Living in the apocalypse, while others were struggling on the brink of starvation, Li Yu and his companions were behind tall walls, under the Big Camphor Tree, enjoying the evening breeze as they ate barbecue and drank beer...
To people like the sloppy boy and the young aunties, this was an unimaginable sight.
But it was indeed happening right before their eyes.
As if they had suddenly moved from Hell to Heaven.
However, the other people outside the base, still struggling for survival, could never witness this scene.
Inside the base, as the number of people grew, so did the defenses.
Even while everyone gathered in the center of the base, the overall defense remained very strict.
Therefore, everyone could relax a bit during these gatherings.
Uncle Second and Uncle Four at the main gate, along with Uncle Lai and Ding Jiu, who continuously patrolled the walls, greatly increased the security of the base.
As the base's population increased, many activities were carried out simultaneously.
Plans were made, current problems were solved, enhancing the collective strength:
The first issue was food.
This aspect required the most manpower.
Including staple foods such as rice, potato, corn, and so forth for cultivation.
Then came the planting of fruits and vegetables, all requiring land to be cleared and maintained. Originally the area was about ten acres, not including the residential area, there were 4 acres of rice paddies, gardens, animal breeding areas, and some other regions, which are now mostly utilized thanks to land development.
Next was breeding, including aquaculture. Although it didn't require much attention, if fish weren't fed some grass or feed, they'd hardly grow, and even if they did, they would end up with big heads and small bodies.
So in the lake, Grandpa and some kids would cut grass daily and toss it in for the fish.
Apart from aquaculture, there were chickens, ducks, cows, sheep, pigs, rabbits....
It was these two hundred acres of forest that provided ample space. However, pigs were kept in breeding sheds, typically penned at the very edge of the base.
Cows and sheep would be herded out daily to graze in the forest.
So far, the grass in the forest and some forage at the foothills were still sufficient.
The second issue was about enhancing the capabilities of the base's inhabitants.
This was what Li Yu valued most.
After all, in this cruel apocalypse, weakness was a cardinal sin. Now that they had such a large base, if a powerful force were to attack and seize it in the future, how could they defend it?
Thus, Li Yu instituted a set of rules and regulations to train everyone in this large family. Lately, everybody was required to go out, under the protection of Uncle, Third Uncle, Li Gang and others, to kill zombies, train in spear skills, and improve their crossbow shooting.
At the same time, this was an opportunity to re-scout the surrounding villages and even towns.
Training troops while continuously gathering supplies.
Additionally, Li Yu had everyone in the family over the age of 16, regardless of gender, take out firearms from the storage and become proficient in their use.
Even the guard duty at the gate was no longer always attended by Third Uncle, Second Uncle, and his father. Instead, it had started to integrate younger individuals, providing opportunities for the younger generation to train.
Now, a typical guard unit might include Uncle, 16-year-old Li Zhengping, and 20-year-old Li Haoran.
Ensure there is a mature and steady control, as well as the presence of young people, allowing these youths to be trained.
The third thing, pay attention to surrounding news.
Although Li Yu was reborn with some prophetic knowledge, it was limited to local areas.
At the beginning of the apocalypse, Li Yu was struggling to survive and hadn't traveled much, his daily concern was how to stay alive.
After being reborn, Li Yu realized the importance of being aware of the surroundings, like the arrival of a Zombie Tide—if informed earlier, dealing with it wouldn't be so difficult.
And then there's information about surrounding forces: which are significant, which are small, which ones are more humane, and which are more extreme. All need understanding.
But in the post-apocalyptic world, with Zombies blocking the way, the movement of people is already poor, plus the base here is in a rather remote location; normally, you can't see other people at all, so Li Yu got to know about other places infrequently.
However, Li Yu occasionally goes to the County, and when passing through the suburbs, he also exchanges information with Song Min and company; after all, they are in the County, and even though they are in the outskirts, there tend to be more Survivors in the County.
Through Song Min's messages, Li Yu learned that currently, in the County, there's no longer a significant power grouping, after defeating the factions led by Zhou Sheng, there's basically no big organizations left.
The fourth thing, solidify the base, build the base, expand the base.
A hundred acres of mountains and forests, a dozen acres of plains, seems quite vast at a glance.
The current use of land is not very tight, Li Yu is considering, if expanding the base, there are pros and cons.
Thus, the expansion of the base is put on hold for now.
With the increase of people in the base, although food is currently sufficient, as the crops are planted and as the animals breed, especially the rabbits that breed rapidly,
But the base's consumption of meat is also quite high, and although the rabbits breed fast, they can't outpace the consumption rate.
For solidifying the base. After Second Uncle returned, he gave some suggestions to increase the height of the walls. Lately, Li Yu has also been considering this issue and started to look for building materials nearby.
But there's no rush, there are many things to be done, and everything needs to be taken slowly.
There are also other matters.
But basically, they revolve around food, team members' strength, scouting surrounding information, and reinforcing the base's stability.
Everyone is pulling together, striving forward as one.
Many who have entered the base, especially those who came later, are well aware of what kind of world exists outside in this apocalypse—a world that preys on humans—thus they cherish the wonderful life inside the base even more.
They have not let their guard down due to temporary safety and the abundance of supplies.
Li Yu often leads by example, waking up early every day, and encouraging the younger members to exercise.
Whenever he goes out, he is always at the forefront;
And he also constantly practices, improving his Crossbow shooting abilities;
Speaking of the Crossbow, the initially purchased arrows, though numbering in the thousands, will eventually be used up.
So, he had purchased some materials similar to the "Military Friend Manual," and with Grandpa's hunting experience from his era, there were also some crafting skills.
He cut some bamboo and began to try making arrows, and the process of making arrows is slow, amidst the cumbersome and monotonous task, Li Yu seemed to have found some interest.
Holding the knife, he carefully whittled the wood, gradually shaping the arrow in hand, feeling a strong sense of achievement.
But the most important thing is that while doing these activities, the anxiety that perpetually gnawed at his heart seemed to find an outlet. While engaged in these tasks, it felt as if suddenly, the world... quieted down.
His heart also became much more peaceful, and his mood became more pleasant.