Chapter 83: The Assailants
Zhang Yi spoke calmly, "Indeed, it's very difficult to find supplies outside. As soon as I went out, I visited all the supermarkets and malls I could remember in the vicinity."
"As a result, all the nearby malls were already looted, leaving nothing behind!"
"But I didn't give up. I knew everyone was waiting for me. To make sure everyone could eat, I was determined to search the entire Tianhai City if necessary to bring back food for everyone!"
"Finally, I had to go to the western part of the city. Only then did I manage to get this small amount of supplies."
Zhang Yi handed the two bags to Uncle You, then went back to open the door for Zhou Ke'er, bringing her down with him.
Afterwards, he sent a message in the group chat, summoning the neighbors to come and get the food.
Before long, the neighbors swarmed in. The staircases were filled with people, all skinny and starving, their eyes filled with anticipation and greed as they stared at the bags in front of Zhang Yi.
Some seemed ready to pounce and grab the bags, but when they saw the black metal object in Zhang Yi’s right hand, they became fearful.
He signaled Zhou Ke'er to open the bags. She obediently unzipped them and dumped the contents on the ground.
A pile of food appeared before everyone's eyes. There were vegetables, meat, bread, and cookies! Although the quality seemed dubious, and in the past, even dogs wouldn't have eaten these, now the starving neighbors were ecstatic, their eyes gleaming green!
Uncle You raised his fist and shouted, "Long live Zhang Yi! Long live Zhang Yi!"
The neighbors quickly caught on, shouting, raising their fists.
"Long live Zhang Yi! Long live Zhang Yi!"
"Zhang Yi, you’re our great hero!"
"Brother, from now on, you're my real brother. Please accept my bow!"
At this point, even if Zhang Yi asked them to crawl like dogs, they would obey. The temptation of food was simply too great.
Among the crowd, Fang Yuqing and Lin Cainin struggled to the front. They looked extremely disheveled, with greasy, messy hair, like two madwomen.
Seeing Zhang Yi bring back so much food, Fang Yuqing waved excitedly, "Yi, it’s me, Yuqing!"
She gazed at Zhang Yi with admiration, feeling that he still had feelings for her, even though he had Zhou Ke'er by his side. Surely, he would give her more food.
Next to her, Lin Cainin bitterly pleaded, "Qing’er, we’re best friends. Help me get more food from Zhang Yi."
Fang Yuqing glanced at Lin Cainin with disdain and pushed her away, "Get lost! You wretched woman!"
Their quarrel made Zhang Yi frown.
Someone immediately growled at them, "Stop causing trouble and listen to Brother Zhang Yi!"
The surrounding people glared at Fang Yuqing and Lin Cainin, making them quiet down.
Fang Yuqing muttered, "Why are you yelling? Do you know my relationship with Brother Zhang Yi?"
Seeing everyone settle down, Zhang Yi spoke, "I went through great efforts to bring back these supplies. Naturally, I intend to share them with you all."
His tone suddenly turned cold, "But now is a time of crisis. I absolutely won’t feed idlers! If you eat this food, you must take up arms against the enemy."
"If anyone dares to eat without contributing, I’ll make sure they vomit back more than they ate!"
Looking at the gun in Zhang Yi's hand and the food on the ground, everyone nodded, submitting to Zhang Yi’s carrot-and-stick approach.
"Alright, let’s distribute the food!" Zhang Yi said, ready to start calling names.
Just then, two arms appeared outside the west window.
Several workers from the Tianhe Gang had broken in. Seeing the pile of food on the ground, their eyes lit up with excitement!
"Brother Zhao, so much food! We’ve struck gold!" one worker exclaimed.
"No need to say more, grab it!" another worker shouted, pulling out a weapon and rushing at Zhang Yi.
These men were truly ruthless. Despite facing dozens of people, they didn’t hesitate.
They saw the others as sheep, recognizing only a few capable fighters.
Zhang Yi’s pupils contracted. Instinctively, he drew his gun but then changed his mind. Instead of shooting, he retreated, shouting, "This food is for you. Don’t let them take it!"
"Anyone who takes down one of them gets food for five!"
Hearing this, the initially terrified neighbors stopped running.
Indeed, Zhang Yi brought this food back for them. If it were taken, what would they eat?
Food was life. Without it, they were as good as dead.
Moreover, Zhang Yi had promised food for five for each enemy taken down!
The neighbors glanced around. With dozens of them here, what was there to fear?
Several young men gritted their teeth, pulled out weapons, and charged.
Nowadays, people carried weapons whenever they went out, making it convenient.
Zhang Yi retreated, gun pointed forward, to prevent anyone from stealing food amid the chaos.
The Tianhe Gang men were caught off guard. Expecting the crowd to flee, they were shocked to see them suddenly attack as if injected with adrenaline!
In a blink, chaos erupted.
The west hall wasn’t large. With dozens of people crammed inside, the clash of shovels, steel pipes, and kitchen knives echoed loudly.
For the food, everyone fought desperately. The extreme cold numbed the pain of their wounds.
Quickly, people were injured.
But those who could still stand kept swinging their weapons frantically.
Uncle You was a key fighter, wielding an iron rod with fierce intensity, smashing down while shouting.
Though the Tianhe Gang men were fearless, they couldn’t withstand such numbers. They were quickly overwhelmed.
The air filled with the sounds of rage.
It was a cathartic release of emotions.
Living in constant fear of death and frequent attacks from the Tianhe Gang, dealing with them swiftly now brought a sense of relief.
Their fear of the Tianhe Gang lessened significantly.
After the fight, six bodies lay on the ground.
Besides the Tianhe Gang members, two neighbors had fallen.
Zhou Ke'er frowned slightly at the sight.
As a professional surgeon, she knew these two might still be saved but required proper surgical conditions, ample medicine, and blood transfusions.
Given the current survival conditions, that was impossible.
She sighed helplessly, "Is this the lost world?"