Chapter 1916: Strategic Alliance? (Part 2)

Even so, Chen Er still felt this was a bit awkward.

After all, the strength of the Big Camphor Tree Base far surpassed theirs; if they really wanted to move against Southern Paradise, they could just handle it head-on. There’d be no need for sneak attacks.

Chen Er waved his hand and said to his men, “That’s about enough.”

When Li Tie and the others came over, they’d thought about this too, so when they got off the plane they only brought walkie-talkies, no weapons.

“Hello, can we open this box for inspection?” A subordinate looked at the box in Dapao’s hands and asked.

Dapao glanced at Li Tie, as if asking whether he should open it and let them see.

Li Tie nodded.

Dapao then opened the box. Inside were two bottles of a special collector’s edition of Taizi, and two cartons of Hua Zi.

The subordinate doing the inspection saw these two items, and his pupils shrank slightly.

Tobacco in the Doomsday era was basically a non-renewable resource.

It was the kind of thing only people with power and status could afford to play with.

And baijiu, in winter it could help keep you warm.

Plus, in this Doomsday, most people felt suffocated and depressed; being able to drink a bit of baijiu, get tipsy and fuzzy, forget all their worries and troubles—that was practically worth its weight in gold.

Seeing Chen Er staring at the items in the box, Li Tie opened his mouth to explain: “This is a gift our City Lord sent for your Mr. Hu.”

When Chen Er saw these things, he swallowed, then nodded with a smile and said, “Quite a grand gesture, really too polite. Mr. Hu will definitely like it.”

Li Tie smiled without giving anything away, then watched Dapao close the box.

Once the check was done, Chen Er said to Li Tie and the others, “Everyone, let’s head upstairs. Mr. Hu is on the upper floor.”

“Mm.” Li Tie nodded, growing more and more curious about this Mr. Hu.

What exactly did Mr. Hu look like? What kind of temper and personality did he have? What would happen when they met?

Nobody knew, and with that mix of nervousness and anticipation, they slowly walked up to the third floor.

The third floor.

There was a conference room, and a burly man was standing with his back to Li Tie and the others.

Above the conference room door were three big characters: Ju Yitang.

On both sides were depictions of the 108 heroes of Liangshan.

In the center stood a large tiger-skin chair.

The burly man seemed to have heard the sounds behind him, and slowly turned his head to look at Li Tie and his group.

As he turned, the three of them sized him up curiously.

They saw that the man who turned around had a full beard, a mole on his chin, and eyebrows that slanted all the way to his temples, looking fierce and imposing.

Seeing the unfamiliar Li Tie, then spotting Chen Er, he instantly understood.

A hearty laugh rang out: “Hahaha.”

“You must be the honored guests from Oil City, right? Welcome, welcome. I’ve been waiting for you here for quite a while—please, have a seat.”

As he spoke, he walked up to meet them.

He shook hands with each of the three in turn.

Li Tie said with a smile on his face, “We’ve long heard of Mr. Hu of Southern Paradise—meeting you today, you truly live up to your reputation.”

“This is a gift from our City Lord, just a token of goodwill. Please accept it.”

As he spoke, Dapao brought the box up to Mr. Hu.

Mr. Hu was a bit taken aback; he hadn’t expected the City Lord of the Big Camphor Tree Base to actually send him a gift.

That was outside his expectations.

He quickly took the box, then handed it back over to a bodyguard behind him.

He said with feeling, “Thank you, that’s really too kind. If possible, I’d very much like to meet your City Lord in person.”

Li Tie’s mind spun quickly, and he said, “Mr. Hu, our City Lord should also be very eager to meet you.”

“Hahaha.” Mr. Hu burst out laughing.

Then he continued, “In that case, all the better. Our two sides have cooperated so many times already; being able to meet your City Lord would be ideal. I’ll find a time to come to Oil City.”

Mr. Hu was a bold, straightforward man.

Before Li Tie arrived, he’d already learned from Chen Er that the person coming this time was the younger brother of the leader of the Big Camphor Tree Base.

That identity alone was enough to show the Big Camphor Tree Base was sending them a friendly signal.

At the same time, the Big Camphor Tree Base had previously informed them about the Northern Territory Federation. With such a powerful force pressing down on them now, of course he wanted to push his relationship with the Big Camphor Tree Base a step further.

But to go a step further, the leaders of the two forces had to have direct communication.

Obviously.

The Big Camphor Tree Base was much stronger than Southern Paradise, and now there was this visit.

In terms of feelings and reason, if Southern Paradise wanted its relationship with the Big Camphor Tree Base to become closer, they had to send someone of truly heavy weight to meet the City Lord of the Big Camphor Tree Base.

Which meant there was only one choice: Mr. Hu would have to go in person.

Hearing Mr. Hu say this, Li Tie was a bit surprised; he hadn’t expected this Mr. Hu to be so decisive.

He didn’t seem to worry at all that Oil City might detain him.

That kind of thing required trust.

So he hurriedly said, “Great. If Mr. Hu really can come, I believe our City Lord will be very happy, and looking forward to it.”

“Hahaha, sit, sit.” Mr. Hu said to Li Tie and the others.

Li Tie followed his lead and sat down.

Once they were seated, a few of Mr. Hu’s men, quick on the uptake, came in carrying fruit plates and tea.

These fruits were things even Mr. Hu himself rarely got to eat on a daily basis.