Entering the city, Ke Yiming wanted to find his informant but found himself in a predicament. General Chen had only mentioned finding Pangolin but hadn't provided any contact details. Now, within the city, he had no means of locating the person.
At this moment, Ke Yiming could only wander aimlessly through the streets, hoping to come up with a good plan. Finding someone he had never met before was proving to be too difficult.
In Ke Yiming's eyes, Jiangyang had changed significantly from two months ago. When it was first reclaimed, the streets were in disarray. Now, Luzhou had been renamed Jiangyang, and its appearance had undergone a massive transformation. The streets were clean, people bustled about, engaged in work, and children followed their parents, helping out, devoid of the previous idleness.
As Ke Yiming passed by a school, he noticed its name had changed; it was now an orphanage. The children inside were playing, seemingly having shed their past sorrows.
"An orphanage has been established too. It seems Shen Feng is a man of conscience, aware of his responsibility to care for the next generation," Ke Yiming thought to himself.
Just then, Ke Yiming suddenly spotted a cloud floating in the sky. Upon closer inspection, he realized there was a young man on it. Ke Yiming recognized him as Chang Jianyi's younger brother, Chang Haojie, who had apparently become an ability user over a month ago and could manipulate clouds to fly.
Seeing Chang Haojie's actions, Ke Yiming suddenly had an idea: "That's right, why should I actively seek them out? If I make myself conspicuous enough, won't others come looking for me?"
Thus, Ke Yiming quickly found the talent market, which was essentially a hall filled with posted advertisements. People came and went, all looking for work. These jobs were mostly tasks posted by the City Lord's mansion, with a minority being recruitment notices from factories.
Ke Yiming found a piece of cardboard, wrote a few words on it, and then sat cross-legged on the ground, holding the cardboard aloft.
The surrounding people became interested and glanced over, only to see the following lines written on the cardboard: "I will do anything, my only demand for compensation is a bowl of chicken soup. I will not work for anything else."
As Ke Yiming held up the sign, people around him burst into laughter. "A bowl of chicken soup? Do you want some 'chicken soup for the soul'?"
"What are you thinking? The apocalypse has arrived, and you still want chicken soup? Are you dreaming?"
"This is human nature, never satisfied. It's good enough to have food to eat now, yet you insist on chicken soup. This fully illustrates the inherent flaws of humanity!"
"This kid is clearly new. Everyone is just eating cornmeal to barely fill their stomachs, and he actually wants chicken soup. He's clearly not awake yet."
Ke Yiming, hearing the discussions around him, disdainfully replied, "How can a sparrow understand the ambition of a swan?"
"Heh, this kid is interesting, mocking us for lacking ambition. Let me tell you, if you don't work, you don't eat. If you want to eat for free, go to the relief station. One bowl of porridge a day will keep you from starving." Some people nearby, seeing Ke Yiming's demeanor, couldn't help but laugh and shake their heads.
Ke Yiming's presence at the talent market only caused a minor stir. Afterward, people stopped paying attention to the new young man and continued their job search. Ke Yiming, however, remained seated, waiting for his informant to notice the cardboard in his hand.
After half an hour, a middle-aged man approached Ke Yiming and scrutinized him carefully. He then said earnestly, "You look young and strong. Come with me, we're going to the docks to work. There'll be dog meat to eat tonight, and if we're lucky, dog meat soup too."
Ke Yiming stubbornly shook his head and said seriously, "I have a bit of a problem. Other soups get stuck in my throat; only chicken soup works for me."
"Tsk, such high demands. You'll starve to death!" The middle-aged man ignored Ke Yiming and turned to solicit others.
By noon, a friendly-looking man approached Ke Yiming, slowly crouched down, looked at the sign on Ke Yiming's chest, and said to himself, "Drinking chicken soup, what a beautiful thing."
Ke Yiming remained impassive, looking at the man before him, and said calmly, "I think stewing chicken also has its nuances, don't you agree?"
"Of course, it's best stewed with pangolin!" the man replied with a smile.
Upon hearing this answer, Ke Yiming immediately confirmed that the man before him was the informant he was looking for. He quickly said, "I have a few questions..."
The man grabbed Ke Yiming's arm, interrupting him, and said seriously, "Let's go. Come with me to work. We can discuss any questions after we're done."
Ke Yiming obediently stood up, only to hear the man say in a low voice, "Don't look around. Just follow me!"
Ke Yiming's heart tightened. He followed the man away from the talent market, not daring to glance around, fearing he might attract attention.
The man chattered as they walked, "Later, you'll follow me to the fields to pick corn. Work honestly, and you'll be rewarded. I'm taking you along to gain experience because you're young. Don't let me down."
As they spoke, Ke Yiming was put into a vehicle along with several other people. They were all taken to the farmlands outside the city to pick corn. Many soldiers were standing guard, and in the center of the soldiers, Chang Jianyi sat under a parasol, drinking orange juice while reading a report.
Chang Jianyi was accustomed to working outdoors, using her abilities to accelerate crop growth while reviewing various reports. These reports were mostly compiled by the laboratory. She would extract useful information and contemplate future decisions, while the surrounding hundreds of soldiers were specifically assigned to protect her.
If there were no food shortages, Chang Jianyi wouldn't need to leave the city. However, Yuzhou was undergoing city clearance, and a large population was gathering in Jiangyang. If she didn't use her abilities to accelerate plant growth, everyone would go hungry. Therefore, she had to choose to work outside the city.
Ke Yiming had not met Chang Jianyi during his previous visit to Jiangyang, so this was his first time seeing her. He thought to himself, "Is this woman Shen Feng's wife? She's quite beautiful. She should know Shen Feng's whereabouts, right? Unfortunately, I can't get close to her!"
Afterward, Ke Yiming could only patiently pick corn in the fields, preparing to inquire about Shen Feng's whereabouts when the time was right.
Chang Jianyi had been busy organizing the materials brought back by Shen Feng. The Rongcheng Laboratory's research on zombies and ability users was quite in-depth, and these materials were invaluable. Chang Jianyi only allowed Professor Niu Baiye to study them; no one else was permitted to view them.
Yin Li, following Chang Jianyi, saw her still engrossed in the documents and said softly, "Vice City Lord, many people in the city have ill intentions. You should strengthen your security. Otherwise, if something happens, we won't be able to account for it to the City Lord!"
Yin Li, as one of Chang Jianyi's personal guards, paid attention to dangerous individuals in the city daily. Currently, there were 400,000 people of mixed backgrounds in the city, with various gangs having emerged. With so many dangerous individuals, someone might take a risk, and if an assassin appeared, the Vice City Lord would be in danger!
Chang Jianyi heard this but gently shook her head, saying, "Don't worry. My soldiers are equipped with automatic rifles. Ordinary forces cannot break through them. In fact, the city itself is the most dangerous place; it's easier to dodge an open attack than a hidden arrow. It's better to stay outside the city; even if something happens, it's easier to escape."
Yin Li, hearing this, was still not entirely reassured and continued to cautiously observe her surroundings. How could she prevent assassination attempts with firearms from nearby?
Seeing Yin Li's continued caution, Chang Jianyi couldn't help but shake her head slightly. She patted a metal box beside her and said to Yin Li, "Don't worry. I have evolution base with me. As long as I'm not killed on the spot, I can use the evolution base to evolve to the fourth stage. Killing me is not an easy feat."
Yin Li suddenly understood. Only then did she realize why the Vice City Lord was so willing to leave the city and why she had so few escorts. It turned out she had already made preparations.
Seeing that the corn around them had reached its full growth, Chang Jianyi stood up and walked forward. In the farmlands five hundred meters away, planting had just finished, and they were waiting for Chang Jianyi to accelerate the growth of these crops. Yin Li quickly carried the parasol and followed behind, while the surrounding soldiers also hurried to keep pace. For them, Chang Jianyi's safety was the most important thing.
Ke Yiming hid in the cornfield, secretly observing Chang Jianyi. He thought, "This woman's ability is truly useful. She can solve a city's food problem single-handedly. If only the Ability Administration could find such talent."
In Ke Yiming's eyes, as soon as Chang Jianyi sat down in the planted fields, the surrounding crops would immediately begin to grow. In just half an hour, the crops would complete their growth cycle, which was nothing short of a miracle. Therefore, Ke Yiming believed it was a great pity that this ability was in the hands of the enemy.
As Ke Yiming was carefully observing, Pangolin approached him and said in a low voice, "If you have something to discuss, do it quickly while no one is paying attention to us!"
Ke Yiming hesitated and asked, "We're still outside the city, and people are picking corn all around. Isn't it inappropriate to discuss things now? How about we find a place to talk privately tonight?"
Pangolin quickly shook his head and said earnestly, "Don't talk nonsense. Jiangyang has established an intelligence team, and they've been investigating these days. I've been under close scrutiny lately. Let's exchange information while we're outside the city. Otherwise, it will be even harder to do so once we return!"
Ke Yiming frowned. He hadn't expected there to be people specifically collecting intelligence in the city. It seemed he could only discuss matters outside the city now. Thus, he directly asked, "I want to find Shen Feng, but I heard he went to hunt mutant crocodiles with his men. Is this true?"
Pangolin, while picking corn, replied in a low voice, "It's true, but I heard that Jiangyang sends intelligence to Yuzhou every day. This suggests that even if Shen Feng is deep in the forest, he's still getting information daily. After all, his speed is extremely fast, allowing him to move between Yuzhou and the forest quickly!"
Ke Yiming frowned, recalling General Chen's earlier words: "Shen Feng's speed is the fastest among humans, and he will continue to evolve, perhaps even exceeding the speed of sound."
"Is there any way to find him? For example, do you know Shen Feng's daily times and locations in Yuzhou?" Ke Yiming quickly asked.
Hearing this question, Pangolin pondered for a long time before saying, "I can't help you with that. For now, your best bet is to go to Yuzhou as a cleaner and find Shen Feng through your own observation. At least in Jiangyang, Shen Feng hasn't appeared for a long time."
Ke Yiming nodded, understanding what the other person meant. He could only try his luck in Yuzhou.
"What are you two doing? Are you slacking off? Hurry up and pick corn. If you slack off again, your rations will be deducted." Suddenly, a loud shout came. Ke Yiming quickly looked in the direction of the sound and saw the foreman scolding them. It turned out the foreman had noticed that the corn in this area hadn't been picked all morning and had come to supervise.
Ke Yiming quickly lowered his head and began picking corn. With a bamboo basket on his back, he tossed the picked corn behind him, working at a relatively fast pace. The foreman glanced at the scene, let out a cold snort, and turned away.
Ke Yiming gritted his teeth in anger, thinking, "To be humiliated again by such an insignificant person is truly infuriating. I will never do this kind of work again!"
After picking corn all day, Ke Yiming finally finished his work. Looking at the small mountain of corn piled in the distance, he felt a sense of accomplishment. He knew this was the result of his hard work throughout the day.
At dusk, everyone boarded the bus to return to the city for dinner and to settle their day's wages.
Ke Yiming received a lunchbox. As for his wages, it was two kilograms of cornmeal. He looked around and saw that everyone else received the same compensation, and he couldn't help but shake his head, thinking, "This is too pathetic. Working hard all day for two pounds of cornmeal, they're practically being exploited."
Ke Yiming opened his lunchbox and frowned. The lunchbox contained only cornmeal rice with stir-fried cabbage on top, not even a speck of minced meat.
Finding it unappetizing, Ke Yiming placed the lunchbox in his backpack and left the mess hall.
Ke Yiming had packed compressed biscuits in his backpack. Although they didn't taste great, they were better than coarse cornmeal rice. So, Ke Yiming, munching on a compressed biscuit, headed towards the registration office. To become a cleaner, one needed to register, and upon approval, they would be sent to Yuzhou the next day.
On the way to the registration office, Ke Yiming saw a small, emaciated girl by the roadside. He casually gave her his lunchbox. This action brought a look of gratitude to the girl's face, and she repeatedly said thank you.
Afterward, the girl, holding the lunchbox, entered the house and exclaimed excitedly, "Mom, we have food! We won't starve anymore. Get well soon!"