Hong Tao kept fishing until dinner time. He caught quite a few fish, but none of them were big, so he threw them all back and planned to continue after eating.

Now the beach by the lake was bustling. There was a person fishing, with two guards standing behind him holding crossbows, and a child running around serving tea, water, and ice pops. Looking further back, there were several people on the rooftops across the street, quietly discussing something.

"It's been over six hours. Why hasn't he changed yet?" Zhang Tao heard that Hong Tao had been bitten by a zombie and was initially quite anxious, but gradually he had other thoughts.

After being saved, his life was temporarily secure, but his status had clearly declined. He couldn't even compare to Zhou Jinlan, a housewife who had no decision-making power and no one listened to her suggestions.

A few days ago, everyone was equal at Director Liu's house. No one could force anyone to do anything. But now he had to follow someone else's orders and work. That person was Hong Tao.

With him around, he was at the bottom; without him, Jiao Qiao, Hua Miao, and even Director Liu could all order him around, and these personnel arrangements were made by Hong Tao.

In the past, at work, he managed seven or eight subordinates and achieved quite a few accomplishments. But now he had become the lowest level, even though there were less than ten people and they all worked together, the feeling of commanding others and being commanded was clearly different.

If this person died, it shouldn't be bad for him. Maybe it would even be an opportunity. If he found a battery and connected it, there would be electricity. If they swept the nearby yards, there would be food and drink. There weren't many zombies in the yards, and a few people could handle them!

"You should use your brain more. If Hong Brother changes into a zombie, you'll either be bitten to death in less than two months or starve to death. Without him leading the way to fight outside, what can you rely on? Hmph..." Linna came out again to sing a different tune, and she said it in such an unpleasant way.

"You've misunderstood. I'm not hoping for Hong Brother to become a zombie. I'm just discussing the matter. Didn't he say that being bitten or scratched by a zombie would quickly lead to mutation? Killing zombies isn't that difficult. Just aim with the crossbow and shoot accurately. Even if I can't aim properly for now, I'll practice and get better."

Speaking of Linna, she was also a snob. When they were at Director Liu's house, she only talked to Zhou Jinlan, trying to build a good relationship with the homeowner for convenience. Now that they were here, she started to get close to Hong Tao, always opposing him.

Her intentions were obvious, hoping to improve her status by clinging to someone powerful. Well, when he gained power one day, he would make her come crawling to him, and he wouldn't easily give her face!

"It's getting late. Let's all go back and rest. We have to get up early tomorrow to work. Master Hong said that the zombies have become more active these days. Many of them have come out of their rooms. It's not safe to let them wander around freely. We need to expand the cleaning range. Now that we have equipment and weapons, we'll clean the courtyard east of Yinding Bridge tomorrow and the north side the day after tomorrow. This way, the area within two to three hundred meters of us will be basically safe, and we won't have to worry about a sudden influx of zombies causing chaos!"

Liu Quanyou was also on the rooftop, and he couldn't help but feel annoyed when he heard Zhang Tao and Linna chattering on the side. No wonder Hong Tao didn't want to promote Zhang Tao. It seemed that it wasn't because of Linna's relationship. This guy was just like a gossiping woman in a government agency, always spreading rumors and causing trouble. It would be chaotic without him.

So how should one deal with this kind of person? Liu Quanyou didn't know Hong Tao's plan, but he had his own way. If you want to meddle, fine, then go meddle at the front line. Go to wherever it's hard, tiring, and dangerous.

Don't keep talking to me. Now there's no need to worry about relationships and face so much. If you dare to say half a word, without me taking action, Jiao San and Sun Jianshe won't let you off!

That night, Hong Tao slept in the car. In fact, he couldn't sleep. He chatted with whoever was on duty. When it was Zhang Tao's turn in the middle of the night, Hong Tao saw him and quickly retreated into the car to lie down. There was no point in talking to him; they were not on the same wavelength.

"Huh, why haven't you changed yet?" After dozing off for a while, there was some movement in the courtyard, and Hong Tao immediately woke up. He raised his hand and looked at it. His skin hadn't changed. He sat up and looked in the rearview mirror. His eyes were still black and white. It was too unscientific!

"Zhang Ke, what did you eat this morning?" The courtyard door creaked, and a little head popped out.

A quick look at "pawread.com" will leave you more fulfilled.

"You haven't turned into a zombie yet! Aunt Zhou said she made hot noodle soup, but it's not cooked yet." Zhang Ke had come out to see what a zombie would look like when it turned, but he was a little disappointed and more surprised.

"Hey, you little brat. You were hoping for me to turn into a zombie so you could shoot me with arrows, right?" Hong Tao quite liked this strange and precocious child. He could understand when they talked about certain things, and he wouldn't kill the mood when joking around.

"Hehe, it's not me hoping for it. It's Zhang Tao. Last night, I heard him talking to Sister Linna, asking why you hadn't turned into a zombie yet. As a result, Sister Linna scolded him and went back unhappily. Just now, Director Liu assigned them a task to kill zombies together with Uncle Jiao. Uncle Jiao gave him a transparent shield and a climbing pickaxe. Hehehe... Uncle Jiao said he wanted him to experience what it's like to be bitten by a zombie and not mutate!"

Zhang Ke approached the car and reported to Hong Tao through the window. It was quite a long report, covering everything from last night to this morning, with Zhang Tao being the main character. It sounded like this guy was going to have a hard time. Jiao San already didn't like him, and now Director Liu had assigned them to the same group. It was obviously not a coincidence. This was called beating a drum in front of a crowd.

"When you have no one to turn to, tell Uncle Jiao. Let him take it easy. It's a matter of life and death, so don't go too far." Should he beat him or not? Definitely should. Without a beating, he would never wake up and would continue living in his old world.But one couldn't be too ruthless. There weren't many survivors to begin with. If one were to use zombies as weapons to kill anyone they disliked, it wouldn't just be a matter of poor character, but also a lack of brains.

"Alright... Grandpa, why does he always talk nonsense behind others' backs? Weren't they all saved by you? Why doesn't anyone else behave like this?" Zhang Ke didn't think there was anything wrong with Jiao San taking the opportunity to kill Zhang Tao. This was a child's way of thinking. They weren't cruel, they just didn't understand life and death, and had no concept of it in their minds.

"He thinks he's very capable and doesn't like to be commanded by others. In the future, there may be many more people coming, all sorts of people. You can observe slowly, and ask me if you don't understand... if I'm still around. Alright, go get your toothbrush and cup, it's time for you to wash up. You can't be late for group activities."

In fact, Hong Tao didn't care about having people like Zhang Tao in the group. They were just grumbling and couldn't contribute much. On the other hand, people like Liu Quanyou and Sun Jianshe were more likely to gather a network of people around them, gradually forming small groups, and then power struggles would emerge.

As the struggles escalated, people would start to play dirty. One would be more cunning than the next, crossing the line further each time. In the end, it would either be you eat me or I eat you, or they might as well disband altogether.