If winter does not bring severity, how can one appreciate spring?
This winter was truly cold.
But as the weather warmed, people sometimes felt the beauty of being alive when under the sun.
After experiencing harsh weather, returning to normal weather always brings a unique sense of beauty.
Sometimes, people are healthy and safe, only lacking money, yet even with enough food and warmth, they still feel unhappy.
Only when he falls ill does he realize how good it was when he wasn't sick.
Only when he went bankrupt and was deep in debt did he realize how good it was to earn a few thousand yuan a month without owing money.
There are always people worse off than you, and there are always times worse than the present.
It is precious for people to be content, to lower their happiness threshold, live in the present, and find joy in contentment.
For Li Yu now, he is very satisfied; he does not aspire to build the strongest force, nor does he want to be a king.
He only wants to protect his family well in this damned apocalypse, ensure they are well-fed and clothed.
That is enough.
But if someone is so blind as to cause them trouble,
No matter who it is, his response is only one word:
Kill!
Deep in his heart, he is kind, but he has acquired the ability to persuade himself not to be kind.
This goes against human nature, but he can do it to protect his family.
After the weather warmed up, people from all corners of the world began to emerge from their hidden places to search for supplies.
They had survived the cold winter, but they still had to face even hungrier and thirstier zombies.
This was another battle for survival.
Xin City.
There were also many people who had escaped from Liberation City, a large portion of whom were residents of Liberation City.
After they escaped, they headed towards Xin City.
Their destination was Da Zhangshu Base.
Among them were Bai Jie and her group.
Some people froze to death during this blizzard.
Some people no longer dared to look for Da Zhangshu Base, while others still wanted to.
Some even hid outside Da Zhangshu Base, not daring to show their faces.
Because they had previously seen Li Yu and his group personally kill so many people, they knew very well that the people of Da Zhangshu Base were not to be trifled with.
The refugees who had previously fled from Da Zhangshu Base had also told them that these people killed without mercy.
Many people were observing until one day, they saw Bai Jie and a few others, who had escaped together, appear on the ten-meter-high wall.
This indicated that Bai Jie and the others could join!
Now that the weather was warming up, it was no longer so cold, but the surrounding zombies had also increased.
The environment became more dangerous and harsh.
So some people made up their minds.
They decided to try to join this base.
Da Zhangshu Base.
Twelve o'clock noon.
Li Haoran was on duty, eating his delicious lunch; today's meal was excellent.
Smoked meat stir-fried with garlic sprouts and some red chili peppers. The aroma filled the air.
This dish was truly appetizing.
Then there was also a small green vegetable.
In addition, there was crucian carp soup, which had been stewed for a long time. Lai Dongsheng's wife was an excellent cook.
The crucian carp soup was milky white, and the fish meat inside had already disintegrated. This milky white luster was not formed by the addition of evaporated milk or other artificial ingredients, as in ordinary restaurants before the apocalypse.
This was genuinely pan-fried fish, then simmered for two or three hours to achieve such a color.
Slurp~
Li Haoran slurped a mouthful of soup; it was just the right temperature and full of flavor.
It was very delicious, but not fishy.
In this cold winter, eating white rice, mixed with stir-fried smoked meat with chili and garlic scapes, and then drinking a mouthful of delicious fish soup.
It was wonderful!
Suddenly, Li Haoyu, who was on duty with him, exclaimed, “Brother, look at the camera on the left, number 3. There’s someone.”
Upon hearing this, Li Haoran's hand trembled, and the soup almost spilled.
“Where?”
“Left three. Someone.”
Li Haoran looked up, and indeed there was someone in that direction. He grabbed the walkie-talkie and rushed out of the guard room.
On the wall, he crouched down and looked in that direction.
Sure enough, there was someone.
Li Haoran immediately picked up the walkie-talkie and said, “Main gate guard room, 40 meters to the left, someone has been spotted.”
Li Yu was currently playing with the wolfdog on the sofa. Hearing the walkie-talkie, he quickly said, “I'll be right there.”
Normally, there would be more than ten people on duty on the wall.
Among them, four people, in pairs, would patrol back and forth.
At this moment, Song Min and Da Pao, who were on patrol, happened to be near this area. Upon hearing the call, they quickly rushed towards the main gate.
A minute later, Da Pao and Song Min looked at the people below the wall.
They didn't recognize them.
Immediately after, Lao Lü and Lao Xie, another patrolling pair, also arrived.
There were now six people standing on the main gate wall.
Not far from the wall, dozens of people were standing.
As they approached, they cut down the zombies around the wall.
Fortunately, it was noon, and the sun was a bit hot, which was when the fewest zombies appeared.
Otherwise, if it were at night, there would be more than just a few zombies below this wall.
Lao Lü and Lao Xie looked at the people below the wall; they looked somewhat familiar.
The two exchanged glances, confirming each other's suspicions.
These people were all from Liberation City before.
They were all residents of Liberation City.
There wasn't a single refugee among them. Perhaps those refugees were terrified by Li Yu and his group, and they didn't understand why these residents would still come to find Li Yu and his group.
In the hearts of those refugees, Li Yu and his group were killing gods.
The people below the wall looked up, the sunlight somewhat dazzling. They couldn't clearly see the people standing on the wall.
Li Haoran saw them approaching the gate, immediately raised his rifle, and said to the people below, “Who are you? Step back! Take one more step forward, and you will be killed without mercy!”
Da Pao and Song Min also raised their rifles and aimed at the people below.
If it weren't for the fact that the people below only carried long knives for killing zombies, they would have already opened fire.
If these people below had carried firearms, according to the rules Li Yu had set earlier, if they did not obey the first command to retreat, they could be directly shot.
Upon seeing the people on the wall holding guns, these people quickly retreated dozens of meters away.
The man leading them saw a familiar face on the wall.
It was Lao Lü, so he exclaimed with surprise, “It’s us! We all came from Liberation City, Lao Lü, it’s us! I’m He Chao. Have you forgotten?”
Da Pao and Song Min's gazes all turned to Lao Lü at once. Lao Lü awkwardly said, “Yes, I know them. They all came from Liberation City. Da Pao, you've been to Liberation City before, so you should find them somewhat familiar.”
Da Pao looked closely at these people.
Their clothes were ragged, their hair was rough, and they were dirty all over; just looking at their faces, they were so dark.
How could he see clearly?
It was at this moment that Li Yu, his eldest uncle, second uncle, and others arrived on the wall.
Li Yu glanced at Da Pao and Song Min and said, “You two go patrol first, leave this to us.”
“Also, have the people in the guard rooms in other directions found anyone else?”
Da Pao replied, “I just asked, no one was found in other directions, only here at the main gate.”
Li Yu nodded, then said with relief, “You two go, and remind everyone not to let down their guard.”
“Okay.” After Da Pao finished speaking, he and Song Min continued their patrol.
Li Yu turned back and looked at the dozens of people below the wall, saying without looking back:
“Lao Lü, when I came over just now, I heard that the people below are all from Liberation City, right?”
Lao Lü said, “Yes, Lao Xie and I just looked them over, and they are all people who were in Liberation City before.”
“They are all residents. After the unrest broke out, there were conflicts between the residents and the search team.”
Li Yu nodded, thought for a moment, and said, “Then ask them, what exactly do these people below want?”
Lao Lü was a bit nervous and quickly replied, “Alright, I’ll ask them right away.”
The people below the wall watched the people on the wall chatting amongst themselves, feeling uncertain.
They were also taking a risk; if they hadn't seen Bai Jie and her group seemingly already joined, they wouldn't have dared to come and inquire.
Lao Lü cleared his throat and said, “He Chao, I know you, but what are you all doing here?”
He Chao below, upon hearing that it was indeed Lao Lü, said happily, “Lao Lü, after we left Liberation City, we have been drifting. We originally wanted to find you all.”
“But we never found you. We are here now to ask if we can join your base?”
Upon hearing this, Lao Lü's expression was a bit awkward. He had also wanted to join Li Yu and their base back then and had deliberated outside for a long time.
First, they were unsure what kind of atmosphere Li Yu and their side had, especially since Li Yu and his group had been so decisive in their killings. They had witnessed the people from Yugu Terrace being killed, and then thousands of refugees also being killed.
This was simply a killing god in the world.
In the apocalypse, all kinds of people exist. It was difficult for them to trust others. Rashly joining a base and entrusting their lives to others was too dangerous.
Second, from past experiences, they understood that Li Yu and their base had a strong sense of caution, and very few people joined them. For Lao Lü and his group, having gone through the experience of Liberation City.
They also understood that if a base had complex and chaotic personnel that were difficult to manage, especially given human selfishness, such a base would ultimately lead to destruction.
Therefore, Li Yu and their base were very cautious about admitting new members. Lao Lü and his group were very afraid of being rejected back then, fearing they would not even remain friends.
And now, they were fortunate.
Fortunate that they made the right choice then. Since joining the base, it had been the happiest time they had lived after the apocalypse.
Both psychologically and materially.
At this moment, hearing He Qiang's question from below, he could understand it very well, but he was also afraid, afraid that Da Zhangshu Base would repeat the same mistakes.
He did not want Da Zhangshu Base to become like Liberation City.
He could not answer this question, nor did he have the right to answer.
So, Lao Lü looked at Li Yu.
