A Maybach on a rainy night? Talk to my Levadin!

His strength was immense, and the shield-bearing soldiers struggled to hold him off. However, the inability to break through prevented his squad from participating in the subsequent attack, which made Alex extremely anxious.

The longer we delay, the greater the danger to our compatriots will become.

"Captain! We're here to help you!"

The squad members tried to rush forward, but were blocked by several other soldiers. Alex watched as his comrades were tied down, while he felt like a wild beast trapped in a cage. Despite his strength, he couldn't even find a way to break through. He pushed hard against his shield, his knuckles turning white from the force, but the enemy's defenses didn't budge. Instead, more spells rained down on him.

Bang! Another spell struck his chest, the huge impact causing him to stagger back two steps. His chest felt like it had been hit by a heavy hammer, the pain making it hard for him to breathe. Before he could regain his footing, two shields came crashing down on him. He managed to block them with his weapons, but his abdomen was completely exposed to the opponent's attack range.

It's over... Alex closed his eyes, the anxious looks of his squad members flashing through his mind. He could even imagine that the spell would hit his stomach in the next second, blowing him to pieces.

The expected pain did not come; instead, a burst of gunfire, like popping beans, erupted—"rat-a-tat-tat, tat-tat!"

Alex opened his eyes and saw Zhao Zizhan, dressed in a black combat suit, sweeping through the crowd with an MP5. The warlock who was about to cast a spell on him had just raised his hand when he was hit by a burst of 9x19mm Parabellum pistol bullets. The dense explosions rang out and the warlock was blown into a puddle.

The remaining soldiers were stunned; they hadn't expected someone to suddenly appear. Some reacted, grabbing their weapons and attacking Zhao Zizhan, but he was faster. He grabbed the pistol tucked into his waistband with his left hand and continued firing his MP5 with his right, his dual-wielding movements as fluid as if he'd practiced a thousand times. Bullets struck the soldiers' joints precisely; some were shot in the knee and fell to their knees; others had their wrists pierced, and crossbow bolts clattered to the ground.

The remaining soldiers could have surrendered immediately and escaped unscathed, but determined to turn the tide, they watched their comrades die and refused to swallow their anger. They turned and pounced on Zhao Zizhan, only to be wiped out and bloodied by him. In the blink of an eye, their souls perished in the yellow sand.

Alex collapsed to the ground. Zhao Zizhan, gun at the ready, scanned the surroundings warily, then quickly knelt down beside Alex to check his injuries.

"Don't worry, I'm watching you."

Zhao Zizhan's voice was steady, without the slightest panic. He reached out and brushed aside the stray hairs on Alex's forehead, revealing his face covered in soot, and made him look at his face. "You'll be fine, just leave it to me."

Before Alex could react, he saw Zhao Zizhan pull a bag of cotton wool from his waist, tear open the packaging, and press the cotton wool onto the wound on Alex's chest.

"Hold on, don't let go."

Zhao Zizhan grabbed his hand and pressed it hard on the wound. The warmth of his palm transmitted through the hemostatic cotton, clearing Alex's muddled mind a little.

Zhao Zizhan placed one hand on the other's shoulder, and in the next instant, Alex was transferred to the temporary medical point at the rear.

"There's a business problem here that needs urgent attention!"

At Zhao Zizhan's call, several temporarily hired caregivers arrived and carefully lifted Alex onto a stretcher, handing him over to the medical staff for treatment.

Alex glanced back; Zhao Zizhan had already turned and disappeared through the doorway of the medical station. His black combat uniform flashed briefly in the light at the doorway before he was no longer visible.

Even now, Alex is still in a daze.

"Hey, Broken Bones, you got brought along too?"

The Integral soldier lying in the hospital bed next to him greeted him.

He turned his head and saw a familiar face. The man's leg appeared to be injured and was wrapped in a sandbag.

"you also……?"

"Yeah, we were all saved by that Rhodes Island kid."

The member of the organization smiled and pointed to his leg. "The doctor said it's fortunate that I was brought here in time, otherwise my leg would have had to be amputated. You didn't see it, he was incredibly fast when he rescued me. I didn't even have time to react before I was already here. I really owe him a huge favor now..."

"That's it..."

Alex leaned against the hospital bed, but the image of that face—the one that leaned down and gazed at him with comforting eyes—kept replaying in his mind.

He had always found Zhao Zizhan strange, thinking that the other's kindness was all an act. But just now, seeing Zhao Zizhan standing in front of him and hearing his calm voice, he suddenly realized that perhaps his previous suspicions were wrong.

The wound on my chest still hurts, but somewhere in my heart, it feels like something has quietly melted away.

Chapter 159 Working Brothers.

In a battle where the eldest brother is both fighting on the front lines and securing the rear, the outcome becomes one-sided.

The security guards weren't very resistant. To be honest, they said, "You're only making a little money a month, why are you risking your life?"

Even the veterans are the same. Victoria's soldiers are indeed well-mannered, but haven't we already retired? I love Victoria, but haven't I been kicked out by Victoria?

When it was discovered that the casualty rate exceeded a certain number, all the security guards quickly laid down their weapons and surrendered.

They had won a rare victory and captured the entire mine. None of their own brothers had been killed. Everyone in the Reunion Movement, whether wounded or not, was filled with joy and laughter.

"Wow, you wouldn't believe it! One second I was on the battlefield, getting shot by a crossbow bolt, and the next second, that Rhodes Island guy flew right in front of me, scooped me up, and whoosh, I was in the hospital!"

"so smart?"

The people around gasped in surprise. Some reached out to touch his bandages, but then withdrew their hands for fear of hurting him.

"Of course, and he's so strong..."

In the rest area, there were not only members wearing Reunion Movement uniforms, but also many miners who had just been rescued. Most of them were wearing faded work clothes and their faces still showed signs of fatigue, but their eyes shone with a long-lost light, like a flock of birds that had regained their freedom, excitedly darting around in the crowd.

"Here, take it!"

A dark-skinned middle-aged miner, carrying a basket of roasted radishes, moved briskly through the crowd. When he saw a member of the organization sitting on the ground bandaging his wounds, he bent down and handed him one.

He had just been grazed in the leg by a stray bullet during the battle and was bending down to bandage his wound. Suddenly, a carrot was thrust into his hand. He paused, holding the carrot, and looked up somewhat bewilderedly. He looked at the smiling miner in front of him, his lips moved, and after a long while, he asked softly, "This is... for me?"

"Of course it's for you!"

The middle-aged miner patted him on the shoulder, his voice booming like a gong, "Today, our mine is hosting a grand Iron Kingdom event, so everyone should have a good time! Back when Scarface was around, let alone eating radishes, we could hardly even get a bowl of hot porridge. Now that you're here, we can finally have a proper meal! Eat up, everyone have some!"

The member holding the radish tightened his grip: "But...aren't you afraid I'm infected...?"

"Oh, what's there to be afraid of!"

The middle-aged miner waved his hand dismissively, squatted down, took out a handkerchief from his pocket, and wiped the dust off the other man's face.

“We work in the mines, dealing with Originium every day. Becoming infected is inevitable! My dad is infected. A couple of years ago, he was still helping to move ore in the mine until he couldn’t walk anymore. Nobody wants this, but so what if we become infected? It doesn’t affect our family! Look, you’re sick, but you’re also my savior! If it weren’t for you guys, I’d still be being forced to go down into the mine by those scarred people!”

The Reunion soldier was stunned. He hadn't expected that his status as an infected person, which had always been avoided by others, would be so easily accepted here.

The Rembit people are often organized in family units. Most of the brothers working in a mine are related by blood, and they are all true family heroes. This unique organizational structure makes the gap between Rembit infected and ordinary people almost imperceptible. Rembit, which is isolated from the outside world for a long time, may be a rare haven in this world full of malice towards infected people.

"Hey young man, where are you from? What did you do before?"

Seeing that the young integration worker remained silent, the middle-aged miner smiled and asked again.

"I used to be... a miner too."

"You're a miner too? Oh, then we're both miner brothers! Here, have a carrot! Eat up!"

"Hey, hey, you guys, the flying water-spraying guys! Come quick, come quick, they're actually our miner brothers too!"

"Really! Are you one of our miners too?"

The Integrators looked at the miners who had gathered around them. Their eyes held no rejection, only curiosity and affection.

He took a deep breath, nodded vigorously, and his voice was much firmer than before: "...Yes, I'm a miner too."

……

Near the mining rigs, Talulah's mood was far from pleasant.

Despite being the leader of the organization, she stood before a fifteen-year-old boy, a full twelve years her junior, looking like a primary school student who had made a mistake.

The mining equipment in front of her was originally the core machinery and platform of the mine, with crisscrossing metal supports and conveyor belts still running slowly. But now, the supports near the combat area have been burned and deformed, and the dark red metal has melted into puddles that stick to the ground like an ugly scar.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Zizhan, I... I didn't control my power well... I burned a lot of the mining platform's structure." Talulah only realized that she had caused trouble after she finished dealing with Scarface and the others and saw the metal structure of the platform melted by her flames.

After she finished speaking, she secretly glanced at Zhao Zizhan. He didn't seem angry, but she felt incredibly flustered. She didn't know what was wrong with her. Usually, even when she made a mistake, she would only feel remorse and try to make amends. But this time, facing Zhao Zizhan, she was inexplicably afraid he would be disappointed, or perhaps she was annoyed that she hadn't handled things well? She couldn't explain it; this unfamiliar emotion left her feeling helpless.

Zhao Zizhan was amused by Talulah's puppy-dog-like antics, and shook his head with his hands on his hips.

"Alright, stop looking like that. Although there will be all sorts of instructions before the battle, the situation on the battlefield is always changing in an instant. Things can be repaired if they are broken, but people can't be repaired if they are broken. As a leader, be more confident." Zhao Zizhan stepped forward and patted Talulah on the shoulder.

"It's this mining platform that might take some time to repair."

Zhao Zizhan turned around, looked at the ruins in front of him again, scratched his head, and said with a hint of helplessness in his voice.

How do we fix this thing? I'll ask the engineering department later; maybe they can find a solution.

Oh, and maybe we can ask the local construction teams if they have any repair ideas.

PS: I got up after dinner to write this chapter. Also, I want to say that if you have any opinions on what I wrote, you can say them in the comments or leave some criticism. I can accept that as long as what you say makes sense, I will let you discuss it. However, if you say in the comments that everyone should stop subscribing to these chapters because it will affect my earnings, I will really kill every single one of you.

Chapter 160 The Fool is Really a Tower.

"Why are you here, our benefactor? Is there anything we can help you with?"

The miners were chatting together when they saw Zhao Zizhan slowly walking towards them.

Everyone knows this face all too well; it's the face that saved them from that damned Victoria.

Zhao Zizhan approached the miners and said with a smile, "There is indeed something I'd like to discuss with you—we're planning to repair the mining platform, and I wonder if you have any suitable engineering teams to recommend?"

"Our benefactor wants to repair the mining platform?"

Ai Tui, holding the large iron pot, paused, his eyes wide with surprise. He subconsciously stroked the stubble on his chin. "Could it be that our benefactor plans to run this mine himself?"

There's nothing wrong with admitting "that's right." That was your original goal, and others aren't stupid. Even if you don't admit it, they can see it, so it's better to be honest.

"We're new here. We were originally stationed in the north, intending to build an industrial park, but these Victorians came to threaten us. We also learned that they were bullying the miners here – such tyrannical behavior! So we came to rescue you. As for these mining platforms, we plan to repair them and put them into use. However, we currently lack the manpower to properly repair this massive machine."

After hearing this, Ai Tui Da Tie Guo paced around twice, his surprise gradually turning into excitement. He slapped his thigh, his voice trembling slightly: "Oh my... this is wonderful! You have no idea how disgusting those Victorian bastards are! They not only withheld our wages and made us mine for fifteen hours a day, but they also didn't allow us to rest or provide us with safety equipment. So many brothers have lost their lives because of mining accidents and ores disease! You saved us, and even a thousand thanks wouldn't be enough to repay you!"

He sighed, his tone turning somber: "To be honest, these kinds of mining platforms are very common in Rembitox, and there used to be quite a few engineering teams that could repair them. But those Victorian guys have been delaying payments for projects for a long time. Some teams even had to pay for parts themselves, and in the end, they couldn't even afford to eat, forcing them to go bankrupt and disband. Now, I don't know how many engineering teams are still struggling to stay afloat in this area."

Seeing the worried look on Ai Tui Da Tieguo's face, Zhao Zizhan smiled and said sincerely, "We understand your concerns, and of course we can't let the construction team work for free. How about this, if we can be honest with each other, and with your good character as a guarantee, we can prepay half of the project cost, and settle the remaining half immediately after the project is completed. What do you think?"

"……really!?"

Ai Tui, the man with the large iron pot, suddenly raised his head, his eyes wide with surprise. He had dealt with Victorians for most of his life, and those people would either find excuses to withhold payment for projects or delay payment for a year or two. He had never seen such a generous client before.

"of course it's true."

Zhao Zizhan nodded affirmatively, then remembered something and added, "However, we are new here and not very familiar with Rembiton's currency exchange. I wonder if the construction team can accept gold for payment?"

"pure gold!?"

Ai Tui, now even more excited, nodded repeatedly, his wrinkles smoothing out. "Pure gold is great...pure gold is great! This stuff holds its value and can be used anywhere. With pure gold as collateral, my old face will be more eloquent, and I'm sure I can get those old buddies to come over!"

"Don't worry, we'll give you the cash shortly. You can take the payment directly to the construction teams to discuss the project."

Ai Tui rubbed his hands together, the excitement on his face gradually fading, replaced by a hint of trepidation. He hesitated for a moment before finally asking, "Hey! Good, good!! That gives me even more confidence! Don't worry, I'll definitely get you the best construction team and guarantee the mining platform will be as good as new! But...aren't you afraid I'll just run off with the gold?"

"The fact that you asked this question means you won't do it that way. However, I do have something else to discuss with you: what are your plans for the future of your miner brothers?"

Ai Tui Da Tieguo's eyes darkened, and he sighed, "What else can we do? We can only find another mine and keep working. The Victorians are gone, but life goes on. The elderly and children at home are waiting for food. We don't have any other skills besides mining."

"Then I have a solution."

①澪漌樲２⒏彡○玖８

Seeing Ai Tui's dejected expression, Zhao Zizhan slowly said, "How about we hire you miners? We'll provide three meals a day, accommodation, and your wages will be based on the average wage of Rembiton miners, plus an extra 10%. If the mine does well, there will be a year-end bonus. What do you think?"

The hand that loved pushing the big iron pot began to tremble: "How dare I not give it my all?"

……

"Mr. Zizhan!"

"Mr. Zizhan!"

As Zhao Zizhan walked out of the miners' temporary resettlement area, he was greeted by a constant stream of greetings, which he returned to each one.

The soldiers along the way greeted Zhao Zizhan one after another.

There were times when some people in the Reunion Movement had reservations about Zhao Zizhan, feeling that his origins were unclear and his intentions were unpredictable. But now, no one thinks that way anymore. In everyone's hearts, he is Tie Jinshui, a truly good person.

How hard were those days of integration? They were constantly hungry and cold, soldiers could only endure their injuries with herbal remedies, and the miners were oppressed beyond measure. But after Zhao Zizhan arrived, everything changed: a stable food source became available, the wounded received timely medical treatment, and now even the mines were being reopened. Finally, everyone could see hope for survival.

What's more, he saved my life on the battlefield!

With Mr. Zizhan around, how many more compatriots of the Integration Movement would have survived?

Isn't this the lucky star that has descended upon our Reunion Movement?!

He walked through the bustling accommodation area and headed towards the detention area on the east side of the mine. There, the mine's high-ranking officials and surrendered security guards were held. The usually noisy area was now unusually quiet, with only two Reunion soldiers guarding the entrance. When they saw Zhao Zizhan approaching, they immediately stood at attention and saluted.

Upon entering the detention area, Zhao Zizhan immediately spotted Talulah standing in the corner. She was wearing her familiar military uniform, but she lacked her usual spirit. Her face was as pale as paper, her lips were bloodless, and her head was slightly drooping. Her shoulders swayed gently, revealing a rare sense of fragility.

"What's wrong? You look terrible."

Zhao Zizhan walked over quickly, his tone full of concern, "Are you sick?"

He was puzzled. The Draco family had always been known for their robust physique, so how could they suddenly become like this? What kind of disease was so ruthless?

“I’m fine, just a little sleepy,” Talulah shook her head, changing the subject: “What do you plan to do with these people imprisoned here?”

These people all have the blood of miners on their hands, and keeping them alive would definitely be a problem, but killing them directly wouldn't be a good idea either. Talulah wasn't sure what to do, so she came to ask Zhao Zizhan for advice.