Extreme germ phobia

Chapter 356 Cooperation or Confrontation
"Dear friends, behind me lies the new city of Saint Vaas Island. Once completed, it will be able to accommodate 200,000 people. Although we can only live in temporary prefabricated houses now, our future is undoubtedly bright. Thank you, motherland..."

Zhu Yiming held up a selfie stick with one hand, talking animatedly and nonstop as he introduced the city, which was still under construction.

Construction of the new city is in full swing, with infrastructure being the first key project to be invested in. However, the first thing to be put into use was neither water nor electricity, but communication facilities.

By simply erecting a few tall towers and using satellite communication equipment to connect to the domestic communication network, one can instantly cross half the globe and communicate with the domestic community in real time, eliminating the need for warships to relay messages.

Upon hearing this news, Zhu Yiming's entire demeanor changed. He jumped around like he'd been injected with adrenaline, immediately pulling out his phone to download the app and log into his account, which had been idle for years.

The next morning, anchor Zhu returned to his old job, broadcasting for more than two hours under the scorching sun.

After the broadcast ended, Zhu Yiming wiped the sweat from his forehead, grabbed an unopened bottle of water, and drank it all in one gulp.

He put down the empty bottle and let out a long sigh of relief: "My goodness, I'm exhausted!"

Ouyang gave a thumbs up, full of admiration: "I'm impressed. You talked for more than two hours straight. Where do you get so much to say?"

The key point is that he's been talking for so long and his voice isn't hoarse at all. If it were him, he would have been speechless by now.

Zhu Yiming chuckled: "I've been a chatterbox since I was little, it's a natural talent... What about you? Haven't you ever thought about starting over? Or continuing to work in emergency response?"

Ou Yang shook his head: "Where am I supposed to find material in such a small place?"

There are many islands of varying sizes in this area, but our side has only been granted the right to use Saint-Va Island and is not allowed to set foot on any of the other islands.

"What about underwater?" Zhu Yiming asked. "If we don't have any on the island, underwater will do, right?"

Ou Yang shrugged: "Do you think I'm cut out to be a diver?"

"Why not?" Zhu Yiming asked, puzzled. "It's just diving. With your stamina, you should have no problem!"

Ou Yang shook his head: "I'm not a good swimmer, so I'd better not."

Zhu Yiming said unwillingly, "If I could talk about things in the epidemic area, I would definitely become famous, but the higher-ups don't agree!"

Living in the Americas, most people have a deep understanding of the cruelty of the epidemic area, but their compatriots on the other side of the ocean can only learn about it through news reports.

Things that are too bloody, too violent, or too cruel are blocked from appearing in local media. As a result, everyone knows that the pandemic is extremely cruel, but no one knows exactly how cruel it is.

It must be said that there seems to be an invisible chasm between human senses, and different senses can have completely different feelings about the same scene.

For example, amputated limbs. Ordinary people don't think too much about this word. It seems that a few arms and legs lying on the ground are no big deal.

But actually witnessing it with your own eyes is a completely different story.

All I can say is that the higher-ups have protected us too well.

“Actually, I’m doing pretty well right now,” Ou Yang said.

"How about you join me in doing live streaming?"

“Forget it,” Ou Yang refused. “I don’t have your eloquence. It’s not so bad to keep doing emergency response work. It’s like I’m already part of the system.”

Zhu Yiming rolled his eyes: "What kind of system is this...?"

Ou Yang suddenly received a call from Lu Wei, and he immediately gestured for silence: "This is Ou Yang!"

"Ouyang, assemble at the dock immediately. We just received a notification from the ship that several local boats are heading this way!"

"Received!" Ou Yang hung up the phone and jumped up. "You rest, I have to go!"

As he spoke, he took long strides and ran away as fast as he could.

Zhu Yiming jumped up as well: "Hey, where are you going? What happened?"

But Ouyang had already run far away, waving his hand without turning back as if that was his response.

Zhu Yiming squinted at the scorching sun in the sky: "Why bother?"

I've been on the island for quite some time now, but the situation here is special, so it's always been under military control and the management is rather lax.

Although the military gradually transferred various powers to the management committee, the process was extremely slow due to the island's dire need for reconstruction.

To effectively manage the people coming to the island, the neighborhood committee has enormous power, combining the functions of various departments such as public security, procuratorate, and court. Security and other related work are also among the duties of the neighborhood committee.

The emergency response team remains the same team, whose main task is to manage the contact between their own personnel and the locals, barely tangentially related to foreign affairs work.

Ou Yang ran to the nearest construction site and took a ride, arriving at the dock in just six minutes.

Lu Wei and his two companions were already waiting on the dock. Upon seeing Ou Yang, they immediately pointed to the armored vehicle behind them and exclaimed, "Equipment!"

Ouyang opened the trunk and put on the full set of equipment: "What's going on?"

"It's not clear yet, but the drones spotted three local boats with a total of more than a dozen people."

Ouyang quickly grasped the key point: "A weapon?"

“Yes!” Lu Wei nodded, “Everyone should have an AR system.”

Ouyang suddenly felt a toothache.

The island is a dangerous place, and those who fled to the main island are all troublemakers. The local gun ownership rate is high, and shootings occur several times a day on the main island. It's as common as drinking water or eating.

The provisional government was a makeshift operation, lacking both strength and ability, and was completely unable to control the various local warlords on the island.

The situation on Saint-Va is slightly better, but only slightly. Ever since our side arrived on the island, the locals have been eyeing it quite a bit.

The emergency response team has dealt with them quite a bit.

At first, only a few locals sneaked over to steal small things, but they were spotted by drones and caught red-handed by the emergency response team.

But what to do with the caught thief proved to be a problem for everyone.

Putting it back will only be seen as weakness by the locals and attract more covetous eyes.

Making things smaller and smaller won't have a deterrent effect.

Let's give them a good beating, it might upset the provisional government... This isn't nonsense. Although the higher-ups have obtained the right to use Saint Václav Island from the provisional government, the relationship between the two sides isn't as close as you might think; it's just an exchange of interests.

Before any agreement could be reached, a large group of locals stormed in.

The emergency response team acted swiftly, arriving at the entrance to the road leading to East Island and stopping the approaching people. "Halt!" Lu Wei stepped forward imposingly. "This area is our territory; locals are not allowed to enter without permission!"

At this point, the situation on the scene became somewhat delicate.

There were dozens of them, all armed, and they all tilted their heads and stared at me with wide eyes, looking like I was not someone to be trifled with.

Although the emergency response team consisted of only seven people, each of them was dressed in full high-tech gear, with their faces hidden behind tactical goggles and masks, and their helmets and rifles covered with accessories of unknown function.

The locals have never seen this before.

Apart from a few people, most locals were uneasy, some were terrified, and some even considered backing out.

Who are these people? They look like futuristic warriors! People would believe they just fought aliens; they don't even need makeup for movies.

The leader was named Alex. He was a big, burly man with a face full of menacing features, and he wore a thick gold chain around his neck that was too thick even to tie up a dog.

He wasn't a local at all; he was a top-notch henchman from some underground organization!
Alex stepped forward with an air of nonchalance, gesturing and rambling on and on.

The tactical glasses automatically translated, stating that the island belongs to the locals who have lived there for generations; it is their home, and they have never allowed outsiders to set foot on it, let alone aliens. They demanded that the thief be translated and that necessary compensation be made. They even submitted a formal list demanding various supplies in surprisingly high quantities.

Even if that thief were made of gold, it wouldn't be worth this much.

Upon receiving the news, Xu Yi laughed in anger: "Damn it, they've come here to beg for money? Tell them to go back to where they came from, I don't have time to mess around with them! Tell Lu Wei, if anyone dares to provoke us, teach them a lesson they won't forget!"

Only a thousand days to be a thief, not a thousand days to guard against thieves.

Before the pandemic, Xu Yi certainly wouldn't have given such an order, but special circumstances call for special measures. If the other side's arrogance cannot be suppressed, it will only leave endless troubles.

Lu Wei replied firmly: "This is not a place for you to act like scoundrels. Go back immediately, or you will bear the consequences!"

Alex sneered: "Just the seven of you?"

So what if they're future warriors? They all have two shoulders and one head. They have more people on their side, ten against one, how could they not win?

Lu Wei sneered in return, and with a wave of his hand, a large group of robotic dogs carrying various weapons immediately emerged from the bushes, their cold gun barrels pointed at the newcomers.

A group of drones also appeared in the air, watching the scene intently.

This is only what can be seen. The warships on the sea have already removed their gun covers, aimed at their targets, and can launch a devastating bombardment on the enemy with just a single command.

Alex swallowed hard, immediately dismissing the idea of ​​violence: "Hehe, we're all civilized people, let's solve problems in a civilized way, okay?"

"Not good!" Lu Wei's reply was short and firm. "This is your last warning. Go back immediately, and don't make me repeat myself!"

Alex wanted to say a few more polite words, but after hesitating for a long time, he finally chose to shut up and slunk away.

The initial contact between the two parties was unpleasant.

Alex was very confused. Wasn't it said that the East University military never used force against ordinary people? Why was it different for him?
Someone immediately pointed out that dealing with citizens of Tokyo University and dealing with troublesome underground forces are not the same thing.
Alex suddenly realized.

This incident also served as a reminder to the management committee. The subsequent investigation revealed that Alex was not a native of the island, and his initiative to cause trouble was not a spur-of-the-moment decision, but rather the work of an outside underground organization.

Enraged, Xu Yi ordered the petty thief to be hung at the crossroads as a warning to others.

Three days later, the public notice period ended, but releasing the person directly would obviously be extremely contrary to their own interests.

In the end, Xu Yi made the final decision to send the guy to the construction site in the new city for labor reform, assigning him all the dirty and tiring work.

In the future, similar situations will be handled in the same manner.

Because the food was so good, Xi not only didn't feel bitter, but also stayed and refused to leave. He even attracted many locals to contribute to the construction of the new city.

No wages, just a bite to eat is enough.

Everyone suddenly realized that the locals were probably not having an easy time either!

In order to quickly understand the true situation of the locals, the military immediately infiltrated the East Island through trading companies. They found that due to the large number of outsiders on the island, the local situation was extremely bad. Although it was not as bad as the main island where there were daily gun battles, various gangs forming and seizing territory were commonplace.

They had no obligation, nor could they possibly, to maintain social order for the provisional government, yet they quietly strengthened security for the trading companies.

From that time until now, the relationship between the two sides has always been in a very delicate state. There are no major problems, but there are constant minor conflicts. Ouyang really can't understand what the other party is trying to do.

Others arrived one after another, and the seven people boarded two speedboats and left the port, intercepting the other party's three ships outside the port area.

The other party didn't cause any trouble. Under Lu Wei's warning, they obediently stopped the boat and sent someone out.

Everyone looked up and saw it was Alex. Why was he here again?
"Hey, don't shoot, it's me!" Alex greeted him.

The group remained vigilant, and Lu Wei stepped forward again: "What do you want to do?"

"It's nothing, I just wanted to chat with you!" Alex said with a smile.

Seemingly aware that everyone carrying guns wasn't friendly, he immediately explained, "As you know, the security situation here isn't very good, but this isn't directed at you!"

"Alright, just say it straight, what's your purpose?" Lu Wei interrupted rudely.

Upon hearing this, Alex cut to the chase: "Well, I'm here on behalf of Mr. Gustav."

Lu Wei frowned. Who did Gustaves think he was? But he didn't interrupt him.

Alex continued, "Mr. Gustave has bought many good things from your trading company, but your trading company is too small and can only offer so little. Mr. Gustave no longer wants to operate on a small scale through the trading company and hopes to cooperate directly with you to help you expand your business on the main island. Do you understand what I mean?"

The team members looked at each other, wondering if this was someone looking for an opportunity.
Alex wasn't the only one who approached New City during this period; many local forces also contacted the city through various means, hoping to reach some kind of cooperation.

There's no other reason than that the island has limited resources, but its population has exploded in a short period of time, and everyone there has an impressive background. It's a case of "too many fish in shallow waters, and big shots everywhere."

Once upon a time, these big shots were all powerful figures, influencing others and indulging in nightly revelry.

Now stranded on a small island, their material conditions have deteriorated rapidly, and the psychological gap is immense.

Perhaps some of them have lofty ambitions and aspire to make a name for themselves, but most people don't have such lofty aspirations. They are more accustomed to a life of getting by and their demands for material things far outweigh their pursuit of ideals.

Currently, only the University of Tokyo is persisting in supplying materials to America. To obtain the necessary supplies, one must be at the mercy of the University of Tokyo.

When faced with interests, smart people know very well whether to cooperate or confront.

The adult world is just that simple and unpretentious.

(End of this chapter)