Chapter 92 A calculated scheme? The choice of a wise person

Su Ze's half-joking threat was like a bucket of ice water poured over everyone's heads in the auditorium.

The smell of gunpowder was instantly replaced by a chilling cold.

Wang Meng and his group of Athletes had muscles twitching in their faces, veins bulging on their hands gripping weapons, yet not a single person dared to take a step forward.

Zhuang Qianhao's expression was also incredibly grim.

The alliance members behind him looked at each other in dismay; the clamor and anger in their eyes had turned into wariness and a hint of fear.

It was true.

He had the strength.

Alone, he could suppress everyone in this building who wanted to stand out, making them unable to lift their heads.

That was the most despair-inducing part.

Seeing their ashen faces, the smile on Su Ze's face remained unchanged; he knew the timing was just right.

Wang Meng stared fixedly at Su Ze, his chest heaving violently, his heavy breathing exceptionally clear in the quiet auditorium.

He really wanted to roar, "I'm done with this!" and then lead his men to fight Su Ze to the death.

But reason told him he couldn't.

Going against such an existence was unwise.

After a long while, Wang Meng, like a deflated ball, squeezed out a sentence through his teeth: "...Can you give us some time to consider?" balance

"Of course."

Su Ze nodded, agreeing cleanly and decisively.

He didn't even give Wang Meng a second glance, as if he had anticipated this outcome long ago.

"Once you've decided, come find me."

Having said that, he turned and left without the slightest hesitation, his departing figure filled with an infuriating composure.

Dozens of people in the auditorium watched him walk leisurely toward the door; no one dared to stop him, and no one even dared to breathe loudly.

Just as Su Ze's hand was about to touch the door handle.

"Wait a moment!"

Zhuang Qianhao's voice suddenly rang out.

Su Ze paused and looked back.

He saw Zhuang Qianhao take a deep breath, step past the ashen-faced Wang Meng, and solemnly cup his fists toward Su Ze.

"Brother Su Ze, I accept your terms."

"What?!"

Wang Meng whipped his head around, looking at Zhuang Qianhao in disbelief, his eyes filled with the anger of betrayal.

"Zhuang Qianhao! Are you fucking crazy?! Did you even talk it over with him?!"

Zhuang Qianhao ignored him and simply looked at Su Ze, adding word by word:

"However, I also have a condition."

"The three of us must maintain uniform pricing; no one is allowed to lower prices privately and disrupt the market."

Su Ze smiled.

Talking to smart people was indeed effortless.

"Deal." He nodded. "Then prepare the copper coins and come to me to collect the goods. Also, let's discuss the specific plan for the installments."

"Fine, I'll head over shortly," Zhuang Qianhao agreed.

Su Ze didn't stay any longer, pulled open the door, and his figure disappeared from everyone's sight.

As soon as he left, the oppressive atmosphere in the auditorium instantly exploded!

"Fuck! Zhuang Qianhao, what do you mean by this!"

Wang Meng couldn't hold back anymore, grabbed Zhuang Qianhao by the collar, his eyes bloodshot.

"You just sold us out like that?! You sold all of us out?!"

Jiang Haiqing and the others also immediately surrounded him, each glaring furiously.

"Brother Meng is right! This is betrayal!"

"We haven't even agreed yet! And you accepted on our behalf?"

Zhuang Qianhao let Wang Meng hold him, showing no sign of panic, only sighing calmly.

"Brother Wang Meng, let go first."

"Listen to me; we won't lose out on this cooperation."

"Not lose out?" Wang Meng laughed out of extreme anger. "We're taking all the risks, and nineteen thousand copper coins' worth of goods could be stuck in our hands at any time! In the end, we have to work like dogs for him and pay off debts in installments! You call this not losing out?!"

"Because you haven't seen the real benefits behind this deal!" Zhuang Qianhao's voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear.

He pulled away from Wang Meng's grip, looked around at the angry crowd, and began his analysis.

"First, do you think he's trying to scam us by having us take so much stock?"

"Isn't he?" Jiang Haiqing couldn't help but interject.

"Yes, but also no." Zhuang Qianhao shook his head.

He looked at Wang Meng and analyzed point by point.

"First, what's the market like right now? Everyone is frantically collecting resources. We have the goods; do you think they won't sell?"

"At least they'll sell today, right? Even if we don't sell everything, how much could we lose? Right now, the earlier we sell, the sooner we make money!"

Wang Meng's anger subsided slightly, but his face remained somber.

"So what? Once more people unlock the Mall later, who will we sell our goods to? Won't everything just be stuck in our hands then?"

"Are you stupid?" Zhuang Qianhao gave him a look of frustration. "Brother Wang Meng, why can't you wrap your head around this?"

"Think about it. In the future, if one or two troublemakers also unlock the Mall and try to compete with us, what do you think will happen?"

Zhuang Qianhao paused, a slight curve appearing at the corners of his mouth.

"Su Ze can use his strength to prevent others from selling. Can't... we do the same?"

"Combined, our two groups have sixty or seventy people. What kind of presence is that in this building? Is it really that hard to 'dissuade' one or two newly opened small vendors?"

"As for those small-scale, secretive private transactions, how much can they really affect us? They're completely insignificant!"

Wang Meng was completely stunned.

He stared intently at Zhuang Qianhao, as if thunder had exploded in his mind.

That's right!

Why hadn't he thought of that!

"And..."

Zhuang Qianhao lowered his voice even further, carrying a hint of inexplicable excitement.

"When we step in to stop them, what will others think? They'll only think it's Su Ze's idea! After all, we are his 'Agents'!"

"When the time comes, even if it incites public outrage, it will be directed at Su Ze!"

"And us? We just need to enjoy the shade under the big tree and make a fortune in silence!"

"This... this is fucking..."

An athlete behind Wang Meng listened in dazed shock and couldn't help but swear.

This way of playing was way too dirty!

Wang Meng's breath hitched.

He wasn't a fool; with Zhuang Qianhao's hint, he instantly understood the key points.

Exactly! By then, they would become Su Ze's "henchmen," able to suppress all competitors openly!

"And there's the most crucial third point; haven't you thought about it?" Zhuang Qianhao lowered his voice even more.

"Why did he want us to stock up so much at once? Especially those five hundred units of Iron Material and five hundred units of Stone Material?"

Wang Meng was stunned, then he realized.

"Exactly!" Zhuang Qianhao's eyes became meaningful. "How did Su Ze lead that group of women to clear out the zombies before?"

"With materials! Using Iron Material and Stone Material as projectiles for long-range area attacks!"

"Su Ze could do that with a group of weak women. Can't... we?"

Boom!

Many people's heads buzzed as if struck hard by a heavy hammer!

Five hundred units of Iron Material! Five hundred units of Stone Material!

This isn't fucking stockpiling!

This is basically an armory!

With so much "ammunition," given the strength of their group, how high would their efficiency in clearing zombies be?

In one day, simply clearing two or three floors of zombies, how many copper coins could they earn?

Three thousand? Four thousand? Even more!

In the entire school, the one thing not in short supply was hallways packed with zombies!

Calculating it like this, that bit of debt meant absolutely nothing!

"One last point." Zhuang Qianhao looked at the now-pensive Wang Meng and threw out his final trump card.

"I, Zhuang Qianhao, don't have any grand ambitions; I just want to lead my brothers to survive well."

"Accepting Su Ze's terms might seem humiliating, but in reality, it establishes the most stable relationship of shared interests with him."

"Think about it: if you owe the bank hundreds of millions, will the bank let you die easily? No! They'll do everything they can to keep you alive because if you die, their money is gone!"

"We are now Su Ze's biggest 'debtors'! If we encounter some insurmountable obstacle in the future, will he just watch us go under? At the very worst, we'd just end up with a bit more debt!"

Wang Meng fell completely silent.

He had to admit that every word Zhuang Qianhao said was correct.

This wasn't some unfair contract at all; this was a fucking Open Scheme!

An Open Scheme where you clearly know the other party is using you, yet you have no choice but to jump in willingly!

"Brother Wang Meng," Zhuang Qianhao patted his shoulder, his tone softening.

"I know you're feeling upset. Su Ze understands these principles too."

"The reason he dared to offer these terms is that he's certain we are smart people who can figure out the pros and cons."

"You just let anger and pride cloud your judgment for a moment."

"Now, there are only two paths."

"One path is for us to keep the Mall to ourselves, buy a few things for our own use, and not sell anything."

"But if we do that, we'll be left further and further behind by Su Ze."

"And don't forget, those time-limited and limited-quantity special items in the Mall were all snatched up by him! If we want to use them, we can only buy them from him!"

"The other path is to swallow our pride and 'work' for him."

After speaking, Zhuang Qianhao said no more, turned, and left the auditorium with his men.

"Brother Wang Meng, think it over yourself."

In the empty auditorium, only Wang Meng and his group of bewildered tough guys remained.

"Brother Meng... we..." Jiang Haiqing approached, his face full of conflict.

Wang Meng didn't speak.

He understood everything Zhuang Qianhao had analyzed.

But he just couldn't accept it!

He had worked so hard to build this team to be the boss, to reign supreme in this apocalyptic world!

Not to be someone else's pawn!

Once he accepted Su Ze's terms, it meant that from now on, he, Wang Meng, would have to rank below Su Ze in this building!

His ambitions and aspirations would all become a joke!

Wang Meng's fists clenched until they cracked, his knuckles turning white from the exertion.

He closed his eyes, rapidly weighing the gains and losses in his mind...