"Ten-minute break!"
Su Chen called out.
The people in the other vehicles immediately took out food and water and began eating.
After traveling for most of the day, they were hungry and thirsty.
Su Chen also handed Huang Wei and Yang Defa some water and snacks.
"We can't keep milling around in a mess. We need a leader, right?"
Su Chen looked at Huang Wei.
Of everyone in the convoy, Huang Wei was a police officer. His somewhat special status made him a contender for the position.
Su Chen had also hesitated over whether to become the leader.
The bird that stuck its head out got shot.
Being the leader came with a certain amount of authority, but also a certain amount of risk.
But...
Su Chen thought of how, if he wanted to lead the group, he had to become its leader.
Huang Wei nodded at the question.
The convoy did look very disorganized.
Become the leader?
Before seeing Mushroom Town, Huang Wei might have entertained the idea.
Now, he felt he knew less than Su Chen.
So...
Su Chen was the better choice after all.
"You do it!"
"But I have one condition. Handle things according to the law as much as possible. You can't just kill people at will."
Huang Wei stated his condition.
He had been a police officer, so naturally, he had his own principles.
He knew Su Chen disliked Gao Yue and Fan Hui and feared he would act recklessly after becoming the leader.
"All right!"
Su Chen nodded.
The apocalypse was already here.
There was no need to kill people. They would get themselves killed.
With the information he possessed, setting someone up would be very easy if he really wanted to.
"Second question: how should we manage the people in the convoy?"
Su Chen raised the issue.
As soon as he did, Yang Defa was the first to speak.
"Brother Su, I'm sticking with you!"
Yang Defa kept calling him Brother, wholeheartedly convinced of his abilities.
Huang Wei fell silent.
Everyone had their own ideas. Managing them really would not be easy.
"Leader, what do you have in mind?"
Huang Wei finally looked at Su Chen.
Since Su Chen had brought it up, he must have an idea.
Su Chen said, "I'll propose just two arrangements: communal supplies and individual households."
"Individual households are responsible for their own food and drink."
"With communal supplies, resources are pooled, and the convoy provides food and drink. But anyone joining or leaving that arrangement must do so without bringing in or taking out any possessions."
"Managing communal supplies doesn't mean giving everyone an equal share."
"Instead, those who are more capable work more, receive more, and eat more."
When he finished speaking...
Huang Wei nodded in approval. "That works!"
"Officer Huang, you'll be in charge of communal supplies from now on."
After explaining the communal arrangement, Su Chen gave Huang Wei some authority.
Then he turned to Yang Defa.
"Old Yang, you'll handle supplies and logistics."
Su Chen put Yang Defa in charge of the pooled supplies.
"All right."
Yang Defa nodded.
"What about me?"
Zhang Xiaomeng, who had been following Huang Wei, noticed that she had not been mentioned and wanted to take part.
"That's the third point I wanted to make."
"Privileges."
Su Chen wanted to distinguish those with Sequences from ordinary people.
Those with Sequences possessed power beyond that of ordinary people.
Someone who had awakened a Sequence might find it hard to accept being treated the same as an ordinary person.
And ordinary people could easily grow jealous of those with Sequences.
Which could lead to attempts on their lives.
So there needed to be certain boundaries between those with Sequences and ordinary people.
"What privileges?"
Zhang Xiaomeng did not understand.
"Supplies belonging to those with Sequences will be accounted for separately."
"For example, they'll receive a share of the communal supplies, but contribute supplies as they wish."
Su Chen explained.
This way, the refrigerated truck would still belong to him.
He could also develop his own small circle.
Build up trusted followers.
It was the apocalypse. He had to distinguish between those close to him and those who were not.
Ideals and convictions could wait.
"I agree."
Yang Defa heard the self-interest in Su Chen's words but immediately agreed.
Su Chen's privileges could protect him.
After thinking for a moment, Huang Wei understood what Su Chen had in mind.
What he meant was:
Everyone with a Sequence would form a small team that stood above the entire convoy.
"That works!"
Once he had thought it through, Huang Wei nodded.
He could choose not to exercise his privileges, but he had to admit that privileges existed as an objective reality.
"Lastly, the convoy needs a name. What should we call it?"
Su Chen brought up the convoy's name.
A name held symbolic meaning.
For a while, they all pondered what to call it.
Zhang Xiaomeng clearly had some ideas about naming it.
"How about Sprout?"
Zhang Xiaomeng really liked the character in her name that meant "sprout."
"Then let's call it the Hope Convoy!"
Su Chen offered a different word.
He thought of his younger sister, Su Xi, who had always hoped to stand up.
That was his sister's hope.
And he had hopes too. He wanted to protect his sister through the apocalypse and keep living.
Even if they were fleeing for their lives, they should still have hope!
At the word "hope," a glimmer flashed through Huang Wei's eyes.
He thought about returning to Changcheng for a look once he had the ability.
Yang Defa thought of Banyan Tree Village.
Hope.
It was undoubtedly more moving.
Hearing that word, they all involuntarily showed a certain resonance with it.
"Then let's call it the Hope Convoy!"
Zhang Xiaomeng was the first to agree to the name Hope.
Afterward...
Yang Defa and Huang Wei went to explain the rules to the others.
The Hope Convoy had twenty-six people in total.
Six were individual households.
Gao Yue and Fan Hui also chose to operate independently.
The rest shared communal supplies, with twenty people nominally included.
However...
Su Chen, Su Xi, Yang Defa, Wang Xiumei, Huang Wei, and Zhang Xiaomeng all held certain privileges.
Su Chen's refrigerated truck, Yang Defa's cargo truck, and Huang Wei's police car...
Enjoyed certain private ownership privileges.
Although it was a little odd, the overall framework had been established.
The group was roughly divided into three parts and looked much more orderly overall.
As the leader, Su Chen began issuing orders.
"First, there are survivors in town, including someone with a Sequence. Avoid any conflict."
"Second, if you encounter Weird Entities, flee into the sunlight."
"Besides collecting food and water, you can gather some supplies for warmth and waterproofing."
"We may encounter extreme weather soon."
"Once everyone has finished gathering supplies, assemble at the entrance to town."
After Su Chen finished, the group rushed toward the town.
Quite a few people drove in.
Su Chen returned to the refrigerated truck and instructed Su Xi, "Sis, stay in the truck and keep watch. I'm going into town for a look."
Su Chen did not want to take risks, but for the sake of a Sequence, he had no choice.
The refrigerated truck already had supplies. There was no need to take it into town.
Leaving it at the town entrance would do.
"Be careful, Brother."
Su Xi spoke with her lips pressed together.
"Mm-hm!"
Su Chen nodded, took the Pig-Killing Knife, locked the truck door, and left.
Watching Su Chen's retreating figure, Su Xi felt somewhat unwilling to accept this.
She had clearly awakened a Sequence, yet she could not help her brother at all.
Lately...
Through experimentation, she had gradually begun to understand her ability and its cost.
Su Xi knew Su Chen did not want her to pay that cost.
But gaining power always required giving something up.
Didn't it?
Su Xi sat in the refrigerated truck, feeling a little tempted to act.
Unaware of Su Xi's thoughts, Su Chen entered Xintang Town with the group.
Inside the town...
Their first target was a convenience store.
The cigarettes, alcohol, rice, flour, water, and assorted snacks inside were all stuffed into vehicles.
Once the vehicles were full, the supplies were driven out of town and delivered to the cargo truck.
After emptying the convenience store, they came across a clothing store.
They did not spare that either.
After all, there might be extreme weather.
To Su Chen's surprise, they found a batch of pagers in an electronic components shop.
Those were useful things for the convoy.
Still, there were some unexpected incidents.
Among those working on their own.
One man entered an adult toy store.
Suddenly.
A startled cry came from inside the adult store.
"Ah!"
The man fled the store in panic, fell into the sunlight, and backed away step by step.
His body and crotch had been mangled into a bloody mess.
The people around him all moved away.
Inside the store.
A lizard covered in fleshy tumors stared fixedly at everyone in the sunlight with blood-red eyes.
Only after those in the sunlight saw that the monster had not come out did they help the man away.
The appearance of a Weird Entity calmed the group down a little.
Su Chen approached the area to investigate.
He was looking for a mirror.
As he searched, his surroundings seemed to grow quiet.
Su Chen looked up and saw that, to his surprise, there was not a single person on the tidy street.
Something was wrong!
Where were the people around him?
Just a moment ago, a whole crowd had surrounded him.
At the same time.
Inside the town.
The Big Pot Rice Team, who were searching for supplies, also began to panic.
Remembering Su Chen's instructions, they did not dare leave the sunlight, ensuring their safety.
They were just about to ask Su Chen to take a look and see what kind of Weird Entity had appeared.
Only to discover that Su Chen was gone.
"Has anyone seen the captain?"
"Where's Captain Su?"
"Let's look around first."
"How strange."
Some noticed Su Chen was missing, and one after another, they began searching for him.
Yang Defa also called Blackie over.
Huang Wei, as a police officer and a member of the Werewolf Sequence, used his nose to investigate.
Before you continue