Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Li Yan squinted at the group of people walking out from behind. Zhang Yaoming appeared in a white priest-like outfit, with a striking red fabric flower on his chest. Behind him, Jiang Chao's almost emaciated body swayed precariously, but his eyes glinted with an unsettling light, a mix of inexplicable excitement and... ambition.
Li Ming and Yu Tian had just arrived at the village entrance when they saw Zhang Yaoming passionately delivering a long speech filled with compassion. The central message was clear: you are all malicious and wicked individuals, and only by repenting can you return to the embrace of the Great Emperor after death.
Indeed, it was the Great Emperor. Their cult was called the Savior Cult, which primarily preached about the impending apocalypse. Only by devoting oneself selflessly and infinitely could one gain the favor of the Great Emperor and survive in extreme conditions. Even if one unfortunately passed away, it would only be because of insincerity. Of course, the Great Emperor was merciful and benevolent. Even if you lacked a firm heart, as long as you believed in the Great Emperor, you could still ascend to heaven after death. What does "heaven" mean? From this, it is evident that the Savior Cult is a more advanced church than Buddhism or Christianity; they claim to be above deities, who must kneel before those who ascend to heaven.
Li Yan couldn't help but admire Zhang Yaoming; in just half a year, he had crafted such a logically coherent story and established a series of rules and members around it. What a talent!
"Li Yan, your Bright Village disregards the safety of these people for your own enjoyment. Even if you face death in the future, you will only descend underground and suffer punishment. I advise you to open your hearts and see this world; although the apocalypse is near, as long as there is love in your hearts, the Great Emperor will protect us," Jiang Chao said seriously, as if Li Yan and his group had committed some grave sin.
"I spit." Zhou Miao could hardly listen any longer. "Damn it, how can we encounter such boring scum everywhere? The Great Emperor? If there really is a Great Emperor, wouldn't he look for someone with some character? Just you? Hmph, I remember it was you who incited our village to become local tyrants; look at how you've fallen now—can you still talk nonsense?"
"Impudent."
"What nonsense are you spouting!!"
"Impudent! You are not allowed to insult the messenger of the Great Emperor." The people behind them stood up indignantly.
Well then, it seems that during this time Zhang Yaoming's group had indeed been busy; they had managed to convince this person as if he were high on drugs. At this moment, Jiang Chao might even claim that the moon is flat, and this group would believe him.
Zhang Yaoming looked around and thought it was about time to speak...
Suddenly, a fist flew toward him at incredible speed. The pain knocked him back into reality. These bastards dared not follow the script; instead of talking things out, they resorted to punching—couldn't they have a proper discussion?
For people like this, Li Yan had learned one thing: it was best to ignore them.
Until the gate was shut, those outside the village couldn't believe what had happened. Especially Zhao Shun, who regretted his decision a thousand times over. When Zhang Yaoming first approached him, he was full of confidence; after all, he had successfully taken over several nearby villages with women from Baihua Village who were ignorant and shameless. His own Eagle Village was indeed struggling to survive. Plus, Zhao Yaoming had assured him that once he opened this door, everything else would be handled by him and that he could become the second-in-command of Bright Village.
And now? Damn it! Watching his weakening body, Zhao Shun gritted his teeth and shouted while clutching his wound: "Jiang Ambassador! Save me! I'm dying! Didn't you say that the Great Emperor would bless every believer? Although our village just joined, you wouldn't abandon us just because we seem worthless now, would you?"
The people from Eagle Village also realized what had happened; things had moved too quickly earlier. Now that they had offended Bright Village, their lives would only become more difficult.
Jiang Chao originally planned to open the gates of Bright Village today, as this village had gradually become the strongest in the nearby area. Not to mention that Bright Village had solid infrastructure, its walls were at least four meters wide and five meters high, which could not be breached by ordinary tools. It was also rumored that their food reserves were quite good. Otherwise, why had other villages suffered casualties while this one remained relatively unscathed? Every time the men from the village went out to patrol the fields, although their faces looked grim, it was clear they were doing alright.
With the current weather, there wasn't much food left from before. During this time, they had subdued four or five scattered villages, and the food they seized allowed some of their people to avoid starvation.
"Li Yan, listen to me. Today you have offended the Emperor; you will regret it later." Seeing this situation, Jiang Chao could only swallow his pride for now, mainly because of the guns he had just seen. The few tall men who came out after Zhang Yaoming was knocked away each held a gun, which explained their lack of action afterward.
Li Yan couldn't be bothered with these people; in this apocalyptic world, they were still playing tricks—did they want to make life harder for themselves? However, ignoring them didn't mean he liked having a pest buzzing around him.
Li Yan convened a meeting to clarify his stance. He was an atheist and did not oppose the villagers' beliefs, but cults like the Savior Cult were absolutely unacceptable. If there were really gods, then the apocalypse wouldn't have come; everyone had elderly and children to care for, and almost no one had escaped death during these times. Where were the gods now? At this point in life, all one could rely on was oneself. The people of Bright Village could only work together like strands of hemp rope, trying their best to grow more food and survive another day—that was happiness.
Li Ming and Yu Tian continued to coach everyone daily; the old man occasionally added some dishes to help Li Yan regain his strength without drawing attention.
Although Li Yan and Zhou Miao looked down on Zhang Yaoming, it was better to offend a gentleman than a petty person. If they offended him, there would only be one way out: take advantage of his unpreparedness and eliminate him first.
Unfortunately, before any of this could be put into action, Li Jingfeng's men arrived. Li Jingfeng appeared quite pleased with himself and spoke with a newfound firmness. "Xiao Yan, come with Dad to the Safe Zone; that's where you belong."
Li Ming merely held onto Li Yan's arm tightly without letting go, his round eyes filled with frustration. He didn't like this man.
Li Yan patted his hand in comfort; he hadn't expected Li Jingfeng to rise so quickly. "Mr. Li, you must be mistaken. I've said before that I have no relationship with you. You should be with your wife and children; talking so much with an outsider is just wasting your time."
Li Jingfeng frowned slightly; that damned woman Jiang Yuejiao thought he didn't know she secretly gathered people to push her son into power. Did that brat think he could compete with him? The Jiang family was no good; he still remembered the earthquake incident clearly. Yuan Yuan was already useless; he had initially planned to support his son in following him. This troublemaker was being led by his worthless mother. Fortunately, Jin Yu had informed him about this matter early on; otherwise, he might have been under house arrest by now.
The more he thought about it, the more he appreciated his ex-wife's benefits. Seeing how Li Yan had built Bright Village to such a scale made him exceptionally proud. His son truly had his own style; things had just stabilized in recent days. Wu Lin mentioned that the Safe Zone had already begun its network operations long ago; he had prepared for it as well but unfortunately Jiang Yuan died at a critical moment when manpower was needed most. As long as they could establish an alliance with nearby large Safe Zones, their chances of being absorbed would significantly decrease...
"Xiao Yan, after all these years we are father and son; I truly had no choice." As he spoke, tears welled up in Li Jingfeng's eyes. "In the past, I couldn't do anything because of that woman; I always had to hold back my hands and feet. But now it's different; you know Jiang Yuan is dead now—I no longer have to worry about those things. I've wanted to bring you and Ming over for a long time. I sent people before... but let's not talk about that now. Xiao Yan, trust your dad; if you come with me to the Safe Zone, you can be second-in-command right away—we can do great things together for everyone to see. Of course, your friends can come along too; I can arrange for your village as well. And... I've heard about Liu Tao's group..."
Li Jingfeng didn't continue speaking but left behind a heavy warning.
Until Li Jingfeng left, Li Ming didn't say a word—he just stayed close to Li Yan without leaving his side for a moment. Li Yan understood the child's worries; even though his intelligence wasn't what it used to be anymore, the deep scars within him couldn't be easily erased.
When Li Jingfeng arrived, he exuded confidence—not only did outsiders notice it but several key figures in the village were present as well. His words quickly spread throughout Bright Village; clearly not everyone remained unaffected.
Previously entering the Safe Zone required a lot of food supplies, but now it was different. As long as Li Yan agreed to go to the Safe Zone, he could bring them along too—why wouldn't they go?
The village remained unexpectedly calm for several days—a calm that felt like a prelude to an impending storm. Zhou Miao found it absurd that after being played so many times they could still remain unsettled—how foolish could these people be?
During dinner, the old man specially prepared tofu and made a Bone Stew with the Big Bone cooked until tender. He stir-fried tofu with Meat Slices, sautéed Lap Cheong with Wood Ear mushrooms, and had a simple stir-fry of Green Beans. He also called Tang Zhaodi to join them for dinner.
The room was filled with a calm atmosphere as everyone ate, but Yu Tian felt uneasy. Finally, he couldn't help but ask, "What are you two planning to do?"
"Wife, don't worry. Although our village isn't impregnable, you should have faith in them. If someone truly wants to stay, they won't leave even if you push them away. But if they want to go, tying them up won't help."
Hearing this reassured Yu Tian. At least from this statement, he understood that Li Yan and Zhou Miao would not be going to the Safe Zone.
The weather grew colder, and surprisingly, it started snowing at the beginning of July. Li Yan instructed the men in the village to gather all the supplies from the boats and harvest the Crops, regardless of whether they were ripe or not.
Some people were initially reluctant, thinking that the snow might stop tomorrow, and they would incur losses by harvesting now. Li Yan didn't force anyone; he had already stated that he was just the village chief and was still a villager like everyone else.
Zhang Hong and Zhang Yi helped each other out and managed to gather Corn Cobs and Sweet Potatoes and Potatoes before dark, providing assistance to some isolated individuals as well.
The Little Ones in the orphanage were small and thin, but their strength was no less than that of women. Tang Zhaodi directed her companions to chop down corn stalks, which could be dried for firewood. They weren't like adults; they remembered how last winter, without the help of Li Yan Brother, they nearly froze to death.
"Zhao Di, that woman has been watching you," one of her companions nudged Tang Zhaodi.
Turning around, Tang Zhaodi saw that although the woman had become much darker and was almost skin and bones, she still remembered the night she was abandoned—the deep-seated hatred etched in her heart.
"Zhao Di! Mom misses you so much!" The woman ran over crying, as if she were a loving mother who hadn't seen her daughter in ages.
Comment 0 Comment Count