Huang Tingwei could guess some of Zhang Xiaoqiang's thoughts, but he didn't know how big the decision Zhang Xiaoqiang was going to make. In his opinion, it was unrealistic to recruit thousands of children at once. The most ideal way was to eliminate them one by one and leave the most outstanding ones as the reserve talents of the base.
"If we don't count the women and children taken in by various forces, there are about 1,000 to 2,000 women and children who are on the verge of starvation. Unfortunately, we can't do anything about it."
Huang Tingwei sighed. In his opinion, there was really nothing he could do. After all, it would take too long for those children to grow up and create value, and the materials consumed during this period were countless. Instead of letting them consume the materials in vain, it was better to give birth in the base. At least their parents would bear the cost of raising them.
Zhang Xiaoqiang was silent. He understood what Huang Tingwei meant. It would only take six to eight years for children above the age of six to become soldiers, workers, or farmers. They could create value for the base, but it would take more than ten years for the young children to grow up. During these ten years, they would be provided for in vain. It was a huge burden.
"Zhang Xiaoqiang, should we select some outstanding children from those who are not yet adults to join the team?"
Huang Tingwei resisted the urge to shout and asked in a trembling voice.
Hearing Huang Tingwei's question, Zhang Huai'an's head suddenly turned, and then his butthole tightened. It seemed that the biggest problem was going to fall on his head?
"Not just some, but all of them. All of the children under the age of twelve, as well as all the infants and their mothers. Bring them all in, Huang Tingwei!"
"Yes!"
Hearing Zhang Xiaoqiang's declaration, Huang Tingwei's heart was about to explode. Hearing Zhang Xiaoqiang shouting his name, he suddenly jumped up from his seat and answered loudly.
"Go and order all the official members and Zero Hour members except the heavy firepower group to prepare the vehicles. We're going to pick them up …"
"Yes …" Huang Tingwei shouted and turned to go out.
"Zhang Huai'an, go and prepare the supplies for 6,000 people. Don't worry about clothes and bedding, just prepare porridge and hot water. As long as they come in, give each of them a bowl of porridge and let them take a good bath. Pour 84 in the bathwater and let them disinfect themselves completely …"
"Yes …" Zhang Huai'an didn't have Huang Tingwei's lust. He looked like he had aged many years. Zhang Xiaoqiang's decision was really hard on him. If the population increased by five times, the amount of resources needed would be huge.
"Go, I know it's hard on you, but you have to think about it. This is saving the lives of thousands of children. As long as we have guns in our hands, what resources can't we take back?"
Zhang Huai'an wanted to say something but hesitated. In the end, he let out a long sigh, turned around, and walked out the door.
Zhang Xiaoqiang stared at Zhang Huai'an's slightly aged back, but there was nothing he could do. Some things still had to be done, no matter how difficult it was. This was why he, Zhang Xiaoqiang, could be the leader, but Zhang Huai'an couldn't.
The entire campsite became busy. Zhang Huai'an shouted in the campsite, and the men and women took out all kinds of resources to prepare for the big event of thousands of people. Although Zhang Xiaoqiang said it lightly, Zhang Huai'an couldn't ignore it. After all, they couldn't just let those thousands of people sleep on the sandy ground. There were also all kinds of tableware, cups for drinking water, the erection of tents, and so on.
Ten combat team members and ten temporary team members were also preparing. They would pick up the people with all the free vehicles in the campsite. At the same time, they had to prepare all kinds of office tools and make preparations for the registration. They couldn't just swarm the people into the campsite, they had to at least have a plan.
Yang Ke-er, who had always been inseparable from Meow, felt very uncomfortable without Meow by her side. Zhang Xiaoqiang didn't notice Yang Ke-er's annoyance. There were too many things waiting for him to deal with. After these thousands of people entered the campsite, he couldn't just let them eat for free every day. He had to arrange something for them. As for what the children could do, Zhang Xiaoqiang really couldn't think of anything.
With Zhang Xiaoqiang in the lead, the small convoy set off again. The fully armed team members stood in the open compartment and stood guard. Zhang Xiaoqiang sat in the Fierce Soldier vehicle and secretly calculated. Yang Ke-er held the heavy machine gun and aimed everywhere. The convoy arrived at the chaotic shantytown area.
As soon as they entered the shantytown area, they saw two groups of men in tattered clothes facing each other. They were also cursing loudly. Zhang Xiaoqiang only heard a few words and it made him angry. These two groups of people were fighting for territory. They wanted to fill the gap in Yan Huairen's gang and continue to collect taxes from those women.
The group of people heard the roar of the engine and also saw Zhang Xiaoqiang's Fierce Soldier vehicle returning. They shouted and scattered. Looking at those people who were running for their lives, Zhang Xiaoqiang couldn't do anything. It was easy to kill these people, but what should he do after killing them?
Zhang Xiaoqiang didn't want to accept these women. Once he accepted them, he wouldn't allow his own people to sell them. If he didn't accept them, these women would continue to be exploited by others.
When the women in the shantytown saw the military vehicle returning, they all had a glimmer of hope. When they found out that Zhang Xiaoqiang's promise was still valid, the women cried tears of joy. Under the supervision of the fully armed team members, no one dared to cause trouble. The other women with children also didn't allow others to cause trouble. They almost lost a rare opportunity to take away the hope of their children's lives.
The scene was orderly. Zhang Xiaoqiang didn't see Meow. He wasn't worried that something would happen to Meow. He knew how good Meow was. As long as she wanted to hide, ordinary people really couldn't find her. Zhang Xiaoqiang suspected that Meow saw something fun and threw away her task to have fun by herself.
The temporary ID cards issued by the team were carefully put away by the children and the women holding the children. They obeyed the orders of their team members and walked to the campsite by the lake together. Most of them brought their most precious possessions, such as a slightly intact piece of clothing, a small bag of rice that was hidden, or tableware and towels that they usually used.
The convoy didn't stop them. It was good enough to let them have two bowls of porridge every day. As for the rest, it was better to save as much as possible. After all, after the convoy accepted them, the supplies would be at the limit.
Zhang Xiaoqiang greeted the accepted team members and asked them to tell Meow to go back to the camp directly if they saw her. Zhang Xiaoqiang wanted to teach her a lesson in the camp. After giving the instructions, he returned to the camp with the first group of children.
Zhang Xiaoqiang, who was sitting in the military vehicle, didn't know that he had fallen into the eyes of people with intentions. The spies hidden in the crowd were surprised when they saw the team members treating Zhang Xiaoqiang with respect. A cripple sitting in a wheelchair was the most useless trash in the apocalypse. Those fully armed soldiers wouldn't respect a trash for no reason. As for what the reason was, the spies couldn't guess. They quietly left the crowd and reported to their respective leaders.