Lori's funeral was held at ten o'clock the next morning, and it was Gabriel who presided over the funeral, except for those on duty, everyone on the base came to accompany Rick.
The cemetery is in a remote corner outside the base, there were many bodies here and they are all those who have died during all this time.
Next to Lori's grave was one resting quietly and it was Beth's deceased boyfriend, who had died a long time ago.
Everyone hoped that there were no hard feelings between the way that person died, so after a few simple words everyone was silent.
The work of relocating the new arrivals has also been completed, and everyone has been assigned to the remodeled dormitory in the gym, there are double rooms there, although not large, they are safe and comfortable that would serve while the buildings are being constructed.
Just as everyone was adjusting to the new surroundings and things, Airon was busy again.
Lori's funeral is finally over, and what makes him secretly happy is Rick's situation. In the original show, Rick's breakdown was mainly due to Carl witnessing his mother's tragic death and not being able to see his wife for the last time. The two were still at odds, as Rick was unable to say goodbye to his wife and Carl for coping.
This time, there was no serious conflict between the couple, and before Lori died, the family had a brief meeting of more than half a day, so everything that could be said was finally said.
Then, after being depressed for a while, Rick obviously became very relaxed. Only two days later, he took the initiative to find Airon.
What he didn't expect was that the other party would come to apologize this time. It turned out that Lori had revealed the things that led to Airon putting himself in danger before she died.
Airon understood what she was thinking. He was afraid that what he had done would affect her opinion of him. Now that he had set the record straight, he could not only reduce his doubts, but also remind him that he was not someone ambitious as his wife had made him out to be.
Rick knew that his wife never understood Airon even after his death. However, Airon had no intention of taking this resentment to a faraway place, he had made up his mind that he would forget everything that had happened. What was the point of talking about it after everyone was dead?
He would not naively think that everyone on the base agreed with him and his methods, and what he needed to do now was to unite everyone, so that they would all prosper together as a powerful organization.
The place where they are now is the meeting room, and it was in that place that Airon and Rick had a long talk.
Finally, Rick finally told him the real reason why he came to him this time.
"I want to tell you something very important. I thought that since you came back, you'd better take charge of leading this base. You are a very good leader, much better than me."
"You can rest for a while and clear your mood, but I can't stay in this place for long. I plan to gather survivors in other distant areas and supervise the progress of the growth base, so I will be out frequently. There must be a reliable person at the base so I can leave with peace of mind."
Rick looked at him in surprise, in his opinion, after what happened to Lori, there should be some complaints in Airon, but looking into those honest eyes, he felt they were not quite true.
From the apocalypse to the present, Airon was aware of most things and built this base little by little. It can be said that everyone in this base owes him a living and is infinitely grateful to him.
Especially himself, he couldn't count how many times he had been rescued by Airon. Thinking about this and the apology in his heart he still hesitated to go on as before.
"Shane and Mike can take over, there's no need for me to."
"No, I understand your thoughts but no."
Obviously, Airon disagreed with Rick's statement, his head shaking over and over again.
"Maybe someone is more capable than you, but no one is more suitable than you in my absence."
"I don't need you if you doubt, Rick, Mike and Shane will stay in this place and help you lead, you must contribute the most time to your family after all. But they trust you, and you must protect them."
Seeing that Rick's expression was a little dubious, Airon went on to say a few words that anyone in Rick's situation would want to hear.
"It's a coincidence that you came today. I have something very important to discuss with you, this very few men know in Atlanta."
After speaking, Airon took a map and spread it out on the table, then leaned on the table with both hands and looked at Rick.
Staring at him, Rick also walked over to the table curiously, as he approached he saw a map of Birmingham but unlike a normal map, there were numerous circles and annotations with different drawings.
"This is it?"
Rick looked puzzled, he couldn't understand the information on the map at all so he looked to Airon for answers.
"This is the information I gathered about the surrounding forces in our domain as I received continuous reports from Atlanta and Georgia."
After he finished speaking, he did not continue explaining, but instead heard a sound of footsteps and shouted, "Enter!"
With a creak, the door opened in response, and then a voice unfamiliar to Rick was heard, and Negan suddenly appeared in the doorway, followed by Tyler, Mike, Liam and Shane.
Negan entered the room, while Airon nodded towards the group. They all sat down in the seats without saying a word.
At least most in the room were puzzled, but waited to hear Airon's explanation.
"What I'm going to say next is very important, and only the group who went with me to Washington and those who visited Texas know about it."
Just as Negan was about to speak, Airon stopped him immediately.
"I'll explain why I'm especially looking for you, Negan."
When Airon looked at Tyler, he nodded and began to set up the presentation he had prepared by means of a projector, two maps were in focus and many signs marked on the map of Birmingham and Ohio. As for the reason, it was due to what he had explained to Deanna and what they would be doing in the future.
Anyway, so far no one knows the CRM organization, they can edit what they want and many will believe it when external details are verified. In this amount, Airon presented some groups and their actual numbers, then talked a bit about the CRM and the Fireflies he had heard about that organization in Texas.
After a few introductions, Airon simply sat down in a chair to give them a little time to digest when he saw the other people's expressions turn bright.
After a long time, Negan finally regained his senses and kept checking the map with his eyes wide open.
"This is a great move, news full of bombs bouncing off my ass!"
Rick's performance is much more reserved, but he was also very surprised.
"Have you confirmed the news?"
"Everything has been confirmed Rick, this information will be relayed to everyone with class 2 authority!"
"Now you should understand why I place so much importance on the population. This organization has always been like the sword of Damocles hanging over my head, from the beginning it's what I feared would happen."
"After going to Washington this time, I found an outside member who works for the CRM. This person is not important, but can guide people to this organization in a safe way. Although this process takes time and has certain risk factors, it's our best way to get us inside."
Negan suddenly smiled and understood the reason he appeared in this room.
"You want me to be an undercover agent?"
"Hehe, you're very smart."
Airon nodded, but then shook his head again, Nigan didn't understand what he meant and could only hope for an explanation.
"I wanted to send you there at first, but now I regret it again. I don't know if it's right to do so. Let alone if sending people will result in the right way to infiltrate us, even if it can, we really need to understand the way those people act."
"After thinking about it, I decided to give you the right to choose who you want to be informants. We have not been in contact for a long time, but I can see that you are an intelligent person, you have your own ideas and you are very resolute. Even if you hadn't found us, Negan, you would have survived without any problems."