From Apocalypse Boss to Farmer: My Vegetables Make Me Stronger!-Chapter 107 - 99: Useful

Meanwhile, in a small courtyard in the western district of South City, Gu Xi was poring over some documents, contemplating how to approach her upcoming conversation with the deputy base chief.

Everyone assumed she had come to South City to discuss seed distribution rights and pay her respects to the new base chief, a man surnamed Zhou.

In reality, however, Gu Xi’s target on this trip to South City was the deputy base chief—Zhang Cheng.

This deputy base chief appeared unassuming and kept a low profile, but he was actually a man of hidden depths. His background was rumored to be quite complex.

Suddenly, Gu Xi’s gaze fell upon a particular line in the file, and she paused.

’The deputy chief’s abnormal ability only awakened ten years ago? And from the looks of it, he went the route of ability research?’

For some reason, however, Gu Xi saw traces of Li Ming in this.

Gu Xi frowned slightly.

’If this deputy base chief is also one of Li Ming’s men... then I’ll need to be very careful about how I handle this conversation.’

Li Ming had never told her that Zhang Cheng was one of his people.

’Two possibilities. One: Li Ming is deliberately hiding something. Two: Zhang Cheng isn’t actually his man, but Li Ming has some leverage over him and can turn him into an asset at any time.’

Gu Xi didn’t want to doubt Li Ming, but she certainly didn’t want to arouse his suspicion either.

’But Li Ming has always been a man of great foresight. Since he’s so confident about turning South City into our main stronghold, that must mean... he probably placed this hidden chess piece on the board many years ago.’

’So, this Zhang Cheng... Zhang?’

’Wait a minute.’

Gu Xi paused as a thought inexplicably flashed through her mind. ’Could the "Zhang" in Zhang Cheng be the same "Zhang" as Professor Zhang?’

’If my guess is correct, and Professor Zhang and Zhang Cheng belong to the same faction, then a lot of things would make sense.’

’For example, those two sweet potatoes that Zhou Jing took, the ones that later mysteriously vanished?’

’At the experimental fields, the only people capable of fooling Shen Yue and Yang Chi would be the two in charge—the two professors.’

Gu Xi then recalled Professor Zhao’s previous warning—Professor Zhang and Dr. Qi had been classmates.

And Dr. Qi just so happened to be an influential figure at the Abnormal Ability Research Institute.

’It all seemed to be connected.’

Still, Gu Xi felt that something wasn’t quite right.

After a long moment, she closed the Light Screen and narrowed her eyes slightly.

’Zhang Cheng has been operating in South City for many years; his roots run deep. Even Liou Zhenyuan had to be wary of him back in the day. Figuring this man out won’t be easy...’

’But fortunately, I hold the most critical asset in this post-apocalyptic world: food. A continuous supply of it, with an extremely low mutation coefficient.’

Li Ming once said that no matter how cunning your opponent, as long as you hold enough chips, you can always uncover their secrets.

Just then, Qi Xiang pushed the door open. "Gu Xiaoxi, everything’s arranged. We can go now."

As the second-in-command of South City, Zhang Cheng didn’t meet with just anyone.

However, Zhang Cheng had a good relationship with Dr. Qi, and in private, Qi Xiang even called him "Uncle Zhang."

And how could an "uncle" not show some consideration for his de facto niece?

As night fell, Gu Xi and Qi Xiang went to visit Zhang Cheng at his home in the western district under the cover of darkness.

News of the visit spread quickly.

Late into the night, countless eyes watched the small courtyard in the western district from the shadows.

But even by dawn, Gu Xi and Qi Xiang had not emerged.

That night, an unknown number of people in South City lay awake, unable to sleep.

...

Zhou Jing didn’t receive the news until the following morning.

When she learned that Gu Xi and Qi Xiang had spent the entire night at Zhang Cheng’s house, Zhou Jing frowned. Her intuition screamed that this was an opportunity.

Recalling the files someone from City A had sent her the previous night, Zhou Jing thought for a moment before taking a leave of absence and driving straight to South City.

After a bumpy journey of over ten hours, she finally found Qi Xiang, who was already asleep.

"Zhou Jing? What are you doing here in the middle of the night?"

Qi Xiang opened the door, her eyes still heavy with sleep, only to find Zhou Jing standing there with a grim, sullen expression. She rolled her eyes and offered a "kind" suggestion, "You should probably find a place to sleep. Can’t whatever you want to say wait until morning?"

Zhou Jing slowly raised her head and studied her for a long moment. "Why did you lie to me?"

Qi Xiang let out a lazy yawn, resisting the urge to roll her eyes again. "What did I lie to you about?"

Just as Zhou Jing opened her mouth to deliver the lines she had rehearsed for the entire trip, Qi Xiang cut her off. "Did I lie about my feelings for you? The real question is, were there ever any feelings between us to begin with?"