Chapter 91 - 86: Zhao Youcai’s Monologue

Chapter 91: Chapter 86: Zhao Youcai’s Monologue

"It’s just like Sun Shan said. We wait for the military to clear a path and rescue us."

"Before, we didn’t have a definite timeline, so we had to plan for the worst-case scenario. But things are different now. Sister Qiao’s uncle said the military has been resupplied and has already started rescue operations. They might clear a path to us in less than three months."

"Even if we give them a margin for error, say six months, that should be about right, shouldn’t it? We just need to rest well for six months, and then... it’ll be over. Everything will be over."

"Look at us—all these people, three buildings, so much food, and we even have electricity! We can watch movies together, play video games, play board games... a few months will fly by."

"Why do we need to keep fighting zombies and scheming against other people? There are always accidents when you go out, and I don’t want to see a single one of us die."

"So, Dongzi, I think... we should stop."

Huang Zhiqiang laid out all his thoughts to Yu Dong in one go.

He’d actually had this idea since interrogating Sun Shan this morning. After hearing the good news from Qiao Yunliang, he couldn’t hold back from expressing his opinion directly.

Hearing what Huang Zhiqiang said, Yu Dong was momentarily dazed.

Because this... this seemed to be his greatest ambition in his past life.

A safe, controllable environment, and the government stepping in.

And now, he was on the verge of achieving it without even realizing it.

But suddenly, Yu Dong felt a sense of... resistance. He didn’t know what he was resisting.

Suppressing the chaotic thoughts in his mind, Yu Dong looked at the others.

"Do you guys... think what Huang said makes sense?"

Qiao Ping, reading the room, saw a troubled expression flash across Yu Dong’s face and kept her mouth shut.

The other teammates weren’t so cautious.

Zhou said, "I think there’s only one thing we need to do now... reinforce the community’s defenses and then just sit tight. On the whole, what Huang said is right."

Zhao Youcai’s expression was grimly uncertain. He felt that this world, a world that suited him better, was just beginning, and now... order was about to be restored just like that.

If they went back to the old world, even a Reincarnator like Yu Dong would become an ordinary person, and he himself would no longer have his current status.

Moreover, once Yang Yi and Zhao Wenjie were under the military’s protection, he would be completely out of the picture.

It wasn’t that he was particularly fond of Yang Yi. It was just that... he felt he had to get whatever he wanted. Before the apocalypse, no one cared what he said. After the apocalypse, he wanted his word to be law.

This good news, which made everyone else happy, was perhaps something only he found hard to accept.

"We... should prepare for both possibilities, right? What if something unexpected happens to the military? We should keep developing. I see that the small supermarket, the fruit store, and the authentic Anhui beef noodle shop at the community entrance should have a lot of supplies... We can take them all, hoard resources. You never know, they might be useful later."

"What about the underground garage? Shouldn’t we clear that out too? What if we need to drive out later? We’ve basically collected the keys for all those cars in the garage, so driving would be easy."

"There are still many resource points around the community we can take..."

Shen Xinyi shook her head. "I disagree. Forget a few months, we have enough supplies to live for three years. Even if there’s an accident, it won’t be a three-year-long accident, right? As long as we have enough, that’s fine. There’s no need to collect so many things we don’t actually need."

Liu Ye’ye looked at the pensive Yu Dong and said with a smile:

"I trust that you’ll lead us to survival, senior... I’ll do whatever you say."

Qiao Ping also couldn’t figure out what Yu Dong was thinking, so she chose not to pick a side.

"Yes, Captain, you can be the one to decide. I’ll stay in the back, cook for you all, and organize the supplies... It’s not dangerous for me anyway. I just hope you all stay safe until my uncle gets here."

Zhao Wenjie and Yang Yi were still on the second floor and couldn’t participate in their meeting.

Right now, out of the seven people present,

Huang Zhiqiang, Zhou Jian’guo, and Shen Xinyi supported an end to offensives in favor of fortifying their own territory.

Zhao Youcai wanted to use their current strength to seize more resources.

Liu Ye’ye and Qiao Ping were fine with either option.

Yu Dong looked at everyone, his thoughts turning to what Sun Shan and Qiao Yunliang had said. He remembered their short-lived Apocalypse Mandarin Duck Array, which was now missing a key member.

’Do we really need to risk our lives for more supplies?’

Before the apocalypse, they had prepared three years’ worth of complete nutritional meals for six people, ten tons of ’Energy Bricks,’ and a considerable amount of supplies scavenged from Building One.

They still hadn’t searched Building Two or Building Three.

There was also the greenhouse on the roof, which would provide a continuous supply of vegetables and potatoes in the future.

In this life, even though the team had grown so much larger, their supplies were still plentiful.

Yu Dong looked at Zhao Youcai, and Zhao Youcai looked back at him.

Both of them read that trace of something... different in the other’s eyes.

But after thinking rationally, Yu Dong finally sighed.

"After we clear out the zombies inside the community, let’s rest for now... and wait for good news from the military."

Hearing this, a trace of disappointment appeared in Zhao Youcai’s eyes.

This meant they were going to be like Sun Shan, just lying down and giving up.

They would just stay in this community until the day the military rescued them, or until the day they died.

He stood up.

"Dongzi, this time, I don’t agree with the team’s decision. I think we should carve out our own territory. Even if the military really does resolve the current situation, in the post-apocalyptic world... won’t we still need our own crew, supplies, and territory?"

Huang Zhiqiang retorted, "Youcai, that’s the logic of a bandit king holing up in the mountains! You’ll get yourself shot!"

"Think about the primitive accumulation of capital. Which of those fortunes wasn’t built on life-threatening work? Whether it’s now or after the apocalypse, we already have the potential to become capital ourselves. If we don’t strive to become capital at a time like this... then what’s the point of living?"

"But the whole point of accumulating so much is to eventually lie on a balcony and leisurely bask in the sun, isn’t it? We can already do that right now. The meaning of life has been fulfilled. There’s no need to go out and risk our lives anymore!"

This time, Huang Zhiqiang didn’t back down. He went head-to-head with Zhao Youcai, and his words resonated with many of the others.

Zhao Youcai shook his head in disappointment and turned to walk out.

"I don’t like the idea of sunbathing on a balcony in some apartment building. I want to sunbathe on the private beach of my own seaside villa. I like it when people look up to me and call me President Zhao, not just Zhao. I don’t want my future child to squat by the door at the beginning of every year, staring blankly as his mother and I leave our hometown to work in the city. I want every single day of his childhood to be filled with the smiling faces of his mom and dad..."

At this, Zhao Youcai tilted his head back, took a deep breath, and left the room.

After hearing Zhao Youcai’s monologue, Yu Dong finally understood the source of that resistance in his heart.

He, too, was unwilling to be ordinary.

’Just get rescued like everyone else, and then... it’s all over just like that?’

’Were my two miraculous rebirths just for this?’

He could probably join the military, or maybe get involved in post-disaster economic reconstruction. He could even become a volunteer and help others.

But Yu Dong felt that anyone could do those things.

But then he looked at the others in the room... at all those ordinary people whose lives depended on his decisions. All they wanted was to follow him and survive.

At that moment, Yu Dong closed his eyes.

’They shouldn’t become sacrifices for our unwillingness to be ordinary...’

’Losing Kai was already enough.’

’It’s time to stop.’

A moment later, he opened his eyes and looked at the group.

"Let’s... just focus on living well."

...

「On the twelfth day of the apocalypse.」

Yu Dong led the team in eliminating all the zombies within the Xiangti Bay Community.

On the thirteenth day, the entire team worked together to move the food from Building Three. Zhao Wenjie and Yang Yi kept half of the food from Building Three as their own reserve, officially separating from the team and settling in Building Three.

On the fourteenth day, the group moved all the food from Building Two.

On the fifteenth day, they reached an agreement with Sun Shan. They let him return to Building Two, but he would have to provide the team with his skills in exchange for food and other daily necessities he needed.

On the sixteenth day, with Sun Shan’s help, the team began to fortify the Xiangti Bay Community. The community entered a period of peace...

Everyone began to wait for the military’s arrival.

When Zhao Youcai passed by Building Three, he saw Yang Yi. He was about to chat with her when she sneered:

"Take a good look at yourself. A toad lusting after a swan’s flesh. You don’t actually think you’re cool when you’re trying to act all tough, do you? Seriously? Are you for real?"

"Even if I got lonely enough to go find Yu Dong for a hookup, I still wouldn’t go for you."

"The army’s coming soon. The clown is about to be exposed~"