Second Uncle turned his head toward Old LĂŒ and asked, "Have you called Xiao Yu?"
"I have, he is on his way now and says he will arrive in a minute."
"Good."
...
One minute later.
Li Yu, wearing sun-protective clothing and a sun-protective hat, walked over.
Weary from travel.
These past few days, he has been mainly around here, overseeing the people coming in.
He had just returned to Inner City for a meal when he received Old LĂŒâs message about a sudden situation at the gate.
"What happened?"
Second Uncle glanced at He Chao on the other side. When He Chao saw Second Uncleâs look, he understood it as a cue for him to speak, and he immediately got it.
He began to explain:
"Director Li, hereâs the situation: these people are not on the list of Cooperative Personnel, we found them out, but they insist on entering.
They made a scene here, initially claiming that we missed them,
but after thorough verification by myself and Second Uncle, indeed, they have never cooperated with the base."
"After being exposed, they just refused to leave, arguing that those who have cooperated can enter, so why canât they.
I have explained to them, but they wonât listen."
.....
Li Yu roughly understood the situation and felt a surge of anger.
His previous guess was not wrong.
A large forest harbors all kinds of birds.
He had foreseen such an event and had made preparations accordingly.
What preparation? It was the simplest one...
Chat slowly and let everyone get a sense of what killing means.
If it were his old temper, there wouldnât be any need for talk; he would have erupted in violence.
However, now that there were more people around, he had to consider his image to a certain extent.
Patience wearing thin but maintaining a calm facade, he asked the group of people, "May I know how to address you?"
The one who seemed to be the leader, about thirty years old with his face covered in red spots, perhaps due to the heat, felt a bit nervous upon seeing Li Yu. He had heard some rumors that Li Yu was extremely deadly and rumored to have killed numerous people.
"Director Li, hello, I am Zhou Shao. We all greatly admire you. We heard that your Big Camphor Tree Base is taking in people, so weâve come over," he said.
Upon hearing this, Li Yu arched an eyebrow and responded:
"Sorry, but regulations are set; we are not allowed to admit people who have not cooperated with the base. Please leave."
Behind him, a young man with a quick temper, upon hearing Li Yuâs words, indignantly said:
"Rules are dead, but people are alive. Youâre such a big shot; donât you know how to be flexible?"
"Xiao Song, stop talking!" the man with the red spots on his face snapped.
Then turning back, he smiled and said to Li Yu:
"You see, we have always wanted to cooperate with your base, but thereâs never been a chance. What if we come in this time and then cooperate with you afterward? Itâs all the same, isnât it?"
Li Yuâs patience was nearly at its end. He took a deep breath to suppress his anger and said:
"After all this time of cooperation, you havenât initiated any. Sincerity? Youâre joking. Why should we let you in? Is that fair to them?"
Li Yu pointed to the people about to enter the Second Outer City; at this moment, their attention was also drawn here.
He knew very well.
Most people from around Xin City were in some cooperation with the base.
Those who have not cooperated fall into two categories:
One, they have enough food and do not need it.
Two, they hold suspicions toward the base, even aversion.
....
Those who had cooperated with the base were also discussing amongst themselves:
"I think Director Li is right. Why should we who have cooperated let them come in when they havenât? I support Director Li!"
"Yeah, these people are really shameless. The base isnât theirs. If the people of the Big Camphor Tree Base are willing to let them in, then they can come in; if not, whatâs the use of insisting?"
"These people are so shameless, I didnât expect such a thing to happen!!!"
Some others had flickering eyes and whispered, "This group is asking for trouble!"
Others who didnât quite understand asked, "Why?"
"Why, youâll see soon enough," that person said, looking at Li Yu with eyes full of fervent admiration.
....
After finishing speaking, Li Yu decided to give them one last chance to leave.
He spoke in a deep voice, "Leave immediately."
The man with a face full of red spots, due to the ongoing heatwave affecting his organs and finding the heat unbearable, was determined to come in.
Seeing the Cooperative Personnel witnessing the scene, he had a plan in mindâa plan devised for the worst-case scenario that he would not be let in, which he had thought up on the road.
He stretched his neck out and said to Li Yu:
"Are you really so heartless? We are all humans; helping us wonât lose you anything!
Moreover, with such scorching conditions and you having such a big place, you should provide shelter to everyone. Otherwise, if you remain this selfish, how can you lead?"
After speaking, he looked towards the witnessing Cooperative Personnel.
Yelling out, "Am I right?" his face full of thinly veiled threats.
Were they trying to coerce and blackmail?
Why were there always such people, Li Yu wondered with his eyelids twitching.
The man received no reply from Li Yu, and seeing Li Yuâs grim expression and his displeasure,
he knew that Li Yu would not let them in.
He sighed slightly, realizing his approach was futile. Leaving without a fight seemed unwilling, and if he couldnât be happy, then he had to make others unhappy as well.
So again, he yelled out to the Cooperative Personnel who were looking over: