The building leaders sent their people to retrieve the food in an orderly manner.
Zhang Yi also distributed food to the people in his own building, as usual, before returning home.
The next day, aside from Li Jian, none of the other building leaders distributed any food to the regular residents.
That night, when the last sliver of hope was completely crushed, the residents of the neighborhood went utterly mad!
The community became busier than ever.
From an unknown moment, cries of battle began to erupt from the various buildings.
Hoarse curses and desperate screams echoed in the hallways, sounds so intense that even the northern wind couldn't completely drown them out.
The pitch-black night became their only cover. When these once fearful common folk no longer cared about their lives, the power-holding rulers of each building realized just how strong they really were!
After all, not everyone was like Zhang Yi, with a perfect defensive fortress and terrifying firepower.
Still stuck in the cold-weapon era, the sheer number of people was bound to have a significant impact on the situation.
Zhang Yi sat on his warm, cozy white velvet bed, quietly observing the scene outside.
With the lights off, the tranquility inside created a stark contrast to the howling winds, snow, and the horrifying sounds of killing outside.
He didn't know how far things had progressed out there, but he understood one thing: the more people died tonight, the better it would be for him.
Before going to sleep, Zhang Yi made one last round to check the security of his room. He loaded bullets into his pistol and assault rifle, then comfortably lay down to rest.
...
On the third day.
Morning.
Zhang Yi walked out of his building, and the sight before him made him involuntarily take a sharp breath.
The once-white snow was now covered in patches of bright red.
In the center of the courtyard lay 50 to 60 corpses, sprawled in disarray.
Judging by their appearance, it seemed they had been forced to jump from great heights.
Some had curled up into a ball before they died, and although they hadn't died from the fall, their serious injuries left them to freeze to death in the icy snow.
Zhang Yi lifted his gaze and surveyed the surrounding buildings.
On many of the windows, dried, dark bloodstains could be seen.
It was clear how brutal the battles had been the previous night!
So much so that this morning, not a single person had come out to clear the snow, and no one even attempted to remove the large pile of corpses.
The residents of Building 25 stood at the entrance, terrified, not daring to utter a sound.
At this moment, they were immensely grateful that they had stuck with Zhang Yi.
Otherwise, most of them would have certainly met the same fate as the others—death!
Uncle You approached and asked, "Zhang Yi, should we still do the work today?"
Zhang Yi glanced at Uncle You, then at the neighbors behind him.
He responded indifferently, "If you want to keep eating in the future, then you have to work."
"Unless," he pointed to the corpses on the ground, "you want to end up like them."
Everyone shuddered at his words.
Compared to the dead, they felt incredibly fortunate!
At least they didn't have to fight for scarce food or risk their lives.
Work? As long as they could stay alive, they didn't mind!
"Yes, yes, we'll get to work right away!"
The group, spurred by the gruesome sight, hurriedly picked up their tools and began clearing the snow with renewed vigor.
Uncle You glanced around at the scene and asked Zhang Yi, "It seems like no one from the other buildings is coming out to clear the snow. Should we tell them to come out?"
Zhang Yi shot him a casual glance and then suddenly laughed as he asked, "Do you think they have time for that right now?"
Uncle You was confused, "Huh?"
Zhang Yi explained, "Last night was just the beginning. This conflict is between the power holders in each building and the regular residents."
"Unless they can solve the food distribution issue, one side will have to be completely wiped out!"
"One night is nowhere near enough time to finish the killing."
After hearing Zhang Yi's words, Uncle You suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
Could this be what the ancient saying meant by 'two peaches to kill three warriors'?
"So, what should we do next...?"
Zhang Yi replied calmly, "What does it have to do with us? Let them keep killing each other!"
The right moment had not yet come, so he wasn't in a hurry.
Later that afternoon, after Zhang Yi returned, he distributed food as usual.
However, he noticed that the people who came from a few buildings had changed. They were no longer the familiar faces from the original groups.
It seemed that in the struggle for food, control of some buildings had shifted hands.
But this didn't matter to Zhang Yi. Regardless of who was the building leader, he would cooperate as previously agreed.
However, that night, after Zhang Yi returned home, he sent a message to the building leader group chat:
"If I don't see results from your labor tomorrow, I can't guarantee that there will be food or cigarettes."
The next day, when Zhang Yi stepped out, he was greeted once again by the bustling sight of people laboring together.
However, compared to two days ago, the number of people had decreased by at least one-third!
In other words, over the past two days, due to the unequal distribution of food, at least 400 people had died in the community.
Uncle You couldn't comprehend the scene before him.
He asked Zhang Yi, "These people know very well that with only ten portions of food per building, they won't get any. So why don't they fight back to secure their own survival?"
Hearing this, Zhang Yi suddenly smirked playfully.
He gestured toward the snow-covered ground with his chin, "Do you remember how many bodies were here yesterday?"
Uncle You furrowed his brow, "Just out here, there were seven or eight dozen. Including those inside the buildings, there must have been several hundred!"
Zhang Yi spread his hands, "Well, there's your answer! The food problem has already been solved quite efficiently."
Uncle You finally realized, "I can't believe it's come to this!"
Zhang Yi responded nonchalantly, "As long as they have food, they won't dare fight for their lives. Most ordinary people in Huaguo (China) won't rebel unless they're pushed to the brink of no return."
Uncle You shook his head in disbelief, "But this isn't a long-term solution! What happens when the food runs out?"
Zhang Yi didn't hesitate, "Then we'll kill another batch!"
Uncle You swallowed hard, unable to find the words to respond.
Just then, a woman wearing fur came trudging through the snow toward them.
"Zhang Yi, I'd like to discuss our cooperation again."
The woman was Chen Lingyu, the building leader of Building 9.
Her clothes were stained with blood, clearly showing that she had survived a brutal battle the previous night.
But she was still alive.
Zhang Yi gave a slight smile, his expression carrying a hint of disdain.
"You? What do you think you have to offer me?"
Chen Lingyu stared into Zhang Yi's eyes, trying her best to use the negotiation skills she'd honed over years of being an online saleswoman.
"If this community continues down this path, it's going to collapse sooner or later! There's too much internal conflict, and it's impossible to manage effectively."
"Even if you can bring back more food, eventually, people will start using force to take more for themselves. When that happens, conflicts will only intensify, and more and more people will die."
Zhang Yi remained calm, looking at her indifferently. "Oh. And then?"
As if he didn't already know that this was exactly what he had orchestrated.