"I have a feeling that I don't..."

"Shut up."

Mingmei pressed her hand on Lu Xiaoyao's mouth just as she was about to make a bold statement.

"Everyone is out there, so you're not here to jinx the family by staying home and taking care of things."

“呜￥#@奥@#￥%#”

Mingmei never expected that in order to break free from her grasp, Lu Xiaoyao's mouth could open into a gaping hole like that of a gruesome woman.

Bright and beautiful: 0.0

For a moment, I didn't know what to do with my hands that were covered in saliva!

"Oh dear, you two are more mischievous than children. Calm down for a bit and come sit in the shade here."

Zhen Hu was incredulous to see Mingmei, who was usually aloof and quiet, playing around with Lu Xiaoyao so playfully.

Because of their commotion, the children playing together in the yard all opened their big, round eyes and looked in their direction.

For a moment, Mingmei and Lu Xiaoyao were caught in a dilemma, unsure whether to move or not.

Lu Xiaoyao: I feel a sense of guilt for leading children astray.

Mingmei: So embarrassing!

Because of the two children, Zhen Hu also stayed behind. At this moment, Mingmei, Lu Xiaoyao, Zhen Hu, Wang Wenying, and two little ones remained at the base.

However, their overall combat strength was still insufficient. In order to support each other, they even stayed in the small courtyard in Loujia for this period of time. The people left behind by Lu Gui were also here.

Lou Jia, who had always considered himself a centrist, couldn't help but side with them this time.

For the first time, Lou Jia felt that the place he had rented was quite crowded.

Because the adults basically gave the entire yard to the eight children to play in.

Yes, eight children.

Lou Jia raised five children, Mu Chen's team had two, and Lu Gui's team also had a superhuman with a child.

However, the child's mother was also an NPC; Lu Gui's party had taken in a mother and daughter NPC.

The eight children were having a great time playing in the yard, their laughter never stopping. The adults were either sitting under the eaves learning to make things from Lou Jia; or like Mingmei and Lu Xiaoyao, they were playing around with a peacemaker by their side; or they were out scouting or standing guard at the door.

"It's been four or five days already, I don't know how much longer..."

Wang Wenying absentmindedly picked vegetables, preparing to cook later. Overhearing her words, the others naturally chimed in, "It should be soon. These granaries are scattered in the surrounding counties and cities, so they can't go too far. The main problem is that the trucks make noise, and clearing out zombies along the way slows them down."

"Going slowly is fine, as long as it's safe."

Zhen Hu then spoke the truth.

Just as everyone was chatting absentmindedly, there was a sudden knock on the courtyard gate.

The knocking was rhythmic. After the knocking ended, a superhuman who had been standing guard near the gate immediately opened the door, and soon a human figure gradually appeared in the air.

Li Yuan had just returned from a stroll outside using his invisibility ability.

"What do you mean?" Before he could speak, everyone was already anxious.

"The situation outside is getting increasingly tense. Today, the checkpoints outside the city have been manned by a lot more people, and their serious faces are quite intimidating."

Taking the warm water from Wang Wenying, Li Yuan thanked her and drank it, then continued, "I hid over there and listened for a long time. I heard that quite a few people from those people's group haven't returned yet."

"If their people come back, wouldn't that mean our people are in danger?"

"Yes, from that perspective, this might not be bad news for us."

"They can't come back either because they occasionally run into our people, and everyone gets entangled and hinders each other's return; or they are dealt with by our people."

"I would prefer the latter."

Everyone started chatting excitedly, but as they talked, Lou Jia's expression turned sour for a moment. He asked, "If our people succeed and come back, do you think everyone here will become hostages?"

After Lou Jia asked this question, everyone present fell silent.

This is absolutely possible.

"Aren't we here?!"

Zhen Hu suddenly patted his chest, and the other ability users echoed, "Yeah, we're here!"

“Actually, hostages aren’t the worst thing…” Mingmei said quietly, glancing at the puzzled crowd, “If pushed too far, they might drag everyone down with them.”

Everyone: ? ? ?

"Meimei, how can your thoughts be so dark?"

Bright and beautiful: ? ? ?

Looking at Lu Xiaoyao's terrified expression, as if she couldn't even hold a melon seed in her hand like a hamster.

"But...you can't think of our enemies as a normal person, can you? Those people are so controlling. If they can't be won over, they'll suppress them relentlessly, even trying to kill them secretly. 'Those who obey me prosper, those who oppose me perish.' Aren't you thinking too highly of these enemies?"

Mingmei looked at Lu Xiaoyao, who had played so many escape games, and couldn't help but sigh in her heart—doesn't she ever learn?

The villains in escape games are not normal people.

"So... how do you think they want to drag everyone down with them?"

When Lou Jia asked this question, a terrifying killing intent was constantly emanating from him. He couldn't say what he might do if his little ones were to die.

"I don't know, it's either a precision strike or indiscriminate killing," Mingmei said after a moment's thought. "The former, they might come and capture people from opposing teams to use as leverage; if that doesn't work, they'll all die together. The latter..."

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