Chapter 60: Debts Must Be Repaid — A Principle of Heaven and Earth
To prevent any unexpected trouble, Gao Qiqiang deliberately split A-Biao and his group into different vehicles. He himself took A-Biao and Xiao Mei in the lead SUV.
As the convoy started moving again, Gao Qiqiang chatted casually with A-Biao, feigning concern, "Brother A-Biao, looks like you've suffered a lot up on the mountain, huh?"
The numerous shocking scars on A-Biao's exposed skin confirmed the harshness of his ordeal. After struggling through the apocalypse for so long, Gao Qiqiang guessed that even Phoenix Mountain wasn't peaceful.
"You're right, Boss Gao. There was a certain guy up there who was really detestable!" A-Biao said, his teeth itching in hatred at the thought of Su Chen.
He briefly told Gao Qiqiang about what happened on the mountain but omitted the part about hunting survivors as food.
Gao Qiqiang was surprised, "That young man driving the Nomadison — is his name Su Chen?"
"How do you know him? Are you familiar with him?" A-Biao asked, startled.
"Of course I know him. That bastard owes me over ten million!" Gao Qiqiang said through gritted teeth.
Back when he lent Su Chen a high-interest loan, the apocalypse struck before repayment was due. Gao Qiqiang tried calling Su Chen several times, but since Su Chen was stuck on Phoenix Mountain without network, there was no response.
He was frustrated for a long time until social order collapsed and money became worthless, which somewhat eased his mind. He had almost forgotten about Su Chen, but hearing the name again from A-Biao caught him off guard.
From what A-Biao said, it seemed Su Chen knew the apocalypse was coming in advance. That meant he had been deceived.
Gao Qiqiang's expression darkened.
"Since we both have grudges against him, this trip back is the perfect chance to settle the score!"
"That's fantastic!" A-Biao was overjoyed.
The two chatted further, and Gao Qiqiang got a good grasp of the situation on Phoenix Mountain. Actually, Gao's goal wasn't just revenge on Su Chen — more importantly, he wanted to seize the Nomadison and take control of Phoenix Mountain.
…
Unaware of Gao Qiqiang and A-Biao's scheme, Su Chen was busy directing survivors to continue gathering supplies. Except for cotton clothes and blankets, any resources useful for building a base were collected and brought back to the Yuelton Hotel.
The Green Forest Hotel was located in the middle of the scenic area and had no geographical advantages. The Yuelton Hotel, on the other hand, sat at the very edge, at a very high elevation, and was surrounded by open space.
By setting up checkpoints at the entrances, anyone approaching could be seen clearly.
After careful consideration, Su Chen decided to use Yuelton Hotel as a temporary base, planning to adjust later as needed.
"Hmm…" Su Chen woke from sleep, slowly opening his eyes to see Liu Linger beside him.
"A-Chen, I've made breakfast. Get up and eat!" Liu Linger said.
After all this time training, Liu Linger had become obedient to Su Chen. He no longer made her sleep alone on the second floor, allowing her to move freely on the first.
Breakfast today was homemade soy milk and fried dough sticks. Simple, but precious in the apocalypse.
Just as Su Chen finished eating, a tense voice came over the walkie-talkie — He Wang.
"Brother Su, bad news!"
"What's wrong, Brother He?" Su Chen asked casually, suspecting it was just trouble from other survivors.
"Someone suddenly showed up, dropped off a walkie-talkie, and said it was sent by A-Biao!"
He Wang's words made Su Chen pause. Didn't A-Biao leave Phoenix Mountain already? Why would he send someone with a walkie-talkie now?
Sensing something was off, Su Chen instructed Liu Linger, "Wait for me in the car!"
Liu Linger noticed his expression and nodded obediently without question.
Su Chen prepared himself and decided to take his short shotgun along.
After these days, he trusted He Wang, Sun Yuan, and a few others but remained cautious of the rest.
The Nomadison was parked behind the Yuelton Hotel, near an open courtyard.
Su Chen got out of the car, holding an umbrella, and walked to a nearby office building.
He Wang and Sun Yuan were waiting inside.
"Brother Su, here's the walkie-talkie!" He Wang handed it over.
Su Chen didn't contact anyone immediately. Instead, he asked, "Did you see the person who brought this?"
"No," He Wang shook his head.
When A-Biao first arrived at Phoenix Mountain, there were only seven or eight people, plus some hotel employees recruited from Manager Dang's team, totaling around twenty. He Wang knew all of them, so he was sure the messenger was an outsider.
"So it looks like there's an outsider on Phoenix Mountain," Su Chen judged.
He Wang and Sun Yuan exchanged worried glances.
They had hoped that after A-Biao left, Phoenix Mountain would calm down. But barely a few days later, A-Biao was back, bringing outsiders and violence!
"Forget it. Let's talk to them first and see what their plans are."
The walkie-talkie channel had been pre-set.
Su Chen pressed the button and said in a deep voice, "A-Biao? What do you want with me?"
"Ha! Brother Su, it's not A-Biao looking for you — it's me!" came a somewhat familiar voice from the other side.
Su Chen frowned for a moment before recognizing the caller.
"Brother Qiang?"
"That's right, it's me!" Gao Qiqiang laughed heartily and leisurely said, "It's only been less than a month since we split up, but so much has changed!"
He then sneered, "Brother Su, how about settling that debt you owe me?"
Su Chen almost laughed out loud. From the start, he never planned to repay it. Otherwise, why would he have gone crazy to borrow from a loan shark?
"Brother Qiang, are you still half-asleep? It's this kind of time and you're still thinking about that money?!"
Su Chen's sarcasm didn't anger Gao Qiqiang, who calmly replied, "No matter what time it is, debts must be repaid — that's a principle of heaven and earth."
"If you can't pay, then according to our contract, that Nomadison of yours belongs to me!"