Unknowingly, another half month passed. The recapture of Yuzhou was already half completed. After the pollutants and mutated rats in the city were burned and thrown into the Yangtze River, Ke Yiming, disguised as Li Chao, had been doing odd jobs in Yuzhou for two weeks, moving many corpses and miscellaneous items.
As Ke Yiming was clearing the stadium, his eyes couldn't help but well up with tears. He knew that the people in the stadium had sacrificed their lives more than a month ago during the recapture of Yuzhou. Their bodies had not even been taken away when they retreated, and they could only be left behind.
Outside the stadium, at least four hundred thousand zombies had died. The layered corpses almost drowned the stadium.
Apart from rats, there were no living creatures here! It could be said that the plague in Yuzhou originated from here. The countless corpses piled up here had made it a breeding ground for bacteria and viruses. Eventually, the plague broke out, affecting not only humans but also zombies. Afterward, the zombies fled Yuzhou, spreading the plague. The current plague in the southwest region originated from here.
"I never expected that what drove away the zombies was the plague," Ke Yiming said helplessly in his heart.
At that time, everyone believed that the army could recapture Yuzhou and kill all the zombies there. Even though there were only seven thousand people at the time, and they faced over two million zombies in the urban area of Yuzhou, everyone believed that the victors would be the seven thousand people equipped with modern equipment. Unfortunately, the outbreak of the plague ultimately changed the course of the battle.
No one expected that the plague would change the direction of a battle and indirectly lead to the Corpse King leading the zombies to surround Rongcheng. If it weren't for the team from Guanzhong arriving to support them at the last moment and using a thermobaric bomb to kill the Corpse King, even more terrifying things might have happened.
"Li Chao, what are you spacing out for? Hurry up and move the corpses!" The foreman saw Ke Yiming standing still and couldn't help but scold him.
Ke Yiming quickly lowered his head and worked diligently. He wore a mask, a work uniform, and gloves. When moving zombie corpses, one must absolutely not touch the corpses, especially the corpse fluid. The number of bacteria in it was astronomical. If he touched it, even Ke Yiming would contract the plague.
It turned out that even evolutionaries and espers could get sick, although their resistance was several times stronger than that of ordinary people. Ke Yiming did not want to be inexplicably infected with the plague.
During this period, Ke Yiming observed a lot of information with his own eyes. For example, the people in charge in Yuzhou were Zhou Xiaoxiao and Yang Chang. These two often gathered secretly late at night, as if waiting for someone to appear. Moreover, these two also carried very important documents, which generally could not be taken away.
"This means that these two people must know when Shen Feng will return and where to meet Shen Feng!" Ke Yiming pondered in his heart.
Subsequently, Ke Yiming secretly followed Zhou Xiaoxiao and Yang Chang at night. To his surprise, Yang Chang was now also an esper, so he was very vigilant. Several times, Ke Yiming was almost discovered. During this period, Yang Chang gradually felt uneasy because he always felt that he was being secretly observed.
However, when Yang Chang began to carefully search for potential enemies around him, he couldn't find anything. Yang Chang also thought that he had suddenly had a hallucination, otherwise, why would this happen?
"Could it be that I've been too busy with work these days, which is why I'm being so suspicious?" Yang Chang said helplessly in his heart.
As Ke Yiming was moving corpses, a young man suddenly appeared beside him and patted him on the shoulder, "Brother, I've been observing you for several days! You're a bit strange, you know?"
Hearing this, Ke Yiming couldn't help but look back. He saw that the young man standing behind him had a delicate face and was also wearing a work uniform, clearly a fellow worker.
"Who are you? We don't seem to know each other!" Ke Yiming replied calmly, casually throwing a zombie corpse onto a small cart and pushing it towards the truck.
Seeing that Ke Yiming didn't answer him directly, the young man wasn't angry. He followed with a smile and introduced himself, "My name is Qiu Li. I've noticed you often sneak out of the dormitory in the middle of the night these past few days. How do you explain this?"
"I ate too many peas and drank too much cold water that day, understand?" Ke Yiming replied impatiently.
Hearing this answer, Qiu Li looked confused. "Haven't we been eating cornmeal rice all these days? Where are there peas to eat?"
Ke Yiming explained helplessly, "Don't you understand this? What are the consequences of eating peas and drinking cold water? What I mean is, it's none of your business!"
Qiu Li only then reacted. He didn't expect to be so insulted just now. But who could have figured out such a statement? However, at this moment, Qiu Li was still not angry and asked, "Just tell me, what are you going out for in the middle of the night?"
Ke Yiming had no intention of dealing with this guy. He was still thinking about how to find Shen Feng. The battle in Yanjing had already begun, but it hadn't snowed yet. Ke Yiming was worried that the fighting power in Yanjing was insufficient, so he had to find Shen Feng and have him go to Yanjing to support them.
However, Qiu Li also pushed a small cart and followed beside Ke Yiming, chattering, "Don't think you can hide it from me. I know what you're doing! Don't think you can escape my fiery eyes. I've noticed you leave the dormitory for an hour every night, and when you return, you're covered in sweat. It's obvious you've been exercising for a long time! So, you are..."
"Oh no, I've been discovered, what should I do?" Ke Yiming was already nervous. He didn't expect that sneaking out in the middle of the night to observe Yang Chang and Zhou Xiaoxiao would be discovered. Could it be that every move he made was known by someone else?
"So, you must be sneaking out in the middle of the night to sow wild oats. Don't think I don't know, there are many widows among the female workers. You kid, you must have set your sights on one of them!" Qiu Li said confidently, believing that his conclusion was absolutely correct.
"Uh... I didn't expect you to have discovered this!" Ke Yiming smiled awkwardly. Although the reputation of such a thing was not good, as long as his true identity was not exposed, it would be enough.
Seeing that Ke Yiming had indeed admitted it, Qiu Li immediately raised his head proudly, clearly proud of his deduction. However, Qiu Li then revealed his true intention, "Brother, it's said that eating alone doesn't make you fat. You're not loyal either. Hurry up and share some channels, I also want to find some suitable entertainment."
"Get lost, you're talking nonsense. How could I, such an upright person, do something like leading good women astray?" Ke Yiming replied impatiently.
"I'm not freeloading, I'm prepared. I've been working all these days and saved up a lot of food. I can exchange food for time to spend the night together, understand?" Qiu Li quickly explained. He clearly understood the rules and stuffed a handful of fruit candies into Ke Yiming's pocket.
Fruit candies could provide a lot of calories and were easy to carry, making them very popular among the common people. These fruit candies were given by Qiu Li to Ke Yiming as a token of appreciation for knowing the channels.
"What do you mean?"
"Just a little something!"
"Not enough!"
"Then add a little more!" Qiu Li was not vague and stuffed another handful of fruit candies into Ke Yiming's pocket.
Seeing the fruit candies in his pocket, Ke Yiming thought, "It's better to take advantage of this fool and earn some snacks."
So, Ke Yiming smiled and asked Qiu Li, "Do you really want to know?"
"Of course. Life is short, let alone the apocalypse. It's better to live happily. I'm very generous to my second brother!" Qiu Li replied without hesitation.
Ke Yiming pretended to ponder and said, "Add a little more!"
"Damn it, you're a vampire!" Hearing this, Qiu Li felt a pang of pain. He didn't have many fruit candies in his hand, and now he was being squeezed again and again. If it weren't for his second brother to have a good home, he wouldn't have paid so much blood and sweat for these candies.
Qiu Li put another handful of fruit candies into Ke Yiming's pocket. It was clear that this was his limit. If he were squeezed any further, Qiu Li would probably refuse.
Ke Yiming nodded with satisfaction, picked up a fruit candy, and put it in his mouth. He casually pointed towards the buildings in the city and said, "You sneak out between two and three in the morning. Remember to avoid the patrolling soldiers. Go into the city and look for women standing on the street. These women are usually dressed provocatively. Remember to bring some food or gold and silver with you. After that, it's up to your luck. Remember to be a gentleman, understand?"
Hearing this answer, Qiu Li's face showed a look of understanding. He nodded and said confidently, "Understood, I will definitely succeed. Speaking of which, I didn't expect the location to be in the city. It's still being cleaned up, and it's full of garbage and rats. You might even contract the plague. It turns out that the more dangerous the place, the safer it is."
Ke Yiming didn't know these things. He was just talking nonsense. As long as Qiu Li believed him, it would be fine. As for whether he could successfully solve his second brother's problem at night, that was not his concern. Ke Yiming only wanted to achieve his own goal.
Ke Yiming did another day of dirty work. Although he was an esper, he was still somewhat physically exhausted, mainly because his nutrition had not kept up in the past few days. He ate cornmeal rice every day. As for the side dishes, it was either stir-fried cabbage or shredded potatoes, with not a drop of oil visible. To eat meat, he had to perform exceptionally well. And only crocodile meat was available, which was said to be brought back by Shen Feng's team. In this situation, Ke Yiming felt he was truly suffering.
"Cornmeal rice again? Is there no rice or noodles?" Ke Yiming couldn't help but sigh.
The people around heard his complaint and couldn't help but laugh. They said, "There's nothing we can do about it. Corn is the easiest to plant. Rice and wheat require seed breeding and more water. Corn is relatively high-yielding, so we can only eat cornmeal rice for a while."
Rice was naturally tastier than cornmeal rice, but it was not easy to plant. This was also why Chang Jianyi had been planting corn. Although the taste was too bad, as long as it could fill the stomach, taste was secondary. As long as the people below had food and didn't starve to death, it would be enough.
Historical experience proved that only hungry people would rebel. Therefore, as long as Chang Jianyi could ensure sufficient food, the situation in Jiangyang could be stabilized. If the land and guest disputes were resolved, then Yuzhou could also be taken.
When night fell, Ke Yiming quietly sat up in the dormitory. Here, the dormitory had eight people in one room, and everyone slept on the floor. Each person had their own box. Ke Yiming rummaged through his box, took something, and then locked the box and went out.
Of course, the hot-blooded Qiu Li had not fallen asleep either. When he saw Ke Yiming going out again, he quickly opened his box, took the prepared food, and went out. He wanted to follow Ke Yiming, but when he went out, he couldn't find Ke Yiming's trace.
"Damn it, is he this fast? He's too impatient!" Qiu Li muttered to himself. Then, under the moonlight, he quietly headed towards the area in the city that had not yet been cleared.
Little did he know that Ke Yiming was already heading towards the place where Yang Chang and Zhou Xiaoxiao often appeared at night. He was certain that Shen Feng returned to Yuzhou every day. Although he didn't know why Shen Feng returned so frequently, Shen Feng did act this way. Otherwise, why would Yang Chang and Zhou Xiaoxiao get together for no reason at night? Was it a forbidden love affair?