You were supposed to hoard supplies, why the heck did you hoard zombies!-Chapter 297 - 296 Cooperation (2)

Apart from these short-lived vegetables and fruits, the farm’s storage also held at least several dozen tons of raw grain. Although the taste wasn’t great, it could be eaten directly with just a little processing.

This was the direct reason why the company decided to make the first move against these farmers.

They were too wealthy.

And yet, their strength was nothing remarkable.

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Compared to other similarly weak settlements, they might be considered strong, but in the eyes of the company at that moment, a dozen or twenty armed guards really meant nothing.

Naturally, some in the company suggested sending in the combat department’s soldiers to simply bulldoze through the situation.

But in the end, it was vetoed by Zhang Ye.

The reason was simple.

He feared startling the snake by hitting the grass.

At this moment, all the major settlements were in a state of nervousness.

Any slight movement could not be concealed from those constantly monitoring the surroundings, and if the company showed any intention of annexing all of the Jiangbei District’s settlements, those people might very well band together in resistance.

Or they might simply choose to side with Li Wanhao.

With the rat plague imminent, the more critical the moment, the clearer Zhang Ye understood that he must not be hasty.

Haste could lead to impulsive actions, and impulsive actions could lead to disaster.

If a conflict did occur, the company might very well be mired in the quagmire of war, and by then, it would be too late to think of resisting the impending rat disaster, let alone relocating to the nearby towns and villages.

Therefore, Zhang Ye had certain premises in mind for dealing with this matter right from the start.

That was to resolve it as peacefully as possible.

If intimidation didn’t work, then tempt with benefits.

If temptation failed, seduce with charm.

If charm still didn’t work, then let them die. Directly incite a rebellion among the slaves below, then lead these enslaved survivors to the base.

The farmer surnamed Liu was obviously not a minor character who would be easy to deal with.

He was full of doubts about the two men from the company.

Big Beard and Hou Shubin were equally aware that gaining the farmer’s trust wasn’t going to be easy. Faced with the farmer’s suspicion, they needed a foolproof plan to dispel his concerns.

With a slight smile, Hou Shubin slowly said, "Farmer Liu, I understand your cautious attitude. In this post-apocalyptic world, trust is a luxury. But we are here not to conquer, but to cooperate and achieve mutual gain. The threat of the rat plague is upon us, and fighting alone will only put us in greater danger."

That’s what he said. Stay connected with novelbuddy

But in reality, it carried a kind of arrogance unique to people from the company when dealing with other settlements.

Do you think you can withstand the rat plague?

You cannot.

Farmer Liu’s face immediately turned sour, and he instinctively wanted to retort that he didn’t need any assistance.

But he found himself unable to utter those words.

One knows best about one’s affairs.

Let alone rat plagues, had it not been for the purchase of a batch of guns from Li Wanhao, he wouldn’t have been able to deal even with the Mutant Dog Pack roaming the nearby hills.

Thus, Farmer Liu’s expression darkened for a long while, and in the end, he could only ask coldly, "Cooperate?"

"How do we cooperate?"

Upon hearing this question, Big Beard’s lips slightly curled upwards, "It’s very simple, just bring your people and supplies, and relocate immediately to our controlled area."

"What?"

"Impossible!"

"Absolutely impossible!"

The other farmers in the room became restless upon hearing this.

Their looks towards Big Beard were fiery with anger.

What kind of joke was this?

Bringing all the manpower and resources to your territory?

This wasn’t robbery, it was outright shameless deception—treating them like fools!

The lead farmer, Liu, also had a very ugly expression on his face.

"Is this your idea of cooperation?"

"You want to devour us?"

Hou Shubin, standing to the side, raised a forefinger and wagged it in front of himself a few times before speaking leisurely, "No, no, no, how can you say that?"

"It’s not devouring, it’s protection."

"Understand?"

As he spoke, he stood up and nodded toward the outside, directing everyone’s gaze to the wire fence outside. Then he continued, "Look at your defense facilities here, what era are you in to still be using wire fences?"

"You don’t even have a proper wall."

"Can it stop a rodent swarm?"

Everyone was somewhat annoyed by his words, but they all knew in their hearts that what he said was indeed true.

A wire fence at best could let people approaching know that this land had an owner.

But its defensive capability was far inferior to a city wall.

In fact, it was impossible to build a wall around the farm. The area could span hundreds or even thousands of acres; could you really enclose it all with a wall?

Obviously not.

The scale of the project was too large and had exceeded the capability of the farm owners after the apocalypse.

"See, you know very well yourself, don’t you?"

"Once the rodent swarm comes, it will definitely be unstoppable."

"And then—"

Hou Shubin smirked, his implication clear without saying it outright, the next water purification plant to fall would be this place.

Even water plants capable of contending with Wanhao District had been eradicated overnight.

What about your farm then?

Leaky from all sides.

If it weren’t for the distance from the urban area, the fully mutated corpses alone would have been beyond their ability to deal with.

Seeing that the farm owners had all fallen silent, Big Beard knew it was time to give them a shot of courage.

"Don’t worry, the base isn’t planning to take advantage of this to devour your resources."

"Whatever is brought over, it’s all yours."

"But people are a different story."

Farm owner Liu’s eyes flashed, and he immediately asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Big Beard was unfazed and explained slowly:

"To deal with the rodent swarm, all armed personnel must be coordinated by the base. Otherwise, what’s the point of cooperation?"

"In other words, you provide the manpower."

"The base provides shelter."

After he finished speaking, he fell silent, just quietly watching the several people opposite him, waiting for their response.

Sure enough, Mr. Liu and the others quickly began to discuss quietly among themselves.

Finally, one of them said with determination, "The conditions seem fair, but how can we trust your ability to ensure our safety?"

Big Beard and Hou Shubin exchanged looks and both smirked softly.

"That’s easy."

"You can send someone over to take a look in advance to see what our base is really like."

"And it just so happens there will be a few others who will go with you."

The people inside the room were all startled by this statement, realizing only then that the other party hadn’t come into contact with them first.

Had other people gotten on the truck before them?

The vehicles that came with the two men weren’t many.

Besides a small troop carrier converted from a cargo truck, the rest were a pickup truck that Big Beard and Hou Shubin rode in, and a Jeep Wrangler that used to be quite common years ago.

There were a total of six people sitting in the vehicles, all of whom were farm owners from the vicinity of Jiangbei District.

They all more or less knew each other.