Back to the Apocalypse Chapter 83

translator: xiin
editors: alamerysl & juurensha
“This group of people blocked the road and tried to rob us. They said that they're with you." Bai Jing's expression turned cold as he immediately spoke up. He didn't have as many scruples as Xiao Sa did. In any case, he had always been bad-tempered, and he wanted to see what the person in front of them had to say.
Chu Yi looked at the robbers carefully, the threat evident in his eyes. He turned his head towards Bai Jing and replied, "They look somewhat familiar, but I don't remember them. Quite a few people flow through our base. Right, I heard that a team headed to Jing Sa City just the day before yesterday. By the way, where are you guys from? How did you encounter them? It's well known that the area around Jing Sa City is quite secure. Even we've been able to benefit from it."
Bai Jing was angered into amusement. Looking at his words, he not only took the opportunity to praise Jing Sa City, but also inquired about their origins in a roundabout way. On the way here, he wanted to have a big fight; not only did he want to drive the group of fugitives outside of Jing Sa City’s management scope range, he also wanted them to compensate him with all their supplies while beating their leader to death. For them to try and poach in their territory, they must really not want to live. Who could've known that as soon as they arrived, the place had already been picked clean? Even if they wanted to kill them off for their wealth, they didn't know who the space ability user was, and would have no way to obtain anything even if they slaughtered everyone.
Moreover, the most depressing thing for Bai Jing was the way this person talked. Seeing this person treating them so nicely, with a polite tone of voice, and such conscientiousness, if he were to make trouble right now, he would turn into the bully. And the most hateful thing were the bandits behind him. Hadn't they been able to talk before? How come they'd turned mute now? Making it so that he couldn't go up or down; he had a bellyful of rage that had nowhere to vent.
They took in anybody who looked decent. Knowing that they were level one ability users, they didn't dare to be too unbridled. Their thoughts were buried deeply in their heads as they tried to figure out where these two people had come from. The person smiled and spoke again. "Excuse me, sirs. Was there anything else? Would you like to come and register?"
His tone was completely formulaic and made people feel like they had just punched cotton. For the first time, Bai Jing felt his teeth hurt from gritting them too hard in frustration.
Xiao Sa understood very clearly that these robbers had been abandoned by the base. They were determined not to acknowledge them, and even the robbers themselves refused to admit to having done anything. He couldn't beat them up to make them confess or force charges on other people’s heads. Only, the threatening gaze that that person had given them just now had been done right under his nose. They were really treating him as though he was blind!
“I want to see your boss.” Xiao Sa's voice sank as he spoke. He felt really stifled and really couldn't understand why the boss of this base would be so bad at managing his people and do foolish things like road-blocking and robbery when he appeared to be rather intelligent.
“Our boss is very busy, but since there are people who are pretending to be from our base that are blocking the road and robbing people, you two gentlemen can rest assured that this matter will be handled properly. I don’t know if you are…” The person paused and then said, “May I have your name, please? So I can go in and inform the boss."
Well, what they said was reasonable. If they didn’t give their names and origins now, they’d appear unreasonable. This was the first time the two of them had suffered losses through the exchange of words since the apocalypse started. They were used to having everything go smoothly; Xiao Sa found himself a little interested. To tell the truth, he really wanted to meet their boss. It was obvious that this person was really talented.
“We are people from Jing Sa City. These people pretended to be the nephew of the city owners. But as far as I know, the city owners are wise and resolute and don't have any shameful relatives like these.” Xiao Sa said lightly. He was mildly interested in learning more about this boss of theirs, not only because of this base, but also because he was brazen, shameless, and good at speaking nonsense. The group of fugitives that they had brought back basically didn't even dare to breathe loudly right now as they remained in place. Just based on this alone, Xiao Sa felt genuine admiration for his ability to oppress his subordinates.
Bai Jing glanced at Xiao Sa and smiled blandly. He didn't sound perfunctory at all as he boasted about himself.
Chu Yi’s thoughts jerked, but he continued politely, "So you're people from Jing Sa City. In that case, we're old neighbors. Will the two gentlemen please follow me?”
Xiao Sa raised his eyebrows and said nothing. He fell into step behind Chu Yi, but Bai Jing pouted. This little shit had just said that he would need to go in and announce them, but now he was bringing them inside. Even if he was faking it, why couldn't he keep up the act all the way to the end? This feeling really made people feel depressed; angry but with nowhere to vent. Bai Jing clearly sensed that the people around him were all on alert despite being rather scattered. To put it politely, they were taking note of the situation, but in truth, Bai Jing actually really wanted to find an opportunity to have a proper fight right now. He was really frustrated!
Chu Yi smiled modestly, showing a clear-minded expression. Now that he had asked their origins, he didn’t need to pretend anymore. In any case, they also planned to go to Jing Sa City, and smart people would not do something as stupid as kicking up a fuss about a situation like this. What's more, they had the upper hand in this game, and their boss had calculated everything very precisely. Unless they were crazy murderers or unreasonable bandits, as long as these guys were logical people, they would certainly not choose to be the ones to start trouble. Although morality was now ambiguous during the end of the world, those who had a family or occupation still needed to concern themselves with their name and reputation. Otherwise, if these two people didn't have backing, given that there were only two of them, even if they were level one ability users, they would surely not have the courage to immediately start killing.
As Bai Jing walked, he looked around and had to admit that their base security was very loose. People showed no hostility when they saw him and Xiao Sa. Instead, they were greeted with joy. They looked respectable as they smiled on the surface, their words flattering but attitudes fake. It made people incredibly angry, since the content of their words were all positive.
Bai Jing had intended to sweep in like liberator into the wide-eyed base and use them to find fault with the base and act like a savior, but instead they didn't say anything worthwhile! That person merely looked indecisively at Chu Yi and hesitated for a while without speaking. Bai Jing was really angry inside. It was rare for him to be generous for once, but they weren't even grateful. He simply left the person alone. To him, during the end of the world, the strong preyed on the weak. However, if they didn't even know how to resist on their own, could it be that they were counting on others?
From another perspective, he gained some measure of admiration for the head of this base. Regardless of what kind of person he was, at least he was able to manage the situation and leave Bai Jing so frustrated. This kind of skill, this kind of thought process; Bai Jing felt that he would be unable to learn this kind of scheming even if he had a lifetime!
Chu Yi let Bai Jing do as he liked. He merely laughed quietly beside him and dutifully explained, “They have long admired Jing Sa City. Knowing that you are coming, they became too excited. I hope you two gentlemen won't take offense. We're a small base and have never met anything better."
Bai Jing no longer spoke. He suddenly remembered a saying about killing people softly; there was no blood, but it made others feel terrible regardless. They knew that Chu Yi was talking irresponsibly, but had no evidence to refute him. Currently, he just really wanted to simply kill them all.
Xiao Sa held his hand, knowing that Little Jing was upset. In fact, he was also upset and would much rather have a big fight.
How could Chu Yi not know how they felt? He became even more determined to make friends, and his attitude became even more modest. When faced with such a situation, what could Bai Jing do? It was hard to beat up someone who was smiling. The other party wasn't overly flattering, nor was he trying to suck up or curry favour, so how could he act unreasonably and slap the other person in the face?
Bai Jing let out a breath of relief by the time they arrived at the base's guest house. He had seen people’s respectful attitude toward Chu Yi on the way over, and he didn't have to guess to know that Chu Yi was absolutely not an ordinary guard that had been stationed at the entrance. In other words, he had been sent to greet them; the boss of this base was really showing them respect.
After entering the guest house, Bai Jing's expression turned even darker. He had never seen such a simple meeting room in a base before. Apart from a few desks and chairs with missing legs or armrests, don't even mention tea and snacks, there were no tablecloths, flower vases, or decorations in the room. However, the person in the room was very enthusiastic, and immediately invited them to sit on two specially offered chairs that weren't in as bad a state.
The boss then sat on a wooden board in the middle of the room. The structure of the house was very good, but it wasn't even as well-furnished as places in the slums of Jing Sa City. The interior was extremely clean, with not even a hair left behind. One could tell by simply looking that it had been cleaned up not long ago as though they feared that they'd be robbed for their riches.
Insulting, this was absolutely insulting. Bai Jing was furious just thinking about it.
“Hello, I’m Zhang Qiucheng. We're all old neighbors around here. Today's matters were due to my pettiness; I hope you two gentlemen won't take offense." Zhang Qiucheng spoke out and gave his apology first.
Bai Jing’s eyes narrowed slightly, his pupils contracted and killing intent flashed across his body. "You're Zhang Qiucheng?”
“Yes, I am. It seems this mister has heard of my name, too." Zhang Qiucheng spoke with a smile. His tone was still the same, but a hint of caution flickered deep in his gaze. He could clearly sense Bai Jing's killing intent, and the atmosphere in the room instantly turned less harmonious, as though a fight could be triggered at any moment.
“Zhang Qiucheng's name has spread far and wide. Even three-year olds have heard of it." Bai Jing spoke indifferently as he looked Zhang Qiucheng over from top to bottom. This sentence was a great truth; in Bai Jing's last life, he had heard of him not only during the end of the world, but even before the apocalypse. He had been a legendary figure. He came from an orphanage and built up everything he had from scratch, toppling the boss of a conglomerate and taking it over for himself. He embezzled at least 2.3 billion dollars of public funds and was truly a rare talent. How else would he have ended up in a high security prison? Bai Jing recalled that Zhang Qiucheng was still a prominent figure before he died after the apocalypse.
“You flatter me. My merits are not worth much and are not worth mentioning. I wonder what brought you two misters over today? I'm only a level one ability user and have only some trifling talent, but if there's anything that we can help with, we'll definitely do our best."
“That’s all right. My man is a level two ability user. We don't need your help." Bai Jing spurned him, his tone extremely contemptuous. He looked at Zhang Qiucheng coldly; trying to pressure him as a level one ability user, there was no way in hell!
Xiao Sa sighed helplessly. Although he was very happy that Bai Jing named him this way, did Little Jing realize that he had simply gone and told them who they were?
“So, it turns out to be General Xiao. In that case, this must be Young Master Jing. I’m glad to meet you.” Zhang Qiucheng's mind turned, and he realized who they were. Jing Sa City only had two level two ability users, and other than Xiao Sa and Bai Jing, he couldn't think of anyone else who would have so much free time, be so nosy, and have such arrogant attitudes.
Bai Jing was full of anger, and he didn't care about this at all. Who cares if he knew who they were? Zhang Qiucheng was famous for his knowledge of current affairs. He didn't believe that this bastard would dare to try any tricks.
Bai Jing’s guess was correct. The tense atmosphere eased, and Zhang Qiucheng smiled lightly, “I've heard of Jing Sa City's name since long ago and always wanted to go take a look. Unfortunately, there are many people here and some matters have not been wrapped up yet, making it troublesome to move, so we've dragged it on until now. I never thought that we would have the privilege of meeting the city leader. I wonder if Jing Sa City has extra space now for our brothers in arms to settle there?"
“You are most welcome if you're interested, Mr. Zhang.” Xiao Sa spoke calmly. He could accept Zhang Qiucheng's facade of weakness; Jing Sa City was now a large, well-developed base, and he was not afraid of him making any waves. Although he had made some petty moves before, if Xiao Sa was in this position, perhaps he would have done the same thing himself. Xiao Sa was confident that Zhang Qiucheng would be unable to perform any trickery in his territory; after the apocalypse, only the strong were respected.
Bai Jing was very unhappy and spoke coldly, “A small temple can’t hold a big Buddha." Zhang Qiucheng was definitely not someone who would be content with his lot, and Bai Jing would strangle even a smidgen of danger or threat before it had a chance to bud.
Zhang Qiucheng’s face changed, and he no longer hid his grim expression. There was indeed a gap to consider when dealing with level two powers, but trying to take advantage of him in his own territory would never be easy.
Within the quiet house, it was very easy to hear the ticking of clocks and timers…
It was a bomb. And it was a bomb that they had deliberately been allowed to discover. Perhaps there were more remote-controlled bombs hidden in the dark. Bai Jing's expression darkened, and he internally cursed this man for being a madman. He stopped speaking in circles and came straight to the point, "You are insidious, vicious, and you have too many schemes swirling in your mind. To tell the truth, I'm very uneasy about letting you into our base, and I don't agree at all. But if you want, I can help you get in touch with City B. Developing there would definitely be better than Jing Sa City, and you would also have my father's support. What do you think?"
Zhang Qiucheng laughed and was satisfied with the effect of his masterpiece. He didn’t take Bai Jing's mocking words seriously. Instead, he was curious about his suggestion. Bai Jing knew he was not a good man, yet still recommended him to his father. What was this Young Master Bai thinking? He spoke impassively, "You'll feel reassured if I go to City B?"
He had originally been talking nonsense, but the more Bai Jing thought about it, the better he found this idea to be. Instead of killing him, it would be better to use him to harm others. Besides, it would take quite a bit of effort to kill him today, since this person was not only a vicious wolf, but a desperate, vicious wolf. He had no scruples, not because he had something to depend on, but because he did not care about anything. So he was bold, and acted brazenly and wilfully; human lives meant nothing in his eyes at all - he was a complete madman.
“I’m an illegitimate son. My father’s wife is not my mother. I'll be relieved if you go to City B and have my father do everything he can to help you. Then, it'll depend on your ability to climb as high as you can." It would be best if he could stir up the muddied waters in the Capital.
“Aren’t you afraid I’ll join your stepmother?”
“You? The Zhou family is very powerful. As long as they aren't fools, on what basis would they be willing to work with you just because you suggested it…?" Bai Jing sneered, the meaning in his words was obvious. The Zhou family would definitely look down on someone like Zhang Qiucheng. So other than Bai father, who else would he be able to depend on?
“Fine. You've convinced me. But on what basis should I trust you?" Compared to Jing Sa City, Zhang Qiucheng was much more interested in the Capital. The situation in the Capital was chaotic right now, and it was the best time to fish in those muddied waters.
“I'll send a telegram to my father right now. You can change your identity and obtain an appointment letter. Do you want to decide now regarding what position you want, and where you want to be handling things, or do you want to wait until after you arrive at the Capital and have discussed things with my father?" Bai Jing had always done things in a refreshing manner. He was not too disgusted with Zhang Qiucheng, but he definitely did not like him and wanted to deal with him as quickly as possible.