hsntnovel Chapter 209 Are they soldiers?
Chapter 209 Are they soldiers?
Chapter 209 Are they soldiers?
Watching Jonathan casually picking his teeth, Corbyn spat with a sour expression.
After his spittle landed on the ground, he pointed to the two dogs fighting over the lamb leg and said softly.
"I'll say it again, Jonathan, don't give me the chance to shoot those two dogs!"
"Don't let them bark foolishly at me, don't let their barking disturb my sleep, and most importantly, don't let us, the living, have even a single day of chance to go hungry!"
"Otherwise, I would have killed them immediately!"
"You should understand, dogs aren't suitable for fighting zombies. In the apocalypse, they have no value as pets, understand? No way!"
After saying that, Corbyn didn't wait for Jonathan's reply and turned to walk towards the warehouse door.
He didn't like seeing Jonathan's sour face. This cowboy instructor from Wagner Farm was only outwardly respectful but inwardly resentful of him, which not only lowered his influence in the camp but also eroded some of the cowboys' admiration!
Sometimes, he even thought about killing Jonathan outright!
The main reason he restrained himself from doing that was simply that Jonathan drew his gun faster than him!
Standing by the small fire, watching Corbin turn and walk away, Jonathan remained silent for a moment, then let out a cold laugh.
After he had finished laughing, he stood up, kicked over the fire in front of him, and stomped out the few remaining pieces of firewood that were not completely burned.
After spending three to five minutes dealing with the embers of the fire, Jonathan, hands in his pockets, swaggered out of the warehouse, his body shrouded in gloom.
Seeing him walk away, the two dogs that had been sharing the lamb leg immediately put down the lamb leg and followed behind Jonathan, leaving the remaining meat and flesh of the lamb leg behind.
Jonathan didn't stop them, nor did he think it was a waste, because the lamb leg was there, and the dogs would naturally come and eat it all when they had time.
Dogs don't understand what waste is.
At that moment, he was seen walking out of the warehouse with two dogs, swaying leisurely.
Facing the midday sun, he raised his hand at the warehouse entrance and pulled the cowboy hat hanging on his back over his head to block the glare.
About twenty meters to the left of the door, two cowboys sitting there smoking saw Jonathan and instinctively stood up to greet him.
"Hey, Jojo!"
"Haha, don't fucking call me that, I don't have any of that bullshit golden spirit!"
Jonathan gave the two cowboys the middle finger, then walked up to them with his hands in his pockets and moved his hands from his pants pockets to his shirt pockets.
Then, he squatted down without any regard for his image, shook his head, and asked the two cowboys.
"What are you doing here, fucking? Guarding the door? Stop messing around, my dog is enough to guard the door."
"Of course we're not guarding the door, Joe, we're watching the girls doing laundry!"
Faced with Jonathan's question, the burlyer of the two cowboys raised his right hand and pointed to the river about 110 meters away from the warehouse door.
Ranch 6666 is much drier than Gavin Farm, which is in central Texas, but although it is relatively dry, it does not mean that there is no major river.
Most of the living quarters at Ranch 6666 were also built in accordance with the distribution of the river.
The warehouse area was also very close to the river, which naturally became a place for women to do laundry.
Following the cowboy's directions, Jonathan looked at the two burly women, his gaze especially falling on Anne Bonnet standing next to them.
"Annie got up so early?"
He turned to the two cowboys and asked.
Upon hearing Jonathan's words, the cowboys stiffened for a moment, and one of them immediately said to Jonathan with amusement.
"Seriously, Joe, why are you so focused on Annie? You're not actually a mother complex, are you? Or maybe you're a breastfed woman?"
"I love you, son of the beach in Mazefak, Fakoff!"
Hearing the cowboy's teasing, Jonathan spat without hesitation, the spittle landing directly on the ground between the two cowboys.
Then, Jonathan explained in a low voice.
"I just feel sorry for that old lady. Kids, just imagine, an eighty-year-old woman facing the reality of her family being destroyed and a terrible impending doom!"
"If I were Annie, I would probably have broken down, but this old lady can still put on an optimistic smile, which is something I can hardly do."
"As for me, I only admire those who are stronger than me, whether it's their ability to act or their willpower!"
At this point, Jonathan stood up, gave the two cowboys the middle finger, and then strode towards the river.
Staring at Jonathan's retreating figure, the two cowboys stood there for a moment, then one of them muttered something to himself.
"Dude!"
He then spoke to the cowboy beside him.
"That short guy can be really handsome sometimes. I fucking think he'd be a better fit to be our boss than Corbyn!"
"Stop messing around, you idiot. Corbin was our original boss before the apocalypse, after all. As for Joe, he's an outsider among the cowboys, but we all know he's excellent!"
Another cowboy responded, then tossed a cigarette to his companion, and the two immediately began puffing away.
Jonathan strode over to the riverbank and came up behind the two women who were washing clothes.
Hearing the approaching footsteps, the women who had been chatting about dirty jokes all turned to look at Jonathan. Old Mrs. Anne also turned her head, nodded to Jonathan, and smiled.
"You got up later than yesterday, Joe. Was it your anticipation of Gavin that kept you awake, my child?"
"Of course, no one knows me better than you, and no one knows everyone better than you, Annie. I didn't sleep well last night. I'm really looking forward to Gavin's arrival, especially to him and his crew, and seeing what changes they can bring to our lives!"
Faced with Anne's question, Jonathan made no attempt to hide his thoughts and answered Anne's question frankly and directly.
His words made the woman washing clothes nearby lower her head in worry.
After all, these words sounded like Jonathan was complaining about someone.
Jonathan, however, paid no heed to the women's concerns and continued speaking without any politeness.
"We've been hiding in the warehouse district for a full six days, damn it, almost six days!"
"Ever since we cleared out the small number of zombies in the warehouse area, Corbin has become—peace-loving! Mazefak!"
"I admit, the mountains of supplies piled up in the warehouse area could indeed sustain us for a long time, but the quality of life I need here is nowhere near what I want!"
"You know better than Jonathan that we should have rallied long ago and targeted our original, most concentrated residential area. There are many zombies there, but that's where our home is. We need a warm, comfortable bed, and more importantly, a reason to fight for it!"
"We shouldn't be sitting in the warehouse area with supplies that are destined to rot a significant portion of the way, muttering about how we can conserve them!"
"What we should do is just like Gavin said: even in the face of the apocalypse, we shouldn't let life be all about the apocalypse. We should have more to strive for. We should live as we did before the apocalypse, and perhaps even better, because we are many times fewer in number!"
"But that bastard Otto is always talking about security, and Corbyn keeps nagging about saving money, damn it!"
"I admit they all have a point, but living like that would be incredibly stifling. At least I'm already so stifled I'm practically turning into a caveman!"
"Mazefak!"
Jonathan finished with a harsh curse, which silenced Annie for nearly three seconds.
Seeing Jonathan's displeased expression, Anne couldn't help but chuckle. This kid was just like her former third son.
They were all quite short, and all had bold personalities and fiery tempers.
Anne wasn't sure if Jonathan's temper would lead him closer to death, but she was certain that his personality would be very attractive to the cowboys.
So Anne raised her hand.
Upon seeing this, Jonathan immediately knelt down beside Annie and held her hand.
Looking at the cowboy coach who seemed to be covered in thorns but was actually full of grievances, Annie patted Jonathan's hand and smiled.
"Jonathan, the future belongs to you, and as for me, I'm just an old lady. I can't convince Corbin and Otto."
"You can, Annie. You know how important you are. No one will disregard your advice, no one!"
Jonathan continued to try to persuade Anne.
Despite Jonathan's repeated persuasion, Anne simply smiled and shook her head.
"Perhaps, perhaps they are all willing to listen to my advice, but I don't believe in myself, because only I know exactly how old I am!"
"The elderly should not hold too much power, because only the elderly understand how our minds will be clouded by all sorts of messy thoughts as we grow old."
"So, Joe, I'll just listen, I won't make decisions, because what I consider right or wrong won't fit into a future I don't understand."
"I have the right to speak, but I also have a greater reason to shut up. What do you think?"
At this point, Anne patted Jonathan's hand hard.
Their words made the two women washing clothes tremble even more.
Clearly, the conflict between the camp's three leaders—Otto, Jonathan, and Corbyn—is growing.
The three of them never shared the same consciousness and ideas, yet their influence on each other was roughly equal.
And every smart person can realize that this is definitely not a good thing!
Just as Jonathan was about to say something more to Annie, a loud shout suddenly came from the direction of the warehouse.
"Guys, come to the radio! Gavin contacted us by helicopter; he says he's approaching!"
"What?"
Upon hearing this, Jonathan gripped Annie's hand tightly, quickly stood up, and then pushed Annie's wheelchair, jogging with her towards the warehouse area.
Anne was feeling a bit uncomfortable from the swaying of the wheelchair, so she patted Jonathan's arm helplessly.
"Wait, Joe, Gavin's helicopter won't give up contact with us just because I, an old lady, am a step slower."
"Oh, sorry, I forgot. I'll slow down now, Annie."
Jonathan quickly agreed and then slowed down to take Annie to the broadcasting room.
When he arrived, the area in front of the broadcasting room was already crowded with people.
When Jonathan arrived pushing Annie, the cowboys all gave him friendly looks, and Otto and his group also looked at Jonathan with appreciation.
As for Corbin, he couldn't help but frown, then continued speaking into the intercom.
"Gavin, my guys are mostly here. What do you want to say? Go ahead!"
"Ah, Corbin, my friend, you sound down, so I hope my news will cheer you up!"
Gavin's voice came through the radio, and his words made Jonathan squint his eyes with excitement.
Meanwhile, Gavin continued.
"I am currently about 60 kilometers away from Ranch 6666. We will be over the ranch in 15 minutes."
"So, tell me where you are right now, Corbin. I need to know your exact location, after all, Ranch 6666 is quite large, isn't it?"
Wow!
As soon as Gavin finished speaking, the men present erupted in an uproar, all of them stunned by the news.
After a brief moment of surprise, Otto shouted something.
"Holy crap, they really came! My idol always keeps his word; they came as soon as they said they'd come, quick and efficient. Well done!"
After saying that, Otto looked at Corbin expectantly.
His eyes were full of urgency; he wanted Corbyn to report the location quickly.
Meeting Otto's gaze, Corbin glanced at Jonathan, who licked his lips and sneered, nodding to Corbin at the same time.
Seeing that the two were standing together, Corbin took a deep breath, then turned on the communicator and spoke softly.
"This is truly great news to celebrate, Gavin. We are currently gathered at the center of three warehouse areas in the northwest of Ranch 6666, and the tallest, newest warehouse is our current location."
"Once your helicopters arrive and we have made a discovery, we can release signal flares to guide us."
"We—we've all been eagerly awaiting your arrival, buddy!"
At this point, Corbyn licked his lips, feeling a little disappointed and annoyed.
The expectations his friends had for Gavin hurt him.
Gavin, Corbin had barely finished speaking when his voice continued to come through the radio.
"Corbin!"
Gavin then emphasized this point.
"You don't think I just want to know your location, do you? What about the zombie situation around you? Is there any possibility that a helicopter landing could trigger a zombie attack?"
"Besides that, do you have any designated safe routes? If so, we will avoid those routes to minimize any disruption to your ability to handle unexpected situations!"
"Location is my need, but your safety is far more important; that's what I care about most!"
"Think about my question, then give me the answer. I'm waiting for you!"
At this point, Gavin's voice completely disappeared.
Corbyn's expression, however, was far worse.
Gavin is using PUA on him!
To be precise, Gavin was seizing on his minor flaws to verbally belittle him, while also promoting how this bastard Gavin cared about his camp members!
This guy is really good at this!
He hasn't even arrived yet, and he's already acting like my boss. How outrageous!
But the cowboys at the camp didn't care what Corbin thought; they only felt that they had earned Gavin's respect.
Gavin's emphasis on safety was unanimously recognized by them, especially Otto, whose eyes narrowed with a smile.
As for Jonathan, he immediately gave Corbyn a thumbs up!
"Did you hear that, Corbyn? Gavin and I were on the same page. I told you leaving a safety exit was absolutely worthwhile, but you keep blaming me for causing a guy's death because of it!"
"That's right. To open a safe passage to that town fifteen kilometers away, we had to kill nearly 140 zombies along the way, and one of us even died. But it was worth it; it gave us the right to face the unexpected!"
At this point, Jonathan was increasingly looking forward to Gavin's arrival.
He believed that Gavin understood some of his decisions better than Jonathan did!
Looking at the triumphant Jonathan, Corbyn curled his lip and then picked up the communicator.
He informed Gavin with a gloomy expression.
From then on, all the guys at the 6666 ranch camp gathered together, constantly looking up at the sky above.
Twenty-two minutes later, Jonathan, holding his binoculars, paused for a moment as he watched the dark shape finally appear in the distant sky, then spoke incredulously.
"Wait, what the hell is that?! Why the hell are there three Black Hawk helicopters?!"
"Is this some kind of survival camp, or the fucking U.S. Air Force? Bullshit, their planes are carrying missiles, and fucking Hellfire missiles at that!"
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