After walking into the room and seeing the drastically changed space, Zhao Pu's steps paused, and he clicked his tongue in amazement. "So this is your card building? Quite interesting. What's it for?"
Deng Guang chuckled and said, "To raise some small fish and shrimp, and I can also raise crabs and eels."
"That's not bad, congratulations." Zhao Pu lightly leaped over the drainage ditch at his feet and landed in the center.
Deng Guang asked curiously, "The fight you mentioned was downstairs just now?"
"Yeah, you saw it too, huh? Ah, what a mess this whole thing is." Zhao Pu felt a bit speechless just bringing it up. "Some people really take a tiny bit of authority and inflate it infinitely."
Once he started on this topic, Zhao Pu simply vented in one go. "There's a building head over in Building 3. He said that family was infected with the illness, so he posted a notice on their door, forbidding them from going out. The male head of that household wasn't having it. He snuck out and tore off the seal. Then the building head discovered him, told him to go back, but he refused. So the building head got into a fight with him."
Hearing this, Deng Wen said in surprise, "Uncle Zhao, that shouldn't be a problem, right? If they're sick, shouldn't they stay home? Otherwise, they'll infect others."
Zhao Pu said, "What I just said was the building head's version. The male head of that household has another story. He said he wasn't infected, only his wife was. He was planning to go out to find food, but then the building head demanded a bribe from him, saying he had to give him something before he could go out. He said since he was the building head, he had to listen to him. He couldn't swallow that, so he fought with the building head."
"Was that male head infected?"
Zhao Pu shook his head. "Don't know. But that building head has been temporarily removed, and a new one has been appointed. However, I heard from others that the male head shows no symptoms. The building head says he's in the incubation period. So just now, the alliance was discussing whether they could form a few special teams, like hunting or gathering teams, and have the family members of those with sick patients form separate teams."
Xiao Meixue thought the idea was decent, but implementing it might not be so simple. "That's a good thing. No one can guarantee someone in their own family won't get infected. But carrying it out might not be that easy."
"It's definitely difficult, because healthy people certainly won't want to team up with family members of patients. And the family members of patients will be suspicious of each other, worried others might be in the incubation period. Who doesn't want healthy teammates? But if you're healthy, are you willing to gamble?" Zhao Pu clapped his hands. "To put it bluntly, it's still a trust issue. Everyone lacks trust in each other."
Saying this, Zhao Pu shook his head. "They'll probably keep causing trouble for a while. But after they face reality, they'll still form teams."
Hearing this, Deng Guang sighed silently. Hesitating for a moment, he turned to look at Qin Ziwen. "Brother Qin, tomorrow I'd like to stay home first, catch more fish and shrimp to put in the ditch for raising."
Qin Ziwen teased, "Sure, the fish trap is right here with you. Tomorrow, Brother Deng, catch more. Whether I can eat more river delicacies in the future depends on you, Brother Deng."
After leaving Deng Guang's home, Zhao Pu said in a low voice, "By the way, Mr. Qin, today the building head of Unit 2, Building 6 came to tell me something."
"What is it?"
"There are fat rats within the alliance."
Qin Ziwen's expression turned subtle. Aren't you a building head in the alliance yourself?
Sensing Qin Ziwen's gaze, Zhao Pu smiled bitterly. "I'm just a figurehead. The real middle management are those captains who can rally people."
He continued, "The alliance is developing very fast now, mainly because it's the only large-scale organization in the residential complex right now. Plus, due to this infectious disease, many families have joined. Right now, the alliance has fifteen hunting teams alone. Even more gathering teams, nineteen of them. Add in the logistics teams responsible for weaving baskets, making simple masks, and drying medicinal herbs, there are about forty teams total. And the number is still increasing. One team is ten people, Mr. Qin. You can imagine what scale the alliance has developed to now."
Hearing this, Qin Ziwen felt a bit shocked inside. The alliance had actually developed this quickly.
"According to the current scale, the amount of food the alliance can hunt and gather daily can not only cover expenses but also have a surplus. After all, we're in a forest here; resources are quite abundant. And I've heard some homeowners who possess cards have also privately reached cooperation agreements with the alliance, selling some resources produced by their cards to the alliance at preferential prices. But these resources are rarely seen within the alliance internally. Supplies within the alliance are often reported as short. This is absolutely not normal."
"Who do you think did it?"
Zhao Pu said, "Do I even need to guess? Those who could pull it off are just that few people."
Qin Ziwen found it somewhat incomprehensible. "Is he an idiot? He finally managed to grow the alliance to this size, and then he does this kind of self-destructive, foolish thing?"
Zhao Pu said helplessly, "There are plenty of people like that. Many people aren't not corrupt; they just didn't have the opportunity. Once they seize the chance, their true nature is exposed. Back in our hospital, we got a new dean. The first thing he did after taking office was to carry out drastic reforms, causing complaints and resentment below. In less than half a year, he was arrested. I heard he embezzled several hundred million and kept four mistresses outside, all done within that half year."
"So what are you planning to do?"
"Gather evidence first. Without solid evidence, it's hard to nail it down. Food isn't like other things. It's only been a few days; they couldn't have eaten that much. If they turn around and say it was temporarily stored away, what can you do about it?"
The two chatted for a while longer. Finally, Qin Ziwen told Zhao Pu to be careful.
......
The damp riverside.
A group of people walked along the riverbank.
Weeds grew thickly, and the ground was covered with mud that hadn't completely dried yet, signs of the flood having receded not long ago.
Someone stopped. "Captain Zheng, I smell a very strong scent of blood."
"Isn't it just the smell of mud? Where's the blood scent?"
As the few talked, suddenly, they halted.
Turning the corner, ahead was a backwater eddy.
The river surface was stained red with blood.
On the bank of the backwater eddy, densely packed, lay seven or eight massive corpses.
"Is that a hippo!?" Someone pointed towards the edge of the backwater eddy at the half-eaten carcass, with some pale white bones exposed to the air.
The hippo had died who knows how long ago.
"A hippo just got eaten like that. Who could hunt this thing? Could it be a crocodile's doing?" someone muttered to himself.
Zheng Yuan's expression turned grave. "Looking at the wounds, they don't seem to be caused by a crocodile. And these are a hippo herd. Ordinary crocodiles wouldn't dare provoke them either."
"Captain Zheng, look over there. There seems to be something in the water."
Following the team member's pointing finger, Zheng Yuan saw, near the hippo corpse underwater, what seemed to be some things swimming.
Because the distance was too far, and with the water surface reflecting light, it was unclear.
He didn't dare go look either.
Zheng Yuan said decisively, "Let's head back first."
Before leaving, Zheng Yuan turned back and took another look behind him.
He saw, on the hippo's corpse, what seemed to be a pitch-black, large creature, like a water centipede, crawling on it.
......