Cave Refuge-Chapter 276 - 272: The Convoy

After Ye Liuyun left, Dong Tianyu and Mr. Thompson had a brief discussion, and the result was clear: they would definitely leave with Ye Liuyun.

"Dad, since we’ve decided to leave, why don’t we evacuate now? Let’s not be like those characters in TV dramas who never leave until the last moment.

An old saying goes, ’A wise man does not stand under a wall in danger.’ If we wait until the next earthquake hits and everyone scrambles to leave together, you’ll see that even if Main Avenue is wide, it could still get blocked."

Hearing Dong Tianyu say this, Father Dong and Mother Dong naturally wouldn’t object, as they too had seen similar dramas and didn’t think they were protagonists who had to risk their lives unnecessarily.

After getting the agreement of his parents, Dong Tianyu and Mr. Thompson got out of the car to say goodbye to acquaintances.

Mr. Thompson certainly went to bid farewell to his friends from the senior group, and since Ye Liuyun was nowhere to be found, it just so happened that Robinson William was overseeing the relocation efforts.

Thus, Dong Tianyu went straight to Robinson William, gave him a cigarette, and then broached the subject: "Do you know about the matter Ye Liuyun mentioned?"

As there were other people around, Dong Tianyu did not expound further and only vaguely inquired.

Robinson William took the cigarette from Dong Tianyu’s hand, pulled out a wooden cigarette box from his pocket, carefully placed the cigarette inside, then put the box back in his pocket without looking back, and tersely said, "I know."

Seeing Robinson William’s action, Dong Tianyu felt somewhat speechless. Even though cigarettes had become quite precious, considering Robinson William’s position, and that Ye Liuyun often dealt with goods, Dong Tianyu didn’t believe Robinson William lacked cigarettes to smoke.

Robinson William’s behavior was nothing but a show for others. Not only did Dong Tianyu understand this, but so did some people around them. However, the purpose of Robinson William’s act was precisely for those who didn’t understand.

Seeing Robinson William’s action, Dong Tianyu didn’t plan to call him out but instead stated his reason for coming: "I agree with what your brother mentioned. Since we don’t know when the next earthquake might strike, I’m going to take my parents and leave now.

You know where I live. We’re not going up the mountain but camping at the foothills. Once you have a plan in place, drive over to find us. My car will be parked on the service road, and you can see it when you get there."

Upon hearing Dong Tianyu’s farewell, Robinson William immediately understood his intentions. He was about to nod in recognition but was suddenly struck by a thought, forcing him to turn and face Dong Tianyu.

In fact, the reason Robinson William hadn’t turned to face Dong Tianyu before, as well as his previously indifferent attitude, wasn’t due to any grievance but because he was at work. His position did not allow him to appear overly familiar with anyone as it could adversely affect both parties.

As important as work was, there were things even more important to Robinson William.

"Zachary, I’ll arrange for two people to drive my grandfather with you later. Please help with arranging lunch for him when you get there. When my brother is finished, he’ll come to pick up my grandfather and reimburse you."

Hearing Robinson William say this, Dong Tianyu feigned annoyance: "What are you talking about? There’s no way I’d let Master Ye go hungry at my place. Let’s not even talk about our relationship.

Considering the personal connection between Master Ye and my dad, he can go eat at my place whenever he wants. If you notify me in advance, I can prepare a good meal. Even if it’s a surprise, Master Ye can’t leave my house on an empty stomach.

As for the reimbursement you mentioned, I know you mean well and don’t want me to be shortchanged, but don’t say things like that next time.

You saying that in front of others is like slapping my face; do I look like someone lacking provisions?"

Seeing Dong Tianyu’s annoyed expression, Robinson William chose not to say anything more. He called his adjutant to keep an eye out here, so that the special forces team members wouldn’t help themselves.

While he trusted his team’s character, keeping watch wasn’t just for oversight but also to avert unnecessary complications, especially since the hasty relocation was bound to cause unavoidable issues.

The human heart is not immune to temptation, which is why Robinson William was keen to supervise, not only to ensure his team remained focused but also for their safety.

But at that moment, the concerns of others paled in comparison to his own family matters, so he arranged for his adjutant to take over for a while, planning to return once he had sorted his family issues.

Robinson William called over two of his trusted men and then joined Dong Tianyu back at the parking area. After some idle chat on the way, Dong Tianyu learned that the armored vehicle Ye Liuyun had acquired had, in fact, been driven back by these two men.

Arriving there, Robinson William found Master Ye and took him to the car to discuss matters.

Dong Tianyu briefly spoke with Robinson William’s trusted men and, seeing that his father and mother were still not back, leaned against the Black Car to rest with his eyes closed, but in reality, he was organizing the Storage space to prepare for his parents’ departure.

Since no earthquake had struck again, the survivors previously staying at People’s Square began to leave gradually, and the number of them began to thin out.

Although the survivors had started dispersing, many astute ones knew that the earthquakes were likely not over and would probably strike again.

And the likelihood of another one occurring tonight or during the next day was high, so they needed to prepare early. If they waited for the streets to be notified, it would already be too late.

Mr. Thompson and Mrs. Thompson were aware of the gravity of the situation, so they didn’t linger when saying goodbye to the others. They simply mentioned that they were going to leave temporarily with their son and stay at his place for a few days, then quickly changed the subject.

But the others weren’t fools either. After the earthquake, high-rise buildings and underground refuge centers were honestly dangerous places. On the contrary, the more open and empty a space was, the safer it was.

So after Mr. Thompson and Mrs. Thompson said their goodbyes, the others also prepared to leave the area and find temporary refuge outside the city.

Once Mr. Thompson and Mrs. Thompson finished saying goodbye to their friends, Robinson William also got down from the armored vehicle with Master Ye.

Robinson William went up to Zachary and said, "Please!" before hastily leaving the place.

Master Ye, on the other hand, found Mr. Thompson and had a brief chat before they both went up the vehicle lift and entered Zachary’s black car.

Seeing this, Zachary felt somewhat speechless. His father was bringing people onto the car without even giving him a heads up, but what could he do? It was his own father, after all, so he certainly didn’t dare to suggest that Master Ye should be turned away from the car.

After watching his mother also go up the vehicle lift, Zachary greeted the special forces member driving the armored vehicle and told him to follow his car, then he returned to the black car as well.

Besides the driver’s and passenger’s seats, the black car didn’t have any other seats. But at that time, Mr. Thompson had already spread their sleeping blankets back on the floor, and he and Master Ye were sitting on them.

Seeing that the two men were chatting leisurely, Zachary took his mother to the passenger’s seat, then returned to the driver’s seat, started the black car, and turned it around to leave.

When Zachary drove the black car onto Main Avenue, he noticed that the vehicles following his black car included not only the Taylor family’s armored vehicle but also some others. Using his Divine Sense, he scanned the convoy and found there were quite a few vehicles—eight or nine—trailing behind him.

Realizing this, Zachary understood that, in addition to the members of the senior group, there must have been some smart people who had joined the convoy.

However, at this time, anyone who could obtain a private car must have had some status. For his parents’ sake, Zachary couldn’t do as he told Robinson William by casually pulling over on the auxiliary road at the foot of Nameless Mountain. He needed to find a more open space.

Fortunately, continuing west of Nameless Mountain, there was a pretty large area near Moon Bay that served as a pasture. Initially planned for a horse ranch, just before the disaster struck, this vast pasture had fewer than ten horses in it.

They called it a pasture for a horse ranch, but anyone with clear sight knew it was just a pretext for land grabbing.

Although cars couldn’t drive into the pasture, it was right beside the road, separated only by a small ditch. The vehicles could easily be parked on the road; at this moment, no one would be ticketing or towing them anyway.

Furthermore, the lead vehicle in the convoy, the black car, and the second in line, the armored vehicle, couldn’t be moved by an ordinary tow truck.

Mrs. Thompson only knew that Zachary usually lived near Nameless Mountain but didn’t know the exact location. So, when the black car passed by Nameless Mountain, Mrs. Thompson found it odd that they didn’t stop but didn’t make any comments.

It wasn’t until they arrived at the pasture near Moon Bay and saw that both sides of the road were either farmland or pasture, with no end in sight, and the only buildings visible were a few unsettled structures, that Mrs. Thompson started to question Zachary, "Is this where you used to live?"

Hearing Mrs. Thompson’s doubt, Zachary promptly responded, "How could I possibly live in a place like this? I live on the other side of Nameless Mountain. There’s an earthquake now; I definitely can’t take you to the mountains to live, that wouldn’t be safe.

I was thinking of just stopping briefly at the foot of the mountain, so it would be convenient to go back and forth, but I didn’t expect so many people to follow, so I had to bring you all here—since it’s more open."

Hearing Zachary mention that quite a few people had followed, Mr. Thompson and Master Ye stood up; Master Ye asked Zachary with a hint of puzzlement, "Our two families together are no more than a dozen people. Wasn’t it arranged with William to just stop by the side of the road? Why go so far?"

Master Ye wasn’t worried that Zachary had ill intentions by bringing them here. After all, the families had been acquainted for so long and knew the characters of the three Thompsons well.

Moreover, Madeline had told him that Zachary’s business wasn’t any smaller than his son’s, so there was no reason for him to plot against them for their wealth or lives.

After hearing Master Ye’s words, Zachary first gave a wry smile and then, as he was opening the car door, said to Master Ye, "Just get out of the car, and you’ll see why I said there were too many people."

Master Ye, wearing a puzzled look, got down from the vehicle lift and checked behind the convoy.

Boy, at this point, the convoy seemed never-ending.

When they initially left People’s Square, the convoy only had six or seven vehicles.

Yet, just before leaving the city center and getting onto Main Avenue, the number of vehicles in the convoy had already reached eight or nine.

And by the time they left the city center, the number had increased to over a dozen.

Now, as the convoy had come to this area, the number of vehicles had reached over twenty, gathering at least one-tenth of West City District’s private cars.