Chapter 97

Chapter 97

After news of this incident spread, various bases were in an uproar.

They had always focused on the strength of superhumans, believing that as long as they were powerful enough, nothing else mattered.

Unexpectedly, such a vicious incident occurred.

They could only try to enforce strict regulations, such as imposing severe punishments for those who sabotaged teammates during combat.

Once this rule was announced, it led to many reports.

Some people reported that their family members had been betrayed by mission partners, resulting in permanent disabilities or even never returned.

Since the perpetrators were superhumans, and the victims' families had no superhumans, they had been too afraid to seek justice.

Now, with this new regulation in place, people finally found the courage to speak the truth and seek justice for their families.

Since the leadership of the bases had issued the regulation, they couldn’t simply ignore it. Upon investigation, they discovered, to their surprise, that many of those who had committed such acts were powerful superhumans who had made significant contributions to their bases.

Should they act?

If they did, how should these individuals be handled? They were valuable fighters. But if they didn’t address the issue, the situation within the bases would only get worse.

Those who faithfully carried out missions and served the bases would also lose heart.

After all, who knew when they might be betrayed by their own teammates?

The leadership of the bases faced a dilemma.

Cheng Zhiyu didn’t know how they ultimately handled it, but when Small River Base opened recruitment, many powerful superhumans applied to join.

As long as their character was good, they were naturally welcome.

Some bases, however, may have finally realized that their numbers of capable superhumans were dwindling and finally began making changes by addressing those who had committed wrongdoing.

Previously, they thought Small River Base was foolish for hiring based on character rather than strength.

What use was good character in the apocalypse, where strength was everything?

But now, they finally realized they were wrong.

The apocalypse indeed valued strength, but only if that strength wasn’t used against you.

Moreover, what did it matter if someone was not strong? Abilities could be improved.

They felt conflicted.

Cheng Zhiyu didn’t worry about their conflicted feelings. With the increase in skilled superhumans at Small River Base, the secure area had now expanded to a two-kilometer radius.

The next day, Cheng Zhiyu returned to his office and called back the base manager who had phoned the day before. Without hesitation, he lied, "Sorry, I was busy with something yesterday and didn’t make it back to the office. I only heard about the call today."

Outside working hours, unless it was an emergency, he refused to work overtime.

With no weekends to begin with, working overtime every day would surely make Cheng Zhiyu miserable.

No matter what, health comes first.

The person on the other end naturally didn’t question whether he was really busy but said with a complex tone, "Congratulations! I heard your base has developed the 2.0 vaccine."

Cheng Zhiyu smiled and replied in an official response, "This is a boon for all humanity."

The other party cut to the chase: "I called to discuss the patent fees…"

Thus, the next several calls were about this very topic.

Regarding the price of the patent fees, Cheng Zhiyu had already set the price, so when asked, he directly quoted the amount.

The one-time patent fee was significant. Some bases hesitated briefly but, knowing Cheng Zhiyu’s way of doing business, understood that the price was firm and bargaining was nearly impossible, so they agreed.

In truth, Cheng Zhiyu charging a one-time patent fee was already quite reasonable. If this technology fell into the hands of other bases, they would undoubtedly exploit it heavily.

However, some base managers still didn’t understand this and tried to bargain, saying bitterly, "Xiao Cheng, you’re quite fortunate. It hasn’t been long since you collected the patent fee for 1.0, and now you’re collecting for 2.0."

Since they were all base managers, addressing Cheng Zhiyu as "Xiao Cheng" seemed to subtly assert superiority over him.

Cheng Zhiyu didn't get angry and replied, "What are you saying? Supporting those researchers and providing them with materials isn't free."

Seeing that Cheng Zhiyu wasn't biting, the other party could only say, "The patent fee is too expensive. Given how many times we’ve collaborated, couldn’t you lower the price a bit for the sake of our relationship?"

Before Cheng Zhiyu could respond, the other party began making emotional appeals: "Look, the patent fee is a significant burden for our base. Every extra penny I spend is one less penny for the residents. Ah, I can’t bear to see them suffer, which is why I’m humbling myself to ask you."

Cheng Zhiyu sighed helplessly: "If it were possible, I wouldn’t charge any patent fee at all. But the research investment was enormous, and we’re still operating at a loss."

This was, of course, a lie. Who couldn’t lie with a straight face?

Cheng Zhiyu continued: "How about this—if you can’t gather the patent fee, you could consider alternatives. Our base offers other services. You could purchase the finished vaccine instead. That way, you save on both the patent fee and production costs, and your residents won’t have to suffer. What do you think?"

The other party replied: "Ah… that’s not how it works."

No one was a fool. Vaccines were the most critical resource in the apocalypse. Not holding the production method and relying entirely on other bases for supply would be like handing over their lifeline to others.

Any sensible person wouldn’t choose this path just to save on immediate savings.

Cheng Zhiyu smiled: "Actually, if your base were to buy the finished vaccine from us, our production capacity might not keep up. Alternatively, your base could purchase from other bases that have paid the patent fee and hold production rights."

As the other party tried to speak, Cheng Zhiyu lightly interrupted: "Sorry, I have another call coming in. Let’s talk later. Take your time to think it over—there’s no rush."

With that, Cheng Zhiyu hung up and continued his conversations with others.

Later calls didn’t present such issues. Although some tried to bargain, seeing Cheng Zhiyu’s firm stance, they obediently agreed.

Eventually, the bases Cheng Zhiyu had asked to reconsider kept calling back, clearly growing anxious.

He had his subordinates answer, claiming he was unavailable and would return their calls later.

It wasn’t until nearly the end of the workday that Cheng Zhiyu returned the calls, apologizing: "Sorry, I was incredibly busy today."

The other party didn’t know whether he was genuinely busy or not but had to take him at his word. Forcing a smile, they said: "It’s fine, I didn’t wait too long. The patent fee you quoted does make sense, and I agree."

Cheng Zhiyu, unsurprised, smiled: "Great. Then, happy cooperation."

The other party breathed a sigh of relief, fearing Cheng Zhiyu might cause more trouble, but fortunately, he didn’t.

Soon after, various bases sent over the patent fees, and Small River Base was bustling for several days.

Not long after, production of the 2.0 vaccine began.

In addition to selling within the base, it was also sold externally. Some smaller bases, unable to afford the patent fee and without the need to purchase the patent, chose to cooperate with these bases and buy the vaccines directly.

Regarding this, Cheng Zhiyu didn’t mind. He had already made the money he needed to make; there was no need to chase every single penny.

After that, nothing major happened, and the base entered a stable development phase.

One day, he and Cheng Mo were riding Little Qi around outside. Cheng Mo was a bit jealous of Little Qi and said with a hint of jealousy, "I can’t fly."

"It’s daytime. How would we explain it if someone saw us?" Cheng Zhiyu sighed helplessly.

Cheng Mo: "...Oh."

"Hey, look over there—are those people?" Cheng Zhiyu pointed not far away.

Cheng Mo glanced and nodded. "There’s a group of people gathered there."

Since it was within Small River Base’s territory, Cheng Zhiyu went down to ask what was going on.

When the group saw him, they could tell from his well-dressed appearance that he was from the base and quickly said, "Don’t drive us away. We... we won’t cause any trouble."

Cheng Zhiyu said, "Don’t worry, I’m not here to drive you away."

The group exchanged glances and breathed a sigh of relief.

Cheng Zhiyu asked them why they were there.

A leader from the group honestly explained, "We... we want to join Small River Base."

Cheng Zhiyu frowned. "I haven’t heard that the base is recruiting."

The leader said, "They’re not recruiting now, but we heard that Small River Base recruits periodically. We came early to be closer and get here faster."

Cheng Zhiyu was silent for a moment, looking at the skinny, undernourished group. "Do you... not have a base?"

The leader sighed. "Having one is practically useless. If we could survive in our base, why would we come here? We heard that Small River Base also accepts ordinary people, so we thought we’d take our chances."

Cheng Zhiyu asked, "Which base were you from before?"

They said they were from Dongyang Base.

Dongyang Base was the closest base to Small River Base, which explained how they managed to get here.

Cheng Zhiyu frowned and asked if Dongyang Base treated them poorly.

The leader said, "Well, it’s not exactly bad. The base’s food is still being grown, and they take care of their useful people first, which is normal. We’ve always lived like this, and recently it’s actually been a bit better. We’ve gotten used to it. But then we heard about life in Small River Base... Even if not for ourselves, we have to think about our children. Who wouldn’t want a better life? Anyway, we’re useless to the base."

Cheng Zhiyu didn’t think they were useless. After all, wasn’t Small River Base built by many ordinary people?

Other bases might not see much value in ordinary people because they already have large populations, but a base’s development depends on these very residents.

They might not care now, but once residents start leaving, they’ll start to care.

They weren’t exactly exploiting ordinary people—they just favored Superhumans more. Cheng Zhiyu couldn’t really say much about it.

He sighed and asked the group, "What have you been eating?"

Since Small River Base wasn’t currently recruiting residents, he couldn’t make an exception. The base had its rules, and changing them on a whim would lead to chaos.

Moreover, if they bent the rules just because people showed up outside of recruitment periods, what would happen if others heard and came? Would they take everyone? That wouldn't work.

The leader smiled. "Small River Base is wonderful!"

Cheng Zhiyu: "?" Why the praise all of a sudden?

The other person said happily, "We were worried we’d starve coming here, but after arriving, we found that Small River Base’s territory is covered in grass and trees. The grass is young and tasty—it’s enough to eat. We don’t even have to strip bark from trees anymore. Also, there are black locust trees here, and the locust flowers are really tasty."

Cheng Zhiyu, who had worked hard to plant trees and grass: "..."

Seeing Cheng Zhiyu’s expression, the leader grew nervous. "Are we not allowed to eat these?"

Cheng Zhiyu sighed. "It’s not that you can’t eat them, but you can’t live on this forever."

The other person asked, "Why not? This is already great—there’s plenty, and we can get enough to eat."

Cheng Zhiyu said with a slight sigh, "Go to the entrance of Small River Base tomorrow morning."

The other person was puzzled. "But Small River Base isn’t recruiting, right?"

Cheng Zhiyu said, "They’re not recruiting residents, but the base’s construction sites need workers. They can hire temporary workers."

Hiring laborers meant they would work in exchange for food, but they wouldn’t officially become base residents.

Since the construction sites were still outside the base, they wouldn’t enter the base’s interior anyway.

Moreover, the sites were indeed short on workers, and the work had been falling behind because of it. Hiring laborers was a good solution.

He had considered this before but figured that since he couldn’t promise they’d eventually join the base, people might not be willing to come.

But now, he realized he had underestimated Small River Base and overestimated other bases.

"Temporary jobs!" The group’s eyes lit up.

Cheng Zhiyu nodded. "You remember to go, but what about the children..."

"Don’t worry, we’ll leave someone to take care of them," the leader said excitedly. "Thank you for telling us this. We had no idea otherwise."

Cheng Zhiyu thought to himself, *That’s because it wasn’t a thing yet—I’ll have to announce it when I get back.*

He said, "No need to thank me. Just make sure the children are taken care of."

The leader nodded, bowing over and over in gratitude.

After Cheng Zhiyu and the others left, someone came over and said to the leader, "This is great! How come we didn’t hear about this before?"

The leader smacked him on the head. "Are you stupid or something? Because it wasn’t a thing until now!"

After arriving, they had been asking around about Small River Base. How could we have missed such important news?

Unless there was only one possibility...

"Huh?" The person rubbed the spot where they’d been hit, confused. "So was he lying to us just now?"

The leader rolled their eyes. "Why would they lie? What would they get out of it? Are they bored?"

The other person was still puzzled. "If they weren’t lying, then what’s going on?"

His head was spinning, unable to make sense of it.

The leader snorted mysteriously. "That person just now... is probably someone important. There might not be such a thing now, but there will be once they return."

The man nodded vaguely, then smiled and said, "Anyway, as long as there's work to do and pay to collect, it's fine. I can earn some food for my kid. We adults can handle going hungry, but we can't let the child starve."

The leader nodded in agreement. He kept to himself that when he was talking to Cheng Zhiyu earlier, he had wanted to ask if little kids could also do some work.

It wasn't that he was heartless—this wasn't the pre-apocalypse days where children were treated like treasures. This was the apocalypse; if a child could do some work, it would give them a better shot at surviving. Whose child didn't do some work nowadays?

But in the end, he didn't ask. The fact that they were willing to give them such an opportunity was already more than enough. Asking for more would be pushing it, and that wouldn't be good.

The leader sighed and said to the group, "Everyone, move to another spot to pull weeds. Don’t just strip one place bare—you’ll make it bald."

"Got it."

On the other side, Cheng Zhiyu and Cheng Mo continued riding around on their ATV but didn’t come across anyone else.

However, as Small River Base’s reputation grew, more people would surely come in the future.

"Let’s arrange for regular patrols when we get back. They need to patrol the area outside the base every day," Cheng Zhiyu said to Cheng Mo.

Cheng Mo nodded and praised, "Zhi Yu, you’re too nice."

Cheng Zhiyu got a bit uncomfortable. "Don’t say that."

"Why not?" Cheng Mo asked, puzzled. "You are very kind."

He added, "Fortunately, you are kind."

Cheng Zhiyu looked at him. "Why do you say that?"

Cheng Mo grinned. "Because if you weren’t kind, you wouldn’t have taken me in."

He got chills thinking about it and said solemnly, "It’s better to be kind."

Back then, when the apocalypse outbreak first hit, no one knew what tomorrow would bring, and few were willing to take on a dog’s future.

After returning, someone reported to Cheng Zhiyu that a group of people had appeared in the base’s territory and asked what should be done.

Cheng Zhiyu mentioned the patrol teams and the hiring of workers. The person nodded and went off to handle it.

The next day, the leader nervously led his group to the outskirts of Small River Base and, sure enough, saw a sign posted there recruiting workers for the work site.

The group was overjoyed. "It’s really true!"

"Great! Even if we only get a roll to eat each day, it’ll be enough."

"I’ve almost forgotten what a roll tastes like. Just hearing you say it makes my mouth water."

"No one’s laughing at anyone—we’re all alike."

"Hey, the sign also lists the pay!"

Everyone’s eyes lit up. Wages were a crucial matter, and they all crowded around to look.

Someone exclaimed, "Wow, if we finish the day’s task, we get a whole pound of food?"

"Am I seeing this right? A pound!"

"Not just that—it also includes two meals! As long as we work here, we can eat our fill, but we can’t take any food out."

"Wow, such good conditions—can we really get this? Isn’t this a scam?"

"Come on, what've we got to scam? I just wonder how much work there is and whether we can finish it."

"Never mind that, let’s hurry and sign up! Who knows how many openings are available!"

Reminded of this, the group rushed to register.

The person sitting at the table reminded them, "Form a line properly. No crowding."

Everyone immediately lined up obediently. They watched nervously as the person at the front was asked various questions, then had their name written down and was given a tag. The registrar said, "From now on, come to work at daybreak with this tag. Someone will guide you."

The man clutched the tag tightly as if it were a lifesaver. He had a child and a wife to feed, and with a pound of grain, he wouldn’t have to worry about starving. He swallowed hard and asked, "Can I start working today?"

"Yes," the registrar nodded and called someone over. "If you’ve received your tag and want to start today, follow him."

"Oh, and we’re also hiring someone who can cook to prepare meals for you," the registrar added.

The man at the front quickly said, "My wife! My wife can cook!"

The registrar said, "Have her come by."

The man nodded eagerly and ran back as fast as he could. He hadn’t asked how much the cooking job paid, but even if there was no wage and only meals provided, the two of them could save their grain so their child could eat their fill.

After registering one by one, they followed the foreman to work.

Everyone finally had work, and with such good pay, no one dared to screw around. They were all afraid of being caught and losing such a great job.

They worked extremely hard, and only when it grew dark did the foreman tell them to knock off. They reluctantly put down their tools.

"Alright, have dinner, then go collect your food ration," the foreman said.

Everyone nodded. They had already eaten a meal at noon, and the memory of that wonderful taste made their hungry mouths water uncontrollably.

They took their plates and went to get food.

After the noon meal, they had learned their lesson: they didn’t need to take too much at once because they could always get more if they finished. At noon, many had loaded up their plates and, unwilling to waste it, ended up stuffing themselves.

Although they were happy mentally, the feeling of being stuffed was uncomfortable. Everyone had learned their lesson and didn’t take too much.

As they ate, they still felt somewhat dazed. Just yesterday, they had been starving, treating green grass on the ground like steak and eating it dirt and all.

But today, they could eat their fill—and at noon, they had even overeaten.

When it came time to collect their grain, it felt even more unreal. Someone was surprised to find that the grain they received was more than a pound!

Hesitating, they worried that the person distributing the grain had made a mistake. If they took it without saying anything and were later found out, they might lose their job.

Having worked for less than a day, they already cherished this job dearly. Leaving Small River Base, they would never find such good work again.

So, after hesitating, they finally said, "Did you give me too much?"

The ration clerk glanced at them and said, "You went beyond your quota. It’s not too much."

Everyone was stunned: "!!!"

They had never dared to ask what the daily quota was, only hoping to work hard enough to maybe earn half a pound. They hadn’t expected the task to be so light. They had gotten started well after sunrise and still managed to complete it.

If they worked hard, they might even earn more grain. The thought made their hearts pound.

After receiving the grain, there was more to it. The person distributing the grain said, "Those of you working here can use grain to rent tents and live on the outskirts of the base. We’ve designated a specific area for this."

Hearing this, some couldn’t help but feel tempted. Although the Small River Base territory was already safe enough, but even though there were no zombies, wild animals were still a threat. But living on the outskirts of the base would be different—it would definitely be safer.

One person ventured to ask, "How much does it cost to rent a tent?"

The person replied, "One jin of grain per tent and can be rented for a month."

In the past, this price would have been astronomical, but now, it didn’t seem expensive anymore. If they worked hard, they could earn a jin of grain in a good half-day’s work.

Everyone was tempted, especially since they all had kids with them.

The man who had registered earlier and had his wife come to cook walked alongside her.

His wife was also carrying grain—also a jin.

She smiled and said, "My pay is fixed—one jin a day."

She was the only one cooking, and she also had to wash dishes and other tasks, staying busy from morning till night. It wasn’t easy work.

The man exclaimed, "That’s already a lot! Later, we’ll rent a tent and bring our child here."

Their child had been left with an elderly woman back at their temporary spot. They had agreed to give her a handful of grain per family in exchange for watching the children.

Still, moving to the outskirts of the base would be much more reassuring. Living out in the wild kept them on edge.