Huang Yong pushed open the door, slipped inside, and simultaneously extended his right hand in a welcoming gesture.

Following him, Liu Fugui with his hands behind his back, raised his head high and walked in, exuding an invisible aura with every move.

Two subordinates and a young man brought back from the bottom floor hurriedly stood up together, saying in unison, “Hello, Mr. Liu, Brother Yong!”

Liu Fugui nodded at them with an imposing presence similar to a commander reviewing his troops.

You must know that his status among his subordinates is exceptionally lofty. Besides his strict discipline and clan rules, it is also related to his consistently ruthless and sinister style of handling matters.

His subordinates understand their boss’s temperament well. Despite his usual appearance as a gentle and kind middle-aged big brother, anyone who defies him will never forget his punishing methods.

Liu Fugui sat on the sofa, leaned back, and crossed his legs in a relaxed manner.

“What’s your name?” Liu Fugui’s group has many subordinates, and his underlings are scattered all over China. Remembering so many names is practically impossible.

“My surname is Qiao, and my first name is Shan.” The subordinate replied truthfully.

“Qiao Shan.” Liu Fugui murmured quietly, then continued, “So tell me about how you got caught by those people.”

“Mr. Liu, didn’t Brother Lei report this situation after coming back?” Qiao Shan felt a bit puzzled by Liu Fugui’s question. Logically, He Lei, who returned to the factory earlier, would have reported their situation.

Huang Yong’s forehead immediately wrinkled in response, scolding, “You idiot! You’ve been squatting outside so long your brain’s gone mushy, right? Mr. Liu asks you something, you damn well answer honestly. When is it your damn turn to ask questions?”

“Brother Yong, I…” Realizing his mistake, Qiao Shan broke into a cold sweat. He indeed became a bit forgetful due to not living at the factory for a long time.

But anyways, he was Huang Yong’s capable subordinate; otherwise, Huang Yong wouldn’t have sent him with He Lei on such a secretive surveillance task.

Qiao Shan glanced imploringly at Huang Yong, hoping he’d speak up for him and prevent Liu Fugui from getting angry and deciding on clan punishments.

Huang Yong naturally didn’t want his subordinate to anger Liu Fugui; it would reflect poorly on him, but seeing Liu Fugui not pursuing the matter, he waved his hand and cursed, “Alright, enough of the damn nonsense, quickly answer Mr. Liu’s question, or don’t blame me for throwing you out to feed the Zombies.”

Liu Fugui lounged on the sofa silently, leisurely sipping the high-grade tea his subordinates had prepared for him, his crossed leg rhythmically swinging, completely unconcerned about the situation at hand.

Qiao Shan knew Huang Yong would do as he said, and if he continued idling and playing dumb here, he really might end up being thrown outside the factory to feed the Zombies.

To avoid such a tragedy, he detailed how he got caught to Liu and Huang.

The content matched what He Lei had described when he returned, without any deviation.

Liu Fugui maintained his leisurely posture, slowly set down the teacup, looked at the tense-faced Qiao Shan, and threw out a second question: “Why didn’t you come back with He Lei then?”

“It’s like this, Mr. Liu. At the time, we didn’t expect those guys to be so tough, daring to confront us head-on. If they had only 7 or 8 people, I, Brother Lei, and another brother would be confident in handling them. But there were over 20 of them with all sorts of weapons, making it really difficult for us…”

“Damn it! Stop spewing this useless shit, will you?” Huang Yong really wanted to slap his subordinate twice.

Still not ashamed? Sent you out to handle those Survivors, and ended up being tied up by them, you still have the damn audacity to boast here.

Angrily, Huang Yong cursed: “Answer Mr. Liu’s question, did you damn well not hear it?”

“No, Brother Yong, I was just…”

Qiao Shan clearly wanted to explain the meaning of his above words but was stared back by the murdering look in Huang Yong’s eyes, ultimately resigning himself and skipping ahead:

“Given the opponent’s numerical advantage, we would suffer if we went hard. So after gaining their trust, Brother Lei discussed with us that he would go back first, seek Mr. Liu’s opinion, and see if more people and weapons could be sent. Frankly, Mr. Liu, despite them having over 20 people, we only need 7, 8 more brothers to take out their base!”

“Take out, take out, take out their base, huh?” Huang Yong really wanted to kick Qiao Shan in the head: “You’re pig-brained, aren’t you? If we’re talking about wiping out a base, do you think I would’ve just sent you? I sent you to watch He Lei, yet you happily let him go alone. Are my orders just hot air to you?”

In response, Qiao Shan felt angry but dared not speak, internally cursing Huang Yong as ungrateful. How could he, enjoying peace in the factory, not consider the real situation back then?

You asked us to watch He Lei, but how? His skills, temper, and status in the group are all above us. What could we do under such circumstances, damn it, it’s easy to talk when standing.

“Enough, Huang Yong!” Liu Fugui finally spoke, motioning for Huang Yong to come back, not impulsively. After calming Huang Yong, he shifted his gaze to Qiao Shan again and asked meaningfully, “Since you want to contact the factory, why not use the hand-held radio we gave you?”

“Well…” Worried Huang Yong would get angry again, Qiao Shan hesitated, but Liu Fugui saw through him, smiling, “Speak honestly, it’s okay.”

With Liu Fugui’s assurance, Qiao Shan gained some courage and replied honestly:

“It’s like this, Mr. Liu, after we got captured, all our things were confiscated by those people—our weapons, personal supplies, including the hand-held radios. As for using the radios to contact home, we initially considered it, but later decided against it. First, those people were wary of us initially, and if we requested to use the radios to contact the factory, they’d definitely listen in. Secondly, under such circumstances, reporting face-to-face could be clearer. So Brother Lei decided to go back once and see how to proceed. But if we suggested all three of us return to the factory, they’d surely suspect, while if only Brother Lei went back, leaving the two of us there, their guard would be lowered. Plus, following Brother Lei’s idea, leaving us there had the feeling of keeping hostages, also hoping we could stabilize them as much as possible and gain their trust during his absence.” (To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to visit qidian.com to vote for recommended or monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com for reading.)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep