gave them only a glance—since they hadn’t caused her any real trouble, there was no need to waste her energy.

She shoveled trash into a wheelbarrow, wheeled it eight or nine minutes away to dump it, and returned. Three people were assigned to this task, but by her fifth trip, she discovered the other two were lounging by the dump, chatting and avoiding work.

If this continued, she’d be doing the work of three alone. Without confronting them, Jiang Huan asked Captain Lei to accompany her on a run. In return for the cigarettes she’d slipped him, Captain Lei obliged. He caught the two slackers red-handed and immediately sent them off to explore a dangerous, unstable area.

“I went out of my way to assign our own people to the risky jobs, but you two just had to loaf around. If you’re so eager to avoid the easy work, then go ahead and do the hard labor. And do it well!”

Jiang Huan was given two new partners, both diligent and faster than she was. Watching their backs as they worked, she glanced at her own wheelbarrow and sighed. Not long ago, she’d been operating a mighty excavator, unearthing treasures; now she was back to pushing a wheelbarrow.

Ah, what a life—so carefree.

Four hours of labor passed before Captain Lei blew the whistle for assembly. Everyone put down their work and jogged over, though the lack of professionals meant gathering took some time, earning them a few words of admonishment from Captain Lei.

Having worked four hours, it was time to eat. Jiang Huan thought it would be the usual gruel or flatbread boiled in a large pot. She was already planning her excuse to slip away, find a sheltered spot, and enjoy a bowl of hot rice noodles with broth—topped with chili oil and minced garlic, delicious and warming.

But when Captain Lei and his crew handed out food, Jiang Huan’s eyes widened in surprise. They were distributing those white self-heating meal packs! Each person received a box with a self-heating element, along with dried vegetables and rice, while water was to be fetched from the truck.

“You’ll have hot noodles or porridge in twelve to fifteen minutes. Remember to keep the box for next time,” Captain Lei instructed.

Jiang Huan queued for water, eager to snap on the plastic lid. Swiftly, she found a sheltered corner, and while her meal heated, she popped two boiled eggs into her mouth, peeled six shrimp, and finished three duck necks. A couple of sips of hot milk coffee filled her up nicely.

By the time the self-heating porridge was ready, Jiang Huan tasted it—bland, with only a hint of salt. She dumped in half a plate of marinated pig ear and a few slices of spiced beef, making do with what she had.

“What’s that smell?” Someone with a keen nose sniffed the air and came over. Jiang Huan had just finished eating, leaving only a trace of red oil at the bottom of her bowl.

The newcomer’s eyes widened in surprise.