174: Chapter 174 The main force of the Iron Hoof is about to move! Give the watermelons to the construction team first.

Seven in the morning.

Zhao Tiezhu's communicator rang before Lu Chen could finish writing the sixth line of his notebook.

"City Lord, the Patrol Car is heading out today. This is the last trip. Do you have anything to add or explain?"

"How many people?"

"Five. Same lineup as last time, led by the lead scavengers."

"Take enough water and Nutrient Bars. The coal crystals on the periphery have decreased, so they'll have to walk a few more kilometers. They must be back before noon, no matter how much they've picked up."

"Understood."

"One more thing," Lu Chen placed the notebook on his lap, "have the scavengerss pay attention to the direction. See if there are any new Mutant Beast tracks on the eastern side of the peripheral coal crystal distribution area. If there are, record them and tell me when they return."

"Looking for beasts?"

"Preliminary reconnaissance. It's not like I'm letting them fight." Lu Chen looked at the console. "The farm's system feed is sufficient, but the Synthesizer's raw beast meat has an eighty-day reserve. We'll need to replenish it after eighty days. For now, let's just see the distribution of the peripheral beast herds."

"We only need it eighty days from now; it's a bit early for reconnaissance."

"Better early than late. Mastering information is more stable than looking for it temporarily when needed."

"Understood, I'll have the scavengerss keep an eye out."

The communicator hung up.

Lu Chen finished writing the sixth line in his notebook.

Line six: Han Zhengqing's Engineering Team begins partitioning the storage area today, aiming to clear formal housing for Zhao Tiezhu's three hundred people and clear open space to temporarily settle the unregistered residents moving in soon.

He closed the notebook and picked up his thermos.

Warm milk, brought by Lin Wan at six-thirty this morning.

He took a sip, set the cup down, and continued looking at the panel.

The third registration terminal is in its first day of operation today. Chen Li's morning report mentioned that yesterday's single-day registrations rose to seven hundred and nine people. The effect of three terminals running simultaneously was better than expected.

In twenty-two days, we'll take in as many as can move in.

Chen Li would bring the daily report at four in the afternoon; he would look at the numbers then.

At nine-thirty in the morning, the communicator rang.

It was Lin Wan.

"City Lord, the first batch of rice milling is complete. Brown rice has been put into storage, two tons and six hundred kilograms."

"Storage location?"

"The grain area next to the first-floor cold storage, stored separately from the flour."

"Good, have the accounts been recorded?"

"Recorded. Song Ya is in charge of the ledger; all grain movements are recorded."

"Good, what else?"

"One thing," Lin Wan paused for a beat, "Liao Dacheng came to the greenhouse this morning. He discussed the composting cycle with me, saying the first batch of pig and cow manure has been fermenting for four days, and the valve can be opened for a trial in another three to five days. He suggested using one set of Hydroponic Racks for a small-scale test first to see the impact of organic fertilizer on the Fast-growing Wheat, rather than using it all at once."

"Whose suggestion was it, Liao Dacheng's or yours?"

"We both thought so, but I have the final say, and I agreed with his suggestion."

"Good, do it that way. Use one set of Hydroponic Racks for the test, record the data, and if the effect is normal, then roll it out to all the racks."

"Understood."

"Strawberry progress?"

"Measured this morning, the fruit body is nearly five centimeters, with forty-two percent coloration. The color is spreading upwards from the bottom; the bottom will be completely red in another ten days."

"Is the seventy-fifth-day maturity still valid?"

"Valid. It might be a day or two early; I'd say between the seventy-third and seventy-fifth day."

"Watermelon?"

"The fruit is the size of a fist and has started to accumulate a bit of sugar. The patterns on the skin are clearer, green with white stripes, very beautiful."

Lu Chen didn't respond.

Lin Wan added from the other end.

"I remember the first Strawberry is for the City Lord, but if the Watermelon ripens first, can I give one to Chief Engineer Han and the others first?"

Lu Chen glanced at the panel.

"Give the Watermelons to the Engineering Team first. I want the first Strawberry, and you can arrange the rest."

"Okay."

The communicator hung up.

He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

The Rustwind Wasteland outside the window stretched out quietly in the morning's gray light.

The radar scanning line rotated at a constant speed.

Within an eight-kilometer range, there was only the light dot of the departing Patrol Car, traveling at forty-five kilometers per hour, heading north-northeast toward the periphery of the Factory Ruins.

No abnormal signals.

The north was still empty.

But those two dark red signal logs were still flashing.

Lu Chen's gaze lingered on them for a few seconds before moving away.

He picked up his notebook, flipped to a new page, and wrote a line at the very top.

Day 53 Task List.

Then he wrote down the items one by one.

When he got to the fourth item, the communicator rang again.

It was Zhou Yuan.

"City Lord, I want to formally report the full details of the Dawn Legion negotiations today. I only gave a summary yesterday; there are a few details you need to know."

"Come to the cockpit."

"Five minutes."

Five minutes later, the elevator doors opened.

Zhou Yuan sat in the co-pilot's seat, holding a handwritten record of his own. The handwriting was neat and the items were clear.

"City Lord, regarding the Dawn Legion, there are three things I didn't fully explain yesterday."

"Speak."

"First, when Forge met me, he had a communication log by his side. I saw a detail: it was the Dawn Legion's own signal monitoring data, which contained direction parameters for the Iron Hoof Legion's outpost signals."

Lu Chen's eyelids flickered.

"They're monitoring too?"

"Yes, their communication technology is stronger than ours, and their monitoring precision is higher. The direction parameters they recorded have subtle differences from ours, but the trend is consistent: the direction is shifting, the signals are getting longer, and the intervals are irregular."

"What's their judgment?"

"The Iron Hoof Legion's outpost reconnaissance vehicles have completed the first phase of fan-shaped reconnaissance and are now narrowing the fan-shaped range, beginning to report and summarize intelligence to their base. This means the outpost reconnaissance phase is nearing its end, and the signal for the main force's movement will appear soon."

Lu Chen held that sentence in his mind for three seconds.

The outpost reconnaissance phase is nearing its end.

The main force moves out.

"The second thing."

"Forge asked me if Polaris had any intention of conducting joint operations with the Dawn Legion's Level 4 cities after the Iron Hoof Legion enters the Rustwind Wasteland. Not joint defense, but a joint strike."

"The specific plan for a joint strike?"

"He didn't state a specific plan, it was just a tentative inquiry. My answer at the time was that this requires the City Lord's decision, and I don't have the authority to make promises."

"You answered correctly."

"But Forge is serious; he wants to fight." Zhou Yuan placed his notebook on his lap. "Evening Bell advocates for running, while Forge advocates for fighting. The rift between the two factions within the Dawn Legion is already very deep. Forge needs an external ally to bolster his position."

"He wants to use us to back him up in the council."

"Yes." Zhou Yuan's eyes were on Lu Chen. "If we publicly state our support for a joint strike, Forge will have an external endorsement in the Dawn Council, and Evening Bell's contraction route will be suppressed."

The cockpit was silent for a few seconds.

"The third thing."

"As Forge was seeing us out, he casually mentioned that if Dawn were to evacuate from the direction of the Rustwind Wasteland, it would take at least three days of preparation. He said it in a casual tone, not like he was intentionally revealing it."

"Three days of preparation time." Lu Chen noted this number in his notebook. "It means if we tell him the Iron Hoof Legion is coming, he needs three days of deployment before he can leave."

"Yes, it also means if we don't tell him, he won't make it in time to run."

Lu Chen rested the notebook on his lap.

The wasteland horizon outside the window remained unchanged.

On the radar panel, the light dot representing the Patrol Car had reached a position ten kilometers north-northeast and was slowing down, approaching the periphery of the Factory Ruins.

"Zhou Yuan, what do you think of Forge as a person?"

Zhou Yuan paused, thinking seriously for a few seconds before speaking.

"A man who wants to fight isn't necessarily reckless. For Forge to become the head of weaponry within the Dawn Legion's conservative system, his judgment must have a solid foundation. He advocates fighting not because he's bellicose, but because he believes the Iron Hoof Legion is unavoidable. Rather than waiting to be crushed, it's better to take the initiative and look for an opportunity."

"His assessment of us?"

"He spent two hours analyzing the Iron Hoof Legion signal data I brought. This shows he treats us as a valid source of intelligence, not something to be dismissed. He had a professional team study the wheat ear samples for three hours, and the reaction was stronger than I expected. I could hear their internal arguments even through the door."

"They want the seed technology."

"They want it, but Forge also knows we won't give it, so he just listed it as a long-term topic and didn't make it a prerequisite for cooperation. This trade-off shows he's clear-headed in negotiations."

Lu Chen looked away from the panel and out the window.

The rust-colored winds of the wasteland drifted in the grayish-white light.

Twenty days.

"Zhou Yuan, go get some rest. How long were you driving yesterday?"

"Five hundred kilometers round trip. I didn't drive; the signalman did, but I didn't sleep well on the iron wall."

"Go to sleep. Chen Li's daily report is at four this afternoon; you don't need to attend."

"Okay."

Zhou Yuan tucked the notebook under his arm, stood up, and walked toward the elevator.

At the door, he stopped.

"City Lord, this man Forge—if the conditions are right, he can be used."

"I know."

The elevator doors closed.