Embers Ad Infinitum

Chapter 722: Win-Win

Translator: CKtalon

Shang Jianyao shook his head honestly at Chang Haijiang’s question. “I don’t know. I’m not them.”

Chang Haijiang didn’t expect the people opposite him to answer. He only expressed his confusion to prove that their way of doing things was really strange.

He shrugged and said, “Maybe some of their supplies can’t be seen by others, or there might be confidentiality regulations. Thus, they have to minimize contact with non-related personnel. In any case, I’m not a curious person. I didn’t investigate back then. According to the rules, I checked their pass and received enough negotiables before preparing the cooked food and supplies they needed and handed them to the people they sent.”

Jiang Baimian nodded slightly. “Which direction did they go in later?”

Chang Haijiang recalled and pointed northeast. “I remember them heading that way.”

Northeast… Jiang Baimian, Long Yuehong, and the others’ hearts palpitated.

Their destination—Tai City—was also in that direction.

“Did you notice anything else?” Jiang Baimian only took out two plastic negotiables and used them as a form of enticement.

Chang Haijiang suddenly laughed. “I’m a middle-ranking Salvation Army officer. I strictly obey the rules and never accept bribes.”

Uh… Jiang Baimian didn’t expect to encounter such a pure Salvation Army warrior in Icefield.

There weren’t many such people in Ubei!

From his age, Chang Haijiang was only in his thirties. He was definitely not one of the people from the late Chaotic Era or the early years of the New Calendar.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Shang Jianyao clapped

This made Chang Haijiang a little embarrassed. “I usually exchange items and earn a lot of supplies. There’s no need for me to take bribes that go against my conscience.”

“You can exchange items here?” Long Yuehong asked in surprise. He thought that, like the Salvation Army, they mainly traded negotiables with other currencies to make up the rest.

Chang Haijiang waved his hand. “Of course! Being in Icefield, the higher-ups have given me many additional powers. Under the premise of ensuring that internal personnel get their supplies, the rest stop can be opened to Ruin Hunters, scientific research teams, and wilderness nomads from other places. They are allowed to exchange supplies.”

“Therefore, one can enter without a pass?” Bai Chen recalled Chang Haijiang’s previous behavior.

He wasn’t interested in checking the pass at all.

“That’s right.” Chang Haijiang nodded. “No matter what your goal is in Icefield, it’s not easy for anyone. Resups here are relatively difficult to come by. As the Salvation Army, we will help if we can. After all, it’s not free. There’s still some profit to be made.”

At this point, he steered the topic back on track. “Any further questions?”

Jiang Baimian deliberated and asked, “Do you still remember what the three people sent by that team looked like?”

Chang Haijiang shook his head. “If you had photos, I might be able to recognize them. However, it’s been two years. Who would still remember them? Yes, I didn’t pay attention to other situations either.”

Shang Jianyao sighed without hiding his regret.

Jiang Baimian suspected that this fellow’s regret might be in a different direction from what everyone was thinking. It wasn’t because Chang Haijiang couldn’t remember any clues but because he hadn’t obtained items from the Last Man domain or Subhuti domain and couldn’t request Chang Haijiang to open up his memories for a ‘search.’

“What do you want to eat, and which supplies are needed?” Chang Haijiang pointed at the booklet made of hard paper in front of him.

Shang Jianyao eagerly took the booklet and flipped through it.

Jiang Baimian habitually asked, “Do you have any specialty food here?”

Chang Haijiang suddenly laughed. “Does the fish in Beian Lake count?”

Beian Lake… Long Yuehong muttered.

Bai Chen directly asked, “The large lake in the south?”

“Yes.” Chang Haijiang was very calm.

Jiang Baimian frowned slightly. “The fish mutations in that lake are relatively serious.”

She spoke rather tactfully and didn’t directly point out the pollution.

Chang Haijiang smiled without minding the topic. “The pollution of the fish in Beian Lake mainly exists in their organs and heads. It won’t be a problem after removing these.”

Upon seeing the disbelief written all over Long Yuehong’s face, Chang Haijiang added, “It’s not my word; it was said by a few agricultural experts from our Salvation Army. They came to study it and took many samples back for analysis. Finally, they told me which fish had better meat quality. We can regularly supply fish to cities like Pingnan and Ubei every summer.”

The Salvation Army’s agricultural experts are pretty good… Long Yuehong praised sincerely. From his point of view, experts who paid attention to food, researched food, and analyzed food were definitely good experts.

Jiang Baimian recalled something and thoughtfully asked, “Do you organize fishing teams yourselves?”

Chang Haijiang shook his head again. “There are others who do it; we just need to trade for them using fuel, thermal cloth, and other supplies.”

“Those Deformers?” Jiang Baimian had a guess.

Chang Haijiang sized her up. “You saw them too? They lack fuel and supplies to resist the cold, and we don’t have the manpower to fish. It’s a win-win situation.”

Chang Haijiang didn’t show any condescension or pity.

Shang Jianyao stood up straight, stretched out his right hand, and pressed down on his left chest. “For all of humanity!”

Chang Haijiang was stunned for two seconds before his expression turned serious. He then raised his right hand and pressed it to his left chest. “For all of humanity!”

After ordering cooked fish and some game meat, the Old Task Force randomly found a dining table and sat down.

The other Ruin Hunters in the lobby didn’t come over to strike up a conversation. After all, they were in the desolate Icefield, and they might not encounter a single person even if they drove for a few hours. Everyone tacitly chose to be careful and cautious, having no wish to be targeted by people with ulterior motives.

Furthermore, many city ruins were buried in Icefield and hadn’t been excavated. They could satisfy all Ruin Hunters who came here as long as they could find them. Therefore, there was no need for them to exchange information since they held information about their corresponding destinations.

As for lusting after men and women, they naturally gave up after seeing the looks of the opposite-sex members on the team.

“I have a feeling.” After sitting down, Jiang Baimian looked around and said, “Chang Haijiang might’ve been exiled here.”

Being stationed in Icefield seemed like a free choice with the ability to profit from the transaction of supplies, but this place was far away from human settlements. It was equivalent to being exiled.

“He doesn’t look like a person who will associate himself with undesirable elements.” Long Yuehong nodded in agreement.

He felt that this was a person who had truly inherited the Salvation Army’s spirit. Furthermore, he wasn’t shouting empty slogans because he still abided by the rules despite being out of the jurisdiction.

Shang Jianyao wasn’t disappointed that Chang Haijiang might have been exiled to Icefield. He said righteously, “As long as one’s spirit remains—as long as the kindle remains, the sun will rise one day.”

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Jiang Baimian clapped expressionlessly.

Upon seeing Long Yuehong and the others look over, she smiled and said, “I did it on Old Ge’s behalf. If he were here and heard that, he would definitely clap. Well, I’m trying to liven up the mood.”

These were her true thoughts.

Shang Jianyao expressed his disbelief. “Don’t explain—an explanation is a cover. A cover means that it’s true.”

“Whoa.” Jiang Baimian couldn’t be bothered with him and only used her tone to end the topic.

She smiled at Bai Chen. “Do the two of you have to do this? You have to hold hands even while waiting for dinner.”

The Old Task Force’s seating situation when eating had changed. Bai Chen and Long Yuehong sat in one row while Jiang Baimian and Shang Jianyao sat in another.

Long Yuehong immediately coughed as he had taken the initiative to hold her hand. Bai Chen didn’t express any intention of being so clingy.

Bai Chen calmly replied to Jiang Baimian, “Didn’t you previously agree with Ding Ling? There’s only today, no tomorrows in the Ashlands? I think it’s nice to hold hands whenever possible.”

She didn’t push the blame to Long Yuehong.

“…” Jiang Baimian was momentarily at a loss for words.

Shang Jianyao opened his mouth and barked with gusto. “Woof, woof, woof.”

At this moment, even the knowledgeable Bai Chen was stunned, much less Long Yuehong.

The other Ruin Hunters—who were eating in the hall—subconsciously turned their heads and looked over in surprise.

For some reason, Jiang Baimian felt that their gazes at her and Bai Chen gradually turned strange.

At this moment, a few more people entered.

Six of them wore gray, patched clothes. Their hair was shaved very short as if they were originally bald and had just grown out a thin layer of hair.

Upon seeing this, Chang Haijiang—who was at the counter—asked, “Aren’t you guys cold?”

Although it was summer, midsummer in Icefield had evening temperatures that were close to early autumn in Ubei. It was cool with a hint of coldness.

Among the group of people, the leader was a relatively old Red Coaster. There weren’t many wrinkles on his face, but they were obvious. The thin hair on his head was white.

Upon hearing Chang Haijiang’s question, he pressed his palms together and said in heavily accented Ashlandic, “Namo Annutara-Samyak-Subhuti. Patron, we appreciate your kindness, but we’re already used to it.”

Buddhists… Jiang Baimian and the others’ eyes flickered as they cast their gazes at the door.