Shen Feng heard Tu Xuhuai's suggestion and was somewhat puzzled. He couldn't understand why Tu Xuhuai would propose such a plan. Were there any benefits to delaying? Such procrastination might incur the wrath of headquarters and wouldn't help in retaking Yuzhou.
"Mr. Tu, please explain more clearly. Why should we delay?" Shen Feng asked urgently.
Tu Xuhuai spread his hands helplessly. "Because this is clearly a dilemma. If we lead troops to Yanjing to defend the capital, we don't know how dangerous the situation is or how long the mission will take. Going there would only delay the recapture of Yuzhou! But if we don't go, our reputation will suffer. After all, the capital is under threat. Not going would paint us as rebels. So, it's a difficult choice!"
Shen Feng suddenly understood and muttered to himself, "So, for this dilemma, it's best to choose nothing!"
"Ahem..." Tu Xuhuai coughed urgently, interrupting Shen Feng. "It's not choosing nothing, but choosing everything!"
"What a calculation!" Chu Yangtian sneered. Despite his age, he looked at Tu Xuhuai and wished he could act immediately. Originally, if he had persuaded Shen Feng, Shen Feng would have gone to support Yanjing. But now, Shen Feng was clearly swayed by Tu Xuhuai's suggestion and was ready to adopt the delaying tactic.
At this moment, Chu Yangtian knew he had to guide Shen Feng onto the right path. He quickly said, "Shen Feng, listen to me. A delaying tactic is definitely not a good choice. If you can think of it, can't headquarters? If you delay like this, you will only incur the dissatisfaction of headquarters and arouse suspicion from above. Listen to me, take this opportunity to demand benefits from headquarters! It might look like looting during a crisis, but it's a way to repair your relationship with headquarters and gain greater benefits in the future."
Chu Yangtian would rather see Shen Feng be more pragmatic and seize the opportunity to demand benefits. Headquarters would agree. But delaying might lead to greater difficulties.
"Yuzhou isn't in our hands yet, old man!" Tu Xuhuai said calmly.
Shen Feng still leaned towards Tu Xuhuai's suggestion because what he said was indeed not wrong. Yuzhou was not yet secured, so why rush to the rescue? Yanjing might be in danger, but it wasn't Jiangyang or Yuzhou, nor was it Rongcheng.
Chu Yangtian ignored Tu Xuhuai and spoke earnestly to Shen Feng. "Shen Feng, you must not make the wrong decision! Remember, once the capital is breached by zombies, the land of China will be leaderless. At that time, it will be difficult to retake the entire country. It will inevitably devolve into a society of warlordism. We must defend Yanjing now!"
Chu Yangtian, having studied history, understood very well the consequences of being leaderless. It would certainly lead to warlordism and widespread chaos. If such a situation arose, wouldn't the common people suffer immensely?
Shen Feng nodded, deeply agreeing.
Tu Xuhuai continued, "Can defending Yanjing unite everyone? Professor, I must point out one thing: the country is already divided. The apocalypse has arrived. The road network is cut off, and the railway network is cut off. It will take at least five years to clear out all the zombies, and possibly ten to twenty years. In this situation, we should prioritize ourselves! We should take this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to recapture Yuzhou and become a regional overlord!"
Frankly, Tu Xuhuai's greatest hope was for a period of warlordism, as it would offer a better future for their side. As the saying goes, "fish are easier to catch in troubled waters."
"You are an ambitious man! I never expected you to be thinking of such dangerous things at such a young age! You're actually thinking of carving out your own territory. Don't you care about the survival of the nation?" Chu Yangtian was furious. He stood up and accused Tu Xuhuai, "As long as Yanjing is not breached, we will always have a common goal. Division will not be severe! But you are preventing Shen Feng from doing this, which will only lead to greater division."
Shen Feng nodded, feeling that both of them had valid points.
At this moment, Chang Jianyi and Yang Ye realized they couldn't interject. They could only listen to the debate between the two.
Tu Xuhuai shrugged, stood up, and pointed to the map. "But does Yanjing really need our defense? Professor, you study history and understand geography, don't you? First, look at Yuzhou! It's in the southwest, on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. How long does it take to get to Yanjing? With transportation paralyzed, will it take a week or two weeks to arrive? Then look at the eastern regions. Both in terms of population and economy, they are ahead of us. Most importantly, the navy! With the navy transporting troops, does Yanjing truly lack five thousand defenders?"
"This is a matter of attitude. We must defend Yanjing's status!" Chu Yangtian continued.
Tu Xuhuai then pointed to the central part of the map and said to Shen Feng, "City Lord, I won't preach grand theories. I know I'm no match for Professor Chu in this regard. I just want to remind you of one thing: we are not the only ones eyeing Yuzhou! The Jingxiang region has many cities and a large population. If we don't secure Yuzhou now, it will become much more difficult later. Don't think that headquarters' promise to let you occupy Yuzhou is binding; headquarters can easily go back on their word!"
Tu Xuhuai knew very well what Shen Feng cared about. With Yuzhou in hand, his influence would naturally grow, making him one of the most powerful figures in the land. It was possible that someone in the Jingxiang region also had their sights set on Yuzhou. If they didn't secure it quickly, it might be snatched away later!
Upon hearing this, Shen Feng completely sided with Tu Xuhuai. "I understand. Let's do as you say."
Chu Yangtian couldn't help but walk to Shen Feng's side and say sincerely, "Currently, there are no other forces coveting Yuzhou, so Yuzhou is destined to be yours. You should go to Yanjing now. Remember, Yuzhou is landlocked! If you fall out with headquarters, and the Three Gorges are blockaded, cutting off supplies from the north and south, even if you get Yuzhou, it will lead to a dead end. Shen Feng, think carefully!"
Tu Xuhuai said calmly, "Professor, I'm not saying the City Lord shouldn't rescue Yanjing, but rather to rescue Yanjing a little later! After we recapture Yuzhou, that will be the time to set off for the rescue. This way, we can save face and secure our interests. As for offending headquarters, don't worry about that. Given its strategic location, Yuzhou's supplies cannot be completely cut off."
Shen Feng looked at Chu Yangtian's expression and saw him looking at him sincerely. He felt a little guilty. At this moment, he still had to choose someone else's advice, so he said euphemistically, "Professor, don't worry, I will definitely support Yanjing. However, there are dangers everywhere right now. If we don't secure Yuzhou, internal problems will escalate. Didn't you also advise me to recapture Yuzhou before? Now I will immediately go to Yuzhou to recapture it. After the recapture is complete, I will immediately lead my men to the north!"
Hearing Shen Feng's response, Chu Yangtian shook his head helplessly and sighed, "You are still short-sighted. It's foreseeable that Yuzhou will have a difficult time in the coming years!"
After speaking, Chu Yangtian left the study. He had offered Shen Feng advice for two reasons: firstly, he hoped Shen Feng could protect more people, which was why he had advised him to recapture Yuzhou. Secondly, upon learning that Yanjing was in danger, Chu Yangtian urged Shen Feng to prioritize the bigger picture. To his surprise, Shen Feng still chose to recapture Yuzhou and delay supporting Yanjing. Such a decision was bound to anger headquarters. Chu Yangtian's gaze seemed to pierce through time, as if he could foresee the potential crises that Yuzhou might face in the future.
Chang Jianyi quickly went out to see him off. Regardless, Professor Chu still held prestige in many people's hearts, and he couldn't be neglected. He could only hope that there would be a way to mend their relationship in the future.
Now, only three people remained in the study. Shen Feng gritted his teeth and said, "We can only stall for time now. Once we take Yuzhou, everything will be easier to discuss! As for Yanjing, we can talk about it later. Do you have any good ideas?"
Yang Ye was quite clear-headed about this. He quickly said, "Isn't there a saying? If there are difficulties, you should face them; if there are no difficulties, you should create them! Why don't we artificially create difficulties?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Feng immediately understood and nodded. "I understand. We have plenty of difficulties! Yuzhou has many crocodiles, doesn't that present a ready-made difficulty?"
Tu Xuhuai said in a low voice, "City Lord, we should still keep an eye on the news from Yanjing! I suspect that Yanjing is deliberately concealing the number of zombies. Otherwise, with one to two million zombies, Yanjing would have enough troops to deal with them. But now, troops from all over the country are being mobilized, which is clearly not right!"
Shen Feng nodded, keeping Tu Xuhuai's suggestion in mind. It was true that Yanjing seemed to be concealing too much information. They must be careful.
After discussing their decision in the study, Shen Feng rushed towards Yuzhou again. He knew that the critical moment had arrived, and he had to quickly capture Yuzhou. With the capital facing threats, it would be inexcusable not to go to its aid. However, the timing of the support needed to be managed well, and it should be after the recapture of Yuzhou.
Shen Feng also understood Professor Chu's concerns. He worried that even if they obtained Yuzhou, headquarters might block their supplies and information through official orders, turning Yuzhou into an isolated island. However, Shen Feng also saw another aspect: strength! With Yuzhou in hand, their strength would undoubtedly increase significantly. Even if supplies were blocked, they would still have leverage for negotiation. But without Yuzhou, they would always be insignificant.
"Since we're stalling for time, we can only play some different tricks!" Shen Feng muttered to himself.
When Shen Feng returned to the Yuzhou camp, he immediately found Chu Chaoyan. He had previously asked her to keep the satellite phone, and now Shen Feng needed to respond to headquarters.
"Headquarters? This is Shen Feng. I have always obeyed orders. No matter what instructions you have, I will carry them out without fail. This time is no exception. However, I will first kill the mutated crocodiles near Yuzhou, and then I will bring my troops." Shen Feng said sternly.
The liaison at headquarters was "Eagle." Hearing Shen Feng's words, he thought to himself, "Shen Feng is already a fourth-tier ability user, and he has a lot of advanced equipment. Dealing with a few crocodiles should be a relatively simple matter, right?"
So, Eagle replied, "Please act quickly and do not delay the rescue mission."
Seeing that he had indeed deceived headquarters, Shen Feng confidently replied, "A true man's dream is to achieve great things. Wait for my good news!"
Chu Chaoyan heard Shen Feng's words and couldn't help but frown, asking, "Are you really going to the rescue? Isn't that a bit too hasty? Shouldn't we secure Yuzhou first?"
Shen Feng said mysteriously, "You don't need to worry about this. Just follow my orders. I'm not an idiot. As for the plan, I've already thought of it."
Shen Feng drove with about a dozen people. Li Minghua and Zhou Xiaoxiao still needed to oversee the recapture of Yuzhou, so they couldn't come along. However, some other powerful evolved individuals followed Shen Feng and began heading towards the Yangtze River outside Yuzhou. Their vehicles were loaded with a lot of weapons of mass destruction.
In addition, Chu Chaoyan also accompanied Shen Feng. After all, she was an ability user, and she might be useful at a critical moment.
When everyone arrived at the bank of the Yangtze River, Shen Feng quietly instructed, "Later, everyone just open fire with guns and cannons, but remember, do not hit the mutated crocodiles, nor modern facilities like the road. Do you understand?"
Cai He looked at Shen Feng with confusion and asked, "President, no, City Lord! Wasting ammunition like this will only scare the crocodiles away. Isn't this a futile effort?"
Shen Feng glanced at the young man with dissatisfaction. "Your comprehension ability is really low. If the crocodiles don't run, how will I have a chance to chase them? But you don't need to know these things in such detail. Just follow my instructions and lead everyone!"
Currently, apart from some core personnel, no one else in Yuzhou knew about the danger in Yanjing. Therefore, they were completely unaware that Shen Feng needed to stall for time, and naturally, they didn't know Shen Feng's purpose. Their doubts could only be hidden in their hearts.
Shen Feng pointed to the bank of the Yangtze River and wanted to shout "Battalion Commander Er," but he also remembered that they didn't have a battalion commander. So, he shouted, "Fire!"
The small mortars now had a purpose. Everyone aimed at the bank of the Yangtze River and began bombarding. It must be said that none of them had learned how to fire cannons, so they simply aimed at the riverbank and fired. As for where they would hit, that was hard to say. Randomness couldn't be controlled; if it could, everyone would be a genius.
The crocodiles on the bank were startled by the barrage of artillery fire. Even though these crocodiles had mutated, each being eight to nine meters long, they instinctively plunged into the water when subjected to artillery fire. They were swept downstream by the swift current. As Cai He had said, these crocodiles were all frightened and fled by the bombardment.