After finishing their meal, Wen Le cleaned up the table and sat with Xiao Wen at the stone table in the courtyard.
Looking around, on one side of the yard was a field of golden crops, while on the other side stretched an endless sea.
The two of them were each thinking about what items they could offer for exchange, and they discussed and recorded them on the table. After tallying everything up, the list of goods they had recorded included food, clothing, medicine, and many other daily necessities.
It wasn’t that they were being generous; judging from the items they listed, they had enough to support the consumption of over two thousand people. From a sustainable perspective, in order to continuously obtain fuel energy in the future, it was necessary to ensure that Wang Zhixin and his group could survive and obtain licenses, so that they could spend time refining the energy into a usable form for Xiao Wen and his group.
“Should we reserve some supplies for them this time?” Wen Le asked.
“Based on their requests, I estimate that they are already running low on supplies, otherwise they wouldn’t have taken the risk of cooperating with us,” Xiao Wen replied, lifting his head from the table.
“Indeed. Although cooperation is about each side taking what they need, they have already taken a big risk by exposing themselves to us,” Xiao Wen glanced at the list, “but I believe they will be grateful for this risk in the end.”
Wen Le smiled.
Meanwhile, Wang Zhixin and his seven companions had walked for nearly ten minutes along the pipeline to reach the exit. Along the way, no one spoke.
The exit of the pipeline led to an underground factory similar to the one where Xiao Wen and Wen Le obtained oil. Unlike the spaciousness of that factory, this one had been transformed into a huge room resembling a studio.
Looking at the wall on the left, a row of surveillance screens were running, monitoring every corner of the Tarim Oilfield above and below ground.
On the other side, seven or eight people were sitting in front of a conference table made up of several desks.
“How did it go?” One of the middle-aged men hurriedly asked when Wang Zhixin and his companions came out.
Wang Zhixin nodded and sat down at the table with the others.
“The two people said they are from Apocalypse base in the Tibetan area, and they seem very interested in our proposal for cooperation. I think the possibility of cooperation is high. And both of them look healthy and well-fed, their clothes are clean and neat. Just by looking at them, they seem like people who lived a luxurious life before the end of the world.”
“Of course they look healthy when they have apples to munch on all the time,” a young man who had been staring at the monitor muttered under his breath.
Many people secretly swallowed their saliva.
Apples! If they were in the pre-apocalyptic world, even those who worked year-round in the Tarim would have been able to pick and choose their fruits. It’s nothing like now, where they can barely fill their stomachs, and with the dwindling food supplies, they don’t know what they’ll eat next. Will they drink crude oil?!
“The Tibetan area…” muttered the first elderly man present, who was over fifty.
Others also thought silently.
It’s not easy to get from the Tibetan area to here. Although the population in the Tibetan area must be sparse, the number of zombies beyond the Tibetan area is enough to make their scalp numb. These two people were able to rush all the way here, indicating that their ability was enough to make them unparalleled.
“I wonder what kind of Apocalypse base they have. It would be great if we could join them if it’s good enough,” sighed another young man.
“Join them?” The only female member present sneered, “Even if the conditions over there are good, how can our two thousand people go there? Fly over there like those two, stepping on zombie heads?”
“They mentioned something…” One of the middle-aged men who had followed Wang Zhixin to see Xiao Wen hesitated for a moment.
The others looked up at him.
Wang Zhixin knew what he was thinking and continued, “They mentioned before that they not only need gasoline and diesel, but also aviation gasoline.”
“Airplanes?!” One of the people who didn’t go with them was stunned and exclaimed in horror.
The leader, an old man, shook his head.
“Even if they have airplanes, what’s the use? The satellites in the sky are useless, and the airplanes can at most fly around nearby. If they really fly out, they probably won’t be able to find their way back.”
“But at least we know that Apocalypse base has aviation machinery,” Wang Zhixin thought for a moment, then looked at the old man. “Wei Lao, do you think they could be military personnel?”
The old man thought for a moment and denied it outright. “No. I saw them when they entered our surveillance range, and their behavior is not that of military personnel. No matter how strong their abilities are, the military cannot allow two non-military personnel to collect such important supplies as fuel on their own.”
However, it is also impossible to say that they have nothing to do with the military at all. The car they drove into Turpan is definitely produced by the military.
“Since they are interested in cooperation, it proves that their faction needs a large amount of energy, preferably a continuous supply. Being located in the Tibetan area and needing energy, it is very likely to be two possibilities. One, they are cooperating with the military. They use their abilities to obtain energy and trade it with the military, and then obtain the supplies they need from the military. Two, the non-military base they are in needs energy for themselves,” Wang Zhixin said.
“In terms of the first point, I think the possibility is not very high. With the abilities of those two individuals, obtaining food and supplies for survival is easy. And the things that need to be traded with the military are nothing but weapons. The number of weapons obtained in exchange for a large amount of fuel is definitely not small, but does the military district in the Tibetan area have the ability to offer a large quantity of weapons for trade? Moreover, a military district has at least tens of thousands of people, and what they need the most is not fuel, but food to feed these tens of thousands of people!” said a middle-aged man, analyzing.
“In this case, the possibility of the second point becomes much greater. Therefore, the base that requires a large amount of energy for development is bound to be not too small. They can develop underground right under the military’s nose… This base is not simple!” the only female member of the team, Fang Cheng, said.
“So far, their impact on us is not significant. Now we need to ensure the feasibility of the cooperation. Our supplies are almost exhausted. No matter what, we need to get through this current challenge first before thinking about other things,” Wei Lao knocked on the table, interrupting the conversation.
“Wei Lao, about tomorrow’s cooperation…” Wang Zhixin said.
“You guys can decide on that. Write down what you need. Negotiations are nothing more than demanding high prices and paying back accordingly,” the old man waved his hand, allowing others to discuss together. He was getting old and had no tomorrow. He would leave it to the younger generation and help them pass through the obstacles and offer advice while he was still alive.
The others looked at each other and understood Wei Lao’s meaning, so they didn’t say much more.
Wang Zhixin organized everyone to discuss the supplies they needed and the bottom line that the other party might pay.
The next day, when Xiao Wen and Wen Le arrived at the underground factory, Wang Zhixin finally breathed a sigh of relief. Although there was no footage of Xiao Wen and the other person leaving on the monitor, they couldn’t relax until they saw them in person. This cooperation was very important to them and had a high possibility of determining the life and death of their over 2,000 people.
“Did we keep you waiting?” Wen Le asked with a smile, noticing the relieved expressions on Wang Zhixin and the others.
Wang Zhixin shook his head and led the two to the table that they had prepared in advance.
After everyone had settled down around the table, both sides didn’t beat around the bush and went straight to the point.
Xiao Wen and Wen Le’s main task this time was gasoline and diesel. They didn’t know much about other petroleum products, but they had found some relevant books the day before and roughly listed the types and quantities needed. The specifics would have to be sorted out by their team at the base and then they could reconfirm during their next visit.
After receiving the list, Wang Zhixin discussed it carefully with the people around him, and then finally confirmed the petroleum products they could provide in the second half of the year with Xiao Wen.
Xiao Wen and Wen Le had no objections, so the remaining discussion was about the supplies they needed to pay for.
The most important of these was food.
Before the apocalypse, the water resources in Tarim were not abundant, but with the awakening of human abilities, nearly half of all the abilities among Wang Zhixin’s group were related to water. Therefore, they did not lack water resources.
In their own view, the list provided by Wang Zhixin was already overpriced, so they were waiting for Xiao Wen and Wen Le to negotiate.
However, for Xiao Wen and Wen Le, who had experience trading with the military in the Tibetan area, what Wang Zhixin’s group was asking for was nothing more than a small request. They did not even bother to bargain and just agreed.
Wang Zhixin was a little surprised and asked, “These supplies?”
Xiao Wen nodded, “These supplies will be used to pay for the fuel we will need in six months.”
The few people who came with Wang Zhixin looked at each other in confusion.
Wen Le knew what they were thinking and smiled, “As you said before, we will give you two-thirds of the supplies as a deposit tomorrow, and when we come to collect the fuel in six months, we will pay the remaining one-third. Your survival will be ensured, and our fuel will be guaranteed as well. It’s a win-win situation. Next time we come, we will bring some professionals with us to renegotiate our future fuel requirements. We hope to have a long-term cooperation with everyone.”
After reviewing the list with his companions, Wang Zhixin and Xiao Wen finalized the quantity of finished oil they could provide for the latter half of the year. Xiao Wen and Wen Le had no objections, so they moved on to discussing the materials they would need to pay for.
The most important of these was food. Prior to the apocalypse, water resources in the Tarim Basin were not abundant, but as humans began to awaken their special abilities, nearly half of Wang Zhixin’s group of ability users were skilled in controlling water. Therefore, they were not lacking in water resources.
Wang Zhixin presented a list of prices that he believed to be fair, but Xiao Wen and Wen Le had experience trading with the military in the Tibetan region and knew that the prices were not unreasonable. They agreed to the prices without haggling, which surprised Wang Zhixin and his companions.
Xiao Wen explained that they needed these materials as payment for the fuel they would require in six months. They suggested paying two-thirds of the price upfront as a deposit, and the remaining third when they returned to collect the fuel. The proposal was mutually beneficial, and they hoped to establish a long-term partnership.
Wang Zhixin promised to prepare enough fuel according to the list in six months and said that they would not work with other large bases besides scattered survivors. Xiao Wen and Wang Zhixin shook hands, agreeing to meet the following day to exchange goods.
Once they left, Xiao Wen and Wen Le sorted the goods according to the list and left tomorrow’s delivery in a corner of the yard. After finishing their work, they took a shower and relaxed with some food and tea. Wen Le complained that sorting the materials was tiring, but Xiao Wen explained that it was worth it to establish partnerships with local survivors who could extract materials for them in exchange for supplies.
TL/Note: Today, I will also upload 5 chapters at once. (｡･･｡)
This chapter is brought to you by Momoko, thanks for the ko-fi! (ﾉ´ヮ`)ﾉ*: ･
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