"Oh, by the way, you didn’t go to the Motorcycle Gang’s old stronghold the other day. All these building materials were moved from there; they can be put to good use," Li Yu said.

Old Bi watched as the gates of Oil City were wide open, with vehicles continuously bringing in building materials, while other empty vehicles headed out.

The scene was bustling with activity.

Seeing this, Old Bi felt both surprised and pleased. After all, in a few days, Li Yu and the others would be returning to the Big Camphor Tree Base.

By then, there would only be around forty of them left.

If they could build the walls sooner, it would undoubtedly boost their confidence in resisting zombies or enemies.

At this moment, Ju Tianrui, who was far away at the Motorcycle Gang’s old stronghold, sent a message.

"Director Li, some of the people we rescued when we wiped out the Motorcycle Gang saw us transporting building materials.

One person asked, so I explained the cooperative personnel model to him. He wants to join in the transportation in exchange for food. What do you think?"

Li Yu pondered for a moment.

Honestly, who doesn’t like having more people?

But more people also means more pressure on food supplies. We only seized a small amount of food from the Motorcycle Gang.

If we take in these hundreds, or even thousands, of people, we won’t be able to feed them. Taking them in without being able to support them would only lead to chaos.

So he decided to implement a cold approach.

I’ve saved you, but I can’t feed you.

You need to find your own way to survive.

.....

Li Yu hesitated for a moment, looking at the wall currently being constructed.

The walls of Oil City are not like the Motorcycle Gang’s old stronghold; the latter was built from scratch, covering an area tens of times larger and with much higher requirements.

After some consideration, Li Yu said to Ju Tianrui, "I’ll give you a reply later."

Then, Li Yu went to Third Uncle to discuss this matter.

"Third Uncle, some of the Motorcycle Gang slaves we rescued stayed at the old stronghold. This morning, when I sent Ju Tianrui to transport building materials, they learned about the cooperative personnel model and wanted to participate. What do you think?"

Third Uncle replied, "That’s a good thing. It can help us speed up the construction of Oil City’s walls."

"But we don’t have enough food..."

Third Uncle, somewhat surprised, said, "Didn’t we seize dozens of tons from the Motorcycle Gang’s old stronghold?"

Li Yu responded, "Yes, but that’s not my main concern. Once we start this, they’ll expect us to keep giving tasks in exchange for food. It means we have to support them."

Third Uncle suddenly smiled.

"Xiao Yu, you’re overthinking it. We have guns, so we hold the initiative. I like the cooperation model because it’s a one-time deal, leaving no debts. You don’t have to worry so much.

If we need their labor today, we give them food. If not, they don’t come, and if they insist, we don’t provide food.

If they steal, we kill. You know this logic well.

And importantly, we’re still at Oil City. If you’re worried they might revolt while working, we can stay here until the walls are repaired before leaving."

Third Uncle looked at Li Yu in surprise.

A word awakened the one in a dream.

Li Yu patted his head, wondering why such a simple principle needed Third Uncle’s reminder.

Then he said, "I couldn’t wrap my head around it, but I get it now."

He immediately contacted Ju Tianrui, agreeing to cooperate with those people.

Repairing either way, this would speed up the process considerably, so waiting a bit was fine.

Receiving Li Yu’s message, Ju Tianrui spoke with the people, agreeing to cooperation and food exchange.

With their help, the speed of transporting materials and construction suddenly increased.

Li Yu and his team did not directly participate in the repairs but stood around the walls, constantly monitoring them to prevent any secret activities during the reconstruction.

Time passed quickly, and by a little after 4 PM,

Li Yu asked Old Bi to exchange food for their work.

Some took the food and left Oil City, resting at places not far away.

They weren’t originally from Oil City, so Li Yu didn’t allow them inside.

Upon learning they could get food this way tomorrow, they all expressed they’d return.

As night fell,

Old Bi, with a calculator, was tallying today’s food exchange.

On average, each person consumed about a pound of food per day, close to a thousand people.

That’s over a thousand pounds of food a day. With the current progress, repairing the walls of Oil City would take about six days, totaling around 6,000 pounds.

Three tons.

This speed was thanks to those who came to help. If later, when Li Yu took Old Huang and Zhong Chuchu away, leaving just dozens behind,

The repair speed might slow by twenty times, likely taking at least three months to complete.

More people indeed brings more strength.

So it is.

Under the lamplight, Li Yu walked out of the darkness.

"How is it? How much food did we use today?"

Old Bi frowned and said, "1,023 pounds. To complete it all, probably over three tons."

Hearing this, Li Yu breathed a sigh of relief.

This was less than he expected.

Compared to Big Camphor Tree Base, integrating all the cooperative personnel here would create immense pressure.

At least Big Camphor Tree Base has over a thousand tons of food stock and steady farming for a continuous supply.

But Oil City only sees outflow, without inflow.

Back at Big Camphor Tree Base, the ongoing construction of the Third Outer City, along with various personnel, consumes over ten tons of food monthly.

Fortunately, Big Camphor Tree Base now produces 60 to 70 tons of food each quarter.

With the Third Outer City nearly complete and an added 150 acres of farmland, output could rise by 70% to 80%, reaching over 100 tons per quarter.

Li Yu calculated: three tons, six days.

It’s quite a bargain for them.

Using food to speed up repairs, exchanging food for time.

Understanding this, Li Yu told Old Bi, "There are too many people repairing the walls; leaving just the forty-plus of you here isn’t safe. I’ve talked it over with Third Uncle: we’ll leave once the walls are done."

"Really? That’s great. I was worried if you left soon, the forty of us wouldn’t be enough... This is a relief. Director Li, you’re so considerate," Old Bi’s weary face broke into a smile.

Li Yu chuckled, shook his head, and left.

Six days should be enough.

Besides, Ant and Uncle Jackal said they could fix the helicopter’s minor issues by tomorrow.

Then they could first take the helicopter back—been so long since they contacted Big Camphor Tree Base. Who knows what things are like there now?

As Li Yu pondered, he slowly returned to the RV.

He was contemplating another matter.

The helicopter’s cargo capacity is quite good; without passengers, it can hold 12 tons.

With passengers, it can carry 24 people.

And it’s fast, taking just three and a half hours to fly back to Big Camphor Tree Base during the day.

It could make at least two round trips a day.

The main issue was fuel consumption, but with Oil City, they had a constant supply, solving this problem.

"Pity there’s only one; having a few more would be nice," Li Yu pondered wistfully.

Originally, his plan was to establish a transfer station between Oil City and Big Camphor Tree Base.

This way, traveling between the locations would take two days, with the station offering nighttime shelter and eliminating the need to find camping spots.

But with the helicopter drastically reducing travel time tenfold, such a station seemed less necessary.

"No, establishing the station is a must; relying solely on the helicopter isn’t sufficient. If it fails, we’d have issues."

Li Yu murmured to himself, ultimately deciding to build a transfer station between Oil City and Big Camphor Tree Base.

He’d find a suitable location for it on his way back.

.....