Chapter 358 - 217: Idea of a Merger, Hijacking the Wine Bamboo

Chapter 358: Chapter 217: Idea of a Merger, Hijacking the Wine Bamboo

"What if our three bases merged?" Long Zhan said suddenly.

Wang Jun and Ji Yizhi were both stunned, then fell into deep thought.

"I was just kidding. You guys didn’t take it seriously, did you?" Long Zhan asked uncertainly, seeing the serious, contemplative expressions on their faces.

"A merger is definitely something to consider, but we need to observe for a while longer," Wang Jun said gravely.

Ji Yizhi nodded in agreement.

Although all their dealings with Peach Blossom Base had been very pleasant so far, and Ren Yuanyang seemed very principled, they still needed to observe a while longer.

More importantly, even if they were willing to merge, Peach Blossom Base might not be.

As things stood, they were more of a liability.

So, they needed to find the right moment.

"If we really can merge, we’ll absolutely be the number one power on Blue Star!" Long Zhan said with a laugh.

"Even if we don’t merge, with Peach Blossom Base’s support, no other base is stronger than us right now," Ji Yizhi said, shaking his head with a slight smile.

"That’s true. Anyway, we’re on such good terms now, let’s just keep things as they are. We can talk about it again when the time Old Wang mentioned arrives!" Long Zhan looked nonchalant, picked up another meat skewer, and started smacking his lips as he ate.

Ji Yizhi looked utterly exasperated. "I’m logging off!"

Wang Jun shook his head helplessly. "Just eat if you’re going to eat. Why do you have to smack your lips like that!"

"Hehe, I was doing it on purpose!" Long Zhan replied with a laugh. After Ji Yizhi logged off, he immediately stopped smacking his lips.

Resigned, Wang Jun changed the subject. "The Wine Bamboo seeds should be arriving on your end soon, right?"

"Soon. Around noon. Haonan is over here waiting for them," Long Zhan replied. "By the way, it seems Peach Blossom Base doesn’t have any large freighters. They’ll have to learn how to pilot the ships you brought over from scratch!"

Wang Jun was taken aback for a moment. "No large freighters? How is that possible?"

Long Zhan shrugged. "I wouldn’t know. But judging from their reaction, it seems they don’t have any."

"Then where do they do their farming and raise their poultry and livestock? Do they have a lot of small and medium-sized boats?" Wang Jun frowned slightly. "Considering how much they eat, their livestock operation must be quite large!"

"Old Wang, stop with the wild guesses!" Long Zhan said with a laugh. "We’ll find out when we get a chance to visit Peach Blossom Base in the future. No need to get hung up on it!"

Wang Jun paused, then nodded. "That’s true. But you’ll probably be the first one to go to Peach Blossom Base, so we’re counting on you to gather some intel!"

"Don’t worry! When the time comes, I’ll ask Taoyuan Yang and give you guys a live broadcast!" Long Zhan promised, patting his chest.

"You’d be lucky just to get a tour, and you’re talking about a live broadcast?" Wang Jun shook his head. "Anyway, that’s all for now. I’m going to go look at those classic texts too."

"Okay. I’ll set aside half of this barbecue, freeze it, and send it to the Aircraft Carrier Base so you all can have a taste!" Long Zhan said finally.

"If you were planning to send us some anyway, why did you have to provoke Old Ji like that?" Wang Jun was rather speechless.

"It’s fun. He’s always acting so high and mighty, like he’s the shit, just because he thinks a little faster than everyone else," Long Zhan replied with a laugh.

"He’s been much better since he got taken down a peg or two by Peach Blossom Base a few times," Wang Jun said after a moment’s thought.

"True. It seems only Peach Blossom Base can keep him in line. This time included!" Long Zhan raised the skewer in his hand and grinned.

Wang Jun shook his head and ended the video call.

Long Zhan kept eating his skewer, sighing with satisfaction, ’This skewer is just so damn good!’

Ever since Long Zhan’s side took over Dawn Base, the survivors had regained their freedom. They flocked to the regional channel to talk about the previous chaos at Dawn Base and their current happiness.

Naturally, the news that Dawn Base was using traditional Chinese medicine to treat patients also spread on the regional channel.

"Can you believe it? A single dose of a decoction can cure a critically ill patient. Not even novels would dare write something like that!"

"The guy above is full of shit. That’s totally impossible! If you said some special antiviral drug worked with a single pill, that would be more believable!"

"You must not be from Dawn Base, and probably not from the Aircraft Carrier Base either, because both bases have started promoting the use of traditional Chinese medicine, and the results are remarkable!"

"For real? I feel like you guys are running a pyramid scheme. Are you planning to sell the medicine to outsiders?"

"Dude above, can you not be so dramatic? We don’t even have enough of the medicine for ourselves, why would we sell it to outsiders?"

"Is traditional Chinese medicine really that amazing? I don’t believe it!"

Watching the discussion in the regional channel, Bao Mu of the Xi’an Base frowned deeply.

Just then, an aide walked into the office and said, "Sir, our fleet’s medical resources are completely overwhelmed. This virus will likely claim the lives of at least thirty percent of our people!"

"Have you tried Chinese medicine?" Bao Mu asked immediately.

"We used Chinese medicine formulas right away. The effects were noticeable; otherwise, even more people would have died," the aide replied grimly.

Bao Mu’s brow furrowed. "According to the survivors’ discussions on the regional channel, a single dose of the decoction can cure a patient. Why aren’t our formulas having such a dramatic effect? Could it be we’re using the wrong one?"

The aide immediately shook his head. "Our intelligence agents made private contact with personnel from the Aircraft Carrier Base and Dawn Base. They speculate that they are using Great Cyan Dragon Soup."

"Are they using other methods to supplement the treatment besides the decoction?" Bao Mu continued to ask.

"No. Everyone’s story is the same: they just drank one dose of the decoction," the aide shook his head again.

Bao Mu frowned in thought for a moment, then gave an order. "Arrange for ten fast boats to go to the area between the Aircraft Carrier Base and Dawn Base. If they encounter any of their ships, see if there’s an opportunity to hijack them!"

The aide was slightly stunned, but then nodded in acknowledgment and turned to leave.

’I’d like to see for myself just what’s so different about your decoction,’ Bao Mu thought, his eyes narrowed as he watched the chat on the regional channel.

Soon, ten fast boats sped out from the Xi’an Base. Their target was a Second-level Wind Sea Region between the Aircraft Carrier Base and Dawn Base.

They were to lie in wait there, hoping to intercept a ship from the Aircraft Carrier Base.

Just as they arrived at their target location, a single fast boat came speeding toward them.

The squad leader was a bit stunned. ’Are we this lucky?’

Upon spotting them, the fast boat immediately tried to detour into the distance, but the team from the Xi’an Base wasn’t about to let it get away so easily!

The leader immediately commanded his ten fast boats to surround the lone vessel!

The squad escorting Jiu Zhu immediately sent a message to Long Zhan at Dawn Base: "Captain Long, we’ve encountered ten fast boats from an unknown faction! They’re surrounding and pursuing us! Requesting backup!"

Long Zhan, who was in the middle of eating a skewer, froze for a second, then shot to his feet. He replied, "Hold on, I’m heading out immediately!"

Long Zhan personally led twenty fast boats out of Dawn Base.

Seeing this, Jianghu immediately interrupted Qin Haonan’s Cultivation.

"Minister Qin, I just saw Long Zhan leave the base with twenty fast boats!"

Qin Haonan was taken aback for a moment, then replied, "So he left. It has nothing to do with us, anyway."

"Dawn Base has plenty of manpower. There shouldn’t be anything that requires Long Zhan to personally take action," Jianghu said with a frown.

Qin Haonan was stunned again. "You mean this sudden event is extremely important?"

Jianghu nodded.

"Alright, I’ll ask him!" Qin Haonan was a straightforward person; rather than guessing, he preferred to ask directly.

Qin Haonan took out his phone and sent a message directly to Long Zhan: "Captain Long, I saw you leave in a hurry just now. Did something happen?"

"Yeah, the fast boat transporting the Wine Bamboo was ambushed by an unknown faction. I’m going to provide support," Long Zhan didn’t hide it from Qin Haonan.

"What? Someone dares to make a move on our Wine Bamboo!" Qin Haonan immediately asked, "Do you need our help?"

’I came here specifically to bring the Wine Bamboo back. If it gets hijacked, my mission will be a failure!’

"Thanks, but not for now. They only have ten fast boats," Long Zhan replied. "We can definitely take them!"

"Alright, then I’ll wait here at Dawn Base for your good news!" Qin Haonan responded.

After ending the chat, Qin Haonan reported the matter to Ren Yuanyang.

Ren Yuanyang frowned slightly. "There aren’t many factions left that can still muster that many fast boats for a hijacking."