The Wisdom of the Ancients

"Sometimes, for the sake of safety, delaying a journey can be better than rushing headlong into it."

A voice drifted in from outside the cafeteria door.

Everyone inside the cafeteria turned their gaze toward the slowly opening doors.

A group of people stained with the residual blood of monsters walked in from outside. Standing at the center was Gao Zheng, who had been the one to speak.

"I wonder if Xi Qing would be willing to stay here for a few more days? Once the area around the base is cleared, we can head to the county together. That would provide an extra layer of security." Gao Zheng extended an invitation to Xi Qing with a smile.

Seeing this, Xi Qing began to hesitate. It was true that this seemed more appropriate, but she always felt that she couldn't stay in one place for too long, especially at the foot of these Taihang Mountains.

The mother from the pair that had previously decided to stay chimed in: "Miss Xi, I know you're worried about the situation in the county, but since you said the preparations there are better than here, it stands to reason that if we can hold out here, they can hold out there. Resting for a few days, learning about the surroundings, and making more preparations before setting off is definitely the right move."

Xi Qing hesitated, "But..."

The mother continued, "Miss Xi, we've all seen your capabilities along this journey. We believe you can reach the county safely, but since there is a better option, why not accept it?"

Xi Qing couldn't help but scan the people who had arrived here with her. She noticed a glimmer in almost everyone's eyes; they were all waiting for her to agree to this invitation.

Especially after seeing the anticipation in Su Mo's eyes, she knew she couldn't insist on her own plan anymore. Even if she insisted on leaving tomorrow, very few would follow her, and the morale of the group could no longer be held together as it had been before.

Xi Qing finally agreed. She looked at Gao Zheng with a sense of helplessness and sighed inwardly. As expected of someone who had held a high position for a long time, his grasp of human nature was indeed far superior to hers as a student. A single sentence had been enough to overturn the favorable situation she had previously established.

Gao Zheng reached out and shook Xi Qing's hand lightly, saying, "In that case, I, on behalf of Xingyan Group, welcome you, Xi Qing. I look forward to our cooperation."

Xi Qing put away her slightly helpless expression and said firmly, "Since the cooperation is settled, please inform us of your company's next steps so we can prepare early."

Gao Zheng gave a nudge to Lin Chenxing, who was standing beside him watching the developments with great interest, and said, "This is our little strategist. Let him tell you about the follow-up plans."

Lin Chenxing was startled by Gao Zheng's move. He had been wondering how Gao Zheng would explain things to them and who he would have do it, never expecting it to fall on his own shoulders.

Lin Chenxing quickly adjusted his state of mind and organized his thoughts.

"Our plan for the next steps can be summarized as 'Build high walls, store grain widely, and delay claiming the throne.' It's essentially applying the wisdom of the ancients."

"Building high walls is literal. You saw the situation tonight; the walls we built before weren't sturdy enough. Therefore, sturdiness is the first and bottom-line requirement for the construction of the base's outer perimeter."

"Second, although those monsters can't jump in for now, we must be prepared, so a certain height is also mandatory."

"Third, to achieve a certain degree of sturdiness and height, the footprint of the wall must be large, so we must expand outward to avoid compressing our internal space."

"Fourth, high-altitude defense. Our base's current capability against aerial threats is very poor. Fortunately, the birds can't tear through our protective netting for now, but making preparations in advance is definitely the right thing to do."

"Storing grain widely is even simpler. Our current source of supplies is very singular—the reserves within the base. Fortunately, we anticipated this earlier; our existing food reserves should last for half a year, but we need to plan for supplies beyond that period immediately."

"First, planting. We have already set aside an area in the southeast of the base; that will be our farmland. We had actually prepared for cultivation, but this incident happened too suddenly."

"Second, scavenging. Once the surrounding monsters are cleared, the next step is to open the road to Chuilong Town, dispatch an Exploration Team to collect the remaining supplies there, and also check for any survivors."

"Third, trading. After exploring Chuilong Town, we will open the road to the county seat to exchange supplies with them."

"Fourth, testing. With so many monsters, all of which were once animals, some of them must still be edible."

"Delaying claiming the throne doesn't mean seeking hegemony; it means doing everything possible to strengthen ourselves so we can survive to the end of this disaster. Especially since our largest and most advanced research center is here, as long as we immediately pivot to researching military equipment, the longer we can hold out, the more steadily our strength will improve."

After finishing the group's follow-up plan in one breath, Lin Chenxing couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement, as if he were full of confidence in the future.

Xi Qing nodded slightly after listening, expressing that she was fairly satisfied with the plan.

"There are no major issues with the plan, but you should perhaps place more importance on the strength of the monsters. I witnessed the fall of Chuilong Town with my own eyes; some of those monsters are far more terrifying than the ones that attacked your base tonight. I fear you will encounter great resistance when trying to clear the surrounding area."

"Also, I think we should add one more item: recording information on every monster encountered. I believe this will be very helpful for your subsequent exploration."

Gao Zheng agreed, "That is indeed necessary. According to what Chenxing said earlier, these monsters seem to be constantly evolving. Keeping records will allow us to see their evolutionary chains, making it easier for us to judge new monsters we encounter and kill them more quickly by exploiting potential weaknesses."

Having said that, Gao Zheng immediately turned to Li Yueqi and ordered, "Have the Administration Department go online immediately to collect data on all biological species and archive it. Also, have the researchers from the Biological Laboratory cooperate with the Administration Department to organize the data. While you're at it, classify and analyze the monsters we killed tonight to determine which animals they mutated from. Finally, have all departments download and store the online data immediately as a precaution."

"Old Gao, leave the coordination of this final task to me." He Qishun, who had been squinting, slowly opened his eyes, and an earnest and serious aura emanated from him.

Gao Zheng nodded with a smile, indicating his consent, and said, "Then I'll leave it to you."

Subsequently, He Qishun and Li Yueqi left the cafeteria one after the other to begin their work.