The Interstellar Queen of Scavengers

Chapter 1327: Bait

"Speak." Lou’s face was calm, but he was very attentive inside. Since Ji You retreated, both sides had been relatively stable for about two hours. Although they seemed peaceful, it was really a stalemate.

This seemingly quiet and uneventful impasse would surely be broken, it was just a matter of time and method.

So—

Lou was very nervous and focused.

The boy who came to report was Shi Yuan, who had been sent back from the border river.

Shi Yuan said, "At the checkpoint we’re watching, we spotted the enemy... About 20 minutes ago, the enemies seemed to have retreated, but before leaving, they dug traps near the border river..."

Next.

Shi Yuan reported every detail of his squad’s discoveries to Lou.

After hearing, Lou pondered for a moment, narrowed his eyes, and murmured, "Traps?"

"No!" Lou knocked on the stone wall and said, "It can’t be traps. In such a short time, they couldn’t have dug anything significant. They must be up to something else."

Shi Yuan wondered, "If not traps, then what is it?"

Lou started to think.

Wei Yun, on the side, couldn’t help but say, "Could they just be trying to deceive and temporarily lull us, while planning something else behind our backs?"

Upon hearing this, Lou’s heart skipped a beat. Hastily, he said, "Quickly get the others at the checkpoint to report their situations."

Soon after.

Someone went out to relay the message.

Then.

It didn’t take long before someone came in to report.

"No movement from enemies at checkpoints 1, 2, or 3."

"Check 4 had an unusual movement. Someone launched an attack on our personnel but didn’t succeed, the enemy quickly retreated."

Lou lowered his eyes, "When did this happen?"

The reporting student said, "10 minutes ago."

Lou’s heart sunk again.

In this barren arena, communication and transportation were inconvenient. Even with the fastest message relay, it took more than ten minutes. Getting this in 10 minutes was already very fast.

But!

Even if our personnel used the fastest way to relay the message to me, it was already delayed news.

Thinking about the communication box seized by Ji You and the signal tower destroyed beyond repair...

At this moment, Lou felt his heart was even colder than the outside temperature, which was tens of degrees below zero...

Before Lou could speak, Wei Yun hurriedly asked, "What was connected to the back of checkpoint 4?" She was the only remaining member of Shaun’s squad. The signal box invented by Shaun was also taken by Ji You from Wei Yun’s hands, and she had been deceived thoroughly... Just thinking about it made Wei Yun very angry.

Therefore, she cared more than anyone else about the confrontation between friend and foe.

The student who reported said immediately, "It’s one of our major military bases. That base is stocked with logistics supplies, such as repair and sharpening tools for swords, and a batch of coal for heating."

Wei Yun exclaimed, "Their goal is to rob our coal?" Coal, this ancient energy source, has long been replaced by the more advanced energy box. But that doesn’t mean it’s useless. It’s still a very useful industrial material...

Setting that aside, in such cold weather, how important is coal! It can help everyone resist the extreme cold weather.

The coal stockpile at base 4 is the largest among the 6 camps. But even if it’s all taken out to use, it’s not enough for everyone in camp 6 to use.

Therefore, it’s very scarce.

If our side lacks it, so does the enemy.

So, now there’s a reason for the enemy to attack checkpoint 4.

But Lou didn’t think like that. Lou frowned and said, "Near checkpoint 4 is base 5. Invading from there, the terrain is very flat. The enemy could easily advance straight to base 5, where—" Lou’s heart sank to the bottom, "Our food for everyone is stored!"

Everyone present, including Wei Yun, was shocked!

The location of the food storage is top-secret information.

It can be said that aside from Lou and a few others, nobody knows, because the food is scarce. When Commander Charles insisted on attacking the enemy camp, as the leader of the 1st group, by taking advantage of his proximity to Charles, Lou found out the food’s location and secretly moved the food when Charles wasn’t paying attention.

It was moved to—

the 5th Group.

pounds of rice and a small amount of seasonings.

Very little, very little...

Lou took great care to make this decision. The location of the 5th Group’s military base was not ideal; it was hard to defend and easy to attack, but it had one excellent aspect—it was at the junction of several groups, making it possible to send troops to support other groups at any time during a battle. Also, it’s adjacent to the enemy camp’s border river, which is very narrow, easily swimmable to the other side. On our side, there are a few small hills as cover, but on the other side, it’s open terrain. To withstand our attacks, they must deploy a large number of troops...

Aside from these considerations—

There’s another layer. Commander Charles closely controlled 2, 4, 9, and 10 group; the 5th Group’s military base was far from Charles’ control range, giving more room for maneuver.

...

Survive this cold night, and when the sun rises, take a large meal with your teammates before preparing for a duel with Ji You.

This was Lou’s plan.

But!

The enemy was already targeting here, indicating that Ji You had obtained enough intelligence. She infiltrated our ranks; if she hadn’t exposed herself, Wei Yun, Shaun, and others wouldn’t have noticed in advance. This alone showed our side was already like a sieve, with no secrets from Ji You...

Lou’s face darkened, and he said, "Immediately send two more squads to reinforce the 5th military base."

"Yes."

The subordinates took their orders and left.

Wei Yun said worriedly, "Our food hideout has been discovered. If the enemy fails with one strike, they’ll surely come up with another plan, squad leader, shall I go over to help?"

"Don’t move yet," Lou said, suddenly sweeping away his previous urgency and anxiety. An expression of amusement appeared on his handsome face that Wei Yun couldn’t comprehend.

Wei Yun: "Squad Leader???"

"Don’t panic." Lou’s stern face revealed a rare smile. He said, "Fishing always requires bait." That’s right; he had one more goal for the food, using it as bait to lure Ji You in!

Inside the 5th Group’s military base, Lou had already deployed heavy troops. The personnel there seemed scattered and undisciplined, but they were the most obedient to Lou.

As soon as Ji You arrives—