Chapter 164: Let’s Begin, Master Builder
Qi Yunlan took some people to persuade her again, but it was useless. The dimly glowing tent remained under surveillance.
In the shadows, dangerous criminals lurked, eyeing her like predators.
Lei Xing shook his head helplessly and said to Su Tao, “Mist’s daughter is just as stubborn as him. Like father, like daughter.”
Su Tao asked, “What’s Mist’s current situation?”
Lei Xing shrugged. “Still not saying anything. He firmly believes that Tan Yong will send someone to rescue him. If only he knew that not only does Tan Yong have no intention of saving him, but his only daughter is even willing to exchange herself for him… I wonder how he’d feel.”
“Oh, and he cursed me out, saying I was betraying my own kind, playing both sides—agreeing to work with the Old Station while secretly siding with you. He was so mad he almost passed out from anger, haha.”
Su Tao asked again, “What’s your opinion on Mist?”
“He’s alright—just too straightforward. He still believes that true loyalty exists in the apocalypse. But then again, people like him are actually quite reliable—the kind of person you could call a brother. Tan Yong’s actions this time have really shattered the trust of everyone under him.”
Su Tao said, “He’s been abandoned. There’s not much use for him anymore. Just keep him locked up—I don’t have any better ideas on how to deal with him for now.”
The next day, the last day of July, the finance manager, Qian Rongrong, came to Su Tao with the payroll report.
“Sister Tao, here’s our total employee salary expenditure for this month. Please take a look.”
Su Tao skimmed through the report. The total was just over 230,000. It wasn’t a small amount, but she approved it with a wave of her hand and instructed Qian Rongrong to distribute the salaries before the end of the day so everyone could enjoy their weekend.
After that, she checked the company’s remaining balance. Even after deducting the costs for office building construction and salaries, there was still 1.13 million Federation Credits left.
Tracing back the income sources, she found that Panliu Mountain alone had generated 1.28 million credits in July—from hotel room fees, fuel and water charges, parking fees, and dining revenue.
Panliu Mountain was a real money-making machine.
The Taoyang Plantation also performed well this month, bringing in 300,000 credits despite still being in its early stages.
Seeing the increasing revenue, Su Tao felt fired up. At this rate, upgrading to Level 6 was just around the corner!
With that in mind, she was motivated to continue building the third floor of the office complex.
Once Taoli Tower was fully constructed, it could accommodate 80-100 employees working simultaneously, meaning she wouldn’t have to worry about office space for a long time.
At 8 PM, Su Tao finally wrapped up her construction work for the day. Just as she returned to her room, she received news that Shi Zijin would be coming back to Dongyang tomorrow morning.
Not only was he returning, but he had also captured the evolved ability user who had sold off classified information, recovered the stolen research data, and minimized Hekang Base’s scientific losses.
To express their gratitude, the commander of Hekang Base would personally escort Shi Zijin and his team back and stay in Dongyang for two to three days to establish friendly relations.
To this end, Pei Dong called Su Tao, hoping to buy some household appliances and furniture from her to upgrade Dongyang’s guesthouse.
Su Tao agreed without hesitation. “They’ll arrive tomorrow morning. Drive over now and pick me up so I can arrange everything in person. That way, you won’t have to transport furniture from Taoyang.”
Half an hour later, Su Tao got into Pei Dong’s car.
“Sister Pei, is the situation outside getting worse? You look much more exhausted than the last time I saw you.”
Pei Dong gripped the steering wheel with one hand and rubbed her temples with the other.
“It’s not looking good. The number of evolved zombies is increasing. Dongyang is still relatively okay—we’ve only lost a few outer areas, and the core inner city remains intact. But take our neighboring Yun Cang Base, for example. Half of their defense line has already collapsed, and a large population is fleeing to Dongyang. Our population pressure is already severe, and we can’t take them in. Many people have died outside the city walls.”
“The city wall we just built is already stained with blood, and the ground beneath it is littered with corpses.”
Su Tao felt a chill run down her spine.
Every time she heard about the situation outside, she felt like she was living in another dimension—completely out of place in this apocalyptic world.
If only she had enough money and crystal cores to make Taoyang even stronger…
Pressing her lips together, Su Tao asked, “Sister Pei, is there a quick way to obtain evolved zombie crystal cores?”
Pei Dong glanced at her. “There’s no fast way. You have to fight for them. Unless you hire people to collect them for you—but such a dangerous task might not attract takers. Even if someone does take the job, the return on investment would be very low.”
Su Tao thought for a moment and then asked, “Can they be bought or traded?”
Pei Dong sighed. “That might have worked half a year ago, but do you know what Hekang Base recently discovered? The energy in crystal cores can enhance the abilities of Awakened individuals. Your own Lin Fangzhi is a prime example—you’ve seen the drastic improvement in his powers.”
“The research results and data have already been sent to Changjing. By the end of next month at the latest, the whole world will know about this. Do you think anyone will still be willing to sell their crystal cores then?”
Su Tao was filled with worry.
Regardless, she decided to try both hiring people and purchasing cores. Otherwise, even if she finished constructing the available land, future development would be hindered.
When they arrived at the guesthouse, Pei Dong had already cleared out all the staff and had the old furniture removed, leaving Su Tao free to work her magic.
“Taotao, go ahead and set everything up. This won’t be for nothing. The old commander knows that after Guan Zining was sent to the front lines, you’ve been left unprotected. So, he’s letting me select people for you from this year’s Dongyang Military Academy graduates. They’re all Awakened. You can review their profiles and pick for yourself—I don’t want to choose someone you might not like.”
Su Tao’s eyes widened in surprise. She hadn’t expected such a great opportunity, and her face immediately lit up with a big smile.
“Thank you, Sister Pei! Thank you, old commander! I’ll make sure to visit and thank him in person.”
Pei Dong chuckled. “Alright, let’s get started, Master Builder.”
Su Tao happily activated her system and began furnishing the guesthouse according to the room specifications. She added single and double beds, nightstands, wardrobes, sofas, coffee tables, and counters.
She even installed central air conditioning on every floor. Once everything was in place, she reminded Pei Dong, “This isn’t my territory, so all soft furnishings that require electricity and water will need your people to connect the wiring and plumbing. Otherwise, they won’t be usable.”
Pei Dong had already made the necessary arrangements, and the electricians and plumbers got to work efficiently.
Su Tao made a few final touches and was finally somewhat satisfied.
“It’s not perfect, but it’s a big improvement from before.”
Pei Dong smiled helplessly. “It’s already excellent. We can’t compare it to Taoyang, but I dare say none of the guesthouses in the southern bases are as nice as this. Everything is brand new. Once the water and electricity are connected, it’ll basically be a mini Taoyang.”
“To be honest, Hekang Base is more developed than us, and their conditions are better. This time, since they’re visiting, the old commander is very keen on forming an alliance. That’s why he specifically asked me to make the guesthouse as presentable as possible.”
Hearing this, Su Tao became excited. She reached into her small handbag and pulled out bottles of mineral water, various soft drinks, and even alcohol.
Of course, her handbag wasn’t big enough to hold all that—she had taken them directly from Lin Fangzhi’s spatial storage. This was one of those moments when she truly appreciated the convenience of an evolved ability.
Su Tao grinned and said, “Sister Pei, put a fridge at the front desk and stock it with all these drinks. When the people from Hekang Base arrive, let them help themselves. I guarantee they’ll be impressed.”
