Chu Jiangyue’s words instantly infuriated the man.
"Stupid whore!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he hurled the flames he had conjured toward Chu Jiangyue.
"Boom!"
Before he could throw the flames, however, he was struck by lightning.
Chu Jiangyue turned her head to see Shen Zhigui entering from the doorway.
Perhaps it was the lighting at the entrance, but Shen Zhigui, stepping in against the light, seemed to possess an added aura of mystery.
"Are you okay?"
As soon as Shen Zhigui walked in, he saw Chu Jiangyue facing off alone against a group. He noticed someone opposite Chu Jiangyue throwing small flames at her, so without even thinking, he quickly struck the person with lightning.
The person who had been so arrogant just moments ago was instantly charred by the strike, with smoke still billowing from his mouth after the lightning dissipated.
As for his hair, well, it was now a free gift: a head full of frizz.
Chu Jiangyue shook her head; she hadn’t even warmed up before they arrived.
The boss had already been electrocuted to a crisp, and the remaining people were no longer a threat. Chu Jiangyue looked toward the young woman huddled in the corner.
Lin Xuyuan and Su Zhucheng turned to the person holding the child: "Are you going to hand over the child yourself, or should we beat you up first and then take the child?"
The outcome would be the same, only the process differed. Any wise person would know what to choose.
The man holding the child subconsciously loosened his grip. The little boy, sensing the weakening hold on his shoulder, quickly broke free and dashed toward his mother.
"Mom!"
The young woman, who had almost... her spirits were initially a bit dazed, but upon hearing her child’s voice, her thoughts returned to reality. She swiftly embraced her child, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.
"Sob sob..."
The woman cried in restraint, not daring to make a sound.
It was so close... just so close... she...
Even Chu Jiangyue, upon witnessing such a scene, felt a pang of pity.
"I have a car and can take you to find people from the B City Safety Base. They can escort you back to the B City Safety Base."
Primarily because Jianglin Hotel was fully booked, she couldn’t accommodate more people.
"Safety Base?"
"Really? You all don’t even know about the Safety Base?"
But upon reflection, it made sense. Communication was cut off, information was scarce, and without someone to spread the news, not knowing wasn’t surprising.
The woman shook her head.
"It’s a safety base established by the government, where ordinary people can live. It’s much better than wandering aimlessly outside."
The woman’s eyes were blank, but upon looking at the child in her arms, she finally mustered the courage: "Okay, I’ll go with you."
"How do we deal with these people?"
The boss had already been struck dead by Shen Zhigui’s lightning, but other people remained here.
Chu Jiangyue scanned the area. She truly didn’t want these people to stay as hotel guests, but they were devoid of morality. If left unchecked, who knew how many more they might harm.
"Bring them back for the base personnel to handle."
Chu Jiangyue was simply a businesswoman focused on running a hotel. Punishing people wasn’t her expertise; it was better left to the professionals at the base.
Shen Zhigui didn’t object. These people couldn’t be allowed to continue committing crimes.
There were quite a few people left, and Shen Zhigui and his group only managed to get here quickly by using the hotel’s navigation system.
But with only one car, it wasn’t possible to take so many people. Eventually, someone used navigation again to choose cars as transportation means.
"Get in the car!"
Shen Zhigui and his group channeled their superpowers into their hands, glaring fiercely at the remaining people.
Only the mother and child pair were placed in Chu Jiangyue’s silver SUV.
Before getting into the car, Chu Jiangyue approached Shen Zhigui: "Thank you all today; otherwise, I couldn’t have taken so many people back by myself."
Her SUV was quite special, but it was still limited to carry only seven people.
"No need to thank me. I consider Boss Chu a friend, and when a friend is in trouble, I certainly won’t refuse to help."
Chu Jiangyue glanced at Shen Zhigui. Friend?
"Thank you, it’s my honor."
Chu Jiangyue didn’t deny Shen Zhigui’s words.
After running around so many places today, Chu Jiangyue was not keen on any more trips. She followed behind Shen Zhigui’s vehicle, heading back to Jianglin Hotel.
Inside the car, the little girl and the mother with her child remained very quiet throughout the journey, not uttering a word.
The car slowly came to a stop in front of Jianglin Hotel: "We’ve arrived, you can get out."
With that, Chu Jiangyue was the first to get out of the car.
After all the running around she did today, only bringing three people back made Chu Jiangyue feel the efficiency was a bit low.
Yet seeing the three people inside the car, she concluded that today’s trip was indeed worth it.
The little girl and the mother with her child got out of the car, looking somewhat bewildered at the striking Jianglin Hotel set against its surroundings.
"This is my hotel. There are no rooms available at the moment, which is why I suggested you follow the base personnel to live at the B City Safety Base.
However, you can first apply for an identity card, and buy something to eat at the hotel to fill your stomach."
Every day, a group of people from the B City Base comes by to ensure everyone at the base is equipped with an identity card so communications can be restored for everyone.
"Sis, what is an identity card?"
Compared to the mother and child, the little girl evidently had more courage.
"Every guest at my hotel has one. You can think of it as... a cellphone."
After all, the identity card has a virtual screen, can be used for payments, chatting, and receiving announcements from Jianglin Hotel.
In Jianglin Hotel, its functions are quite similar to a mobile phone from before the apocalypse.
"What do we have to pay for?"
"To apply for an identity card, you need to make an initial top-up. The money will be stored in the card. Let me show you the way."
Mere words wouldn’t mean much to them, it’s necessary to take them and let them experience it firsthand to know what to do.
"Boss Chu, we will go find the base personnel now."
The people brought back were tied with vines by Chu Jiangyue, with the automatic thorns piercing the skin and bringing out bits of flesh.
On the way back, this made all of them behave impeccably.
Once Shen Zhigui and his group got out of the car, they unceremoniously dragged the others off, with the thorns ripping into their skin, causing excruciating pain.
"What’s going on?"
At the entrance of Jianglin Hotel, many people witnessed this scene and rushed forward to inquire.
Shen Zhigui and his group, despite their formidable skills, never put on airs. Many who had awakened superpowers would seek them out for advice on such abilities.
They wouldn’t reveal everything, but Shen Zhigui and his group always provided honest opinions.
"They attempted to harm women and children; we captured them to hand over to the base personnel."
Now that the population is dwindling, so is the labor force. While they could be executed, they could also serve as free labor for the base.
The village will certainly value the efforts of Shen Zhigui and Boss Chu.
"Wow! It’s truly despicable! Well done, Mr. Shen!"
Chu Jiangyue didn’t want to meddle further, so she led the little girl and the mother with her child to the administrative hall.