The Day Has Come

The moment Qu Jianlei heard that, he flew into a rage. Who dared say he was unscrupulous?

He turned his head, and the anger in his chest immediately vanished, leaving only a cold smile.

"Morrison, my tolerance doesn't mean you're qualified to act recklessly... What exactly have I done that was unscrupulous?"

The newcomer was Morrison, who had gone their separate ways the night before.

He raised the Gauss Automatic Rifle in his hand, his face full of indignation. "The gun you lent me was broken!"

"Oh, that," Qu Jianlei nodded slightly, looking perfectly calm. "I know."

"You... knew?" Morrison had never expected such an answer. "Why?"

Qu Jianlei frowned. "Why what?"

Morrison gathered his thoughts and spoke slowly. "This was the gun you lent me, right?"

Qu Jianlei answered decisively, "That's right, I lent it to you. But did I ever say I was lending you a good gun?"

Morrison's mind exploded—an idiot's way of thinking really was different from normal people's.

"But, but... you had me take a broken gun to reason with Cripple?"

Qu Jianlei answered as though it were only natural, "What's the difference? You wouldn't have dared fire it anyway."

For fuck's sake... Morrison really wanted to curse. Was carrying a broken gun the same as not daring to shoot? He truly had no idea how Qu Jianlei's brain worked. Too drained to even complain, he said, "Cripple almost killed me."

Qu Jianlei glanced at his thigh and nodded slightly. "It's already bandaged. That proves the result was pretty good."

How had they suddenly jumped to that? Morrison was a little baffled.

Then, in the next moment, he understood. "You mean..."

Qu Jianlei looked at him as if he were an idiot and could not be bothered to say anything.

Morrison finally figured out the key to it, but he still found it hard to believe.

"You were that sure Cripple wouldn't dare do anything to me and would definitely accept my extortion?"

Qu Jianlei considered it, then shook his head. "Not completely sure. There was still a chance of failure."

When he had lent out that broken gun, he had already considered how Morrison and Cripple would deal with each other.

Old Cripple was definitely no decent man, but he definitely was not a fool either.

It was unlikely that he would willingly accept extortion, but the key was this: Morrison had returned to camp alive!

If Morrison was alive, then there was a good chance that Qu Jianlei, the gun's owner, was alive too.

As for the three people who had followed them, there was no need to guess what had happened to them.

More importantly, that Gauss Automatic Rifle had been damaged by bullets! Unless Old Cripple was especially stupid or especially stubborn, he should honestly pay some compensation.

After all, he was highly suspicious in this matter. Of course, Qu Jianlei could not guarantee that his deduction was one hundred percent accurate.

For instance, what if Old Cripple had nothing to do with it at all...

But Qu Jianlei only needed to know those thoughts himself. There was no need to explain them to Morrison.

Morrison's face darkened. "A chance of failure... Would I have died?"

How would Qu Jianlei know? He lowered his eyelids. "Maybe... half-dead?"

"That's going too far!" Morrison's expression grew even darker. "You couldn't even give me a warning?"

"Was there a need?" Qu Jianlei looked at him curiously. "Old Cripple would have had to consider... that I might still be alive."

"That... is true," Morrison had to admit that the other man's logic made sense.

But when he thought about how he had nearly been killed, he was still resentful. "Couldn't you have lent me a good gun?"

"Are we close enough for that?" Qu Jianlei looked at him curiously. Look at the size of your face.

After thinking about it, he added, "If you got killed, wouldn't that gun be aiding the enemy?"

Morrison's face darkened again. "I never thought... someone could speak so bluntly!"

Are you saying I don't know how to talk? Qu Jianlei's face darkened as well. "What's wrong with being blunt? It's the truth!"

Your thought process really is bizarrely elegant! Morrison was utterly speechless.

In the end, he could not help asking, "If Cripple had killed me, would you have avenged me?"

That question stumped Qu Jianlei. After thinking for a moment, he answered, "Depends on my mood."

Morrison nodded. Now I finally know why you're a lone wandering ghost. You're far too willful.

Qu Jianlei raised a hand and took back the broken gun. "Time to return it... Where are the gains?"

"Ten tubes of Nutrient Solution and a bag of water... That's all," Morrison replied with an honest gaze.

Qu Jianlei looked at him helplessly. "Doesn't the wound dressing count?"

He had not expected Morrison to be particularly honest, but he was even trying to hide something so obvious... Could he at least respect Qu Jianlei's intelligence?

"I thought you knew," Morrison answered calmly. "How about I give you six tubes of Nutrient Solution?"

Qu Jianlei was somewhat speechless. Was that how Morrison understood "split fifty-fifty"?

Still, considering that the man had indeed taken a risk, Qu Jianlei could not be bothered to argue. "Fine... Give me the Nutrient Solution."

Seeing his outstretched hand, Morrison hesitated. "Could you keep lending me that gun?"

Qu Jianlei gave him a surprised look. "Didn't you say it was useless?"

Morrison smiled awkwardly. "Well... it's somewhat useful. Being able to talk to Old Cripple yesterday was partly because of it."

Qu Jianlei recalled his conversation with Fat Sister. "Having a gun might get you killed faster. Even if it's a broken gun, understand?"

"I understand," Morrison nodded. "But I still like the feeling of having a gun."

"Then buy it," Qu Jianlei answered without hesitation. "Two tubes of Nutrient Solution will do."

The barrel of this Gauss Gun was damaged, making it not worth repairing, but its dismantled parts could still be used on other guns.

"I'll only borrow it!" Morrison stated decisively. "With two tubes of Nutrient Solution, I can live two more days. Why would I buy it?"

Not bad, he even knew how to use borrowed capital. Qu Jianlei rolled his eyes and handed the gun over.

At heart, he was not stingy. It was only because life in the Wasteland had been so difficult these past years that he had no choice but to pinch every penny.

For the next two days, Morrison stayed with Qu Jianlei and even continued helping push the Tricycle.

It had become paid work, though. He earned one-third of the fare.

The money was somewhat hard-earned, but that was not Morrison's main source of income. He considered skimming off the top his real profession.

It had to be said that he was truly skilled at petty theft. He only took things that were not worth much, and he knew exactly where to draw the line.

As a result, no one could be bothered to argue with him. At most, they would say, "Don't touch that!" In the end, Mr. Sai put too much pressure on everyone.

Many of the people involved would rather give up the convenience of the public trucks and rent a Tricycle once or twice just to maintain a good relationship with Qu Jianlei.

Compared to that, letting Morrison skim off a little was nothing.

On the third day, someone came to discuss with Qu Jianlei whether it was time to go to Hong Si Settlement and demand the antidote.

The first to come was Dirty Woman, and the second was the short, sturdy man.

Qu Jianlei had been thinking about this matter too, so they agreed to travel through the night and head for Hong Four.

There had been twenty Scavengers involved in the incident, but this time, more than forty people were going to Hong Four.

The good things from the Garbage Dump could only fetch a good price at the Settlement.

They hired three trucks, barely managing to fit all the people and goods going with them.

Qu Jianlei only brought one long gun, one short gun, a long blade, and a short blade.

He left the Tricycle with Morrison and put the other weapons with Fat Sister to sell on his behalf—he could not possibly bring everything with him.

The Settlement was more than two hundred kilometers from the Garbage Dump. The battered trucks drove across the wilderness all night and did not arrive until dawn.

The Settlement covered a considerable area. The walls enclosed roughly ten square kilometers, and it was said to have a population of over fifty thousand.

Qu Jianlei had once calculated that at five thousand people per square kilometer... there could even be a little land left over for farming.

Unfortunately, Survivors from the wild were not qualified to settle there. Even entering the city temporarily required paying a substantial deposit.

There were many temporary houses outside the city, more than ten thousand of them, packed densely together.

Qu Jianlei and the others arrived at the small southern city gate and looked for the One-eyed Petty Boss from last time.

The petty boss was named Tu Zuo Fu. After asking around, they learned that he was actually a squad leader in the Guards.

Tu Zuo Fu was not on duty. When he heard that Survivors from the wild had come looking for him, he took more than two hours to show up.

He had eight or nine people with him, a standard combat squad.

After seeing everyone, his first question was, "Any news about the mech?"

This was rather helpless. Everyone cared about the antidote, while he cared about the news.

No one answered his question. The events of last time were still vivid in their minds, and some people really did kill without batting an eye.

Everyone turned to look at Qu Jianlei.

Qu Jianlei had no way to refuse. His status had visibly risen over the past few days, and gaining something meant he had to give something in return.

He stepped forward and answered solemnly, "Lord Tu, we've been trying very hard to find it, but unfortunately, there's no news yet."

Tu Zuo Fu narrowed his one eye and spoke in a sinister tone. "If there's no news, what are you here for?"

Qu Jianlei was somewhat helpless. "My lord, we need to be alive to gather information. Dead people can do nothing."

Tu Zuo Fu had been fairly polite to him last time, but his temper was not very good this time. He asked coldly, "Are you complaining?"

Qu Jianlei lowered his eyelids and answered honestly, "I wouldn't dare."

It was not that he had no complaints, but that he did not dare voice them. That was why... his social skills really were rather poor.

Tu Zuo Fu's hand had already moved to the Laser Gun at his waist, but then he remembered something.

He looked at the others. "This idiot is resentful. Other than him, who among you has resentment?"

"No," everyone shook their heads one after another. Silly Qu was spared because he was stupid. They did not want to get shot.

"Bastards, not one of you ever speaks the truth," Tu Zuo Fu cursed. "Are only idiots brave enough to tell the truth?"

Everyone remained silent. He could curse all he wanted; they would pretend not to hear it. As long as he gave them the antidote, that was enough.

Seeing that no one spoke, Tu Zuo Fu became even more annoyed. "You look this cowardly and still want the antidote... Does the antidote come for free?"