At the military headquarters in Yanjing, a discussion of extremely serious matters was underway. Everyone present wore solemn expressions as they debated the zombies, interspersed with sighs of disbelief. It seemed no one had anticipated that mere unarmed zombies could pose such a significant threat to humanity. Now, they found themselves at the brink of survival.
The zombie outbreak had occurred suddenly a few months prior, with the earliest cases appearing along the Pacific coast. This led many to speculate that the melting of Antarctic glaciers might have unleashed an ancient virus, transforming humans into zombies. Those who became zombies were, in essence, already dead, devoid of thought and intellect, driven only by instinct.
It turned out that the zombies north of the Yellow River had begun to congregate, seemingly sensing a crisis and aiming to unite their forces. In a mere five days, the Northeast Plain had amassed a hundred million zombies, while North China had accumulated eighty million. They were all advancing towards Yanjing!
The zombies of the Haihe Plain were moving north, while those from the three northeastern provinces were crossing the Great Wall southward. Their target was clear: Yanjing!
This meant that nearly two hundred million zombies were preparing to attack Yanjing, the capital of China. If Yanjing were to fall, China would be left leaderless. Furthermore, Yanjing currently housed over ten million people, representing one-tenth of China's surviving population. Its fall would inflict a devastating blow to humanity.
"Why are the zombies uniting? A Zombie King can control at most over a million zombies. Even the Zombie King of Yuzhou only controlled four million. How can nearly two hundred million zombies be advancing on us now?" someone asked, a hint of panic in their voice.
Someone nearby offered an explanation: "Information from the laboratories suggests that the Zombie Kings have begun to form alliances. While zombies are indeed a scattered force, Zombie Kings possess intelligence and possibly memories from their past lives. Therefore, the Zombie Kings have allied themselves and are now attacking Yanjing."
"This is outrageous! If Zombie Kings retain memories from their past lives, they should understand that they shouldn't be enemies with humans. Why are they acting in concert now? I just don't understand," a general said, leaning back in his seat, his voice weary.
"Could it be that we've been too aggressive in killing zombies? The Zombie Kings are uniting because they feel threatened, and they want to strike first to eliminate us. If they hadn't felt endangered, they wouldn't have allied," another voice interjected.
"What nonsense are you spouting? Are we wrong for killing zombies? Haven't you seen the fate of other countries? So many smaller nations have been wiped out by zombies! Is it wrong for us to fight back against them?"
"I'm not saying killing zombies is wrong, but we must acknowledge now that the Zombie Kings are uniting because they feel threatened. This cannot be ignored!"
In the vast conference room, many people were engaged in heated debate. It wasn't due to ulterior motives, but rather the overwhelming pressure exerted by the zombies. Previous battles against zombies had, at most, involved tens of millions. The only significant engagement in the open field had been in Rongcheng. Most prior combat had been street fighting during the recapture of cities.
However, the current situation, with nearly two hundred million zombies in motion, could not be overlooked. Essentially, all zombies north of the Yellow River had gathered. Had it not been for the Yellow River's barrier, zombies from the central plains might have also moved north to join the battle. It was as if, overnight, the zombies had become agitated and were all retaliating against humans. Yanjing, the foremost city in China at present, had become a thorn in the zombies' side.
Zombies originated from numerous locations: the three northeastern provinces, the northern grasslands, the North China Plain, and even west of the Taihang Mountains. It could be said that to conquer Yanjing, the zombies had mobilized all those north of the Yellow River. Fortunately, a significant portion of the zombies in Guanzhong had been eliminated; otherwise, the number of zombies besieging Yanjing would have truly approached two hundred million.
Of course, the mobilization of over a hundred million zombies was not a simple matter. Even though zombies didn't need to pack luggage or carry rations, their assembly speed couldn't be instantaneous. Therefore, according to satellite reconnaissance, it would take approximately another week for the zombies to appear near Yanjing.
The good news was that the zombies were gathering slowly. The bad news was that Yanjing was their target.
Marshal He, observing the intense discussions in the conference room, frowned. This meeting included not only military personnel but also political figures. The crisis brought about by the zombies had thrown everyone into disarray. He knew he had to step forward now and reassure them.
"Quiet, everyone! We are discussing the next course of action. You are all talking about the reasons for the zombie outbreak. Are you afraid?" Marshal He reprimanded sternly.
The long-chaotic conference room immediately fell silent. No one dared to continue arguing. Even those who had been speaking with righteous indignation now lowered their heads, understanding that they could only find a way forward under the Marshal's leadership.
Marshal He, now over seventy years old, had not been infected by the zombie virus amidst the outbreak—a miracle in itself. For elderly individuals over sixty, it was rare for even one in a hundred to resist the virus. His presence effectively deterred the soldiers below, and many in the political sphere relied on his support. It could be said that China's hope rested entirely on the military, and effective control of the military was dependent on Marshal He's authority.
The establishment of the anti-zombie headquarters had, in fact, been Marshal He's insistence, which had led to its successful formation and its ability to command the nation's armies.
At this moment, Marshal He slowly sat down and said, "Let's discuss what Yanjing should do next. Everyone should voice their opinions. Regardless, everyone has their own perspective."
The attendees exchanged glances. They had expected the Marshal to state his own views, but instead, he had asked them to share their opinions. This might lead to renewed arguments.
Subsequently, many voiced their thoughts, with three main proposals emerging. The first was to retreat to the western regions or the grasslands, to sparsely populated areas, to temporarily evade the zombies' onslaught, and then to recapture Yanjing after eliminating them. The second option was to intercept the zombies while simultaneously gathering ships at Jinmen, with everyone boarding to sail south and seek refuge, planning a counter-offensive later. The third was to mobilize the nation's entire strength and engage the zombies in battle, preferring to fight to the last man rather than let the zombies breach Yanjing.
Marshal He listened to their discussions without saying a word, but he had grasped the current situation. Some wished to flee, driven by fear of Yanjing's fall. Others prepared to move south to avoid the immediate threat, recognizing the current balance of power and planning to counterattack later. The last group advocated for mobilizing the nation's forces to defend Yanjing, but doing so would mean abandoning the plan to reclaim other regions. It meant sacrificing potentially millions of survivors in the south and west for the ten million in Yanjing.
The three factions clearly presented their views, each arguing for the superiority of their plan. The over one hundred people in the conference room began to argue again, quarreling over the current situation.
"Do you even know what two hundred million zombies mean? In human history, no, in Earth's history, there has never been a war on such a massive scale! Given the circumstances, we can only retreat. Before the zombies surround us, let's evacuate quickly. The western regions or the grasslands are sparsely populated and sufficient for us to live. If not, let's go to Guanzhong! There aren't many zombies in Guanzhong now. Let's retreat quickly!"
"What are you saying? Retreating to these places is simply courting death, and it will make recapturing Yanjing even more difficult. The only option now is to go to Jinmen. Everyone boards ships and heads south. Once enough people are gathered, we can eliminate all the zombies north of the Yellow River in one fell swoop. Traveling by ship is the most suitable choice!"
"You two groups are cowards! Why retreat? Even if there are nearly two hundred million zombies, they cannot use weapons, and their combat effectiveness is inferior to humans. Why are we running? Let's mobilize the nation's troops for a battle with the zombies. If we win, the entire region north of the Yellow River will belong to humanity, and the plan to reclaim the entire country will accelerate. This is the best decision!"
Everyone present was an elite among elites, and their decisions could determine the fate of the nation. As they argued, each believed their decision was correct, and any reasoning from others was flawed, with only their own plans being feasible.
Marshal He had no choice but to step in. He slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "Stop arguing, everyone! If you continue to argue, no matter what decision is made, it cannot be implemented. Listen to me."
The conference room immediately fell silent. Everyone listened to Marshal He's speech.
Marshal He sighed and said, "No one expected that zombies would not be a scattered force, nor that they would be as unintelligent as we imagined. Yanjing is now facing a crisis of survival. Zombies from five or six provinces north of the Yellow River are basically heading towards Yanjing. Among these zombies, there are at least two hundred Zombie Kings. With such a large number of zombies, even I have no way to resist them, as I have never experienced a battle of this magnitude."
At this moment, many people quietly breathed a sigh of relief, feeling that the Marshal's words were very realistic. This implied that the Marshal also supported retreating, meaning they wouldn't have to engage in a direct battle with two hundred million zombies!
But just then, Marshal He changed his tone and said with resolute conviction, "However, just because we haven't experienced it, does that mean we should retreat without a fight? Does that mean we should lead the people to seek refuge? Today, we can abandon Yanjing, but will we have to abandon more places in the future? Previously, four million zombies attacked Rongcheng, and our soldiers numbered only five thousand, yet we held them off. This shows that numbers do not equate to combat effectiveness! You should see more. As long as we win this war, we can reclaim the entire territory north of the Yellow River. With the Northeast Plain as our granary and the grasslands as our pasture, we will have completed at least a quarter of the plan to reclaim the entire country. This will be a battle that goes down in history. Gentlemen, are you not tempted?"
At this point, a civilian official stood up and said, "However, the battle in Rongcheng does not mean we can replicate it. Four million zombies, with only three Zombie Kings among them, nearly broke through the final defense line at that time. Now, we are facing zombies from several directions, nearly two hundred million of them. This is incomparable!"
Marshal He glanced at the civilian official, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth, and then retorted, "Do you know the zombies' weakness?"
The civilian official was at a loss for words, stunned in his place, unable to say anything.
Marshal He continued, "In my opinion, we will definitely win this battle because winter has arrived! It is now October, and heavy snow has begun to fall in the north. Zombies do not know how to keep warm. As long as we persevere until winter arrives, the zombies will freeze to death in large numbers! Zombies carry their own rations, but have they brought their own fuel?"
Upon hearing this, the people below immediately came to their senses and began to discuss, "That's right, winter is coming. Winters in the north can truly kill people. Even without heating, people often freeze to death in blizzards. Zombies have very low intelligence. Even if Zombie Kings understand how to keep warm, hundreds of millions of zombies will not be able to endure. This means that as long as we hold out until winter and it snows, the zombies' objective will fail!"
Marshal He's words invigorated everyone. Previously, they had all believed that the sheer number of zombies made the battle difficult. But now, they realized that two hundred million zombies were not invincible. As long as winter arrived and it snowed, the low temperatures would kill the zombies. And since zombies were mutated from humans, they possessed all the weaknesses that humans had.
Everyone began to change their views and support the fight. As long as they could hold out until it snowed, as long as the zombies were all frozen to death, victory would be theirs.
Seeing that everyone had regained their confidence, Marshal He felt gratified. However, after the meeting concluded, he ordered the headquarters, "Immediately mobilize the nation's armies to Yanjing. Except for the most basic personnel on standby, all soldiers must come to Yanjing. Time is running out; the zombies will surround Yanjing in a week. We must mobilize the troops immediately!"
During the meeting, Marshal He had appeared calm and composed, but only he knew that to hold out until the zombies were largely frozen to death, there was only one way: continuous combat! They had to endure until the harsh winter arrived and the zombies were no longer capable of attacking Yanjing.