The wall made of stone bricks and wooden piles is towering and towering, enclosing a large area of land. On one side of the wall are densely packed houses, and on the other side are fields with traffic and fruit trees decorated with broken snow. Rather than saying that this is a farm,
Rather, it is a city from the classical era.
There are between 10 and 20 thousand people living within the wall, with the market as the core forming a settlement where officials, craftsmen, soldiers and their families live. Outside the wall there are 30,000 to 40 thousand people, most of whom are farmers, and most of them have lost their freedom.
Of the serfs, the other half are tenant farmers who rent the land and have not yet gone bankrupt. Everything here is the property of the farmer. Whether it is land or people.
If Boulder City is an extreme product of industrialization coordinated by the Production Department of the War and Construction Committee, then this farm is another extreme product of the free growth of survivor settlements.
There is no sign of industrialization here. Although there is a city in the near future not far away, there is no trace of inheritance here, not even a specious thing.
As for the reason, it is actually very simple.
The boat couldn't move on its own while it was parked there, either because of the wind or because someone was rowing the oars.
For the ship Pinecone Wood Farm, these two elements obviously do not exist. They are neither within the plan of the War and Construction Committee, nor have they any motivation to develop industry.
The farmer here did buy a few machines from Boulder City, but the results were not very satisfactory, and over time they were left in the warehouse gathering dust.
To put it bluntly, whether they are bankrupt serfs or tenant farmers on the verge of bankruptcy, they can be regarded as the private property of the farmer.
Even if the poor people wear new clothes, for the farmers here, it is just a new wallet to put the banknotes in their pockets, which is completely unnecessary.
But even so, Pinecone Wood Farm is much better than most of the survivor settlements that are still in the "tribal period".
At least some raider tribes are no match for them, and the agricultural products here can be sold as far away as the valley provinces in the north.
Direct exchange of abundant agricultural products and cash crops for industrial products in Boulder City can be said to be the economic lifeline of this farm over the past century.
It is no exaggeration to say that without the big landowners in Boulder City, there would be no small landowners of all sizes in Jinchuan Province.
Most farmers here will cooperate with merchants in Boulder City, or simply keep a few loyal servants to act as profit representatives.
Pinecone Wood Farm is no exception, and the owner here, Zhao Tianqian, is more ambitious than any other farmer on this land. _o_m
His parents have accumulated enough wealth for him, and a small settlement is no longer enough to satisfy his appetite.
He wants to build a huge and permanent kingdom in this wild land like the royal families of Luoxia Province!
In order to realize this ambitious goal, he showed an open-minded and learning attitude towards the talents and technologies in the wasteland, and used the savings saved from the food trade to recruit troops and stockpile weapons.
However, just when he was full of ambition and was planning to do something big, bad news suddenly came from the north.
A revolution broke out in Boulder City, and the Boulder Building collapsed overnight. The nobles in the inner city were either exiled or sent to the Alliance's prisoner-of-war camp for reform.
And his sponsors basically fell in that revolution.
The news he heard on the radio scared him into a cold sweat on the spot and he couldn't sleep for several days.
If he wanted to build a huge agricultural empire in the south, the support of northern industrial owners was indispensable. After all, he could not expect a group of unknowledgeable farmers to learn to operate machines, and knowledge was exactly what he could not give to those people anyway.
But now, his biggest partner has turned to the Alliance.
Although the Alliance is also his trading partner, since the war in the west has ended and the railway from Luoxia Province to the southern part of River Valley Province has been opened, food from Luoxia Province has almost completely replaced them.
This was almost fatal to the slave owners in Jinchuan Province.
With the use of chemical fertilizers and high-yielding seeds, one acre of land can even feed two or three people. But without the achievements of industry and primitive farming technology, only three acres of land can feed one person.
.
When the profits from exporting agricultural products cannot be exchanged for sufficient means of production and weapons to protect the means of production, the virtuous cycle will be broken, and their good days will be over.
Although they will not go bankrupt immediately, the shrinkage of production activities has almost become inevitable.@·The first post without error~~
If there is no interference from outside forces, they will probably completely deplete the social wealth accumulated through trade with Boulder City in the past 100 years in twenty or forty years, until they enter a new cycle and stabilize again.
And their current prosperity will be transferred to the oases in the desert along the railway that has been built.
Pinecone Wood Farm is slightly better. After all, the family has enough money. Even if the settlement of more than 50,000 people is left alone, a group of carpenters, blacksmiths, weavers, alchemists and other craftsmen will automatically appear.
However, other small farmers are unlucky. Looking at the camu camu rotting in the forest, they have gradually become accustomed to the bitter consequences of losing their sponsors.
Fortunately, the church forces from further south extended a helping hand to the locals in time.
Since it is no longer profitable to grow ordinary crops - just plant some fruits.
The land planted with Naguo is no longer suitable for the growth of ordinary crops, but the crops eroded by Naguo will grow exceptionally strong.
The survivors who had eaten the fruit were not only invulnerable to all diseases, but were also humble and docile, as hard-working and well-behaved as puppets holding strings.
Thinking about it from another perspective, they actually don’t need chemical fertilizers that much, and they don’t even need herbicides anymore. All their material needs will be satisfied.
Under the emerald green halo, man and nature will be perfectly integrated, realizing the true "I am natural".
In order to gain support from the southern church forces, Pinecone Farm also introduced Nago.
And the effect of receiving fruits did not disappoint Zhao Tianqian at all.
After his serfs ate the fruits, they stopped being lazy and no one complained anymore. They were all as docile and obedient as sheep.
They may not be excellent soldiers or qualified for expert positions, but they are definitely the best farmers and workers.
It's easy to use them as cannon fodder. Just give them an injection of "holy water". The Torch Church has medicine that can immunize them against the symptoms of addiction.
The withdrawal reaction can become a rope that binds them. No one dares to be lazy anymore. In order to listen to the gospel of the Son of God, they will work even harder when they are awake.
However, unlike those shabby farmers, Zhao Tiangan could never let go of those magicians.
The royal physician he hired told him that the serfs who had eaten Naguo were not truly invulnerable to all poisons, but that their body functions had completely given up resistance to viruses and bacteria. Similarly, viruses and bacteria had also lost their aggressiveness.
, forming a symbiotic relationship with the infected person under the influence of a special mycelium.
This caused the serfs to become a breeding ground for germs. Some normal people who did not eat Naguo would contract strange infectious diseases almost by being close to them.
Some tenants who were not forced to ration naguo were forced to eat naguo because they did not have enough antibiotics and other medicines. At first, Zhao Tianqian expected that 20% of the residents would be baptized with the "holy fruit", but when he came to his senses,
At that time, the entire settlement became believers of the Torch Church.
I want to stop, but it seems it's too late...
In the magnificent manor house, a group of children are laughing and playing on the lush lawn.
In the main building not far away, Zhao Tianqian stood by the window and looked out at the smoke-filled settlement, with a frown on his furrowed brows.
He has never been so worried about the future of this settlement, and has never been so confused about the future. However, at this moment, the feeling of not knowing where to go is getting stronger.
The fruits and beliefs brought by those believers solved most of the problems he faced, but the biggest problem was that he didn't know where those people would take him.
His throat felt itchy, and Zhao Tianqian couldn't help coughing into the handkerchief.
As he moved the handkerchief away from his mouth, a faint trace of blood caught his eye, making his heart tighten involuntarily.
"Oh shit!"
Cursing a few words, he hurriedly took out a box of pills from his pocket, knocked two pills out of his palm and threw them into his mouth.
Inside, he grabbed the cup on the table and drank the warm water.
After a while, he slowly breathed a sigh of relief and felt a little more comfortable.
Recently, for some unknown reason, he had a slight problem with his lungs. At first, he took some medicine and it was cured, but the disease came back again and again, and now he is even coughing up blood.
He didn't know why this happened, but coughing up blood was not a good sign.
At this time, there was a knock on the door,
Zhao Tianqian cleared his throat and stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket.
"Please come in."
The door opened.
An old man with graying temples came in. His name was Ma Zhongxian, he was the steward of Songguomu Farm and also the confidant of the owner.
Looking at Zhao Tianqian standing by the window, the old man nodded slightly, saluted, and said respectfully.
"grown ups."
Without any more nonsense, Zhao Tianqian spoke immediately.
"Is there any news from Yang He?"
Ma Zhongxian nodded and said.
"He just reported to me that they have purchased the weapons on the list, and the transport convoy is heading in our direction... However, because of the snow on the mountain road, they were delayed for some time at the junction of the two provinces. I'm afraid they will have to
It will take a while to arrive.”
Zhao Tian said in an irritable mood.
"Tell him to hurry up."
Ma Zhongxian nodded respectfully.
"yes."
Zhao Tianqian glanced at the children playing outside the window, looked at the little girl sitting next to his daughter, and narrowed his eyes slightly.
In previous years, at the beginning of December, Yang He, who went to Qingquanshui area to sell autumn grain, would have returned, but this year it was more than a month late.
But he is not worried about the merchant running away with the money. The guy's baby daughter is still in his hands as a hostage. I believe he will make the right judgment and know what should be taken and what should not be taken.
Seeing that the old housekeeper had no intention of leaving, Zhao Tianqian continued to ask.
"Is there anything else?"
"Yes, there is one more thing..."
"explain."
Ma Zhongxian hesitated for a moment and whispered.
"There has been no news about the apostle who went to Chenchen Town to preach for three days, and the 41 militiamen he took away have not returned either."
Zhao Tianqian frowned.
"Why have you been gone so long?"
Three days.
It's enough for two round trips.
Ma Zhongxian smiled bitterly and shook his head.
"I don't know... My suggestion is that we'd better send someone over there to see what's going on over there."
After clicking his tongue, Zhao Tiangan waved his hand impatiently.
"You go make arrangements."
He doesn't like those magicians very much.
But it's also true that he has to rely on those guys at the moment.
"As commanded."
Ma Zhongxian bowed slightly, exited the door, and closed the door behind him.
Watching the door close again, Zhao Tianqian finally couldn't hold it in any longer. He covered his mouth with his right hand and coughed twice.
His palm felt warm, and his heart sank slightly. When he moved his hand away from his mouth, he saw a trace of dark red blood in his palm.
No matter how calm he was, he couldn't help but feel panic when he saw the blood stains.
Although he holds supreme power in this settlement, he is only a mortal body after all and cannot escape birth, old age, illness, and death.
"Tsk... Sure enough, it still doesn't work?"
After some hesitation, he hurried back to his desk, opened the drawer, and took out a silver box.
Opening the box, three emerald-colored fruits lay quietly inside.
These three fruits were gifts presented to him by the apostle named Zhang Zhengyang. They are said to be the purest "holy fruits" produced in the Holy Land and can completely get rid of all diseases in the world.
Of course he didn't believe that guy's lies.
His remaining sense told him that this was not a good thing.
Although the holy water can keep him awake, it also means that his mind and even his life will be in the hands of others.
Normally, he would never eat this thing.
.
But at this moment, his physical condition seemed to no longer allow him to hesitate.
He is in the prime of life, how can he show fatigue like an old man?
This settlement—and even the entire wasteland—needs his power. He still has a lot of things to do, but he can't fall down here!
"If it's just one..."
Zhao Tianqian comforted himself in his heart, took out the smallest emerald-colored fruit, and carefully stuffed it into his mouth. The moment his lips and teeth touched, the sweetness flowed down his taste buds into his throat, as if it was poured into the depths of his soul.
The honey brew made him feel trance-like.
The relief that followed dispelled all the pain in an instant.
In his body, no matter what form of life it is, it has reached reconciliation under the influence of some unknown force.
not only that--
He felt healthier and stronger than ever.
Holding his shoulders with both hands, Zhao Tianqian suddenly laughed out loud.
"Haha...hahaha!"
The laughter grew louder and louder, even taking on a hint of madness.
I see.
At this moment, he finally understood why those people couldn't stop...
In the hills about one or two hundred kilometers away from Jinhe City, six modified trucks broke down on the roadside, with orange gunfire flashing on the top of the slope not far away.
More than two dozen plunderers were lying on the top of the slope, firing their automatic rifles in bursts, pouring firepower from top to bottom. The caravan guard was caught off guard and fled away from the truck in embarrassment, rolling and crawling to the ground.
He hid behind a large rock and used the limited cover to fight back up the slope.
The bullet casings fell to the ground with a clang. The Marauder, who had a bullet chain wrapped around his shoulders and held the machine gun with both hands, shouted excitedly to the leader next to him.
"Haha! We are going to get rich, boss!"
"Take it easy! Don't damage the goods in the car!"
Wang Youhu, who was wearing an animal skin hat, was flushed with excitement, and his two green bean-sized eyes were staring at the motorcade that had broken down on the roadside, with a greedy light shining in his eyes.
The cargo on those six trucks contained at least hundreds of guns and hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition!
With this batch of arms, he would dare to rob Boss Zhao’s pine cone farm, not to mention those small villages! It is no longer a dream for their “hill wolf” gang to become bigger and stronger!
However--
They clearly picked the wrong opponent.
Just when they were having fun shooting, a group of soldiers wearing jet-black exoskeletons had already touched the hillside beside them. There was a short gunshot, and a stream of blood exploded from the head of the predator holding the machine gun.
Wu Wu lay on the ground without saying a word.
The predator next to him saw this and was about to take over the machine gun. Just when he poked his head out of the bunker, he was shot again.
Two people died in the blink of an eye.
The predators who were lying on the top of the slope finally came to their senses and turned their guns to look at the slopes on the flanks. However, at the same time, a hail of bullets roared in, pinning them behind the bunker and unable to raise their heads at all.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the jet-black and shiny exoskeleton. A trace of panic flashed across Wang Youhu's eyes. The greed in his heart disappeared. He looked at his brothers and exclaimed.
"Damn it, retreat!"
K-10 "Iron Wall" heavy-duty exoskeleton!
Why are the regular troops from Boulder City here?!
Without enough time to think about this problem, he quickly abandoned the bunker and fled down the hillside behind him.
Seeing that the boss had run away, all the younger brothers also gave up their positions and scattered into the forest, leaving behind even the precious machine gun and not daring to take it.
The battle is over.
Seeing that all the predators had disappeared, Luo Yu did not chase into the woods at the foot of the mountain, but walked to the machine gun. He kicked away the body lying on it. He stared at the machine gun, and his eyes suddenly revealed
A touch of surprise.
"Good guy, even bandits use Maxim." This thing looks a bit old.
Eighty percent of them are armaments that have been eliminated after the last wave. After several equipment upgrades, the Alliance Army basically no longer uses this bulky water-cooled machine gun. Even the Maxim-II of Goblin Technology uses a gas imitation of the MG42.
Cold structure, and increased the caliber from 7 to 10.
As for this early Maxim-I, most of them were dealt with by the traders in the wasteland.
Some less developed survivor settlements are still very interested in this small-caliber machine gun with cheap bullets, high rate of fire, and strong suppression effect.
How it got into the hands of predators is unknown.
Maybe they snatched it themselves, or maybe some merchant sold it to them.
Seeing Luo Yu carrying a machine gun and a box of machine gun ammunition back to the side of the convoy, a man in a leather jacket immediately walked up and asked with concern.
"Are you OK?"
The name of this NPC is Wu Wenzhou. He is the leader of the caravan and a subordinate of the entrusted employer.
"I'm fine, those people have run away...Ah, that's right."
Throwing the ammunition box and the Maxim in his hand in front of the NPC, Luo Yuyan continued speaking concisely.
"Do you accept this thing?"
Wu Wenzhou was stunned for a moment when he heard this sentence, obviously not following the train of thought of the person in front of him.
Seeing that this guy didn't look like he was joking, he squatted down and played with the machine gun for a while, then looked at the ammunition box and said in a hesitant voice.
"The maintenance is somewhat lacking, but it can still be used.\n.\n.\n.\n.\n.\nHow about 600 silver coins?"
For the Maxim-II type, he remembered correctly that the market price was about 1,000 to 1,200 silver coins.
But this Maxim-I type has been discontinued, and its price on the black market may not be as high as the box of 7 full-power bullets next to it.
Under normal circumstances, he would not be able to give such a high price, 400 silver coins is the highest price.
But this guy had saved their lives just now, so he didn't have the nerve to be stingy.
Hearing the offer, Luo Yu felt happy.
Six hundred!
Good guy!
This is more generous than a mosquito!
Being a mercenary is so profitable!
After asking his men to throw the machine gun on the truck, Wu Wenzhou shouted at the men behind him.
"Hurry up, everyone is ready to hit the road!"
"Over the forest and hills ahead, we can see our destination!"
"If we don't want to spend the night outside, we'd better hurry up and arrive at Hope Town before dark. Otherwise, when it gets dark, there will be those guys everywhere!"
After hurriedly cleaning up the battlefield, the group continued on their way.
book
Looking at the shrouded area in the distance
In the forest sea in the mist, Luo Yu felt a surge in her heart when she thought of the Jinchuan Province at her feet.
I never thought that one day I would be at the forefront of the version.
Unable to control his curiosity, he looked at the NPC next to him and asked.
"What kind of place is that Pinecone Farm?"
Wu Wenzhou, who was sitting next to him, said with a smile.
"It's a big settlement there...but it may not have as many buildings as Boulder. @ "
"A quaint little town?"
"A small town...that's out of the question."
When he said this, Luo Yu clearly felt that the NPC's eyes were a little complicated, and he seemed reluctant to mention that place more.
Even though that is his hometown.
"...It's only a day or two away anyway. You'll know when you get there."
At the last moment when dusk completely fell, the convoy heading to Pinecone Wood Farm finally arrived at the edge of Hope Town.
At the same time, dozens of kilometers away in Jinhe City, a Viper transport plane dragged a light blue arc and quietly approached a quiet urban area.
This city seems to be dead, the silent streets are lifeless, every building is like a cemetery, and every window is like a standing tomb.
Like Qingquan City, there are a large number of mutants active in the urban area here, but the difference is that there are no deadly mutant slime molds and mother nests, and there is no annual wave.
Moving close to the edge of the ruins of high-rise buildings, the Viper transport plane moved forward silently, and finally stopped on the roof of an abandoned building.
Dress.
The powered armored Ye Shi jumped out of the cabin and stepped on the dry concrete ground with his feet.
With the LD-50 carbine in his hand, he carefully checked every corner of the roof. After confirming that it was safe, he put on the Gauss sniper rifle on his back, walked to the edge of the building, and knelt down by the guardrail.
superior.
The landmark name of the mission coordinates on the pre-war map is "Champion" Biopharmaceutical Research Institute.
This company seemed to be quite famous before the war, and the "Champion" injection was their proud product. The T-10 "Champion" power armor of the People's Federation Army before the war was also suspected of having an unclear relationship with this company.
.
The entire facility is divided into two floors: above ground and underground.
There are four hundred-story high-rise buildings on the ground, and each building has an entrance to the underground.
According to the college’s information, the one thousand cubic meters of liquid helium-3 is stored in 1L high-pressure gas storage bottles as a backup power source in the underground research facility.
All they have to do is sneak in and empty all the gas bottles there.
The only trouble is that the underground security facilities are still working, and the information about the underground facilities is completely blank.
They don't know what is being studied there, nor the level of security there, or even whether any competitors are eyeing what's there.
"We have arrived at the location. The mission coordinates are about 700 meters away from me. We are confirming the target situation..."
Skillfully placing the helmet eyepiece on the sight, Ye Shi glanced at the building in the distance, and his expression suddenly changed slightly.
"Grass!"
The communication screen flashed with the sound of electricity. After a while, Lao Bai's voice came. "Ye Shi, what's going on over there?"
"Mutants! And not just one or two... there are at least hundreds that can be seen outside!"
The scope searched along the wall of the building, looking at the bunkers reinforced by concrete and iron sheets, Ye Shi cursed and said.
"Damn, these guys are building a nest up there!"
After the words fell, the murmurs of teammates spread in the communication channel.
"Mutants?! What do those greenskins need helium-3 for?"
“They all know how to create nuclear fusion??”
"Actually, there is no need to understand. As long as there is a remaining nuclear fusion device... isn't that what we did?"
At this time, Fang Chang's voice came from the communication channel, interrupting everyone's communication.
"Team B has arrived... there are surprisingly many people here. Although our firepower should be able to gain the upper hand, we are too close to the 'strange' tribe."
"It's not a good idea to let them know that we're eyeing the same target. No matter what they're looking for here, from the looks of it, they probably haven't succeeded yet...otherwise they wouldn't be patrolling here."
Lao Bai: "Well, that makes sense. _o_m "
Looking at the green head in the center of the crosshair, Ye Shi rubbed the trigger with his index finger and said unwillingly.
"Is this all for today?" Fang Chang said patiently.
"We don't have enough manpower. Even if we attack by force, we still need at least one group of people to help us contain the enemy's reinforcements or launch a feint attack on their home base."
"Otherwise, even if we get in, those mutants will block the way out, and we will be dumbfounded."
Lao Bai agreed with his point of view.
"At least what we want is most likely still inside, and there are probably other things inside besides nuclear fuel... Anyway, let's report it to the manager first."
"Fine......"
Taking one last look at the green head and the ugly face like a demon, Ye Shi resisted the urge to fire and reluctantly put the gun away.
Consider yourself lucky!
The mutant's mouth was dripping with laughter, and he was humming without knowing what he was thinking. He had no idea that he was walking through the gate of hell.
Turning around and returning to the Viper helicopter, Ye Shi had just stepped into the cabin with his front feet and was about to stand up when a gunshot suddenly sounded in the distance, completely tearing the silence of the night apart.