The concept of getting what you want and the saying ’speak of the devil’ is the same principle.
When Ren Zhong left Zhan Sha County earlier, he had a lingering sense of regret.
However, within an hour, that regret was instantly compensated and replaced by a new regret.
Let’s rewind to that noon.
Ma Dafu and his daughter sat at the dining table, each having their lunch.
The atmosphere at the table was heavy and oppressive, with very low pressure.
Ma Dafu looked deeply concerned.
In just two days, wrinkles like engravings had appeared on his once rosy round face, and a few more strands of silver hair had sprouted atop his head.
Despite receiving his regular injection of the Anti-aging Potion, this sudden change was inevitably linked to the collapse of the dreams he had placed upon Ren Zhong.
Ma Dafu was shattered.
The past two days had not been easy for him.
Over at the Military Weapon Store, because of Ren Zhong, Ju Qingmeng was considered one of Ma Dafu’s own people, keeping things steady without causing trouble.
But in other areas like supply and marketing, the cafeteria, the grain production base, and the logistics network, the citizens had started becoming restless.
Among these troublemakers, some had begun planning their future ahead of time, packing up to escape while spreading panic.
Some even deliberately stirred trouble in the town, using money to buy safety, picking men and women with good looks from among the doomed wastelanders to satisfy their slightly repressed perversions.
To maintain the last bit of peace in Starfire Town, Ma Dafu had to mediate and resolve various messy issues, exhausting himself completely.
Whenever he had a moment of peace, Ma Dafu couldn’t help but reminisce about the past.
He remembered how his father had entrusted Starfire Town to him on his deathbed, repeatedly urging him to maintain the town well.
He had promised, even thumping his chest, ensuring to restore Starfire Town to the past glory similar to Nameless City.
Yet he hadn’t expected that in a blink, nearly twenty years had passed, and looking back, his ending was a complete failure.
In his lifelong battle with his nemesis Yang Bingzhong, he was utterly defeated.
Since Yang Bingzhong became the actual controller of Starfire Resources sixteen years ago, Starfire Town had been declining in all industries, with the annual GDP continuously falling, and the temporary wastelander quota in the town dropping annually from 40,000 twenty years ago to less than 20,000 now, even facing direct removal this year.
Yang Bingzhong, having scraped the place clean for massive profits and drained Starfire Town of its last drop of blood, casually left for the prosperous area of Chromium Carbon Town to continue his ascent, leaving a complete mess behind in Starfire Town.
Even Ren Zhong, who was his last sliver of hope, betrayed without reason, becoming Yang Bingzhong’s lackey as well.
Consumed entirely by a sense of defeat, Ma Dafu sat at the dining table, somewhat absent-minded, barely touching his food for several seconds.
Ma Xiaoling watched with growing anger.
She slammed the table, "No! Dad! You’ve got to give me a break, I have to find him. He owes us an explanation! I don’t care what reasons he has or what backup plans. Why couldn’t he tell us straightforwardly? I can’t stand how he treats you . I even suspect you’ve been deceived by him, that he never intended to do anything for Starfire Town from the start, just playing you, me, and even Ju Qingmeng!"
Ma Dafu seemed slightly swayed but firmly shook his head, "No. He’s a Citizen now, at most you can just beat him up, but there’s nothing else you can do, it would only unnecessarily escalate the conflict between you and Yang Bingzhong. I’ve heard that Yang Bingzhong’s wealth and strength have skyrocketed since reaching Chromium Carbon Town. I’ve been at odds with Yang Bingzhong most of my life, and I’ve lost. I won’t live much longer either, when I’m dead, it’ll all be over. But you’re different, you’re still young, you could become a Level Five Professional anytime, you could go back to the county, or even have a chance to go to the city. You have a vast future ahead of you."
Ma Xiaoling frowned, "Is this why you used to hide everything from me, Dad?"
Ma Dafu nodded, "That’s one of the reasons."
Ma Dafu found it difficult to speak plainly.
Ma Xiaoling, you’re practically the epitome of brave but mindless action, how could I dare to say more?
Ma Xiaoling’s eyes shifted suddenly and she shouted out, "Damn!"
"Adding up everything, I lent Ren Zhong a total of 250,000 points post-tax. According to the contract, he should have paid me back 400,000 points post-tax about twenty days ago. But with all that’s been happening, and because I recently made a fortune, I forgot."