Compared to the fierce battles in the eastern and southern regions, the southwestern region appeared remarkably peaceful. The eastern region was engaged in a zombie encirclement, primarily south of the Yellow River and north of the Yangtze River. Excluding Sichuan Province and Chongqing, the Central Plains and half of Jingxiang had commenced combat, with Guanzhong also participating in the zombie encirclement plan.
As for the southwestern region, it was much calmer. The zombies in the Sichuan Basin had been largely eliminated last year. Yunnan and Guizhou provinces were located in plateau regions with numerous mountains, making large-scale zombie migration impossible. Therefore, after forming bases, survivors moved away from the zombies in the cities.
Chongqing dispatched six thousand people to retake surrounding cities, but the scale was very small. Shen Feng's total troop strength was only eight thousand, with three-quarters of the soldiers deployed. The remaining two thousand were primarily stationed in Chongqing for training.
The Jiangyang and Chongqing gangs had significant connections. After Shen Feng eliminated all the gangs in Chongqing, the various gangs in Jiangyang began to worry about being purged. Consequently, all the gangs were cautiously inquiring about news from Chongqing.
Under these circumstances, Wang Xiao was thriving in the Dragon Slaying Gang. The more nonsensically he spoke, the more popular he became.
One day, Wang Xiao was still in the main hall, brainwashing the lower-ranking members: "Listen to me, everyone. As long as you follow the boss, your future will be boundless. Don't look at Shen Feng of Chongqing being so arrogant; he hasn't seen his own crisis. This kind of person is typically self-important and has very low emotional intelligence. Look, this is a typical case of favoritism. Everyone in Shen Feng's City Lord's Mansion is his confidant, with no regard for meritocracy. Such a group is bound to collapse sooner or later."
After Wang Xiao finished speaking, the people below erupted in enthusiastic cheers, "Good, well said."
The members of the Dragon Slaying Gang were certainly not outstanding individuals. Smart people had already taken exams to enter the City Lord's Mansion. Those with education went to laboratories, and those who weren't afraid of death joined the army. The rest were hoodlums and riffraff. With the absence of moral constraints in the apocalypse, after degenerating, they all joined gangs. The members of the Dragon Slaying Gang all dreamed of turning the tables and becoming masters.
Seeing that he had stirred up the emotions of the people below, Wang Xiao continued to curse Shen Feng: "A person like Shen Feng is simply insane to have people engage in farming! This is a step backward in history. The land has already been allocated, but now he's requisitioning it and enslaving the people. Such a person will surely be overthrown, and then we can take their place!"
The underlings became even happier. They loved hearing pleasant words. If they could truly take their place one day, wouldn't that be true prosperity?
Wang Xiao continued to brainwash the people below, mainly telling them to keep following the boss. As long as they persisted, they would eventually achieve success. They shouldn't envy those in the high City Lord's Mansion; one day, they too would become like them.
At this moment, the gang leader appeared and beckoned to Wang Xiao, saying, "Advisor, come here for a moment. There's something we need to discuss."
Wang Xiao turned his head and immediately saw the gang leader beside him. The gang leader's name was Huang Yu. Although his name sounded delicate, he was a burly man, especially with crisscrossing scars on his face, clearly indicating he was no good person.
Wang Xiao quickly said, "I'll be right there."
Huang Yu led Wang Xiao to a secret room and said, "Sir, we received news from Qiao Xianwen that they've learned Jiangyang has supplies to send to Chongqing, not only food but also firearms and evolution potions. Moreover, the escort is not large. What do you think, should we make a move?"
Upon hearing this news, Wang Xiao immediately pondered. He unfolded his white paper fan and gently fanned himself, appearing to be thinking seriously, but his mind was racing: "This guy is asking for my opinion. How am I supposed to know whether to do it or not?"
Wang Xiao had no idea how to decide and couldn't just say anything, or he would lose face.
After a moment of silence, Wang Xiao sighed, feigning indecision, and said with difficulty, "It's truly difficult to choose. What are your thoughts, boss?"
Huang Yu quickly replied, "Sir, since our previous poisoning plan failed, Shen Feng will definitely be cautious. We can't assassinate him anymore. Why not take a risk and seize the firearms and evolution potions to arm ourselves? It would be even better if we could occupy Jiangyang."
The previous attempt to poison Shen Feng was planned by Huang Yu and Wang Xiao. They thought it was a sure thing, as the chef had been working for a month, and Shen Feng would surely be unprepared. However, it ultimately failed, which was truly a sign of heaven's injustice. Such a perfect plan could fail; no one could have predicted it.
Therefore, Huang Yu now wanted to take a risk. His subordinates were only armed with bolt-action rifles and couldn't possibly contend with the regular army of the City Lord's Mansion. Those people were armed with automatic rifles and had no shortage of ammunition. To achieve victory, they needed comparable equipment.
Wang Xiao thought to himself, "If I agree and the operation ultimately fails, won't it become my responsibility? It's better to object, so the responsibility won't be on me."
Thus, Wang Xiao immediately said, "Boss, I think it's better not to take the risk. Putting aside whether we can hold Jiangyang after obtaining the firearms, what if Shen Feng brings his ability users to attack? Wouldn't it all be in vain? We don't have gasoline right now, so even if we rob them, we can't run fast. It's better to wait for the right time and find ways to enhance our combat power later."
Huang Yu had been dreaming of seizing the firearms and completely occupying Jiangyang. But now, Wang Xiao's words had poured cold water on him. Thinking carefully, it was indeed true. What if ability users attacked? They say ability users can fly and burrow. Jiangyang only has a city wall; how could it be defended?
Huang Yu hesitated for a moment, but ultimately believed Wang Xiao's words. After all, Wang Xiao had previously advised the plan to bribe the chef for poisoning. The matter had succeeded by ninety-nine percent. As long as Shen Feng and Chang Jianyi ate the poisoned food, they would surely die. In the end, it was a near miss.
Since Wang Xiao's previous plan had only narrowly failed, he must have had a well-thought-out strategy. Why should he be in a hurry? If the advisor said not to take risks, then they didn't need to be so eager. Following the advisor's instructions would surely lead to success.
Therefore, Huang Yu decisively said, "We will follow the advisor's words."
On Qiao Xianwen's side, after discussing the follow-up plan with Qi Lingshan, he began to contact the influential gangs in the city. Since the plan was to lure the snakes out of their holes, they had to make sure all the snakes emerged; otherwise, any stragglers would be troublesome.
Qiao Xianwen was full of confidence, believing that with firearms and evolution potions, these desperadoes would surely rush forward without hesitation. Such attractive items would surely drive the people below to participate madly. However, Qiao Xianwen heard back from the Dragon Slaying Gang, stating they would not participate in the robbery plan.
Instantly, Qiao Xianwen felt as if he had eaten a fly. He found Qi Lingshan and said, "The Dragon Slaying Gang is the largest gang in Jiangyang, and it's no exaggeration to call them the local power. They own several casinos and brothels. If they don't participate in this plan, will they see through our scheme?"
Qi Lingshan pondered, stroking his chin, and analyzed, "It's impossible. If these people had truly seen through our scheme, they would have already notified other gangs to avoid it. Now, there's only one possibility: these people don't want to take risks. Are there such calm people in the gang who can resist temptation?"
Qiao Xianwen suddenly remembered someone and quickly said, "I understand. It must be the White Paper Fan of the Dragon Slaying Gang, a guy named Wang Xiao. This person often brainwashes the people below. He is resourceful and must have persuaded Huang Yu. Otherwise, although Huang Yu is ruthless, his mind isn't very sharp, and he wouldn't be able to resist such temptation."
Qi Lingshan pondered for a while and finally gritted his teeth, saying to Qiao Xianwen, "You contact the other gangs to gather first. I'll ask the Deputy City Lord to increase the stakes. If evolution potions can't attract these people, I don't believe ability potions can't entice them to rob! Just you wait and see."
Qi Lingshan had already marked Wang Xiao as a major threat. He never expected his plan to be disrupted by someone. The only way forward was to increase the stakes. If there were more attractive items, something no one could refuse, then even calm people wouldn't be able to stand idly by.
Qi Lingshan immediately went to contact Li Xiang to prepare for the follow-up plan.
Qi Lingshan felt he had met his match. He never expected that someone could detect the danger in his plan and avoid taking risks. Was this the reason the Dragon Slaying Gang had grown to its current extent?
Qi Lingshan certainly didn't know Wang Xiao's true intentions, or he would have been furious. He thought the guy was being cautious and holding back, not realizing that the guy refused to take risks to avoid responsibility.
As Qiao Xianwen's news spread, gangs of all sizes in Jiangyang began to pay attention to the City Lord's Mansion. A group of idle individuals loitered around the City Lord's Mansion all day, but they didn't do any proper work, just wandered around, occasionally smoking, their eyes fixed on the City Lord's Mansion.
At dusk, Li Xiang, accompanied by a few people, walked out of the City Lord's Mansion and waved to a group of people on the street: "You people over there, come with me to load the trucks. Two catties of grain tickets each. We need twenty people. Those who want to go, come forward."
The people standing on the street were all informants from the gangs. Upon hearing Li Xiang's call, they quickly crowded forward, saying, "I'll go, I'll go, we love doing work the most."
A smile appeared on Li Xiang's lips. He knew the true identities of these people. If they were truly workers, they shouldn't be loitering near the City Lord's Mansion. These people, every single one of them, were someone else's informants!
Thinking of this, Li Xiang felt even more at ease and said, "When we get to the warehouse later, no looking around. Handle the items with care when you move them. Those things are very precious. Anyone who dares to damage them will be beaten to death by me."
After speaking, Li Xiang led his men to the warehouse where the supplies were stored. Before Chongqing was recaptured, important supplies were stored here.
Li Xiang led a group of people into the warehouse and then directed the loading. There were many soldiers guarding the vicinity of the warehouse, making it difficult for anyone to approach. The important supplies in the warehouse were all loaded onto trucks.
There were many specimens of mutated animals in the warehouse. This was the habit of Teacher Niu Baiye. If one wanted to study biology, specimens were necessary. Many animals were dried and made into specimens. Teacher Niu left in a hurry to establish a laboratory in Chongqing, so many specimens were left in the Jiangyang warehouse.
At this moment, Li Xiang emerged from a corner holding a briefcase, with two confidants pleading with him.
"Boss, just let us take a look. We've never seen it before," one confidant pleaded earnestly.
Another also quickly said, "Boss, we won't be able to become ability users in this life, but we should at least see the potions, otherwise, our lives would have been lived in vain!"
Li Xiang was smug and couldn't help but say, "It's just for you to take a look. Otherwise, ordinary people can't see it. Honestly, I've followed the City Lord for so long, and I haven't become an ability user, which is a great regret. But I believe the City Lord won't forget me."
As he spoke, Li Xiang gently opened the briefcase. Inside, there was black sponge for cushioning, and within the sponge were two indentations. In the indentations lay two sealed test tubes, containing green liquid.
Li Xiang was quite far from the people loading the trucks, but many among the loaders were secretly glancing this way. They knew this was important information and had to be carefully remembered and reported to their boss later.
At this time, the foreman stepped forward, pointed at the people who were peeking, and cursed loudly, "A bunch of lazybones, can't even do their work properly and are still slacking off. Don't just stand there like idiots, hurry up and move the specimens!"
At this moment, the many informants could only lower their heads and speed up the process of moving the specimens.
Li Xiang placed the ability potions in the deepest part of the truck in front of everyone. After the loading was finished, he instructed someone to drive the truck to the vicinity of the east city gate and left a few soldiers to guard it.