Chapter 216: The Wind Has Changed, a Smart Defector?

Feng Mu carried an insulated bucket in one hand, walking unhurriedly back to the duty room.

He tidied the desk a little, was just about to unscrew the insulated bucket, sit down, and eat, when he heard hurried footsteps in the corridor; he frowned slightly and put the insulated bucket back into the storage cabinet.

The food was too fragrant; to a certain extent, it was toxic to "corpses," even if the "gods" of these corpses had long since lost all vitality.

However, Feng Mu was a very merciful man; he would not eat in front of "corpses," just as he would not play movies before the blind, play music before the deaf, or stand and urinate before a eunuch — it was all the same principle.

Wang Cong pushed the door open and said to Feng Mu, "The Captain wants you to go over; he's probably urging you to hand over the money."

Feng Mu looked at Wang Cong, whose clothes were neatly pressed and whose hair was combed tidy; red threads flickered slightly within his pupils, and he calmly nodded: "Alright, I'll go right away."

Just before leaving, Feng Mu stopped at the door and asked Wang Cong, "You look especially spirited today; have you already prepared everything?"

Wang Cong thought Feng Mu was asking about the money, and he said with the corners of his mouth pulled wide:

"Of course, I've already handed over most of my net worth to the Captain; now I'm completely empty-handed, free of all burdens, so I can only live up to your expectations and press forward, forward, and ever forward."

Feng Mu gave Wang Cong a thumbs-up, then withdrew his gaze with deep meaning, turned around, and left the room.

Only when the footsteps in the corridor gradually faded into the distance did the smile on Wang Cong's face slowly fade away, restoring a calm expression; he walked to the storage cabinet and, with practiced ease, took out two insulated buckets.

He placed the insulated buckets one by one on the table and gently unscrewed the lids.

Then he took out a bottle of Q-14 Type Delayed Hallucinogen from his pocket, unscrewed the stopper, and poured the expensive, colorless, transparent liquid evenly into the two insulated buckets, half into each.

The aroma of the food mixed with the liquid, becoming even more tempting; Wang Cong couldn't help but his Adam's apple rolled twice, as if imagining the delicious taste.

Afterward, he carefully screwed the lids back on, put the insulated buckets back into the storage cabinet exactly as they were, even keeping the direction of placement in its original position, without the slightest deviation.

Wang Cong gently closed the door of the storage cabinet, then slowly paced out of the duty room.

At the same time, Feng Mu gently pushed open the door of the Captain's Office.

Tian Tao was sitting at a corner of the office desk; two or three prison guards were scattered around the room, chatting idly while taking turns using the Captain's computer to operate, transferring the survival funds collected this week one by one into the designated accounts within the team.

"Captain, the money has all been handed over," a prison guard reported.

Tian Tao glanced at the numbers on the account; they were somewhat higher than usual, but after all, this was his first time participating in the Prison Ranking Competition; even though they were only assigned to a low-end Captain's bracket, Tian Tao still wasn't very confident in his heart.

He put on a stern face and asked the several prison guards in a grim tone: "Have you all handed them over? None of you are hiding any privately, right?"

The prison guards exchanged glances with each other, shook their heads in unison, and answered in one voice:

"No, absolutely not. After all, this is the first week; everyone is nervous in their hearts, and no one wants to change to an unfamiliar captain in the future; brothers, who would be so muddle-headed as to commit a blunder for a bit of trivial profit?"

Tian Tao's expression improved slightly, and he also complained indignantly:

"I don't know what those above are thinking; they insist on having the whole zone compete mixed together. Our light-security zone may be easier to manage, but how could the oil and water that can be squeezed out compare with the heavy-security zone and the VIP zone? At best, we can only compete with the Death-Security Zone."

Several prison guards nodded repeatedly in agreement:

"That's right; in my opinion, this 【Last Place Elimination System】 concocted by the Prison Warden is unreasonable and unfair. The several Zone Chiefs should have directly refused at the meeting; how could they agree to such an absurd reform?"

"That's right; the Prison Warden is new here and doesn't understand the rules of our prison. The Zone Chiefs should join forces to oppose him, or at least advise the Prison Warden."

"But I heard that at the meeting, the Prison Warden overrode all opposition, and every single Zone Chief obediently signed; the documents seem to have been sent upward the same day."

Tian Tao watched several prison guards discussing in low voices right in front of him; he knew very well that these people were probing his stance.

Ridiculous — he was just a Captain; how could he interfere with decisions from above? Like all the prison guards, he couldn't figure out what had actually happened at the meeting to make several Zone Chiefs obediently sign the documents together.

Could it be that they were collectively held at gunpoint by the Prison Warden?

Tian Tao had not failed to ask Chang Wei or Zhou Hu, but these two men, in recent days, had faces uglier than one another, and their mouths were tighter than a clogged toilet; not a single word could be pried out of them.

"Alright, stop making a racket here. Once you've handed over the money, leave quickly. Remember, the amount handed over next week cannot be less than this week."

Tian Tao waved his hand impatiently and sent off the several prison guards who had already handed over their money from the office.

Feng Mu stood by silently observing; he saw the scene before him far more clearly than Tian Tao.

The discussion of these few prison guards seemed to be just a few bland complaints, but in fact it represented the common voice of the vast majority of prison guards in the Second Prison.

On the surface, they were condemning the Prison Warden's inhumane reform, expressing intense disgust toward the Prison Warden; in reality, they were questioning the Zone Chiefs' concessions and inaction toward the Prison Warden, expressing serious doubt about the authority of the Zone Chiefs.

Which is weightier, which is truer — opinions vary.

But in short, it all comes down to one sentence — the internal trend has changed, hearts are scattered, and the team is hard to lead.

Feng Mu silently gave a thumbs-up in his heart to Prison Warden Qian Huan:

"The influence of the 【Last Place Elimination System】 is not only reflected in the ranking itself of the 【Last Place Elimination System】, but also in its effect on people's hearts. It is a signal released by the Prison Warden to everyone that he has suppressed the Zone Chiefs."

"At first, everyone might collectively complain and oppose, but as the 【Last Place Elimination System】 is continuously implemented, this complaint and opposition will change. Some who benefit from it, or some smarter people, will change their stance, flocking to Prison Warden Qian Huan, waving flags and shouting for the 【Last Place Elimination System】."

"Originally, Qian Huan was just a bare-bones commander air-dropped into the Second Prison, but perhaps within a few weeks, he will be able to create something out of nothing and pull out a faction of his own within the Second Prison."

Once the internal trend changes, this momentum is hard to suppress and reverse, unless... something happens that people cannot bear to see.

Otherwise, Feng Mu could almost foresee that the Prison Warden's victory was within sight.

He pondered in his heart: "Perhaps, the first smart defector has already been secretly and covertly loyal to the Prison Warden; who knows."

"What are you standing there for? Hand over the money." Tian Tao's fierce voice interrupted Feng Mu's train of thought.

Feng Mu withdrew his thoughts and looked at the blood bar above Tian Tao's head without the slightest ripple — 【769/769】.

"Sorry, Captain, I didn't collect the money," Feng Mu replied calmly.

"What?" Tian Tao's voice suddenly rose in pitch, his eyes spitting fire as he glared at Feng Mu, looking as if he wanted to swallow him alive and skin him; he said furiously, "You're telling me you didn't collect the money?"

(Chapter End)