Days passed, and everyone watched as the perimeter wall was built brick by brick, followed by the construction of buildings within the outer wall.
These buildings were not planned to be too tall, only three stories high, capable of accommodating two to three hundred people.
One evening, as the perimeter wall was completed and construction on the outer wall's buildings was underway.
Just as they were about to stop work and rest, several civilians from Safe City suddenly rioted, then, armed with rebar, stabbed one of He Chao's subordinates, and frantically ran towards the small grove.
Other civilians in Safe City immediately rioted as well.
The deaths of the previous civilians had not taught them a lesson. This time, Li Yu went on a killing spree, shooting seven or eight civilians before they finally quieted down.
Furthermore, he did not allow them to eat anything that day.
After this lesson, these civilians no longer dared to resist.
He Chao's injured subordinate was not seriously hurt; he had only bled a little and was bandaged up.
Time flew by like a white steed passing a crevice.
Through the combined efforts of the civilians from Safe City, He Chao, Li Yu, and others, the construction was finally completed after half a month.
On this particular evening, the wind was strong, making the trees sway. Li Yu stayed in the guard room, watching the swaying trees, feeling a certain inexplicable emotion.
His heart was calm.
Stepping out of the guard room, Li Yu saw the completed perimeter wall, yet he found it hard to be happy.
He knew that it was time to kill.
Third Uncle and the others all knew the ultimate fate of these people; now that the walls and houses were built, these people were to be...
Li Yu led the people from the base and herded them to a cliff near the base.
Gunshots.
Piercing screams.
The end.
Finishing blows.
Throwing bodies off the cliff.
Returning to the team and going home.
During this process, Li Yu was expressionless, leading the people from the base to complete these tasks.
Li Yu's heart was not at ease, but this had to be done.
Firstly, these people were invaders; one should not show mercy to invaders.
These people came to Tianhua Town, clearly intending to seize other people's food. Since they chose this path, they also had to bear the consequences.
Furthermore, although Hua Chuanlong was the culprit, they were also accomplices, causing harm to the people in the base, such as Ding Jiu, Li Tie, and others who were recovering from injuries.
During this time, some people also tried to escape, but they were shot and killed by Li Yu and others.
Taking them in would require food, and management would be very difficult. The addition of hundreds of people would be very hard to manage for the current base.
In the apocalypse, there is no absolute justice, nor is there absolute evil.
Everyone is merely acting for their own interests, just to survive.
For Li Yu, morality was a secondary concern in his heart; his primary concern was protecting the people in the base and protecting his family.
Even if it felt agonizing, it was better than regretting for life due to negligence that caused casualties among the base personnel.
He had seen too many cases, even in films and television dramas before the apocalypse.
This would be difficult, but he would convince himself.
He was not great, nor were his ambitions grand; he did not want to bear the heavy burden of saving humanity.
He accepted himself as he was; he clearly knew what he wanted.
What he wanted, from before his rebirth to over a year after his rebirth, had never changed: to protect his family, protect his friends, and live well in this morally bankrupt apocalypse.
The path of heroes and pioneers is difficult, lonely, and sometimes involves facing choices and making decisions.
It requires reluctantly letting go of family, friendship, and even love.
It is for the sake of a so-called larger picture, to make decisions.
Even if one gains the admiration of thousands and a good reputation that spreads to future generations.
But he did not want that; he only wanted the present, to be able to accompany and protect those who loved him and those he loved.
From a certain perspective, Li Yu was invincible because his heart no longer had the conflict of choice, having overcome moral constraints.
In the silent night, Li Yu stood on the perimeter wall, seeing that He Chao and his team had already moved their belongings into the outer wall.
Under the bright lights, Li Yu saw them tidying up and assigning rooms there.
After watching for a while, he left the perimeter wall.
As communicated with He Chao and his team, in the future, within four kilometers along both sides of the National Highway, at locations where walkie-talkies could establish contact.
A fixed observation post would be set up near the National Highway. Conveniently, there were often residential houses around the National Highway, especially Gas Stations, and also inns for long-distance travelers.
The buildings could reach four or five stories, which could be considered small village markets.
The number of people on duty each time also did not need to be too many, only two people would suffice, so that they could detect passing individuals at any time.
The area around Li Yu's base was all mountainous forest, making it difficult for large numbers of zombies or humans to pass through the forest; most came from the wide National Highway.
Therefore, by controlling the north and south directions of the National Highway, most dangers could be prevented in advance.
Back at the base, Li Yu found Third Uncle and others to discuss matters concerning Safe City.
In the villa area's meeting hall.
Li Yu sat on a stool, looking at Second Uncle, Third Uncle, and the others. After a moment of silence, he spoke, "The plan to expand the base that was made at the beginning of the year, specifically the outer wall construction part, has now been completed ahead of schedule.
The gymnasium within the inner wall is not urgent; it can be built slowly.
However, there is a problem now regarding Safe City. They have come twice, and I feel that we cannot wait any longer.
Spring plowing is about to begin, and we cannot wait for them to send more people at this critical time. It hasn't rained much recently, so I think it's time to thoroughly resolve this hidden danger."
Second Uncle continued, "Hmm, I think that's a good idea. From what those people said, we know that the current population of Safe City is not actually that large.
And their bullets are not abundant, but we cannot guarantee that they won't find new ways to resupply, although it would be difficult. Still, we need to act quickly to avoid prolonged trouble."
First Uncle suddenly asked, "How many people should we send?"
This was a crucial question. Although there were over a hundred people in the base now, even with He Chao and his team, it was only over 150 people.
Who should go? How many people? This was a critical issue.
Li Yu took First Uncle's question and replied, "This time, I want to take a portion of He Chao's people with me.
Regarding the number of people, I think it should not exceed 40 people. Too many people would leave the base's interior vulnerable, which would be very troublesome.
I think we should take a dozen or so of He Chao's people, and no more than 30 people from within the base."
After Li Yu finished speaking, he suddenly looked at Third Uncle and said, "Third Uncle, you have been to that area before. How about we go together this time?"
Third Uncle took a puff from a cigarette, nodded, and said, "I have no problem with that."
