When Shen Feng revealed the truth of the matter, Chang Jianyi's eyes immediately lost focus. She stood rooted to the spot, murmuring to herself, "How could this be?"
Chang Jianyi clearly hadn't expected things to escalate to this point. Du Xinshi might be running out of time. She had been fine before; could her words have caused her illness? Did words truly possess such destructive power?
Chu Chaoyan quickly comforted her, "Sister, don't be sad. Since Shen Feng said this, it means he must have considered us carefully. It's just not suitable for him to return at this moment. Once things are resolved, he will definitely come back here."
However, Chang Jianyi sat dejectedly by the table, downing white wine. As she drank, she said, "If Du Xinshi really dies, will she have been indirectly forced to death by me? Does that mean I killed the woman Shen Feng loves?"
Originally, Chang Jianyi didn't think she was wrong to scold her scumbag husband. The only mistake she made was slapping Shen Feng across the face. But now, Chang Jianyi had suddenly learned that Du Xinshi, whom she had hurt, might be running out of time. Upon hearing this news, Chang Jianyi couldn't help but feel lost.
Chu Chaoyan quickly comforted her, "This might just be the worst-case scenario. Don't worry so much. With the current level of technology, they can perform heart transplants. It'll be fine; Du Xinshi won't die so suddenly."
Chang Jianyi didn't speak. She only felt that she had made a mistake, an irreparable one. As for whether her relationship with Shen Feng could be restored to what it once was, she had no idea.
Shen Feng stumbled back to the house he shared with Du Xinshi. The moment he entered, he collapsed onto the sofa. The after-effects of the alcohol were kicking in, and his mind could no longer stay alert. He fell asleep on the sofa. Hearing the noise, Du Xinshi walked out of the room. Seeing Shen Feng drunk on the sofa, her eyes immediately filled with boundless tenderness.
Du Xinshi, being intelligent and perceptive, naturally knew it was Shen Xingzhi's anniversary birthday today. She had already prepared herself for the possibility that Shen Feng might not return tonight. Yet, in the end, Shen Feng returned home drunk, which touched Du Xinshi deeply. She walked over and sat beside Shen Feng, resting his head on her lap, and began to comb his hair with her fingers.
"Shen Feng, if only I had met you earlier," Du Xinshi murmured.
Although her heart condition hadn't been severe after the previous episode, and she had pulled through, Du Xinshi had recently been feeling chest tightness. Her breathing would suddenly become rapid, and she couldn't help but cough. At this moment, Du Xinshi understood that her body was likely failing.
The heart and lungs are closely related. If the heart has problems, the lungs are directly affected, manifesting as coughing, chest tightness, and immediate impact on the respiratory system.
However, even in this situation, Du Xinshi had decided to carry the child to term. It was said that ability users had problems with reproduction. The stronger the ability user, the weaker their ability to have children. Thus, after more than three years, Shen Feng only had one child, which was already considered a treasure.
Now, Du Xinshi was pregnant. She knew how important the child was to Shen Feng, so even if it meant death, she had to give birth to the child, as a gift to Shen Feng.
With this thought, Du Xinshi couldn't help but cover her chest, frowning as she said, "Give me seven more months. As long as I can give birth to the child, I will pray daily and offer incense to the Bodhisattva."
In the room, there was a ceramic statue of Guanyin, to whom Du Xinshi confided her comfort. Guanyin in China is believed to bless children, known as the "Child-Giving Guanyin" in folk belief. Du Xinshi, having received a higher education, didn't originally believe in gods or metaphysics. But now, in the apocalypse, reality was too cruel, so she could only rely on intangible things.
When Shen Feng woke up the next day, he found himself in bed. His clothes had been changed, and he was covered with a clean quilt. Du Xinshi was nestled beside him. Shen Feng checked the time and realized it was almost time for work.
"Sister Du, wake up. I have to go to work. I'm leaving," Shen Feng quickly called out to the person beside him. Du Xinshi woke up promptly.
"I'll wait for you to come back," Du Xinshi said tenderly.
Shen Feng then rushed to the City Lord's Mansion to handle his official duties for the day. However, a telegram from Zhaotong was delivered to Shen Feng. Zhaotong was under the jurisdiction of headquarters, so under normal circumstances, they wouldn't send telegrams to Yuzhou. But now, the telegram had been placed on his desk.
Shen Feng picked up the telegram and saw that it was a report from Lin Yue and Xu Xing. The message was simple: Dong Chao, Xue Ba, and the villains under their command had been eliminated. However, Jiucheng was currently lacking grain. The grain that had been stored was burned by the villain Xue Ba. Xu Xing and Lin Yue took the opportunity to escape to Zhaotong, first to complete the transaction and second to seek refuge.
Upon seeing the telegram in his hand, Shen Feng was shocked. He had never expected Xu Xing's capabilities to be so great, to be able to eradicate an organization entrenched in the city in such a short time. In Shen Feng's estimation, even if Xu Xing's progress was fast, it would take at least a month. But now, it seemed the task was completed in just a week, which was simply unbelievable.
The telegram also detailed how the matter was accomplished. Lin Yue and Xu Xing specifically mentioned an old monk. They had essentially followed the old monk's plan and achieved success. However, the old monk was also killed, which was a great pity.
"Jiucheng, this place borders Jiangyang directly. Now that the tumor has been removed, it would be easy to take over. But it would add over a hundred thousand people, which is a problem," Shen Feng fell into thought after reading the telegram. He was unsure how to deal with this ruined city.
After much deliberation, Shen Feng decided to seek advice from his three advisors.
After Shen Feng explained the matter, Dan Zhengming immediately said, "City Lord, you must occupy Jiucheng quickly. Aren't you always troubled by Yuzhou's lack of oil? The opportunity to obtain oil is right in front of you, how can you ignore it?"
When Shen Feng heard that they could obtain oil, he was immediately puzzled and asked, "I remember there are no oil deposits in Jiucheng either. Occupying Jiucheng doesn't seem to get us any oil. Half-Immortal, what exactly do you mean?"
Shen Feng knew that China had oil, but it was basically concentrated in the north. The south had more non-ferrous metals, but oil and gas resources were basically in the north. Now, Half-Immortal said that occupying Jiucheng could solve the oil crisis, and Shen Feng was immediately confused.
At this moment, Dan Zhengming slowly said, "That's right, Jiucheng has no oil. Moreover, even in Yunnan Province to the south, there are no oil reserves. But City Lord, do you know about the Yunnan-Myanmar oil pipeline? The original plan was for the pipeline's end to reach Yuzhou and Guizhou provinces through Kunming. Currently, it only reaches Kunming. Jiucheng is directly adjacent to Zhaotong. Transporting oil from Myanmar is naturally fraught with difficulties. But transporting oil from Kunming is much simpler, isn't it?"
This was the first time Shen Feng had heard of this pipeline. The main reason was that Shen Feng had lived in Rongcheng before. Sichuan Province produced natural gas, and oil could be obtained directly from the north. Therefore, Shen Feng didn't pay attention to where the oil in Yunnan Province to the south came from, let alone know that Myanmar in the southwest also produced oil and had built an oil pipeline.
Shen Feng suddenly understood and said, "I understand what Half-Immortal means. Half-Immortal, are you saying that as long as I maintain good relations with Kunming in the future, I can easily obtain oil? Is that what you mean?"
Dan Zhengming nodded, indicating that this was his meaning.
However, at this moment, Feng Shicheng said seriously, "City Lord, I do not recommend you take over Jiucheng now. According to the telegram, Jiucheng is in chaos, and the displaced people who have occupied the city are extremely arrogant. Going to Jiucheng at this time will tie up a large amount of resources and energy. Moreover, Yuzhou's relationship with headquarters cannot be restored in a short period. This means obtaining oil from Kunming will not be easy. Let's wait!"
"Wait? What if headquarters takes over Jiucheng if we wait?" Shen Feng continued to ask.
Feng Shicheng continued, "It's fine. Don't forget, City Lord, Jiangyang is also in your hands. Jiangyang can also go to Zhaotong. Both Jiangyang and Jiucheng are on the Yangtze River. Jiucheng is merely upstream from Jiangyang. Even without Jiucheng, you still have Jiangyang."
Shen Feng understood what Feng Shicheng meant at this moment. Taking over Jiucheng now would consume a large amount of grain, and Jiucheng was in ruins, not necessarily of much use. Moreover, with Jiangyang in hand, they could still go through Zhaotong. Even if they needed to transport oil, it would just be a detour.
"City Lord, I have something to say, though it might not be worth mentioning," Yu Zhijing also interjected at this time, as if he had something he wanted to say.
Shen Feng nodded and said, "Say whatever you want to say. I won't eat you."
With Shen Feng's permission, Yu Zhijing immediately said, "I've read the newspapers. Yunnan Province is also experiencing an oil shortage. Therefore, I boldly speculate that the Yunnan-Myanmar oil and gas pipeline exists, but it has been broken."
After speaking, Yu Zhijing found a newspaper from his person. This was not a Yuzhou newspaper, but the Spring City Evening News, a decades-old newspaper that continued to be published in the apocalypse. In the apocalypse, reading newspapers was a good way to gain knowledge.
Shen Feng looked at the newspaper. Yu Zhijing was not lying. The newspaper indeed mentioned such a matter, and with careful deduction, the truth could be known. If the oil pipeline were functional, Yunnan Province would not be experiencing an oil shortage. Besides, if the oil-producing areas were in trouble, having only a pipeline without oil would not suffice.
Dan Zhengming slowly said, "City Lord, I was negligent and failed to consider this matter carefully. I am old after all. I am very pleased that these two young people have such insight. However, whether to take over Jiucheng still depends on your decision, City Lord. The world today is constantly changing, and the decision-maker possesses the most information. Please consider carefully."
Half-Immortal was always just Half-Immortal. He could think of things others couldn't, but he was not an immortal and couldn't know everything. Therefore, at this moment, Half-Immortal clearly knew that his suggestion had significant flaws.
Shen Feng pondered for a moment and said, "I understand. I will now have Xu Xing and Lin Yue remain in Zhaotong, ready to head north to Jiucheng at any time. Let's... observe the situation first."
After much thought, Shen Feng felt that this matter involved too much and could not be decided lightly. At the very least, he needed to consult with his subordinates. In the meantime, Xu Xing would remain in Zhaotong. If it came to a critical moment, Xu Xing could head north to Jiucheng and use his prestige to bring a degree of stability to Jiucheng.