After Thomas Hong changed into a short-sleeved red qipao, her devilish figure became even more alluring, with curves in all the right places and absolutely no excess flesh where it should be flat. Just looking at her was enough to spark the imagination. However, she was dressed quite appropriately, so Luo Yudie had nothing more to say and could only wave her hand to signal for the dishes to be served.
One plate after another of steaming hot dishes was brought out by beautifully dressed waitresses, flowing like a stream. The dishes were certainly not comparable to those in the usual hotels; fresh vegetables were basically nowhere to be seen, and the overall focus was on marinated dishes and vacuum-packed items. However, the chef must have put in a lot of effort, as there were small steamed buns that were hard to come by and a long-missed vibrant fruit salad, both of which caught everyone's attention and made their mouths water.
Moreover, there was no shortage of women here, especially beautiful ones, so behind each person at the table stood a stunning waitress, sometimes crouching slightly behind them, diligently serving everyone at the table. Although their outfits were not uniform, they were definitely well-trained, each displaying a perfect smile with eight visible teeth, softly inquiring about the guests' various needs. During this, Thomas Xu jokingly asked if someone could help him to the restroom, and to his surprise, the girl behind him blushed but nodded without hesitation, her obedient demeanor was something that could hardly be bought even with money in the past.
"Come, everyone, let me toast to you all first, as a way to welcome our new partners to our gathering place. I hope that in the days to come, we can support each other and make our lives even better!" Ryan Qiang stood up first, raising a full glass of whiskey, which was the aged Wuliangye brought by Jack. After saying a few simple words, Ryan tilted his head back and downed the entire glass of whiskey, which was about three ounces. Jack and the others did not hold back either; aside from the women who took a small sip, the two men also finished their drinks in one go.
"Good! You two men are indeed straightforward!" After downing a glass, Ryan's face turned slightly red. Seeing Jack and Thomas Xu also finish their drinks, he immediately applauded and cheered, then sat down and said, "This meal can't compare to the past; it might be a bit humble, so I hope you two men can forgive me!"
"What are you talking about, Qiang? There are hardly any places in the gathering area that can serve such a feast; you can count them on your fingers. It's thanks to you that we can enjoy such a meal!" Thomas Xu wiped the wine from the corner of his mouth and said with a smile.
"I'm not afraid of you two laughing at me; in order not to let you look down on me, I'm just putting on a brave face. Thomas Xu, you've been around the gathering place for a long time, so you know the situation. Life is getting harder and harder; I estimate that after this meal, I'll have to tighten my belt quite a bit!"
Ryan shook his head in frustration, and after a brief silence, he waved his hand and said, "Ah, let's not talk about it. Just getting to know Brother Lin makes me happy enough that I'd be willing to eat plain food tomorrow. Come on, you two men, let's eat a bit more and have another drink!"
Jack knew that Ryan's words were directed at him, but the meaning was clear; he was hoping Jack could help since life was tough. However, Jack hesitated because he didn't want to be tied down in this gathering place for too long. Although Ryan's intentions were clear, he didn't respond because once he did, trouble might follow.
After several rounds of toasting, the people on Ryan's side took turns toasting Jack, and even Qin Yu stood up with half a glass of juice to acknowledge Jack. However, the slight frown on Qin Yu's face made Jack feel as if she was drinking poison rather than a beverage.
After a few rounds of drinks, neither Jack nor Thomas Xu showed any intention of wanting to help. Jack was hesitating, weighing the pros and cons of the whole situation, while Thomas Xu, though willing, felt powerless; without Jack, he wouldn't even dare to approach Jiangcheng. Just then, Luo Yudie stood up with a wine glass in hand, said a few polite words, and then proactively walked to Jack's side, finishing the whiskey in her glass in one go.
After finishing more than half a glass of whiskey, a rosy hue appeared on Luo Yudie's dignified and charming face. She gracefully took the Thomas tissue handed to her by the waiter to wipe her mouth, then smiled at Jack in front of her and said, "Lin Di, my sister-in-law knows you are a capable person. Our Qiang Ge, like you, is a man who values loyalty and face. There are some things he naturally cannot say, fearing you might misunderstand him and unnecessarily hurt the bond between you men. But as a small woman managing a household, I do have some selfish motives. And even if I say something wrong, I believe you, Lin Di, will just laugh it off and not hold it against me, right?"
Luo Yudie's words were naturally flawless, and no one could find any fault. Seeing Jack nod slightly, she smiled happily and said, "Actually, it's not a big deal. Our Qiang Ge just mentioned that life is getting harder and harder. If this continues, in a few months, a large number of people will starve to death. What we mainly want is for you, little brother, to help us get through this difficult time. On a smaller scale, it means we owe you a huge favor; on a larger scale, we are all descendants of Yan Marcus, so if you can lend a hand, please do!"
"You guys aren't thinking of entering Jiangcheng, are you?" Jack didn't look at Luo Yudie but turned to Ryan Qiang, his expression serious as he said, "To be honest, I no longer have the ability to bring people into Jiangcheng, and even if I go in alone, I won't be able to do much. I can't bring out much food!"
"Haha~ Little brother, Jiangcheng is great, but we don't have such a big appetite. Just thinking about those millions of living corpses inside is enough to make my scalp tingle!"
Ryan Qiang shook his head with a smile, straightened up, and said to Jack, "Don't blame me for making requests just because I'm treating you to a meal. I'm really at my wit's end, which is why I'm talking to you. I think you should understand that once my people can't even get enough to eat, the people in the slums will have even less hope of having food. But those are living lives; I can't just watch them die. As long as I, Ryan Qiang, have breath in me, I will do my utmost to help them. Don't call me hypocritical; maybe I'm not a good person, but I believe that since humanity's doomsday has arrived, we should set aside selfish thoughts and help each other. So I implore you, as long as you have the ability, please help us and everyone here!"
Ryan Qiang's expression was very sincere, and using the word "implore" showed that he had lowered his stance to the lowest point. He looked intently at Jack, and although he didn't know Jack's true abilities, the increasingly difficult survival situation forced him to grasp even the faintest glimmer of hope.
"What do the other two forces here think?" Jack did not directly answer Ryan Qiang's question but chose to ask instead.
"Them?" Ryan Qiang shook his head with a bitter smile and sighed, "We have different paths and cannot conspire together. If the Tiger's people had a higher awareness, I think our lives would be a bit better than now. As for Yuan Dapao, he is completely indifferent; being able to pay the rent is already giving me face. I never expected anything from them!"
"Was the rent payment your suggestion?" Jack looked at Ryan Qiang and asked again.
"Yes, but that's something we can't help. We have to come up with some ideas to help people survive. With rent, we can provide job opportunities for those in the slums. Even if they can only have one meal a day, it's still better than starving to death!" Ryan nodded without hesitation, expressing the same thoughts as Jack had guessed.
"Do you have any better ideas besides Jiangcheng? If the plan is feasible, I'll help you out!" Jack finally revealed a hint of a smile, a sincere smile at that.
"Of course I do!" Ryan excitedly slapped the table and waved for Thomas to bring over a colorful map that had been prepared earlier. After taking the map, he walked directly to Jack, spread it out on the table, and pointed to a marked spot circled in red, saying, "This is our gathering place. Forty kilometers to the east is a place infested with zombie dogs; they are even harder to deal with than zombies, so that direction is not an option. To the north is a big city, just like Jiangcheng to the south, with a population of four to five million. The only way to survive is to head west towards Nanzhou, where our people recently discovered a large warehouse supermarket in that direction. If we can take that supermarket, I believe the food inside should be enough for our entire gathering place for a year!"
"So what's the situation here? If there aren't tens of thousands of zombies, I think I can come up with some solutions!" Jack frowned as he looked at the map on the table. The supermarket Ryan pointed to was actually not far from his hometown, Nanzhou, and from what he knew, there were some things in Nanzhou that even La Xiuer was wary of.
Ryan pointed at the map and casually sat down in the seat that Cao Mei had just vacated. He looked at Jack with a serious expression and said, "There aren't too many zombies, probably just over a thousand at most, but… have you heard of something called 'Zombie William'?"
"Is there a Zombie William there?" Jack looked at Ryan in surprise, not because he was shocked by the power of Zombie William, but because he was surprised that Ryan actually knew about it.
Seeing Jack's expression, Ryan understood that he also knew about Zombie William, so he didn't elaborate further, just nodded and said, "I've heard the name Zombie William from others before. Recently, a man who escaped back described to me the thing that almost wiped out their entire army, and it closely resembles what I've heard about Zombie William. That thing is right in front of the supermarket, and we can't get in without getting rid of it!"
"Zombie William…" Jack lowered his head and fell silent for a moment, his fingers slowly tapping on the map, making a soft "tap tap" sound. After a while, Jack continued, "Zombie William isn't too hard to deal with, but I'm worried that there's not just one Zombie William there. You may not know this, but there are always some other strange things that appear alongside Zombie William. If we encounter some of those things, even I won't be able to escape!"
"Don't you have several rocket launchers? I think with those, everything should be easy to solve, right?" Ryan looked at Jack, thinking he was reluctant to part with the few rockets, and hurriedly said, "Don't worry, brother. If you can help us take that supermarket, you can keep a large portion of the resources inside for yourself, and the rest can go to our brothers!"
"Ryan, you misunderstood. We don't need that many resources; it's useless for us. I'm not reluctant to part with my rockets; it's just that there are some things you don't understand. Just dealing with one Zombie William, I don't even know if ten rockets would be enough to kill it!" Jack spread his palms, looking quite helpless.
"Is it really that powerful?" Ryan asked, somewhat incredulously. After all, they were previously civilians, and a single rocket was already extreme firepower for them, let alone ten stacked together, which was simply astonishing.
Jack didn't say anything, just nodded. When Ryan Qiang showed a dejected expression, Jack smiled and said, "But don't be so pessimistic. The rocket launcher just isn't suitable for taking down a zombie William. Besides, if we're lucky, there might only be one zombie William over there. Let's wait until we finish eating and let your subordinate who escaped tell me about the situation. Then we can decide whether to go take that supermarket!"
"Then there's nothing we can do!" Ryan Qiang frowned and nodded, then stood up cheerfully and said, "Let's hurry up and eat. That supermarket won't run away, and we can have a good time tonight!"
"Brother Qiang, Qin Yu hasn't come back for five days. Do you have any news about him?"
As Ryan Qiang sat back in his main seat, Qin Yu, who had been sitting alone, finally spoke up, expressing her first words of the night, her voice tinged with a hint of anxiety.
"Not yet!" Ryan Qiang shook his head apologetically and continued, "But Doctor Qin, you don't need to worry too much. He's with my brother-in-law, Luo Kai, so he should be fine. They probably just ran a bit far looking for food. You know, it's normal for people out looking for food to be gone for over a week!"
"Hmm, if he comes back, please let me know!" Qin Yu nodded slightly. Although she spoke politely, there was no smile on her face. Just like Thomas Xu said in the afternoon, one couldn't help but wonder if there was something wrong with this woman's facial nerves; she always had a cold expression like Thomas's.
The dinner resumed, but this time the atmosphere was much more lively. After Jack agreed to help, Ryan Qiang started talking more, chatting with Jack about all sorts of topics. Even the women, led by Luo Yudie and Thomas Hong, began to share some private conversations, filled with laughter and joy.
However, just as the dinner was nearing its end, a somewhat discordant loud laugh came from outside the door. Everyone stopped their conversations and looked towards the entrance, where a large group of people was surging in, all of them looking unpleasant and fierce, with bare chests and backs, clearly not good people. They were led by a plump, round middle-aged man who was heading straight for the hall.
But before they could reach the door, Biaozi burst out from the side room with a large group of people, armed with various weapons. Biaozi was holding a brand new Type 81 rifle, and while pulling back the bolt, he ran up the steps and shouted at the leading fat man, "Tiger, what are you up to? You want to start a fight at night?"
"Shut your pig disease mouth! Do you think I would come to a fight without my weapons? Get out of the way, stupid Biao! I'm here to eat!"
The leading big man is around forty to fifty years old, very tall, estimated to be about 1.85 meters. He has a shiny bald head and is wearing a somewhat decent white shirt paired with black trousers, but the shirt is already soaked with sweat all over his body, sticking to him and revealing the fat underneath.
"Tiger, are you starving? Did you come here to mooch off us?" Biaozi frowned at Tiger, his gun resting on his shoulder, tightening and loosening as he clearly struggled to understand Tiger's intentions.
"Silly Biao, what are you rambling about? Tiger coming to eat is giving you face. Even if your brother comes out, he should respectfully invite our Tiger in. Why are you blocking the way here?" A short-haired, muscular man beside Tiger stepped forward; he was the mountain dog who had been stopping cars at the entrance. The mountain dog, with a build like a tower, took two steps up the stairs and glared at Biaozi. Just as Biaozi was about to explode, a faint voice from the hall interrupted.
"Little Biao, since the tiger is starving, let him in. No matter how big his appetite is, he can't finish all of ours!"
Hearing Ryan Qiang's double entendre, both the mountain dog and Tiger sneered, while Biaozi spat heavily to the side in front of the mountain dog, but could only wave his hand and step aside, clearing a path for Tiger and his group.
"Qiangzi, you little rascal, how can you not give me a heads-up when a distinguished guest arrives? How can you lead the guest to your own place alone? If others didn't know, they might think I, Tiger, don't know manners!"
Tiger, with a big knife in hand, boldly led the mountain dog into the hall. As soon as he entered, he spoke loudly, not waiting for Ryan Qiang to respond. He turned to Jack, who was sitting at the table smoking, and walked over with a smile, asking, "Haha! This man should be our little brother Thomas Xu's new boss, right? I didn't expect you to be so young. I, Tiger, love dealing with young and capable people like you. You look full of energy. Come, let's get to know each other. My surname is William, William Chenghu. How should I address you, little brother?"
"Jack!" Jack exhaled a long puff of smoke while looking at William Chenghu indifferently.
"Haha, so it's Brother Lin!" William Chenghu didn't mind Jack's attitude at all, nodded, and didn't sit down. He glanced at the leftover food on the table and said loudly, "Brother Lin, it's not that I don't know manners; it's just that my underlings informed me of your arrival too late. As soon as I got the news, I rushed over. Although it's past mealtime now, I've prepared quite a few post-meal entertainment programs for you. How about it? Would you honor me with a visit to my place? We can get to know each other better!"
"Tiger, we haven't finished our drinks yet. If you came to drink, I can have the dishes cleared and replaced immediately. But if you're here to stir up trouble, you should consider your audience, right?" Ryan Qiang leaned back in his chair, his face dark, staring directly at William Chenghu, the cold light in his eyes unmistakably directed at him.
"Huh? Qiangzi, I really don't understand what you mean!" William Chenghu seemed confused as he turned to Ryan Qiang, spreading his hands and saying, "Brother Lin is a guest of our entire gathering place. If you can invite him, I can certainly invite him too. Besides, the reception standards here are not something I should be pointing out to you; it's too embarrassing for us as a gathering place. The Maotai and Lafite at my place are specially prepared for distinguished guests like Brother Lin, and even those little sisters who haven't been opened up are all cleaned up. Moreover, you should at least consider the guest's opinion!"
After finishing his words, William Chenghu turned to Ryan Qiang with a cold smile, then turned to Jack and asked with a grin, "So, how about it, Brother Lin? Come sit with me, I guarantee you won't regret it!"
"Oh dear~ Tiger, your body odor is really overwhelming, can't you see all the beautiful ladies at our table? Can't you take a shower before coming?"
Before the frowning Jack could speak, Luo Yudie stood up first, pulling Bai Ru and Cao Mei beside her and said, "Sisters, let those stinky men talk among themselves, we women won't understand anyway. Let's go to the back to rest, I have a SPA room there, and the technicians are the best from Jiangcheng! Come on, come on, we were just getting to the good part of the conversation, I have so much to chat with you!"
Luo Yufeng was indeed a shrewd and wise woman, not wanting to put Jack in a difficult position. She directly pulled all the women away from the table, leaving only a few lonely men staring at each other. Ryan Qiang laughed heartily at this scene and said to William Chenghu, "Tiger, all of Brother Lin's women have gone to the SPA. You don't want to drag him into the world of flowers and snow, do you? Although nowadays there are fewer taboos between men and women, you should still consider Brother Lin's backyard. A fire in the backyard is a big taboo for us men!"
"Brother Ryan, do you have Lafite here?" Jack smiled slightly and suddenly asked.
"Of course we do, and there are quite a few untouched young ladies as well!" Ryan Qiang laughed heartily, clearly understanding Jack's intention to avoid William Chenghu. He then stood up and shouted to a waitress behind him, "Go prepare the private room, and you untouched ones hurry up and get ready. We need to take good care of Master Lin tonight!"
"Yes, Master Ryan!" A girl in a pink suit blushed immediately, shyly glancing at Jack across the table, but she quickly rushed with the other girls towards the side hall, not daring to say another word.
"Oh dear~ Qiangzi, you really found yourself a good wife!" William Chenghu stood by the table, one hand resting on the back of a chair, his expression fluctuating. After rubbing his teeth heavily, he clasped his hands behind his back and said directly, "Qiangzi, I won't beat around the bush. I know your people found a supermarket with very few living corpses in the west, but you haven't been able to break in yet. I suppose you have your eyes on Brother Lin's rocket launchers and want him to help you, right? Hmph, let's be clear, I want a share of this!"
"Tiger, you're quite well-informed!" Ryan Qiang's expression darkened immediately. He had thought this was a relatively confidential matter, but it turned out that the other party had known about it for a long time. He couldn't figure out where the leak had occurred, but still said, "What I say doesn't count. I can't break in, and you can't either, so we both have to listen to Brother Lin!"
"Then Brother Lin, what do you say?" William Chenghu turned to Jack, who was still sitting in his chair, and said with a forced smile, "As long as you agree to help us, you can set any conditions you want. My people are at your disposal, and I must have that supermarket, even if it costs lives!"
Jack frowned in disgust upon hearing this. The attitude of joking about something like an apocalypse, which involved people's lives, was what he hated the most. He then picked up a cigarette from the table, and naturally, Thomas Xu leaned over to light it for him. After taking a deep puff, he looked at William Chenghu and said, "You are quite optimistic, but some things, even if you sacrificed the lives of everyone in the settlement, would probably have no effect at all!"
"Are you talking about that corpse William?" William Chenghu chuckled and said nonchalantly, "To be honest, I encountered a corpse William when doomsday first arrived. It's not some three-headed, six-armed character; it can be blown to pieces by a tank shell just like anyone else. If you're scared of that corpse William, just lend me your rocket launcher, and I'll send my people in. When we come back, I'll still give you a big share. How about that?"
"Why should I lend it to you?" Jack tilted his head and looked at William Chenghu, his tone quite rude.
"You…" William Chenghu's face turned pale, and the mountain dog behind him was about to explode, but he managed to hold him back just in time. Taking a deep breath, he said ominously, "Brother, don't let your emotions get the better of you. It's better to be friendly to make money. Just tell me what you want, and I, the tiger, will do it!"
"You might not know me, Jack!" Jack flicked the ash off his cigarette and said to William Chenghu with an attitude he usually wouldn't have: "If it's someone I like, I can help without taking a dime. But if I don't like the person, even if you put a knife to my throat, I won't help. Besides, you guys don't have the ability, so I can help Ryan Strong take this supermarket without taking a single grain of rice, but you… can't!"
"Alright, young man, you're quite bold, daring to say anything!" William Chenghu suddenly became furious, slamming the table hard, causing the dishes to clatter. He glared at Jack and said, "We'll see each other again, mountain dog, let's go!"
William Chenghu stopped talking and swaggered out with the mountain dog, who turned back to give Jack a very vicious glare, smiling coldly, looking quite sinister.
"Don't worry, brother, I'll help you with anything!" Hearing Jack's statement, Ryan Strong immediately came up and put his arm around his shoulder, laughing and saying, "That silly old tiger wouldn't dare to do anything to us. If it really comes to a fight, he won't have a good time!"
"Hehe~ Killing an old tiger is much easier than killing a corpse William!" Jack smiled indifferently, not taking William Chenghu seriously at all, but the killing intent that flashed in his eyes made Ryan Strong shiver, and his previously carefree expression became more serious.