Wasteland Border Inspector

Chapter 140 Sleet and Snow: An Unexpected Deviation!
On the first day of the migrants' arrival, the weather was surprisingly kind to them.

Unlike the continuous rain of the previous days, the sun peeked out early in the morning, and golden rays shone through the thin clouds into the buffer zone, making the puddles left from yesterday sparkle.

But looking towards the horizon, one can still see continuous dark clouds, like cotton wool soaked in ink, pressing heavily on the sky.

This suggests that the sunny weather is just a brief respite, and more continuous rain will soon follow.

"Based on past experience, this rain should end in about ten days to half a month."

Master Zhang gripped the steering wheel, looked out at the wispy clouds, and shook his head. "But this year, the weather has been really strange. It hasn't been normal since spring. Yesterday, I overheard some long-haul truck drivers talking about how the highest summer temperature in Hainan Province used to be no more than 40 degrees Celsius, but this year it has soared to 48 degrees Celsius, killing quite a few people."

He paused, a hint of wistfulness in his voice: "Now it's even stranger. It's July, but the nighttime temperature is almost below zero. Judging by the way the rain is lingering, it might rain all the way into September. It wouldn't be surprising if it snowed in the middle of it."

Cheng Ye didn't reply, but he was secretly making plans in his mind.

It's only mid-July now. If it really rains until September, wouldn't that be a whole month and a half of continuous rain?

If it really takes that long, the concern is not just about the mold, disease, and construction disruptions caused by the rainfall, but also the potential for the riverbank to breach.

If the riverbank breaches, Happiness City, due to its slightly higher elevation, might escape unscathed, but Yueye Shelter City will inevitably be the first to be affected.

This era lacks sufficient manpower and resources to regulate rivers; if it comes to that, it will be a catastrophic disaster.

Do superhumans have a way to control floods?
Cheng Ye wasn't quite sure. Faced with such immense natural power, unless the current superhumans still possessed the kind of world-destroying power he had seen from the eagle's perspective, there was absolutely no way they could plug the breach in the dam, which was about a hundred meters wide.

The bus came to a smooth stop in front of the South Inspection Station.

From afar, Cheng Ye saw Chu Yunfeng waiting by the platform.

To his surprise, Yu Qinghui was also by his side, as was Chu Xuan, who was about the same age as Liu Yi, wearing an oversized old coat and standing on tiptoe to look at the car.

The family of three huddled together in the cool breeze, sniffling from time to time, clearly shivering from the cold.

But as they huddled together, whispering and occasionally bursting into laughter, the vibrant energy of them leaning on each other in their distress stirred a strange sense of emotion within Cheng Ye.

Chu Yunfeng's adventure has come to an end; now it's time for his family to enjoy peace and happiness.

It remains to be seen whether, given the nature of Chu Yunfeng, he will settle in the buffer zone or risk venturing to the outer city to catch the first wave of development in the face of a large influx of migrants.

"Prosecutor Cheng!" Chu Yunfeng saw him first, quickly pulled his wife and children, and hurried over to greet him.

Cheng Ye pushed open the car door and got out, subconsciously opening the panel and glancing at it.

Well, it's finally back to normal.

Chu Yunfeng's cooperation level did not decrease; it remained at approximately 43%, similar to yesterday.

Yu Qinghui's cooperation rate rose to 36%, and Chu Xuan's, who had previously been at 0%, also jumped to 17%.

Well.

This child is quite vigilant.

Cheng Ye was about to close the panel when he suddenly stopped. Chu Xuan actually had a Lv1 skill that could be searched.
I took a closer look.

This kid is something else. He doesn't look particularly impressive, but his eyes reveal a certain tenacity.

Many adult scavengers may not have these skills, but I never expected that this child, who looks only seven or eight years old, would have them.

Could it be due to Chu Yunfeng's superior genes?
"Didn't I tell you to come at seven? Why are you waiting here so early?"

"Knowing that the situation outside is unusual today, and that you must be busy, I came early."

Chu Yunfeng rubbed Chu Xuan's face, which was red from the cold.

The little boy immediately understood and forced a slightly awkward smile. "Thank you, Prosecutor Cheng. Thank you, Uncle Cheng."

Is this how we get to the uncle generation?

Cheng Ye chuckled in surprise, his gaze meeting Yu Qinghui's gentle face.

"Prosecutor Cheng, thank you for your help to our family. We are truly grateful."

As Yu Qinghui spoke, she pulled out something wrapped in two layers of plastic bags from her bosom.

Upon opening it, Cheng Ye immediately recognized it as the cheapest notebook sold in the general store, which still cost 25 coins.

"Yunfeng said you need information about the Hundred Ghosts Gang. His handwriting is messy, so I wrote it for him. We have checked it several times, but please forgive us if there are still any mistakes."

His tone was sincere, and there was not a trace of pretense in his eyes.

Sincerity is indeed a killer move.

Cheng Ye sighed inwardly. This family of three was unusual in their manner of speaking and even more so in their abilities. They must have quite a few stories to tell.

But standing here now, I've shed all pretense towards him, and all that's left is pure gratitude.

Cheng Ye nodded slightly, only then noticing that Chu Yunfeng and Yu Qinghui both had faint dark circles under their eyes, and their eyes were bloodshot.

Clearly, neither of them slept well last night because of this note, and they probably didn't even close their eyes at all.

But then I thought about it again and it made sense. Maybe it wasn't just about copying intelligence; it was more likely that he was so excited about finally moving out of the shantytown that he couldn't sleep.

He took the notebook and opened it. To his surprise, he had written more than 20 pages in one day, with nearly 600 words on each page.

The handwriting was neat and tidy, without a single stroke connected to the next. Different colored pens were used to distinguish the various factions: red pen marked high-risk groups, such as gluttons, while black pen marked those with legitimate businesses, such as red-haired demons.

Turning to the very end, there was a folded piece of white paper that, when unfolded, revealed a map of the area outside the city, simply marked with the territories of various factions, covering a radius of two hundred kilometers.

However, compared to the detailed map of power distribution issued to the inspectors by the checkpoint, the one in my hand is still a bit simplified.

Even so, it is enough to prove Chu Yunfeng's excellent intelligence gathering ability.

However, precisely because of this, Cheng Ye became somewhat curious, so he simply closed his notebook and asked directly:
"When you came to Happiness City, didn't you find out what the checkpoint situation was like?"

"Uh"

Chu Yunfeng's smile froze instantly, then turned into an awkward chuckle, clearly understanding what Cheng Ye was referring to.

The family of three was completely unprepared when they were locked in an isolation cage and faced Garcia's difficult behavior.

This is so different from what he's actually showing now.

“We inquired,” he scratched his head, his tone somewhat helpless, “but we had just arrived in the buffer zone and only knew a little about the situation in Happiness City. We could only ask some elderly residents who had gone out to ask about the checkpoint.”

Like the blind men and the elephant!

The checkpoint, as described by the long-time residents, was an incorruptible place with strict rules, where there was no possibility of favoritism, wrongful conviction of innocent people, or letting infected individuals go free.

Regarding the despicable acts of setting up checkpoints and making things difficult, the long-time residents all use the north and south checkpoints. How many of them know what the situation is like at the central checkpoint now?
Moreover, the inspectors they mentioned were all like wound-up machines, only recognizing regulations and not personal feelings, and trying to get lenient treatment through pleading.

There are no doors!

This involves the timeliness of intelligence, and even more so, the cognitive biases of each individual.

As things stand, Chu Yunfeng doesn't think there's anything wrong with the information he's gathered.

All I can say is that among the 150 prosecutors, their personalities and styles vary greatly. Encountering someone like Garcia was just bad luck, while encountering someone like Cheng Ye was a stroke of luck. Everything was within the realm of possibility.

Just like in the buffer zone, they encountered many bad people and many good people.

"Let's go get the money."

Cheng Ye put the notebook into his backpack, picked up the armored case, and led the way toward the checkpoint.

He didn't need to worry about the settlement; the people from the purchasing department had already come last night to count the value of the equipment.

I don't know exactly how it was calculated, but the final total value was set at 2670 Happiness Coins.

After the 40% commission is set according to the rules, Chu Yunfeng will receive 1602 coins, which is definitely a huge sum of money in the buffer zone.

Although it's only enough for a family of three to drink nutritional syrup for 100 days, it's more than enough to buy a decent place to live.

After all, this is savings that can be kept in hand, not money to survive on every day.

Looking at the buffer zone, 99% of ordinary people's money is consumed by nutrient syrup and living supplies, and it is not easy to save 200 coins in a year.

At the same time, as the inspector in charge, Cheng Ye also received a 5% commission, which is 133 coins.

Happiness coins weren't very useful to him when he first transmigrated, and they're even less attractive now.

Unless you have tens or hundreds of thousands of Happiness Coins, it won't affect the overall situation.

"Thank you, thank you!"

Chu Yunfeng stood in front of the settlement window, thanking the staff inside repeatedly. Finally, he took out 16 Happiness Coins with a face value of 100 and carefully put them into his inner pocket. He then turned around and handed the remaining two 1-yuan coins to Chu Xuan.

The little boy immediately clutched it in his hand, beaming with delight, turning it over and over in the sunlight as if he were holding some rare treasure.

My defense communication number is 96061.

Cheng Ye had just finished giving Chu Yunfeng his contact information when he suddenly remembered that Chu Yunfeng hadn't been in Happiness City for 60 days and wasn't yet eligible to receive the terminal, so he changed his mind and said:
"Here's what you'll do: if you need anything in the future, just go to Tianyuan Mall in Zone B-7 and find Dalong. Just tell him my name, and he'll call me when he finds out."

"Okay, okay, thank you for your help." Chu Yunfeng nodded repeatedly, his face not showing the usual elation of someone who had suddenly become rich, but rather a restrained calmness in his eyes.

This made Cheng Ye look at the family with even greater respect. It seemed that this family was indeed extraordinary, but now was not the time to inquire about their background.

Let's wait until later. Once we get to know them better, we'll gradually learn about their stories.

"By the way, did you hear the little sun this morning?" he asked casually.

"Yes, we heard that someone on the platform had a radio on, and we listened to it," Yu Qinghui quickly replied.

"That's perfect." Cheng Ye looked at Chu Yunfeng. "The outer city plan is about to start. With this money, are you planning to change your accommodation in the buffer zone, or try to venture into the outer city?"

"A buffer zone, perhaps."

Chu Yunfeng answered almost without thinking, then paused for a moment, as if realizing he had answered too hastily, and forced a slightly forced smile.

Cheng Ye instantly understood the complexity in that smile.

It seems that Chu Yunfeng was not a naturally adventurous person, or rather, his past ambition and drive likely led to some setbacks, which is why he became "once bitten, twice shy".

The fact that Long Li dropped to level one back then is probably also related to this past experience.

“Okay!” Cheng Ye nodded. Since Chu Yunfeng had made a firm choice, he didn’t try to persuade him any further. He simply gestured with his eyes that they could leave.

"Then we won't disturb your duty any longer."

Chu Yunfeng held Yu Qinghui's hand, while Chu Xuan followed closely between them, his little hand still clutching the two coins. The family of three bowed slightly to Cheng Ye before turning around and slowly walking out of the checkpoint.

Only after walking a long way and being out of Cheng Ye's sight did his steps become noticeably lighter, as if a heavy burden had been lifted, and an irrepressible joy filled the air.

"Remember this family's information. If there are any changes to their residence information, report it to me immediately via the defense communication system. It would be best to ask the person handling the handover for details." Cheng Ye turned his head and instructed the staff at the settlement window.

"Yes, Inspector Cheng," the staff member inside immediately straightened up and replied.

Whether in modern times or the wasteland, no matter how sincere or fake the other party appears, and no matter whether the other party is a dangerous person or an ordinary person, he will not easily open his heart to someone whose background he cannot understand.

This is a principle of conduct that he established from a young age.

In modern times, if people let their guard down, they may only encounter betrayal or deception, and years of hard work may go to waste.

But in the wasteland, it could mean death, the price of a life.

Before thoroughly understanding Chu Yunfeng's true background and ensuring a stable chain of interests between the two, Cheng Ye was not in a hurry to get closer to him.

Currently, it is still safer and less prone to errors to approach the search for the Four Forces through Miao Yang.

Swipe your card, time to go to work.

When Cheng Ye passed through the disinfection channel and arrived at the inspection area, he couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

There are even more people now.

Despite being open all night, the number of scavengers blocking the entrance to Quarantine Zone B seemed to remain unchanged, with hundreds still queuing outside the passage for inspection. Each person wore the weariness of staying up all night, yet their eyes were wide open and alert as they stared ahead.

What's even more outrageous is the quarantine area A.

The winding line of cars stretched for at least two or three kilometers, extending deep into the fog, much like the massive traffic jams on highways during annual holidays.

Hundreds of people stood beside the convoy, carrying their bags and sitting on the ground, occasionally looking up in the direction of the checkpoint, waiting for the convoy to move slowly forward.

As for Zone C, it didn't assist the central inspection zone in accepting migrants as he had expected. Instead, it relieved some of the pressure on Quarantine Zone B by being responsible for inspecting scavengers.

Occasionally, unsuspecting refugees would come by, but the patrolling guards would politely ask them to leave and guide them to the central checkpoint.

Is the higher-ups trying to concentrate everyone at the central checkpoint, rather than redistributing them as quickly as possible?
With so many people crowding the central checkpoint, won't a major accident happen?

Is it
Cheng Ye stopped in his tracks, stood there for a moment, countless thoughts flashing through his mind, his expression changing slightly.

The arrangements for the migrants seemed to be progressing in the direction he envisioned, yet at certain crucial points they completely deviated from his plan.
Those deviations were precisely the parts he had never experienced, and the cruelties of this land that he least wanted to touch.

"Hopefully, it's not what I'm thinking, otherwise..."

Cheng Ye took a few deep breaths, but his chest still felt a little tight.

To be fair, he is also the kind of person who is willing to pay a price for his goals.

But he had long been accustomed to drawing these costs from himself, rather than treating the fates of others as bargaining chips to be sacrificed at will.

"Prosecutor Cheng, come and take over the shift, I'm so sleepy I can't stay awake any longer."

After seeing off another group of people waiting for testing, Song Hai noticed Cheng Ye standing in the isolation area in a daze. He suddenly stood up from his chair and shouted wearily.

The intensity of working through the night is almost three to five times that of daytime duty, especially when the infected enter an outbreak state, each response requires a lot of mental energy.

In addition, last night there was a chaotic outbreak caused by an infected person outside, and he and Gu Xinjing were forced to go out with the guards to suppress it.

One night of work was more tiring than a week of regular duty.

And this kind of life will continue tonight and tomorrow night.

Unless Station Chief Ding Yishan orders a halt, they will have to endure this until they die.

"Here they come, thank you for your hard work, Prosecutor Song."

Cheng Ye strode into the inspection area, his gaze sweeping across a corner where he saw Gu Xinjing sleeping on a makeshift bed on the floor.

Hearing the isolation door open, he rubbed his eyes and sat up, his face still showing a deep weariness, and the dark circles under his eyes were even more obvious than Chu Yunfeng's.

"Let's go, Lao Gu, it's Prosecutor Cheng's turn to take over. Go back and rest, we have to come back tonight."

Song Hai greeted them, and the two didn't exchange any further pleasantries.

After all, there are still hundreds of people blocking the way outside, and we can't afford to delay them.

After quickly completing the routine procedures, Song Hai handed over an extra wireless communicator: "This is for emergency communication. It's a new rule from last night. If you encounter a situation that can't be controlled, just call the guards."

"Received." Cheng Ye took the communicator and clipped it to his waist. As soon as he adjusted the channel, a clear female voice came through: "Inspector Cheng, we are the Third Guard Team responsible for maintaining order in Area B. I am Captain Fei Yan. We will assist you in maintaining order outside the passage to ensure the smooth progress of the inspection."

"Thank you."

Cheng Ye nodded in agreement. Standing behind, he could see a team of well-equipped guards outside the yellow line, guiding the scavengers to line up in an orderly manner.

Looking further ahead, several military green pickup trucks carrying guards could be seen shuttling back and forth to maintain order.

With these people maintaining order, there's no need to worry about sudden chaos, no matter how large the number of people is.

Furthermore, the Blood Dragon Legion and the Crusader Legion have likely already begun sweeping through the surrounding area to eliminate potential sources of infection.

As a result, although there are far more people who need to be checked right now than usual, the overall risk level may actually be lower.

Of course, danger is always relative.

As soon as the isolation door opened, under Cheng Ye's somewhat helpless gaze, the two scavengers had only asked a few questions when their skin visibly turned bluish-green, and their muscles bulged and swelled.

This 'green giant' infection source, which is widely active in the wilderness, is actually not difficult to prevent.

Simply avoid areas with rampant vegetation and try to prevent your skin from coming into contact with unknown plants.

However, when faced with special circumstances, many people subconsciously overlook this point.

Like the guide fish or the cliff ghost, once they forget the danger, they are not far from death.

This time, however, Cheng Ye didn't draw his gun. Instead, he deftly pulled out the Whirlwind Dagger from his waist and darted out like a cheetah.

Generally speaking, the Hulk will immediately enter an explosive state when he encounters danger or tension.

The two men didn't change after they came in, but they did after he asked them a few questions. This shows that they didn't really think the young prosecutor posed a deadly threat.

Okay, let's give it a try.

Facing the Hulk's massive arm, Cheng Ye deftly dodged to the side, his short dagger flashing like a venomous snake as it precisely stabbed at the opponent's neck, his wrist twisting in the process.

The first infected person groaned and collapsed to the ground, twitching twice before falling silent.

Another Hulk roared and charged forward without dodging or avoiding. Cheng Ye sighed and raised his foot to kick the other's knee with precision.

With a crisp "crack," the Hulk's leg was broken by the immense, brute force. He instantly lost his balance and fell to his knees. Before he could even lift his head, the Whirlwind Dagger was already firmly embedded in his throat, the action swift and decisive.

Within three to five seconds, the two infected individuals fell completely silent.

When Cheng Ye retracted his dagger, not a single drop of blood touched the hem of his clothes; it was as if he had merely brushed off the dust from his shoulders.

The scavengers queuing outside fell silent instantly, and even the people in the neighboring A and C sections stood on tiptoe to look this way, their eyes filled with more or less surprise.

So young, yet so ruthless.
Cheng Ye twitched the corners of his mouth, revealing a cryptic smile, tossed the blood-stained Whirlwind Dagger to the soldier in charge of cleaning up beside him, and shouted loudly outside:

"Next group!"

There was a time when he truly feared these mutated monsters and dreaded close-quarters combat where life and death hung in the balance.

However, as their strength grows and they embark on the path of becoming extraordinary, unless they encounter an extremely powerful infected entity like the Rotten Vine again, the ordinary threats they face at the checkpoints are no longer considered truly dangerous.

To qualify for contract work, having brains alone is not enough; one must also possess the corresponding strength and decisive methods.

His current duty is precisely the best opportunity for him to demonstrate these abilities.

In a blink of an eye.

three days later.

It was almost midnight when Wang Kang arrived early to take over his shift.

The tacit understanding between the two has gradually become apparent during this period of adjustment.

However, Wang Kang's shift has come to an end, and today is his last day at the South Checkpoint.

According to the announcements released by the checkpoint in the past two days, all duty posts will be taken over by second-phase inspectors at least to deal with any possible accidents.

Normally, this would be a good thing, meaning that one can temporarily escape the vortex of danger.

But at that moment, Cheng Ye stood up, stretched, and was about to hand the duty manual to Wang Kang.

drop.

His defense communication device suddenly vibrated. He picked it up and glanced at it, his expression subtly changing.

"Brother Cheng, what's wrong?" Wang Kang curiously took out his defense communication device, but found no notifications.

"It's okay, I set an alarm."

Cheng Ye smiled and waved his hand, then calmly turned off the screen and quickly completed the shift handover.

After finishing his shift, he sat down on the recliner in the corner as usual and opened the defense terminal again. However, the screen did not display the alarm clock interface, but instead froze on the weather forecast page, with several lines of information standing out prominently:
[Weather forecast for Happiness City next week]

[July 21, 35th year of the New Era: Cloudy turning to moderate to heavy rain]

[July 22, 35th year of the New Era: Moderate to heavy rain turning to sleet]

【...】

[July 26, 35th year of the new era, light rain turning to light snow]

[During the 4th week of July in the 35th year of the new era, temperatures will be fluctuating; please take precautions against the cold!]

　P.S.: There will be another chapter later, it might be a little late~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)