Chapter 120

Amidst a hail of bullets, the guards on the watchtower had long been shot dead. The dense barrage left them no chance to retaliate. Finally, after a long while, the shelling stopped, and Rick carefully climbed onto the watchtower.

“Knock! Knock!” Negan leaned against the car with a smirk, looking at the figure on the high wall. “Ah, you’re home, Rick! Come on, let’s have a good talk. Oh my god, the stage I prepared last time, the idea I came up with in five minutes, was all ruined by that little brat Lena.”

"How is she? What did you do to her?" Rick stopped dodging and stood up straight to confront Negan.

“Relax,” Negan raised an eyebrow. “I’m not a pedophile… Anyway, she’s doing great, damn it! I’ve used up a lot of drug resources, she’s practically a sieve!” Negan licked his lips, staring intently at Rick. “But I think I’ll get my interest back soon.”

“Where’s Daryl?” Rick asked again.

Negan beckoned, and Daryl, dressed in tattered prison clothes, was pushed out, his face bruised and swollen, looking extremely disheveled.

“I love dogs, really, they’re great ball-playing partners,” Negan said, swinging Lucille as if hitting a baseball. “I love your dog, Rick, but unfortunately, dogs are a bit silly and once they set their sights on one owner, it’s hard to switch them. It’s really been a lot of work for me.” Negan grinned and put down his bat, glancing at Daryl, whose eyes blazed with anger, yet he dared not make a move.

"Fuck!" Moore cursed and kicked the grass inside the wall. Who dared to insult his brother like that? Moore was so angry that he wanted to grab a gun and rush out right now to blow that bastard's head off.

Rick surveyed the surrounding area; Alexandria was completely surrounded by hundreds of people, stretching as far as the eye could see, each armed with a fine rifle.

They had no way to fight back.

Rick realized this reality once again: unless they had more people, even half the number of the Saviors, he wouldn't dare to try to fight back. Right now, they and Hilltop combined were only a fraction of the Saviors' strength.

“You said you wanted to talk, so let’s talk.” Rick hesitated, pacing anxiously, and frowned as he looked at Negan.

“We can give you half the crop every two months, but you have to return our people,” Rick said.

“Wow,” Negan laughed exaggeratedly, “that sounds very, very, very!” Negan turned his head and stopped laughing. “Ridiculous.”

“Listen, Rick, I’m only saying this one last time, I want to talk to you, you guys, but!” Negan stared at Rick defiantly, “How we talk isn’t up to you. You know my style, and I’m sure that made a very strong impression on you, it should have been very red,” Negan hoisted Lucille onto his shoulder, laughing wildly, “I want you to open my door, let us in, everyone kneel before me, and then we can start talking properly.”

"Fortunately, no little rascals will cause trouble this time."

Rick bit his lip anxiously, sweat soaking his hair and dripping down his sides.

“…Hurry up!” Negan was getting impatient. “My patience is limited. I’ve already been so friendly, Rick. People are a resource, and I don’t want to kill my own people. You still have to work for me! But, it’s not impossible.” Negan shrugged, giving Rick a threatening look. “I’ll try to remember to leave half.”

The people inside looked anxiously at the entrance. The Saviors were no pushovers. They watched Rick's retreating figure with panic, hoping he could resolve the matter, even though everyone knew in their hearts that it would probably be difficult to resolve smoothly this time.

"I...I..." Rick panicked. The people behind him had high hopes for him, while the people in front of him held Daryl and Lina's lives in their hands.

Do not open the door, you absolutely must not open the door.

But what can we do if we don't open the door?

Anxiety caused Rick to experience tinnitus, and he felt as if he had been pulled out of the water, or as if he was still struggling in the water, unable to find a place to land.

Spencer kept looking at Rick, his breathing quickening, struggling to look towards the door.

"Hey!" Rosita shouted, trying to rush forward, but Spencer had already pulled the door open, and the Saviors rushed in. Rick looked at the doorway with a heavy heart.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Rosita was pinned to the ground by the Salvation Army, struggling and cursing Spencer.

Spencer turned his head away from Rosita's gaze and glanced at Negan.

Negan's smile was enigmatic, making Spencer feel uneasy. Spencer nervously looked away.

The Salvation Army marched straight in, and soon everyone was dragged to the open space at the entrance, where they knelt down in a dense mass.

Negan whistled in a good mood, gently patting Lucille on his shoulder as he scanned the kneeling people before him. There were familiar faces, but of course, there were many more new ones.

“Looks like everyone’s here,” Negan stopped pacing, leaning on Lucille, and stood up unsteadily. He greeted everyone with a smile, “Hi, this is your new boss,” he waved casually. “Who am I?” Negan asked the Saviors beside him.

"Negan!"

“By the way,” Negan nodded with satisfaction, looking at the kneeling crowd, “I am your new boss, Negan. From now on, you will all work for me, am I clear?”

Everyone looked at each other, not daring to speak.

“Oops! Did I create an awkward silence?” Negan said to the Saviors beside him, sounding somewhat disappointed. “I don’t like this. I know, we need a warm-up act, a warm-up act.” Negan then hoisted Lucille onto his shoulder. “Lucille said she can’t wait to put on a show for everyone! Oh, by the way, let me introduce Lucille.” Negan raised the baseball bat in his hand. “Lucille is the best bitch! Haha! She loves, loves blood.”

“I think she just likes this warm, sticky stuff. You know, ladies like to put on face masks, and Lucille, Lucille too.” Negan waved his baseball bat excitedly.

“Ha! You!” His gaze quickly locked onto Abraham, whose head was wrapped in a ball. “You’re the first person to escape from Lucille! You know, being the first is very special for ladies.” Negan slowly walked up to Abraham.

“Your red head is no longer visible, what a pity.” Negan stared at Abraham for a long time, then straightened up with regret. Abraham, without fear, knelt upright, staring defiantly at Negan.

Negan weaved through the crowd. "Wow, is this your sister?" Negan stopped next to Carl, squatted down, and looked at Judith in his arms. "Your little serial killer's sister? Little serial killer?" He reached out to tease Judith, but Carl dodged away while still holding Judith.

Negan smiled at him but said nothing. He stood up and walked over to Rick. "You're fucking lucky! A son, a daughter? You're so fortunate!"

Rick looked at Negan without saying a word. He didn't know who would die this time, and he nervously watched Negan's every move.

“Oh, I forgot. I remember you should have had a pregnant woman and an Asian man too. Where are they?” Negan asked, looking Rick into his eyes.

“…She, she’s not doing well, they…they…” Rick’s eyes welled up with sadness, and he lowered his head at the right moment.

“Really? I’m sorry to hear that,” Negan said sadly. “I knew a good OB-GYN and was thinking of introducing them, but that’s a real shame.” Negan straightened up, a cold glint in his eyes, but in an instant, he composed himself and looked at the crowd again.

He looked at Hershel and Beth, who was being shielded by Hershel.

"Oh my god! You guys are really lucky!" Negan excitedly approached Beth, but Hershel angrily blocked her way. Negan then looked at Hershel, mainly at his legs, "Wow, your legs? After the cataclysm?"

He asked with great interest.

“Yes, Rick saved my life,” Hershel said coldly.

“Wow,” Negan glanced back at Rick, a hint of regret in his eyes, then turned back to Beth. “Hey, little girl, you want to be my new wife? You can live a life of luxury with a bunch of sisters, wearing pretty dresses, fresh food, fruit, and a stable life. I’m pretty generous with wives, and I can even help you take care of yourself,” Negan gave Hershel a provocative look, “and take care of our father.”

Beth glared angrily at Negan. "No!" she practically spat out the words through clenched teeth.

“It’s a shame,” Negan said regretfully, “but I have great respect for women,” he gave a sly smile, “I will keep this invitation.”

Negan stood up, his gaze sweeping across the crowd. "We've wasted too much time, and I know Lucille is getting impatient." Negan looked at the baseball bat in his hand with a hint of helplessness. "Okay, okay, honey, I know!"

“We played a game of tag last time,” Negan said, smiling at Abraham. “Unfortunately, this is a new meeting now. Lucille is a bit of a womanizer, I know, and that’s a bad thing, but I have a lot of respect for women…”

Abraham held his head high; he would not yield, never!

“You don’t have to kill anyone. If you want, then kill Rick,” Spencer said, taking a deep breath.

Negan, who was about to step forward, stopped. He turned back in confusion to look at the person speaking at the door. Oh, that brat who opened the door, the little thing Lina hated.

Spencer saw that Negan's attention was focused on him, and he raised his hand shakily. "My mom and dad built this place, but everything changed after Rick, Rick and his men came!"

“Um, where are your parents?” Negan asked.

“Dead!” Spencer said bitterly. “I know what Rick and the others did! It wasn’t our intention, it was them, they all did it! You can kill Rick, and I, I promise, we’ll all work for you.” Spencer continued, “Perhaps you’d like to come to my study and we can talk things over. I have a bottle of good wine…”

Negan walked over to Spencer and Rick, and looked at Rick. "My God, Rick, did you really kill his parents?"

“And my brother!” Spencer added.

"...Those were all accidents..." Rick said weakly, glancing at Spencer with mixed feelings.

Spencer didn't even glance at Rick, only staring at Negan. "It would be my honor to serve the Salvation Army. I'm sure I'll satisfy you, just like before..."

"Shh!" Negan put a finger to his lips. "I wasn't talking to you, and I didn't ask you to speak."

Negan stared at Rick. "Looks like you're not exactly safe here either."

Rick licked his lips but didn't say anything.

Spencer looked at Negan nervously, wanting to say something more, but too afraid to speak. He stared intently at Negan, hoping to gain his support.

“Okay, I’m a very generous person to my friends, especially those who can help me.” Looking at Rick, Negan held up Lucille high. “I call this, service. You’re welcome.”