Natural Disaster: I Started By Hoarding Tens Of Billions Of Supplies

Chapter 243: Li Tianyu



Long Yu and Yao Ran's route was different from that of most other survivors, and there were not many vehicles or survivors walking on the road.

Four hours later, Long Yu drove out of the highway and said, "Ran Ran, we are almost there."

Yao Ran opened her eyes and looked around, noticing an increase in vehicles on the road. By the time they reached Hubin Lake, the sky had just started to brighten. Glancing at the clock on the dashboard, Yao Ran saw that it was three o'clock in the morning.

Throughout the journey, they encountered numerous survivors with numb expressions, moving forward like the walking dead. As dawn approached, the survivors desperately searched for shelter from the sun, as exposure to the sunlight could burn them to death. None of the survivors seemed envious of Long Yu and Yao Ran's truck. The interior of vehicles could become unbearably hot when the sun came out, even hotter than the outside.

The survivors had recently seen a van carrying a family run out of fuel. When they couldn't find gasoline or water, the van suddenly exploded on the road. The explosion was so fast that rescuing the family inside was impossible, resulting in tragic casualties among both the family and innocent bystanders.

The survivors knew that all vehicles could face a similar fate as that family. Because of this risk, no one attempted to rob them.

Arriving at Hubin Lake, Long Yu and Yao Ran noticed that the lake water was murky, requiring filtration before it could be used. However, the extreme heat wasn't as intense here, and it seemed that Hubin Lake won't dry up in the near future.

Long Yu noticed soldiers stationed nearby and murmured, "It looks like the Second Army has taken control of Hubin Lake."

Yao Ran turned to him and asked, "How can you tell it's the Second Army and not the First Army?"n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Pointing toward a soldier in his thirties in the distance, Long Yu replied, "That is Li Tianyu, the captain of the Second Army's vanguard team. I have worked with him a few times, and we can be counted as acquaintances."

Yao Ran looked at Li Tianyu for a moment, then at Long Yu and asked, "Should we talk to him?"

Long Yu shook his head and said, "We can just line up like everyone else to get water." "Alright."

After parking the truck, they locked the doors and joined the queue. Yao Ran scanned her surroundings, observing both the soldiers and the survivors.

She soon spotted a notice board near the lake and guided Long Yu over. The board displayed a list of rules, which she read carefully.

Survivors could fetch water but were required to show ID. Each person was allowed only one bucket of water per day.

For larger quantities, they would need to trade supplies, the amount of which would be determined by how much water they requested. All survivors had to register, and the military had strict penalties for people who waste water.

Yao Ran looked at the two lines of long queues and said, "There are two queues there. I think one queue should be for registration, and the other is to fetch water."

Long Yu read the rules and said, "We might need to negotiate with the soldiers since we are taking a large amount of water."

Hearing what he said, Yao Ran whispered, "Let's just take the two buckets of water and leave. Later, we can find a secluded spot, and I will fill the containers myself. Negotiating with them would cost us extra supplies."

After some thought, Long Yu agreed. "Alright."

They registered their names, joined the line, and waited nearly two hours before receiving their allotted water and returning to the truck.

Just as they were preparing to leave, Long Yu spotted Li Tianyu approaching from afar.

He said, "Ran Ran, go wait in the truck."

Yao Ran glanced briefly at Li Tianyu, then loaded the two buckets of water into the truck compartment and climbed into the passenger seat.

From afar, Li Tianyu saw Yao Ran get into the truck and raised an eyebrow. He then observed Long Yu with interest in his eyes.

Standing before Long Yu, he saluted and said, "Captain Long, long time no see."

Long Yu returned the salute and replied, "I'm retired now, Captain Li. Just call me Long Yu."

Li Tianyu sighed and said, "I heard about your retirement. I didn't believe it at first, but I guess it's true."

Long Yu simply smiled but said nothing. Li Tianyu glanced at the truck and asked, "Are you here to get water?"

"Yes, but we didn't bring supplies, so we will just take what we can get today." Long Yu replied calmly.

Li Tianyu took a step closer to Long Yu, lowered his voice, and said, "Captain Long, I have heard some rumors lately."

Long Yu raised an eyebrow and asked with a hint of interest in his voice, "What kind of rumors?"

Glancing at Yao Ran, who was sitting in the passenger seat, Li Tianyu said, "Some brothers in the First Army say that your girlfriend is Commander Xu's niece. Is it true?"

Long Yu nodded, and then he saw Li Tianyu's eyes light up. Narrowing his eyes, Long Yu asked, "Captain Li, why do you ask about my girlfriend?"

Seeing the warning in Long Yu's gaze, Li Tianyu coughed lightly and smiled, "Brother, they said that your girlfriend donated a lot of supplies to the First Army. Is it true?"

Long Yu nodded, and Li Tianyu asked eagerly, "Do you still have any supplies to donate to the Second Army?"

"Didn't you receive supplies from the First Army?" Long Yu asked in confusion.

Li Tianyu paused for a second and then hesitantly said, "We did, but... I'm asking if your girlfriend has cigarettes in stock."

Long Yu recalled that Li Tianyu was a heavy smoker. After the floods, extreme cold, and extreme heat, most of the supplies were likely already ruined.