Chapter 77: Zhang Yi, If You Don’t Come Out, I'll Kill Your Neighbors!

Chapter 77: Zhang Yi, If You Don’t Come Out, I'll Kill Your Neighbors!Based on Uncle You’s introduction, Zhang Yi got to know a bit about those attackers. The group of workers was employed by an engineering company called Tianhe Group. They weren't official employees but were hired by a contractor who had taken on the job, and they followed him. However, they boasted about being employees of Tianhe Group to save face. Hence, their group called themselves the Tianhe Gang, and their leader was the small, gaunt man named Huang Tianfang.

“Zhang Yi, do you have any plans against them? Just let me know if you need my help,” Uncle You offered. S~ᴇaʀᴄh the n0vᴇl(ꜰ)ire.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Zhang Yi smiled faintly. It was impossible for him to attack this so-called Tianhe Gang. His greatest advantage was his steel fortress. Leaving his room to face nearly twenty people, even with a gun, was incredibly risky.

“Uncle You, let's play it safe! I don’t have any plans for revenge right now. It’s just me, and even if I include you, there’s no guarantee of success.”

“Unless,” a glint appeared in his eyes, “we can mobilize all the neighbors in the building.”

Uncle You understood Zhang Yi’s intention. “You mean we should unite everyone in the building against them, just like how Huang Tianfang’s gang operates?”

“Yes, exactly,” Zhang Yi affirmed.

Uncle You agreed, “Alright, I’ll propose this idea in the group chat to see how many people are willing.”

Zhang Yi laughed, “No need to rush. If you eagerly try to recruit them, they might think you have ulterior motives or even take advantage of your goodwill.”

Uncle You asked, “So what should we do?”

Zhang Yi chuckled, “We’re in no hurry. We have enough supplies; we’ll just wait it out. The Tianhe Gang will definitely come back for revenge after losing so many people to me. When that happens, the neighbors will naturally come to us for help.”

Uncle You couldn’t help but admire, “Zhang Yi, you’re truly clever!”

They quickly agreed to temporarily ignore the Tianhe Gang. In the group chat, neighbors tried to coerce Zhang Yi and Uncle You into leading the fight against the Tianhe Gang, using moral pressure and compliments.

While they praised Zhang Yi and Uncle You, calling them good people (though Zhang Yi found it offensive, thinking, “You’re the good person; your whole family are good people!”), they also made excuses, claiming they were too weak, lacked food, or were elderly or women, and thus couldn’t fight.

Zhang Yi knew these shameless neighbors well and chose to ignore them. He believed they would feel the pain once the threat hit closer to home.

...

In the following two days, Zhang Yi began gathering intelligence from the outside. He wouldn’t risk going out himself, as too many people coveted his supplies and might feed him false information. Instead, he asked Zhou Ke'er and Uncle You to gather intel. As a doctor and a security guard, they had broad networks.

Zhang Yi wanted to know who in the Yue Lu neighborhood’s 30 buildings posed a threat to him. This information was easy to obtain; a quick inquiry revealed who had the most kills and the largest forces.

Zhou Ke'er diligently compiled a list for Zhang Yi, detailing the size and weaponry of various factions.

After reviewing it, Zhang Yi felt more at ease. Despite being a middle-to-upper-class neighborhood, Yue Lu didn't harbor too many ruthless individuals. According to the intel from Zhou Ke'er and Uncle You, two factions were notably troublesome.

One was the Tianhe Gang from Building 26, formed around a small construction team from Tianhe Group, boasting strong combat abilities. Their main weapons were shovels and rebar, without any guns. The explosives used against Zhang Yi were homemade by one of their demolition workers, who had been killed by Zhang Yi. Therefore, they couldn’t make any more.

"Still, there's no certainty they don’t have some explosives left. We need to be cautious and look for opportunities to send some cannon fodder to exhaust their supplies," Zhang Yi mused.

Besides the Tianhe Gang, another faction caught his attention. In Building 21, a group of young people called themselves the Mad Wolf Gang. Despite the cringey name, their combat skills were formidable. The group, consisting mostly of students and street thugs, was led by two notorious loafers, Wang Qiang and Xiao Lu, well-known troublemakers in the Yue Lu neighborhood. They had grown powerful in the absence of a dominant figure like Zhang Yi.

Only these two factions could pose a significant threat to Zhang Yi. Other buildings had few residents left, as many had committed suicide or killed each other over scarce resources.

Feeling more confident, Zhang Yi instructed Zhou Ke'er, “Keep gathering intel. Make sure we understand their armaments thoroughly, especially whether they have guns.”

Zhou Ke'er obediently nodded and continued her efforts.

...

Over the next few days, Zhang Yi and Uncle You agreed to stay home, never stepping outside. The Tianhe Gang, having suffered heavy losses and injuries, vowed revenge against Zhang Yi but were temporarily too fearful to act directly against him. Instead, they turned their wrath on his neighbors.

Huang Tianfang, unable to kill Zhang Yi, decided to take out his anger on the neighbors. He thought, “Zhang Yi, if I can’t kill you, I’ll kill your neighbors. Watching them die should make you feel guilty. How will you face their accusations? Killing your neighbors is the best revenge!”

Embracing this twisted logic, Huang Tianfang led another raid on Building 25, attacking several households. After each kill, they wrote bloody messages in the hallways.

"Zhang Yi, if you don’t come out, I’ll kill all your neighbors!"