Chapter 271.2: Naturally... Corpses Are Also Recyclable!

Not far away, another group of rookies was sent over in a crooked formation. Together with those rookies, there were densely packed hundreds of two-headed ox and 20 or 30 horses.

Those animals carried large and small bags of supplies on their backs, including food and water, as well as ammunition. There were even weapons, accessories, and some things that were rare even if they were placed in the market in Boulder Town.

The merchants in Boulder Town were leading these two-headed ox.

Since the salaries of the mercenaries were settled daily, and the amount was not small, some merchants who couldn’t wait for them to go home would come to the frontline to make a fortune first. But there were also some that had received orders from the militia and were responsible for transporting supplies from Boulder Town to the front.

A group of mercenaries wearing exoskeletons and holding streamlined assault rifles was wearing clothes made of animal skins, and the merchants who delivered supplies to them all use primitive means of transportation such as ox carts.

That might seem a little weird, but it was also something that couldn’t be helped.

If they didn’t do things that way, the militia could only hire a lot of problematic refugees with too little strength, or use a small number of four-legged mechanical dogs.

No matter which one they chose, the cost would be much higher than outsourcing.

Virgil tapped Tommy on the shoulder. "Let's go. Let's get something to eat first."

Tommy shook his head. "I’ll pass. I brought dry rations."

Since the last contractor's military rations messed his stomach up, he no longer believed in the character of those so-called helpers.

Instead of expecting those merchants to be ethical, it was much more realistic to expect the mutants to retreat on their own accord.

Virgil patted his arm, ignored Tommy, and walked towards the group of merchants alone.

Taking out a cube-shaped green wheat cake from the backpack, Tommy stuffed it into his mouth and took a bite, then unscrewed the rusty kettle and took a sip.

Looking in the direction of the merchant group, he shook his head.

Nutrient cream.

Since he knew what that was made of, he would rather starve to death than eat it...

...

Just when the mercenaries went to the merchant group to get supplies, choose goods, or spend money to have some fun, the quartermaster not far from the merchant group was surrounded by a large group of bargaining merchants.

Of course, things that could generate profit on the front line were not just the food and clothing needed by those mercenaries, it also included the trading of spoils.

As long as there was war, there would be spoils of war.

In the early years, Boulder Town simply hired merchants to get the corpses of these mutants and cannon fodder outside the city, preventing them from stinking and rotting at their doorstep, forming plagues and even larger-scale tides.

Later, some smart people discovered that these Crunchers, Creepers, and these Slime Mold Mutants were all high-quality raw materials.

They only needed to spend some more time and cost to ‘deactivate’ Slime Mold, and they could be made into edible nutrient cream!

Although the nutrient cream synthesized in this way was not nutritious, no one really cared.

People who really cared about nutrition would not eat that anyway.

The slave owners in the south, especially the big farms in the Brocade River Province, were very interested in these things.

They were plentiful and cheap, and their nutritional value was slightly higher than that of green wheat. They could also supplement a small amount of protein, making slaves and livestock stronger.

Although it was more cost-effective to provide green wheat to the slaves, the slaves would become thinner and scrawnier, and planting a large amount of green wheat would consume the fertility of the soil.

They wouldn’t have that problem with nutrient cream!

Not only nutrient cream, but also organic fertilizers, bio-oil, food additives... They could all be extracted from mutants.

Although the recovery efficiency may not even reach 10%, the amount of these mutants was large enough and the cost was low.

As the production process gradually matured and a certain industrial scale was formed, the merchants began to help Boulder Town dispose of the corpses caused by Tide for free.

But nowadays, they started to pay the militias to transport the corpses away from the battlefield, and the price was increasing every year.

It was the same this time.

Judging from the displeased expressions on the faces of the merchants and how they were speaking, it was obvious that they did not reach an agreement with the militiamen of Boulder Town.

"50 chips for a ton?! Why don't you just rob us?"

"It was only 20 chips the previous year! Do you think we forgot?"

"This is ridiculous!"

𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

However, the quartermaster didn't bother to argue with them at all, and said impatiently. "If you can't afford it, leave."

If they accepted the price of 50 chips for 1 ton of corpses, they would not be able to make any profit if they didn't increase the recovery efficiency to more than 30%!

That was simply impossible.

No matter how the merchants surrounding the quartermaster tried their best and promised all kinds of benefits, they couldn't make him change his mind.

In the end, they could only shake their heads and walk away disappointed.

Before leaving angrily, someone even said harshly, "Those nobles in the inner city can deal with these troubles themselves in the future."

The militiamen standing next to him didn't even bother to look at the man.

As long as he didn’t name names, no one cared what he complained about.

Ditway stormed back to the merchant group angrily.

Originally, he was counting on contracting a 100-ton corpse disposal business after finishing the supply business. But now, it seemed like he would need to return empty-handed.

Not far from the merchant group, a group of merchants engaged in grain trading gathered together, whispering to each other, "I heard that this year's spoils were all bought by Vega Trading Company."

Hearing the name Vega Trading Company, many merchants showed apprehensive expressions on their faces.

This trading company was well-known in the Boulder Town business circle. Not only had it invested in two large farms with an area of over 6.66 square kilometers in the south, but it also operated the largest food processing plant in Boulder Town. It was said to have occupied more than 50% of the food market share in Boulder Town.

Its Delicious Brand Canned Meat and Extra Delicious Two-headed Oxen Meat Patties were not only popular in Boulder Town, but also exported to neighboring provinces.

The name of the owner of the trading company was Vega, but there were also rumors that the real boss was someone else, and Vega, who was pushed to be their boss, was just a tool for making money for the big shots in the inner city.

Regardless of whether the rumors were true or not, it was impossible for these self-employed individuals with small businesses to compete with a giant like the Vega Trading Company.

No wonder the quartermaster ignored them.

"This is a blatant monopoly!"

Ditway couldn't help complaining, "When did these greedy leeches even get involved in the nutrient cream business?"

Nutrient cream could be said to be the low-end commodity with the thinnest profit among all foods, especially the inferior nutrient cream synthesized from Slime Mold Mutants.

The aged merchant with a wrinkled face glanced at the back of the merchant group and pointed to the guards on horseback and the two-headed ox loaded with goods beside them. "I heard that a certain big shot outsourced more than half of the logistics orders for the front line to them, so they opened a new factory to produce nutrient cream at the end of the last year... But they didn’t use Delicious and Extra Delicious brands."

A merchant suddenly said, "I remember... They called themselves Large Quantity or something?"

Another merchant nodded. "Yes, I remember that name too, Mr. House's radio station even advertised it!"

Ditway couldn't help cursing, "Fuck! It’s shameless insider trading!"

The other merchants also swore silently.

These shameless profiteers!

They refused to give them even a sip of soup!