Chapter 170
In the darkness, Austin''s voice echoed, "Ste, Jasper?"
The two exchanged nces. What was he doing here at this hour?
Ste, almost out of reflex, began to hide things as quickly as she could.
Greens, chicken, pork - Ste swiftly stashed them all into the Arcadia, leaving only the seafood
barbecue out.
Ste invited him onto the rooftop, "Want some garlic oysters?"
The irresistible aroma of grilled seafood caused Austin’s self-restraint to falter, "Sure."
Ste handed him a cold beer, "Austin, you came here in the middle of the night. Is there an
emergency?"
"There is an emergency," Austin gulped down a few mouthfuls of the beer, letting out a satisfied
sigh, "It''s also a golden opportunity to make some money, depending on whether you guys can
seize it."
Make a fortune? Who wouldn''t want that? Ste’s interest was immediately piqued, "Go on."
"Odeberg International is at loggerheads with Aqua Base,. It''s a fiercepetition. I suppose you
know about it?"
She had heard about it, but she wasn''t interested. She came to the seaside to stock up.
"Aqua Base has always wanted to swallow Odeberg International, but Odeberg International is not a
pushover. The two sides have been at each other''s throats, when Aqua Base took a despicable
move. They kidnapped Dexter to force Warren to surrender.
“But Warren is a man of character. He hired a bunch of bodyguards to forcefully retrieve Dexter.
During the escape, the old man tripped and got impaled by a rusty nail."
Those who had experienced the apocalypse knew that tetanus was no joke, and the best way was
to get a vine within 24 hours.
But two years into the apocalypse, pharmaceuticalpanies were destroyed, hospitals paralyzed,
and life-saving drugs were more expensive than fairy pills.
Odeberg International, with its vast resources, would have been able to procure any other life-
saving drugs, but the tetanus vine was special. It required refrigeration at 2-8 degrees Celsius,
and any deviation from this can cause the vine to be ineffective.
To find a vine was almost harder than reaching the sky. So Odeberg International reached out to
all possible connections.
Austin considered hiswork to be decent, but after a round of inquiries, he still couldn''t find the
vine. That was why he thought of Ste.
"Tetanus vine?" Ste looked surprised, "That''s hard to find."
"Tell me about it, I''m almost running my legs off," Austin said, sipping his cold beer, "Do you have
any leads? If so, act quickly."
Warren was a man of character, and also a devoted son. If they could find the vine, the reward
would be substantial.
Ste nodded in agreement, "Okay, since you asked, we''ll try to find some contacts, but we can''t
guarantee that we can get the medicine.”
"Fine, can you give me an answer by tomorrow at eight?" Austin still had other ces to check out.
He finished his beer, grabbed some grilled squid, and left.
Once he left, Ste continued with her barbecue stockpiling. She loved grilled squid tentacles, so
she had to stock up more.
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Jasper seemed thoughtful, "Do you have the tetanus vine?"
"I do," and quite a lot of them.
She had specifically asked Cody to stockpile them before the apocalypse, andter took everything
when she searched the office buildings.
"Are you going to trade?"
"There''s no rush." She was just pondering, what should they ask from Odeberg International in
return?
They had been stockpiling fresh and dry goods every day, and Arcadia was already filled with a lot
of them. Coarse sea salt was cheap; it wasn''t worth trading for the tetanus vine.
Although she had the vines on hand, no one knew what would happen in the future. It was
always good to be cautious.
Since they had promised Austin, they had to act like it.
Ste continued her barbecue stockpiling, while Jasper went out for a drive. He returned in the early
hours of the morning, and not long after, Austin was back.
Ste nced at the clock, it was only just past five. By noon, it would be over 24 hours. Many had
been sent out to find the medicine, but all returned empty-handed.
Austin had no choice but toe back to Ste, "How is it? Can you find the medicine?"
Ste yawned, "We found the medicine, but the owner isn''t simple. They''re willing to part with the
vine, but once they found out that Odeberg International was looking for it, they asked for
something substantial."
Austin''s eyes lit up, "As long as it''s within Warren''s capability, everything can be negotiated."
Ste hesitated, "They want a yacht."
He knew she would ask for a lot, but he didn''t expect this.
If it were before the apocalypse, a tetanus vine would cost no more than a few dors. A yacht,
on the other hand, was worth seventy to eighty million.
Noticing his expression change, Ste didn''t push, "I also think it''s not worth it, but they only have
one dose left. They originally had no intention of selling, but we persuaded them. If you think it''s not
feasible, we can decline."
Austin, having seen the world, quickly said, "No, a yacht is expensive, but it''s nothing to the wealthy.
I''ll ask now. You guys wait for my message."
So, he left without dy.
Ste couldn''t sleep anymore. She stood on the rooftop with her night vision binocrs, looking at
the few yachts docked at the distant port, all of which belonged to the Odeberg family.
Whether they originally belonged to the Odeberg family or were found after the disaster, it didn''t
matter to Ste. She just wanted one.
One day, if thend turned into the sea, it would be their only hope for survival. She had to n
ahead for the future.
Of course, if the Odeberg family didn''t want to trade, Ste wouldn''t insist. She would find another
way.
More than an hourter, Austin rushed back, "Warren agreed, but he must get the vine before
noon, and it must be effective."
"I can guarantee that, but how can you assure that he will give us the yacht?"
"News of this has spread. If Warren reneges on his promise, it would hurt his reputation. Who would
want to do business with him in the future? Aqua Base would be d if he went back on his word,
so they could kick him when he''s down."
To be on the safe side, Austin warned, "You guys should quietly get the vine, and don''t get
spotted by the people from Aqua Base, I''m afraid they''ll sabotage."
Ste agreed, and they arranged to meet at the dock at ten in the morning.
As everyone left, Ste leisurely enjoyed a hearty breakfast of scrambled eggs and crispy bacon
before tidying up the house, and setting out with Jasper.
No sooner had they left the guard booth at the foot of the hill, Jasper spoke up, "We’re being
watched."
Ste was taken aback, "People from Aqua Base?"
The car windows were tinted for privacy. She looked around cautiously and sure enough, there was
some rustling in the bushes along the roadside. They had driven about a mile or so when the
rustling stopped.
"It''s probably just amon gang of thieves," Jasper exined. "We transport goods every day, so
it''s normal for us to be targeted."
Who wouldn''t want to catch a big fish like a mansion owner? If a robbery was sessful, it would
be like hitting the jackpot, enough to live off for three years.
This group of people had their own divisions ofbor, focusing on the dock, seafood market, and
fishing viges. After preliminary observation, they identified their target objects.
Jasper and Ste zigzagged around, making it ten minuteste to the dock. Austin was worried
sick, fearing that they had run into some trouble.
Ste hurriedly apologized, "Sorry we''rete. We were being trailed and had to take a detour to
shake them off."
Upon learning that the vine had sessfully been secured, Austin led the way in his car, taking
them to the Odeberg Mansion.