Chapter 559: Hurry Up and Divide the Cake

Qi Dabin heard Xie Guangfa's words but showed no expression on his face; inside, he felt a jolt—just as expected, before he could speak, someone had already voiced their opinion.

"I agree with Brother Xie. The village isn't ideal, but that girl said their leader will reassign us once he returns—let's not rush."

"Even if they reassign us, where will it be? They'll live in the good houses on the mountain, and we'll still be stuck down here."

Someone immediately countered, thinking the man's optimism was foolish.

"The mountain path is narrow, and they've built walls. Look down here—it's wide open, no barriers at all. If zombies pass by on the road, they can just storm right into the courtyards. How's that comparable to the mountain?"

"That's not entirely fair. The mountain has its advantages, and down here isn't without merit either. This place…"

"Enough!"

Qi Dabin raised his hand, silencing the argument. He exhaled deeply and declared: "We endured hardship and danger to escape so we could live better. This village is clearly unsafe!"

He paused, then turned to Xie Guangfa: "Old Xie, I know you're loyal, but I must think of everyone's future safety. Based on what you just said, I'll ask you one question—if we go to war with Tianma Isle, will you come with us?"

The villagers disliked beating around the bush; Qi Dabin laid it all out plainly.

Xie Guangfa slowly lifted his head to glance at Qi Dabin, then lowered it again, rubbing his leg as he said calmly: "What? If I say I won't go, are you planning to kill me first?"

Creak. Creak.

The sound of kneading his leg grew louder, as the entire room fell silent.

"What kind of nonsense is that? If you don't want to move, stay here. When it's done, I'll come call you!"

Qi Dabin clearly conceded—he decided not to provoke this powder keg, and would stabilize things first.

Direct communication was highly efficient…

"I'm too nervous staying alone in the village. If you're going, I'm going too."

Xie Guangfa said casually.

The man who had supported him earlier turned pale, thinking: You damn cripple, you've got no principles—you just gave in?

Same thoughts crossed Big Niu's mind—he'd just been kicked. Standing on the kang, he squinted and grimaced, mentally cursing Xie Guangfa's ancestors for eighteen generations.

"Good! With Old Xie's invincible leg on our side, victory is within reach!"

Qi Dabin exhaled inwardly, raised his hand, and addressed the group: "Meng Changwei won't act mainly because of Zhang Su. If Zhang Su dies, he'll have no reservations—we'll have a chance to cooperate!"

"Boss, when did Zhang Su die?"

Big Niu felt Xie Guangfa's agreement was a sign of surrender, and his lost face was now regained—he jumped in to assert himself.

"If you've got no brains, don't speak. Just listen. When it's time to move, you move. Got it?"

Qi Dabin's head throbbed at Big Niu's words.

"Oh, okay." Big Niu felt deeply wronged—he'd been spat on, kicked, and now scolded for asking a question. Life was too hard.

"Boss, do you already have a plan?"

Monkey was clearly much sharper than Big Niu—he followed up on Qi Dabin's words.

"Correct. Come closer, listen up!"

Qi Dabin stepped into the center of the group. As everyone gathered near, he whispered his plan. As he spoke, the others' eyes brightened—except Xie Guangfa, seated on the kang's edge, whose expression remained calm, as if uninterested.

Meanwhile, in another large courtyard in Village One, Meng Changwei was tidying the kang with swift efficiency.

When Yang Liehuo had summoned villagers to Tianma Isle for refuge, everyone assumed disaster had struck—they'd grabbed bedding and fled, leaving rooms in chaos.

But for people from Daqiao Fortress, this was nothing. Their camp had always been in the village; they knew rural life well: four men per kang, eight per courtyard, over twenty people spread across three courtyards arranged in a triangular formation, able to watch over each other.

"Boss, I found some zombie fragments in the storage shed—I'm gonna light the stove. Ugh, it's damn cold!"

A young man entered the room carrying a wooden bucket, his face red from the cold, puffing white breath.

Meng Changwei, laying the kang sheet, turned and said flatly: "Xiao Wei, you really don't treat yourself like an outsider. You just grab stuff and burn it without asking? Didn't we bring corpses over? Go get your own!"

"Whole corpses need cutting anyway—it's too much trouble. Just use these for now. We'll make up for it later. Brother Zhang won't be that stingy."

Another man, in his forties, chuckled.

"Oh, Brother Zhang's got money to burn—there are so many zombie corpses down there, they could fuel fires for a year. A few more won't matter. Hey, where's Brother Zhang off to? It's freezing, zombies are getting stronger—why aren't they staying on the mountain?"

Xiao Wei lit the stove, chatting idly.

"Running a hundred-person camp isn't easy. Just food alone takes two hundred jin of white flour daily. There's plenty to do!"

Meng Changwei shook his head. These men had simple minds—they lived too comfortably. He wanted that too, which was why, after leaving Daqiao Fortress, he hadn't sought to establish his own base—he came to Tianma Isle simply to shed his burdens…

As zombies grew stronger, Meng Changwei felt immense pressure. Being boss was exhausting him. "Boss, do you think Brother Zhang will let us move up the mountain? That resort looks great!"

Xiao Wei added zombie chunks to the stove, his face filled with longing.

At that moment, a woman stepped out of the opposite bedroom, brushing dust off her clothes: "Unlikely. At best, they'll let Boss Meng move up. We don't have that kind of clout."

The two bedrooms faced each other, for separating men and women. Meng Changwei smiled and waved off her words: "Even if Brother Zhang invites me, I won't go. I'll stay with everyone. We…" "Hmm?"

As he spoke, a knock echoed at the door. He turned—Qi Dabin had lightly tapped the iron gate, then entered with his men: polite, but barely.

"What do these guys want…"

"They came empty-handed—definitely here for supplies. Boss, don't give them anything!"

"Right! Don't give them a thing. They've got food but keep mooching off us. Dishonest!"

The men cleaning the room resented the Feilang Gang.

"You guys keep working—I'll go ask."

Meng Changwei set down his tools, took a deep breath, and stepped outside. He didn't bother inviting them in—he'd rather not have to kick them out later.

"Hey, Old Qi, what brings you here? Finished tidying up?" Meng Changwei stepped out, feigning surprise, his one eye scanning the courtyard before walking toward the axe lying in the corner, pretending he'd just come out to fetch it.

"Old Meng, don't bother with that. I've something important to tell you."

Qi Dabin stepped closer, offering a cigarette.

"Important? Did you not like the courtyard you picked? Then switch."

Meng Changwei took the cigarette and tucked it behind his ear, then bent to pick up the axe.

"A courtyard? That's not important…"

Qi Dabin ignored Meng Changwei's tone, slinging an arm around his shoulder, whispering: "Just now, one of my men went up the mountain to trade for supplies. Guess what he heard?"

Meng Changwei turned to look at the dozen or so men standing in the courtyard, ignoring Qi Dabin entirely: "Who went up the mountain? I didn't hear anything."

"We live by the village entrance, you live inside—of course you didn't hear. We've electric bikes—zoom, zoom, super convenient. Don't interrupt. This is important news. You wanna hear it or not?"

Qi Dabin's face turned serious and mysterious, radiating "you'll regret missing this" energy.

Fine, he'd listen.

Meng Changwei said distractedly: "Say what you want. If you can't say it, don't. I'm warning you—I won't take responsibility for anything I hear."

Qi Dabin didn't care what Meng Changwei said—he followed his script: "My man overheard a shocking piece of news: Zhang Su is dead."

!!?? Meng Changwei froze in shock, then wore a strange expression—trying to hold back a laugh, finally bursting into it.

"Hahaha… Zhang Su's dead? Do you even realize what you just said?"

Qi Dabin's face held no smile—he was utterly serious: "It's true. I'm not lying."

"Come on, tell me who overheard this. Maybe you should just cut off your ears…"

"Why won't you believe me? Skinny Monkey!" Qi Dabin called behind him: "Tell Boss Meng what you heard!"

"Got it!"

Skinny Monkey darted to their side, hunched over, eyes darting, face smug with "you didn't know, did you?" He spoke:

"Boss Meng, I went up the mountain and hadn't even contacted anyone inside when I heard chaos in the camp. I thought, things were fine before—why all this commotion now?

So I crept to the mountain gate and listened… What I heard was unbelievable: Zhang Su is dead. Inside, it's not one faction, but three—preparing to divide Tianma Isle!"

"Three factions dividing Tianma Isle… You're serious?"

Meng Changwei frowned. Zhang Su's death was pure comedy—but if Tianma Isle was falling into chaos, the credibility of the first rumor skyrocketed. Still, both could be lies.

Zhang Su's fate was uncertain, but verifying whether Tianma Isle was in internal conflict was easy. What purpose would there be in joking about this? "Of course it's true!"

Skinny Monkey saw Meng Changwei's surprise and knew he was starting to believe. He lowered his voice further, his face twisted into the expression of a village granny spreading gossip.

"It was insane! Two men and that Zhong guy were yelling—said they'd contributed to building the camp, and even if Brother Su were alive, they'd deserve a share. The other faction said no matter what, they'd take at least a third of the land—or they'd make Tianma Isle a living hell!"

The story flowed smoothly.

"Fighting among themselves behind closed doors? Now that's interesting."

Qi Dabin smiled meaningfully, then turned to the silent Meng Changwei: "Old Meng, I know your Daqiao Fortress once cooperated with Tianma Isle—but that was just cooperation. Now Zhang Su is gone, and Zhong is clearly stalling us. Once their infighting ends, they'll turn against us!"

Meng Changwei tightened his grip on the axe, his one eye glinting with thought—he looked from Qi Dabin to Skinny Monkey's tense face, thinking: What do you mean "against us"?

We're outsiders. Their infighting has nothing to do with us.

You just see a chance to profit and want to stick your nose in—and you're pretending it's noble! He slowly shook his head: "I don't believe Zhang Su is dead."

"You don't believe? That's normal. Either you doubt the people on Tianma Isle are lying, or you think my man fabricated the news. Easy fix—we go up there and check. If it contradicts what my man heard, we'll say we came to trade. If it's true, Old Meng, this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. Three factions dividing the cake—why not add two more? Everyone gets a share!"

If he could lure the armed men of Daqiao Fortress up the mountain, Qi Dabin's plan would succeed—then it'd be like stuffing dirt in your pants: whether you meant to or not, you'd be guilty.

Meng Changwei said nothing—he wouldn't yield so easily.

He raised his hand slightly, turned, and walked back toward the house. The information Qi Dabin brought was too heavy—whether true, false, or half-true—he needed time to process it.

"Old Meng, what are you hesitating for? If you won't come, lend us five guns. When we succeed, we'll give your Daqiao Fortress men a share of the mountain—live together inside the walls. You'll be safe forever!"

Seeing Meng Changwei's hesitation, Qi Dabin dangled the carrot.

"The mountain's defenses are perfect—concrete walls, steel gates, top quality. Even these crazy zombies can't break through!"

Skinny Monkey chimed in.

"Stop talking. Let me think."

Meng Changwei shook his head and kept walking toward the house.

To be honest, when he first saw Tianma Isle's walls and gate, he'd been deeply moved. The terrain, the tight defenses—it was truly defensible. With proper supplies, it was like a paradise.

But to take advantage of their weakness, to seize the camp while their fighters were away—that he could never do. That was his bottom line. Even if they'd offered no survival conditions, he still wouldn't cross it.

Qi Dabin and Skinny Monkey exchanged glances, said nothing more, and simply called out: "Hurry up. Opportunity won't knock twice!"

"Boss, I think this guy Meng is hard to fool—we probably need to activate Step Two! If we rattle Tianmayu a bit, he'll definitely lose his cool, and then… hehehe!"

When Meng Changwei entered the room, the skinny monkey whispered to Qi Dabin, and couldn't help laughing as he spoke.

"Don't rush—Step Two's too risky; it could drag us all in. Let's wait for Lao Meng!"

Qi Dabin's lips moved slightly, his voice barely audible.

According to their plan, if the people of Daqiaobao Township refused to cooperate, they would first provoke Tianmayu, falsely claiming Daqiaobao was plotting to storm the camp, stoking discord between the two sides, then exploit the chaos.

(End of Chapter)