Chapter 197 - 182: Establishing Order, Restoring Production

Chapter 197: Chapter 182: Establishing Order, Restoring Production

STATIC...

"Hello? This is Qiao Yunliang."

Once the satellite phone connected, Yu Dong spoke. "Commander Qiao, this is Yu Dong from the Huangyang Port cruise ship base. We’re holding a general assembly today and were hoping to get an update on the military’s progress. Would you be able to say a few words?"

"Of course, Yu Dong. I’m currently at the Zongshan Civilian Training Base. There’s a heavy storm today, so our soldiers are resting. I’ll give everyone a brief report."

"Thanks to Yu Dong’s strategic foresight, we used all our ammunition on the fourth day of the apocalypse to capture the Zongshan Civilian Training Base. We rescued a large number of civilian soldiers and secured a plentiful supply of weapons and ammo."

"Afterward, we launched a swift cleanup operation, securing nearby logistics depots and grain and oil warehouses, which replenished our survival supplies significantly."

"Following that, we conducted a systematic clearing of nearby zombies and pushed all the way to the edge of the bustling Urban Area, establishing strategic depth. We’ve set up an outpost there to report on the movements of zombie hordes in the city at all times."

"During this time, we also carried out rescue operations. In principle, we advise civilians not to leave their shelters. However, for those with a strong desire to move or whose environments are unsafe, we guide them to our base. We have also recruited many experienced individuals—civilian soldiers, armed guards, and retired military personnel—into our combat companies, which have now expanded to 370 people."

"The zombies are ferocious, but our firepower is superior. We’ve been advancing along the roads to the south. In the last five days, we’ve fought our way from the outlying Zongshan Region to the coastline and successfully cleared a path, linking up with Binhai Avenue."

"As of last night, we can now drive from Zongshan Base to Binhai Avenue. Next, we will begin clearing the zombies along Binhai Avenue, pushing westward to open a route to the cruise ship base. We’ll do our best to rendezvous with you all as soon as possible!"

Hearing this, the people below couldn’t help but cheer.

"Woohoo! The army’s coming! We’re saved!"

"Once Binhai Avenue is clear, they’ll basically have access to all the main areas of Yanhai City! This is great!"

"Looks like these zombies aren’t so tough after all... They were only scary at the beginning. The worst part was the first day or so of the outbreak when no one had time to react. Once the army gets organized... this is the result."

The string of good news from the military greatly boosted the morale of everyone on the cruise ship.

Who doesn’t love to see their country’s army winning battles?

Afterward, Qiao Yunliang added a few more brief remarks, emphasizing the leadership positions of Yu Dong, Wang Dingbei, and Lin Mo, and stating that the community would still need to self-govern after the rendezvous. Then he hung up.

But this news was more than enough to make everyone happy.

It was a great reassurance, and it also served as an effective deterrent to those with ulterior motives. With the army on its way, no one would dare to cause trouble now.

Especially since a criminal had been executed by firing squad just today...

Although no one else was mentioned by name, everyone understood the underlying message of the meeting.

Participate in combat and production, and you get supplies. Cause trouble, and you’ll be made an example of. Those other troublemakers might even face a trial later on; even if the apocalypse ends, they could still end up in prison...

Yu Dong saw the large, noisy crowd below but wasn’t in a hurry to quiet them.

He gave them some time to digest it all.

This speech from a Yanhai City military leader was one of the key methods for solidifying the leadership of the three of them.

And it wasn’t some intangible promise; the army had already reached Binhai Avenue. Their next step was to break through to them.

Yu Dong smiled faintly.

’Qiao is moving fast... to think he’s already reached Binhai Avenue.’

This was the "mysterious good news" Qiao Yunliang had mentioned to him.

They had been in regular contact these past few days, sharing information and progress. Qiao Yunliang was in full agreement with Yu Dong’s theory that Binhai Avenue was Yanhai City’s lifeline.

In this life, the army’s objective was singular: after clearing the zombies around their base, they pushed straight for Binhai Avenue.

They broke through while the zombies had not yet evolved and could still be completely suppressed by firepower!

This also meant that even if they encountered an unstoppable horde now, Qiao Yunliang could at least lead his men to escape via Binhai Avenue.

In his past life, Yu Dong had died stubbornly defending the Xiangti Bay Community. In this life, he would always make sure to leave a way out. If you can’t win, run. There’s no shame in it.

If the people survive, the land can always be reclaimed.

After giving the crowd some time to talk amongst themselves, Yu Dong turned on his microphone.

"Now for the final item on this meeting’s agenda. I will explain and lay out the future development and combat operations for our cruise ship base."

"This meeting has already gone on for a long time, so I’ll keep the rest brief."

"First, regarding our upcoming combat operations, there are two main points." ℯℯ𝘭.

"First, our main objective will be to continue eastward along Binhai Avenue to rendezvous with the army as soon as possible, creating a lifeline for Yanhai City. Officer Wang will use the radio to inform all survivors in Yanhai City of our progress. The ultimate goal is to allow any citizen of Yanhai City who reaches Binhai Avenue to have a straight, clear path to our cruise ship base."

"Second, after the storm, our enemies will evolve. A new type of climbing zombie with hunting instincts will appear. These zombies can scale non-smooth buildings. They will patiently wait and hunt humans. They have green camouflage, astonishing jumping ability, and are adept at pouncing from above. Our combat teams must be prepared to face this new threat."

"Next is development. Our main goal from now on will be to restore production."

"We will focus on greenhouse cultivation, fishery restoration, chemical manufacturing, new energy development, general maintenance, ship restoration, and biological virus research."

"The people in charge will be Wang Xiuying, Huang Henian, Zhou Jian Country..."

"We will fully utilize the resources of the four ports as our foundation and follow a path of sustainable development. If any of the above development teams are short on materials or supplies, register your needs with Huang Zhiqiang of the logistics team, and he’ll figure out a way to get them for you."

"Next, personnel. In addition to the various development teams, we are establishing six new management teams, each with a leader and deputy leader, to assist us with administration."

"Combat Team: Leader Zhao Youcai, Deputy Leader Yu Chengfei."

"Logistics Team: Leader Huang Zhiqiang, Deputy Leader Liu Hao."

"Commerce Team: Leader Qiao Ping, Deputy Leader Lin Cong."

"Security Team: Leader Xiao Dabe, Deputy Leader Yang Ze."

"Fortifications Team: Leader Sun Shan, Deputy Leader Liu Ye’ye."

"Maritime Affairs Team: Leader Chen Guangzong, Deputy Leader Jing Yanwei."

"The personnel listed above are appointed on a probationary basis. I ask everyone to supervise and evaluate them. Anyone found incapable of shouldering their responsibilities, caught and confirmed to be profiting at the public’s expense, or who receives numerous complaints about a poor attitude will be punished and replaced with a more suitable candidate."

"Finally..."

Yu Dong’s gaze swept over his, Officer Wang’s, and Lin Mo’s core teams below. He made eye contact with each of them, his expression stern and warning.

"Many of our combat and logistics team members have played a huge role in the rapid battles of the first ten days of the apocalypse. In that time, our cruise ship base has grown from 108 people to 255. Your achievements deserve recognition, and I believe everyone can see that, especially the people who were rescued later on. They are extremely grateful to you."

"However, during this period, there have been some instances of people secretly helping themselves to collective resources for personal gain... This is not acceptable."

As soon as he said this, the hearts of everyone in the combat teams sank.

Especially those who had secretly pocketed things—their palms instantly started to sweat.

’Are we going to be purged right after we finished fighting???’

The twelve members of Huang’s scavenging team, in particular, felt incredibly unlucky.

They had always handled things impartially, but on the last day, after taking a large tobacco and liquor store, they figured they’d each take a carton of cigarettes for themselves to smoke or trade for points. Huang Zhiqiang had even agreed to it.

And now this...

The twelve of them looked pleadingly at Huang Zhiqiang, who was sitting in the front row, hoping that this brother of Yu Dong’s could protect them.

Huang Zhiqiang also broke into a light sweat.

’Dongzi... why didn’t he tell me...’

After a brief pause, Yu Dong continued.

"Fortunately, the infractions were all relatively minor. As for the specifics, I won’t name names. You know who you are."

"What’s happened in the past, we will not pursue. Starting from this assembly today, all members of the combat and logistics teams must abide by the ’Off-Base Operations Code of Conduct’ to prevent this from happening again. The code will be distributed to each of you when you collect your point chips in a little while."

When he finished speaking, everyone finally breathed a collective sigh of relief.

The members of the combat and logistics teams who had overstepped looked at Yu Dong with gratitude. This was the kind of humane leader they felt was worth following.

At the same time, everyone now had a clear line drawn in their minds... don’t take what isn’t yours.

Yu Dong nodded slightly at the reaction from below. He hadn’t originally written this part; it was Wang Dingbei who had brought it up to him that morning. Wang Dingbei believed this trend was more dangerous than criminals like Lin Xiaojun, as it would gradually corrode the team and eventually erupt into unmanageable conflicts. It had to be strictly forbidden from the very beginning.

"From now on, I ask everyone to keep an eye on each other for any violations. If you discover a problem, you can come directly to the office of the three of us to report it by name, or you can write an anonymous letter and put it in the mailbox outside our door. We will handle it as quickly as possible."

"Everything we do is to provide a stable and safe environment for everyone, to make this cruise ship a warm and strong settlement in the apocalypse, and to contribute to the liberation of our city."

"Alright, that concludes today’s meeting. All those who participated in combat and production can now come forward to collect your wages for the past few days as Lin Mo reads out your names!"

"Also, the movie hall will be showing a film again tonight. I hope everyone can have a good time each and every day on this cruise ship!"

The meeting ended. Yu Dong and the other two leaders stood up and gave a slight bow to the people below.

CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP~

The applause was long and unceasing.

This meeting marked the initial establishment of the cruise ship’s personnel, economic, and combat systems.

Power on the cruise ship was now divided, and the people loyal to Yu Dong, Wang Dingbei, and Lin Mo had formally taken up management positions.