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You were supposed to hoard supplies, why the heck did you hoard zombies!-Chapter 296 - 295 Cooperation (1)
As one of the largest survivor settlements in Jiangbei District, any incident in Wanhao District would quickly spread to other settlements, especially among those farm owners who frequently traded here, they were terrified.
Although they were ostensibly in an equal trading relationship with Wanhao District, their actual strengths were far from equal.
The survivors at a large farm would at most number two to three hundred people.
Most of them were slaves who had been bought.
To suppress these wretched fellows who could potentially rebel against their oppression at any time, the farm owners kept a strict watch over the slaves, even the spoons used for eating had to be made of plastic.
If any slave were found hiding any metal objects, they would be expelled immediately or killed and thrown into a cesspool.
After all, there were always plenty of survivors willing to work on the farms for a bite to eat.
Sometimes, they didn’t even need slave traders.
Many people came voluntarily.
It was precisely because of the farm owners’ vigilance against the slaves that the overall strength of these farms was actually far inferior to settlements of similar size in the city.
Their comfortable lives today were almost entirely due to the rural advantage of fewer people and more land.
A few survivors from the same village would band together and occupy the land.
Then, they suddenly became farm owners.
With the relatively abundant food storage in the countryside and suburban areas, these farm owners naturally became wealthy and powerful. Every time they came to Wanhao District, they were either buying guns or slaves, behaving very aggressively.
But now, hearing that the water purification plant that could compete with Li Wanhao was destroyed by a horde of rats overnight, they all panicked.
This panic was fueled further by the exaggerated tales of a few survivors who had fled from Wanhao District.
They were all ants on a hot pan.
Some, trying to strengthen their forces by arming these slaves who served them like pigs and dogs, soon found that a sizable farm had erupted in rebellion.
The original farm owners were all slaughtered cleanly by these slaves who had acquired weapons and had their fill.
Then, they began to declare their sovereignty to the outside.
This fiasco immediately frightened other farm owners who had thought to imitate them, with nobody daring to raise the issue of giving slaves weapons and food anymore. Instead, they intensified their brutal treatment of these pitiful people who were once their kin.
It was at this time that the people from Jiangbei Base found them.
The leaders were none other than Big Beard and Hou Shubin, who had recently become the heads of the Jiangbei Intelligence Department after their successful consolidation of the motorcade courtyard and eco-park, earning promotions and raises, and marrying their once wealthy and beautiful sweethearts.
Their lives couldn’t be more carefree.
And their new mission was to use every means to understand the various forces in Jiangbei and to represent the company in annexing the populations and resources of these groups peacefully.
An invasion of rats could sweep through the city at any moment, and the strategy of boiling the frog slowly that Zhang Ye had planned was clearly no longer feasible.
They had to use every opportunity to consolidate as many people and resources as possible.
These farm owners who controlled vast amounts of food became prime targets for Big Beard and Hou Shubin. After hearing about the farm taken over by slaves, they sprung into action immediately.
The opportunity had arrived.
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The first farm was located near what used to be an orchard.
The grain in the field had been neatly harvested by the slaves and was piled up in the warehouse, with a dozen armed personnel wielding short-barreled shotguns patrolling inside the wire fence.
Big Beard and Hou Shubin’s vehicle had not even approached when it was spotted by the guards inside.
The atmosphere outside the farm instantly became tense.
"Halt!"
"What are you doing!"
The guards looked at the convoy outside the door with full vigilance, their guns already aimed at this group of unwelcome guests.
The convoy slowly stopped, and Big Beard, along with Hou Shubin, got down from the vehicle, raising their hands to signal they had no hostile intentions.
Hou Shubin shouted loudly, "We are from Jiangbei Base, and we come with sincere intentions of cooperation to pay a visit!"
The guards looked at each other, seemingly weighing whether to trust these two strangers.
Eventually, one guard, who was clearly the leader, waved his hand to indicate the others to ease up a bit, then walked towards Big Beard and Hou Shubin.
"Our boss isn’t seeing visitors right now, so you can talk here," said the lead guard, coldly.
Big Beard smiled and nodded, taking out a document from his bosom and handing it over.
"This is some information on the resources of Jiangbei Base and a letter of intent for cooperation. We hope to establish a long-term and stable partnership with you to tackle the imminent rat plague together."
The guard took the document, glanced at it, his expression softened a little, but he remained vigilant.
"Wait here, I’ll go and report."
A few minutes later, the guard returned, gesturing for them to follow him inside, and promptly Big Beard and Hou Shubin were led into a spartan conference room.
Inside sat several farm leaders, all appearing healthily rosy-cheeked and robust.
One could guess they were all doing quite well for themselves.
The one in charge was a middle-aged man, his brows revealing a fierce determination.
He sized up the two men and said coldly, "I’m the owner here, surname Liu. I’m already aware of the purpose of Jiangbei Base’s visit, so tell me, what can you offer?"
"Safety,"
"the kind of safety that will enable you not to sleep with your eyes open anymore."
There was no fear on Big Beard’s face, instead, there was a strong confidence, as if he already knew the outcome of this conversation.
The men on the other side looked at each other, skepticism written all over their faces.
Then the man surnamed Liu scoffed and said,
"What do you mean?"
"Do you think my place isn’t safe?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than the two guards at the door immediately raised their shotguns, but they aimed at a woman who was pouring water for everyone.
Seeing this, the woman’s legs went soft, and she sat down on the ground, causing the others to burst out laughing.
Another man, who was wiping the floor in the corner, also trembled with fear. Explore more stories at novelbuddy
Clearly, these two were slaves of the farm.
But Big Beard saw clearly that beneath the fear in the eyes of these two slaves, there was a deep-seated hatred. Given any chance, these farm owners sitting in the conference room would likely meet with a grim fate.
Such slaves were numerous in the farm, dozens of them currently laboring under the watchful eyes of the guards.
In the fields of the farm, only dry stalks were left.
But inside the greenhouses, it was a verdant scene.
On the way here, Big Beard had already made inquiries and knew that this farm supplied vegetables to Wanhao District, mostly produced in the greenhouses.
Rarity brings value, and now these lush green vegetables were all quite precious.
Even in Wanhao District, only a select few could enjoy them.