Chapter 25: Recruiting Soldiers and Gathering Horses

Li Qing’s once fair, round face had become gaunt and shriveled like an old leather pouch after two months of struggling to survive in the apocalypse. His pronounced cheekbones jutted out as if something hard was stuffed beneath the skin, perfectly supporting a pair of glasses with one broken lens, the fractured white frame gleaming faintly.

Yet at this moment, when he saw the little girl before him happily eating a piece of compressed biscuit, her once lifeless face now alight with childish spirit, a light of contentment and affection shone in his eyes.

Before the end times, Li Qing had been a renowned figure in the nation’s IT industry. When disaster struck, he was separated from his family, and with no word of their fate, he wandered until he reached this camp.

He didn’t know the little girl’s name. He had found her at the camp gate, and the helpless look in her eyes had compelled him to grit his teeth and bring her in, fully aware that without his help, she wouldn’t have survived to see the next morning.

“Daddy, you eat too!” The sensible girl blinked her large eyes and offered Li Qing the remaining half of her biscuit.

Li Qing stroked her head and laughed softly, “You eat it, Little Lantern. Daddy isn’t hungry.” Little Lantern was the name he had given her.

She lowered her head, stubbornly holding out the biscuit, sensing in her innocent way that Li Qing must be hungry too.

Seeing her like this, Li Qing sighed, took the biscuit, and carefully broke it in half. Inside their tattered tent, the two of them ate contentedly.

Afterward, Li Qing felt for the two biscuits he had left. Although food prices had dropped, the three biscuits he had just acquired were traded for a family heirloom—a piece of jade. He had no idea how long they would last.

How ironic, he thought, that someone who had once stood at the pinnacle of his profession was now reduced to utter uselessness. A trace of self-mockery flashed in his eyes as he prepared to go outside in search of odd jobs around the camp. Suddenly, a ragged man burst in from outside.

“Li Qing! Li Qing! You’re still here? Come quickly! There’s a job opening!” the man called excitedly.

Li Qing sprang up, his face alight. The camp was full to bursting—what it lacked was work, not laborers. He’d nearly come to blows with someone over a cleaning job before, only to end up with nothing.

News of a job opening was enough to make anyone’s heart race.

“Brother Liu, where’s the recruitment? Wait a moment, I’ll get ready right away.”

The man called Liu scoffed with a laugh, “With your patchy state, who’d want you? Bring Little Lantern and come on. If you’re late and miss out, don’t blame me.”

Li Qing could only agree, taking Little Lantern’s hand and hurrying after Brother Liu.

When they arrived at the recruitment site, there were already two endless lines stretching out ahead, with several men carrying rifles pacing back and forth to maintain order.

Brother Liu grumbled in regret, “See? So many people! I told you to hurry.”

“Sorry, sorry, Brother Liu—it’s my fault. Let’s get in line quickly,” Li Qing apologized profusely.

The three squeezed in at the back. Even without armed men keeping order, Li Qing’s temperament wouldn’t allow him to cut in line.

At that moment, a pretty-eyed little girl carrying a stack of forms approached, smiling sweetly. “Uncles, and little sister—are you here to apply for jobs?”

Li Qing, noting her spirited air so different from the camp’s usual refugees, quickly replied, “Yes, we’re here for work, but Little Lantern doesn’t need a job.”

The girl was Xiao Yin. Since Wang Ji had become the company commander, she and Xiao Cong had been helping out even more. With Xiao Liu now in charge of logistics and shorthanded, Xiao Yin and Xiao Cong were recruited to assist.

“Heehee, so your little sister is called Little Lantern? How pretty,” Xiao Yin said, her big eyes twinkling, as she pulled a candy from her pocket and handed it over.

Little Lantern, a bit shy, hid behind Li Qing, but seeing that Xiao Yin was about her age, she peeked out curiously.

“Ah! Say thank you to your big sister!” Li Qing said kindly to the sensible Little Lantern. “What’s your name? Are you helping out here?”

Xiao Yin stuffed the candy into Little Lantern’s hand and lifted her chin proudly. “I’m Wang Xiaoyin! My brother’s in charge of recruiting, and I’m here to help!”

Li Qing now had an idea of her background—she was likely the sister of one of the camp’s leading armed figures or possibly the child of a military family.

He smiled. “You’re amazing, Xiao Yin, working at such a young age. Uncle’s here looking for work too!”

“Oh, I almost forgot! Uncle, what kind of job are you looking for? Technical… skills, or just general work?” Xiao Yin thought carefully before finishing her question.

Li Qing paused in surprise—were jobs divided into technical and general categories here?

“Um, I suppose I’m technical.”

Xiao Yin handed him a form. “Here you go, Uncle. The line on the left is for technical positions. And you, Uncle?”

Brother Liu grinned at her sensibility. “I don’t have any special skills, just a strong back.”

Xiao Yin tilted her head, thought for a moment, then pointed right. “Then you don’t need a form—go queue on the right.”

“I’m off, Little Lantern—bye-bye!” With more people arriving behind, Xiao Yin hurried away after a quick farewell.

Li Qing watched her go, warmth in his heart, holding Little Lantern’s hand tightly. He looked down at the form, which just asked for information like skills and experience.

He composed himself and moved forward with hope, inch by inch, in the long queue.

After two hours, he finally reached the interview station, filled out the form, gave a brief introduction, and was told to wait for news.

Outside, Brother Liu was visibly anxious, scanning the crowd. When he saw Li Qing and Little Lantern emerge, he rushed over.

“Li Qing, did you get the job?”

Li Qing shook his head; the interview had been little more than a form and a few questions, so he’d done his best to clearly list his IT expertise and communication skills.

“Not sure yet—they told me to wait.”

Brother Liu clapped him on the shoulder, grinning. “Guess what? I got hired!”

“The recruiter is Wang Ji, who’s in charge of the West District! You know him, right? He’s the one who opened up the supply depot at the shelter—they say he was sent by the Central Command…” Realizing he was bragging, Brother Liu coughed awkwardly.

“Don’t worry, Li Qing. I believe in you. I start tomorrow with the engineering team—if you need anything, just let me know.”

Li Qing gave a sheepish smile and declined. “Brother Liu, you’ve helped me enough. You finally found work—your wife and kids need you too.”

“Haha, it’s nothing…”

The three walked back together, but unlike before, hope now shone on their faces.

At the front of the recruitment line, Xiao Liu had enlisted three or four of the camp’s elders to help handle the endless stream of applicants. Though their task was only to collect forms, the overwhelming numbers left them exhausted.

Xiao Liu had never imagined the recruitment notice would draw such a crowd, but with Wang Ji’s quota in hand, he gritted his teeth and pushed through.

In less than three hours, he had already collected forms from one hundred technical applicants and over four hundred general laborers.

Carrying the stack of forms, Xiao Liu hurried into the building.

This three-story building was the best in the West District, and since Wang Ji had taken over, it had become company headquarters—the third floor housed his office and the valuables storeroom, the second floor was divided among the various departments, and the first floor served as warehouse and mess hall.

According to Wang Ji’s plan, the company was divided into operations and logistics. Operations comprised the independent company’s mobile infantry, reconnaissance, and artillery platoons. Logistics was split into warehouse management, market operations, technology development, and administrative support, each with its own area on the second floor. But with limited manpower, most departments existed only in outline.

“Boss! So many people showed up this morning—here’s the first batch of forms,” Xiao Liu said breathlessly, dropping the stack on Wang Ji’s desk.

Wang Ji took them and quickly scanned through, nodding in satisfaction and marking several names.

“Hard work?” he asked, handing back the selected forms. With a mental capacity far above the average, Wang Ji could process these much faster than most.

Xiao Liu forced a smile. “Not at all, boss. I can handle it.”

“Good. Notify these people to come for a second interview tomorrow—if there are no issues, they’re in.” Wang Ji stood up, gathering his gear. “Keep at it. I’m going to check on Li Chengming outside the city and get the survey and construction plans for the farmers’ market moving. That Wang Songyuan you found seems capable—give him more authority.”

“Understood, boss! I’ll get right on it.” Xiao Liu nodded and hurried off.

Wang Ji could only sigh—a bit too young, still.

He went downstairs, started the vehicle, and headed for the old brickworks outside the city.

The old brickworks had been converted into the company’s training grounds, with expanded facilities and strengthened defenses in recent days.

A few days earlier, Li Chengming had come up with a recruitment method for expanding the force: anyone wanting to join the independent company had to pass the first test, starting at nine in the morning and arriving at the old brickworks several kilometers away by noon.

No military escort was provided—candidates could go in groups or alone, but anyone reaching the site within the allotted time qualified to apply.

Most ordinary people in the camp dared not stray far, as mutant beasts still prowled the outskirts.

This method was sure to weed out most who lacked the courage.