Chapter 304 - 277: Overt Scheme
"What do we get out of it?" Yang Long asked the most important question. "Chairman Qin, we’re just two ships passing in the night. In a little over a month, we’ll never see each other again."
"Who says we’ll never see each other again?" Qin Ziwen said with a half-smile.
Yang Long’s pupils contracted.
His expression was a sight to behold.
Qin Ziwen’s words were loaded with meaning.
"We... You mean we’ll have a chance to meet again?"
"We will." Qin Ziwen’s answer was short and to the point.
Yang Long suddenly thought of something. "Like Liu Ze’s ability, the one that can set an anchor? A Function Card?!"
Qin Ziwen didn’t explain.
But his silence was an answer in itself.
Yang Long was stunned. ’You can come back whenever you want, even after you’ve left?’
’This is just bullying!’
’I thought we’d only have to put up with being suppressed by you freaks for a little over a month. But now you’re telling me you’re going to be dropping by all the time, planning to keep us under your thumb for a lifetime?’
The thought made Yang Long’s mind go numb.
Qin Ziwen patiently coaxed him, "Look at it from another angle. At least you won’t be trapped here forever. We can even sell you some goods, like food and tools, to help you improve your lives."
Yang Long’s mouth twitched. ’Not only are they going to suppress us, but they also want to use us as a dumping ground for their goods.’
’Isn’t this a fucking colony?!’
However, the Island’s environment was harsh and resources were scarce. Although seafood was plentiful, the surrounding waters were home to giant Sea Beasts, making it dangerous to enter the ocean.
He highly doubted that these few Sea Beasts were the only ones in such a vast ocean.
If Qin Ziwen and his people could return, it might not be such a bad thing after all.
Yang Long said, "Chairman Qin, if we agree to be recruited, you won’t make us launch a frontal assault on Hongding Mansion, will you?
I’ve seen the inside of their mansion. It’s a complex environment, easy to defend and hard to attack. With just the people from our Urban Village, we couldn’t take it even if we sacrificed every last one of us."
"No rush," Qin Ziwen said, waving his hand.
"I’m recruiting you because you haven’t eaten people." Qin Ziwen stared into Yang Long’s eyes. "Are you willing to cooperate with a group that has?"
"...To be honest, Chairman Qin."
Yang Long was silent for a long time before speaking again. "The first time I heard about what was happening in that building, I was truly shocked. At first, I thought that with so many people, there must have been a few who were forced into it, or were even good people."
He paused, gazing at the distant Hongding Mansion.
"After more contact, I realized how naive I’d been."
"In that hellscape of starving bodies, conscience is the first thing to be devoured. The first time might be forced, but the second time is a choice."
"I want to cooperate with you, but I’m more afraid of what happens after you leave, when we have to face the two thousand-plus people from Hongding Mansion. When they come to settle the score, we won’t be able to resist," Yang Long said honestly. "That’s our biggest concern. Even if you can return, you can’t be watching over us every single day."
"Chairman Yang, honestly, do you think you can win this competition?"
Yang Long said nothing.
"Since you can’t win, being left behind on this map is a foregone conclusion. Have you considered how your Urban Village will deal with Hongding Mansion after we leave? Can this Island support more than three thousand of you? In the future, if food on the Island runs short, will you become food for Hongding Mansion? They do have that... custom, after all."
A chill ran down Yang Long’s spine. He had considered this possibility.
No, it was more than possible—it was highly likely.
Qin Ziwen chuckled lightly. "It makes no difference to me. We can just leave. But you? You can’t. I’m a kind-hearted person; I can’t stand to see good people bullied. Chairman Yang, if you’re not willing, we’ll leave right now."
"Chairman Qin, I’m willing to cooperate," Yang Long said hurriedly, all his resistance gone.
"Haha, then let’s strike while the iron is hot and take care of them while we’re still here!" Qin Ziwen incited him. "They’re people too. They’ll have to come out for food when they get hungry. I refuse to believe they have enough food inside that building."
"They might..." Yang Long said cautiously.
Qin Ziwen laughed. "That suits me just fine. If they dare to continue being ’self-sufficient,’ the first thing to collapse will be their morale. Right now, the Blood Words are a snake without a head. The floor masters all have their own agendas. Who eats whom? If it really comes to that, they’ll turn on each other first. As long as they’re not a monolithic block, crushing them will be easy."
"What we need to do is dig trenches and build wooden walls around their mansion, sealing them inside."
"Exhaust the enemy while we rest, and watch the tigers fight from a safe distance." Yang Long now understood Qin Ziwen’s plan.
Yang Long was filled with admiration. He felt that Qin Ziwen and his people were both powerful and cautious.
They were so far ahead, yet they were still using such a cautious method.
Little did he know, Qin Ziwen simply didn’t want to lose too many of his own people.
Qin Ziwen said, "Now that we’re cooperating, I’ll leave the task of digging trenches and building wooden walls to you, Chairman Yang. We’ll be in charge of security and will also provide you with food. I believe both you and Hongding Mansion are running low on supplies, right?"
Yang Long didn’t deny it. The Urban Village was indeed running short on food.
As for Hongding Mansion, from what he knew, their remaining food supply shouldn’t be much either.
After all, with over two thousand people, the daily consumption for eating, drinking, and waste was a massive figure.
"Alright, Chairman Qin. In that case, I look forward to working with you."
"Likewise."
Qin Ziwen smiled faintly. He didn’t mention his plan to take a portion of the Urban Village’s civilians with him.
If he had, today’s agreement might not have been reached.
Afterward, Yang Long returned to the Urban Village. A few moments later, they began to act.
At the same time, on the ship’s deck, a group of people disembarked, armed and equipped, and entered the Island’s forest.
A large number of people emerged from the Urban Village and approached Hongding Mansion.
They formed a circle, clearing a layer of vegetation from the area around the mansion.
"What are they doing?" Upstairs, Li Zecheng ground his teeth. "It looked like the people from the ship were talking with the people from the Urban Village. Have those sons of bitches defected to the enemy?"
"Boss! It looks like they’re about to start a fire! They’re burning the nearby forest!" someone inside the building shouted.
Li Zecheng rushed to the window. He first glanced warily toward the sea, confirming that the large ship wasn’t firing arrows, before finally feeling safe enough to observe the situation below.
He saw flames flaring up in the forest surrounding the mansion.
From time to time, he could see members of the Jianghu Association setting fires in the forest with torches.
’Are they trying to smoke us out?’ It wasn’t just Li Zecheng; many people inside Hongding Mansion had the same question.
Down below, several Jianghu Association members ran over. "Brother Long, we’ve lit up the surrounding area. Is that enough?"
"No! Keep burning! Keep setting fires! I want not a single tree left standing within a five-hundred-meter radius of Hongding Mansion!"
Yang Long’s eyes were vicious. Since he had decided to cut ties with Hongding Mansion, he had to crush them completely! If you don’t kill a snake, it will come back to bite you. Rather than wait for them to retaliate in the future, it was better to be absolutely ruthless now.
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