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Chen Luo couldn’t help but feel a sense of familiarity as he looked at Zhao Hai’s appearance. After a moment of thought, he realized that this was the creditor to whom he had mortgaged his villa in exchange for three billion yuan.
He found the situation rather vexing. Meeting one’s creditor in the post-apocalyptic world? What kind of luck was this? As far as he remembered, this had never happened in his previous life.
However, as he thought further, he realized that in his previous life, he hadn’t borrowed money at all. Therefore, he couldn’t have known Zhao Hai back then. It was possible that Zhao Hai had come by before, but he hadn’t recognized him or remembered his appearance.
On the other side, Zhao Hai, along with his group, was also observing Chen Luo’s group. They had less than a hundred people, around seventy to eighty. If there were still survivors in the villa area, they should have come out in force.
Originally, Zhao Hai had assumed that Chen Luo’s side could have cleared a substantial area of zombies, with at least a few hundred in their group. Moreover, there was the matter of the debt Chen Luo owed him.
Suddenly, an idea took root in Zhao Hai’s mind. Even in the post-apocalyptic world, he couldn’t help but feel somewhat dissatisfied that he hadn’t received the money back yet.
Zhao Hai burst into hearty laughter. “Brother, I never expected to meet you in this situation. What a coincidence.”
Chen Luo also smiled. “I didn’t anticipate running into you here either.”
As they exchanged pleasantries, Chen Luo’s group looked at Zhao Hai and his companions with curiosity. Did their leader know these people?
Meanwhile, Jin Tao noticed Mi Ling and Mi Li, and he almost drooled. He had a reputation for being quite fond of beautiful women, especially those with ample figures. Mi Ling not only looked stunning but also appeared as if she had just stepped out of the pre-apocalyptic world, with her clean and rosy complexion.
Curious, Jin Tao whispered to Zhao Hai, “Big Bro, do you know this guy?”
Zhao Hai muttered quietly, “This guy owes me a huge sum of money.”
Jin Tao’s eyes lit up immediately. He asked Zhao Hai, “Really? How much does he owe you?”
Zhao Hai confirmed with a nod as he glanced at Chen Luo’s demeanor. “Brother, you owe me 300 million yuan. The loan term has already expired, and the total with interest is 330 million yuan. It’s been several days since the due date, and you haven’t paid back. Given the special circumstances, I won’t ask for the penalty and interest.”
“Now, repay the money,” Zhao Hai insisted. If Chen Luo had a larger group with him, Zhao Hai might have thought twice, but given the opportunity to gain an advantage, why not try?
Jin Tao chimed in, “Debts must be paid. It’s only right.”
Chen Luo couldn’t help but smirk. Why did they have the misconception that he would actually pay them back? He replied, “I’ve already transferred the money to you a while ago. Haven’t you received it? If it weren’t for the lack of signal, I’d show you the transaction records. I’m the type of person who never shirks his financial obligations.”
Zhao Hai hesitated, realizing he hadn’t received any money. He thought to himself, “Why is he playing these tricks?”
One of Zhao Hai’s subordinates angrily retorted, “Stop lying. With such a substantial amount of money, would you not make the transfer in person? You didn’t even inform us. You’re just trying to deceive us!”
Chen Luo chuckled softly, “Then you should go to the bank and bring forth evidence that I didn’t make the transfer.”
With no concrete evidence, they were at an impasse.
“You claim I haven’t repaid the money, so show me the evidence of me not repaying it,” Chen Luo replied with a sly smile. “You did help me once, and I’m a person who repays kindness. I’ll give you a ton of rice as a token of gratitude.”
Zhao Hai clearly seemed to be nitpicking. He knew that in this post-apocalyptic world, money had lost its value, so why was he demanding it back? Chen Luo had borrowed the money fairly and squarely; why should he repay it?
With a stern expression, Zhao Hai said, “Brother, this isn’t appropriate. I won’t push you too hard. Just give us some meat. Times have changed, and the value of meat is different now. Let’s say it’s worth ten thousand yuan per kilogram.”
Zhao Hai seemed insistent on getting something back, even if it wasn’t money.
“One billion is equivalent to ten thousand kilograms of meat, which is five tons. Three billion equals fifteen tons of meat. Let’s consider the debt cleared,” Zhao Hai proposed.
On the other hand, Jin Tao sneered, “Sharing is caring. I want fifteen tons too. It’s not too much, is it? If there’s no meat, we’ll consider your women as payment.”
Hearing Zhao Hai’s words, Chen Luo couldn’t help but appreciate how savvy he was. Zhao Hai understood the changing times. After all, the value of meat had skyrocketed in this post-apocalyptic world, even though it used to be quite cheap. However, Chen Luo wasn’t willing to give them anything, and his firm response made Zhao Hai realize something important.
Seeing Chen Luo’s attitude and the confidence of his group, Zhao Hai suddenly understood that Chen Luo had likely cleared a vast area of zombies by relying on strength. This explained why they seemed unafraid, even though they were outnumbered. Chen Luo’s demeanor indicated that he was not to be underestimated.
Zhao Hai made a quick decision and said, “My mistake, I don’t want anything. Chen Luo, I was wrong. Your money did indeed arrive.”
The people around them were shocked. Even Zhao Hai’s own men couldn’t believe what they were hearing, but they trusted him and didn’t argue.
Jin Tao looked at Zhao Hai, puzzled, and asked, “Are you out of your mind?”
Zhao Hai waved his hand and replied, “I really made a mistake. Chen Luo, my apologies for doubting you.”
Chen Luo applauded him and said, “You’re a reasonable person. Keep your people out of trouble, stand aside.”
If Zhao Hai had persisted or been disrespectful, Chen Luo wouldn’t have let him off so easily. However, Zhao Hai showed some understanding, and Chen Luo had no desire to shed blood unnecessarily.
Zhao Hai glanced at Jin Tao and silently left with his men, knowing he had stepped on a hornet’s nest when he tried to go after one of Chen Luo’s women.
Jin Tao, with his beer belly, was taken aback and angrily cursed, “Zhao Hai, you coward! Clearly, they have so few people on their side, and you act like this? You’re a disgrace. I must be blind.”
Zhao Hai remained silent, as he didn’t want to lose any meat over this argument.
Chen Luo snorted and said, “Want to go after me? Come at me then.”
Jin Tao voice turned cold, “Anyone who doesn’t want to risk their life with me, stand on Zhao Hai’s side. You have ten seconds.”
In the early stages of forming a team, everyone joined forces out of the understanding that survival was difficult alone. If the team leader was strong and showed leadership early on, people generally accepted them as the leader.
However, in these early days, loyalty wasn’t very deep, and it could easily change. Only after going through multiple life-and-death battles and adapting over time would true loyalty develop.
At this moment, there was no room for such loyalty. Most people were loyal to themselves and followed Chen Luo because they knew he was powerful.
If Chen Luo’s strength was just average, would you believe there would be people running away in a situation where there’s such a huge numerical disparity? Peak moments breed insincere support. Chen Luo was aware of this but didn’t mind. He believed that their current unwavering loyalty was somewhat ridiculous; it needed time and the test of life and death to solidify.
Once someone proved their loyalty, they became a core member. Chen Luo would share the things from his ability space with them. However, he wouldn’t be as generous as when they accidentally acquired beef and mutton from the market; he wasn’t that generous.
As expected, there were smart people on Jin Tao’s side who realized the situation was unfavorable and began to silently retreat. What surprised Chen Luo was that Jin Tao was a dark-elemental supernatural with the ability to summon.