CHAPTER 280: CHAPTER 278: MATERIAL EXCHANGE REOPENS

Outside the shelter, a truck accurately parked right at the entrance of Chen Xin’s refuge.

The person getting off from the truck was none other than Qin Lan’s old boss, Captain Li. Ever since Qin Lan was injured and left the SWAT team, the communication with Chen Xin was now handled by him.

Along with Captain Li, Ding Ning also got off the truck. However, for some reason, the young lady’s face looked sour, as if she was angry at someone.

Because they had sent a message before arriving at Chen Xin’s shelter, when the truck stopped at the entrance, Han Ping had already reopened the door he had just closed, allowing Ding Ning and Captain Li to walk directly into Chen Xin’s refuge.

"Where’s the food?" Seeing Han Ping coming to greet them, Ding Ning directly asked him, "Who are you? I haven’t seen you before!"

"I’m Han Ping, Mr. Chen’s driver. My brother and I came with him from our hometown in Anhui Province." Although Han Ping didn’t know who Ding Ning was, he politely introduced himself, explaining, "Mr. Chen is downstairs. May I ask what brings you two here?"

While Han Ping spoke, he didn’t directly let them into the shelter interior, but waited for others to come out and greet them.

He didn’t know the two people before him, and although the previous communications claimed they were from the SWAT team, he had confirmed with Chen Xin that it was okay to open the door. Still, he remained cautious and didn’t let Ding Ning and Captain Li in just yet.

After notifying him, Qin Lan said she would come out to greet them, so he stopped worrying too much and simply held them at the entrance, waiting for Qin Lan to come up.

Qin Lan arrived quickly, not making Ding Ning and Captain Li wait long before appearing in front of them.

"Lan Jie!" "Ah Lan!" Ding Ning and Captain Li greeted Qin Lan together.

Ding Ning noticed Qin Lan’s right hand and immediately ran over, grabbed her right hand, and asked, "Lan Jie, is your right hand healed?!"

However, as soon as Ding Ning grasped Qin Lan’s right hand, she felt its hardness and immediately understood that Qin Lan’s right hand wasn’t healed but replaced with a prosthetic.

"Yes, Ah Xin made me a prosthetic. It’s basically the same as before." Qin Lan smiled at Ding Ning. She was no longer too concerned about her right hand and also looked at Captain Li nearby: "Long time no see, Captain."

Captain Li, seeing Qin Lan, felt a lot more relieved and smiled at her: "It’s been a while. Seeing you like this now, I can relax."

After Qin Lan lost her hand and was in the hospital for treatment, Captain Li had visited her. At that time, Qin Lan had a face full of despair, looking like she was about to die, unlike her current radiant and lively appearance.

"Sorry for worrying you, Captain." Qin Lan felt a bit embarrassed. Looking back, her previous self-pity seemed rather unnecessary, and it caused those who cared about her to worry excessively.

Ding Ning didn’t have those thoughts; seeing Qin Lan’s hand as nimble as ever, she happily said, "Looks like the ’ingredient’ did a good job fixing your hand, Lan Jie."

Qin Lan didn’t pay much attention to Ding Ning’s comments. She just smiled and then looked at Captain Li, asking, "Captain, why are you here today?"

"Like before, here to exchange supplies. It used to be Little Qin handling this, but now Captain Ding handed it over to me." Captain Li nodded, explaining the reason for their visit.

"Let me take you downstairs, Ah Xin has remodeled the greenhouse a bit, and the vegetable yield this month is quite high." Qin Lan smiled at them and led them through the corridor, taking them to the elevator and down to the lower level of the shelter.

Exiting the elevator, Ding Ning curiously looked around, surprised and intrigued, as it was her first time visiting after Chen Xin upgraded the entire shelter.

"This place is different now, ’ingredient’ really knows how to renovate!" Ding Ning looked around the neat and comfortable shelter, feeling slightly envious.

Previously, Mo Qingyan and Mo Qingxin had been invited by Chen Xin to stay here to keep watch, while Ding Ning and Qin Lan lived at Mo Qingyan’s shelter. Though that place wasn’t bad, it couldn’t compare to Chen Xin’s upgraded refuge.

At least Mo Qingyan’s shelter wasn’t as comfy as Chen Xin’s, feeling overburdened by her heavy clothes and wanting to remove her jacket due to the heat.

"Xiao Ding, Captain Li, why did you come today? Is it about the supply exchange?" Chen Xin raised his head from the workbench, greeting them.

Ding Ning and Captain Li walked up to Chen Xin. Before Captain Li could say anything, Ding Ning noticed the Exoskeleton Protective Suit on the workbench and exclaimed in surprise, "Is this an exoskeleton? Did you make it yourself, ’ingredient’?"

"I made it myself, though it’s not finished yet. Many parts need improvement." Chen Xin didn’t hide that he could make an exoskeleton.

"Wow, you’re amazing! I thought writing novels was impressive enough, but you’re actually a ’Iron Man’!" Praised Ding Ning as she patted Chen Xin’s shoulder twice, "When can I get one?"

"Once I complete it, there will definitely be a suit for you." Chen Xin didn’t hesitate to promise her a protective suit.

After Ding Ning finished talking about wanting her exoskeleton with special paint schemes, Captain Li finally spoke, "Mr. Chen, we’re here for the vegetables you promised us this month. You previously prepaid three months’ worth of exchanges from our SWAT team, and this month is the last one."

Chen Xin had no objections and directly nodded, though he told Captain Li, "The promised amount, of course, is not a problem. However, before I left, I remodeled the shelter and expanded the greenhouse. This month’s vegetable yield is four times higher, so there’ll be more vegetable portions available in the future, resulting in a surplus of several hundred pounds this month. I’d like to exchange the surplus for living supplies and rations directly."

"That’s not a problem, but we didn’t bring supplies today. They’ll be delivered tomorrow." Captain Li was prepared for this when Qin Lan mentioned it earlier.

Chen Xin nodded. He wasn’t worried about Captain Li failing to deliver the supplies and taking his vegetables for free: "Alright, harvesting this many vegetables takes time anyway, so we’ll see you again tomorrow."