Transporting Weapons

This time, when going out to transport the weapons, he could only choose people he trusted as much as possible. But nothing was certain; what if there were spies among them? So, the most important thing was for them to adapt to the situation as it unfolded.

"We understand," they replied.

After finishing their discussion, the three of them went downstairs. Ignatius seemed much more relaxed now, with half of the weapon issue resolved.

Downstairs, the Allen family members sat quietly.

Seeing this, Ignatius quickly walked over and picked up a cup of tea. "I apologize for the poor hospitality. Please forgive us."

"We understand. You're the Base Commander, so you must be busy. You don't need to specially entertain us," Atticus said as they clinked cups.

Originally, they weren't willing to come, but Alice persuaded them to come and make themselves familiar with the Base Commander. It might be useful in the future.After some consideration, Blanche agreed, so the whole family came with gifts in tow.

"The grilled fish is ready. Enjoy it while it's hot," Ignatius said cheerfully as he shared his cherished wine.

The meal was quite enjoyable, and they managed to bond with Ignatius.

---

After returning from Ignatius's place, Alice took a shower and prepared to sleep. She needed to rest well these two days before heading to Peach Blossom Village the day after tomorrow. Bringing back the weapons was urgent; Ignatius was in a hurry, and with the pirates becoming increasingly audacious, they couldn't delay any longer.

Just as Alice was about to lie down, a knock suddenly came at the door, followed by Blanche's voice, "Alice, are you asleep?"

Blanche wouldn't normally come to her unless there was something important.

Alice immediately got up, opened the door, and Blanche gently asked, "Did I disturb you?"

"No, Mom. Do you need something?" Alice replied.

Blanche walked into her room. "Tonight, at the Base Commander's house, he mentioned that he would take care of our family these two days, letting you rest assured. What does that mean?"

The more Blanche thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. She couldn't sleep without clearing it up.

Alice had originally planned to tell them tomorrow, but since Blanche asked, she explained everything.

"If you're going to Peach Blossom Village? It's thousands of kilometers away from here," Blanche calculated the distance, her brows furrowing.The journey was too dangerous; who knew what they might encounter along the way.They came here from Base M, a journey of over two thousand kilometers, and encountered an earthquake as well?

They can handle robberies, but when it comes to natural disasters, human strength is too small.

"Mom, there's no absolutely safe place in this world anymore. I'm just accompanying Hurley to bring back the weapons. I won't get involved in anything else. If we don't have weapons, this base might fall soon."They just arrived, haven't been here for a few days yet, if pirates attack, they can only leave.No one knows how the next base will be.

Most importantly, Base K is near the seaside, rich in resources, at least store a batch of supplies before leaving.

Blanche couldn't convince her, so she had to give up. Her daughter is grown and has her own ideas."When will you tell us your plans in advance? Last time you went to sea, you knew there were pirates, but you didn't tell us. Are you going to keep it from us next time you go to transport weapons?" Blanche became angrier as she thought about it, pinching Alice's arm lightly.

For Alice, this level of force was like tickling, so she quickly took out Blanche's favorite Hawaiian nuts from the space and coaxed, "It's still early, go have some late-night snacks with my dad and reminisce about the good old days."

Blanche: "..."

After hesitating for a moment, Blanche still took the Hawaiian nuts and snorted, "Eating too much of this stuff makes you thirsty."

From her mother's hint, Alice couldn't help but understand. She smiled and took out a two-liter can of orange juice from the space.

Blanche went back with a smile on her face.

Alice shook her head helplessly, closed the door, and went back to sleep.She didn't know how long it had passed when Alice was suddenly awakened by a 'shake'.She immediately opened her eyes, just sat up from the bed, and felt the bed underneath her buttocks shaking.No, not just the bed was shaking, even the tables, chairs, and paintings on the walls in the room were moving.

An earthquake?Alice immediately opened the door and rushed out. Atticus, Blanche, and the Arnold brothers, who were also awakened by the shaking, ran out as well. They stood in the middle of the yard, with the entire house trembling. Outside, there was also a cacophony of noise. 

Realizing it wasn't safe to stay indoors, they ran outside. Once outside, Alice noticed that many people were surprisingly calm. A man yawned, "This earthquake wave is bigger than the last time. Those folks in R country are in for trouble again."

"It's their karma. Our country is blessed."

"The epicenter isn't here. Let's just go back to sleep, coming out once also respects the earthquake."

Alice: "?"

Similarly, someone new, puzzled, asked, "Why are you all so calm? Aren't you afraid of earthquakes at all?"

"Well, you newcomers wouldn't know. Ever since six months ago, earthquakes have been happening several times a month. The epicenter is over in R country, so we get some effects here, but not much. Despite the strong shaking now, it'll stop soon."

Hearing this, Alice found it unbelievable, unsure whether to praise their calmness or call them reckless. Those who ran out from their homes showed no signs of panic, still chatting and laughing with others. 

Arnold chuckled, "First time seeing an earthquake and people still remain this relaxed."

Not just relaxed, some people even went back to sleep, "Let it shake, it's like being in a cradle."

Just then, the Base Commander rushed over in a hurry, shouting angrily, "What are you sleeping for? Are you asking for death?"

"I've told you so many times, just because the previous earthquakes had no impact doesn't mean it's always safe. There are still people sleeping inside. Hurry and wake them up," Ignatius scolded with a stern face.

Even through the crowd, Alice could feel his frustrated helplessness.

Only then did others start going door to door to wake people up.

As Ignatius was about to go somewhere else to notify, he turned and saw Alice standing in the corner.He hesitated for a few seconds but still walked over. "Are all your family members out? Please don't follow their example and take this lightly."

Alice pointed to her family members not far away. "They're all over there."

Ignatius felt relieved and left quickly with a serious expression.

Half an hour later, the aftershocks became smaller and finally stopped.

"See, I told you it would stop. If anyone's going to die, it'll be the people in R country first."

"Yawn, so tired. I'm going to sleep. If there are any aftershocks in the middle of the night, don't bother waking me up."

"I want to make it clear too, don't wake me up unless the house is about to collapse."

Everyone went back to their own houses, not taking this earthquake seriously at all. Only the Allen family remained vigilant, keeping watch until they were sure there would be no more aftershocks before turning back to their house.

They couldn't control what others did; they could only take care of themselves.