Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



"We are running out of food and supplies," said Zhao Jun Jie as he rubbed his forehead in frustration. Closing his eyes, he leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. The numbers wouldn't change just because he wanted them to. He had to come up with a better solution, or else City A was going to fall, and it would be all his fault.

"Any word from the teams?" asked Wu Bai Hee from where she sat across the desk from him. The nausea had finally stopped, and she wanted to take advantage of the situation. She also needed to reel Zhao Jun Jie back into her web. 

After he found out that she was lying to him about her periods, he had become quiet and withdrawn. The problem with her powers was that when it came to some people, they needed daily doses to remain under her power. Without those reminders, they would quickly snap back to normal, and then her cushy life was over.

"Nothing," he sighed again and leaned forward, going back to the paperwork just in case he missed something the first time.

"Then maybe we should get people to start planting food. It's not like the earth has become contaminated; we can still grow crops. That would also keep them busy and not rioting," pointed out Wu Bai Hee, trying to remember what cities had done in her first life to stay ahead of the riots.

Zhao Jun Jie snorted in disbelief. "You think that the people of City A would be willing to work? Most of them didn't even lift a finger before the world ended; it is not likely to change after it did."

"Then you make them work," she replied. "If they want to eat, they need to grow the food. It is really that simple."

"Simple? Ha! Forcing people to do something against their will like that would make me no better than a tyrant in their minds," sneered Zhao Jun Jie, looking his partner in her eyes.

"You say that like it is a bad thing. Tyranny is government for people who want results. I mean, when you were a CEO, you didn't ask people what should be done, and if they were okay doing it, you told them," pointed out Wu Bai Hee, returning Zhao Jun Jie's stare and pushing just the tiniest of bit.

Luckily for her, everyone and anyone could become a tyrant if given enough incentive. And how else was she to look like the savior of the people if she didn't have anyone visible to save them from? The majority of people in the city had never laid eyes on a zombie, let alone needed to be saved from one.

Yes, she would turn Zhao Jun Jie into a feared dictator, and once there was enough food for the population and everything had turned around, she would step forward and save the masses. Who knows, the average citizen might even decide to rise up and save her from her cruel partner. 

Oh, the possibilities were endless if she really thought things through. 

But the first thing that needed to be handled was the food storage.

"What do you think we should do?" asked Zhao Jun Jie suddenly. "It's not like there is a bunch of farms in the middle of the city that we just never noticed before."

"No," admitted Wu Bai Hee, quickly thinking of possible solutions. "But there are rooftops that we could use to grow crops of some kind. And the parks. If we rip up the grass, we could plant there too."

"And how do we find people willing to farm in the first place?"

"You divide the population up and assign them all tasks," said Wu Bai Hee. "They clearly have too much time on their hands if all they do is riot, so give them all something to do."

"They will hate me for that," replied Zhao Jun Jie, looking across his desk at the woman he loved more than anything else in the world.

"Maybe at first," conceded Wu Bai Hee, her head starting to hurt from all the 'suggestions' she was giving. "But once they have food in their bellies, they will be thankful."

"Do you really believe that?" he scoffed. There was no way that the elite of the elite would be willing to follow his orders and start farming.

"If they don't want to work, that is fine. They can always go outside and fight the zombies to bring back supplies," shrugged Wu Bai Hee. She had hit a brick wall and wasn't in the mood to deal with the moron anymore. How was it that someone so spinless managed to run such a big organization before?

  She would not have this problem with Liu Wei in charge. He would have put everyone in their places without them even realizing that they were obeying him. Yeah, she would have to hurry up and find Liu Wei and the others. Even if it was just to cement her own position as the most influential woman of City A.

----

"Is one of you Liu Wei?" asked Mao Jing as he returned to the main floor after locking Gong Ling Xin up in one of the basement cells. They were originally put in there to keep the fighters separated, but once Lin Song had managed to capture some zombies, they were housed there away from everyone else.

Now, the zombies were free to roam the place as they wanted while the humans were once again locked up. It was amazing how things seemed to come full circle. 

"I am," said a man stepping forward. He pushed his gold-rimmed glasses up his nose and stared down at Mao Jing. "May I ask why you are looking for me?"

"Liu Yu Zeng thought that you would be the best person to help me. The new head of the club found someone on the roof and has decided to try and ransom him back to his parents. If that doesn't work, she has said to just feed him to the zombies," explained Mao Jing as he approached the three men standing side by side.

They shared the same otherworldly air that his new boss and Liu Yu Zeng shared, so they must all be part of the same group.

"How did his father make his money?" asked the man standing in the center of the others. 

"He split it 50/50 between a legitimate business that was involved in land development and real estate as well as in the shadier side of it all," explained Mao Jing, not too sure how much in-depth he should go. 

"What is his name?" asked the one in the middle. He seemed to be the spokesperson for the three men. The other two, including Liu Wei, seemed happy to remain silent.

"Gong Hao Zhi," answered Mao Jing. He didn't want to insult someone that he didn't know, just in case it came back to bite him on the ass. But at the same time, he needed to get a move on if he wanted to make it back before the cub opened for the night. 

The man in the center looked at Liu Wei, seeking an answer to an unasked question. 

"He is the CEO of Greener Pastures Realty," explained Liu Wei, once again adjusting his glasses. "Aged 45. He was divorced almost ten years ago, and his oldest son, Gong Ling Xin, was the product of that marriage. He has since remarried to a much younger woman who was 22 when they first met. She has given him two sons and a daughter in their time together."

"Percentage of him willing to pay a ransom?" asked the middleman. Mao Jing simply stared at the interaction between the two men. 

"It will depend on what we ask for," replied Liu Wei with a shrug. "He is currently using his first son as a shield while raising his second son to take over the business. His third son, who would be eight years old right now, was being trained to take over his less legitimate income. Of course, all of this information was gathered before the end of the world, so I am not sure as to the accuracy of my intel."

"What should we ask for?" asked the talkative one, and the remaining man, who hadn't said anything up to this point, finally opened his mouth.

"That would depend on Princess and her plans," he said, his low voice causing the hair on the back of Mao Jing's neck to rise up. 

"We know her plans," pointed out the middle one.

"I don't think that even she knows her plans if she has taken over a fight club instead of just sending Liu Yu Zeng inside to fight," replied the quieter one. "She might want to use him as food more than anything else, seeing as humans would be the only type of supplies she hasn't gathered. I think that we would push for the moon and see if we get it."

"And if we do? What are we asking for?" asked Liu Wei. Mao Jing was starting to feel invisible. But amongst those three men, he didn't think that it was that bad of a thing. 

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