si-mexico Chapter 89 Contact
Chapter 89 Contact
The upheaval surrounding the suppression of Wu Xiaoyi did not last long, mainly because the various decrees issued by Li Chenglong and the Jin sisters were well-suited to the needs of most people, especially the work-for-relief and military-for-relief programs. This ensured that many people had the right to obtain necessities while also strengthening Jinlan City's power. After finishing some scheduled work, Li Chenglong chatted with the Jin sisters.
Jin Linfei, the older sister, said, "According to past patterns, zombie hordes usually attack in the first ten days of April, August, and December, and generally in the last day or two of that month. If we can hold out for three days, the zombie horde will gradually weaken and eventually disappear. So, today is August 3rd, and there aren't many days left." Jin Mengfei added, "With the help of Brother Li Chenglong and the other adults, we'll definitely be able to overcome this difficulty." Li Chenglong said, "Overcoming the difficulty isn't difficult, but if we want to fundamentally solve the zombie problem, we definitely need to unite all available forces, form a joint army, and conquer that ruin in one fell swoop."
A moment later, Jin Hai walked in and said, "I personally contacted the highest officials of the six neighboring states. We haven't been able to reach the other states yet because of the distance and the poor communication during this apocalyptic period. Two of the weaker states readily agreed to our request, while two others didn't respond immediately, saying they needed to hold a meeting to discuss it, but I personally feel the chances of them agreeing are slim. The other two are the most despicable; they not only directly rejected our alliance application but also mocked us to our faces and insulted the two city lords."
Li Chenglong chuckled softly, "Uncle Jin, you've worked hard. Please continue to contact those you can't reach, and try to contact all 18 remaining states. Mark those who have agreed to ally with us, those who are ambiguous, and those who have refused. It would be best to include some simple information, such as approximate location, area, population, etc. After we finish dealing with the zombie horde, I will personally visit them, especially those forces that have refused us." Jin Hai nodded, "I'll make the arrangements in a bit. What would you two ladies like to eat for lunch? I'll have someone arrange it." Jin Linfei said, "I'd like to eat with Brother Li; his cooking is delicious." Jin Mengfei echoed, "Yes, yes, I'd like to eat with Brother Li too."
Jin Hai looked at Li Chenglong with some difficulty. Li Chenglong smiled and said, "Alright then, I have some things to do at noon anyway, so why don't we eat together? Uncle Jin, you invite some key military leaders and key leaders from various departments in Jinlan City, and we'll arrange for lunch in the banquet hall." Jin Hai said happily, "That's best, it'll also allow everyone to get to know each other." Li Chenglong glanced at the clock in the corner: "We'll attack based on the number eight zombie wave. Today is the third, so we have four days left. I'd like Zhao Rui, Wang Bing, Zhao Liying, and myself to train the soldiers. What do you think? Even last-minute preparations can be effective; an extra day of training will at least increase our chances of victory." Jin Hai expressed his strong agreement: "With you leading the training, it will definitely be twice as effective."
As Jin Hai was leaving, Li Chenglong asked him for a few more standard-issue weapons from Jinlan City, as he hadn't used them before and needed to familiarize himself with them. Jin Hai assured him he would send someone to deliver them shortly. With plenty of time before noon, Li Chenglong also asked Jin Linfei for some history books to read. Besides handling various affairs in Shuguang City and leading training, Li Chenglong also enjoyed studying. He and Yunlan had a study in their 120-square-meter house, where he would study various subjects in his spare time. Seeing Li Chenglong reading, the Jin sisters didn't want to disturb him, so they looked at some of Jinlan City's laws and regulations, learning about legal knowledge.
An hour later, Li Chenglong closed his book, looked outside, and said, "Would you like to go out for a walk? A leader can't just confine himself to one area; he should see more and understand the people's lives. If you're detached from the masses and your subordinates, even the most brilliant person will have their eyes blinded by all sorts of false materials and data." Jin Linfei nodded, "I think so too. I talked to Uncle Jin this morning, but he said the situation wasn't stable yet, so he didn't agree. But if Brother Li is with us, then we can go out and take a look."
Without further ado, Li Chenglong told Jin Hai and set off in a carriage with the Jin sisters, accompanied only by two mounted guards. He chose a carriage because it was slower, allowing the sisters more time to experience local life. There wasn't much to see in the inner city, so Li Chenglong went directly to the middle city to begin his inspection. However, due to a lunch gathering, the inspection only lasted two hours, leaving him to only briefly look at the outer city.
Although time was limited, the inspection tour left the Jin sisters with many impressions, especially the tour of the inner and outer city. They learned that many people in Jinlan City were still living in dire poverty, and they couldn't help but admire Li Chenglong's proposed work-for-relief and military-for-relief programs. These programs had indeed solved the food problems of many people and also helped to win over the hearts and minds of the people. It's worth mentioning that when they reached the outer city, they were recognized by some people. These people had received food and necessities since yesterday, and they were much cleaner and less lifeless than when Li Chenglong had seen them the previous morning. The crowd gathered around the horses, offering enthusiastic applause and cheers. However, because conscription was still ongoing, the number of soldiers was not particularly large, only a little over a thousand. The Jin sisters also stepped out of the carriage and waved to everyone.
Around eleven o'clock, Li Chenglong drove the carriage back to the city lord's mansion. After settling the Jin sisters in, he went to the kitchen behind the banquet hall and started working with the chefs. Unexpectedly, he ran into an acquaintance among the chefs—the brother and sister he had rescued the day before. The brother was still very thin, but the sister, nourished by the spirit-energy persimmons, was in better condition than her brother. The two siblings were helping to pick and wash vegetables when they saw Li Chenglong and immediately came over. The brother was about to kneel down to thank him, but Li Chenglong pulled him up, saying, "Don't do that. A man's knees are worth more than gold. Just do your job well and take good care of your sister." The boy was already in tears, too moved to speak. The little girl, who looked about seven or eight years old, stood timidly behind her brother. Upon learning that this was their benefactor, she also quickly thanked him.
Li Chenglong patted her little head: "Live well with your brother, things will definitely get better and better. By the way, why are you all busy here?" The girl said: "Brother Wang Bing introduced us. He said we can't do any heavy work, and since my sister is still too young, he introduced us to help in the kitchen." Li Chenglong nodded: "That's good. Okay, I'm going to start cooking now. You guys go about your business."
After saying this, he walked to a stove and took out various seasonings from his storage space. These seasonings had been used the previous night, and Li Chenglong had removed the labels from them; some were simply placed in empty glass bottles. Dozens of different seasonings were taken out, attracting the attention of the chefs at the nearby stoves. In the two years since the zombie outbreak, various seasonings had become increasingly scarce; at most, they only had salt, broad bean paste, and chili peppers, while others hadn't been used for over a year. Li Chenglong distributed the various seasonings to everyone. With these seasonings, the chefs worked even more enthusiastically, like a competition, serving dish after dish.
The banquet in the reception room began promptly at noon. All the leaders of Jinlan City, except for a few essential personnel who remained on duty, attended. The banquet was held in a peaceful atmosphere, and everyone unanimously decided that after the zombie horde was over, they would send soldiers to form an alliance with other states to attack the South China Sea Ruins and resolve the zombie problem in one fell swoop.