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Why? I thought of Zhang Zhihao.
Su Mu stared at my face and sneered, "Dr. Lu, don't tell me you came to Jiangbei because of Zhang Zhihao!"
“I did come here for him,” I said truthfully.
Su Mu snorted coldly, glanced away from me, poured himself a cup of tea, drank it down in one gulp, and then said, "Dr. Lu, I won't waste any more words. We're both smart people, and I know perfectly well what your purpose is in coming to Jiangbei. You say it's only for Zhang Zhihao, but is that really the case? I doubt it."
I frowned. What the hell was this guy talking about?
I came here specifically for Zhang Zhihao, okay?!
"You're actually just like me, an ambitious person. That's why you've always been unwilling to join Jiangbei. But Dr. Lu, with the strength of your team, isn't it a bit too arrogant of you to think you can play the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind me?"
"Wait, that doesn't seem right either. My behavior has always struck me as strange. With your intelligence, you shouldn't be able to manage a team. Even Zhang Zhihao thinks you're an idiot, but you insist on doing it? Why?"
Faced with Su Mu's inexplicable questions, I had no idea how to answer them.
"Could it be that you have a team behind you?" Su Mu began to mutter to himself.
I couldn't stand what this guy was saying any longer, so I asked, "What exactly are you trying to say?"
Su Mu said, "I'm just analyzing a fact, Dr. Lu. Regardless of whether you have other teams behind you, I can tell you clearly that if you don't join Jiangbei, the consequence is waiting to die."
"In the future war between Jiangbei and Biyuan, no matter which side wins, we will start an expansion mode to increase the size of the entire team and eventually unify the entire Jiajiang. This is an inevitable trend of history, and you can't resist it."
"Therefore, joining Jiangbei is your only option, unless you choose to leave Jiajiang."
I stared at the tall Su Mu, looking at the confident look on his face, and I really couldn't understand it.
Why do Su Mu, Zhou Liang, and the people of Biyuan all want to unify the entire city? Is there really any benefit to doing so? Why can't we just stay in our own little corner and quietly wait for life to unfold?
Development is something that should be done slowly. Teams can gradually cooperate and get to know each other. Why must they target each other and fight to the death?
Is this what is meant by historical inevitability?
Has this unified character been passed down since the Qin state unified the six states?
"You really want to become the ruler of Jiajiang?" I asked.
Su Mu shook his head: "No, I don't like being a ruler because it's too troublesome and there are too many things to manage. But I like the feeling of being admired. I like freedom, I like that kind of unrestrained freedom. Because of my work, I could only come into contact with certain groups of people every day. Over time, I always felt like I was a walking corpse, without a soul."
"It wasn't until the zombie outbreak, until I unified Jiangbei, that I understood where the path ahead truly lay."
Su Mu looked down at me and said, "Lu Xiaonan, one of the reasons I want you to join Jiangbei is indeed because you are a doctor. But more importantly, I value your ability to survive. Zhang Zhihao told me about your importance to the team. You have basically become their spiritual belief. As long as you are there, your people will feel at ease."
I was surprised. Was this how Zhang Zhihao described me?
"That's precisely why I want you to join Jiangbei."
"With you here, the whole of Jiangbei will feel more at ease."
"You overestimate me," I said.
I know my own limitations. My mere presence can put the entire Jiangbei region at ease. What a joke.
Su Mu shook his head. "I don't think too highly of you. Everyone in Jiangbei knows about you. If I took you out now and told the people in Jiangbei that you are Dr. Lu, do you think they would react?"
I frowned and shook my head.
Su Mu said, "They will be shocked. Many people have been asking why Dr. Lu doesn't come to Jiangbei. The people of Jiangbei have been wanting a doctor. If you show up, they will probably be really shocked and happy."
“So, if you’re here, you can play a significant role in uniting Jiangbei,” Su Mu said. “Don’t refuse my invitation anymore. As long as your team joins, Jiangbei can grow stronger again, and perhaps in the future, the entire Jiajiang will belong to us.”
I stood up from the sofa and said, "I don't have that much ambition."
Su Mu laughed and said, "It's alright. It's enough that I have this ambition. Whether you have it or not is irrelevant. Once Jiajiang is unified, if you want a peaceful life, I can give you a paradise."
I looked at Su Mu expressionlessly and said, "But, didn't you ever think you might lose?"
Su Mu shook his head: "I've never thought about it, and I've never dared to think about it."
I said, "But even if you win, what then? If Biyuan is destroyed, Jiangbei may also suffer heavy losses. At that time, what strength will you have to expand your territory and unify Jiajiang?"
Su Mu smiled and said, "Lu Xiaonan, your thinking is too pessimistic."
I scoffed. "I think you're just too arrogant."
Su Mu stared at me. "Really? I'm just trying to create a better life for the people of Jiangbei."
I looked him in the eye. "You're sending them to their deaths."
Su Mu's eyelids twitched, showing his displeasure. "Lu Xiaonan, you don't need to talk nonsense. I'll give you two days to consider. If you don't join Jiangbei, I'll kick you out."
I took a deep breath, feeling even more reluctant to join Jiangbei.
In my opinion, Su Mu's thinking has become distorted; such a person is very dangerous.
Staying around someone like that is like asking a tiger for its skin.
I sighed. "Su Mu, haven't you considered that there might be many unknown survivor teams in Jiajiang? Perhaps some of these teams are even stronger than Biyuan or Jiangbei. Maybe they're secretly observing the movements of Jiangbei and Biyuan. Haven't you thought about any of these things?"
Su Mu stared at me. "If such a thing existed, Jiangbei would cease to exist. Would they still be waiting until now? Lu Xiaonan, think it over carefully. Your days are numbered."
"I've said everything I needed to say. I have to go to a meeting now, so I can't keep you company any longer. There's still plenty of tea left, so drink it slowly and think about it."
After he finished speaking, he went downstairs.
I stood on the rooftop terrace, sat back down on the sofa, poured myself a cup of tea, and gulped it down. The aroma of the tea instantly soothed the restlessness in my heart.
I stared at the clouds on the distant horizon, and a feeling of helplessness suddenly welled up inside me.
"Is the unification of Jiajiang an inevitable historical trend? Ha! What a load of rubbish!"
(End of this chapter)
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