Extreme germ phobia

Chapter 370 Deep Cooperation
The three of them drank and chatted until evening before finally returning home, thoroughly satisfied.

Ou Yang escorted Jiang Yuwei back to the dock. He wanted to invite Zhu Yiming along, but the latter refused without hesitation to be a third wheel.

Time doesn't stop for anyone's wishes, and several major events followed.

First, thanks to the arrival of aid from the new town, the famine in East Town and the main island has been fully alleviated, and the previously turbulent situation has quickly stabilized. Although it is not yet possible to live and work in peace and contentment, the situation is indeed better than ever before, even much better than before the pandemic.

It's not surprising at all. People only learn to cherish things after they've lost them. Having experienced the darkness before, most locals cherish the peace they have now.

However, the lives lost can never be brought back, and the bullet holes and ruins scattered throughout East Town serve as a constant reminder of what once happened here.

Secondly, after the situation eased, the Linfu was re-established on the main island, which was jokingly referred to by some new town residents as Linfu 2.0.

Speaking of this 2.0, Ouyang has a lot of complaints but doesn't know where to start.

In the minds of Chinese people, this thing should be democratically elected in the United States, or at least have to wear the cloak of democratic election.

However, the 2.0 version of Linfu is purely a product of various underground organizations on the main island coming together. Gang leaders have transformed themselves and gained control of the Linfu, with gang members holding all kinds of important and minor positions. It is a real criminal organization.

It is said that this was the result of compromise among various forces.

This is unfathomable. Just think about it, that's an underground force. What are the backgrounds and origins of its leaders?
It's no exaggeration to say they kill without blinking an eye.

Ou Yang had a strong suspicion that if these people were to get together for a meeting, when it was someone's turn to speak, they would first lift their suit jacket, pull out a 1911 or Desert Eagle from their waistband, slam it on the table, and then scan the room with a murderous gaze: "Who agrees? Who disagrees?"

Then those who supported it remained unharmed, while those who opposed it were shot dead.

Just thinking about it gives me a sense of absurdity that leaves me speechless.

A group of gang leaders running a country... What kind of fantasy script is this?
However, to everyone's surprise, the gangs actually had a set of effective communication methods. After the launch of the Linfu 2.0 version, the efficiency was actually quite good. It not only surpassed the 1.0 version, but even the orthodox version before the pandemic was far less efficient than the 2.0 version.

Sure enough, this world is a huge makeshift operation, and there's no limit to how bad it can get!
"I don't think there's anything wrong with it." Zhu Yiming analyzed lazily, "Look, why was this place chaotic before? Wasn't it because there were too many criminal gangs that hindered development? Now it's different. The forces that were originally hidden in the shadows have surfaced. A bunch of them are no good. They know my strengths and weaknesses, and they know yours to the bone. They want to hear three sentences after one sentence. How can the efficiency not be high?"

Ou Yang thought that there was indeed some truth to it.

"And another thing!" Zhu Yiming continued, "Version 1.0 was just a makeshift operation, with no people, no money, and no guns, only the name of the neighboring prefecture on its head. These people are different. Although they don't have much money either, they have people and guns. The more people and guns you have, the louder your voice is. The risk of opposition is too high, so how could the efficiency not be high?"

This is even more irrefutable; the truth belongs to it.

Xincheng also welcomed the establishment of version 2.0.

Before the Linfu government was established, people in the new city didn't know who to contact if something happened. But with version 2.0, things are much easier. If there are any disagreements, we can just communicate.

Regardless of who exactly formed the Linfu government, it's a matter for other people's families, and the Xincheng government can't interfere from any angle.

The principles are clear to those who understand.

One party was extremely sincere, and the other party had a strong need for cooperation. As a result, the two parties reached a consensus to work together and deepen their cooperation in a very short time.

Firstly, regarding food, although the famine was alleviated, all the food came from the distant East Dakota, while the Cannon Islands were only so big and did not have the basic conditions for large-scale agricultural development.

This is very troublesome.

There are over 100,000 people in Linfu and over 100,000 people in Xincheng, totaling nearly 300,000. Their daily consumption is not insignificant.

Moreover, the island lacked pillar industries and was overcrowded with too many people, leaving the neighboring prefecture with no source of tax revenue. The fledgling 2.0 version was immediately in a huge predicament.

Underground forces are experts at using underhanded tactics, coercion, and bribery, but managing them is a real challenge for the leaders of each group.

My major doesn't match my job!

There was no other way; in order to maintain the cooperation between the two parties, Xincheng had to take matters into its own hands and tailor-make the first project for in-depth cooperation: an agricultural development plan!

In short, we must first achieve food self-sufficiency and feed 300,000 people.

There is little arable land on the island, but it is not nonexistent. The first goal is to make use of all the available arable land and grow as much food as possible.

It's no exaggeration to say that when it comes to farming, Tokyo University considers itself second to none, and no one in the world dares to claim first place.

The highest-yielding hybrid rice, get it on the agenda immediately; salt-tolerant seawater rice, the same goes; sweet potatoes and potatoes that don't care about the soil, let's get them; a whole boatload of various fertilizers; vegetable greenhouses... let's skip that.

In the tropics, we don't need that stuff.

The goal of the first phase is to achieve self-sufficiency in food, and also to produce some vegetables.

The goal of the second stage is to move beyond simply having enough to eat and focus on developing livestock farming, shifting the focus from simply having enough to eat to having good food.

Yes, it has a very distinctive Eastern flavor.

Another problem arises: relying solely on the island's land, even the goals of the first phase cannot be achieved, let alone the second phase.

No problem, though, the new city was prepared and set its sights on the local market of Ecuador!
The leaders of version 2.0 are practically brain-dead. Good heavens, we finally escaped, and you actually want us to go back?
“Returning is not as dangerous as you might think!” Xu Yi spoke confidently to the officials of the Linfu government. “As we all know, the more densely populated an area is, the more likely it is to experience an outbreak, and that is precisely the basis for returning!”

"We would like to hear more details, Your Excellency." Everyone present was intelligent and knew exactly what version 2.0 was, so no one dared to offend the general from the East before them.

Xu Yi pointed to the roads on the map and said, "We can destroy highways, especially bridges, to artificially block traffic, create an area isolated from the outside world, and build several large-scale farms with a high degree of mechanization here."

A group of leaders whispered among themselves, and soon someone stood up: "Isolating transportation is one way, but it can only prevent large-scale incursions. Individuals can still get in, right? Like swimming across the river, for example. Safety cannot be guaranteed at all!"

"It's very simple. Use dynamic drones and fixed cameras to form a monitoring network, and then do a good job of security measures... For example, dig a moat around the farm, or set up obstacles that infected people cannot get through, such as minefields, barbed wire, and high walls. In short, as long as we don't give up, there are always more solutions than problems!"

"General, we understand what you mean, but stopping the infected is easy, but how do we stop the spores?"

"Of course we won't stop them. We'll just select the immune ones, won't we?" Xu Yi smiled.

The leaders present looked at each other, completely bewildered.

Immediately, someone raised the question: "Immune individuals? How are they selected?"

"There are very few known immune individuals; even if we found them all, it wouldn't be enough!"

Some people expressed doubts: "I heard that one in ten people is immune, but unless you come into contact with the spores and don't get infected, how do you know if you are immune or not? You can't let everyone smell the spores, isn't that playing with lives?" Xu Yi kept smiling until everyone had finished speaking before slowly saying: "I understand what you are saying, but just because you can't find immune people in the population doesn't mean we can't."

The group exchanged bewildered glances, utterly disbelieving their own ears: "How are we supposed to find it?"

“It’s very simple,” Xu Yi said. “We have found several key gene fragments related to immunity. By measuring these genes, we can determine whether someone is immune.”

Upon hearing this, the crowd erupted in another uproar.

Genetic testing?

Some people know what genes are, but many others have only heard the word "gene" without knowing what it actually is, or have never even heard of it before.

Moreover, the former only had a superficial understanding, while the latter two actually accounted for the vast majority!
Strange?

No.

Basic education is not universal in every region. While there are indeed highly educated individuals who join underground organizations, the vast majority of members of these organizations are people who either did not have the opportunity to attend school or had little formal education.

He is a master of fighting and brawling, and fighting is commonplace for him.

Xu Yi didn't know the average education level here, but the group of people in front of him, even if they weren't at the bottom of the education level, wouldn't be much better.

Whenever he thought of this, he couldn't help but sigh.

How did these people end up in power after all this time?

Xu Yi could only explain in the simplest terms possible: "You don't need to know that much. Just know that we have a way to determine whether the people you select are immune... It would be best if they volunteered."

"Voluntary?" A square-faced man laughed loudly. "No problem, definitely all voluntary!"

Xu Yi highly suspected that this guy was being sarcastic.

Despite some twists and turns in the process, both parties eventually reached an agreement, with Xincheng providing funds, technology, and materials, and 2.0 providing personnel.

The new city quickly came up with a detailed plan, and recruitment on the main island was also in full swing.

However, no matter how generous the conditions were in version 2.0, no one applied.

The locals didn't want to leave, and the outsiders who had fled there didn't want to return to hell either.

So, the leaders of version 2.0 got together and discussed it for a while, and immediately decided to use some unconventional methods.

Soon, more than a thousand people passed the initial screening and became the first batch of candidates to return.

When the news reached Xincheng, Xu Yi was quite surprised by the efficiency of 2.0, but he soon learned that the other party had used unconventional methods, and couldn't help but sigh.

In other words, if the island's population were governed using the 2.0 version of methods... wouldn't they turn the entire island into an even larger gang?

Soon, the Hua Tuo ship arrived at the main island and conducted blood tests on the initial candidates, identifying 82 people who were immune.

When the results were announced, those who were not selected cheered in unison, while the 82 immune individuals all looked mournful, as if they had lost their parents.

Some of them couldn't believe it was real and screamed in despair, only to be severely reprimanded by the soldiers on site... who were former members of the underground organization.

Given that they had already selected enough candidates, version 2.0 seized the opportunity and immediately proposed the idea of ​​further deepening cooperation.

Simply put, it's about exchanging cooperation for aid to solve the food supply problem for the next few months.

The new city was very pleased with this and quickly reached an agreement to exchange islands for aid, handing over Belling Island, located between Saint Coe Island and Saint Václav Island, to the new city to establish a brand-new research center.

In reality, what the new town really wants is Santoro Island, which is further north, farther away, and therefore safer.

However, the 2.0 version of the government was very determined to build the research center on Belling Island and also demanded that the research center participate in the experiments and share the results.

No matter how you look at it, the requirements of version 2.0 are far too excessive.

But Xincheng agreed without much consideration.

“There’s nothing strange about it.” This time it was Ouyang’s turn to analyze. “The pandemic is a disaster that all mankind is facing. Even if we make research results, we can’t keep them to ourselves. We’ll definitely put them into application as soon as possible. We’ve already given them to the US, so what’s the big deal to give them to another neighboring prefecture?”

He shifted his body to a more comfortable position: "Besides, how many people are there on the main island? How many doctors can they pick? Even if they were given the technology, they wouldn't have the conditions for large-scale application. If you ask me, maybe they think researching phantom lung bacteria is too dangerous, so they're supervising the experiments... No, that doesn't make sense either. If they're worried about that, why give it to Belling Island?"

The two of them studied it for a long time, their brains were almost bald, but they still couldn't find a clue.

"Forget it, let's not think about it anymore. If the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up. What are we worried about?" Ou Yang decisively gave up and stopped making things difficult for himself.

The efficiency of the new city is much higher than that of version 2.0. After obtaining the right to use Belling Island, it immediately dispatched elite troops to the island and began the construction of the research center.

By this time, the construction of the new city was basically complete, with only the edges and corners needing to be polished slowly, so there was no need for so many people.

They didn't plan to build a ground-based research institute, but instead planned to dig an underground laboratory.

This is more complicated. It requires digging little by little, which is not only difficult but also time-consuming.

However, the authorities never intended to take it slow from the beginning, and it's actually not that complicated.

After finding the most suitable construction site on the island, the engineers immediately began drilling holes, then burying explosives for blasting, followed by mechanized clearing.

After the site was cleared, drilling and blasting continued, and in this way, a large vertical shaft more than 100 meters deep was blasted open in a short time.

Next, the main body of the research institute was constructed from bottom to top. The blasted rubble was then crushed again, and concrete was poured to fill the gaps in the corners. Finally, the surface was sealed with several meters of concrete, leaving only the entrance passage. The research center was then completed!

As long as the passage is sealed off, no one can enter or leave; safety is our top priority!

It's almost a replica of the beehive in the movie, and many people simply call it an anthill.

(End of this chapter)