Fu Hancheng and her women were herded back to the shelter by Qin Lan's team like livestock.
When they appeared at the entrance of the shelter, dressed in rags, reeking of blood, and bound together with rough ropes like prisoners of war, the entire shelter was in an uproar.
The members who were working stopped what they were doing and gathered around, pointing and commenting on the group of new "prisoners".
"My God, who are these people? They look so disheveled."
"I heard they were survivors that Captain Qin Lan and her team brought back from outside."
"A survivor? Why are they tied up like prisoners?"
Li Luoshen, Xiaoya, Chen Jing, and others were also squeezed into the crowd. When they saw the swollen faces and numb, resentful eyes of the group of women, they all felt a strong sense of unease.
They couldn't see a trace of desire for a new life in these people, only a deep-rooted, self-righteous desire to take.
Just as everyone was discussing this, Lin Feng appeared on the high platform.
His cold gaze swept across the entire room, and the noisy discussions instantly disappeared.
"Everyone, assemble in the central square." His order was broadcast over the loudspeaker and reached every corner of the shelter.
A moment later, all the members of the shelter stood solemnly in the square.
Fu Hancheng and a dozen other women were roughly shoved down from the platform by the combat team members and forced to kneel in a row.
Looking at the faces of all his subjects below, Lin Feng knew that building a truly stable empire required not only carrots but also sticks.
Today is the moment for him to show his harshest and most ruthless side.
"Today, the expedition team brought back the first batch of 'new members' to the shelter." Lin Feng's voice was devoid of emotion as he pointed to Fu Hancheng and the others kneeling below the stage: "However, they are different from all the others who are willing to exchange labor for a new life."
"They are a group of lazy, selfish parasites who want to gain without working. They believe that their gender is the capital to take everything from others. They believe that the protection and support of the strong are their due obligations."
His words drew expressions of disdain and anger from many of the members in the audience.
Every one of them works tirelessly for this home, and they cannot tolerate such shameless values.
"In my sanctuary, there is no such thing as something for nothing!" Lin Feng's voice suddenly rose, booming like thunder in everyone's ears. "Everyone's dignity and value can only be created through their own hands!"
"Therefore, I have decided to formally establish a new class within the shelter—'slave laborers'!"
His icy gaze, like a sharp sword, pierced towards Fu Hancheng and the others below the stage.
"They are the first group of slave laborers. From this day forward, they will lose all their rights as official members of the shelter."
"They have no money, no freedom, and no days off. They will do the hardest and most arduous labor. Their food will consist of only the most basic black bread and vegetable soup to keep them alive. Their dwellings will be the simplest and coldest shacks on the outskirts of the shelter."
These words sent a chill down everyone's spine.
They hadn't expected Lin Feng's punishment to be so severe and thorough. It was almost tantamount to plunging them into an abyss.
Fu Hancheng and the others turned ashen-faced, finally realizing the terrifying fate that awaited them.
"Of course, I'm not an unreasonable tyrant either." A cruel smile curled at the corner of Lin Feng's lips. "I gave them a way to start anew."
"The sentence for slave labor is life. However, if someone shows genuine repentance in the arduous labor and consistently exceeds the extremely demanding labor quota I have set for a month, then she will have the opportunity to be freed from slave labor and become a probationary member through a public vote by all the full members."
This seemingly "merciful" clause sent a chill down everyone's spine.
The "extremely harsh labor quotas" and the "open vote by all formal members" were undoubtedly two insurmountable mountains. This slim hope only drove these slave laborers to exhaust their last bit of strength in endless despair.
"To ensure the effective implementation of the slave labor system," Lin Feng's gaze swept over the combat team members responsible for guarding the area, "I will establish a 'collective punishment system'."
"If any slave laborer in the guard unit escapes, shirks duty, or commits suicide, the guards responsible for that unit will immediately be stripped of their official membership and made to fill the vacancy, becoming new slave laborers until they die or ten times the number of new slave laborers are captured!"
"boom!"
This order was like a bombshell, exploding in everyone's hearts.
The combatants who were selected as guards turned deathly pale instantly.
The way they looked at the group of slave laborers instantly changed from simple supervision to a fierce and wary gaze, as if they were looking at mortal enemies.
Lin Feng's move was truly ruthless.
He used the most cruel system of collective punishment to completely bind the fates of guards and slave laborers together.
In order to protect their hard-won lives, the guards would inevitably use the most brutal and cruel methods to exploit and monitor these slave laborers.
"Now, the guards will escort them to the quarry in the west district." Lin Feng waved his hand, as if shooing away a swarm of flies: "Their work begins now."
As the guards shoved and shouted menacingly, Fu Hancheng and the others cried and struggled as they were dragged toward their hell.
The entire square was completely silent.
All the members of the shelter witnessed Lin Feng's thunderous and iron-fisted methods.
Their reverence for Lin Feng reached an unprecedented peak.
As they watched the desperate backs of the slave laborers, and then looked back at their own warm homes, delicious food, and hopeful lives, a strong feeling of "gratitude" welled up within them.
At the same time, a thought, like a brand, was deeply etched into everyone's mind:
Never, ever go against Mr. Lin's will. Otherwise, death will not be the worst outcome.
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