Rotting Land: Survive

Three days passed, and the villa was as calm as usual. Wei Dazhuang and the others neither went upstairs to demand an explanation nor asked Liu Fugui’s group to leave. It seemed as if the people in the villa had forgotten about the conflict that happened that night.

This was greatly beyond Liu Fugui’s expectations. Originally, he thought Old Xu would certainly send someone to have his son apologize to Wang Qiang, but now it seemed the other party intended to downplay the incident.

Liu Fugui wasn’t particularly bothered by this. During these days, he strictly ordered Huang Yong and the others not to leave the house, insisting that all matters, big or small, be communicated between him and Old Xu. He even personally delivered their meals upstairs for them to eat.

The most unfortunate one was Liu Yunpeng, who found the experience of being confined unbearable, especially while staying in the same room as Liu Fugui.

The solemn reprimand from the latter in the previous days left a deep impression on him. These days, he lived in constant fear, worried that he might inadvertently annoy the other party.

To top it off, Liu Fugui demanded that he recite the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, supposedly to temper his character. All these factors made life so unbearable that it was worse than death for him.

However, in fact, Liu Fugui didn’t know that the calmness they enjoyed during this period was thanks to Xiao Zhang. Had he not stepped forward to support Tang Xiaoquan and affirm the truth of what Wang Qiang had stated, the conflict would likely have erupted that very night three days earlier.

Due to Wang Qiang’s persistent silence that night, Tang Xiaoquan was powerless to find a suitable excuse to prevent Wei Dazhuang’s idea of going upstairs to kill someone. As for hoping Hu Xiaodong and others would intervene, that was simply wishful thinking. They would consider it a blessing just not to get involved; asking for their help was simply...

Just when all signs indicated that the impending disaster was unavoidable, and just when Tang Xiaoquan felt helpless to change the situation, Xiao Zhang unexpectedly stood out.

He sternly rebuked, "What’s all the shouting for? If you must shout, go outside. What do you think this place is? Don’t you know that Xiao Wang just woke up from a coma and shouldn’t talk much? I can answer your questions for Wei Dazhuang. Xiao Wang indeed mentioned that he would handle the matter with Liu Yunpeng himself without external interference. I was one of the first to arrive at the scene, so I think before the whole matter is thoroughly clarified, everyone should not act rashly. Since Xiao Wang said he’d handle it, let’s wait for his outcome. If he needs our help, Xiao Wang will tell us. Alright, I’ve said what needed to be said. If you truly hope for Xiao Wang’s quick recovery, give him a quiet space to rest and recuperate well, so he can deal with the matter afterwards. Your reckless involvement will only create chaos. Now, everyone, get out."

Thus, whether it was Wei Dazhuang or Tang Xiaoquan, they were all driven out of the room by Xiao Zhang. After exiting, Wei Dazhuang pondered over Xiao Zhang’s words and discussed them with everyone else, finding them quite reasonable.

After all, even if they had gone upstairs to kill Liu Yunpeng to vent Wang Qiang’s anger, what about afterward? How would Wang Qiang hold his head up high? So, it was more appropriate for him to resolve it himself.

Xiao Zhang’s bold intervention not only defused an unnecessary conflict but also relieved Tang Xiaoquan of heavy retaliation. Otherwise, after that day, he’d be labeled a traitor.

If that really happened, the protagonist who couldn’t lift their head due to this incident would switch from Wang Qiang to him.

"Old Lin, what do you think of Xiao Tang’s opinion? Do we need to let the villa go for Liu Fugui’s group?"

In the AV room, Old Xu and Old Lin had just been summoned there by Tang Xiaoquan. The latter openly shared his thoughts as they engaged in a discussion over the feasibility of his proposal.

Old Lin pondered for a moment and first affirmed, "Hmm... I think it’s feasible. Because of the matter between Wang Qiang and Liu Yunpeng, although we haven’t openly split with Liu Fugui’s group, everyone is secretly aware that our cooperative relationship with them is long past salvaging. Especially with those brothers like Wei Dazhuang, each with their tempers bottled up. Any minor friction could ignite those flames. Rather than letting things spiral out of control, why not make a strategic decision now and part ways? However, persuading Wei Dazhuang and them to leave is no easy task. So, I think maybe we should ask Liu Fugui’s group to leave, what do you all think?"

"No way!!" Tang Xiaoquan resolutely rejected Old Lin’s suggestion—he had already given thorough thought to who should be the one to leave the villa before coming here.

Following Old Lin’s suggestion to insist on Liu Fugui’s crew leaving could potentially create a new adversary. Who knows if they would bear a grudge and deliver a fatal blow to our side at some point.

Honestly speaking, Tang Xiaoquan would rather face the Spring and Autumn Coalition than antagonize Liu Fugui, this old fox. Several confrontations had already let him experience the latter’s witfulness.

Moreover, this villa is technically their property. Offering it back can be seen as returning it to its rightful owner, leaving us square.

After hearing Tang Xiaoquan’s explanation, Old Lin nodded in understanding, "Yes, I didn’t think it through properly. It seems we indeed need to voluntarily propose leaving this time. We’ll have to do a lot of persuasion work with Wei Dazhuang’s group afterward."

Although he said this, Old Lin was uneasy inside. After all, Wei Dazhuang’s nature was notoriously stubborn, persuading him would be no less than turning the head of a stubborn donkey.

"Hmm, there’s no way around it, let’s take it slowly. I’ll talk to Liu Fugui and make things clear on their side as well. But as for the other shelter, Xiao Tang, can we accommodate so many of us there now?" This was a question that Xu Renjie always wanted to ask but had no time to do so due to recent trivial matters.

Tang Xiaoquan cleared his throat, "Old Xu, don’t worry, two residential houses have been cleaned up over there. It will indeed be a bit cramped, but moving in won’t be a problem."

"Alright then, being cramped is not an issue. Mainly, the weather is still on the colder side now, and if accommodation isn’t settled, we absolutely cannot relocate from here." Tang Xiaoquan’s positive response gave Old Xu peace of mind. Since accommodation at the second shelter wasn’t a problem, it was indeed time to lead everyone away from here to prevent brewing trouble over time. (To Be Continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivator. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)