Chapter 047 Hidden Master

　　"By the way, Xiao Chu, someone from the Lord’s personal guard came looking for you today." Brother Ma glanced at Chu Mufan and spoke.

　　"Huh? What would they want with me? Aren’t the guards the Lord’s personal retinue?"

　　"Obviously the Lord wants to see you, how can you be so slow-witted? Good grief!" Brother Ma exclaimed loudly, drawing stares from the few diners still lingering over their meals.

　　"I wonder what he needs me for," Chu Mufan muttered in confusion.

　　"He didn’t tell me anything, how would I know? Hurry and grab a table, I’ll bring your reheated food over right away." Brother Ma pulled a playful face.

　　The two rushed to the nearest table, and soon Ma Ke carried over two steaming bowls of dinner.

　　Chu Mufan shoveled down his food ravenously, even finishing half of Youyou’s leftover rice. He patted his stomach, still only half full, and sighed, "I’ve got to make it to meals on time from now on. This barely fills me up at all..."

　　"It’s just that your appetite’s grown bigger and bigger, Brother Chu, haha," Youyou giggled.

　　"Come on, let’s head back and rest," Chu Mufan smiled. Side by side, they walked out of the mess hall toward their lodgings...

　　……

　　Outside Chu Mufan’s room...

　　Two burly men stood waiting by the entrance, clad in standard camouflage uniforms, matching camo caps, and assault rifles slung over their shoulders. Spotting Chu Mufan and Youyou walking slowly toward them, they strode forward in unison. "You must be Chu Mufan, correct?" One middle-aged man spoke up.

　　"Yes, that’s me. What can I do for you?" Chu Mufan eyed them warily, his guard up.

　　"We’re with the Lord’s personal guard. The Lord wishes to see you. Come with us," replied the slimmer younger man beside him.

　　"Why does the Lord want to meet me?" Chu Mufan asked.

　　"You’ll find out when we get there. Hurry along—they’ve been waiting quite a while," the middle-aged guard snapped, growing impatient.

　　"Alright?!" Chu Mufan nodded, then turned to Youyou. "Head back first. We’ll go to the livestock farm together tomorrow."

　　"Brother Chu… nothing bad is going to happen, right?" Youyou’s eyes glistened with worry, every line of her face showing her concern.

　　"I can’t tell for certain, but it’s probably nothing serious. They wouldn’t send men to fetch me if they meant harm, would they? Don’t worry. Tomorrow we’ll go visit Dabai like usual." Chu Mufan patted her shoulder reassuringly.

　　"Okay… I’ll wait for you." Youyou spoke reluctantly and watched as Chu Mufan climbed into an open-top Warrior off-road vehicle with the two guards. The truck headed uphill toward the Lord’s private compound...

　　Youyou stood there staring until the vehicle vanished into the dark night, her anxious expression never fading. A cold gust of wind swept over her, and she bit her lip, pulling her jacket tighter around herself before turning toward her dormitory.

　　……

　　The off-road vehicle raced uphill toward the Lord’s compound. Frigid night air lashed Chu Mufan’s cheeks, stinging sharply.

　　Even shrouded in darkness, the Lord’s district radiated an air of opulence...

　　Bright neon signs and glowing streetlights lined every thoroughfare, paved with neatly laid stone bricks. Manicured lawns and trimmed trees stretched along both sides of the road, resembling an upscale gated community for the wealthy from before the apocalyptic era.

　　The Warrior truck pulled to a halt outside a villa fronted by a rockery fountain. The building blazed with light, and two sentries stood guard at the gate. Staring at the grand, luxurious mansion sitting at the very heart of the camp, Chu Mufan surmised this must be the residence of Lord Hu Gao.

　　The two guards climbed down, exchanged a few words with the sentries, who pressed a switch inside their booth. The massive iron gate rumbled slowly open. The two men hurried back into the vehicle and drove inside. The grounds stretched vast and wide. Several smaller villas dotted the perimeter, the rest filled with landscaped gardens, sculptures, and recreational fitness equipment. Fully armed soldiers patrolled the grounds at regular intervals...

　　Presently, the truck drew up before the largest villa and stopped.

　　“Here it is. Get out.” The middle-aged guard said brusquely after jumping down.

　　Chu Mufan stepped out of the truck and followed the pair toward the building...

　　He trod up marble steps and glanced inside; the interior was even more lavish than the exterior, bordering on outright extravagance...

　　As they neared the entrance, a heavy three-meter-wide glass door slid open automatically. A quick sideways glance told Chu Mufan the entire pane was bulletproof.

　　They entered a lofty hall with a seven-meter ceiling crowned by an enormous crystal chandelier. Beneath it stood a suite of high-end furniture, bathed in radiant light that lent the space an air of magnificent splendor. Off to one side lay a dimly lit lounge, lit only by soft ambient lamps and spotlights focused entirely on a large stage.

　　Several tall, scantily clad women of varying complexions danced provocative routines to pounding upbeat music atop it. Behind them, an entire wall was taken up by a colossal glass fish tank teeming with tropical fish and several ferocious sharks.

　　Down below, Hu Gao sat around a large round table with a handful of other men, transfixed by the performance, while several towering bodyguards stood posted nearby. The middle-aged guard who’d escorted Chu Mufan stepped up beside Hu Gao and leaned in to whisper a few words into his ear.

　　Hu Gao stood and clapped his hands. “Alright, all of you, off you go!”

　　The dancers on stage looked visibly relieved. They hurried down, grabbed bathrobes from the floor to wrap themselves, and fled through a side door. Hu Gao turned around, grinning at Chu Mufan standing before him.

　　“Xiao Chu, do you still remember me? How’ve you been settling in? Is camp life treating you well?” Hu Gao asked with an easy smile.

　　“Thank you for your concern, my Lord. I’m doing fine. May I ask why you’ve summoned me tonight?” Chu Mufan cut straight to the point.

　　“Xiao Chu, you are really straight to the point. Well. I like that. No beating around the bush from me, then...” Hu Gao took a sip of red wine and carried on. “You’ve been with us long enough to know how things work around here.

　　Winter’s fast approaching, and our stockpiles of food and medicine are running dangerously low. We need to send scavenging teams down the mountain to gather more supplies. Trouble is, we’re severely short of manpower. I’ve seen how much your health has bounced back, so I’m thinking of assigning you to one of the scavenging squads.

　　You know full well that in this camp, privileges are earned through strength. The high standard of living you’ve been enjoying has sparked plenty of resentment among the other survivors.

　　Back when you were deathly frail, I couldn’t bring myself to send you out into danger, but you’ve practically recovered now. It’s time you took on work you’re capable of handling! Of course, you’re still fresh off recovery, so I’ll have you go through a period of training first before you join any supply runs. What do you say?”

　　Chu Mufan thought to himself: Food supplies are supposedly scarce, yet here he lives a life of unbridled luxury and debauchery night after night...