Chapter 362: Reunion Construction Team

Chapter 362: Chapter 362: Reunion Construction Team

"I don’t need the tiller. I’ll drive it out for you now. What attachments do you need? The trenching blade, the weeding wheel, or the digging shovel?"

Reunion’s construction team would be bringing their own machinery; they wouldn’t need Xiaqing’s little tiller to build the wall.

"I need all of them, thanks!" Zhao Ze responded loudly.

Xiaqing drove the tiller out of her territory. Pointing to the six bags of quicklime next to the digging shovel in the trailer, she said to Zhao Ze, "Brother Zhao, you can use these for now. You can also drag the thorn wood from the valley over to build the southern wall."

Quicklime could burn the roots, reducing the chance that the buried stumps would undergo Qiang Evolution.

After the last Lord’s meeting, Xiaqing and Mrs. Zhao had agreed to seal the valley gap with a chain-link fence. The points for the materials and labor to seal the valley would be split evenly between the two territories, with Xiaqing paying the upfront cost. Therefore, the Evolved Aralia Wood that had been dragged over to block the valley some time ago was now only useful to Xiaqing as firewood.

"Okay, okay! I’ll replace the lime as soon as I trade for some. Xiaqing, thank you so much," Zhao Ze said gratefully.

After Xiaqing explained how to change the attachments and operate the tiller, Zhao Ze, who had a background in engineering, quickly recalled his old trade and skillfully drove the tiller back to Territory No. 4.

Xiaqing returned home, ushered the Head Wolf back into the sheep pen, and covered the corn that was drying on the roof. Then, she hurried off with Guan Tong, the Strength Evolver who had just arrived, to clear the supply drop point.

After she left, the Red Squirrel hiding in the ruins of the front yard dashed into the courtyard. Snatching up two corn kernels that had fallen on the ground before three birds could get to them, it scurried back to its nest in the tree.

A little over an hour later, two large helicopters arrived on time above the territories. One landed inside No. 8 Territory, while the other flew over the Third Territory, its rotor blades creating a deafening roar.

The Red Squirrel, having stolen two corn kernels, thought Xiaqing was coming to settle the score. It curled up in its nest, trembling with fear.

The Head Wolf stood inside the sheep pen, peering out through a crack in the door. The sister of the broken leg wolf, who could only move two of her legs, bared her teeth and let out a low growl. The Sick Wolf and the Sheep Leader lay behind them, gnawing on the delicious food Xiaqing had left for them.

The cabin door of the hovering helicopter opened, and two Evolvers in Protective Suits rappelled down, landing in front of Xiaqing, who was waving a red flag.

The female Evolver in the lead asked, "Are you Miss Xia, the Lord of the Third Territory?"

Xiaqing nodded. "I am."

"I’m Lu Yuhui, captain of Reunion Group’s Construction Team Six. Our team will be responsible for building the wall for the Third Territory. Miss Xia, which side of the wall would you like to build first?" After briefly introducing herself, the female construction captain immediately got down to business. The helicopter was still in the air, waiting to unload its cargo.

Xiaqing saw a reflection of her past self as a construction team leader in the woman and answered crisply, "Start with the southern side, then block the valley in the northeast corner, and then begin on the other areas."

Lu Yuhui had her assistant direct the helicopter to unload the cargo while she continued to coordinate the construction with Xiaqing. "Five construction vehicles will be driving over from No. 8 Territory shortly. Miss Xia, please approve their entry into the Third Territory."

Installing the chain-link fence required digging foundations and pouring concrete to set the fence posts. Only after the concrete hardened could the chain-link mesh and anti-climb spikes be welded onto the posts. This required construction vehicles like excavators, concrete mixers, and soil compactors.

Xiaqing, of course, agreed. As she followed Lu Yuhui to inspect the materials, she discovered that the chain-link mesh Xin Yu had sold her wasn’t the 1.5-meter-wide mesh she had originally ordered, but 2-meter-wide mesh instead.

A chain-link fence made by welding two sections of mesh, one on top of the other, plus the anti-climb spikes on top, would reach a height of 4.3 meters!

’As a Lord herself, Xin Yu understands what another Lord needs. She’s a good neighbor to have.’

After unloading all of Xiaqing’s materials, the helicopter left the airspace above the Third Territory and landed in No. 8 Territory to continue unloading.

After confirming the territory’s boundary line with Xiaqing, Lu Yuhui began work immediately. Xiaqing stood nearby to protect the construction crew and observe.

The construction team first cleared the territory boundary outside the Wild Grass Wall. After marking the outline of the foundation trench with white lime, three excavators began to dig.

When Xiaqing saw them digging a standard trench 80 centimeters deep and 40 centimeters wide, she was relieved. A trench that deep would be lined with a layer of sand and gravel at the bottom, and then the foundation would be secured with cement mortar. A chain-link fence built on top of that would be extremely sturdy.

Two hours later, Hu Zifeng and Liangzi came to relieve Xiaqing, telling her to go home and rest.

Back home, Xiaqing first opened the sheep pen door. The construction crew was only active at the edge of the territory, so the area around her house was safe. The wolves and sheep could roam freely. Then, Xiaqing uncovered the rainproof cloth on the roof to continue drying the corn.

At noon, the construction team took breaks in shifts, but the work never stopped. The construction noise was incessant. This sound agitated the Wolf Group and the Sheep Leader, but to Xiaqing, it was the sound of security.

Even Tang Huai in the Second Territory, who hated noise the most, didn’t complain. Xiaqing guessed he was probably swamped with work too.

At four in the afternoon, five large trucks carrying refugees appeared on the road that ran between Territories one through ten. By then, Lu Yuhui had already led her team to dig a trench over 600 meters long along the southern border of the Third Territory, fill it with cement mortar, and set the posts for the chain-link fence.

However, the cement mortar hadn’t fully cured yet. Territory No. 4 had only managed to erect less than a hundred meters of its thorn wall, and the progress in the other territories was about the same.

In other words, the only thing separating the crops and food inside the territories from the refugees was still just a Wild Grass Wall that could only block their line of sight.

The Lords who were working on their own construction picked up their pace.

Xiaqing stood fully armed under her territory’s signpost. Hu Zifeng and Chen Zheng stood more than a hundred meters away from her on either side, guarding against any refugees who might rush into the Third Territory and threaten the safety of the construction crew.

Under the signpost for the Second Territory, Tang Huai watched the slowly approaching convoy with an annoyed expression.

The driver of the first truck was the convoy’s Zhong Tao. He wasn’t wearing a Protective Mask inside the cab. His beard was scruffy, his lips were cracked, and he looked visibly haggard. The truck’s trailer was uncovered, and the refugees crowded inside were visible from a distance.

Zhong Tao nodded in greeting to Tang Huai, Xiaqing, and the others before driving straight toward No. 8 Territory.

An equally haggard-looking Zheng Kui stopped the third large truck under the signpost for No.1 Territory. The last two trucks stopped outside the signpost for the Second Territory. The trailer’s side rails were lowered, and one by one, refugees in tattered Protective Suits jumped down.

Tan Junjie, who was leading the team maintaining order on the road, announced over the walkie-talkie, "The refugees have arrived at the territory signposts. No.1 Territory, Second Territory, and No. 8 Territory, please send people out to select refugees."

"No.1 Territory, received," Luo Pei responded in a gentle voice.

"Second Territory, received." Tang Huai’s voice was filled with unconcealed irritation.

"No. 8 Territory, received." Xin Yu was as calm as ever. Xiaqing guessed she must have put on her solid black, one-way transparent Protective Mask again today.

The solid black mask made her look mysterious and intimidating, perfect for wearing when interviewing refugees. Unfortunately, No. 8 Territory was south of No.1 Territory. Xiaqing didn’t have X-ray vision, so she couldn’t see how Xin Yu was going to handle a whole truckload of refugees by herself.