Chapter 91: Busy Farming in the Last Days

Aug 24 2023

Ji Cha had just returned from the fish pond.

As the person currently in charge of the entire base’s food supply, Ji Cha was certainly not unfamiliar to the old man. He also knew that Ji Cha had a good relationship with Liang Jincheng. Even if Ji Cha did not have the power to decide on this matter, if he could persuade Liang Jincheng to say a word or two, it might help. Otherwise, following Liang Jincheng’s busy schedule, it was uncertain when he would be able to meet him.

“This is the letter my sister wrote back,” the old man took out the letter from his pocket, which he had already read many times, and handed it to Ji Cha as an explanation. “I want to bring her over to live with me for easier care. There is no one else around me now, and since she’s still alive, I can’t bear to let her be alone outside.”

Ji Cha lowered his head to read the letter while the old man continued, “My house is big enough for us to live together. We can make do with food and drink, and if there is a need in the base, two more people can live in my house. I even have a small yard where we can grow some vegetables. We can manage to get by.”

He spoke very cautiously, trying to prove that bringing his sister back would not become a burden to the base.

Ji Cha sensed his nervousness and reassured him, “Families should be together. However, bringing someone back is not something I can promise easily. After all, you also know the current situation outside. When the technicians from T city came, they were almost attacked by zombies. It’s hard to say if anything will go wrong. But if you can bring her over, I can guarantee that the base will not give you any trouble.”

“What you said earlier about renting a room reminds me that if you have this idea, go to the administrative office and report it. We have a lot of people in the base now, and we rent houses using information points. If you have an empty room and are willing to rent it out, put your name up at the administrative office, and you’ll earn information points every month. It’s also a form of income.”

When the old man heard that there was a way to rent out his room, he immediately nodded and smiled, “Okay, I’ll go there later. If the base can arrange to bring my sister over, that would be great. If not, I understand. Thank you.”

Ji Cha smiled and shook his head, and said to the old man, “The farm is hiring part-time workers these days. You can go and see if there are any suitable jobs. As for picking up your sister, I will talk to Captain Liang later.”

The old man nodded with a smile.

The scale of the base is getting bigger and bigger, and the original construction plan is starting to seem less reasonable. The design concept of the S City base at the beginning was completely aimed at a small base of tens of thousands of people, mostly for self-preservation. Therefore, a circle of high walls was built outside all the main buildings to prevent zombies. However, now it seems that whether it is for the surviving population or the future development of the personnel within the base, this circle is completely insufficient.

To supply such a large living circle, it may still be possible without seeking technological recovery or an improvement in living standards. However, if there are corresponding requirements, it will still need to break through to the outside. For example, to form alliances with other bases or to make the most of the existing buildings in the city.

This means that the people in the base will have to go out, and going out is still a dangerous term at present. Before entering any building, it is necessary to clear and inspect it, and a lot of security forces will also need to be invested to maintain safety.

September is coming to an end, and the weather will turn cold from now on. Most of the work that needs to be done outside should actually be completed before winter, otherwise, the work efficiency will obviously decrease, and the cost of going out and the demand for labor will also greatly increase. Therefore, the workload planned for the second half of the year is not large.

As for the Ji Cha’s Farm, the main task for the second half of the year is to open up a new planting area, which accounts for one-third of the total planting area. At the same time, the breeding area also needs to expand. Currently, the farm can achieve a balance in planting and breeding. Many crops can provide livestock with feed, such as straw or rice bran, in addition to the parts that are edible for humans.

In the agreement previously reached with the T City base, a certain amount of grain also needs to be provided to the other party after the new year. Moreover, no matter which base is involved in the exchange of goods, edible grain will not be refused. In other words, grain production is the focus of the second half of the year.

The communication between the S City base and the T City base has been close recently. The old man suggested to bring people back, and the operation is not difficult, but the only concern is whether any unexpected situations will occur during the process, which cannot be predicted by anyone.

Ji Cha mentioned this matter to Liang Jincheng at night, and Liang Jincheng also said he understood: “The people below told me, I will let someone take care of it.”

“Any progress at the fish farm today?” Liang Jincheng asked again.

“About the same as before,” Ji Cha sat by the bed soaking his feet, trying to relieve the exhaustion after a day of running around. “The people sent from T city before the apocalypse did raise fish, but they did it in the ocean and the environment wasn’t as harsh as it is now. Although they proposed a few new ideas, it’s impossible to solve the problem quickly.”

“This is not something to be rushed,” Liang Jincheng sat next to Ji Cha and lifted his hand to massage his shoulder.

Ji Cha dealt with the internal issue of ensuring the survival of the base through food, while Liang Jincheng controlled the overall development of the base, which was considered an external problem. To outsiders, their temperaments were vastly different. Ji Cha appeared gentle and always had a smile on his face, and was easy to talk to. In contrast, Liang Jincheng was known for his decisive and ruthless methods, and nobody dared to joke around in front of him.

Just this one person, who could have imagined that he would be sitting on the edge of the bed giving someone a shoulder rub and a hand massage at this time.

“In fact, I’m considering putting the fish farm on hold for now,” said Ji Cha, half-closing his eyes and humming comfortably. “Apart from planting another batch of staple crops in the greenhouse in the second half of the year, the focus is on letting everyone eat more meat. Recently, the canteen has been complaining that there’s not enough meat in the dishes.”

Liang Jincheng sneered, “They’re spoiled. Do they think it’s still the modern life where they can play games on their phones and sleep without worry behind closed doors? How many bases outside can’t even eat a meal? Let alone T City, how many people there go hungry every day? They’re starting to complain with their eyes closed.”

Ji Cha smiled and said, “This can be understood too. After all, they haven’t really encountered any dangers from the outside world in a long time.”

Liang Jincheng said, “But we can’t live in peace for too long. The base needs to expand, and the internal materials and resources are no longer sufficient. We’re now organizing the establishment of small gathering points outside, where we can station workers and make use of the infrastructure left behind.”

Some areas of S City have specialized talents, and there are also related factory sites in S City itself, which will be the key points for sending workers in the future. Workers will be sent out by car in the morning and brought back in the evening, and there will be supernaturals and ordinary soldiers working together to protect them during working hours.

Liang Jincheng continued, “I’ll be handing it over to you in a few days.”

“Handing it over to me?” Ji Cha was puzzled.

Liang Jincheng said, “The lunch will have to be sent over here. There will be several factory points, and probably five hundred people will need to be fed every day. You’ll have to figure out the arrangements on your end.”

Sure enough, as Liang Jincheng had said, a few days later, the person in charge of the external factory, Gao Kangle, came to find Ji Cha.

Translated on ho lo lo novels dot com.

Gao Kangle is a middle-aged man around 40 years old. He is not tall and looks serious, but he speaks politely. Perhaps it’s because he was polite when Liang Jincheng mentioned Ji Cha, and in the end, having control over a base’s food supply in the apocalypse is real power.

“The overall preparation is about to start, and it will probably officially begin in about a week. Going outside is a labor-intensive and dangerous job, so I’m thinking of just including lunch in the wages. It sounds better,” Gao Kangle said. “Nowadays, working outside earns you 30 information points a day, of course, this also depends on your opinion, Director Ji.”

When Ji Cha heard that lunch would be included in the wages, he knew it wouldn’t work. Although it was almost the same thing when it came to the collective economy, the reality was that the farm here was calculated separately. If they really included lunch, the farm that was already barely making any money would have to pay for the workers’ wages, even if it was only three information points per person per day, a bean bun was still dry rations.

Ji Cha expressed his concern about the farm’s operation. Gao Kangle then said, “If we use this method, I will definitely apply for a subsidy for the farm from the higher-ups.”

Ji Cha asked, “If lunch is fully covered, is it free? Can they eat as much as they want?”

Gao Kangle nodded.

“I disagree,” Ji Cha said. “Just look at some of the units before the apocalypse. Who cared when they ate the government’s food? Waste and taking it home was not uncommon. If we really do it this way, there will definitely be a lot of trouble in the future. I suggest we do it this way: the staple food can be free, and the farm doesn’t need additional subsidies, but the dishes need to be paid for separately, and they are also categorized. There can be an option of one meat and one vegetable, one meat and two vegetables, or two meats and two vegetables, with prices of 3 points, 4 points, and 5 points, respectively. The workers who participate in the work can come over and determine which level they want to eat, and I will enter the data into the computer. Then it will automatically deduct the money every day.”

After hearing what Ji Cha had to say, Gao Kangle realized that he had oversimplified things. He thought for a moment and said, “Okay, I will have to adjust the wages on my end. When it’s settled, I’ll come back and tell you.”

After speaking, Gao Kangle turned his head and left in a hurry.

They are verifying the details here, and the recruitment office has already determined the new job positions and posted them in electronic and written form everywhere.

Each position has been clearly and specifically defined according to the different types of work, but the most attractive aspect is the salary column. In the past, earning over 20 information points a day was considered good on the farm, but this time the published job positions start at 30 information points per day, and the highest is up to 40. Plus, meals including rice are provided, which basically means being guaranteed to be well-fed.

Therefore, countless people rushed to sign up, completely ignoring the warning of “may face life-threatening danger at any time” written in large letters at the end.