Fletcher didn't hesitate to pick up a chicken leg, savoring it with delight. "That's true. Since the apocalypse, I haven't had any snacks. I don't even remember what spicy strips taste like."
"Just being able to eat a full meal is a blessing. Snacks can only be fantasized about in dreams. Today, thanks to Mr. Hurley's generosity, we've turned the flavors of our dreams into reality," someone joked along.
The others didn't bother to respond, too busy devouring their meat hungrily.
Emory sat nearby, enviously watching them, regretting provoking Alice.
After waiting for ten minutes and seeing no sign of them moving to work, Emory's face darkened.
However, Hurley seemed oblivious to him, just encouraging the others to eat more.
Emory was tempted to go down the mountain several times, but he feared they would return and falsely accuse him, so he had to endure.
Twenty minutes later, Hurley estimated that they had finished collecting the weapons. He then urged them to get back to work.
The people, who had just eaten and drank their fill, stood up without complaint. "Let's go, let's go, back to work."
"The salted pork trotters are delicious. Once we get our rewards this time, I'm going to buy a pork trotter."
"You probably don't know how expensive a pork trotter is. You'd have to put all your savings into it just to afford one."
"It's okay. We should enjoy life while we can. Who knows what tomorrow holds, right?"
"Yeah, so if you buy a pork trotter, can I come over to eat it?"
The group bantered and laughed as they finished moving the weapons.
Hurley had originally planned to finish in the afternoon, but unexpectedly, they were done two or three hours earlier, just around noon.
Fletcher approached. "Mr. Hurley, it's still early. Shall we head back?"
"What do you guys think?"
The others also didn't want to stay here any longer. Sleeping in the car was nowhere near as comfortable as their own beds at home, so they all agreed to head back early.
Starting earlier would mean getting back to the base sooner. Seeing everyone agreed to return as soon as possible, Hurley ordered them to leave after lunch.
Alice approached Hurley's car, speaking in a low voice, "The weapons have all been collected."
"Good, everything's ready," Hurley replied.
"What are we having for lunch today?" Hurley asked with a smile. He didn't have many ready-made items in his space, and he was getting tired of eating self-heating meals most days.
After some thought, Alice set up a table and laid out spicy chicken, lemon duck, tomato scrambled eggs, and a plate of stir-fried bean sprouts, along with two bowls of rice. The inside of the car was quite enclosed, so she wasn't worried about the smell leaking out.
---
At one thirty in the afternoon, the convoy left Peach Blossom Village. Alice put on her headphones, listening to music while driving. Whenever she felt thirsty or hungry, she simply took snacks from the space, feeling relaxed and carefree.
Just then, the car in front suddenly stopped, prompting Alice to hit the brakes. After waiting for a while with no sign of the car moving, Alice took off her headphones and got out of the car. She had barely taken a few steps when Hurley approached her, explaining, "There's a big hole in the middle of this road, and the truck can't pass. We'll probably have to take a detour."
"What's going on? It was fine just a few days ago," Alice frowned, striding up to the front.
She saw a two-meter-wide deep hole on the road they had traveled a few days ago, making it impossible to fill or bridge over. The road next to the deep hole could barely accommodate small cars, and they had to be driven by skilled drivers, otherwise, there was a risk of falling into the hole.
"I think it's more reliable to take a detour. Even small cars may not be able to pass, let alone big trucks."
"How did this hole come about? It's impossible for stones to fall here, and there haven't been any mudslides or landslides."
"We passed through here just fine a few days ago. It's really strange."
The others couldn't help but turn to Hurley and Alice; after all, they were the ones leading the team this time.
"Since there's no way to pass through, let's take a detour," Hurley took out a map and pointed to one of the roads, "We'll take this road and then join the national highway."
The others glanced at the map symbolically; anyway, Hurley was leading the way, and they could follow behind without worrying too much about remembering the route.
With the route chosen, the convoy turned around. Changing the route went smoothly, and they arrived at a small town before it got dark.
Surprisingly, this small town was inhabited, with several houses lit up and cars parked outside. As the convoy passed through, the residents of the town came out one after another.
Alice found it surprising too; many big cities had long been deserted, and those who could run to the base had already left.
An elderly woman approached with a little girl and asked curiously, "Where are you all from?"
Alice replied, "We're from the base. Are you the original residents of the town?"
The old woman nodded, "Yes, we have lived here for generations. We're used to it and don't want to leave."
As they spoke, more people came out of other houses, men and women, young and old. Their lives seemed to be going well; they all looked healthy, without any signs of fatigue.
"Can we stay here for the night? We won't disturb you; we can just sleep in our cars," Fletcher said, seeing that it was getting dark and not wanting to continue driving.
"Feel free to stay. It's usually quiet here, but today it's finally a bit lively," the old woman said kindly.
At this moment, a middle-aged man walked over, smiling, "We have many empty houses here; you can all stay as you like, free of charge."
The people around were also enthusiastic, "Have dinner with us tonight. We want to know more about the outside world."
"Don't be polite with us; we have enough food for everyone."
Seeing everyone so welcoming, the members of the convoy were also delighted, eagerly turning to Hurley and asking, "Mr. Hurley, is it okay?"
"Okay with what? Everyone's life is not easy; how can you even think of taking advantage?" Hurley reprimanded lightly. When he looked at the man, his expression softened a bit, "Feel free to ask whatever you want to know. You don't need to entertain us specially. Supplies are hard to come by, and there's no way to produce them. Keep them for yourselves."