An Nuan strolled through the neighborhood, noticing that some houses in the villa area had sustained damage, though not severe. The developer had been quite conscientious.
"This residential area is well-positioned, nestled against the mountains and by the water. There's a river about four kilometers away, and the land is flat, offering high development potential."
"You want to develop it? Where would we find people to develop it now?"
"As long as there's food and supplies, there will always be labor."
Fu Yunting mused that if labor was insufficient, zombies could be utilized. It would be more efficient and less troublesome.
An Nuan also considered redeveloping the neighborhood. Originally, this area was quite expansive, sparsely populated, and she had even reduced the population somewhat. It backed onto Guishan Mountain and had two small lakes, seemingly ideal for conversion into a base. However, An Nuan lacked architectural knowledge and was unsure if it was feasible.
Fu Yunting saw through her thoughts. "If you want to renovate, technical aspects are not an issue, nor is labor. We just need to find a few more senior engineers. Ideally, we'd connect your area and my building into a single line."
An Nuan was stunned by his proposal. Although Fu Yunting's energy building was not in the city center but near the economic development zone, the distance between the two points was 18 kilometers, about 26 kilometers by car. This encompassed a vast area. Redeveloping such a large region wouldn't be a simple undertaking that could be completed in one or two years. Even urban redevelopment plans in the past wouldn't dare attempt something like this.
Fu Yunting said, "Scared? It's nothing. It's just like investing billions back then; now we invest food. It's not difficult."
"After the renovation, I'll be the queen inside, and you'll be the king?"
"Are you saying you're willing to marry me?"
An Nuan had just said it casually, and how had it escalated to marriage? She turned away and cursed, "Dream on! You shameless creature."
Fu Yunting was happy even when being cursed at. "Love and war are the same," his brother Fu Yunlei had said, and he felt it was true. Fu Yunting felt that An Nuan did have feelings for him. He’d have to give Fu Yunlei an extra chicken leg when they got back!
"Um... hello. We mean no harm. We just want to talk to you." A young woman in her twenties emerged from a villa. She tied a small white tank top to a clothes pole and waved it in front of her, saying, "We mean no harm, we just want to chat. Can you spare a few minutes?"
An Nuan lived in the east district, while this was the west. The group that had previously bullied Luoluo was in the east district, so An Nuan hadn't ventured here. If Fu Yunting hadn't accompanied her for a walk today, she might not have known people lived here.
An Nuan's eyes darted around. Fu Yunting spoke first. "Talking about supplies? We have them, but we don't want to give them away."
"No, no. Our family had set up a storefront at the entrance of the villa area to open a supermarket, so we have basic supplies and can hold out for a while. But we saw you drive away the outsiders just now, and we wanted to discuss something with you."
The young woman stepped out from the house, sensing An Nuan wasn't about to attack. An Nuan sensed she was a first-tier ability user, likely offensive, which allowed her to protect these supplies. A man followed her out, along with a husky, which rushed out and tilted its head curiously at An Nuan. An Nuan liked huskies; as long as they didn't wreck her house, they were perfect dogs in her opinion. Cute and amusing.
The young woman said, "My name is Jin Can. This is my younger brother, Jin Lan. My mother is a bit weak inside, so I didn't let her come out."
"My name is An Nuan, and this is Fu Yunting." Since others introduced themselves, An Nuan, out of politeness, also introduced herself.
"Sister An, we want to say that you are very strong and have a powerful team to protect this residential area. I hope we can cooperate. We will give you supplies, a commission, or we can divide tasks and follow your arrangements, but can you protect us?"
"Protect you? Aren't you a first-tier ability user?"
When Jin Can saw them fighting, she knew she couldn't hide this. So, she revealed her ability. Water elements swirled around her.
"A water element ability user? What can you do?"
"My attack power is like a water gun. I usually engulf people's heads with water to suffocate them."
There must have been people in the neighborhood with ill intentions. Especially the members of Purple Star before. They were constantly searching for supplies, so they wouldn't have let Jin Can go unnoticed. Ming Le hadn't mentioned Jin Can's situation to her, likely because the area was under Purple Star's responsibility, and they were too embarrassed to mention their loss to Ming Le. Water element users are also very rare. Those who can conjure water out of thin air are exceptionally valuable in the later stages. They can directly monetize their abilities! An Nuan became slightly interested.
"I live in this neighborhood, so of course, I won't let outsiders in. It's not a matter of you paying protection fees."
"But we want to join you. If you don't ask for anything, I won't feel at ease."
"In that case, you can join my team and help me search for things I want. Your family's supplies don't hold much appeal for me. I need you to do something else."
"Kill zombies?"
To be honest, Jin Can was quite afraid. The neighbor's zombie transformation previously had been too ferocious. Jin Can had barely managed to kill him, and she had some lingering trauma from killing people and zombies. Her tone lacked confidence. Such people would likely be the first to die in battle. Moreover, zombies don't breathe, so engulfing their heads with water balls would be useless. This tactic only worked on living people.
Fu Yunting surveyed the house. "Your house wasn't affected by the hurricane?"
"My mother is an architect. When she bought this house, she made some modifications. Before the storm, she also reinforced it a bit. Except for the roof and the yard, the main structure is fine."
An architect? It was as if her wish had come true! These two had dropped from the sky, and it would be a disservice to heaven if An Nuan didn't take them in. Fu Yunting felt the same. He and An Nuan both conceived an interesting and bold idea. An Nuan, in particular, had never considered this before, only wanting to lie flat. But now, it seemed the apocalypse was forcing people to be diligent and proactive. If she couldn't lie flat, why not... become a queen and dominate a region? An Nuan chuckled at her own thought. When had she become so absurd?
Fu Yunting, however, found it perfectly reasonable. In his own territory, he was the supreme ruler, much like a king. His woman being a queen was only natural.
"Let's make the neighborhood our territory. Those living here must follow our arrangements. Anyone unwilling to comply can step forward, and we will provide them with supplies and ask them to leave."
"What about those who refuse to leave?" Jin Can asked, then immediately felt the question was foolish. An Nuan and Fu Yunting smiled slightly. This was the apocalypse, after all. If they didn't want to obey, they could scram. What, would they be kept for the New Year?