Duane's Crooked Thoughts

"Trust? Delegation?" Anthony was puzzled, looking at Lynn.

Lynn explained, "It means letting go of the mindset of personally handling everything, learning to accept imperfections, and as long as the results are satisfactory to you, it's fine how each person does things."

"But..." Anthony wanted to argue, but Lynn interrupted him directly, "Right now, we have a total of 7 people in our base, and 50 on the periphery. Can you barely manage this? What about when there are thousands or tens of thousands?"

"I'm worried you'll work yourself to death."

"I don't want that either, but..." Anthony sighed helplessly.

Lynn knew that Anthony was somewhat resistant to this idea and continued, "As a coordinator, you only need to grasp the overall direction and the big picture. Leave the rest to us."

"You're not alone; you have us."

"Well, then in the future, I'll trouble you all..." Anthony conceded.

Meanwhile, at YangHe Hospital, Duane leaned against a corner, feeling the stickiness and the pungent stench of blood. His stomach was in knots. They had made a clear agreement last night, so how did things suddenly change today?

With frustration bubbling, Duane shouted, "Jamie, Hagan, where are you guys? Didn't we agree that I'd get rewards for bringing people in? What's going on now?"

His voice echoed, but none of the guards around him paid any attention. Instead, they shot occasional mocking glances his way. Seeing this, Duane's annoyance grew, and he shouted even louder, "Damn it! You guys can't go back on your word. Let go of me! I want to find Jamie and Hagan and sort this out face-to-face!"

The surrounding lackeys continued to ignore him. Just when Duane was about to continue yelling, a mocking voice interrupted him.

"Duane, what's the matter with you?" Hearing this, Duane's face brightened. He immediately turned to look, and the newcomer was a young man with dyed hair, carrying a machete on his shoulder, a wicked smile playing on his lips. Who else but Hagan from last night?

"Hagan, you finally came. Didn't we discuss this yesterday?" Duane hurriedly asked.

"Discuss? What did we discuss last night?" Hagan feigned ignorance.

Duane knew he was trying to backpedal, gritted his teeth, and said, "Didn't we agree that I'd get rewarded for bringing people in?"

Hagan looked at Duane as if he were an idiot, shrugging helplessly, "Yeah? We were supposed to reward you, but our boss said last night that the people you brought in weren't enough, so we had to compromise."

"Not enough people? Aren't 125 people enough?" Duane muttered to himself, then hurriedly asked, "So how many more people do you need?"

"How many more?" Hagan pretended to think for a moment.

Yesterday during the day, Hagan and Jamie had found thirteen people. If they hadn't encountered Duane last night, they might not have achieved even 10% of their mission today. Now, they had recruited a total of 180 people for the camp, which meant they were still short of a little less than half of the required number. So, he casually stated a number, "We need another 120 people."

"120 people? Where the hell am I supposed to find them?" Duane plopped down on the ground in a daze.

Seeing Duane like this, Clark, who was nearby, clenched his jaw. He couldn't understand how his sister could have fallen for such an idiot. He was sold now, and he was still thinking about how to improve his performance for others. If his hands weren't tied right now, he would've rushed up to beat this fool senseless. He turned his head away, not wanting to look anymore.

"Clark, how's Duane holding up?" Nicola asked with some concern.

Clark's frustration grew upon hearing this. He lowered his voice and said, "Sis, why do you care about him? He's the one who sold both of us."

"But didn't they say yesterday that they'd release us later? They're just tying us up for now to prevent us from escaping. After a few days, we'll be released, and by then, we'll all be members of the base," Nicola reasoned.

Clark wanted to scold Nicola, but he restrained himself and forced a bitter smile. He said, "Sis, just look at the bloodstains on the ground and the overwhelming stench of blood in the air. Do you really think they tied us up to recruit us as members?"

"Then what's the purpose?" Nicola asked, puzzled.

Clark thought for a moment and explained what he had observed, "Since we entered the hospital yesterday, I've been observing. I noticed there are a lot of crows around here, and there are many bones in the grass by the roadside. So, I concluded that they brought us here not to make us members but as food."

"That's impossible! Cannibalism is a crime! Besides, how could humans possibly eat other humans?" Nicola exclaimed in disbelief.

Clark shook his head helplessly, saying, "Sis, has there not been cannibalism in history? Moreover, with zombies everywhere now, societal norms have already collapsed. They'll do anything for food; nothing would surprise me."

Hearing these words, Nicola felt frightened. She wasn't afraid of dying herself, but she was concerned about her child. If these people really ate human flesh, her son would undoubtedly be their first choice.

"What should we do then?" Nicola asked anxiously.

Clark gave a wry smile, "I don't have a solution either."

Indeed, Clark was powerless. In terms of strength, he couldn't break through the guards. The gun Anthony had given him wasn't with him due to the sudden appearance of these people last night. Oh well, he was tied up now, and even with ten minds, he couldn't change the situation. All he could do was resign himself to fate.

With a deep sigh, Clark realized that if he had known, he should have accepted Anthony's invitation to join right away. In his current situation, he felt he had let down Anthony's goodwill.

While Clark was inwardly frustrated, Duane's voice suddenly rang out again, "I... I know where some survivors are hiding!"

"Oh?" Hagan's eyes lit up. He didn't expect that a casual remark would actually lead to something. He quickly asked, "Tell us, Duane, my brother."

Duane turned his head away, but Hagan saw and signaled to the lackeys nearby. One of them quickly came forward and untied the ropes behind Duane. As Duane felt his hands become free, he still kept his head turned.

Seeing this, Hagan remained calm. He took out a chocolate bar from his pocket and handed it over, saying, "Brother, it's not that I'm not keeping my word. I told our boss about your situation last night. Our boss also sees you as a talented person, but unfortunately, we can't break the rules of the base. For the first three days after entering the camp, hands and feet must be bound. But I thought that you've brought so many people, we can't really mistreat you. So, I rushed over here specially."

With this explanation, Duane turned his head back and spoke, "Are you saying you were joking with me just now?"

"Of course! Otherwise, why do you think I showed up here, bro?" Hagan immediately said.

After speaking, he took out a half-smoked cigarette from his pocket and handed it over, "This is quite a rare item, hard to find anywhere now. I've only smoked half of it."

"Is that true?" Duane's mouth watered a little. He was used to smoking a couple of times a day while working on construction sites. He had been craving a smoke for more than twenty days since the apocalypse began.

As he was about to take it, Hagan suddenly pulled his hand back, lowered his voice, and asked, "Brother, what you said just now, is it true?"

"Absolutely!" Duane seized the opportunity and snatched the half-smoked cigarette without hesitation, putting it in his mouth. Although there was no fire, the moment he held the cigarette, he immediately felt the familiar taste swirling in his mouth and lingering on his taste buds. It was a delightful feeling.

Hagan was momentarily taken aback, suppressing the pain in his heart. He smiled and asked, "Brother, are you finally going to tell me?"

"Of course!" Duane, while savoring the imaginary smoke, nodded and beckoned for Hagan to come closer.

Duane glanced at Clark, then leaned towards Hagan's ear and pointed discreetly at Clark. He whispered, "That's my nephew's friend. He's set up a survivor camp. We'll need my nephew's help for this."

"Are you sure?" Hagan's calm demeanor wavered.

"If I'm lying to you, I'll give you my wife!"