79.Subdue your neighbors to be cannon fodder

Zhang Yi monitored the conversations in the group.

Uncle You sent a private message to Zhang Yi.

"Zhang Yi, what should we do now?"

Zhang Yi replied, "The timing is about right. When the moment comes, you back me up and make this group of people obedient."

"With both kindness and severity, making them listen to me will secure the safety of this building in the future."

Whether they were safe or not, Zhang Yi wasn't sure, but he was going to become safer, for sure.

Furthermore, among these neighbors, many of them would be considered expendable by Zhang Yi, to be sent to the frontlines. Most of them had lost family members due to Zhang Yi and would certainly seek revenge when the opportunity arose. So, getting rid of them was for the best.

Uncle You and Zhang Yi concluded their discussion and returned to the homeowners' group.

Uncle You made a show of mentioning Zhang Yi: "@Zhang Yi, everyone really needs you right now. If there's only one household left in this building, won't you feel lonely too?"

"So please, lend a helping hand to everyone now! Everyone will genuinely appreciate it!"

The neighbors chimed in as well.

"Yes, if you can save us, we'll be forever grateful!"

"In the future, our building will be under your command."

"Zhang Yi, we entrust the lives of our entire families to you!"

The sweet words continued pouring in.

Zhang Yi smirked.

"I'm here chatting with you all just to give Uncle You some face."

"But I don't care about any of you. I'm living just fine, so why should I bother with you?"

"Why should I go out, work my ass off, and risk my life while I'm at it? I don't think it's worth it!"

The more Zhang Yi spoke this way, the less confident the neighbors became.

"Zhang Yi, please! We'll do whatever you ask, as long as it's not something that'll get us killed."

Survival in any form was preferable, even in this dire situation; they all clung to the sliver of hope they had left.

Zhang Yi asked with a smirk, "Oh, really? You'll do whatever I ask?"

"Everyone's in agreement?"

The neighbors hesitated for a while.

Someone said, "As long as you're not sending us to our deaths, we can agree to any other conditions."

Zhang Yi questioned, "So, if I ask you to take up arms and fight the Tianhe Gang to the death, will you go?"

"Uh..."

The group fell silent, nobody said anything, all waiting for someone else to step up.

Zhang Yi chuckled, "So you all expect me to go and fight to the death, right? Well, fine, I won't bother with any of you."

"When Huang Tianfang and his gang come to kill, just stick your necks out for them to chop off!"

"Goodbye!"

Uncle You got anxious, "Zhang Yi, wait! We're all listening to you. It's either this or certain death, and at least fighting gives us a chance to survive."

With that, he began rallying everyone again.

"Why are you hesitating? We either fight together for a chance at survival, or we wait for them to come and pick us off one by one."

Uncle You's pep talk worked as expected. Thinking that they had a chance at survival by taking this risk, everyone started speaking up, agreeing to follow Zhang Yi's orders.

Zhang Yi and Uncle You, in tandem, thus secured control over the entire building.

Zhang Yi said calmly, "Alright, from now on, everyone will follow my lead."

"The situation is dire; the enemy could attack at any time. Any passive behavior will be considered a betrayal against all the homeowners in the building!"

"When the time comes, don't blame me if I have to kill someone directly!"

Zhang Yi's gaze swept over the list of group members.

"Make sure I don't discover anyone sneaking away and refusing to join the fight."

"I see one already. I know you didn't die, Fang Lin, I saw you out shoveling snow yesterday!"

"Liáng Yǔlù, where are you hiding? Don't pretend you haven't seen the group messages. We'll find you when the time comes!"

...

The neighbors, red-eyed, tagged those ostriches out in the open.

People were inherently selfish, and if they had resolved to fight, they didn't want to see others hiding behind their backs.

Reluctantly, those people peeked their heads out.

"Oh, I just fell asleep. I only saw the messages now."

"Huh, what's going on? Is everyone going to fight back? That's great!"

"I'm not afraid of dying, I just didn't see the messages."

A bunch of people spoke in a guilty tone.

Zhang Yi didn't care about those people either. "In any case, since you all chose me as the building leader, you have to follow my orders. Anyone who hesitates and hides at the back is betraying all the homeowners and deserves to die!"

The homeowners didn't dare to speak; they knew Zhang Yi would indeed kill them.

The more than fifty lost souls were stark evidence.

After wielding the big stick, Zhang Yi contemplated for a moment and decided to dangle a carrot in front of them.

"Don't worry; I'm a kind person and can't bear to see you all go hungry. As long as you obey, I'll go out and find supplies for you."

He had thought about this a while ago.

Since there was a construction team using explosives, he couldn't guarantee that more formidable enemies wouldn't show up in the future. While he lived on the 24th floor, and the house was made entirely of metal, if the lower floors collapsed, it would have a significant impact on his home.

So, he wanted to keep a bunch of cannon fodder living downstairs, to keep watch for him and, if necessary, help him in dangerous situations.

Keeping them meant they needed supplies.

Zhang Yi couldn't bear to give away the supplies in his space, so he needed to go out and find more. Additionally, his weapons and ammunition were depleting faster than expected.

In the recent battle, he had exhausted twenty rounds of ammunition, so he needed to consider going out to find more weapons and equipment.

As for how to travel, that was straightforward.

The city was covered in deep snow, and regular vehicles were rendered useless. However, specialized snow vehicles existed—snowmobiles.

In Zhang Yi's space, there were five of them, two snowmobiles with cabins and three small snow motorcycles.

In an era of snow-covered cities, everyone else would have to exert considerable effort to leave their homes. He, on the other hand, could freely traverse the entire city.

The homeowners' group was in an uproar.

"Zhang Yi, you can go out and find supplies?"

"The snow outside is so deep; there's no way to drive. You want to trek through the snow? Won't that be freezing?"

Zhang Yi said, "For the sake of everyone, I have to give it a try despite the harsh conditions outside."

"Don't worry, I've worked in warehousing for many years. I know where all the warehouses are in Tianhai City, as well as the large supermarkets and stores. Finding supplies won't be difficult for me."