Chapter 296 - 174: A Greatly Changed Team; Assignment of Member Positions; This Is What Survival Should Look Like

Chapter 296: Chapter 174: A Greatly Changed Team; Assignment of Member Positions; This Is What Survival Should Look Like

"Brother Chong!"

"Brother Chong!"

"Brother Chong, Brother Chong..."

As Chen Chong led the way into the gymnasium, they passed numerous team members. A continuous wave of respectful greetings followed them.

Chen Chong didn’t put on any airs, nodding in response to each of them.

The first thing they saw upon entering the gymnasium was a vast, open area.

Countless wooden racks stood here, piled high with massive slabs of meat. Below them, white smoke billowed from smoldering damp wood, constantly smoking the cuts above.

This was the meat-smoking area.

Even though it was indoors, its proximity to the main entrance and a unique structural design ensured the smoke never penetrated deeper into the gymnasium, dissipating completely within this section.

In addition to the thirty-odd members bustling about the smoking area—turning the meat and stoking the fires—four or five others stood at various points, notebooks in hand. They were observing the meat on the racks and jotting down notes.

"Brother Chong!"

Seeing Chen Chong walk in, one of them immediately stopped writing and jogged over with a smile.

"You’re... Trike?" Chen Chong studied the young man for a moment before hesitantly saying his name.

The young man known as Trike froze, his eyes instantly turning red. "Brother Chong... You actually remembered my name! That’s right, it’s me! I’m Trike!"

"Uh..."

Chen Chong felt a little exasperated. ’I didn’t think just saying his name would move him this much,’ he thought. ’Was it really necessary to get so emotional?’

It wasn’t that Chen Chong had a great memory or had paid him any special attention.

Mainly, it was because Trike was part of the Fishing Club. Chen Chong vaguely recalled seeing him during the hunt for the Unihorn Catfish and again when they moved the Blood-tooth Python.

After seeing him a few times, his face had become familiar. Besides, his nickname was inherently comical. After Zhong Fang shouted it a few times, it would have been difficult for Chen Chong not to remember it.

"So you’re... in charge of supervision?"

Trike quickly wiped away his tears, hesitating slightly. "Sort of... but not really."

Chen Chong was confused. "What do you mean?"

Before Trike could answer, Jia Wen stepped forward from behind him.

"Sir, this is the member assignment plan that President Zhong and I decided on after a full day and night of deliberation. I originally planned to explain the details to you on the second floor..."

Chen Chong said, "It’s fine. You can tell me here."

’I only gave Jia Wen and Zhong Fang a rough framework for the team’s rules and structure, leaving them to figure out the rest before running off to deal with other things. I’ve basically been a hands-off boss.’

He knew nothing about how the team was functioning in its initial stages, so he couldn’t help but feel a little curious.

"Yes, Sir!"

Jia Wen immediately began to explain. "Trike is a member of the Records Team in the Logistics Group. He’s mainly responsible for logging all the group’s income and expenditures, which naturally includes our various production sectors."

"For instance, he records the amount of smoked meat and its daily progress, the status of crops in the farming plots, and the quantity and breeding conditions of the livestock in the animal husbandry area. This is all to centralize the data so that you, Sir, can track the changes in our resources."

Trike nodded in agreement. "That’s right, Brother Chong. We’re members of the Records Team, under the Logistics Group. Four other brothers and I are in charge of record-keeping here in the smoking area. We make sure every piece of meat meets the required smoking standards. The other brothers on the Records Team are responsible for logging work in other areas."

Chen Chong’s expression remained neutral, but inwardly, he was quite surprised.

’A Data Records Team?’

’Smoking standards?’

’Jia Wen and Zhong Fang’s member assignments and team standards are this rigorous?’

’This is beyond what I imagined...’

"Brother Chong!"

Just then, another man hurried over, his expression respectful yet slightly timid.

"And you are..."

This time, Chen Chong genuinely didn’t recognize the man; he had no memory of him whatsoever.

"Brother Chong, you can call me Ah Qiang. I’m the captain of the Smoked Meat Team in the Logistics Group. I’m mainly in charge of organizing the daily meat curing and smoking for the thirty or so people on our team."

Jia Wen explained from the side, "Sir, Ah Qiang is a new member. He prefers a stable role, so he chose to join the Logistics Group. Plus, his family ran a smoked meat business. Before we crossed over, he often helped them out, which makes him our most experienced member in this field. That’s why I assigned him to the Smoked Meat Team and gave him the captain position."

Chen Chong frowned slightly.

Jia Wen’s heart lurched at the sight. "Sir, if you find this inappropriate, I can remove him from his post and..."

Chen Chong shook his head, cutting him off. "No need. You’ve done a great job."

’I wasn’t frowning because I thought Ah Qiang was a bad choice. I was just amazed. In a single day, Jia Wen and Zhong Fang not only organized everyone into groups but also took the time to ask each person about their skills to assign them to the right posts?’

’That’s an insane level of efficiency.’

’The two of them must have worked on this nonstop for the past day and night without a wink of sleep.’

"Jia Wen, thank you for your hard work."

"And you, Ah Qiang. The work in the smoking area is in your hands now. I have high expectations for you."

Jia Wen’s heart, which had been lodged in his throat, finally dropped back into place. He quickly bowed. "You praise me too highly, Sir. It is merely my duty."

Ah Qiang was also thrilled. He stammered with excitement, "B-Brother Chong, you can rest assured! I’ll manage the entire smoking area and personally inspect every single piece of meat. I guarantee not one piece will be under-smoked or over-smoked!"

"Good!"

Patting Ah Qiang’s shoulder, Chen Chong continued walking deeper inside.

Xu Jun, Jia Wen, Zhang Meng, Wang Biao, Qi Zhen, and even the Tiger Striped Dog with the Rock Armor Eagle perched on its back, all followed him inside...