Li Ba, a graduate of Huaxia Agricultural University, was the sales manager at a well-known seed company in Wucheng before the apocalypse. When the apocalypse struck and order collapsed, the naturally timid Li Ba faced life-and-death situations and managed to scrape by and survive. By chance, he set aside the rules of post-apocalyptic survival to save a grandfather and his granddaughter, and in return, he received a magical bracelet. The bracelet contained a universe within—a plot of land, a stone trough brimming with spring water, and a Tower—all of which opened up a mysterious realm for him. What to do when food runs out? “My Fengshou Group has mountains of grain—I’ll trade it for crystal cores and jade!” Li Ba declared arrogantly. What to do when zombies attack the city? “The mutated plants cultivated by ‘Lord Ba’ can withstand a tide of a million zombies!” Li Ba said with absolute confidence. What if you’re not an Evolver and someone challenges you to a one-on-one duel? “I’ve got talismanic soldiers guarding me. Anyone who dares challenge me will get beaten so badly, even their own mother won’t recognize them!” said Li Ba, his bald head revealing a menacing expression as he spoke viciously. Using the mysterious space and his expertise, Li Ba cultivated crops and tended fields, determined to become a major farmer in the world of *Horse Herding* and pursue a happy life in the post-apocalyptic world.
Chapter 48: Hiring Staff
Having closed a major deal, Li Ba was in high spirits; he crossed his legs and hummed a tune. This deal was extraordinary. With the contract signed by Han Xue—representing the settlement’s official authority—he could set aside his previous reservations, mass-produce bean sprouts for sale, and accumulate wealth. Under these circumstances, Li Ba estimated that bean sprout production could double to 4,000 jin per day—all of which could be sold effortlessly. At two grain coupons per jin, the bean sprout sales alone would bring him 8,000 jin of grain coupons in revenue each day. On top of that, there were the supplies allocated by Luo Jianguo. Even if he kept profits to a minimum, he’d still earn two to three thousand jin of grain coupons daily. By this calculation, his Merchant House would generate at least ten thousand jin of grain coupons in net income every day. It wouldn’t take long—at most a month—for him to amass a substantial fortune. Money makes the world go round! By then, even if Li Chao or Zhao Laifu’s men came knocking to cause trouble, he could easily hire Evolved Ones to handle them. At this thought, Li Ba narrowed his eyes, his face lit up with an excited smile. His only regret was that his own strength was too weak. Although he had improved his physical constitution by drinking the spatial spirit spring, he was still no match for an Evolver—not even the weakest kind, like Li Chao! That single punch from Li Chao had injured his arm. If that woman Han Xue hadn’t intervened in time, the consequences would have been unimaginable. For Li Ba, Han Xue still held a grudge. However, when it came to personal gain, he was willing to set aside his grievances for the time being and cooperate with her. According to Li Ba’s plan, he would first build a good relationship with the Research Institute where Han Xue worked. Later, he could use the Institute to obtain the most in-demand supplies. For example, laboratory equipment, evolution serums, and so on. Business at the supply store was gradually getting back on track. Now that he had some free time, he intended to begin researching the plants that had sprouted from the bracelet’s spatial pocket… including offensive mutant plants. This might be his only way to boost his own strength! To increase the output of bean sprouts, Zhou Yan and the two sisters alone wouldn’t be able to handle the workload. Therefore, Li Ba decided to hire some additional staff. He entrusted Zhou Yan with full authority over this matter. When Xiao Fang called Zhou Yan over, Li Ba saw her wearing an apron, drenched in sweat, and noticeably thinner. Closing the office door, Li Ba said with concern, “Yan Yan, you must be exhausted from these past few days!” “I’m not tired,” Zhou Yan replied with a sweet smile. These past few days, she’d been busy tending to the bean sprouts while also cooking meals for over a dozen people—she really had been working herself to the bone. However, every night when she counted the grain coupons, all her fatigue and hardship vanished. “Look at you—you’ve lost so much weight, and yet you say you’re not tired.” Li Ba took her small hand in his and looked at her tenderly. “I’ve been neglectful! Here’s what we’ll do: go hire some extra help. Given the Merchant House’s current revenue, we should be hiring more staff—I can’t have you, the boss’s wife, running around nonstop all day.” Hearing these words, Zhou Yan felt a deep warmth in her heart. And Li Ba’s look, full of concern, made her heart swell with a sweet, indescribable joy. “Okay,” Zhou Yan nodded. “As for the hiring criteria… gender doesn’t matter. There’s just one requirement: people who’ve endured hardships and know how to be grateful.” “I understand.” Zhou Yan gave a charming smile. She was a smart woman and naturally understood the meaning behind Li Ba’s words. “That place is pretty chaotic. I’ll have Old Zhao take two of his men to accompany you.” Li Ba reached out to gently smooth Zhou Yan’s slightly disheveled hair and whispered in her ear, “You’re my woman. I want you to look beautiful every day and never have to lift a finger.” “I’ll do whatever you say.” Touched, Zhou Yan snuggled into Li Ba’s embrace like a little kitten, a blissful smile spreading across her face. Outside the city, at the refugee camp. From inside a makeshift wooden hut came the sound of heavy breathing. A full half hour later, the door opened, and a young woman walked out. She looked filthy, her hair a tangled mess that obscured her face. Only a pair of large, jet-black eyes were visible—eyes that had lost their sparkle and were now filled with a vacant, numb stare. Before the apocalypse, Liang Jing was a carefree and happy girl. She had parents who doted on her and a mischievous, adorable younger brother. She had a good job and a tall, rich, and handsome boyfriend. She enjoyed all the happiness a young girl should have. Who could have imagined that the apocalypse would strike? Her parents were infected with the virus one after the other and turned into zombies. She fled her home with her younger brother and, by sheer luck, ran into her boyfriend. The three of them fled together. The deaths of her parents left her heartbroken. Fortunately, she still had her boyfriend to lean on, and she resolved to survive in this hellish world with her younger brother. Things didn’t go as planned. She had underestimated the dangers of the apocalypse, and human nature revealed its ugliest side. Just when she needed help the most, her boyfriend betrayed her, forcing her to sell her body in exchange for a little food. She would rather die than do it, but in the end, her boyfriend threatened her younger brother’s life… and she had no choice but to give in. In the days that followed, she lived a nightmarish existence. Every day, she was abused by dozens of depraved monsters—a life worse than death. For her younger brother’s sake, she gritted her teeth and endured it. Finally, one day, she found an opportunity to escape that den of demons with her brother. They fled, and by a stroke of luck, the siblings made it to the Xibu settlement. They had hoped to start a new life there, but to their dismay, they were turned away at the city gates and reduced to the status of refugees. They struggled desperately to survive in that filthy, chaotic place. Grass roots, tree bark… she and her younger brother had eaten anything that could fill their stomachs. When they couldn’t even find grass roots within the safe zone, the siblings risked venturing outside it in search of food just to survive. As a result—and it happened just that one time—her brother was pricked by an unknown plant. He became completely paralyzed, unable to move, and never got out of bed again. To protect her brother and keep him out of the sights of the man-eating beasts in the refugee camp, Liang Jing never went out to look for food again. Instead, she began selling her body to support herself and her brother. Staring at the small piece of bran bread in her hand, a faint smile flickered across Liang Jing’s vacant eyes. It was the largest piece of bran bread she’d received in all these days. Although the man had just tortured her in every way imaginable, she still felt grateful to him for giving her this piece of bread. Her steps seemed to lighten as well. Liang Jing walked past several wooden huts and arrived at her home. To look after her younger brother, she didn’t dare stray too far, even when she was working. “Xiao Jie, I’ve brought you something delicious!” She pushed open the door, but to her surprise, her younger brother was nowhere to be seen on the makeshift wooden bed. After a moment of stunned silence, Liang Jing let out a shriek, grabbed the hoe leaning against the door, and ran out like a madwoman. “Beasts! Those damned beasts!” She knew exactly what had happened to her younger brother. She was also well aware of the areas where those man-eating beasts frequently roamed. Without hesitation, she headed straight for a house a hundred meters away, kicked open the wooden door, and saw her younger brother, Liang Jie, stripped naked and lying on the cold floor. “I’ll kill you all!” Liang Jing swung the hoe and brought it down with all her might. A blood-curdling scream rang out as the man closest to her had his skull shattered by the hoe and died instantly. The remaining three men snapped out of their shock and all lunged at her. “Kill that bitch!” “We’re having meat for dinner today!” Amid the shouts, Liang Jing was knocked to the ground. With her hands pinned down, she screamed and struggled desperately. One of the men snatched the hoe from her hands, raised it high, and brought it down hard on her head. Bang! Just as it seemed Liang Jing was about to die, a gunshot rang out. The man holding the hoe was struck as if by a sledgehammer; his body flew backward, blood spattering everywhere, and he was already dead by the time he hit the ground. The remaining two men, their faces frozen in horror, released Liang Jing and tried to flee. But the doorway was blocked; after two agonized screams, their bodies went limp and collapsed. Their necks had been cut by a sharp blade, and blood quickly spread from the wounds. They twitched a few times, then fell silent forever. “Xiao Jie。” Having narrowly escaped danger, Liang Jing immediately threw herself onto her younger brother. Seeing that he was unharmed, she breathed a sigh of relief. Then, she looked up and saw a beautiful woman standing in the narrow doorway. Behind her stood two burly men, each holding a dagger; the blades were stained with a streak of blood, from which droplets were trickling down. Clearly, they were the ones who had saved her and her younger brother. “Would you like to come with me into town?” the woman asked. As she spoke, she flashed a charming smile—she looked absolutely stunning. Go to the city! Liang Jing could hardly believe her ears. Going to the city—that was her greatest dream. “I’d love to!” The words slipped out before she could stop them. Then Liang Jing turned to look at her younger brother and asked timidly, “My brother… “Let’s go together.” The woman was quick-witted; she immediately understood what Liang Jing meant, nodded in agreement, and offered to take her younger brother along. Two burly men stepped forward, one on each side, grabbed Liang Jie by the arms, and dragged her out of the room. Liang Jing followed behind, her mind filled with curiosity about this group of people. Outside the refugee camp, on a tricycle, Liang Jing saw nine other survivors—all women. She recognized a few of them; like herself, they made a living by selling their bodies in the camp. “Could it be that they plan to take me and these women into the city… to do that kind of work?” She’d heard that quite a few female survivors in the city also worked as sex workers. At this thought, Liang Jing felt a sudden, inexplicable sense of relief. Even if she had to work as a sex worker in the city, it would be a million times better than staying in the refugee camp!
