Shen Feng was in his office, processing documents and occasionally browsing underground websites. These sites facilitated the exchange of goods, even firearms and ammunition. However, delivery services were exclusively available in the eastern regions, leaving Shen Feng in a frustrating predicament. His location was in the west, and the underground website operators refused to deliver. To trade, one had to pick up the goods in person, a capability Shen Feng lacked.
Shen Feng didn't even possess a helicopter. The idea of traveling to the eastern regions to collect items was purely fantastical. Therefore, Shen Feng could only watch with envy as transactions unfolded on the underground websites.
However, Shen Feng found some solace in the fact that the firearms available on the underground websites were generally of poor quality, nowhere near comparable to the assault rifles provided by the military. Furthermore, the transaction volumes were quite low. The largest order he had seen was for a mere hundred old-fashioned bolt-action rifles. This meant he didn't necessarily need to acquire weapons through the underground website; manufacturing his own seemed more cost-effective.
"As expected of an underground website," Shen Feng muttered quietly, "the quantities traded are too small to be taken seriously."
In reality, Shen Feng had come to regard the underground website as his primary source of information. He could find numerous posts there, offering insights into a vast array of news, both domestic and international. Currently, countries worldwide were facing this disaster. Major powers were managing to hold on, but many smaller nations had already perished.
Just as Shen Feng was browsing the website, Luo Qing from the liaison office arrived. "There's a call from headquarters, City Lord," he announced. "They're asking for you. You need to reply immediately."
Upon hearing this, Shen Feng couldn't help but sigh and begin to complain. "Even if they're rushing me to retake a county town, shouldn't they wait until my soldiers learn how to shoot? It's only been five days, and they're already so impatient!"
Chang Jianyi, who was seated nearby, quickly interjected, "What if it's something else? It might not be about retaking cities."
Shen Feng mused internally. What else could it be at this juncture besides retaking county towns? Headquarters contacting him was likely another attempt to rein him in. Because he was an irregular civilian organization, they repeatedly tried to assert control, aiming to ensure his compliance. Shen Feng was acutely aware that he and the military headquarters were fundamentally different entities, and he could never truly integrate.
Afterward, Shen Feng proceeded to the liaison room and picked up the phone. "This is Shen Feng. Does headquarters have any instructions?"
A voice from headquarters responded, "Tomorrow at noon, twenty thousand survivors will arrive in Luzhou. Please make preparations for their reception. More may follow. Please acknowledge."
Shen Feng was stunned by this news and immediately asked, "Survivors? Where are they coming from?"
Headquarters replied, "Survivors from the Yuzhou direction. Yuzhou is currently being retaken, so the survivors will be received by the nearest city, Luzhou. Please confirm receipt."
"Headquarters, we don't have enough food here to support more survivors. Please reconsider. It would be best to arrange for them to go to other cities, perhaps Rongcheng! It's safer there!" Shen Feng was overwhelmed. His current food supplies were only sufficient for the fifty thousand people already in the city. Now, tens of thousands more from Yuzhou were expected, which would be incredibly troublesome. Food that was supposed to last a year would only last half a year with more people!
"You only need to support these people for one month. After one month, Yuzhou will be largely retaken, and then you can send them back!" headquarters stated.
Shen Feng was on the verge of cursing. Who came up with this terrible idea? It was one thing to have tens of thousands of people coming to Luzhou, but to feed them for free for a month and then send them back? Where was the logic in that? He would essentially be feeding tens of thousands of people for nothing.
"We genuinely don't have enough food to support them. Headquarters, please reconsider, or perhaps provide us with some food?" Shen Feng said helplessly.
Headquarters did not agree to Shen Feng's request. Instead, they continued, "Everyone is short on food. Headquarters cannot provide you with these supplies. How about this: Headquarters will provide you with twenty evolution potions. Please understand headquarters' difficulties and help share the burden."
"Are they treating me like a beggar!" Shen Feng thought to himself.
Shen Feng could produce evolution potions himself, which only required capturing a few mutated zombies. Yet, headquarters, believing this to be a rare commodity that Shen Feng had never encountered, proposed a seemingly enticing but ultimately useless suggestion. Shen Feng had not reported to headquarters that he could produce evolution potions, fearing that his hard-won formula would be confiscated. He intended to prioritize his own people with the evolution potions and, once they no longer needed them, sell them.
"We don't need evolution potions for now! Could you provide more firearms? I'm facing millions of zombies, and retaking two county towns is a struggle. If you could supply us with millions of bullets, I will definitely accept the survivors from Yuzhou. What do you say?" Shen Feng began to bargain.
However, headquarters replied shortly after, "Once you have retaken two county towns, we will continue to provide bullets. But don't even think about firearms; the entire country is short on them!"
Shen Feng wanted to say more, but headquarters had already hung up. Shen Feng felt utterly helpless. It was clear they were simply dumping the survivors in Luzhou and washing their hands of the matter. His own people would have to feed them for a month and then send them back after Yuzhou was retaken. Such a cheap trick was something only headquarters could devise; their intelligence was truly remarkable.
Chang Jianyi, having overheard the conversation, couldn't help but say, "Don't be too angry. If these survivors come, it's also a good thing. At least the progress of our city wall construction will increase significantly, and perhaps among these people, there are many talented individuals we can recruit. We must turn a disadvantage into an advantage!"
Shen Feng nodded helplessly, feeling that headquarters truly treated him like a brick, moved wherever needed. First, they pressured him to retake county towns, and now they wanted him to accept survivors, all without offering any benefits. Even bullets were only provided after his own supplies ran out; they were truly stingy!
However, Shen Feng also found the Yuzhou campaign rather peculiar. The retaking of cities had begun about a week ago, so why hadn't it been successful yet? Wasn't Rongcheng retaken within a week? Why was Yuzhou taking so long?
"Where is Professor Chu? I need to ask him some questions," Shen Feng asked casually.
Chang Jianyi replied directly, "He's in the staff office on the seventh floor. He's probably drinking tea all day."
Thus, Shen Feng found Chu Yangtian in a room on the seventh floor, leisurely drinking tea. Sunlight streamed in from outside, creating a feeling of "the setting sun is beautiful, but it's near dusk." Shen Feng had also noticed that the old professor's health seemed to be declining.
"Professor, how about I give you an evolution potion to strengthen your body? You seem to be in poor spirits lately," Shen Feng asked cautiously.
Chu Yangtian appeared relaxed, but his breathing was somewhat rapid. It was evident that his heart condition was not good, which was why Shen Feng inquired. Upon hearing the concerned words, Chu Yangtian smiled and said, "No need. I'm just an old man who can't contribute much. Why waste an evolution potion on me? It's better used on the younger generation."
Shen Feng shook his head helplessly and said, "Evolution potions aren't that scarce. If you use one, you can live much longer. But if you don't, your body seems to be nearing its limit..."
Chu Yangtian coughed a couple of times and then calmly stated, "Don't pity me. I've lived a long life. It's good to be able to spend my remaining years in peace. After all, I don't wish to witness this chaotic world anymore. Now, tell me, why have you come to see me?"
Shen Feng didn't dwell on the matter further and got straight to the point. "I'm very curious. Why was the retaking of cities so rapid at the beginning of the zombie outbreak, but it has become so slow now? Furthermore, it's said that Yuzhou will take a month to retake. That seems quite strange!"
Chu Yangtian pondered for a moment before replying, "It's not strange. At the start of the zombie outbreak, the military was the quickest to regain organizational capabilities, but their numbers were certainly not large. Therefore, in the early stages, the retaking of major cities involved tens of thousands of soldiers per city. Afterward, a small contingent was left behind. But now, the retaking of cities is a widespread effort, with a few thousand soldiers being sufficient for each city. This is especially true for the city clusters in the eastern and central regions. With so many cities, manpower is always needed, thus spreading the army thin!"
Shen Feng nodded, understanding the reason for the prolonged retaking of Yuzhou. Defending cities required manpower, and retaking remaining cities also required manpower. Even with hundreds of thousands of soldiers, they couldn't sustain such a large-scale war. However, he then continued, "I understand that point. Now, I'd like to ask about the population distribution across the country."
"It's quite simple," Chu Yangtian replied without hesitation. "Low-lying plains are densely populated areas. These places are suitable for large-scale crop cultivation and can support more people."
Shen Feng felt a bit embarrassed. He found a map and asked, "My geography is poor, and I don't remember where the plains are. Could you please draw the areas for me?"
"You've forgotten such basic knowledge? I truly don't know how your geography teacher taught you!" Chu Yangtian grumbled, picking up a pen and drawing several circles on the map. One of these circles happened to be the Chengdu Plain. Upon seeing this circle, Shen Feng began to ponder. The most densely populated area relative to his current location was indeed here.
After obtaining the answers he sought, Shen Feng made a few casual remarks and then left Professor Chu's room. As soon as he closed the door, he heard violent coughing. He shook his head helplessly, surprised that the old man was so stubborn, refusing to use the evolution potion even when offered. It seemed he no longer wished to endure the hardships of this chaotic world. Even living now was incredibly taxing.
The next day, a convoy of military trucks led the way, followed by thousands of cars, arriving in Luzhou. The vehicles came from the east. Shen Feng stood by the city wall, watching. The wall had already been built to a height of three meters. To enter Luzhou, one could only pass through the city gate. The hexagonal city wall enclosed the urban area to the maximum extent. Buildings outside the wall were constantly being demolished, and anything usable within them had essentially been taken by the logistics department.
Soon, fifty soldiers driving military trucks alighted from their vehicles. Although Cheng Ke's suggestion was for these people to come to Luzhou on their own, General Wang worried that they might encounter various problems en route without proper organization, so he dispatched fifty trucks to escort them. These fifty individuals quickly approached Shen Feng. They had seen his photograph and knew he was the City Lord of Luzhou.
"City Lord Shen Feng, please allow these more than twenty thousand people behind me to enter the city. We need to return to Yuzhou to continue our operations," the company commander leading them said first.
Shen Feng gently shook his head and replied, "Not now. Have them disembark and undergo registration at the entrance. One person enters after registration! We cannot allow everyone in like this; it would pose a threat to Luzhou's safety."
"No, we need to return to participate in the battle shortly. We don't have time to wait for your registration!" the company commander said anxiously.
Shen Feng shrugged and said, "Then you can return first. We will register these people here. One day should be enough for the registration." Shen Feng gestured towards a row of tables nearby, where over thirty civilian staff were waiting. Each person had a computer powered by a generator, and tents had been set up. The message was clear: no registration, no entry into Luzhou!
The benefits of building the city wall were now evident. By stationing personnel at the city gate, anyone wishing to pass could only do so through the gate. If an evolved individual tried to climb the wall, they would have to consider the patrolling soldiers, who were armed with rifles.
"We hope you will properly settle these personnel. We will come to pick them up in a month," the company commander said helplessly. Calculating the time, the battle in Yuzhou was imminent, and he had to rush back. Otherwise, what kind of soldier would he be if he fled the battlefield now?
After speaking, the soldiers instructed the survivors to disembark and prepare for registration. Some cried and refused to get off the trucks, seemingly unwilling to live in Luzhou. Many looked at the group of soldiers wearing colorful, ununiformed attire, indicating they were not regular military personnel. If they weren't regular soldiers, the survivors didn't fully trust Shen Feng. In their view, only soldiers were truly reliable.
Shen Feng didn't rush them. He had no pressing matters. Luzhou had been continuously training soldiers recently, building the city walls, and organizing farmers to grow vegetables in plastic greenhouses outside the city. There were no other significant tasks. Even if a battle were to occur, it wouldn't be for another week.
The company commander began to earnestly persuade everyone to enter the city. Most chose to line up for registration, but a small number remained on the military trucks. Ultimately, the company commander had to threaten them, "We are returning to Yuzhou to continue fighting. There are many zombies there. If you wish to come with us, then by all means, stay on the trucks."
Upon hearing this, those on the trucks could only cry and run off. They did not wish to face the zombies in Yuzhou, primarily because the zombies were too terrifying. They had been incessantly attacking the base for days, and one wrong move could lead to being bitten and killed. Therefore, they chose to stay rather than face the zombies.
"If the plan is dangerous, why are you going? These people depend on you!" Shen Feng asked.
"No matter how dangerous the plan, a soldier's duty is to obey orders!" the company commander stated. He then led his men away. All fifty trucks departed eastward without a single one falling behind.
Shen Feng watched them leave, shaking his head helplessly. He wondered if he would ever see them again. He hoped they would successfully retake Yuzhou, as that would at least provide an opportunity to meet again. If misfortune befell them, then this brief half-hour encounter would be their farewell, and he didn't even know their names.
"Everyone line up, register your information. One registered, one enters. No exceptions!" Shen Feng shouted loudly.
The survivors began to queue up. The registration information was simple: name, age, occupation, and contact details.
This registration method was conceived by Chang Jianyi. If they intended to find talented individuals among this group of survivors, they needed to know what these people did previously. If people entered without registration and caused trouble, it would be difficult to handle. Registering their information upon entry was the most appropriate course of action.
Most importantly, Shen Feng planned to use this opportunity to select talent. Those with higher education, the physically fit, and skilled professionals were all needed. The current composition of the City Lord's Mansion was still too rudimentary; it was essential to supplement it with sufficient talent.