We have been here for a few days now, and itâs very likely that their food supply is almost depleted.
When we go back, we definitely need to take food for them to eat.
However, we can only bring back two cartloads of rice husks now.
"Two cartloads of food are sufficient. Weâll set off early tomorrow morning, the sooner we leave, the sooner we return," Gao Ru said to the group.
Everyone was very excited; that place on Juzi Island, near the river, although there is a wall, itâs still much safer compared to here at the Western Alliance headquarters.
"We leave tomorrow!" The tall man waved his hand in the air, looking exhilarated.
....
Western Alliance, West District.
A guest arrived at the Zhou family courtyard.
Liu Cunyi.
A core member of the Liu family.
Zhou Zhisheng looked at Liu Cunyi in front of him, his eyes uncertain, the last time he had personally seen Liuâs people go to Gan Xiong first.
In this situation, they should not meet each other again.
During the last alliance of the Qian, Zhou, and Liu families, it was agreed to advance and retreat together, resolutely not handing over the food.
Unexpectedly, under the absolute military threat of the Gan family, the Liu family first betrayed and submitted to Gan Xiong, putting the Zhou family in a passive position. If they stubbornly persisted, it would be impossible to resist with only the Zhou and Qian families.
So, later the Zhou family also succumbed to Gan Xiongâs tyranny.
"What are you here for?" Zhou Zhisheng said unceremoniously to Liu Cunyi.
He had grievances in his heart; submitting to Gan Xiong had cost them greatly, with most of their food handed over to him.
Liu Cunyi was not surprised by the anger on Zhou Zhishengâs face.
Instead, he patiently said, "I know why youâre angry, but if you donât want to end up like the Qian family, you better listen to what I have to say."
Zhou Zhisheng said impatiently, "Whatever you have to say is irrelevant. Donât you know your appearance here is bad for both our families? Gan Xiong is already suspicious. If youâre seen here, theyâll surely notice. How can we benefit from such suspicion?"
Liu Cunyi gave a wry smile and said, "I know, but you also know the fate of the Qian family, they were wiped out. Do you think if I didnât come to you, our days would get any better?"
"Our previous actions were indeed unscrupulous, but youâre well aware that the Qian family led everything, and we were dragged onto the pirate ship by them."
"We handed over most of our food to Gan Xiong, just like you should have. Weâre extremely passive here, and after what happened, do you think we can escape in the future?"
Zhou Zhisheng frowned. It wasnât that Liu Cunyi was wrong, but that he was too right.
Can anyone stand betrayal? No.
Unless the betrayer is temporarily necessary or has some power thatâs hard to directly overcome.
Now it feels like a frog boiling in water, slowly cooking the Zhou and Liu families to death.
Restricting travel and handing over food regularly in exchange for protection fees.
What if their food is gone in the end? What will they do then?
And this is a foreseeable future.
"Just speak directly, donât beat around the bush," Zhou Zhisheng said with a frown to Liu Cunyi.
Liu Cunyi glanced around, approached, and whispered beside Zhou Zhisheng:
"What I want to say is, do you want to leave the Western Alliance with us?"
"What? Are you insane?" Zhou Zhishengâs eyes widened, looking at Liu Cunyi in disbelief.
He continued, "We barely took root here, we even participated in building this base. Why leave?
Moreover, where can we go if we leave? Zombies are everywhere. How long can we survive outside?"
Liu Cunyi glanced at him and said flatly, "Staying in the Western Alliance means certain death. If we go out, our two families can definitely build a new base together."
"And also."
Liu Cunyiâs tone shifted, speaking slowly, "Who says there is only the Western Alliance."
"What do you mean? Could it be?" Zhou Zhisheng stared intensely at Liu Cunyi, pondering.
"Do you remember, the Western Alliance used to have five forces, remember the Zhang family?" Liu Cunyi said.
Zhou Zhisheng was a bit puzzled and said, "The Zhang family? Didnât they get wiped out because of the slave incident, the mistreatment of slaves eventually led to a slave rebellion that killed the Zhang family."
Liu Cunyi sneered, "Do you believe that? Were you there that night? Itâs just what the Gan familyâs Patrol Team says, right?"
"I saw with my own eyes the Gan family wiping out the Zhang family at night."
Zhou Zhisheng wasnât a fool; he had doubts before, but he never saw it himself.
"But at that time, the Gan family had no motive for this, right?"
Liu Cunyi sneered, "Think about it, really no motive? All the canned goods from the Zhang familyâs factory, who ended up with them? Who profited the most?"
It was a rude awakening.
Liu Cunyi once more delivered a stark truth.
"To the Gan family, we are just sheep to be raised slowly, slaughtered when needed. Weâre fish on the chopping block. From the Zhang, Qian families, and now Gan Xiongâs attitude toward us, havenât you figured it out yet?"
!!!
Zhou Zhisheng suddenly understood everything, every detail followed a pattern.
Moreover, what Liu Cunyi said was factual.
He recalled Liu Cunyi mentioning the Zhang family a moment ago.
Why mention them?
So he said, "You didnât finish, you said, besides our two families leaving and building a new base, thereâs another option? What relation does it have to the Zhang family?"
Liu Cunyiâs eyes narrowed slightly and softly uttered a name: "Zhang Rufen."
"He didnât die!"
"What?" Zhou Zhisheng was shocked, after the Zhang family was wiped out, the Zhou family also benefited from the leftovers of the Gan family.
"He didnât die, where is he? How is this related to another choice?" Zhou Zhisheng asked several questions in confusion.
......
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