CHAPTER 45: CHAPTER 45: WINTER BREAK

Qu Jianlei always believed that he wasn’t a petty person, and he was willing to be friendly with others.

However, his temper wasn’t so good that he could just swallow his grievances when others came to bully him.

In any case, the primary task was to trap them and escape himself first.

As for the nine cars being completely wiped out in the Three-Colored Swamp, he really had no idea about that.

He also couldn’t imagine that a nest of venomous snakes could be this ruthless.

He and Xiao Jing fled wildly all the way, only relaxing after escaping the Three-Colored Swamp, "They finally stopped pursuing us."

"Yes, yes," Xiao Jing nodded repeatedly, "I can’t even see the lights anymore."

He truly didn’t expect it wasn’t because the lights were too far, but that the lights... were blocked by the snake swarm.

"Keep moving," Qu Jianlei wasn’t at ease with the current situation... what if they caught up again?

The two could only continue their desperate escape, running until daylight, and again until nightfall.

During this time, Xiao Jing couldn’t help but ask, "Brother Black Heaven, what if the Three-Colored Swamp didn’t trap them yesterday?"

Qu Jianlei looked at him strangely, "Isn’t there still the swarm of Sand Worms?"

Xiao Jing thought about it and felt that the swarm of Sand Worms was indeed a bit far from the Three-Colored Swamp... is that so?

However, he had a poor sense of direction and wasn’t quite sure, so he dared not ask for specific operational details.

"Brother Black Heaven, have we reached Hongwu Settlement 4 by now?"

"Hongwu Settlement 4... I’m not very familiar with it," Qu Jianlei replied casually, "I heard the junkyard there is quite famous."

Most people in Hongwu Settlement 4 would talk about the Mine, not many would mention the junkyard.

But since they were passing by, Qu Jianlei didn’t mind taking a cursory glance.

In fact, he was somewhat concerned about the changes in the junkyard where he had made his living.

Anyway, he had traded up, so he didn’t fear being recognized, and drove straight toward the Chaotic Stone Camp.

When he reached twenty kilometers away from the Chaotic Stone Camp, he stopped.

"Xiao Jing, go to the back and keep watch. Inform me if anything happens."

The weather was getting cold, and the wind wasn’t strong; visibility was surprisingly good, allowing them to see six or seven kilometers away.

Xiao Jing climbed up to the top of the pickup truck, holding a pair of binoculars and looking around, "No one... oh, I see the junkyard."

"My first time seeing it too," Qu Jianlei said calmly, "Let’s go closer for a look. Notify me if you spot anyone."

"Okay," Xiao Jing replied, "I’ve heard the scavengers at the junkyard are not easy to deal with; they’re quite rowdy."

The pickup truck slowly moved towards the junkyard, until they were about three kilometers away, and Xiao Jing still didn’t say anything.

No one around? Qu Jianlei stopped the car and climbed onto the roof himself, using binoculars to look around.

Indeed, no one was there! He reminded Xiao Jing again, then went back to continue driving.

They drove until they were about one kilometer from the junkyard and still didn’t see anyone.

This puzzled Qu Jianlei, so he drove along the edge of the junkyard for around twenty kilometers, still not seeing anyone.

Xiao Jing exclaimed, "In the junkyard... there really are some usable things!"

Qu Jianlei shook his head, turned the steering wheel, and the open-top vehicle headed towards the camp where Old Cripple was located.

About five hundred meters from the camp, he stopped the car and pushed down a motorcycle.

Xiao Jing rode the motorcycle into the camp, while he stood in the truck bed, his hands on the vehicle-mounted machine gun.

The arrival of the off-road pickup truck had already caught the attention of the camp’s people, with some curiously looking over.

Even though Xiao Jing was just a child, riding a motorcycle and with a short dagger at his waist, others didn’t dare to ignore him.

The key was the vehicle-mounted machine gun outside the camp, glaring menacingly, so no one attempted to bully the child.

Soon, Xiao Jing returned with a map he had bought and brought back a piece of news.

"The junkyards along several hundred kilometers are all closed, a big shot ordered a winter break in advance."

Qu Jianlei looked at the map, selected a camp fifty kilometers away, and drove towards it.

In the camp, he bought some supplies and tools, leaving during the night.

Seeing him drive again towards the junkyard, Xiao Jing curiously asked, "It’s winter break, why are you going to the junkyard?"

Qu Jianlei replied blandly, "I plan to spend the winter in the junkyard."

As the weather got colder, traveling wasn’t suitable; encountering a sudden cold snap could have unimaginable consequences.

The most dangerous place is the safest place... hopefully, that would be the case.

However, he didn’t plan to settle nearby and instead chose a place 150 kilometers away.

Besides being far from the Chaotic Stone Camp, there was something very important: two kilometers from the junkyard’s edge, there was a pond.

The water in the Wasteland couldn’t be drunk casually, but he had purchased a circulating water purifier.

Driving to the location, he found the trash piles were relatively organized, making it not difficult to carve out a dwelling.

Observing, he realized the winter break wasn’t just idle talk.

Vehicles patrolled sporadically during the day, and drones occasionally hovered over the junkyard.

In the following ten days, Qu Jianlei drove away during the day and started digging through trash piles at night.

The trash here was mostly synthetic materials, and some metal products, with not much odor.

Besides avoiding detection by people, he also needed to be careful not to approach anything with strong radiation.

After working hard for more than ten days, he finally dug a large hole out of the garbage pile.

At least the off-road truck could drive in without affecting work.

He spent another two days camouflaging the entrance, so an ordinary person wouldn’t be able to see the hidden Grotto Heaven from the outside.

At this point, work could be done during the day as long as the noise was kept to a minimum.

Xiaojing mainly helped with odd jobs, while also keeping an eye out for any approaching outsiders.

The garbage dug out from the cave was initially evenly scattered across a distant landfill.

Later on, Qu Jianlei used the garbage to reinforce the tunnel, packing it tightly to resist the future cold.

In the blink of an eye, another twenty days went by.

The cave had already turned into a space measuring four meters by six meters, over two meters high, with a two-meter-long passage.

The ventilation holes and observation points were completed, and there was even a separate partition for bathing.

As for interior wall decoration... that was basically off the table, and could only be dealt with when bored during winter.

Finally, the entrance was thoroughly camouflaged, and by that time, the weather had become very cold.

Lately, Xiaojing had stopped keeping watch outside and instead fetched water from the pool every evening.

Though heavily polluted, the water’s radiation was very low, which was a relief for Qu Jianlei.

The generator was already set up, powered by Energy Blocks, which was why he had bought over two hundred of them.

The generator’s operation provided not only lighting but also drove the water purification system to purify pool water.

It was said that the purification system could cleanse the body’s excreted fluids, enabling the recycling of water.

However, water vapor evaporates, and besides accumulating a winter’s worth of water, Qu Jianlei was determined to bathe!

It’s been almost seven years since he traversed here; he hadn’t even taken a bath once, the agony was indescribable!

Besides bathing, clothes needed washing—there was no way around it.

Previously, due to lack of conditions, he could only live like a savage; now, with conditions improved, many things became intolerable.

Other utensils, pots, bowls, pans, water tanks, and such were all made by Qu Jianlei using local materials.

Don’t underestimate the landfill; though its contents might be dirty, there’s plenty that can be repurposed.

During this period, two small cold spells had already arrived, causing temperatures to plummet.

On the thirty-third day after Qu Jianlei started digging, he finally announced they could seal the door.

Not all tasks were complete; minor repairs could be done once the door was closed.

Sealing the door didn’t mean it couldn’t be opened again; it simply meant he wasn’t planning on going out.

The first thing after sealing the door was taking a bath!

Xiaojing was even more eager to bathe; with the purified water he fetched, there was enough to accumulate over five cubic meters.

Before bathing, he carefully washed a complete set of clothes, from inside out, including socks.

Qu Jianlei took a bath for a full three hours, changed the water six times, and finally cleaned himself thoroughly.

Outside the garbage pile, the temperature should be around minus twenty degrees.

Yet inside the small cave, it was about eighteen or nineteen degrees, warm as spring, with a misty vapor.

"This is life," Qu Jianlei came out wrapped in a bath towel.

Xiaojing, unable to hold back any longer, dashed into the partition holding his clothes.

After bathing, it was time for a major cleanup—all clothes had to be washed.

Qu Jianlei even made an automatic stirrer to substitute for a washing machine.

The cleanup took two days, followed by preparing a big meal to celebrate.

The feast was hotpot; Qu Jianlei wasn’t adept at cooking, but hotpot was simple enough, and the dipping sauces could be mixed freely.

Besides having meat, there were also vegetables, the dehydrated kind, bought from the Hongwu Settlement.

Had it not been for purchasing plenty of dehydrated vegetables, he wouldn’t have spent so much money.

It was Xiaojing’s first time using chopsticks; his grip wasn’t very standard, but he quickly adapted.

Compared to the chewy dehydrated vegetables, he clearly favored the boiled meat.

While gobbling his food, he muddledly asked, "Black Heaven bro, why do you like eating vegetables so much?"

"Vegetables provide a lot of nutrients and aid digestion," Qu Jianlei casually replied, "These are real vegetables, not wild ones."

"Nutrient supplementation..." Xiaojing responded without looking up, "Why not just consume Nutrient Injection?"

Qu Jianlei was momentarily speechless before responding after some time.

"The nutrients in Nutrient Injection aren’t entirely balanced, and individuals have different nutritional needs,"

"Since we were born with stomachs, we should enjoy good food... it’s one of life’s pleasures."

This is a concept every gourmet should embrace.

Hearing this, Xiaojing looked up in surprise, glanced at him, and then at the bed nearby.

The bed was assembled from synthetic materials, neatly covered with bedding.

Hesitating for a moment, he asked, "Black Heaven bro, did you used to live in the Gathering Area too?"