You were supposed to hoard supplies, why the heck did you hoard zombies!

Chapter 96 Who the Hell Are You?

"And the misconception you've fallen into is right here,"

"You've underestimated the value of zombies as workers and overestimated their capabilities as soldiers."

Ai Bing looked into Zhang Ye's eyes, her expression very serious.

But Zhang Ye was somewhat confused.

Whether the value of workers was underestimated was besides the point.

Using zombies as soldiers was indeed his favorite activity so far.

This habit had even extended to Liu Qingqing, as his secretary, who practically brought a few guards out to clear zombies from the neighborhood every day.

In both their views, this was actually the greatest use of these zombies.

And it had been very effective up to this point.

If there was any downside, it was that the system strictly limited the number of zombie employees.

Two hundred zombie employees might seem like a lot, but in actuality, they barely constituted a small horde compared to those gathered in commercial streets or squares, which were virtually negligible.

Even their greatest advantage as soldiers still bore no difference from regular zombies.

It was that ragged body and the multitude of numbers.

You see, so far, the largest group of survivors Zhang Ye had encountered was the few hundred survivors previously trapped in the mall.

They had even split into three factions over the distribution of resources.

This gave him the opportunity to overcome them with superior numbers.

But as time went on, the difference in numbers between Zhang Ye and other survivor groups would certainly diminish because humans, being social animals, are bound to band together.

And these survivors would gain more combat experience and become bolder.

The gaps between each group would get smaller and smaller.

Until his zombies were at a disadvantage.

The only solution Zhang Ye could think of to solve this problem was to increase the number of his zombie employees as much as possible, to always maintain the advantage of numerical superiority.

But then we're back to square one—the system doesn't allow it.

So the more he thought about it, the more worried he became.

It looked like a bleak future.

"See, you've hit another dead end, haven't you?"

Ai Bing's voice suddenly rang out again.

Zhang Ye looked up to see her smiling at him, and he instantly understood.

"You've thought of a solution?"

"Tell me quickly!"

As he spoke, he even deliberately made a fierce face, "Otherwise, I'll have to vent all my frustration on you!"

The woman's face turned red, and she gave him a glare.

"The solution is very simple."

"If there aren't enough zombies, use people to make up the numbers."

Zhang Ye was startled, "You mean to kill those people..."

Before he could finish, he was punched in the chest by the woman, and then he saw Ai Bing's expression turn somewhat angry.

"Kill people?"

"Do you really think I'm that cruel?"

"What I mean is that zombies are not suitable as soldiers at this stage, so why not select some from the survivors to replace them."

But upon hearing this, Zhang Ye's brow instinctively furrowed.

Use those survivors as replacements?

Would that work?

He was pondering this when he heard Ai Bing already continuing, "Otherwise, why would you spend so much manpower and resources to save them and bring them back?"

"It isn't to do good deeds, is it?"

"Are you that kind of person?"

Zhang Ye was momentarily at a loss.

He thought for a moment, then asked softly the question that troubled his mind:

"But if these survivors are used as soldiers or other combat personnel, how can we ensure their loyalty?"

"I can't control—"

He was going to say he couldn't control every survivor, but then he suddenly remembered that she didn't know he had the secret of a second employee roster.

So he quickly corrected himself, "I can't control humans."

Who would have known that Ai Bing would shake her head and say, "You've really gotten used to controlling zombies lately."

"Humans are different from zombies; there are many ways to control them."

"You don't need any superpowers."

"Have you ever thought about why Chen Bingjiang is the most powerful man in the mall?"

Chen Bingjiang?

He's probably still digging wells.

Zhang Ye pondered briefly and quickly came up with his own answer.

"He's ruthless."

"Decisive in his actions."

"And it seems like even before the zombie outbreak, he already had a few loyal followers."

When Ai Bing heard his response, a satisfied look immediately appeared in her eyes, and she nodded slightly, saying,

"You're right."

"The first two are essential qualities for a leader."

"As for the last one—"

"That's influence."

Zhang Ye was somewhat confused upon hearing this.

Influence?

What does that mean?

Before he had the chance to ask, the woman had already started to explain,

"Those followers who have been with Chen Bingjiang from the start, they are his influence."

"It makes others subconsciously feel a certain way."

"Like he's formidable."

"In such a situation, as long as Chen Bingjiang displays a certain level of leadership, naturally more and more people will gather around him."

Ai Bing, looking at Zhang Ye nodding like a pecking chick, suddenly felt a bit smug.

It seemed he had taken in everything she said.

Just as she started to think he might be teachable, Zhang Ye with a serious face said,

"But what does this have to do with me?"

"How can it not be related to you!"

The woman's voice suddenly rose by several decibels, sounding quite frustrated.

"Do you think you're ruthless enough?"

Zhang Ye scratched his head.

"Well, I guess... it's okay..."

The woman, with a sharp gaze, continued to press him,

"Then do you think you're decisive enough when facing problems?"

Zhang Ye thought about it, "Uh... seems okay too?"

The woman immediately asked her final question, "Then do you think you have influence?"

Zhang Ye suddenly froze.

He was about to say no, but then he thought carefully—

According to what Ai Bing just said, Chen Bingjiang's having a few followers counts as having influence.

I currently have twenty names just on the list of human employees.

Does that count as a form of influence?

Does having forty fully-armed security zombie guards count as a form of influence?

The answer is definite.

It does.

Not only does he possess it, but it's also much greater than what people like Chen Bingjiang and Zheng Youcai have.

Beyond that, he also has supplies filling the entire villa's basement and a huge base under construction.

All of these are seen as signs of Zhang Ye's strength in others' eyes and are symbols of his power.

They're also the reason why other survivors are filled with fear towards him.

"So do you understand now?"

Ai Bing was still looking at him.

But the tone of her voice had once again become gentle.

At the same time, her eyes carried an additional hint of encouragement and satisfaction. Read latest chapters at empire

"You have not only underestimated the value of zombies as workers, but also greatly underestimated your own value as a leader."

"A competent king never needs to worry about the loyalty of his soldiers."

"Because they will prove it themselves."

"Through battle."

Zhang Ye looked at the woman before him with a complicated expression, and after a long silence, he asked,

"Who exactly are you?"