Chapter 172: Boss Su, We Might Have to Say Goodbye to You
Su Tao woke up in the middle of the night to use the restroom when she heard clanking and crunching noises coming from the kitchen. Squinting her eyes as she glanced upstairs, she discovered that her dog was still gnawing on something.
Persuasion was useless, so she had no choice but to go back to sleep.
In the morning, she saw that the silly dog had been chewing all night and was now so exhausted that it had fallen asleep. Even calling it out for a walk didn’t get a reaction.
Jiang Yu emerged from the shadows, dark circles under his eyes, and mumbled three words: “Too noisy.”
Lin Fangzhi, who was sleeping soundly in the space, was completely bewildered. Noisy? What noise?
Su Tao then remembered that Jiang Yu’s study was the closest to the kitchen, and she quickly said, “Sorry about that! Tonight, I’ll confiscate it and let him chew during the day instead.”
Jiang Yu replied, “It’s fine, I can tolerate it for now.”
Just as he finished speaking, the sleeping Xuedao started snoring loudly.
Su Tao had a decent night’s sleep, so she felt quite energized in the morning. Instead of rushing to the office, she continued her construction work.
According to the plan, her task for the morning was to build a rest area for the cleaning staff.
Otherwise, the cleaning aunties wouldn’t have a place to rest or store their cleaning supplies.
The rest area was located next to Taoli Building, just over ten meters to the left after stepping outside. It covered about forty square meters and was divided into two sections.
The front part was a duty room, with tables and chairs on the right side. A sliding window was installed in front of the table, allowing tenants to knock on it if they needed to contact the cleaning staff.
On the left side, there was a row of low cabinets for storing frequently used items like rags and cleaning supplies, with additional overhead cabinets for more storage.
Behind the duty room was the break room for the cleaning staff. It had sofas for lying down, a dining table with chairs, and even a water dispenser.
Opposite the sofa, an entire wall was dedicated to storage lockers where the cleaning staff could keep their personal belongings.
After finishing the construction, Su Tao went downstairs to inspect the site, made a few final adjustments, and was finally satisfied.
She then called Qi Yunlan, asking her to gather the cleaning staff for a brief meeting next to Taoli Building.
Auntie Kang was the first to arrive. When she saw the newly built small room with the words “Cleaning Room” on it, she was so shocked that she couldn’t speak.
She hesitantly asked, “Boss Su, is… is this for us?”
Su Tao joked, “What? Not satisfied?”
Auntie Kang quickly waved her hands, “No, no, I just never imagined… We’re just cleaners, and yet we have our own rest area. It’s hard to believe.”
Just half a month ago, she didn’t even have a place to stay. Now, not only did she have proper housing, but she also had such a good working environment. How did she deserve all this?
Su Tao smiled and said, “Of course, it’s only right. This also makes your work more convenient. Taoyang’s great living environment wouldn’t be possible without you all. Oh, and thank you for the big bone you gave Xuedao—he absolutely loves it. He won’t let go of it at all, haha.”
Auntie Kang blushed, “As long as he likes it, that’s good.”
Soon, the other six cleaning ladies arrived.
Last month, Su Tao hired three more staff members. Otherwise, the original three or four wouldn’t have been enough to handle Taoyang’s expanding operations.
After familiarizing them with the facilities and explaining some important points, Su Tao let them return to work.
Some of the aunties kept glancing back at the new rest area, reluctant to leave.
Auntie Kang raised her voice, “Stop staring! Finish work early, and you can look all you want!”
At that, the aunties scurried off like rabbits.
Su Tao stood under the midday sun, her smile blooming like a flower.
After lunch, she headed to the office as usual to deal with various matters.
Suddenly, Lei Xing barged in. Without hesitation, he went straight to the fridge, rummaged around for a while, then turned to ask,
“Do you have any milk?”
Su Tao replied, “No, just soda.”
Lei Xing had no choice but to settle for a soda. He twisted the cap open and gulped it down in seconds, as if his throat was a drainpipe.
After finishing, he shook his golden short hair and looked at Su Tao, sighing regretfully,
“Boss Su, we might have to say goodbye to you.”
Su Tao was taken aback. Then she remembered that Leopard Squad had been in Taoyang for exactly a month now. She asked, “Got a new mission?”
Lei Xing skillfully tossed the empty bottle into a distant trash can and shook his head.
“We have a small base outside. If we stay away too long, others might take it over. We need to go check on it. If we don’t get another assignment after that, we’ll come back to Taoyang. No need to miss me too much.”
Su Tao said, “Safe travels.”
“You’re so heartless,” Lei Xing smirked. “I even left Fire Serpent behind for you. Not only can he help monitor Mist, but if things get serious, it can burn those old-station bastards to ashes for you.”
Su Tao softened her voice, “I was just joking. Be careful on your way. Things… aren’t very stable right now. Please, stay safe. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask me.”
She didn’t dare mention the escaped Bone Wings incident. The government hadn’t made it public, and it was too terrifying to reveal—it would only cause panic and unrest.
Lei Xing flashed his tiger-like canines.
“I knew you’d miss me. Don’t worry, I’ll stay alive. I haven’t enjoyed Taoyang enough yet. But before we leave, you and Manager Zhuang might have a headache to deal with. Chen Yang wants to come with us, and I couldn’t talk him out of it.”
Su Tao immediately felt a headache coming on. “You guys totally led him on.”
Lei Xing denied it, “It’s our natural charisma. Nothing we can do about it. Anyway, we’re leaving tonight before he makes a scene.”
But before Leopard Squad could even leave, Chen Yang found out.
Tears streaming down his face, he rushed over to beg Zhuang Wan.
Zhuang Wan refused without hesitation. “Absolutely not! Do you even know how dangerous it is out there? If something happens to you, how do you expect me to live with that? I think you’ve been living too comfortably in Taoyang and have forgotten how cruel the outside world is! Go back and do your homework!”
Since he couldn’t persuade his mother, Chen Yang turned to Su Tao, crying miserably,
“Sister Tao, please talk to my mom! She always listens to you. I beg you! Brother Lei and the others are so strong—they’ll definitely protect me. I won’t be in danger, wuwuwu—”
Su Tao kept her expression neutral, staring straight ahead, pretending she didn’t hear anything.
Zhuang Wan snapped, “Why would they protect you? Who do you think you are? In the apocalypse, the only person who can protect you is yourself! Until you have the ability to survive, don’t even think about stepping out of Taoyang!”
Chen Yang’s sobbing came to an abrupt stop. Sniffling, he said, “I—I can protect myself too! I know how to shoot! Brother Lei taught me for a month, and he said I learned pretty well…”
Zhuang Wan showed no mercy. “With those barely passable skills of yours? Protect yourself? More like drag them down.”
Chen Yang stiffened his neck rebelliously. “You’re underestimating me! I can shoot!”
Just as Zhuang Wan was about to say something else, Su Tao suddenly pulled out her own handgun and shoved it into Chen Yang’s hands.
“Here. See that streetlamp 80 meters away, at six o’clock? Hit it. If you do, I’ll barely consider you having some attack power. Then maybe, maybe, I’ll think about letting them take you a bit farther next time they’re back.”
