234 Each others secre (1/2)
The outpost that Ren Xiaosu was at was somewhat cut off from outside news. Even if Yan Liuyuan had been constantly going around to gather information, the news he could find out was still only the tip of the iceberg. So they had no idea that war was on the verge of breaking out between the Li Consortium, the Qing Consortium, and the Yang Consortium.
There hadn't been a war for a long time in these wastelands. Humanity had been struggling along in an increasingly difficult world and finally got a chance to recover a little, but war was descending upon them again.
Sometimes, Ren Xiaosu would wonder why everyone kept trying to kill one another even though they had clearly survived against the odds during the Post-Cataclysm.
Based on Hu Shuo's explanation, the Li Consortium intended to clear the Experimentals from Stronghold 109 before they began the war. They had even sent a combat brigade over to carry out that mission. However, time would not wait for the Li Consortium, and neither would the Yang Consortium and the Qing Consortium wait for them.
Not only were the Experimentals at Stronghold 109 a threat to the Li Consortium, but they were similarly close to the Qing Consortium's Stronghold 111. Therefore, since war was about to break out, the two consortiums might as well make a bet on which way the Experimentals might go.
And now, the most dangerous thing that could happen was that Ren Xiaosu and company might also get sent to the battlefield. As they had too many things that hadn't been taken care of yet, they couldn't just drop everything and leave for good.
Even if they hid deep in the mountains, it would be equally dangerous, because the forested hills were a path the Experimentals would definitely take if they were coming here. Why else would the Li Consortium waste all that manpower by sending troops to these outposts?
”What if the Experimentals come and attack the Li Consortium's stronghold?” Ren Xiaosu asked.
Hu Shuo looked at Ren Xiaosu and said, ”Actually, there isn't much danger around Stronghold 108. You can even consider sending your family into Stronghold 108 first. If there are defenses in place, the Experimentals won't be able to force their way into the stronghold. What happened at Stronghold 109 was due to a lapse in its defense.”
Although Stronghold 109 was destroyed, the Experimentals would still find it hard to get close to Stronghold 108 if the Li Consortium installed heavy weapons atop the stronghold walls.
After all, the Experimentals were still flesh and blood. Their muscles might be able to block normal bullets, but they wouldn't stand up to artillery fire. Even the metal storm ”Mountain Obliterator” that Qing Zhen brought was enough to make them retreat.
It was just as Qing Zhen had said. Only a child would be afraid of these Experimentals. Qing Zhen understood full well how terrifying humanity's firearms and explosives were.
So the only worry everyone had was if the Experimentals ambushed them in these wastelands during a battle. But there wasn't much to worry about if it were just a stronghold defense.
Ren Xiaosu asked Hu Shuo, ”Can you help me send them into the stronghold? I'd like for them to live there temporarily.”
Hu Shuo laughed. ”That's something you can also do now. A captain of the Office of Special Investigations has… great authority…” All of a sudden, Hu Shuo added, ”Make sure you don't abuse your authority, though….”
”Uh-huh, don't worry. I won't be investigating smuggling anymore.” Ren Xiaosu was surprised to find out that the Office of Special Investigations could actually send people into the stronghold. That really was a lot of authority.
However, it seemed like this old man was not on the Li Consortium's side on this matter. He wondered how the higher-ups of the Li Consortium would feel if they knew the truth.
Curious, Ren Xiaosu asked, ”Aren't you afraid that I'll snitch?”Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please clickfor visiting.
Hu Shuo gave a half-smile and said, ”Aren't you afraid I'll tell the Li Consortium that you're hunting down their nanosoldiers?”
The two of them fell silent. Ren Xiaosu knew Hu Shuo was a sly old fox and that his odd behavior must have been noticed by him. However, he had not expected Hu Shuo to lay it all bare so abruptly.
But since they both knew each other's secret, no one could snitch on the other.
In Ren Xiaosu's opinion, Hu Shuo was more trying to establish a friendship or alliance with him. The foundation of this trust would be based upon their knowledge of each other's secret, as well as the fact that the other party's grandson was… Li Shentan.
Hu Shuo had always been a high-ranking officer in the Office of Special Investigations all these years. In order not to implicate his family back then, he had kept the fact that he had a daughter a secret. Furthermore, he did not even concern himself with her. However, the Li Consortium forced his daughter to her death many years later.