You were supposed to hoard supplies, why the heck did you hoard zombies!

"Can I have a look?"

Chen Xiaoyong suddenly asked after a moment of contemplation.

"Sure, just say whatever you want directly."

"The customer is God, right?"

"Heh."

Tian Gou said, pushing the revolver on the coffee table lightly, and it spun sliding to the man across from him.

Under the bright light of the room, he immediately began examining it closely.

Indeed, it was different from the common homemade guns.

A revolver.

Judging by the caliber of the barrel, the bullets it used were most likely large-caliber rifle rounds; their power didn't need to be questioned.

But this also meant that the bullets were not interchangeable.

Coming to this realization, Chen Xiaoyong glanced at Tian Gou across from him and, with the other's permission, he picked up the gun and assumed a shooting stance.

The all-steel construction of the gun felt substantial in hand, the weight just right.

From his angle, he could perfectly see the bullets in the cylinder.

Steel core bullets as thick as a finger.

Just as he was wondering why they didn't use brass bullets, Tian Gou across from him had already provided an apt explanation:

"There's not much copper in the city."

"So, the folks at the machine shop discussed it and ultimately decided to use steel."

(I don't really know, I'm just bluffing, brothers feel free to imagine whatever, haha.)

After nodding, Chen Xiaoyong set the gun back down.

At the side of the coffee table was his own handgun, which he had picked up from the body of a police inspector during his escape from the city by car. It was also with this handgun that he had established his authority, consolidated power, and intimidated others.

In the end, he had successfully established the current settlement in the Ecological Park.

As for the homemade shotguns in other people's hands, they had been acquired recently from some folks, specifically to deal with those from the Jiangbei Motorcade's compound.

Whether against living humans or zombies, the importance of a gun was self-evident.

So he immediately made a decision.

"How much?"

"How many guns can you supply from your side?"

Upon hearing this, smiles inevitably crept onto the faces of the two men sitting across from him.

The boss was right as always.

Nobody could resist the conditions they offered.

Whether it was Peng Yue or this Chen Xiaoyong, once their territory had a breach opened by the company's goods, it was just a matter of time.

Tian Gou had already thought of the answer internally; naturally, there was no need for hesitation now.

"That depends on how many Brother Yong wants."

As he spoke, his body suddenly leaned forward; he smiled and continued, "As long as you can afford it, it's fine."

Money?

Chen Xiaoyong was no fool.

He naturally didn't think the money mentioned by the other party referred to the now worthless Shen Zhou currency.

"What do you want?"

"Food?"

"Or medicine?"

"There's a clinic nearby; just recently, we brought back quite a few medical supplies from there."

But Tian Gou's answer was somewhat unexpected.

He shook his head, adopting a troubled expression as he said:

"We have plenty of those."

"They're not worth much."

Not worth much?

Do you want to hear yourself talk?

Whether it's food or medicine, both are extremely precious resources to the survivors out there.

Yet now, in Tian Gou's eyes, they were merely three words, not worth much?

Chen Xiaoyong couldn't help but smile wryly.

"Then what do you want?"

"Or perhaps take a look around my room for something valuable?"

However, the other party didn't seem to notice the sarcasm in his words and instead seriously started to scrutinize the objects in the room.

At last, his gaze settled on a person.

Lu Mei.

The woman's expression froze, then she quickly looked toward the man beside her in fear, while Chen Xiaoyong's complexion suddenly darkened.

After all that, these two came here just to provoke and pick a fight?

They want his woman?

The atmosphere in the room suddenly became tense again.

It was at this moment that Tian Gou finally spoke up.

"I want people."

"What people?"

Chen Xiaoyong's tone was terrifyingly cold.

As he spoke, his entire body tensed up.

It seemed as if the moment the other party uttered those two words, he would erupt into a murderous rage.

"I want all kinds of people."

"Men, women, even the elderly and children."

"As Brother Yong saw earlier, our territory is so vast, how could a mere thousand people be enough?"

Once Tian Gou finished speaking, he saw Chen Xiaoyong across from him suddenly look embarrassed.

He immediately asked curiously, "What's wrong, Brother Yong? Are you dissatisfied with this condition?"

Chen Xiaoyong stared into his eyes for a long while, then suddenly chuckled a few times and said:

"No, no."
Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire

"Is there any other condition?"

People were the least valuable commodity now, and he didn't believe the other party was that generous.

As expected, he saw Tian Gou nod and continue:

"Besides people, there's only one other condition."

"Our boss has always been a person who likes making friends."

"So he hopes that both sides can become allies and assist each other in offense and defense."

"Allies?"

Chen Xiaoyong was somewhat stunned.

If Tian Gou hadn't been so serious, he would have subconsciously thought the other party was joking with him.

Looking at the map, the distance between their territories was over five kilometers.

Given the current road conditions in the city, it would take at least two hours by car.

If luck was bad, spending an extra hour or two wasn't impossible.

Was such an ally meaningful?

Just as he was pondering whether this condition had other ulterior motives, Tian Gou across from him had already begun to list the benefits of allying with their company.

"We have basically achieved self-sufficiency in terms of supplies now."

"There are many things that can be traded."

"Instant noodles, bread, and even canned goods are all produced in specialized factories."

"There are also weapons and equipment that are more practical than guns."

"Machetes, crossbows, protective gear, and so on."

As Tian Gou spoke, he suddenly lifted the clothes at his collar, revealing the metal armor underneath.

"Bulletproof vest?"

Lu Yong immediately exclaimed from the side.

But his brother-in-law could see clearly that it wasn't any bulletproof vest but a piece of clearly processed metal armor.

"Breastplate?"

He tentatively asked.

But before he could finish, he noticed that there seemed to be the same metal plates on both sides of the collar as well.

"Not just the breastplate."

"There are also shoulder pads and arm guards, all made of aluminum alloy."

"They are very useful against zombie bites and common weapon cuts."

Seeing that he seemed to have figured it out, Tian Gou smiled and started to explain.

"Can you also sell these things?"

Sure enough, Chen Xiaoyong's tone immediately became eager.

He was a smart man and naturally knew what these items meant.

In a world where the majority of combat occurs in close quarters, having such protective gear could definitely be considered an overwhelming equipment advantage.

If he were to provide each of his men with a set...

A cold smirk crossed Chen Xiaoyong's mind.

The Peng family brothers?

Even ten of them wouldn't be a match for him!

Then the whole Jiangbei outskirts would be at the mercy of the surname Chen!