Chapter 109: The Recapture of Tianjin (14)

The sea monsters that feasted on the poisoned octopus appeared unharmed, their immense size truly staggering... Everyone waited for a while, but seeing no further excitement, they gradually withdrew. The soon-to-be-appointed Director of the Marine Bureau wore a face of deep disappointment; it seemed uncertain whether the Marine Bureau would even be established.

The marine creatures were so enormous that even if poison could grow from the earth like crops, it would never suffice. The ocean covers 362 million square kilometers—71% of the Earth's surface—and humanity on land was already overwhelmed. In these times, the oceans seemed to have lost their importance...

Within a three-kilometer radius from Tianjin Port, Li Qiang noticed that no zombies existed within this zone. He set up watch posts, ordered a contraction of the troops, left behind a garrison force, and prepared to return to Beijing to head to the northeastern front.

Suddenly, raucous voices came from the Haihe River. Without needing a report, everyone knew what was happening. From afar, they saw a turtle-like creature, roughly the size of a city bus, crawling out of the river. In its mouth was a freshwater fish, about five or six meters long, resembling a carp from before the apocalypse.

“Are there turtles in Tianjin?” Li Qiang, who had served in the Mentougou mountain troops, wondered. But in the apocalypse, existence itself was justification. He didn’t question why; he only pondered what to do next.

He studied the creature closely. The turtle was massive, covered by a flattened, round shell, with only its head and four limbs protruding. Its head was slightly triangular, dark brown in color, with yellow cheeks and a deep gray neck. The snout and mouth were pale yellowish-white, nostrils positioned on the upper side of the snout. Its eyes were large; the upper jaw lacked a hook, and both upper and lower jaws had fine keratinous serrated edges. The lower jaw’s serrations were longer and protruded, fitting into grooves on the upper jaw when closed. Its body was dorsoventrally flattened; the plastron was yellow, the carapace oval-shaped, tea-brown or dark green with yellow spots, arranged in scutes with patterns radiating outward from the center, blending into a strangely captivating beauty.

Seeing it was nearly ten kilometers from the sea, Li Qiang ordered an attack, intending to test various methods of assault on sea monsters.

The soldiers’ dao swords struck the shell, leaving only scratches without any effect. The startled turtle charged rapidly toward the Tianjin harbor entrance.

It crushed roadblocks and breached the shield defense line. Li Qiang felt this turtle was even more adept at navigating complex terrain than his tank.

Not wanting to waste effort, he ordered, “Use the rocket launcher!”

A soldier immediately retrieved a PF89A 80mm single-person multipurpose rocket launcher from the ammunition vehicle. This weapon was of limited use against zombies—it was difficult to aim for the head, and often failed to kill even one.

Shouldering the launcher, he aimed at the turtle’s left front leg and fired. With a thunderous blast, the rocket hit its target. The turtle’s leg was wounded, and it stumbled forward, crushing several cars into thin metal sheets.

Several more rockets followed, shattering all four limbs. The turtle writhed on the ground, trying to retract its broken limbs into the shell.

The soldiers cautiously took cover, observing carefully. They found the turtle did not unleash any furious attacks—no lightning rings, no fire breath, no smoke, and no devastating thunderbolts.

Only then did Li Qiang relax and order a crane to “lift the turtle shell and see if there’s anything valuable inside!”

The turtle was secured with steel cables around its shell, and a XCMG QUY35-1 crane hoisted it firmly by the hook.

Surrounded by soldiers, they cut open the flesh along the shell’s edge with machetes. The crane lifted the meter-thick shell. Tests confirmed the turtle was edible.

This result brought great joy to the soon-to-be Marine Bureau Director. The enormous and hazardous marine creatures had made him fear his newly acquired civil servant position would be abolished. Now, it seemed some sea creatures could become a source of food for humanity—the director wrote eagerly.

He proposed establishing a marine creature hunting ground in Tianjin to supply the Special Committee with marine food. He also requested the reopening of the Tianjin Dagu Saltworks, one of the most important saltfields in the Changlu salt region. Before the apocalypse, it produced 1.4 million tons yearly; now, such volume was unnecessary. The Special Committee’s salt needs were met from stockpiles, sufficient for many years. But if chemical industry recovery was considered, the supply would soon be insufficient.

Salt was not only a vital seasoning but essential for normal human development. It regulated water balance within the body, maintained osmotic pressure inside and outside cells, participated in stomach acid formation, stimulated digestive juice secretion, and increased appetite. It also ensured the optimal acidity for pepsin function and maintained acid-base balance and normal fluid circulation. Humans could not survive without salt; too little intake caused low sodium levels, loss of appetite, weakness, dizziness, and, in severe cases, symptoms like anorexia, nausea, vomiting, rapid heartbeat, weak pulse, muscle spasms, blurred vision, reduced reflexes, and even death.

Salt was also the mother of the chemical industry, the foundation of the national economy. The “three acids” (sulfuric, hydrochloric, nitric) and “two alkalis” (soda ash and caustic soda) were basic chemical products, with hydrochloric acid, soda ash, and caustic soda all produced primarily from salt. Producing one ton of soda ash or caustic soda consumed one ton of raw salt. More than 60% of global salt consumption was for producing over 80 basic chemical products such as sodium alkali and chlorine derivatives. In industrialized nations, chemical industry salt consumption often exceeded 90% of total salt use. Thus, the comprehensive development of a national economy depended on a robust chemical industry, which in turn depended on a developed salt industry.

The recapture of Tianjin rescued 2.3 million survivors and eliminated no fewer than 11 million zombies. The greatest achievement was reclaiming the Bohai Steel Group. The Special Committee planned to settle the survivors locally, establishing an industrial production base in Tianjin.

Sun Xiaoshan was en route to Tianjin to oversee the city’s industrial revival plan. The city boasted an industrial foundation far surpassing that of Beijing.

Moreover, as the first large city recaptured outside Beijing, its significance was immense. Li Fengyi also planned to visit, to console the populace, coordinate various efforts, and accelerate the progress of all undertakings.

The Propaganda Department tracked and reported the entire Tianjin campaign. Despite the two announcers nearly soiling themselves during the initial artillery barrage—almost choking on their three large steamed buns’ worth of salary—they persevered and completed the broadcast.

Li Qiang was celebrated as a hero of humanity’s apocalypse era, widely publicized as the soldier who had killed the most zombies in a single engagement.

The Special Committee’s Propaganda Department concluded the interview with his words: “I don’t ask how many zombies there are; I only ask where they are.”