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Yu Lingjie’s words made both Long Yu and Ye Gaofei’s faces change simultaneously.
Ye Gaofei glared at Yu Lingjie. Are you a fool?
Ye Gaofei had no other hobbies except his fondness for beautiful women. Anyone familiar with him knew this about him.
Beautiful women were a rare commodity, but when their numbers increased, it naturally led to a few of them being around.
Seeing all those beautiful girls and young women, Ye Gaofei was feeling a bit antsy. He wasn’t willing to get his hands dirty, so he picked a few of his trusted people to help him. Even Han Ya would assist him.
Han Ya was a true sycophant. Even before the apocalypse, she was Ye Gaofei’s sycophant. Otherwise, with her talent, Ye Gaofei wouldn’t have easily given her a crystal.
After Ye Gaofei had his fun, he handed the girls over to Yu Lingjie and his team to clean up.
They did a splendid job of covering Ye Gaofei’s tracks, making sure to leave no trace behind. But as they were transferring the bodies to bury them, someone noticed them.
The person who discovered them didn’t dare to speak up publicly, so they could only discreetly inform the aggrieved party.
Long Yu wasn’t a fool, and Yu Lingjie’s words instantly made him realize that the mastermind behind this was Ye Gaofei.
Long Yu glared at Ye Gaofei, finding it hard to believe that someone he trusted could stoop so low.
Ye Gaofei was at a loss for words and didn’t know how to explain himself.
On the other hand, Han Ya, lacking much thought, chimed in, “During the day, Ye Gaofei manages the entire base and is responsible for the well-being of everyone. If he wants to have some fun with a few women at night to keep his spirits up and make clear-headed decisions, what’s wrong with that?”
Long Yu felt like his worldview was collapsing. He knew about the close relationship between Han Ya and Ye Gaofei, but could it go to this extent?
Ye Gaofei rubbed his head in frustration. Originally, he thought he could salvage the situation, but now, what more could he say?
A bunch of pig-headed teammates.
Long Yu spoke coldly, “People with different values can’t cooperate. I’ll take my leave.”
Staying here any longer made Long Yu feel like he was going to vomit. While he wanted to seek vengeance for the deceased women, he knew that he couldn’t take on both Ye Gaofei and Han Ya by himself, especially since most of the third-levels here wouldn’t listen to him.
Behind him, there were some people willing to follow him to kill zombies. Fighting Ye Gaofei here was just foolish.
Long Yu kept his face towards Ye Gaofei but continued to step back. After reaching a safe distance, he left with a group of people.
Long Yu had some trusted followers of his own and those who shared his beliefs.
Han Ya was anxious. “Gaofei, do something! Long Yu will become a problem sooner or later. What if he spreads the word about your affairs?”
Ye Gaofei sighed. “I can’t just take action openly. Long Yu can control metal, and he’s quite formidable. We don’t have many people here, and many of the third-levels have good relations with him. It’s not realistic to let them attack Long Yu.”
In other words, they were reluctant to risk their lives. When did Ye Gaofei and Han Ya ever take such risks?
Ye Gaofei sighed again. People’s loyalties were getting scattered. It wasn’t easy to lead this group anymore.
Then, he had an idea. “Spread the word: Long Yu acted ruthlessly against men and women, lost his humanity, but considering his past contributions, I’ll let him go.”
Han Ya was momentarily surprised, then burst into laughter. “Gaofei, your mind works quickly.”
Most of those who learned the truth chose to follow Long Yu, leaving behind Ye Gaofei’s associates. In the entire base, Ye Gaofei still held the highest prestige. As long as the story spread, the blame for these actions would fall squarely on Long Yu.
Testimonies alone wouldn’t be enough to change the narrative unless there was physical evidence, like video footage, to turn things around.
Long Yu led over forty people out of the base, feeling lost and uncertain about their destination. He glanced back and muttered to himself, “I was too naive, thinking that I could get everyone to come together and kill zombies. It’s never that simple.”
…
Chen Luo observed the trembling group of gang leaders in front of him, but he couldn’t help but frown with concern.
As long as Ye Gaofei remained alive, how could he subdue Long Yu?
Take someone like Song Ling, one of Zhao Hai’s subordinates; Chen Luo found him decent. While his strength was average, he was efficient and adaptable, speaking diplomatically when needed. He had been loyal to Zhao Hai for over a decade, so there was no reason to believe he would betray. If he did, Chen Luo couldn’t trust him either.
However, if Zhao Hai died, it would be a different story. Chen Luo believed that, unless something happened to his mental state, Song Ling would eventually come to join him. But Zhao Hai’s death couldn’t be at Chen Luo’s hands, as even if he executed it secretly, there was still a risk of exposure. Once Song Ling found out, he would likely harbor deep resentment.
The same logic applied to Ye Gaofei; it was better if he didn’t die by Chen Luo’s hand. This was one of the reasons Chen Luo refrained from taking action and instead relied on Qi Lin.
“I know nothing and haven’t done anything,” Chen Luo thought.
But now, Qi Lin was dead. Chen Luo contemplated the relationship between Long Yu and Ye Gaofei; it was unlikely to be as solid as the bond between Zhao Hai and Song Ling. Chen Luo decided to observe further.
Maybe Ye Gaofei didn’t die at Qi Lin’s hands but at someone else’s. Or perhaps his base, with his particular way of doing things, collapsed on its own.
Zhao Hai spoke up, “I’ve arranged a trusted person to join Ye Gaofei with a group of about a dozen people. We should be able to get timely information from there.”
Chen Luo chuckled, considering how Ye Gaofei operated; infiltrating his ranks as a spy couldn’t be easier. They could all join and bring him down together, right?
Chen Luo then addressed the group of gang leaders, “Rest assured, as long as you don’t provoke me, I never pick fights, nor do I harbor ambitions for control like Ye Gaofei. I can’t afford the manpower.”
“Perhaps, in the future, we might find areas for cooperation,” Chen Luo added.
The gang leaders nodded humbly, assuring Chen Luo of their willingness to cooperate and obey his orders. They promised to keep their subordinates in check and give way when they encountered Chen Luo’s people.
“I have a large batch of ration packs. When I return, I’ll have someone deliver a batch to Mr. Chen,” Zhao Hai offered.
Zhao Hai couldn’t help but sigh. Ye Gaofei was also part of their community, so why did he insist on going it alone, risking his own life and the lives of others? The gap between him and Chen Luo was enormous.
Zhao Hai thought about how he had been the only one to curry favor with Chen Luo so far, but he was certain that many others would now join in.
As for the followers of Qi Lin, Chen Luo hadn’t been able to deal with all of them in one go. Most of them had fled, and for the vast majority, they wouldn’t harbor any revengeful thoughts towards Chen Luo. They either lacked the courage or saw no need for it. Qi Lin was gone, and they would just find a new boss.
However, a few of Qi Lin’s loyal underlings wouldn’t be so quick to give up. They had been with him for a while and were genuinely devoted to him. Several of them had survived Chen Luo’s attack.
When they gathered, they were full of anger and frustration.
“What do we do now?”
“Is a Level 4 really this terrifying?”
“Damn it, it’s not like he’s the only Level 4 out there. Let’s go find Ye Gaofei. They have three Level 4s over there; they can definitely handle him.”
“Yeah, Ye Gaofei won’t tolerate an uncontrollable Level 4 either.”
“Let’s go, find Ye Gaofei.”