143: Chapter 143 Headquarters Blocked

Zongzheng Yue was rendered speechless by Yan Zhengping's retort.

He was right; in the apocalypse, being a soft-hearted person is not an option, especially for those in high positions.

However, it wasn't entirely Zongzheng Yue's fault.

The understanding of a General in times of peace differs from that of a General in times of chaos.

His ingrained sense of responsibility, deeply rooted in his blood, prevented him from being a cold-blooded person and abandoning the safety of the Citizens.

His heart was being severely questioned.

"Lao Zong, you bear the lives and futures of hundreds of thousands of Soldiers, as well as the heavy burden of half of Huaizhou City's safety. At this critical juncture, you must not make a foolish mistake! One wrong step, and you will be beyond redemption!" Yan Zhengping's tone softened as he earnestly advised.

Zongzheng Yue remained silent and quietly hung up the phone.

He sat in his Commander-in-Chiefs office, lost in thought, for the entire morning.

"Report!"

"Enter!" Zongzheng Yue said weakly.

"Reporting, Commander, the team dispatched to Huaizhou City for reconnaissance has sent back news," the messenger Soldier reported.

"Speak!"

"The reconnaissance team searched several streets and discovered a highly abnormal situation."

"What situation?"

"No zombies were found in Huaizhou City."

"None?"

Upon hearing this, Zongzheng Yue's brow furrowed even deeper. Not finding zombies at this time was not a good sign; the less that was seen, the more abnormal the situation.

"Order the team to continue their investigation!"

"Yes!" The messenger Soldier acknowledged and left.

Not long after, the messenger Soldier returned.

"Report!"

"Enter!"

"Reporting, Commander, the Military Region's directly subordinate special forces brigade discovered an anomaly during a hunting mission."

"Speak!"

"This morning, after the special forces brigade arrived in Mos, they began their zombie hunting mission. However, suspiciously, after searching an entire district of Mos, not a single zombie was found."

"What?" Zongzheng Yue could no longer sit still.

"This isn't right. The zombies in Huaizhou City disappeared, and now the zombies in Mos have also disappeared. Where did these zombies go?" Zongzheng Yue pondered in confusion.

"Order the special forces brigade to continue expanding their search area and ascertain the reason for the zombies' disappearance!" Zongzheng Yue commanded.

"Yes!"

The messenger Soldier acknowledged and left.

"It seems this incident must be premeditated!" The more Zongzheng Yue thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

"Report!"

Another messenger Soldier arrived.

"Enter!"

"Reporting, Commander, Mayor Left Wen Shan of Meilin Settlement made an urgent call, stating that a large number of zombies, possibly over a million, were discovered outside Meilin Settlement last night!" the Soldier reported.

"Report!"

"Enter!"

"Reporting, Commander, Suiyang Anbu has called for help..."

...

The messenger Soldiers came one after another.

Zongzheng Yue was completely overwhelmed.

At this rate, he wouldn't be able to provide rescue.

So many Settlements calling for help at the same time—he now completely disbelieved that there was no manipulation involved.

He finally made up his mind: he would hold his ground and observe the situation.

By evening, the Commander-in-Chiefs office's phone was ringing off the hook.

The messages were all very similar: they all stated that their Settlements were surrounded by zombies and requested the Military Region to send troops for support.

Zongzheng Yue ordered the Soldiers not to report anymore but to simply register the calls.

The night passed without incident, much ado about nothing.

Before dawn, the zombies surrounding the Settlements gradually retreated.

They feared sunlight, so they had to hide before sunrise.

Early the next morning, the entrance to the Commander-in-Chiefs office was swarmed with people sent from various Settlements seeking aid.

They all shouted, demanding to see Commander Zong.

Zongzheng Yue did not meet them, but instead had a messenger Soldier tell everyone that he was aware of the situation and was conducting further investigations. He asked everyone to return and patiently await news.

However, no one left; they continued to wait at the entrance.

It wasn't until the afternoon that people gradually dispersed.

In the evening, it happened again. This time, even more Settlements called.

The next morning, even more people arrived at the Commander-in-Chiefs office entrance.

They refused to listen to explanations and had only one demand: they hoped the Military Region could dispatch a portion of Soldiers to guard their Settlements.

Many had already brought tents and set up camp directly outside the Military Region, preparing for a long vigil. They were afraid that if the Military Region agreed to send troops, their own Settlements would be left out.

Zongzheng Yue had a splitting headache.

"This is outrageous!" he fumed. But outside were ordinary Citizens, and he couldn't use force against them. If a conflict broke out, it could lead to the Citizens losing faith in the army.

As the situation had developed, he could no longer make decisions on his own, so he reported the situation to the Speaker.

The Speaker's reply was only eight characters: "Prioritize appeasement, act as the situation demands."

What did that mean? It was as if nothing had been said.

Over the next few days, the crowd at the Military Region's entrance grew larger and larger, with almost every Settlement in the Southeast Military Region and Central Military Region sending people to stake out.

The situation was developing in an uncontrollable direction.

...

At noon on May 30, 2055.

Binjiang City, underground base.

"Mister Dongfang, today is the last day of the second phase of training. I think the team roster can pretty much be finalized now," Rong Po said.