Chapter 288: Chapter 288

"Is that the One-Stop Base?" Jing Shu covered her face.

"Yes, yes, the One-Stop Base! It has everything inside. Qian Duoduo kept the date a secret to surprise you. He has it all arranged. AHH, let’s hurry, or we won’t make it!"

Su Malie’s raincoat was elegant and stylish, the color of ’colorful black.’ Made from a special, dazzling material, it had built-in lights, making her the brightest beacon in the darkness.

"Fine, let’s go then. I just remembered I had something important to do."

"Jing Shu, wear your raincoat properly, and don’t take it off. Many people in the residential area have been infected; you must be careful," Grandma Jing admonished before Jing Shu left.

"Okay, got it, Grandma. I’ll be back for dinner. Make plenty of food."

「Several months had passed since the West Mountain bombing incident.」

Although the situation had been dangerous, Jing Shu had gained quite a lot from it. For example, the government issued a commendation praising her courageous spirit and rewarded her with six thousand Virtual Coins. Furthermore, in recognition of the many lives she had saved, she was specially honored as one of the top ten model citizens of the year for good deeds. COUGH. COUGH. Jing Shu didn’t really care about these superficial honors.

However, she *did* care that the government had classified her information as confidential. It was no longer publicly accessible, which indeed made things much more convenient for her.

Additionally, Su Xiangnan had upgraded her RV. She hadn’t yet repaid Qian Duoduo’s favor; instead, he’d said he would give her a big surprise when the One-Stop Base was ready.

So now, Jing Shu was quite looking forward to it, sitting in Su Malie’s luxurious vehicle as it sped towards West Mountain.

"Hey, some classmates want to have another reunion. They even asked me to invest in a few money-making projects, but I really haven’t had time lately," Su Malie said, somewhat annoyed.

"Oh, then just skip it. We can discuss it when you have time. I don’t want to go out in this cold weather either." Jing Shu sipped her hot milk tea. Damn this weather; the good days of the apocalypse are numbered.

"They said they want to strengthen their bonds as classmates; it’s been half a year since our last gathering. They even mentioned organizing a swap meet. But when I told them to organize it themselves, they weren’t happy. How about you handle it for me? You could check out what money-making projects they’re talking about."

"I’d rather not. I really can’t see any money-making projects worth investing in right now, and I’ve been very busy lately. They just want to come to your place to mooch food and drinks. Haven’t you forgotten how well you treated them with such good food last time?"

They probably think Su Malie is naive and rich, ripe for another scam. Red earthworms are almost gone these days, and it’s mushrooms every day; people are thoroughly sick of them.

"Mooching food and drink doesn’t bother me. Mainly, I wanted to find that classmate whose family grows ginseng about something... Never mind, we can talk about it later."

Jing Shu shrugged. It seemed the Su family’s stockpile was quite substantial. Miss Su didn’t care about these expenses at all.

The road to West Mountain had been blocked, but Qian Duoduo, with a grand gesture, had it rebuilt, even adding a winding mountain road—quite a lavish undertaking. It took less than half an hour to reach Qian Duoduo’s so-called One-Stop Base.

The entire One-Stop Base was constructed from locally sourced materials using modern stone-extraction technology. After hollowing out the mountain, they used massive boulders, fashioning them with interlocking joints to piece them together. They even replicated ancient circular drainage systems. This made the entire base feel quite comfortable and gave Jing Shu the impression of ancient architecture.

The base was a gigantic cylindrical pillar, topped with a massive conical core. The higher it extended, the more pointed it became. Jing Shu had never seen such architecture before. For more chapters visıt 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡~𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚~𝙣𝙚𝙩

The main entrance was made of huge stones. Entry required identity verification, and no one was allowed to bring weapons inside. Ten armed security guards stood at the door, along with Housekeeper Cai, who had been waiting to receive Jing Shu and Su Malie.

Housekeeper Cai spotted them from a distance and hurried over, lifting an orchid finger. "You two have finally arrived! Mr. Qian arranged for me to await you here. By the way, you can call me Xiao Cai."

Jing Shu looked at Housekeeper Cai, who seemed to be dusted with a slick, whitish powder, and nodded. "Hello, Xiao Cai. Please be our guide from now on."

"Ah, please follow me."

Housekeeper Cai adjusted his clothes and, lifting his orchid finger again, said, "You two should keep your raincoats on. The infectious disease has been quite severe recently. Although there are fewer insects in this base, one can’t be too careful, right? Please, this way. Let’s head straight to the exhibition hall. As we go, I’ll explain what our One-Stop Base truly is."

Su Xiangnan had learned his lesson; ever since their last outing, he always had four bodyguards accompany Su Malie, and they were all following them now.

The group entered in a majestic procession, indeed attracting many curious glances within the base.

"Look, over here. Every three hundred meters, there’s an entrance to an underground passage. Mr. Qian’s bodyguards all live in houses built specifically for them down there. Oh, I should say, almost everyone who serves Mr. Qian’s family lives underground. The underground area is much larger; we’ve built a thousand rooms, enough to accommodate two thousand people."

"Moreover, Mr. Qian is very considerate of his subordinates’ well-being. Each person gets a private room, and they can even bring their family members to live with them."

Hearing this, Su Malie frowned. "Aren’t underground places usually very damp? Is it alright for everyone to live down there?"

Housekeeper Cai laughed, again with an orchid finger flourish. "Ah, that’s where you’re mistaken! This One-Stop Base is built halfway up the mountain, so it’s not ’underground’ in the damp sense. In fact, its altitude is several tens of meters higher than before! This mountainside location is arguably the best. As for why their quarters are built into the mountain, it’s because it’s warmer. The employees are very satisfied; their accommodations are far better than what most people have."

"If you are interested, we can go take a look later." Housekeeper Cai first led the two to what he referred to as the exhibition hall.

Why it was called an exhibition hall, Jing Shu didn’t know. But soon, her jaw dropped.

Housekeeper Cai stopped before several high-tech-looking devices. "Look, Miss Jing, this is one of the surprises Mr. Qian has prepared especially for you. He knows your RV is fully equipped with various functions but lacks one thing: defensive and counter-attack capabilities. So, this vehicle-mounted anti-tracking weapon is perfect for your RV. It can ensure that no living creature can approach within ten meters of your vehicle."

"What... what is this called?"

"This device was just recently developed and doesn’t have an official name yet. However, its function is very clear. You could call it the Deadly Grid."

"Deadly Grid? That name doesn’t sound very pleasant. Isn’t this just an ordinary electric grid? What’s so special about it?" Su Malie shook her head.

"Ah, that’s where you’re mistaken... Let me explain in detail. It’s designed to handle close-range threats to the RV..."