Shen Feng put the note into his pocket and then walked out. He was not feeling well upon suddenly learning that Yu Renshu had left. If yesterday night's events were merely a repayment of a debt, then so be it. However, her hasty departure seemed too much like an escape.
Shen Feng then sat on the rooftop and began to gaze into the distance. The survivors living in Rongcheng were working hard, and their wages were paid daily. If they didn't work, they would only receive the most basic sustenance, which was a bowl of porridge. A bowl of porridge was roughly half a bowl of rice, with the rest being water. This kind of food could only ensure that people didn't starve to death.
Shen Feng then looked towards the outskirts of the city. Many middle-aged women were carrying tools like hoes and heading out. They needed to build fortifications outside the city to face the approaching zombie horde. It was heard that Rongcheng had prepared seven defensive lines specifically for fighting zombies, and watchtowers had already been constructed further ahead.
At this moment, a military vehicle stopped outside the camp. A person walked into the camp and explained the situation to the soldier on guard. The soldier immediately found Shen Feng and said, "The military department requests the City Lord to attend a meeting. The vehicle below is here to pick you up."
Shen Feng frowned. Although he was in a bad mood at the moment, he still had to attend the meeting.
Shen Feng could guess that the reason for Yu Renshu's hasty departure was likely due to people from Rongcheng poaching her. They had taken a liking to Yu Renshu's abilities and had found a way to threaten her, ultimately leading to Yu Renshu's departure. Although Shen Feng didn't know the specific details, it was conceivable. Without some kind of leverage, why would Yu Renshu act this way?
Shen Feng suddenly remembered that Yu Renshu had gone out yesterday and returned with a visibly bad complexion that night. When asked what happened, she didn't answer. This made it clear that the person who had met with Yu Renshu yesterday was problematic.
Shen Feng walked into the military vehicle, and it immediately drove away. Shen Feng was traveling alone. He had no good feelings towards the people of Rongcheng at the moment because of Yu Renshu's departure! Shen Feng also understood that at this moment, he was still on someone else's territory and absolutely could not afford to fall out with them!
"Restrain, restrain!" Shen Feng silently repeated these words in his mind.
Although Shen Feng wanted to understand the entire situation, it was clearly not the right time. He had come to Rongcheng to fight, not to argue. He planned to leave after the battle, and take his family with him when he left. Even if he had to resort to forceful conflict, he wouldn't care then!
When Shen Feng arrived at the military camp, he was first taken to a large building, which was the command center. As Shen Feng entered the command room, he found that everyone present was silent. They were all wearing military uniforms, while Shen Feng was in plain clothes. He wasn't carrying any weapons, so he was only scanned by a metal detector before entering. Shen Feng felt like he was an outsider, completely out of place among these people.
General Wei saw Shen Feng's arrival and rubbed his head, saying, "Shen Feng is here? Find a place to sit. The assistant will give him some information."
Shen Feng found a seat. His appearance also drew the attention of many people. In their eyes, this young man was going to lead his men to fight alongside them. They couldn't help but feel a sense of disdain. A young, inexperienced fellow, he was probably just here to boost morale and wouldn't be of much help in dealing with the zombies!
Shen Feng picked up the information given by the assistant and began to read. He immediately frowned because the information indicated that the Zombie King of Yuzhou would gather zombies as it advanced. Moreover, the zombie horde was advancing along the roads. Therefore, before reaching Rongcheng, it would pass through at least five other cities. By then, the zombies in those cities would be swept into the horde, and by the time it reached Rongcheng, the numbers would have skyrocketed, possibly exceeding three million!
"Three million zombies!" Shen Feng finally understood why everyone present was so troubled. They had initially expected one million zombies, and by the time they reached Rongcheng, the numbers would have reached three million. How could such a large number of zombies be dealt with?
If there were no Zombie King among the zombies, it would be easier to handle, as they would eventually not be a significant threat and could be eliminated gradually. However, with a Zombie King, it was different. The zombies would act in groups and move with a certain regularity during attacks. It would be impossible to eliminate them using low-level traps.
The information Shen Feng held also contained some photographs, with explanations of the photos conveniently written next to them. It turned out that these photographs depicted the ground situation of the zombies. At this time, it could be seen that zombies were swarming towards Rongcheng in vast numbers. Although the zombies were generally moving along the roads, many were spreading out to the sides of the roads. Wherever the zombies passed, all the available food was consumed by them.
As Shen Feng was looking at the information, General Wei spoke, "We probably can't just wait here anymore. We must take the initiative to attack. We must weaken them during their advance, otherwise, if we wait for three million zombies to arrive, our defenses will be even weaker!"
As he spoke, everyone's gaze turned to Shen Feng. Shen Feng immediately understood that this meeting was not without reason. Otherwise, they wouldn't have sought him out at this time. It turned out they needed to attack, and that's why they found him.
Shen Feng sat steadily in his seat, saying nothing.
General Wei continued, "Our original plan was to set up defensive lines in Rongcheng and fight a defensive battle with the advantage of preparedness. But now it seems that we must actively weaken them before the zombies arrive. Otherwise, if the number of zombies attacking Rongcheng is too large, and if any zombies break through the forward defense lines, Rongcheng will be in danger!"
Shen Feng continued to look at the information without any action, as if he hadn't heard anything.
General Wei continued, "Shen Feng, I will deploy the artillery battalion, but the artillery also needs protection. Everyone else is occupied, so I hope you can lead your men to protect the artillery."
Shen Feng heard this and shrugged helplessly, saying, "Wait a moment. Let me finish reading this information first. I've only been in Rongcheng for three days, and I can't finish reading this information in such a hurry! This is also my fault. I've been in Rongcheng for three days, and I haven't had time to read the information."
As soon as he said this, the command room fell silent. Everyone understood that Shen Feng wasn't unable to finish reading the information. He was clearly throwing a tantrum. How could a thin document not be finished? He was just making an excuse because he wasn't invited to the meeting earlier.
When Wei Laixian heard Shen Feng's response, he couldn't help but frown. He didn't expect Shen Feng to answer like this, completely refusing to be commanded. This was the so-called civilian group, and when he was needed, he made excuses to shirk responsibility. It was truly detestable.
In fact, before this, Shen Feng was willing to prioritize the overall situation and focus on the zombies. However, after the incident of poaching, Shen Feng was in a bad mood. Did it mean that only he could protect the artillery? Wasn't it just because they saw him as an external force and wanted to order him around with a flick of their fingers? Therefore, Shen Feng was determined not to be foolishly ordered around by others.
General Wei continued, "Shen Feng, I didn't disturb you for the past two days because I understood you had a tiring journey. But three days have passed now, and you must have rested enough, right? Please prioritize the overall situation. Even for the sake of Rongcheng, you must bear with the hardship!"
Shen Feng put down the information and said helplessly, "Protecting the artillery is certainly not a problem, but my soldiers are currently lacking warm clothing. It is already late autumn, and they are still wearing single layers. They also lack bullets."
Everyone present understood Shen Feng's intention. This wasn't stating difficulties; it was clearly a demand for supplies! He knew he was important now and started demanding resources!
When General Wei heard Shen Feng's words, he was very angry. If it weren't for the fact that the troops had their own tasks, how could he allow this brat to extort him here? However, he hadn't invited Shen Feng to the meeting before, which made Shen Feng unhappy. This was also a problem that General Wei had to face.
"If you lack winter clothing, I will give you three thousand cotton-padded coats, and I will also provide ammunition. However, I do not wish for any strange problems to occur during the battle!" General Wei finally had to compromise. At present, he still needed Shen Feng to lead his men into battle, so he had to agree to Shen Feng's conditions.
Upon hearing this response, Shen Feng finally stood up and said sternly, "In that case, I will go down and inform the soldiers. As for the specific mission, please notify me at any time."
General Wei nodded and motioned for Shen Feng to leave with a blank expression.
Shen Feng's unhappiness was somewhat alleviated after demanding a batch of supplies. Although Yu Renshu had left him, it served as a reminder not to think too highly of others. Perhaps, in the eyes of others, he was just a dispensable tool.
After Shen Feng left, General Wei shook his head helplessly and said, "Such disobedient fellows. After we pacify the zombies, we must clean them all up one by one. Otherwise, they will become a serious threat in the future."
Other important personnel also quickly nodded, agreeing with General Wei's words.
Of course, the reason for today's events was entirely due to the snowball effect of the zombies. Every time they reached a city, they would devour all the available food in that city and continue to grow stronger. After several such occurrences, the zombie horde continued to expand. Yet, this was something no one had encountered before. Who could have imagined that a zombie horde that had left the cities would still possess such formidable strength?
In fact, the military had wanted to bomb the zombie horde directly. If they could happen to kill the Zombie King, the crisis would be resolved. However, upon carefully examining the scale of the zombies, everyone could only helplessly abandon this idea. With over a million zombies, they occupied an area of tens of kilometers in radius. In such a large area, who knew where the Zombie King was? For a zombie horde of this scale, there was no solution other than a nuclear bomb.
Nuclear bombs were humanity's last resort. If used on a large scale, it would inevitably cause irreversible consequences. Not to mention polluting the land, the radiation left behind after a nuclear explosion could cause mutations. If the zombies that were not killed by chance underwent even more unpredictable mutations, wouldn't it make them even more difficult for humans to deal with? Therefore, nuclear bombs would only be used in the most desperate situations. Of course, North America was different. It was said that North America had already begun using nuclear bombs to clear zombies, and the results were reportedly quite good.
When Shen Feng returned to the camp, he informed the soldiers below about the upcoming expedition. However, he did not allow the soldiers to be too nervous, as the mission this time was to protect the artillery, not to directly engage in combat with the zombies, so their safety could still be guaranteed. They were just accompanying them, and only if there were any problems that the artillery couldn't handle would Shen Feng step in.
Shen Feng also envied this method of combat, because the humans had already made preparations before the zombies even got close. Moreover, during the advance, the human artillery shells were ready. From tens of kilometers or even dozens of kilometers away, shells or missiles could be launched!
"It's a pity that the artillery doesn't belong to me," Shen Feng thought silently.
Chu Chaoyan noticed something was amiss. It seemed that someone was missing from Shen Feng's side. After thinking for a while, she finally remembered and quickly asked, "By the way, where is Yu Renshu? Why haven't I seen her?"
Chu Chaoyan hadn't seen Yu Renshu all morning. She had initially thought she had gone with Shen Feng to the meeting, but now it seemed Yu Renshu had vanished.
Shen Feng replied indifferently, "She left, and she won't be back."
"How could this happen?" Chu Chaoyan never expected such a result. Even if Yu Renshu wanted to leave, it wouldn't be so hasty, would it? Why didn't she even say goodbye?