The scars of battle were beginning to fade . The survivors dug out the bodies of their comrades and buried them on the small hill north of the plantation . On the street outside the barbed wire, zombies tumbled along and wandered around mindlessly .
In the days of continuous fire, Empire's sieging forces destroyed their walls multiple times and cut through the barbed wires to lure zombies into the plantation . The battle devolved into chaos between humans and zombies .
In the chaos, over one thousand slaves died .
With such a limited amount of ammunition, their ability to limit their casualties to around one thousand against an actual force showed that the slaves were certainly a force to be reckoned with .
Of course, NAC's airstrike also was part of the reason .
Out of fear for an airstrike from NAC, Empire's Second Division didn't focus all their efforts on launching a full-scale attack . Out of fear for NAC's forces, Empire's Second Division chose to retreat north for independence . It was only then that the siege of Donggang Plantation finally ended .
Since they didn't know where to go, one thousand survivors chose to leave while the remaining seven thousand survivors gathered together . They elected a leader who led them to rebuild their home on this piece of land .
One morning .
An SUV darted into the street and sent a few dumb zombies flying before it came to an abrupt stop in front of the plantation .
Two machine guns on the wall immediately pointed in this direction . Survivors with scarves and rifles walked up to knock on the car window .
"This place isn't open to the public . Please leave . "
Li Wang glanced at the muzzles on the wall, took a deep breath, tapped on the door to lower the window .
"I don't have bad intentions . I represent NAC and I want to see your leader . "
Li Wang thought these people would courteously invite him in, but the survivor's expression made a 180-degree shift as he examined Li Wang with caution .
The stark difference completely caught him off guard .
The soldier at the gate pressed on his collar, walked to the side, and spoke with his superior before he quickly returned to the car window .
"We can take you to see our leader, but we have to search you . "
Li Wang's eyebrows raised and he was about to go off, but when he thought about Jiang Chen's test for him, he breathed in and suppressed the anger in his mind .
"Of course . "
He pushed open the door, walked out, and opened his hands .
"I swear I don't have any weapons on me . "
The soldier ignored him and briefly scanned his body . After confirming there were no weapons, he took Li Wang into the plantation .
After walking on a muddy road, they arrived in front of a three-story office building .
Li Wang saw the leader of the survivors when he stepped in .
His knife-sharp eyes could pierce people's minds and his defined face was tattooed with the slave mark, but from his straight back, Li Wang didn't see the meekness typical of a slave .
[This isn't an easy character . ]
That was Li Wang's first thought .
When the uprising erupted, the spies behind the conflict retreated from the plantation amidst the chaos . No one could provide him with assistance, and the only information he had was from one week ago .
"Aha, let me see who came . The ambassador of NAC? You finally remembered your neighbor . " The leader walked up to Li Wang . With his eyes narrowed, he aggressively stared Li Wang down . "Tell me your intentions . "
Li Wang didn't dodge his stare . He paused for a moment before he calmly said, "Are we not allies?"
"You used us to keep Empire Second Division here and used our blood to pave your victory - would you refer to this as an alliance?" The leader started laughing hysterically and he shrugged . "What's next? After you take over the capital, do you plan on taking over the slaves in the capital?"
"You're mistaken . "
"Let me tell you, we won't accept any enslavement from anyone, even if you're powerful enough . " The leader lowered his voice . His scratchy voice rang beside Li Wang's ears as the words came out one by one .
The pitiful people who just escaped from the shackles of enslavement were more sensitive and more conceited than anyone . While they only had poorly made rifles and a limited amount of ammo, they still believed they could use their faith to defend their freedom .
They were sensitive and suspicious of any form of control .
They wouldn't listen to anything right now .
[The missiles of Order should wake these people up…] That was Li Wang's only thought .
"We won't do that . " Li Wang used his most reasonable voice .
"But who can promise you won't do that?" the leader asked in an exaggerated tone . "We have our hands and feet and we can grow mutated fruits and Carm tree sap . Why would we join you?"
"We can purchase your mutated fruits and Carm tree sap . "
"Federation's market can too . You're not unique . "
The negotiation was at a stalemate from the beginning, but fortunately, Li Wang detected the problem .
"Federation came to see you?"
The leader shrugged and replied with an undeniable expression .
Not denying the claim was equivalent to agreeing with it .
Li Wang took a deep breath, cleared his thoughts, and calmly said .
"Could you give me five minutes?"
. . .
At the command post, Jiang Chen was working .
Regarding the growth of NAC in the Hongcheng region, he was strategizing the smaller details regarding the bigger picture of expansion . While the model of Sixth Street could be used as a reference, it couldn't be perfectly replicated here and required minor adjustments .
Elections, law…
This time, the door opened and Wang Zhaowu walked into the office .
"Are you busy?"
"Almost done . Why?" Jiang Chen dropped the pen in his hand and asked Wang Zhaowu .
"Nothing in particular . I just wanted to ask if you've made a decision for the captain . " Wang Zhaowu closed the door behind him .
The situation with Hongcheng was stabilized . After the open border agreement with Federation came into effect, NAC managed to successfully establish itself in the area . It was near the end of July . After leaving for one and a half month, it was time to return at the beginning of August .
Jiang Chen said from the beginning that the captain of Order would be selected at the end of the conquest . As the General and Division Commander, Wang Zhaowu couldn't act as the captain and deputy captain forever .
"I have someone in mind but I'm undecided . "
Wang Zhaowu was relieved when he heard Jiang Chen had a plan . He said with a smile, "I thought you forgot about it . Now I feel assured . "
"Enough . You think I would keep you as deputy captain forever? Head back and clean up . It won't be long until you have to return to your Second Division . "
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