WEF - Chapter 14
Chapter 14: To Beat a Dog, You Must Consider Its Master
There were two choices laid out before Zhao Jin.
She could let Ning Dali into the city, have the Base spend a large sum of Points to buy the meat, and then beg Ning Dali to use Points to buy the meat back.
Or, she could find a suitable reason to temporarily refuse Ning Dali entry to the city.
Which should she choose?
Zhao Jin's mind raced as she remembered the sight of Ning Dali dashing away just moments before, then went over every question Ning Dali had asked again.
Setting aside the pressure to recruit someone, Zhao Jin viewed the matter from an outsider's perspective and saw that Ning Dali's attitude was obvious.
Her claim that she wanted to enter the city was a lie, a ploy to retreat in order to advance. In truth, she wanted both freedom and [Shield]!
Zhao Jin felt that she and Ning Dali were finally on the same wavelength.
Reading the deeper meaning in Ning Dali's eyes, Zhao Jin suddenly understood the situation, skipped all the hollow pleasantries, and asked directly, "Are you interested in becoming a strategic partner of the Base?"
"Conditions? Benefits?" Ning Dali raised an eyebrow.
"One moment." Zhao Jin gestured to a colleague, and someone quickly brought over a tablet.
Ning Dali took the tablet and glanced at it.
The tablet displayed a page from Fertile Base's mercenary mission hall.
The page displayed many mission listings awaiting acceptance, each stating the mission's content, difficulty, and reward.
Rewards included Points, weapons, healing skills, [Shield], and the right to purchase [Shield].
"Clicking on an individual mission page will show more information," Zhao Jin said. "If you are interested, I can apply to the Base to grant you mercenary access."
After thinking for a moment, she added, stressing the point, "Accepting missions is voluntary. Take one if you want, skip it if you don't, and there will be no problem. Our friendship comes first."
Accepting missions was indeed not compulsory, but Ning Dali would have to complete one if she wanted to get [Shield].
Ning Dali browsed the page, opened several missions to examine the details, and felt that they were acceptable.
There was a great deal of freedom, and the Base was generous with [Shield], giving more than half a month of it for a single mission. Most importantly, this mercenary mission hall was an excellent source of information for her.
Airdrops falling from the sky, abnormal incidents in the area, the Extremist Eaters running amok... whether major or minor, every event would become a mission of varying difficulty and appear in the mercenary mission hall. Without leaving home, Ning Dali could keep abreast of a great deal of information.
The mission hall also had a social networking feature.
"This is nice," Ning Dali said sincerely.
"Our Base treats mercenaries very well," Zhao Jin said. "But there is something I must warn you about."
She pushed the heavy backpack she was holding through the car window and handed it back to Ning Dali.
"If you choose to become a mercenary, you will not have [Shield] until you complete your first mission," Zhao Jin said, pointing at the hiking backpack. "It's a little dangerous."
"I know," Ning Dali said.
She knew many people were watching what was happening here. They had seen Zhao Jin take a heavy backpack out of the refrigerator, and even if they did not know that it contained nothing but meat, they would suspect that it was full of food.
Hunger drove some people to act impulsively, and Ning Dali had already prepared to go all out that night.
"Two people have Three-Character Abilities, one offensive and one defensive. They know each other, and they get along well," Zhao Jin said, lowering her voice until only the two of them could hear. "They may not make a move over a bag of rice, but..."
But if they discovered that the bag contained meat, there would be no telling what they would do.
A large bag of meat was enough to send a member of the Restraint Faction into a frenzy and make them lose all reason on the spot.
"Thanks for the warning," Ning Dali said, her face composed and betraying no fear.
Zhao Jin's warning was both an act of kindness and a test.
She was probing Ning Dali's true strength.
In prison, Ning Dali had faced countless similar situations. In moments like these, she was even less likely to show fear.
Fear would only make the people around her pounce like a pack of starving wolves. She revealed that emotion only when she needed to; more often, she gritted her teeth and held on.
At eighteen, Ning Dali had managed to hold on in prison.
At thirty-five, Ning Dali had no reason not to keep going.
Besides, they were only two Three-Character Ability Users. Could they be more frightening than Ying? Not a ripple stirred in Ning Dali's heart; she was even looking forward to it.
She had not yet truly established her authority here. Without that, everything she did would be troublesome, and people would keep looking for a chance to court death.
Zhao Jin took a business card from her pocket and said considerately, "If you need anything, you can contact me. Although we won't interfere with law and order outside the Base, we have a professional medical team. As long as you don't end up with a broken arm or leg, come and recuperate for ten days or half a month, and you will basically be back on your feet."
Ning Dali did not reveal that she had a healing skill. She thanked her, casually took the card, and stuffed it into her pocket.
"Of course, if you have another idea, such as joining our Base..." Zhao Jin made another hopeful pitch.
If Ning Dali asked to enter the Base again now, the Base would control the terms of the exchange, and the situation would be completely different.
"Thanks. No. If I say yes, we'll be turning against each other." Then, raising her voice, she said, "Exchange some food for Points for my two friends."
A steady stream of thanks and refusals. She really had the confidence to back them up.
Zhao Jin sighed in bewilderment and did not mention offering Ning Dali a house outside the Base. She knew Ning Dali would not accept a "free" gift.
"Are you exchanging Points?" Zhao Jin asked in a businesslike but friendly manner as she turned to Zhuang Yuezhen.
"Can we exchange Points at the VIP channel too? That feels a little embarrassing."
Polite in speech but honest in action, Zhuang Yuezhen quickly took out the food she and Wang You had collected over the past few days.
A bag of moldy rice, a bag of moldy dried tofu, two bags of rotten greens, a few small bread rolls past their expiration date, and five hundred milliliters of milk.
There wasn't much of it, but Zhao Jin inspected the quality of the food, weighed it, and quoted a price.
The rice, dried tofu, greens, and bread fetched 0.8 Points, while the milk fetched 10 Points, for a total of 10.8 Points.
The prices here were low enough to make Ning Dali take notice.
After exchanging the food, the three people in the car said goodbye to the Base workers. Wang You took the wheel and headed toward the small market just outside the Base.
"Sis Dali, what are you planning to do tonight? Squeeze into a tent with us? Or sleep in the car?"
Ning Dali said blandly, "My milk only buys a ride to the Base from you."
Is squeezing into a tent together some kind of extra service? You two are nice enough, just not very smart.
Zhuang Yuezhen cleared her throat awkwardly and clutched Wang You's smart device to her chest. The Points she had just exchanged were in it, and she said with a silly grin, "The milk is too expensive."
If they charged ten Points just to take Ning Dali to the Base, their consciences would not be at ease.
"It's not expensive. The ten Points include your travel fare," Ning Dali said, flexing her wrists. "Someone will come looking for you tonight. You should leave here now, and don't set up a tent."
Since she had come in that car, many people saw the three of them as a group.
If Wang You and Zhuang Yuezhen left now, they could distance themselves from her and prove that they were merely ride-hailing drivers.
If they stayed, they would be completely bound to her.
Ning Dali did not want to drag these two people into trouble, nor did she want to bind herself to them.
So letting the two of them leave now was not necessarily safe, but it was the best option at the moment.
"Drop me off by the market. I'll get out, and you two should drive straight away," Ning Dali instructed. "If anyone wants to ask you about me, it doesn't matter. Tell them whatever you want."
Zhuang Yuezhen's lips moved as she wanted to ask whether she could get out of the car and spend two minutes buying a nutrient drink, but just as she was about to speak, Wang You covered her mouth.
"Understood, Sis Dali." Wang You knew how serious the situation was and agreed without the slightest fuss.
The gleaming car stopped beside the market. Ning Dali got out alone with the hiking backpack on her back, without saying goodbye to anyone in the car.
The Rolls-Royce drove away.
Ning Dali stood where she was and took the smart device out of her pocket.
She would contact Accountant Li to see whether the Ying who commands five bases could make an exception and open a bank account for her remotely.
She could offer a service fee.
With her head down, she typed with one finger, apparently leaving herself completely unguarded.
An eerie, artificial bustle filled the market.
Nearly everyone was sneaking glances at the heavy backpack on Ning Dali's back. They exchanged looks and covertly pointed at it with their fingers.
You?
Or you go first.
Three-Character Ability User, I don't think I dare go.
In the corner, someone had just gathered enough courage to step forward and start mouthing off when they saw Ning Dali stretch.
Big movements, big muscles.
The few people who had just gathered courage immediately went "hiss, hiss, hiss" and slithered back into the corner like venomous snakes.
Ning Dali acted as if she had noticed nothing and continued fiddling with the smart device in her hand.
She listened intently for movement around her while patiently waiting for her real opponent to appear, and then she would crush them with one blow.
After sending the message, Accountant Li had not yet replied.
Ning Dali lowered her hand. At that moment, a "Bang!" rang out from not far away.
At this time, in this direction, judging by that car's speed...?
They had not even gone far. When you beat a dog, you still have to consider its master!
Ning Dali reacted instantly.
She sent a person flying with a kick as they tried to sneak up and get at the hiking bag, then seized the person's motorcycle handlebars and swung her long leg over.
Flame spat from the exhaust pipe, the motorcycle roared, and a scarlet taillight lingered in everyone's sight.
Not far away.
The Rolls-Royce was flipped onto the ground by a force of gravity. Its once-gleaming body was covered in scratches, and its windows were covered in spiderweb cracks.
In the front cabin, two people were pinned in their seats by the airbags that had deployed.
Two Ability Users stood beside the car.
One played with a finely crafted throwing knife, lips curled in a careless smile, and asked, "Ning Dali, she and you..."
Before she could finish, the roar of the motorcycle was already in their ears.
The next instant, the hot wind carried by the motorcycle swept over all their faces.
"Hello."
The knife-wielding Ability User had only time to turn around and blurt, "Hello." Her smile had not yet faded when Ning Dali, riding up on the motorcycle, swept past her.
In the instant they passed shoulder to shoulder, Ning Dali reached out and lightly patted the other woman on the shoulder.
It was just like Ying lightly patting her.
[Strongman] Skill One.
The upper limit of her strength depends on her understanding and imagination of the limits of the human body, and Ying is everything Ning Dali imagines about those limits.
"Pfft." The knife-wielding Ability User spat out blood mixed with fragments of internal organs, staggered, and collapsed to the ground while her companion looked on, utterly frozen.
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