"Yes, save Brother Zhang first!"
"What will we do if we encounter zombies without him!?"
"Let Brother Zhang decide what to do!"
Anyone with a bit of sense quickly realized this.
At worst, they could save Zhang Tie and not Lin An.
Zhang Tie's sister and relatives were in the hotel, so he wouldn't leave a zombie here.
This way, they wouldn't seem heartless and there'd be no danger.
The crowd stopped arguing, and some even nervously gripped makeshift weapons, ready to help Zhang Tie.
Wang Jianguo couldn't help but chuckle softly at the scene before him.
He had anticipated this outcome.
A motley crew, weak human nature.
Whether out of self-preservation, conscience, or future considerations, people would choose this way.
In essence, they were still concerned about their own safety.
Seeing the rope being lowered and Zhang Tie about to reach the building, Wang Jianguo suddenly spoke again.
"Everyone, I contacted the military during the day, and they promised to rescue us within a few days."
"You don't need to worry about future safety."
"The military has established a safe zone, and many of them are stronger than Lin An and Zhang Tie!"
Wang Jianguo smiled confidently.
He directly addressed the crowd's main concern—safety!
Conscience? Saving people? Nonsense!
"So, for safety, they can't come up!"
"If the rescue personnel find out we saved potential zombies..."
"Heh, don't blame me if you can't get on the rescue planes then."
Behind him, a few white-collar workers he had colluded with silently moved into the crowd to seize the rope.
Meanwhile, Zhang Tie was less than thirty meters from the hotel, stumbling.
Over a hundred zombies were howling and charging behind him, with the closest only two meters away.
"Lower the rope!"
Zhang Tie's eyes widened in anger, glaring at the broken second-floor window.
He saw shadows moving and believed they had heard him.
What was happening?
Why hadn't they lowered the rope?
"Second Uncle!"
"Old Huang!"
No response.
In a panic, he hurriedly dragged Lin An into the back of an overturned truck.
Lin An's breathing grew weaker, and Zhang Tie felt a burning rage inside.
The truck's back wouldn't hide them for long. Once surrounded by zombies, escape would be impossible.
Gasping for breath, Zhang Tie looked anxiously at Lin An.
As an awakener, his powerful abilities also meant he consumed a lot of food.
Exhausted and mentally drained, he felt a strong hunger rising.
Without food to replenish his strength, even if they weren't attacked by zombies, he wouldn't recover.
Both he and Lin An needed a safe place to rest!
Frantically, Zhang Tie rummaged through the medicine bag.
It was all in English; he couldn't understand it. He didn't know what the bandaged girl had taken!
Desperate, he shoved all the pills into Lin An's mouth.
But without water, they were quickly spat out.
Feeling hopeless, he watched Lin An's breath grow weaker, fearing he would turn into a zombie at any moment.
What to do!? What should I do?
Food, water!
He needed both!
...
On the second floor of the hotel, Wang Jianguo looked at the angry Second Uncle and his group with a calm expression.
"I'm doing this for everyone's sake. When the military arrives, you'll see who's right and who's wrong."
He sighed, but internally, he was full of disdain.
A bunch of fools, easily deceived.
The crowd was abuzz with discussion.
Wang Jianguo's words instantly caught their attention.
"Director Wang, is the military really sending people to rescue us?"
"Aren't the phones out of service? And there's no electricity!"
Some people expressed doubts but were quickly interrupted by Wang Jianguo's paid followers.
"Don't you know what kind of status Director Wang has? Just because you can't contact anyone doesn't mean he can't! Use your brains, he's a big shot!"
"Besides, we're in the city center. There's no way they'd abandon us."
"If not everyone can leave when the rescue comes, don't blame us if we don't take you!"
Half explanation, half threat.
The skeptical crowd soon fell silent.
Wang Jianguo, with a calm expression and sincere look, cleared his throat.
"I hope no one doubts this anymore. I guarantee with my reputation that the higher-ups will send people to rescue us!"
"What we need to do now is ensure our own safety and avoid infection so we can get on the plane!"
He thumped his chest convincingly, as if it were the truth.
But Wang Jianguo knew inside that the so-called rescue and military safe zone were all fabricated.
His phone had long been off; with no signal, he couldn't contact anyone.
But he was a member of the leadership team and was confident that the higher-ups wouldn't abandon him.
In a few days, even if the military didn't come, there would at least be some armed police, right?
Most of the crowd, lacking their own opinions, stopped questioning after Wang Jianguo's guarantee.
Among those Zhang Tie brought, a few still loyal to him could only fume in silence.
The reason was simple: Wang Jianguo had recruited a group of young men, some of the few in the hotel who were strong.
These men, wielding fire axes, subtly threatened the others.
They might fear zombies, but threatening a bunch of old and weak people was something they dared to do.
Seeing the situation under control, Wang Jianguo felt pleased with himself.
He had casually promised that following him would lead to government jobs in the future.
And once the military came, those with him would have priority boarding the rescue planes.
With threats and inducements, these people followed his orders without question, utterly foolish.
As everyone was about to return to their rooms, a young girl's tearful voice rang out.
"Uncle, please lower the rope, okay?"
"My brother is still out there!"
Tears streaming down her face and eyes red with sorrow, Zhang Youwei looked at Wang Jianguo, trembling with emotion.
Hmm?
Wang Jianguo, his arm around a fawning woman, stopped and turned to look at her.
Tsk tsk.
Such a pretty little girl, a real beauty in the making.
Zhang Youwei's pure and cute appearance, with her tear-filled, pleading eyes, evoked pity.
Her pale feet in sandals, round toes made him want to grab and play with them.
Her smooth, white skin was like milk poured from a steaming teapot.
The innocence unique to a young girl made his heart crawl like ants.
A flash of greed crossed his eyes as he subtly withdrew his arm from the woman's waist.
In comparison, the woman he had found attractive now seemed like a withered flower.
Taking three quick steps, he reached Zhang Youwei.
"Uncle wants to save your brother, but he's infected."
His smoke-stained, yellow teeth and foul breath were nauseating.
"Uncle is looking out for everyone's safety. If there were a way, I'd surely save him!"
He pretended to comfort her, reaching to touch her face, caressing gently.
Her lively, smooth cheeks seemed so tender that a squeeze might make water flow out.
Unable to resist, his hand moved downward, as if to pat her shoulder.
"Uncle…"
Zhang Youwei trembled, sensing a frightening look in the man's eyes.
"My brother isn't infected; he can still fight zombies."
Sobbing uncontrollably, her shoulders shook as she tried to avoid his greasy hand.
Wang Jianguo sneered inwardly.
He had guessed that Zhang Tie was probably not infected; otherwise, he'd be unconscious like Lin An, right?
But letting Zhang Tie up? No one would listen to him then!
Earlier, when recruiting people, he had promised them free rein with the hotel's women.
To manipulate and exploit people, he first had to give these fools a taste of sweetness!
"Sweetheart, Uncle…"
One hand pressed Zhang Youwei down while the other pretended to stroke her with pity.
"Swish."
Just as his heart raced with excitement, he suddenly felt a chill on his neck.
"Lower the rope and save him!"
A cold voice, full of murderous intent.