Wasteland Border Inspector

Chapter 169 The Cycle of History: The Second Batch of Satellite Cities Launched!
The rain came down with unusual ferocity, almost like the rain that comes when summer rains have just passed through.

The torrential rain pounded on the ground, splashing water half a foot high.

The buffer zone quickly filled with water, especially in several old streets in the city center, where the water was already above ankle level. Pedestrians waded through the water and their trouser legs were instantly soaked.

The refugee tent area outside the Happiness Defense Line also experienced a minor commotion due to the rainstorm.

The canvas tents fluttered in the wind, and many people braved the rain to reinforce them, fearing that their homes would be flooded.

Fortunately, order has gradually been established in the migrant community recently, and the guards responsible for maintaining order arrived quickly, suppressing the disturbance of the crowd in no time.

Soon after, the searchlights at the top of the defensive line suddenly lit up, their pale beams piercing the rain and illuminating the entire tent area as if it were daytime.

Thousands of people clad in black raincoats emerged from the tents, shovels in hand, and began clearing drainage ditches along pre-planned routes.

Although the rainfall came suddenly and was not included in the weather forecast.

But Happiness City had already prepared a complete contingency plan. The people moved quickly and efficiently, shoveling out the silt and debris that were blocking the way, ensuring that the water could drain into the distant low-lying areas along the ditches, thus preventing the tents from being flooded.

Meanwhile, a pickup truck with a "checkpoint" sign was braving the torrential rain to head into the inner city from the buffer zone.

The wheels rolled over the puddles, splashing water like a small boat gliding across the surface, leaving two long trails of water behind them.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Ding Yishan watched the flooded streets flash by outside the window and couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement; "They've been working on it for so long, and the drainage still isn't working."

For nearly half a month, the buffer zone has been repairing the underground pipe network, but after a rainstorm, it still ended up like this.

This indicates that the buffer zone's drainage system has long been inadequate and requires a complete overhaul.

Despite his sighs, he couldn't hide the joy in his eyes.

As soon as the car entered the parking lot of the inner city venue, before Jiang Chuan had even brought the car to a complete stop, Ding Yishan grabbed the file bag on his lap and rushed inside in the rain.

In the past week, there have been twenty or thirty meetings of varying sizes.

But today's meeting is more important than any other.

The meeting room was already quite full of people, all of whom were heads of various departments in the buffer zone.

When Ding Yishan entered, everyone stood up and nodded in greeting, but few people spoke.

These past few days, everyone has been working tirelessly on the construction of the satellite city and the resettlement of displaced people, with their eyes bloodshot and their sleep time reduced to less than four hours a day. They are practically fighting with their lives on the line, and they have no energy left for pleasantries.

They're holding on, waiting for that turning point where they can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Today seems to be the time for a turning point.

Not long after, Hou Rui strode into the meeting room carrying a stack of documents, his face beaming with joy.

He didn't bother with any formalities; as soon as he stepped onto the stage, he waved the documents in his hand and announced, "Ladies and gentlemen! We have just received confirmation from the satellite of the City of Fire and Fire that the fog that had enveloped the entire Shi Province has completely dissipated!"

"it is good!"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone in the hall stood up and burst into applause.

Everyone's face broke into a long-lost smile, and even the weariness in their eyes seemed to have faded.

Compared to the drainage problems caused by torrential rain, fog is the real "time bomb" hanging over everyone's heads.

Before it dissipates, no one can guarantee that it won't suddenly erupt again, whether it will cause a larger-scale cooling, or whether more unknown sources of infection will emerge from the fog hole, disrupting the construction plan of Happiness City.

The confirmation that the fog has cleared is undoubtedly fantastic news.

Happiness City no longer needs to be distracted by the threats in the fog; it only needs to focus on dealing with the sources of infection that have gathered outside the defense line.

Even the sweeping zone can be completely expanded, from the current fifty kilometers to a surrounding two hundred kilometers. With a wider safe zone, the construction of satellite cities can be more solid.

After the applause subsided, Hou Rui picked up another document and his tone gradually became serious: "However, we cannot let our guard down. According to past data on air fog, the probability of another outbreak within one month after a large-scale air fog event is 3.5%, within three months it is 19.7%, and within six months it is 28.3%. The threat has not disappeared. Although the longer the time, the smaller the scale of the outbreak, the risk still exists."

He paused, his gaze sweeping across the room: "Going forward, all departments must remain vigilant, especially ensuring that patrols along the defensive lines are not reduced, and that early warning equipment in the satellite cities is installed as soon as possible. Only by completely stabilizing the situation can we confidently proceed with subsequent construction."

"Yes!"

The crowd responded in unison, their voices even louder than before.

The news that the fog had cleared was like a reassurance, easing the tense atmosphere in the meeting room. Hou Rui's reminder that "we cannot relax" only fueled everyone's enthusiasm.

Next, as usual, various infrastructure information began to be synchronized with each other.

"We have completely wiped out the seventeen mercenary organizations from Hai Province, capturing more than 450 people in total. According to the interrogation information, the mercenaries should be Guanghong Sanctuary City, Huanhai Sanctuary City, Baiyu Sanctuary City, and Jiuchuan Sanctuary City. We will arrange diplomatic contact to exert pressure later."

"The massive explosion that occurred in Wenlu County the day before yesterday is suspected to be caused by some of the displaced people being infected with explosive bees, but it has not yet been determined whether someone deliberately sent them or brought them out from the fog. A detailed report will be released within two days."

"It has been determined that the inspectors and key personnel involved in the satellite city's contracted operations have all been put on the wanted list by assassin organizations in the surrounding four provinces. The highest bounty currently is on six fifth-term inspectors, all of whom have an S-level bounty. Fourth-term inspectors are all A+, and third-term inspectors are A-. Please allocate guard teams according to the different bounty levels to ensure the safety of the inspectors and to prevent any security lapses."

"The whereabouts of the infection wave that disappeared in Xiasha County last winter have been found. It is hiding in the underground pipe network of Shunyi County, 130 kilometers away. There are about 57,000 people suspected of being infected with 'Qiansui Ice Frog'. We are conducting a small-scale trial investigation and will provide the research results within three days."

"The 47th array, which is expected to bring 21,000 migrants to Happiness City in six days, has been confirmed to be infected with Soul-Eating Worms. Among them, 17,000 cannot be cured. We request the activation of the third-level disinfection and sterilization plan, and at the same time, we need to trace the source to prevent the spread."

"Regarding the Linjiang flood problem, we have held three rounds of negotiations with the city lord of Yueye Shelter City, 'Zhu Zhiyi'. The current negotiation result is: we will mobilize manpower and resources to be responsible for flood control, and Yueye Shelter City will provide 150% of the project funds as a subsidy. As a token of our sincerity for further cooperation, we need to open up an A-level technology and support 50,000 people to help rebuild Yueye Shelter City."

"The basic building materials for the twelve satellite cities have been in place, and the advanced building materials are being manufactured at an accelerated pace. In addition, resources have been transferred from the surrounding sheltered cities. It is expected that the second batch of satellite cities can start construction in five days. However, there is still a large shortage of some rare materials, and the construction plan needs to be adjusted accordingly. This part will be given to the checkpoints in the same way."

"At the Machinery Bureau, 191 pieces of equipment have been repaired, and 237 are still under repair. Priority is being given to the construction machinery in the satellite city."

"."

Reports came one after another; no one procrastinated or shirked responsibility, and even the way they flipped through documents was efficient.

Without internal friction, even though I was a little tired, I felt cheerful and relaxed.

When it was Ding Yishan's turn, he opened the folder and spoke in a steady yet forceful manner:

"First, a recall order has been issued to all field inspectors. It is expected that eight fourth-phase inspectors will return within 45 days to participate in the next round of construction tasks."

"Secondly, the second batch of satellite city coverage points has been verified and confirmed by supercomputing, with 12 points pre-opened to form the second chain of the defense perimeter. These include: Xipo Town, Wali Town, Donggang Town, Tantou Town, Dabo Town, and Qiaokou Town."

"The second round of satellite city assessment will begin in three days, with an estimated 4,000 to 10,000 people to be resettled in each satellite city."

"Station Chief Ding, isn't the number of people to be resettled a bit too few?" Hou Rui frowned and tapped his fingers on the table. "These towns do need to have their facilities renovated from scratch, but if we take the middle number of 7,000 people, the twelve satellite cities can only resettle 84,000 people. Compared with the total number of refugees, it's still far from enough."

"Minister Hou, there's something I need to explain to you about this."

Ding Yishan explained in a deep voice, "The first batch of 12 satellite cities, plus the No. 1 satellite city, has already selected the most energetic and capable young men from among the refugees. The remaining refugees are much weaker and less cooperative than the first batch. If we resettle them on the same scale as the first batch, it will easily lead to chaos, such as fighting over the distribution of supplies, passive resistance during construction, or even conflicts over trivial matters."

"The current shortage can be filled by the first batch of satellite cities. They have already expanded their scale and can absorb more people. Once the second batch of satellite cities have established their basic framework and their management processes are running smoothly, we can then take in the migrant population on a large scale. This is a more stable approach."

"So that's how it is. I didn't think it through."

Hou Rui pondered for a few seconds and immediately nodded in agreement.

The number of migrants can be counted by data, but their "quality" cannot be seen from data.

If the first batch selects the best manpower, and the second batch is to be done on the same scale, the difficulty will only double, and it will be easier for problems to arise.

"In addition, please coordinate with all departments as soon as possible to provide the basic building materials data for the second batch of satellite cities to the inspection stations. The assessment plan must be adjusted according to the shortage of building materials. We can't let the inspectors go there with the plan but have no materials to start construction."

Ding Yishan added another sentence, his gaze sweeping over the ministers in charge of resource allocation.

"No problem! Send the data over before 7 a.m. tomorrow!"

"We've already compiled the statistics here, and we'll have someone send them over shortly!"

"A lot of materials have been returned from a batch of satellite cities. These are still being tallied, and the exact number will be reported to the checkpoint by 4 p.m. tomorrow at the latest."

The ministers nodded in agreement; the efficient and synchronized messaging was something none of them had ever dared to imagine before.

But now, it's all become a reality.

Moreover, after the synchronization was completed, there was no back-and-forth refusing; everyone left in a hurry.

Ding Yishan didn't have time to stay at the meeting; he had to rush to the checkpoint to sort out the personnel plan.

These days we've been busy coordinating the construction of the first batch of satellite cities, and we haven't had time to refine the details of the second batch.

Fortunately, there is still a three-day buffer period. At present, a number of satellite cities have gradually stabilized, and we can finally free up energy to deal with this matter.

“Sir, you should take a rest.” Jiang Chuan was driving when he caught a glimpse of the dark circles under Ding Yishan’s eyes out of the corner of his eye. His tone was full of worry. “You’ve only been sleeping two hours a day for the past few days. Your body can’t take it.”

Previously, with the support of the travelers, Ding Yishan was able to work non-stop without feeling tired.

But that power has long since dissipated, and it's now just a matter of sheer willpower holding on, which is visibly being depleted.

"There's no time to rest now." Ding Yishan shook his head, subconsciously reaching into his pocket for a cigarette, only to find it empty.

Seeing this, Jiang Chuan silently took out a pack of unopened cigarettes from the passenger-side storage compartment and handed it over.

pat.

The lighter lit up, Ding Yishan took a deep drag on the cigarette, rolled down the car window to let the smoke drift out, and spoke with a hint of weary sigh:
"I knew that if Happiness City were to develop, those super sanctuary cities around it wouldn't stand idly by. But I didn't expect them to go to such extremes, using mercenaries and assassins. They're probably still secretly releasing infection sources, just to prevent us from peacefully gathering refugees. I really don't want to think about what methods they'll use if Happiness City becomes even stronger in the future."

"Perhaps in a few years, war will really break out between the sheltered cities."

Human history is like a cycle; whenever we reach a critical juncture of resources and power, we inevitably fall into a vortex of mutual antagonism.

In reality, the current resources haven't reached the point where Super Sanctuary City has to resort to open conflict to fight for them.

Nobody wants a "giant" to rise up next to them and suck away all the surrounding resources and talent.

The current harassment is merely a preventative measure, but if Happiness City develops groundbreaking technology in the future, those sanctuary cities will likely face far more than just harassment.

Jiang Chuan didn't respond.

He knew that Ding Yishan wasn't seeking answers, but simply venting his stress, and continuing to discuss this topic would only make him more anxious.

It would be better to remain silent and wait for Ding Yishan to process his emotions, since the work ahead still depends on him.

As the car drove out of the inner city's Happiness Gate and back into the buffer zone, the damp, musty smell unique to rainy days hit us.

Ding Yishan rolled the car window down a little further, letting the cold rain and odor stimulate his nerves and force himself to stay awake.

Upon returning to the checkpoint, he first downed two packets of blue-bag nutritional syrup to replenish his strength, and then immediately sat down at his desk and opened the personnel allocation list for the first batch of satellite cities.

The package plan that Cheng Ye gave was just a general framework. There were far too many aspects to consider in order to implement it properly!
To ensure that the two inspectors would not obstruct each other during the construction of the satellite city, he specifically arranged for the inspectors to be assigned to different areas of the city, one in the east and one in the west.

It is necessary to consider both the Eastern prosecutors who lean towards the West and to ensure that everyone's abilities check and balance each other and that their personalities complement each other.

In key locations like Wenlu County, he devised a complex system of checks and balances:
Lin Bao, Zhou Changhai, and Evan Davidson.

On the surface, it appears to be two East and one West, but in reality, because Zhou Changhai sided with the Westerners, it has become one East and two West.

The interesting thing is that Evan Davidson and Zhou Changhai have always been at odds and can't join forces at all, which instead creates a triangular balance of power.

The fact that Wenlu County is now developing at the fastest pace proves that his arrangements were not superfluous.

After reviewing one batch of documents, Ding Yishan opened the list of the second batch of prosecutors. His gaze swept over the densely packed names, and he suddenly stopped: "By the way, where is Xiao Shuang? I haven't seen her these past few days."

“She went to keep an eye on Prosecutor Cheng,” Jiang Chuan replied from the side.

"Oh? Did she find out anything?" Ding Yishan asked without looking up, having completely forgotten about the matter these past few days.

"I don't know." Jiang Chuan said helplessly, "She's very secretive, leaving early and returning late, and she hasn't mentioned any specifics to me."

"Call her over and ask her."

Ding Yishan picked up a red pen and circled Cheng Ye's name.

The first batch of satellite cities has already encountered all the pitfalls, and after ten days of verification, the process for the second batch will only be more perfect.

More importantly, a group of assigned inspectors has already attracted most of the outside attention.

Whether it's the assassins and mercenaries outside, or the eyes of the surrounding super-sanctuary cities, they have all been focused on a group of inspectors.

The second batch will definitely be much safer to start than the first batch.

This was one of the reasons why he didn't let Dabo Town be among the first to be built. However, Jiang Chuan was not exposed to the external situation and did not see through this consideration.

moment.

The office door was pushed open, and Mu Shuang walked in, holding a towel and drying her wet hair. Water droplets from her hair dripped down her neck and wet her collar.

Ding Yishan looked up and glanced at it, then paused slightly: "It's raining so hard, why aren't you wearing a raincoat?"

"I'm used to being outside, and wearing a raincoat restricts my movements and makes it inconvenient," Mu Shuang said with a smile.

"Have you gotten any results from your campaign yet?"

"No, only half." Mu Shuang shook her head.

"Half?" Ding Yishan repeated, "Which half?"

"Regarding Prosecutor Cheng, there were no valuable findings." Mu Shuang took half a step forward and reported in a steady tone, as if reading a prepared report.

“His life was very regular, and he was a very self-disciplined person. He would get up at 6:30 every morning, either to exercise in his room or to jog in the neighborhood. Twenty minutes later, he would go back to eat six packets of nutritional syrup, then go to Tianyuan Community to guide the construction work there for an hour. After that, he would take the bus to the Machinery Bureau and stay there from 9:00 in the morning until 7:30 in the evening. Except for going to the bathroom, he basically did not leave the warehouse.”

“In Tianyuan Community, he organized 300 militiamen to train in an open space in the southern suburbs every day. After get off work, he would go there and train with the militiamen until 10:30 p.m. before going home to sleep.”

Mu Shuang paused, then added, "I've observed his sleep, and the quality is exceptionally good. He doesn't toss or turn all night or get up at night. Moreover, he should have a hidden talent for enhancing physical constitution."

“Talent?” Ding Yishan’s brows furrowed instantly, and the red pen in his hand stopped on the paper. “Neither Cheng Wu nor Cheng Long have it, so how does he have it?”

After saying that, he quickly asked, "Will this talent affect my lifespan?"

"Probably not." Mu Shuang shook her head, glancing at the silent Jiang Chuan beside her, and explained, "The talent that enhances physique is gentle and won't damage the gene chain. On the contrary, it can repair some hidden damage. Ordinary people with this talent will live longer than ordinary people."

Ding Yishan looked at Jiang Chuan, and seeing the latter nod in confirmation, he breathed a sigh of relief and asked, "Is there anything else?"

"That's all. Oh, right!" Mu Shuang paused, as if suddenly remembering something, "He partnered with Prosecutor Li to run a trading caravan, did you know that?"

“I know.” Ding Yishan waved his hand, his tone slightly amused. “Li Matai mentioned to me a few days ago that he wanted to run the supply transport for the satellite city, and even said something like ‘I won’t make a penny, I’ll just contribute to the satellite city.’ I agreed at the time and asked him to submit a detailed plan. But he said he had to wait for Cheng Ye to set up the caravan before he could finalize the plan.”

Seeing that Ding Yishan knew about the caravan, Mu Shuang hesitated for two seconds and then told him everything he had observed at the Machinery Bureau.

"Oh, he likes doing this kind of thing?"

Ding Yishan raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

This is something that wasn't in the information.

But on second thought, Cheng Ye's performance had deviated from the information from the beginning, so it wasn't surprising that he knew more. After the initial surprise, I was even more excited.

"What about the other half?"

"I'm not the only one secretly watching Prosecutor Cheng, hmm."

Mu Shuang thought for a moment, "There are four people in total, all of them are experts at the Embryo Realm. I checked their identities, but strangely, they are not in the database. It must be that outsiders infiltrated. However, I checked the entry records for the past week and found no trace of them. It's as if they appeared out of thin air."

"Is it?"

Ding Yishan's face instantly turned cold. His hand on the table trembled slightly, and a fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he turned to look at Jiang Chuan.

Mu Shuang spoke subtly, but the meaning was self-evident.

Without an entry record, they either slipped in through the border defenses or through the checkpoints.

Regardless of the type, it's a serious matter that requires holding people accountable.

Jiang Chuan paused slightly, then nodded gently. "Sir, I will investigate the loopholes in the entry records, and I will also handle these four tonight."

"No, let me finish speaking first."

Mu Shuang quickly interrupted, her tone somewhat complicated, "Station Master, I haven't finished speaking yet."

"Speak," Ding Yishan's voice remained cold and hard, his tired face exuding a lion-like aura of power.

This is something Mu Shuang rarely sees.

Even when other sanctuary cities sent people in to cause trouble before, Ding Yishan had never been this angry.

"These four people have all been arrested by Prosecutor Cheng and the community officials, and they are currently being held in the community, just like..."

At this point, Mu Shuang couldn't help but turn to look at Jiang Chuan, the meaning of which was self-evident.

"Cough cough." Jiang Chuan couldn't help but cough twice.

It's endless, right?

To his surprise, Mu Shuang did not continue to mock him about this matter as she had before.

Instead, his expression was somewhat strange as he said:
"In addition, I was also discovered by Prosecutor Cheng. He arranged for many people from the community to surround and monitor my neighborhood, and his people also broke into my room and installed listening devices."

"I don't know how he found me, but if nothing unexpected happens, he'll make a move on me by tomorrow or the day after at the latest!"

　P.S.: Oops, it's getting late~ Thank you all for your support, dear readers! Please give me your guaranteed votes for next month. I'll post the event details later!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)