A Realistic Mount & Blade Game

Zhang Bo easily appeased Zhang Caidong and even achieved a logical closed loop by leveraging Zhang Caidong's self-reflection.

So, he chatted with Zhang Caidong about past events, deepening their friendship.

"I must say, life in our urban village used to be really good. We didn't get rich from demolitions, but everyone had a building with forty or fifty rooms. As long as the rent was cheap, a lot of migrant workers would come to live in our urban village."

Zhang Caidong was filled with emotion at this point, and the slight intoxication made him think of the past.

"Yeah, back then, every household made twenty or thirty thousand yuan a month. Compared to those migrant workers who only earned four or five thousand, five or six thousand, and rarely over ten thousand, we were truly living a happy life back then," Zhang Bo nodded in agreement, also feeling nostalgic.

"But later, Brother Bo seemed to be adopted with one of your brothers, right? I remember, Brother Zhang Bo, that your family died early, making you an orphan, and life was quite poor at the time," Zhang Caidong suddenly recalled.

"That's right, back then, a wealthy businessman adopted me and a cousin, providing for us from elementary school through high school and college graduation," Zhang Bo said without changing his expression, just smiling, "Then the undead rules arrived, undead monsters began to wreak havoc, and everything was gone."

In his heart, Zhang Bo had a special reaction to Zhang Caidong's words, even feeling a sense of apprehension.

Because he didn't understand why Zhang Caidong suddenly asked this.

You must know.

Zhang Caidong's question was indeed enough to startle him.

"Alas, it's a pity. If Brother Bo could have continued his development, maybe he would be studying for a master's or even a doctorate now," Zhang Caidong continued, but he didn't see the slightest change on Zhang Bo's face. Zhang Bo's acting was already very good, and now everyone was slightly drunk, especially Zhang Caidong, who had drunk a lot of malt liquor, so of course he didn't notice the subtle changes in Zhang Bo's expression.

"Well, about that, but most likely just a master's degree," Zhang Bo waved his hand at this point, smiling and saying, "What's the use of talking about these things? In this era, what can a doctoral supervisor do? What can a former national project supervisor do? Isn't it still the same: die when you should die, live miserably when you should live miserably?"

"Yeah, yeah, if the Blue Star world was still around, we wouldn't even be from the same world, Brother Bo. I used to envy you so much, you had such good grades and were helped by benefactors. I just lived in the home of a drunkard and a gambler. I'm not afraid of you laughing at me, my father liked to drink and fool around everywhere, and my mother liked to play mahjong, never home all day long. I grew up alone, which also led to my previous sharp and mean personality," Zhang Caidong's tone became more and more uncomfortable at this time, and even his eyes were a little red.

But at this time, Zhang Bo also saw that Zhang Caidong seemed to be really recalling the past of living in the urban village and didn't say too much, and also didn't seem to notice too much.

Speaking of this, Zhang Bo's tone became more sincere, and he reached out and patted Zhang Caidong on the shoulder: "Isn't everything better now? We've already walked through the past. Now, we just need to stride forward. We, two brothers, will support each other and move forward, and everything will be fine."

"Yeah, everything will be fine," Zhang Caidong said some more about his past life, and suddenly looked up at Zhang Bo, his tone a little complicated: "To be honest, Brother Bo, tell me the truth, is something going to happen now? I always feel a little uneasy in my heart."

"What's going to happen? Don't be suspicious, it's not that big of a deal," Zhang Bo reached out again at this time and patted him on the shoulder, comforting him: "You're just thinking too much. It's just arresting some remnants of the Diesel Company. What else can happen? Even if the scope of Zhou Lian's arrest is likely to expand, it actually doesn't have that much involvement with the two of us. When Lord Shen Mu asks about it, you can just say that it's the Blue Star humans' own internal strife, some dirty tricks and conflicts between high-level managers and middle-level managers, wouldn't that be fine?"

"That's what you say, but I always feel like something's not quite right, especially since those high-level managers and middle-level managers have always been well-behaved before, but now they suddenly found an excuse and are about to start a conflict. I always feel like something's wrong," Zhang Caidong narrowed his eyes and looked at Zhang Bo: "I feel like someone is really fueling the flames here."

"Then who do you think it is?" Zhang Bo touched his chin as if puzzled, while also looking at Zhang Caidong.

"I don't know," Zhang Caidong said honestly: "It's just that my sixth sense vaguely feels like this, but you are a divination mage, you should also be able to feel some small contradictions here, or some strange feelings, right?"

"There are some strange feelings, but the things here are not what we should be worrying about. Lord Shen Mu personally issued the order for the remnants of the Diesel Company. Whatever happens, Lord Shen Mu will personally issue the instructions. We are all outsiders, and we shouldn't easily wade into this muddy water," Zhang Bo instead sincerely advised Zhang Caidong at this time: "Let those high-level managers and middle-level managers fight among themselves. We just need to watch the show from behind the scenes. You just need to sit here and coordinate the conflicts between these guys, that's enough. Even if something else happens, it's their own business. My point is that you must be a good steward, and this position of steward must be yours. Even if I take the blame, it's better than you taking the blame, after all, you know that you are the backbone."

"Thank you, thank you, Brother Bo, I understand that you are doing this for my own good," Zhang Caidong was even more moved at this time. He knew that Zhang Caidong was saying this to protect him.

Zhang Caidong wasn't thinking too much at the moment, nor did he realize that the Zhang Bo in front of him had already begun his grand plan. It wasn't to protect him as he claimed, but to thoroughly drag him down.

After all, only Zhang Bo himself knew what he was doing, and even within the Green Leaf Group, only the higher-ups were aware.

His plan was truly too secretive.

He was like a chameleon, a venomous chameleon quietly lurking in a crucial position within Deherim, waiting for the grand plan to proceed.

No one knew that this disguised chameleon was accumulating venom, ready to strike a deadly blow. That blow would be utterly fatal.

"Alright, you should rest well too. I won't chat any longer, it's about time." Zhang Bo finished the last of his malt wine, then stood up and glanced at the sky outside the window, which was already dark but shimmering with a faint white light, as if the moon was illuminating the whole of Deherim. He bid farewell to Zhang Caidong and left the town residence.

Zhang Caidong personally supported his body and saw Zhang Bo off from his residence. Then, feeling a wave of fatigue, he couldn't help but yawn. He also went to his room, lay on the bed, and fell into a drowsy sleep.

However, after Zhang Caidong fell asleep, Zhang Bo didn't head towards his own town residence.

Instead, he looked at the town area, where the curfew was in effect but not strictly enforced. He pursed his lips, turned a corner, and quickly walked towards a relatively open space nearby.

That area was a frequent gathering place for middle-level managers.

Nearly seventy or eighty middle-level managers had already appeared there. They were very quiet, not talking, each finding a corner to sit in small groups, waiting for someone to arrive.

Until Zhang Bo appeared at the edge of the open space, everyone stood up, indicating that Zhang Bo was the one they were waiting for.

"Brother Bo is here, Brother Bo is here, hurry up, everyone get up for a moment."

"That's right, that's right, Brother Bo is here, let's go over quickly, let's go over quickly."

"The matter is too serious, we must find Brother Bo and have him explain clearly. Everyone come over, let's all speak our minds and tell Brother Bo everything we know."

"Stop dawdling, hurry up. It's not easy for Brother Bo to come here. Being called here by Brother Bo means that Brother Bo trusts us."

The middle-level managers also spoke softly, calling for others to come over quickly.

The seventy or eighty managers stood in front of Zhang Bo, all looking at him expectantly.

"Well, everyone be quiet. I understand what you mean, and that's why I notified people to call you over. In my heart, you are the most trustworthy group of middle-level managers, different from the other forty or fifty."

Zhang Bo nodded, raised his hand, and gestured to them, while also indicating that they should stop talking and listen to him.

"Brother Bo, Brother Bo, we're relieved to hear you say that. You don't know how anxious we were when we heard about this. Those high-level managers want to manipulate us and make things difficult for us."

"That's right, they want to make things difficult for us, and they're also colluding. Before, we were just a little dissatisfied with them, and now they're using that as an excuse to suppress us, and they're all very impolite to us."

"It's not just being impolite and suppressing us, they want us dead. They even want us to hand over our human followers and be placed under house arrest, but we didn't listen to them. We united and came here."

"What's going on exactly? Brother Bo, you have to say something. We're very nervous right now. If there's a real conflict, those high-level managers will definitely not let us go. Besides, we're not remnants of the Diesel Company. Before, most of us were just ordinary people in the territory of the Diesel Company."

"That's right, Brother Bo, we're just ordinary people, we can't choose where we stay. We've stayed in the Green Leaf Group before, and the Diesel Company too. Now they suddenly say that those of us who stayed in the Diesel Company are likely to be remnants of the Diesel Company, how is that possible?"

"They're just making trouble for no reason, we're really being forced. We've been interrogated and questioned all day today, and it seems like they want us to admit that we're remnants of the Diesel Company."

"Those guys even said that since we're banding together, we're all remnants of the Diesel Company, and that we've formed our own small cliques to oppose Lord Shen Mu and oppose Deherim, that we're a fishing gang of the Diesel Company, how is that possible?"

"Brother Bo, you have to stand up for us. We went to find Sun Zhiru, but that guy ignored us and told us that we must trust Lord Shen Mu. How can we trust them? Now those high-level managers want to make an example of us."

"It's not just making an example of us, they want to wipe us all out. We offended them before, and now they're retaliating against us."

The middle-level managers came to Zhang Bo one by one, constantly complaining, because they were really suffering injustice. Especially thinking about the inquiries they received during the day, their faces were all quite uncomfortable.

It wasn't an inquiry, it was simply an interrogation.

Those high-level managers just didn't like these middle-level managers, and they wanted to force them to confess. If possible, they believed that those high-level managers would not show any mercy. They would directly force them to admit that they were all remnants of the Diesel Company, then put that label on their heads, and finally make them accept the most cruel punishment to retaliate. They didn't tell these high-level managers about the list they submitted back then.

As a result, these middle-level managers are now really quite helpless, and quite angry.