Look, a good swindler doesn’t make people question you every time they invest; rather, they beg you to take their money, and you can’t even refuse—that’s the trick of a master of deception.
"Dear Doctor, the most important thing now is to ensure more people have access to food. You have no idea how important the Water of Life you developed is! Please set aside the matters of Austin Castle; leave them to us. All you need to do is increase the production capacity of the Water of Life!"
Seeing that Doctor B was reluctant to go to such a dangerous place, the other big shots shifted into persuasion mode and also made various promises. Finally, Doctor B disclosed his current difficulties.
In the corner, Jing Shu was like an invisible person, silently observing and not speaking, just looking at the silent Slave Master. Fortunately, Zhen Nantian isn’t here; otherwise, I might have easily given myself away.
Doctor B signaled for everyone to calm down:
"Gentlemen, your kind God sees all, and may you be rewarded for your good deeds. But the reason I hesitate to go to the crustal fractures is also due to energy conversion, you understand? Once oil is used up, it’s gone. The Water of Life’s raw material there can convert about eight million pounds (3,600 tons) of goods. Before finding the next resource point, I’d rather not consume this energy source."
Jing Shu stroked her chin. Eight million pounds... Is this the amount of goods Doctor B and his people are aiming to take? Quite a lion’s share! So much material! Although not as much as a cargo ship could hold, it’s enough for Doctor B and his few people to enjoy for a lifetime, allowing them to live luxuriously in the apocalypse.
By the third year of the apocalypse, these individuals still possessed such a wealth of resources; it was quite impressive indeed. The Slave Master, for instance, was the true epitome of opulence. He had brought the resources of an entire city to Austin, got robbed of half en route, and yet was still living lavishly in Austin, albeit with a face full of malice.
The farmers and Austin council members in attendance exchanged glances, satisfaction gleaming in their eyes. This figure is enough for all of us to get a slice of the pie! Just think, if we invest three hundred thousand pounds of goods, it’ll only take a few days to get back five hundred thousand. Only a fool wouldn’t agree!
Under the relentless barrage, Doctor B finally yielded, "I have a few conditions of my own. If you agree, then I can take the risk of converting for you."
"Of course, that’s your right."
Doctor B extended his hand. "First of all, Austin must send no less than thirty people to protect me, and they must be fully armed and amply supplied with ammunition. After all, it’s dangerous there, and I must consider my own safety."
This condition even allowed the Austin council members to breathe a sigh of relief. Just moments ago, we were still uncertain about how to ’monitor’ Doctor B and subtly ensure that he couldn’t leave Austin’s watch. After all, with Doctor B’s increasing importance to Austin, especially with the development of the Water of Life, we feared him leaving. Therefore, Doctor B must be kept under tight control. Luckily, Doctor B’s Combat Power is weak. Aside from two assistants, D and C, he only has a handful of slaves. A single team’s combat power would have been sufficient, but now Doctor B is asking for thirty... That could work. It’s even safer.
The first condition was approved, and Doctor B continued:
"Secondly, I understand everyone’s desire to secure more food and supplies in these times. I am willing to convert them all into Water of Life. However, I must first use the Water of Life to convert the Seeds from the seed vault. After all, I haven’t identified the next resource spot, and before that, I must ensure that our Austin’s Seeds have a good harvest."
Jing Shu’s heart pounded. Here it comes, here it comes! This is Doctor B securing the benefit for me. Fantastic!
An Austin council member hesitated before asking, "How much resource will be consumed to convert Seeds with the Water of Life?"
"Not much, the same as regular supplies."
The Austin council member exhaled; the amount for the Seeds was indeed acceptable. "Alright, I appreciate your thoughtfulness, Doctor. You truly are a good man. I’ll send someone to deliver the Seeds to you." Fınd the newest release on 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵※𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮※𝓷𝓮𝓽
"Thirdly, the Water of Life has a short shelf life. To maximize conversion and make the most of the Water of Life, all goods must be transported in at once and converted together."
No problem; everyone could accept that. It would prevent squabbling over who got to go first or last.
"Fourthly, you must send your own people to guard these goods outside. After all, there are many unknown creatures in that region that, if they smell the food, will attack." Each person must protect their own supplies. That’s a reasonable requirement. After hearing these conditions, it really feels like the Doctor is looking out for us!
"As for who takes how many tons of supplies and food, that’s for you to discuss. Anyway, I only accept eight million pounds of supplies, and for this, I’ll only take a 20% fee," Doctor B said, not wanting any extra goods or food.
Look at that—a swindler of this caliber! He only takes so much of your money, not a penny more, and leaves it to you to decide how much to contribute. He’ll just collect the funds.
Everyone expressed their understanding and support.
"Fifth, I need to borrow the castle’s vegetable dehydration equipment because I have a bold idea to test out there."
Jing Shu narrowed her eyes. There it is, their mission target! This is the important part! Will they agree? Or will there be additional conditions?
"Of course, that’s not a problem. How many days do you need it for? After all, we have a large number of vegetables to dehydrate daily."
The Doctor pondered. "Two days will do."
"No problem," they said.
Agreed! Just like that! It was agreed to so easily! Excellent. My seed vault and the goals for this mission are going to be completed without a hitch. It’s hard to believe we had planned to steal such an apparatus; that would have been so dangerous. Indeed, it’s better to swindle than to rob, and even more so when they bring it directly to your doorstep! Doctor B’s reputation is too great. Nobody would expect a man capable of creating the Gathering Stone City Wall to have his eye on a mere vegetable dehydration device! It’s like a man driving cars worth millions and wearing watches worth millions borrowing five dollars and not returning it—who would think he’d spend an entire day scheming for your five dollars?
Doctor B acted as if he feared for his life, wanting more people to protect him—and ’watch’ him. This put everyone further at ease.
Could an individual without Combat Power really cause any trouble among hundreds of us? Could he possibly take thousands of tons of supplies and escape? Just him and his few people?