Chapter 261

Zhang Su walked out of the courtyard, mounted the small electric scooter parked to the side, and headed straight for the mountain gate.

"Who is it?"

From a distance, Zhang Su saw Wang Xin and Lu Leiyang arguing with the people outside the iron gate.

"Brother Su, they say they're from the Qincheng Survivor Alliance!"

Lu Leiyang turned to answer.

"Yes, brother, we came from Qincheng and we are indeed the Survivor Alliance. I am the leader of the Alliance Vanguard Regiment. We heard an explosion here earlier, with flames reaching the sky, so we came to take a look. We have no malicious intent, and we'd also like to ask you about something!"

Just as Lu Leiyang finished speaking, a deep, resonant voice rang out from outside the iron gate.

Zhang Su got off the scooter, stepped onto the simple three-meter-high guard tower, and looked out. Sure enough, Zhang Xin and a few other familiar faces were among them...

His gaze lingered mainly on the middle-aged man in the lead. With his resolute facial contours and sturdy physique, he was clearly no ordinary character to be able to serve as a Vanguard Regiment leader. In terms of presence, build, and temperament, he was a cut above the slacker Zhang Xin standing beside him...

In the darkness, the group whispered to each other, thinking their voices were quiet enough, but they didn't know that every word had already reached the other side's ears.

"Give us some face"—this was the first time Zhang Su had heard such a phrase since the apocalypse, and he suddenly had a feeling of returning to the past...

"What are you afraid of? He can't hear us."

Gong Chengming did not give up and asked hurriedly.

"Don't talk nonsense!"

"My surname is Gong. May I ask your surname, brother?"

"Ask away, ask away. I won't invite you in for tea, though. One question per gun; I'll collect the fee after you answer!"

A man wearing a bulletproof vest seemed unable to watch anymore and pointed at Zhang Su, scolding him.

Zhang Xin naturally recognized Zhang Su's voice. Seeing him now, he felt a mix of emotions, but he was clever and knew he couldn't expose their relationship at this moment. Pretending not to know him was the most logical choice.

"Hey, what's wrong with you... call whoever is in charge here to come out!"

"Dozens dead... does this guy think we're idiots?"

Seeing the other side's lackey speak up, Wang Xin refused to be outdone. At a time like this, he certainly couldn't let the boss respond to a lackey; it would be beneath his status.

"Zhang." Zhang Su rubbed his brow, feeling a bit weary.

Zhang Su curled his lip. He was in no mood to fuss over these trifles. Tianmayu had just gone through a major battle and was currently lacking vitality. If he were to clash with the Survivor Alliance now, it would be very unwise. He just wanted to get rid of these people as quickly as possible.

"We just had a firefight with a group of enemies, and dozens died. There's nothing to see, and I'm in no mood to entertain you. You should go."

"Brother Zhang, we truly have no intention of offending you. If there's anything you need help with, we can lend a hand. We just want to ask you about something, so please, give us some face."

Zhang Su said listlessly.

"He is the boss here. Are you people done yet? If you have something to ask, hurry up; there's a mountain of things waiting to be cleaned up!"

Zhang Su waved his hand listlessly.

Heaven knows how Zhang Xin explained things to his superiors after returning. They had actually specifically sent a regiment leader to lead a team to investigate. He guessed that the Survivor Alliance people had been searching the vicinity after passing through Beidong Town; otherwise, they wouldn't have heard the explosion!

"Exactly, he really dares to spout nonsense."

"I can see that Brother Zhang is very busy. I only have one question. I'll leave as soon as I ask it. I'll pay your price; I trust you!"

Gong Chengming raised a hand to stop his subordinate and nodded toward Zhang Su on the high ground.

"Fine, ask."

"Have you seen a Gold Cup van? There is a man on board with a scar on his face whose surname is Duan, and a man surnamed Fu who is paralyzed from the waist down. He is very young."

As Zhang Su expected, the other party's question was related to Fu Weijun.

He narrowed his eyes, appearing to look at Gong Chengming, but in reality, he was watching Zhang Xin. After dealing with each other a few times, a tacit understanding had formed between them. He saw the other man move his jaw left and right, as if grinding his teeth...

"Never seen it."

Zhang Su decided to trust Zhang Xin and cooperate with him to put on a show.

After saying this, he saw Gong Chengming's brow furrow; a clearly depressed mood lingered between his brows. He turned to look at Zhang Xin, who was not far behind him. Zhang Xin shrugged and spread his arms, as if to say, "I told you, but you wouldn't believe me..."

"Brother Zhang, you are guarding the main road to Qingxian. If a Gold Cup van passed by on the provincial road outside, you would surely know, right?"

Gong Chengming was unwilling to give up and confirmed again.

"We just want to live here quietly. Things outside have nothing to do with me, and I have no leisure to pay attention to so much," Zhang Su said slowly.

"Brother Su, I'm going out for a bit."

Just at this moment, Lu Yubo's voice rang out from behind. He was driving a pickup truck belonging to the Azure Dragon Corps, and in the back were the corpses of those from the Azure Dragon Corps who had died here.

Zombie corpses could be burned like coal, but human corpses couldn't; they needed to be disposed of promptly.

"Open the gate!"

At the command, Wang Xin and Lu Leiyang busied themselves opening the big gate.

The Survivor Alliance people were also tactful enough to move to the sides. When they saw the dead bodies in the truck bed, they truly realized how terrifying this safe camp was.

"Alright, Brother Zhang, I keep my promises. This LS5 submachine gun, catch."

Gong Chengming was very generous; he took the weapon hanging from his shoulder and threw it toward Zhang Su.

*Thwack. *

Zhang Su caught it steadily. It was his first time handling a submachine gun, and he looked at it with great interest, saying, "Eh, 9mm bullets? We don't have any here. Send some bullets too!"

Gong Chengming's mouth couldn't help but twitch. He pulled three magazines from behind his waist and handed them to his companion, saying, "I didn't bring many bullets, just these three spare magazines. Take them all!"

Zhang Su took the magazines and nodded with satisfaction. He had learned from Duan Wu that the Survivor Alliance was evil, using living people for zombie transformation experiments, but this man seemed decent enough in his dealings.

It just goes to show that in any organization, there are all kinds of people.

"It's getting late. If I've caused any disturbance, please forgive me. We're leaving!"

Gong Chengming leaned forward and glanced into the interior of Tianmayu. The visible area was a mess, and combined with the corpses being transported away, one could imagine the intensity of the previous battle. It was not a place to linger, and there was no need for more words.

"Wait a second..."

Seeing Gong Chengming preparing to lead his people away, Zhang Su suddenly called out, "I also want to ask you about Qincheng. Can you answer for free?"

Gong Chengming's mouth twitched involuntarily. He thought to himself that this guy was too damn mercenary. He took a deep breath, nodded, and said, "Go ahead, Brother Zhang."

"I heard on the radio that your Alliance has unified the area north of Qincheng. I want to know if there are other factions like yours in Qincheng?"

After hearing Zhang Su's question, Gong Chengming waved his hand with a smile and said, "Brother Zhang, that's just an exaggeration on the radio. We are just a survivor organization with a bit of strength in Qincheng. There are plenty of people stronger than us; I know of at least four or five."

In the darkness, Zhang Su could clearly see the strange grimace on Zhang Xin's face and knew that Gong Chengming wasn't telling the truth. He had actually just wanted to ask about the situation at the Wenhua Road barracks. Since he couldn't get any real information, he would let it go.

"Regiment Leader Gong is too modest. Bye-bye!"

"Goodbye..."

Zhang Su watched as the Survivor Alliance people drove away down the mountain.

Gong Chengming sat in the passenger seat, his gaze deep in the darkness. As they passed the self-built road and saw Lu Yubo throwing corpses while holding a flashlight, he rolled down the window and said, "Little brother, we are the Survivor Alliance. It's hard work in the middle of the night. Here, have a smoke."

As he spoke, he casually threw out an unopened pack of cigarettes.

*Clatter. *

Lu Yubo didn't have time to catch it, and the cigarettes landed on the ridge of the field. He turned his head to look at the man who had stuck his hand out the window to wave goodbye, feeling puzzled.

"Why would someone from the Survivor Alliance care about my hard work and even give me cigarettes... Crazy. Hehe, only a fool wouldn't take advantage of a freebie!"

Simple as he was, he couldn't be bothered to think about Gong Chengming's deeper intentions. He picked up the cigarettes from the ground, checked that they were unopened, took one out, lit it, and smoked it with pleasure. The swirling smoke masked the smell of blood, and he felt even more energetic in his work.

(End of chapter)