Zombie Life Begins in Hongxi Village

Lin Yi's hand holding the teacup trembled slightly.

It's confirmed, it's Zuo Lan.

The woman Stipunk Boy's beloved, who ran away from home for her faith and ultimately gave her life.

Although the Zuo Lan in front of us has not yet become that mature and calm warrior.

But that stubbornness that refused to bow to anyone already foreshadowed his future.

Her identity is too special, and there are too many things involved behind her.

If he were to actually marry her, given their current strict standards regarding ideological issues, he would have to distance himself from Ren Tingting and Michelle.

Such a thing is absolutely impossible—

How could he possibly give up an entire forest for the sake of a single tree?

Seeing the father and daughter arguing more and more intensely, Lin Yi raised her voice to interrupt:

"Hey General Shen, if you want to discipline your child, go home and do it. Don't bang on the table here."

Shen Wei and Zuo Lan blushed at the same time and stopped arguing.

"Ahem." Shen Wei cleared his throat awkwardly. "Sorry, Brother Lin, I got a little carried away."

But he still couldn't give up and tried to persuade him again, "Lanlan, look at Commander Lin. He's young and promising. Who in the surrounding hundreds of miles can compare to him?"

If you don't seize this opportunity with a good man like him, you'll never have another chance!

Zuo Lan remained silent, adopting a non-violent, non-cooperative stance.

But Lin Yi keenly noticed that her eyes flickered when she heard the words "young and promising".

It wasn't the kind of stirring of romantic feelings, but rather the excitement of seeing prey and eagerly anticipating its arrival.

He was all too familiar with that look in her eyes—this girl was probably plotting how to "turn" him, the warlord who held military power.

Just like how she later "recruited" the Stypunk boy Yu Zecheng.

"Brother Lin," Shen Wei changed the subject abruptly, his expression seamlessly shifting from promoting his daughter to trying to curry favor and ask for money.

"I'm a little short on cash lately, Brother Lin, could you lend me some to tide me over?"

"I won't borrow much, just two hundred thousand silver dollars. I'll use ten years' worth of tax revenue from Gobi County as collateral!"

Lin Yi rolled her eyes.

This guy has no shame. Do you think we're that close?

He asked for 200,000 silver dollars right off the bat.

With so much money, you can't even call me "dad," let alone "brother."

Using ten years of tax revenue as collateral—you've been collecting taxes until 2026, what kind of tax revenue are you even talking about!

"Fifty thousand! Fifty thousand silver dollars!" Seeing Lin Yi's displeasure, Shen Wei quickly changed his words, his voice even carrying a hint of pleading.

"This time, I'm not only using taxes as collateral, but I'm also mortgaging my daughter to you. How about it?"

"Father, you—" Zuo Lan was completely stunned.

She never imagined that her biological father would sell her for 50,000 silver dollars, and right in front of her.

Shen Wei blushed deeply and dared not look at her.

Who told him to lose all his family fortune playing cards with Cao Shaolin and even owe 100,000 silver dollars?

He had already scraped Gobi County dry, and only with great difficulty had he managed to scrape together 50,000.

But we're still short 50,000!

Cao Shaolin is extremely cruel. If he can't repay this debt, his whole family will die!

His original plan was to marry his daughter to Lin Yi, which would not only secure a good marriage but also allow him to legitimately receive a dowry from his son-in-law to pay off his debts.

Unexpectedly, Shen Lan reacted so strongly, arguing with him in front of Lin Yi, completely disrupting his plans.

Since you're unwilling to sacrifice for your family, then be prepared to be sacrificed yourself. For the sake of the Shen family, I'd even sell my daughter!

"I'm sorry, Commander Shen, I don't do human trafficking." Lin Yi refused directly.

Just kidding. Although Lin Yi isn't exactly a good person, he hasn't stooped so low as to need to buy women to expand his harem.

"I'm not trying to be mean, Commander Shen, but even though your Gobi County is poor, surely you can afford to be unable to come up with 50,000 silver dollars?"

Shen Wei's face darkened further. Yes, he could indeed plunder it; after all, the 50,000 silver dollars had been plundered from Gobi County.

Seeing that Lin Yi was unmoved by his words, he gritted his teeth and had no choice but to tell her the truth, hoping to arouse her sympathy.

"Brother Lin, Cao Shaolin is Cao Ying's son, he's heartless! If you don't help me, all eighteen members of my Shen family will die!"

What a convenient example of moral blackmail!

Lin Yi shook her head.

This guy's level of moral blackmail is far inferior to that of the legendary Yi Tianzun.

However, Shen Wei's words reminded him of someone—Cao Shaolin, the villainous male lead in the movie "Call of Heroes," the famous "beef-averse man."

In that movie, Cao Shaolin is a madman who enjoys killing and runs rampant in certain areas of North China, relying on the power of his father, Cao Ying.

Lin Yi recalled that there seemed to be a puppet army pacification and security force entrenched in northern Guangdong, whose commander was named Cao Ying, and who had seven or eight thousand men under his command.

The original story of "The City in Crisis" took place in North China, but unexpectedly, the world was moved to Guangdong, and the characters became traitors. No wonder Lin Yi didn't expect this.

I wonder what reward Deep Blue (Blue Teardrop) will give him for participating in this non-extraordinary storyline.

What can the storyline of the besieged city offer him? Marksmanship? Horsemanship? It can't be something like "not eating beef," can it?

But Cao Shaolin dares to refuse to eat beef? Guangdong doesn't allow such an arrogant person!

Looking at Shen Wei, who was crying and sniffling, and Zuo Lan, who looked gloomy, Lin Yi suddenly slammed her hand heavily on the table, making the teacup jump.

"This is outrageous! The son of a mere traitor dares to be so arrogant! He's taking advantage of our lack of manpower!"

Shen Wei was startled by his slap, but then a spark of hope ignited in his eyes.

"Brother Lin, are you willing to help me?"

"Hmm." Lin Yi nodded. Before Shen Wei could be happy, he added slowly, "But even the landlord's family doesn't have surplus grain."

Brother Shen, doing things requires funding.

"Give me all that 50,000 silver dollars, and I'll have the brothers help you deal with Cao Shaolin, how about that?"

"Can you handle Cao Shaolin?" Shen Wei asked with some skepticism.

Although Cao Shaolin was just a spoiled brat, his father Cao Ying had seven or eight thousand men under his command, making him one of the most powerful puppet troops in Guangdong.

Moreover, Cao Ying doted on Cao Shaolin, providing him with over two hundred elite guards and many skilled bodyguards, making it very difficult to kill him!

"Of course." Lin Yi leaned back in her chair unhurriedly.

"Look at my soldiers, they're all equipped with Type 99 Arisaka rifles, the newest rifles that even active duty troops haven't fully equipped themselves with."

They also have grenade launchers, mortars, and light and heavy machine guns—more than enough to take down Cao Ying.

He paused, then reassured Shen Wei, "How about this, if I don't kill Cao Shaolin within three days, I'll give you a full refund."

"If you don't believe me, I can even come and stay in your Gobi County for two days, how about that?"

Lin Yi chuckled inwardly—why bother using the army?

He has a lot of brilliant minds under his command. If he were to let Da Hei Tian go out for a stroll, Cao Shaolin would have to consider whether he should eat beef in his next life.

Shen Wei gritted his teeth and finally made up his mind.

Since I'm going to die anyway, I might as well take a gamble and see if I can survive. "Then the lives of my whole family depend on you, Brother Lin!"

"No problem. Go back and prepare the money first, I'll go over tomorrow."

"Okay, okay!" Shen Wei replied repeatedly.

He had just turned to leave when he suddenly stopped, his eyes darting around. He turned back to Zuo Lan and said, "Lanlan is a little carsick, so she won't be coming back with me tonight. She'll stay here and rest for the night. You can come over together tomorrow."

Clearly, Shen Wei felt it wasn't safe enough, so he sold his daughter again.

Upon hearing this, Zuo Lan also lost her temper and, in a fit of desperation, said, "Fine, I'll stay! From now on, I'll be called Zuo Lan. Just pretend you don't have a daughter like me."

Shen Wei stopped abruptly, turned around, and slapped him across the face.

With a sharp crack, five red marks appeared on Zuo Lan's face.

"What do you mean by this! I've raised you for eighteen years, and you—"

"What?! You've raised me for eighteen years?!"

Zuo Lan covered her face, her eyes red-rimmed, but her voice was even harsher than before, "When my mother married you, she brought a dowry of 200,000 silver dollars and four shops!"

"If it weren't for my mother, would you have become a general? My mother raised me, and now you've even gambled away her dowry. Are you even a man?!"

"You fucking—" Shen Wei was about to hit him again when Lin Yi stopped him.

"Alright, alright, Lao Shen, you're not a kid anymore, don't argue with a child. You should go back now, okay?"

Lin Yi pushed and pulled Shen Wei out of the main hall, watching him get into the car angrily.

When Lin Yi walked back to the main hall, Zuo Lan was standing alone by the coffee table. The five red marks on her face had not yet faded, but she stood up straight and looked at him without flinching.

The two stared at each other for a few seconds, the atmosphere somewhat awkward.

"Alright, your father is gone, you should go too," Lin Yi said calmly.

"You're letting me go?" Zuo Lan was stunned.

"What, you still want to stay?" Lin Yi glanced at her, a half-smile on his face. "Stay and be my wife?"

Zuo Lan's face flushed red. "No way! Unless—you only have me."

Lin Yi shook her head decisively.

"Absolutely impossible."

"You—" Zuo Lan was speechless, choked by his blunt answer.

After a long pause, he finally managed to utter, "Are you always this direct?"

And aren't you even a little worried that I, a frail woman, might encounter danger if I went out?"

"The public security in my Yun County is very good." Lin Yi picked up her teacup, took a sip, and said calmly and confidently, "Besides—I believe you have your own place to go."

Zuo Lan's expression changed slightly.

She felt as if this man could see right through her.

She felt a little flustered and quickly covered it up, saying, "I don't know what you're talking about. I have classmates here, and I'm going to see them." With that, she turned to leave.

"etc."

Zuo Lan turned around.

Lin Yi took out a sketch from his pocket and handed it to her.

"I left some things in Cloud Mist Mountain, I think you might find them useful. Here's a map, it's up to you whether you go or not."

Zuo Lan took the sketch and glanced at it under the light.

The map depicts the terrain of Yunwu Mountain, marks the location of a hidden cave, and provides directions and information in small print.

Her expression changed from confusion to shock, and then from shock to complexity.

She was certain that the man in front of her knew something—not just her identity, but much more.

Instead of reporting it, he proactively provided supplies.

What exactly is this person trying to do?

"Don't ask, I won't tell you even if you do." Lin Yi seemed to have seen through her thoughts and preemptively shut her down.

"Consider those things a small token of appreciation from someone who's been meddling in other people's business."

Zuo Lan remained silent for a long while, gazing intently at him.

She said nothing, but bowed solemnly and turned to leave the Marshal's Mansion.

As her figure disappeared through the courtyard gate, Lin Yi leaned back in her armchair and, unusually, spaced out for a while.

He hid a large amount of gold and weapons and ammunition in the Cloud Mist Mountain, all of which he had bought back from Xiao Rizi for free during this period.

His soldiers couldn't use all those Type 38 rifles and ammunition, so instead of letting them gather dust in his storage ring, he decided to give them to those who actually needed them.

His awareness was too low; he couldn't stand the discipline and constraints, but deep down he still admired those people.

That's all we can do in these small matters.

After his meddling, life is tough now – if it weren't for war bonds barely keeping it afloat, the domestic economy would have collapsed long ago.

However, this situation won't last long...

The timing of Japan's surrender in this world may very well be earlier than in normal history.

Once the external enemies are gone, it's time to put internal matters on the agenda...

……

At the same time, Ah Mei also arrived at Partridge's Lingying Hall by carriage.

The Lingyingtang (Hall for the Dead) is small, converted from a street-facing shop. A wooden plaque hangs at the entrance, and inside are dozens of palm-sized clay dolls.

The clay dolls were lined up neatly, their faces endearing, and they looked no different from the Fuwa dolls sold on the street.

But these dolls are not ordinary clay figurines—they are spirit infants.

Those babies who died in their mother's womb before they were born still harbored resentment and could not be reincarnated, yet they could not be left unattended.

So they sealed them in clay figurines and placed them in the Lingying Hall to receive incense offerings, so that their resentment could be gradually dispelled.

Once the resentment dissipates, one can re-enter the cycle of reincarnation.

Among these infant spirits, some are good and some are bad.

Good spirit babies are invited home and worshipped, which can protect the child and help them grow up safely.

The evil spirits of the infants are too resentful to be resolved, so they can only be sealed away to prevent them from causing trouble and harming people.

Partridge was a middle-aged Taoist nun in her thirties who looked somewhat like Hong Kong actress Wu Qunru.

When she saw Ah Mei come in, she quickly greeted her with a smile, saying that offering sacrifices to the spirit baby was like adopting cats and dogs in later generations, and that it would bring in income.

Just as I was about to explain in detail the rules and taboos of inviting the spirit infant, a middle-aged couple suddenly rushed in from outside.

The woman looked anxious and insisted that her husband was possessed by a ghost and asked Partridge to take a look.

Seeing this, Partridge said to Ah Mei, "Wait for me a moment," and then turned to greet the couple.

The funeral parlor fell silent.

Amei curiously examined the clay dolls on the offering table, her gaze sweeping over each of their adorable little faces.

When she reached one of the rows, she suddenly stopped—

In the corner was a unique clay doll, with a red cloth covering its eyes, unlike any other spirit infant.

All the other infant spirits were smiling, but this blindfolded doll's mouth curveed more like a snarl than a smile.

As if drawn by something, Amei involuntarily reached out and took off the red cloth strip.

The moment the red ribbon hit the ground, two beams of eerie green light shot out from the clay doll's eye sockets, precisely hitting Amei's eyes.

Amei shuddered, her pupils quickly lost focus, and her expression changed from bewilderment to an eerie calm.

She bent down and respectfully picked up the evil spirit infant doll, as if it were a priceless treasure, and walked out of the Spirit Infant Hall step by step.