Beauvais Town, inside the food warehouse.

Lin Yi put away the money and looked directly at the Red Wine Commander.

At this moment, the general's eyes sparkled with joy, excitement, and anticipation for the next supply.

With this food, their situation could be greatly improved, and isn't every grand blueprint built brick by brick?

Moreover, compared to this precious food, what they paid for it was nothing more than some previously idle, worthless gold coins!

At this thought, the Red Wine Commander stepped forward, beaming, and said, "I look forward to establishing a fruitful partnership with you... and your next supply."

As soon as these words were spoken, it was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, instantly causing ripples.

The expressions of the officers present changed instantly.

This was undoubtedly a strong signal—

Lin Yi, in front of them, was no longer an insignificant outsider but a very important partner of the military.

In an instant, those officers who already supported Lin Yi all broke into happy smiles.

The remaining officers, however, showed dissatisfaction, glaring at Lin Yi with hostility and suspicion in their eyes.

Lin Yi had already anticipated this, and was not surprised.

He remained calm, slightly turned his head toward the Red Wine Commander, and smiled, "Do you have enough money to pay for the next shipment?"

"I assure you, we will gather the money."

"In three days."

"Three days?" The Red Wine Commander frowned upon hearing this.

Obviously, he was pondering why the merchant set such a short deadline...

However, as a consummate businessman, Lin Yi naturally had his own considerations for setting the time.

He had already sensed that Beauvais Town was not united internally, with differing opinions and factional divisions.

This internal discord undoubtedly posed many potential risks to their trade cooperation.

Such as someone secretly sabotaging the cooperation, disrupting the transaction process, or altering the cooperation agreement, making collaboration full of uncertainties.

Therefore, from the perspective of reducing cooperation risks, shortening the transaction cycle was a wise choice.

This could reduce uncertainties caused by the other party's internal conflicts, which is a reasonable business decision.

But above all, it was not the main reason.

Setting the next transaction within three days was a test of the Red Wine Commander's sincerity and decision-making ability in cooperation.

If the Red Wine Commander could not overcome opposition within such a short time, gather the payment and facilitate the transaction, it would demonstrate his lack of sufficient authority and decision-making power in the camp.

And for Lin Yi, an indecisive partner would greatly reduce the value of cooperation, making it logical to reconsider the partnership.

Of course, Lin Yi would not say these things to the Red Wine Commander.

However, the other party could probably speculate on it.

Sure enough, after a brief pause and consideration, the Red Wine Commander Raphael solemnly nodded, his tone firm, and said, "Three days, then!"

"Then I'll be off, I'll be back in three days." Lin Yi smiled, turned and walked towards the camp exit.

"No! You, cannot, leave!"

Just at this moment, the dear plainclothes politician Gustav finally jumped out.

He had been secretly observing the Red Wine Commander's attitude, and when he saw that the latter agreed to the merchant's request and was ready to let the merchant leave.

As a patriot, the anger in his heart instantly ignited to an extreme level.

At his signal, another young officer jumped out: "General! We cannot let him go!"

"Why not?!" The Red Wine Commander shouted angrily at the officer.

Gustav spoke in a low tone: "He is the key to reviving our country, you must understand this!"

"Therefore, we must not let him leave!"

As soon as the words fell, all the young officers stood up.

Led by the plainclothes politician Gustav, they quickly blocked the warehouse exit, adopting a stance of resolutely not letting Lin Yi leave.

Everyone held their breath, nerves taut, waiting silently for the General's response.

Bang!

Suddenly, the Red Wine Commander pulled out a gun, firing it into the sky, producing a warning gunshot.

The sound was like thunder, accompanied by the Red Wine Commander's roar, echoing in the silent warehouse.

"Everyone back the hell off! If you mess this up and make him no longer do business with us, then what? Don't cause him trouble—he's under my protection!"

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Four more deafening gunshots echoed through the warehouse, causing the officers blocking the exit to instinctively take a step back.

At this moment, everyone clearly understood the General's stance—he fully supported Lin Yi and would not allow anyone to be disrespectful or hinder him.

Yet, the plainclothes politician was still unwilling, gritting his teeth: "But... we at least need to weigh the food to ensure he hasn't tricked—"

Lin Yi interrupted him directly, a trace of impatience in his tone: "Are you done? I have a lot of things to do."

"Lin Yi, didn't you say you wanted to buy hens and roosters? We can go and have a look now." The Red Wine Commander spoke, though looking visibly uneasy.

Lin Yi looked at the unfriendly faces glaring at him, smiling politely yet gracefully: "Sure, but I won't stay here for more than a day."

"No problem. In the meantime, please allow me to show you around our town." The Red Wine Commander nodded, issuing several commands.

Then, he led Lin Yi towards a jeep.

The driver was a young officer.

He saluted, started the engine, and delivered the passengers to their destination without waiting for the General to indicate where to go.

It was an old military jeep, but it had additional armor—clearly meant for transporting officers, as there wasn't even a place for a machine gun on it.

"I guess you were quite sure I wouldn't leave, or couldn't leave, right?"

"Indeed, to be honest, I didn't expect you would decide to leave immediately, but even if you were to go, I expected Gustav wouldn't let you leave easily."

The Red Wine Commander's expression was very honest, not hiding his thoughts, though there was a hint of embarrassment in his words.

Lin Yi also explained candidly: "Well, anyway, I'm leaving tomorrow. And the way I leave will determine whether I'll come back."

Currently, he had gained considerable insight into Beauvais Town, and whether to continue business dealings ultimately depended on the General's performance.

If the General could properly handle internal conflicts, showing sincerity and capability, then cooperation might continue; otherwise, he might reconsider the necessity of the partnership.

"I understand." The Red Wine Commander sighed deeply, holding his forehead, knowing this would be a challenging day for the future of the camp's development—

After all, surrounded by officers who were all idiots...

The jeep didn't drive fast, and Lin Yi indirectly learned the identity of the plainclothes politician Gustav.

This guy was the former Deputy Minister of the Economy in this region, and before the apocalypse, an emergency bill was passed—specifying who would manage the country if high-ranking officials died.

The Red Wine Commander looked gloomy: "Gustav is ranked forty on the succession list..."

"So he's your superior?"

"Theoretically, yes."

It was evident that the Red Wine Commander had been holding back for a long time, beginning to complain.

Initially, Gustav was not in Beauvais Town, when the Red Wine Commander encountered him—

He was living a life of luxury with some police officers and a small military detachment acting as his thugs.

Meanwhile, ordinary citizens were struggling to survive, starving, fighting internally, and threatened by zombies.

But due to orders, the Red Wine Commander had no choice but to incorporate his men into his own forces.

Soon after, Beauvais Town erupted in a power struggle.

Gustav dreamed of overthrowing the Red Wine Commander, but he was smart enough to know that without the Red Wine Commander, the whole place would fall apart.

Therefore, Gustav and his officers obtained ranks through bribery, surviving by using those uniforms, while drawing in the remaining police and military.

When talking about this, the Red Wine Commander sighed, clearly exasperated with handling the situation.

After listening, Lin Yi smiled and suddenly asked:

"Can't you eliminate him, once and for all?"...

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