As noon approached, the RV was filled with various supplies, and the biggest reward was prying open a clothing store. Inside the warehouse were last year’s surplus down jackets. The styles were not great, but they were quite effective at keeping warm!

Zhang Su picked a suitable one in the store and put it on. It felt quite warm even when the temperature hovered around zero degrees, and it would still be useful if it dropped another ten degrees.

Counting them on the spot, there were more than a hundred. This batch of supplies would be enough to provide winter clothes for everyone in the camp.

“How’s it going?”

Zhang Su walked over to the excavator, looking at the tangled wires under the opened panel. His head was spinning; he was already at a loss with computer wires, let alone this mess. He almost wanted to yank them all out.

“Brother Su, the problem’s figured out. It’s not hard to start, as long as there’s fuel, but driving it away isn’t easy. We need a welding machine!”

Guo Dachao quickly explained the basic situation to Zhang Su, giving him a rough idea of what the welding machine was for.

“Where are we supposed to find a welding machine just like that? What about that one? Can’t we take parts from the excavator across the street and switch them over?”

Zhang Su scratched his head, pointing to the same type of excavator on the opposite road.

Fixing the excavator requires a welding machine. If we find one that’s also broken, then fixing it will require another piece of equipment. It’s an endless cycle…

Guo Dachao shrugged: “The engine on that excavator blew, but you’re right, the parts can be used. But we don’t have the equipment to lift the excavator and take them off.”

When conditions are abundant, many difficulties are no longer difficulties. But without things like a gantry crane or lift, the problem becomes huge.

“Welding, welding… I remember there was a small welding machine in the camp before?”

Zhang Su looked towards Zhao Dezhu and the others. He hadn’t been much involved in the camp’s defensive constructions, but vaguely remembered seeing it.

Wang Xin recalled, “That’s right, I saw Teacher Yu use it before, but I heard from Liu Tianji that it’s broken.”

“Broken? How did it break?” Zhang Su asked, puzzled.

Wang Xin shrugged, “Unstable voltage, it burned out while building the wall…”

“Damn it… alright then.”

Zhang Su shook his head. The voltage on Celestial Horse Island was already unstable, and that welding machine was just an ordinary product bought by the guesthouse owner for some craftwork. It’s understandable if the quality wasn’t great.

“Yeah, ask United Village if they have one. That thing shouldn’t be rare!”

Zhang Su jumped into the car and grabbed the walkie-talkie: “Hey, Wang Longzhong!”

“Hey, Younger Brother Zhang, I’m here. What’s up?”

Wang Longzhong replied quickly, clearly more diligent than Wang Xingui as the walkie-talkie was mounted on his chest, ready for use at any moment.

“Do you guys have a welding machine?”

Zhang Su asked directly.

“A welding machine… we might have one if you look around the village. We haven’t used one usually.”

Wang Longzhong answered, unsure.

“Okay, try to find one while you’re cleaning up!”

Just as he was talking next to the RV, the other walkie-talkie on the car buzzed!

“Boss Zhang, you’re not saying you’re not coming today, are you? Hey, hey.”

“This old fellow seems anxious. Is there some scheme…”

Zhang Su muttered as he picked up the walkie-talkie, pressing the talk button: “Old village chief, you guys aren’t leaving anytime soon anyway. Why the rush? I’m busy here…”

Hearing that Zhang Su was busy, Ma Changshou understood the underlying meaning and quickly said, “Boss Zhang, what are you busy with? Is there anything I can help you with?”

Zhang Su paused to think, casually saying, “I was just planning to trade a few sheep with you and am welding a sheep pen right now!”

“Welding a sheep pen? That’s a small task, not enough to be busy over. I have welders in my village, with equipment, offering door-to-door service for a nominal fee. Does Boss Zhang need help?”

Ma Changshou immediately brightened up, eager for any opportunity to earn from Zhang Su.

A smile crept onto Zhang Su’s lips, and the others around him exchanged knowing smiles.

“No need, no need, it’s almost done. I’ll come over in the afternoon, about the same time as last time!”

Zhang Su responded to Ma Changshou.

“Alright, alright, we look forward to your arrival!” Ma Changshou didn’t dwell on it and responded cheerfully with polite words.

Zhang Su turned around and said, “Let’s go back to the camp for the start-of-the-year hotpot. We’ll head to pick up the welding machine in the afternoon and come back with fuel tomorrow to drive the excavator back—a New Year’s grand gift!”

“Uh…” Guo Dachao scratched his head awkwardly: “Brother Su, I’m afraid it won’t be fixed in a day, we need a bit more time.”

Zhang Su made a peculiar expression and said, “So serious, huh? A few more days, then. Let’s go, back to the camp!”

“Let’s go!”

“Let’s go home!”

“Haha, I’ll let Qingqing know, so they can prepare early!”

Half an hour later, Zhang Su and his group returned to Celestial Horse Island.

The restaurant was filled with a delightful aroma, and the windows were fogged up. The table was already set with abundant ingredients. Thanks to the greenhouse supply, there was a wide variety of vegetables—lettuce, cilantro, crown daisy, and dandelion greens. As for meat, it was pretty basic, just raw sliced pork, but given the current environment, it was the best choice!

Three large copper pots were boiling over coal, bubbling vigorously. The red oil broth was spicy and aromatic, even the steam seemed to take on a blissful shape.

On another table nearby, there was a slightly smaller pot with the same red broth, though no coal was added. Surrounding it were side dishes and meat slices, reserved for Zhong Xiaoshan and Zhao Xue, who were on duty in the monitoring room.

“Brothers and sisters!”

Zhang Su sat confidently at the head of the table, raised his cup with tea as a substitute for wine, and said, “I won’t say much, just wish everyone to live well and step by step move towards the light!”

“Live well and move towards the light!”

Everyone stood up and raised their cups together.

Initially, Zhang Su arranged for Teacher Yu to say a few words to elevate the occasion of the New Year’s feast. However, Yuwen declined, reasoning that no matter how eloquent the words, they couldn’t match the allure of hotpot, and it was best to let everyone enjoy themselves.

“Let’s dig in, whatever makes you comfortable! Be careful not to scald yourselves…”

After draining the tea in his cup, Zhang Su made a large gesture to start the meal, like a caring patriarch reminding everyone!

“Before the outbreak, I just had hotpot. Didn’t expect it to be two or three months ago already. Sometimes I can’t help but wonder, could it be because I didn’t use a discount coupon last time that this disaster struck…”

Liu Tianji picked up a chopstick of cabbage, blowing on it as he spoke.

“Oh, come on, no amount of butterfly effect could result in this, could it… Really tasty though, sizzle!” Wang Xin risked burning his mouth, unable to wait to stuff a meat slice into it.

“Good heavens, it’s so delicious. Eating like this, Old Zhao, if a zombie is gnawing on you, I wouldn’t even want to put my chopsticks down to save you!” Lu Yubo quipped to Zhao Dezhu between mouthfuls.

“You damn… Same here, once the zombies have had their share of you, I’ll have finished eating too and have the strength to bury you!”

Zhao Dezhu was happily serving Yu Qing, but upon hearing Lu Yubo’s comment, he immediately engaged in a verbal sparring match.

“Honey, why aren’t you eating? Here, take this, some meat!”

Zheng Xinyu placed a chopstick of cooked meat into Zhang Su’s dipping bowl, noticing his gaze wandering, completely detached from the food.

“Unknowingly, so many people have come together…”

Zhang Su took a bite from his bowl, his eyes lighting up. It was truly delicious, the long-missed technology-driven delicacy (hotpot seasoning) was authentically flavored, leaving a lingering taste!

“What do you mean all come together? I don’t get it.” Zheng Xinyu shook her head while eating.

Zhang Su whispered, “Haven’t you noticed? Bozai and Lanlan, Zhuzi and Teacher Xiaoyu, Guo Dachao and Yang Wenjie, Xiaoshan and Pei Lan, Zhang Ya and Wang Xin are all together now…”

“Oh, you mean that… Mutual affection bringing people together is normal, right? You have me and Sister Xiaoshan, don’t you? Surely you’re not envious of others, are you? Tsk!”

Zheng Xinyu rolled her eyes playfully.

“That’s not what I mean…”

Zhang Su grinned and said, “Now in the camp when guys see others pairing up, the ones still single will surely feel envious. And that envy might turn into jealousy, so we have to quickly lure the girls from United Village here!”

“Hanging out with you is really something, even helping your men find wives, hehe…”

Zheng Xinyu laughed playfully and stuffed her mouth with leafy greens.

“It’s not just about finding wives, go on, eat!”

The desires for sleep, food, survival, and sex are the four most basic human urges. The instinct encoded in genes will make people unconsciously pursue them one by one.

This is a very realistic issue. Using forceful means to control people’s basic desires is not a long-term solution. Only by properly channeling and guiding can it be effective, as shown in history from wars.

From struggling to survive to living comfortably, after being well-fed and warm, lust inevitably follows. This isn’t necessarily bad, as perpetuating human civilization includes reproduction, a tough endeavor. If not balanced, it’ll become troublesome at some point in the future.

The abundant New Year’s feast was immensely satisfying for everyone. The claim that good food brings happiness is not just lip service, especially in this current environment, highlighting its importance. The unity of the whole team reached another level.

After resting in the camp for a while, around two in the afternoon, Zhang Su called on the strongly eager Zheng Xinyu who wanted to go out for a walk, along with Guo Dachao and Zhao Dezhu, to head to West Camp Village for trade.

Guo Dachao was brought along because he’s a professional, useful when discussing welding machines, while Zhao Dezhu was mainly brought to make him experience the harsh environment and curb his urge to have kids!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep