Chapter 205: Taoyang’s Private Army
Xu Qi was a DINK (Dual Income, No Kids). Though he had been married for a long time, both he and his wife felt that in this apocalyptic world, it was better not to have children—bringing them into chaos would only mean suffering.
So, the house they had bought back then wasn’t large, just a simple one-bedroom, but it had still cost them a considerable amount of savings.
Yet, after living in it for less than fifteen years, it had already become a hazardous building. Every time his wife thought about it, she felt a pang of regret.
Nie Sibo, after asking his question, stared at Su Tao with bright eyes.
Su Tao smiled. “There will be both.”
Nie Sibo’s mouth opened in surprise.
Xu Qi was somewhat moved. “I’ll thank you in advance, Boss Su.”
Su Tao replied, “We’re all on the same side now, no need for thanks.”
Xu Qi had a strong sense of responsibility when working for someone and proactively asked, “Boss Su, now that you’ve taken us in, what do you need us to do?”
Su Tao was direct. “I want to form a private military force here. Over time, I’ll recruit more ability users. Their main duty will be security, and they’ll need to go out on missions when necessary.”
The real goal, however, was to have people hunt zombies for her and collect crystal cores—essentially forming a powerhouse ability-user team like Leopard Path.
Xu Qi was already familiar with this concept—it was essentially a privately funded armed force. He nodded solemnly.
Nie Sibo also nodded vigorously.
Su Tao chuckled. “This is still in the early stages. I’ll talk to you in detail another time. Also, do you want to keep living here, or would you like to move to Taoyang?”
Xu Qi had always kept an eye on external news and was momentarily stunned. “Is that the place that’s been advertising the sale of supplies recently?”
Su Tao nodded. “I’ll take you there later so you can meet the people there.”
Xu Qi agreed but couldn’t help asking, “Are the supplies real?”
Not just him—everyone who heard about it was skeptical.
With temperatures rising and constant warfare, supplies were more scarce than ever. They were the key to survival—who would actually sell them?
Su Tao smiled faintly. “You’ll find out tonight. For now, go home, and if it’s convenient, you can bring your families later.”
On the way back, Nie Sibo was excited.
“Old Xu, old Xu, would you say this is our lucky break? If Wei Xiang finds out, he’ll regret it so much! Remember how envious we were when we saw pictures of Panliu Mountain? And now, in such a short time, we might get to live in such nice houses!”
Xu Qi glanced at him.
“In that case, train your ability properly. Make sure you can actually contribute. No one wants to support a freeloader.”
Nie Sibo’s shoulders instantly slumped.
Xu Qi patted him. “If you use your ability well, it should be quite effective—but that depends on who’s using it.”
When Xu Qi got home, his wife had just returned from work. After venting about some troublesome guests at the inn, she sighed worriedly.
“Old Xu, is that another crack in our house? Come take a look…”
Xu Qi put on his glasses and checked. Sure enough, there were more cracks.
His wife sighed heavily, feeling powerless.
“What should we do, Old Xu? The inn isn’t making much profit anymore, and with Boss Tan missing, our manager has started acting up—deducting wages and fining us for random reasons. At this rate, we can’t even afford to rent a place outside.”
Xu Qi gently held her and smiled.
She poked his waist and scolded, “How can you joke around at a time like this? I’m seriously worried! At least we don’t have kids, but Nie Sibo’s family must have it worse, right? He has two kids, and he and his wife don’t earn much… sigh, this world.”
Xu Qi stroked her hair and asked, “Remember the photos of Panliu Mountain I showed you? What did you think of the houses there?”
She gave him a strange look.
“Who wouldn’t say they’re amazing? Otherwise, they wouldn’t have stolen all our inn’s business.”
Xu Qi hugged her and sighed. “Maybe it won’t be long before we get to live in houses like that.”
*
That night, Su Tao saw that both men had brought their families along and was pleased. She had Ma Dapao lead them through a teleportation portal to Taoyang.
The dramatically different environment startled Xu Qi and Nie Sibo’s families.
Nie Sibo’s five-year-old twins clung to his legs, their little eyes wide with fear.
Su Tao had Ma Dapao run a quick errand, returning with two boxes of ice cream for the children, which immediately soothed them.
Nie Sibo’s wife was reserved. Seeing the exquisite ice cream emitting cold mist, she found it too precious and hesitated to take it.
Nie Sibo stammered, “N-no, Boss Su, you’re too kind.”
The twins were also well-behaved. Though they were clearly tempted, they didn’t whine—just clasped their hands together and stared longingly.
Su Tao simply scooped a spoonful and fed them herself. “It’ll melt if you don’t eat it.”
The children instinctively took a bite. The cool, sweet flavor spread across their tongues, making them squint in delight.
Nie Sibo and his wife were embarrassed.
Su Tao waved it off. “It’s nothing special. Once you move here, you can buy it anytime. Let’s go eat first.”
They followed in a daze, their hearts shaken by the sight of the houses, the fountains, the tall, brand-new office buildings—every detail left them awestruck.
In a private room on the third floor of the cafeteria, the decor was simple but spotlessly clean. A large round table was set with dozens of fragrant dishes.
Nie Sibo and his kids couldn’t help exclaiming in unison.
Zhuang Wan, Qian Lin, and the others welcomed them warmly.
The meal only strengthened Nie Sibo’s determination to stay and work hard.
He was now deeply grateful that Wei Xiang and the others had ostracized him—it allowed him to meet such a considerate boss.
At the same time, an overwhelming sense of pressure weighed on him. He feared his own incompetence would make him unworthy of Boss Su’s generosity.
Xu Qi, meanwhile, was in shock. Suddenly, he understood why Gu Mingchi had turned against Tan Yong so decisively.
Setting aside Taoyang’s superior living conditions, the mere fact that they had no shortage of supplies was reason enough not to oppose them.
As he pondered, his wife suddenly tugged his hand under the table, eyes sparkling. She whispered, “Can we really apply for a house here?”
Xu Qi felt the sweat in her palm and knew she was both nervous and excited. He reassured her softly, “Boss Su promised, so it should be fine. But we might need to wait a few days.”
His wife sighed in relief, her eyes reddening.
“This is such a godsend. Compared to this, Tan Yong treated you all so poorly. You risked your lives making him so much money, and he didn’t even bother providing proper housing. Even a basic dormitory would’ve been something! Now he’s gone, and all that money he hoarded won’t do him any good underground.”
Her words suddenly reminded Xu Qi—
If Tan Yong was dead, where had all the money from the old base gone?
The meal ended pleasantly. Before parting, Master Qin packed some pastries for Nie Sibo and Xu Qi’s families.
The twins squealed in delight at the animal-shaped treats, reluctant to leave. When they were carried away, their little faces were covered in tears.
Just then, Chen Xi ran over urgently.
“Sister Tao, Sister Zining woke up, but she’s not in a good state—you should come quickly!”
Su Tao immediately called Ma Dapao to escort Nie Sibo and Xu Qi’s families back, then rushed to the clinic at full speed.
Xu Qi frowned, hesitated, then told his wife to go home first before following after Su Tao.
