"This is ridiculous..." The boy shook his head speechlessly, "You need to buy seeds to grow crops, think about the harvest."
"That's true," the New Army nodded, "At worst, we can use the king's private treasury."
Then he looked at the boy intently, "Come with me. The South needs your persuasive skills... and it's close to your Jin."
"No," Wu Youren shook his head decisively. "You can send me back to Jin first, then summon me. No one will dare to object."
"Forget about it," Jeff sneered. "Anyone can go back, but you can't!"
"You... really don't have a good reputation," the young man sighed deeply and nodded slightly. "Next time you come to me, please bring your get-out-of-jail-free card."
"What if I don't bring it?" Jeff wanted to ask, but then again, there was no need.
The real issue is the tense relationship with this boy; we need to ease things a bit, because... it's really useful.
Just like the solution presented this time, it was another unexpected surprise.
If the answer were very complicated, he wouldn't have sighed so much; the key is that the answer was too simple.
Just like the answer last time, it's so straightforward that it's almost laughable, and it's also very easy to use.
It might even make you regret asking the question: How could I be so stupid?
However, even if Li Hu is stupid, is Wise Tiger stupid? Is Jiao Hu stupid? Or is it the military commander who is stupid?
The answer does seem to have been right there, readily available, but why hasn't anyone thought of it?
Jeff believes that the boy's previous answer was due to his outside perspective, which caused him to fall into a blind spot in his thinking.
But can we still explain it that way this time?
Even if an outsider is more clear-headed, to see the truth, you at least... need to have seen similar situations before, right?
Jeff's education level was average, but he was, after all, born into a noble family.
He had previously served in the Imperial Guard for a long time, and through his own efforts, he had reached this position, demonstrating a level of insight and wisdom far superior to others.
He was absolutely certain that he had never heard of a similar event in the history he knew!
Therefore, what makes this boy unique is that his way of thinking is different from that of ordinary people.
I may have been dismissive of them before, but now I must make a concerted effort to win them over!
While processing the news he had just received, the New Army casually asked, "Did you run away from Red Pine because your prince is ill?"
He was just asking a question insincerely, but now he's dropped the pretense: I know about this.
The boy nodded slightly, without saying a word.
He couldn't explain it to outsiders, much less complain about it.
Speaking recklessly is unreliable, and criticizing Jin Garden is degrading oneself.
"Heh," Jeff chuckled, then asked with interest, "If you're so resistant, why do you still want to go back?"
The boy remained silent, only letting out a soft hum to indicate that he didn't like the topic.
"Let's not talk about that," the New Army readily agreed, "Won't you invite us in for a seat?"
"This shabby place..." Wu Youren chuckled, turning to walk towards the half-collapsed house. "Come in, please."
Although it is nighttime, the snow will make the surrounding area appear as bright as day.
Jeff looked around, shook his head, and clicked his tongue. "Tsk tsk, how annoying you are... Oh well, isn't this life hard enough?"
This situation is beyond description; even the homeless in Tianjing city wouldn't be worse off than this.
The boy turned his head to look at him, his gaze as clear as ever, "But I'm alive."
"I'd rather die than live like this," the New Army shook his head. "As for your conditions... I'll give you some supplies instead."
Wu Youren glanced at him sideways but said nothing.
"I have no interest in doing the disgusting stuff that the Intelligence Agency does," Jeff stated frankly. "If I wanted to harm you, I would have done it directly."
During his last heart-to-heart talk with the Knight from the Intelligence Agency, he learned a lot about the past.
The boy remained silent.
Not long after, a rumbling sound rang out, and a tracked armored vehicle drove up, towing an off-road vehicle behind it.
"There are supplies in the truck," Jeff waved his hand, "And you can have that truck too... Want an armored vehicle?"
Wu Youren looked at him speechlessly, then silently walked to the corner of the wall. "Don't film!"
If I were to appear in a photo with a Liang armored vehicle, and then "accidentally" post it on the guard captain's wristwatch...
People who play politics are all dirty! He was absolutely certain of that.
"Hey!" Jeff shook his head, both amused and exasperated. He had recruited the boy because he valued the boy's way of thinking and wanted to get more ideas from him.
It's not that he doesn't know how to play this game, but with this guy... it's not worth it, and there's no need to!
Armored vehicles can transport troops, so their ability to transport supplies is naturally not bad either. After unloading large and small packages, there are always enough supplies to weigh two thousand kilograms.
Daily necessities made up more than half of the supplies, while the rest were combat supplies.
There weren't many firearms, and no heavy firepower at all; the main weaponry was ammunition, but there were only five booby Weird-Exterminating Grenade.
The boy watched silently as the other person unloaded the goods, without stopping them.
However, he was thinking to himself: Two thousand silver dollars wouldn't be enough!
When a major power decides to recruit someone, they certainly go all out, so this amount of supplies is normal.
However, when the New Army said that there were still supplies on the off-road vehicle and that he could unload them himself, he waved his hand.
"Let's not keep the car; it'll be difficult to explain."
"There's no fixed location," Jeff stated bluntly. " The New Army's emblem isn't big either; it's mainly for ease of movement."
Is it convenient or inconvenient for me? Wu Youren glanced at the other person speechlessly, then shook his head slightly but firmly.
"Never mind then," the New Army waved his hand helplessly, "Unload the supplies from the off-road vehicle too."
It weighed approximately two thousand jin again.
After unloading, Jeff and the other Knight climbed into the armored vehicle and left without saying a word.
Since you've decided to win them over, you need to adopt a welcoming attitude. The boy is very resistant, so you should first lower his guard.
"This is so full..." Wu Youren looked at the stacks of supplies, then at his own makeshift shack.
Without comparison, there is no harm; being courted and corrupted is not so easy to refuse.
Unfortunately, this unloading location was not his intended long-term residence.
But it didn't matter anyway. In this vast Rust Zone, he was originally homeless anyway, so where wasn't a place to stay?
This time the supplies are a bit too much. Does the other side really think he's going to survive the winter in the Rust Zone?
To be honest, these supplies are only enough to support a ten-person team for ten days of high-intensity combat, and even half a month is uncertain.
But if you're giving someone the chance to hibernate in the wild, that's more than enough.
It was still necessary to bury them separately, but Wu Youren wasn't in a hurry; it was already midnight.
The supplies might be discovered? That's easy, just cover them with a white cloth.
Wu Youren set up a tent between the supplies and the corner of the wall, making sure it was completely enclosed, and slept soundly for the night.
The next day, he spent the entire day either cultivating or taking inventory of supplies, categorizing them and checking for any potential hazards.
Jeff's words sounded very convincing, but he couldn't possibly believe him.
As night fell, he began to move the supplies out bit by bit, like ants carrying grains of rice.
The shipments aren't large each time, so there's no need to go through so much trouble.
It took him ten days to distribute the supplies, and this place became his main residence.
During this period, he would briefly turn on his watch each day to receive relevant information.
On the twelfth day, Jeff came to check on the supplies in an armored vehicle and found that much of the supplies were missing, but he didn't show any signs of anything amiss.
He came to tell the boy that his suggestion was good, so he helped Hong Da get another Marching Stone.
However, the treasure hasn't arrived yet; it's just in the queue. It will be delivered when it becomes available.
Ultimately, it's all about selling good stuff—I only got this for your eldest son because of you.
Finally, he even asked, "Do you have enough supplies? If not, just tell me."
He didn't even ask where those things went.
Three days later, Manna and Daiqisi came, bringing him some fresh vegetables.
However, neither of them asked when he would return to Red Pine; they simply said that if he was going to kill the ghost, he should remember to contact them.
Clearly, some rumors have already started circulating.
Wu Youren was also somewhat amused and exasperated. So, he was "living in seclusion" in a place that everyone knew about?
Even so, this place is much more convenient than Red Pine. As for danger... isn't the Martial Academy dangerous too?
At the very least, there are no restrictions imposed by World-Left Weapon here.
The next three or four days were sunny and bright. After the snow melted, it froze again at night, forming a hard crust on top, making skiing easier.
However, as the snow melts, the concealment here will be less effective, and he should venture deeper into the Rust Zone.
It wasn't so much to guard against the New Army or the Red Pine people, but mainly to guard against the barbarians.
This heavy snowfall has strained the Barbarian Tribe's supplies, and their unrest has increased recently.
Because there was no one to plunder in the Rust Zone and no Weird Race to fight, the number of barbarians decreased somewhat.
However, Wu Youren would not let his guard down because of this; anyone who had served as a hostage was unlikely to make a mistake in this matter.
He was resting in the middle of the night when he suddenly woke up with a start.
He lifted the tent flap and stepped out, and sure enough, a Scops Owl was crouching in the corner, twice the size of the last one.
Wu Youren didn't even need to probe; he went straight to the point, "Didn't you say you wanted to try hibernation?"
"That one was killed by a sand owl," Chen Quanxu replied. "This time I'll use a bigger one."
"Why haven't you ridden the motorcycle I gave you? If it weren't for the high temperature these past few days, it would be inconvenient to find you."
"Brother, look at this weather, is it suitable for riding a motorcycle?"
"Could it be converted into a sled?" the Scops Owl muttered, but didn't continue.
"Without your cooperation, killing monsters is no fun at all," Wu Youren said frankly. "And it's easy to be exposed, so what's the point?"
"Now I can go kill them, and get started?"
"No problem," Chen Quanxu replied. "I was anxious to find you because I was worried that the scent of the orange seed would dissipate... uh, it hasn't pooped yet?"
(Updated to: Calling for subscriptions, monthly tickets, and recommendation votes.)