You were supposed to hoard supplies, why the heck did you hoard zombies!

What?

They still hold positions?

A flash of surprise instantly crossed Peng Yue's eyes.

Since the zombie outbreak, the status of women had indeed plummeted drastically.

Their physical weakness rendered them completely subservient and playthings for men.

Forget about holding positions within survivor forces, there were hardly any women who could live without relying on men.

Only an extremely small number of women could survive independently in today's world.

Yet these three women before him—

Honestly, didn't seem like the strong and resolute type.

But since Zhang Ye had said so, what else could he say?

He could only explain his intentions.

"Director Zhang."

"Big Beard mentioned earlier that your company wants to trade with us."

"Is that true?"

Peng Yue's gaze was intense, obviously filled with a certain expectation for Zhang Ye's response.

Any previous doubts had vanished completely after entering the safe zone.

What replaced them was a strong desire.

Food, weapons, there were too many things here that he needed.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Ye's eyes immediately revealed a hint of amusement.

He'd been waiting for you to say that!

The system task to monopolize the economic activities in the city center had been completed half a month ago.

This meant that the survivors in the entire city center had basically gathered within the safe zone.

And the new system task required him to monopolize the economic activities of the entire Sanjiang City, in other words, to control the whole city with his company.

However, aside from the city center and the industrial zone, he hadn't even visited the other areas.

Hence, there were market intelligence officers running around to other districts.

But Zhang Ye never expected that it would be Jiangbei District that would make progress first.

And they even brought back the leader of a settlement.

"Of course, it's true."

Zhang Ye first affirmed the promise made by Big Beard and the other man.

Then he continued to ask:

"As you can see,"

"I have plenty of food here."

"But the question is, what do you have to trade in return?"

After Zhang Ye finished speaking, the three women beside him also looked at Peng Yue with increased curiosity.

Luo Xin, in particular, did not hide her contempt for him.

Not everyone is Zhang Ye.

Those supermarkets and markets storing various goods are like dangerous jungles for them, where a dangerous beast could leap out from a corner at any moment.

In other words, if you can't even feed and clothe yourself, what could you possibly have to trade?

A few broken hoes?

Or perhaps those worthless old clothes?

On the other hand, Ai Bing's eyes behind the lenses were incredibly calm, clearly having some ideas of her own.

Peng Yue too had long thought of what to use for trading.

Unlike some of his brothers, he liked to plan everything in advance.

Through discreet inquiries with Big Beard and Hou Shubin during the journey and observations at the dining table, he had come up with at least two items to trade.

"There's an orchard in the suburbs."

"If Director Zhang is willing, I can trade some fruit."

This was the first item Peng Yue had in mind for the trade, a conclusion he had reached through observation at the dining table.

A table full of meat and soup, yet notably lacking two things.

Vegetables and fruit.

Even when he had entered the living room, he saw no fresh fruit on the coffee table.

This was normally unremarkable, after all, who could sell fresh fruit at times like these?

There were plenty of canned goods, but they were also depleting one by one.

Much more valuable than canned meat.

And this scene just happened to highlight what the company currently lacked.

Indeed, the moment Peng Yue's words dropped, Luo Xin, who previously looked rather disdainful, immediately responded with excitement:

"You have fruit over there?"

"High quality?"

In her haste, she almost bit her tongue, but her eager eyes already betrayed her intense craving.

It wasn't just her, even Liu Qingqing, who looked like a demure girl next to her, was somewhat excited.

They had both been longing to eat some fresh fruits and vegetables.

Eating meat every day was too greasy.

Peng Yue saw that both of them were somewhat interested, and he immediately felt more assured.

He nodded and continued,

"These days are just the right time for them to mature."

"Apples, pears, and some others similar to oranges."

"How much?"

Zhang Ye suddenly asked.

"At least five tons a day, Director Zhang can take as much as he wants."

Peng Yue answered immediately.

To say 'take' was actually a trade.

As for what he wanted in return, it was clear without saying that it would definitely be other kinds of food.

The shelf life of fruit was too short, and before long, they would all rot in the orchard.

And that was one of the reasons why Peng Yue wanted to personally visit the safety zone.

Whether the convoy could survive this winter depended entirely on those fruits.

Zhang Ye snapped his fingers.

Several servants quickly brought some items from the basement.

Mainly three types.

Instant noodles, bread, and a variety of canned goods.

Peng Yue looked at these items and was instantly excited, but before he could speak, he heard a voice from the other side already saying,

"One pack of instant noodles for five kilograms of apples."

"How does that sound?"

The person who spoke was not Zhang Ye, but Ai Bing, who had been silently listening to the two talk.

What a joke!

Five apples could at least keep an adult full for two days!

Certainly, one pack of noodles was far from enough.

But before Peng Yue could protest, the woman's voice rose again:

"It is already September."

"And the ripening time for apples is exactly from August to September."

"That is to say, these fruits need to be picked soon, or they will start to rot."

Ai Bing stopped there and just looked at him with a sly smile.

The meaning behind her words was clear to everyone present.

The fruits would rot soon, while the company's supplies wouldn't.

Even the shortest shelf-life bread could last a few months.

Even if it expired, as long as one didn't mind diarrhea, it could still be eaten in a pinch.

Peng Yue's mouth opened, but the words he had prepared in his mind just wouldn't come out.

All he could do was look at Zhang Ye, his face a plea for help.

"Director Zhang, what do you think—"

"Her words are my thoughts,"

Zhang Ye said with a smile, looking at him. The frivolity in his eyes had disappeared, replaced with an air of seriousness.

Only then did Peng Yue realize why he had allowed these three women to be present.

"Can we have a little more?"

He struggled to spit out a few words.

His expression was somewhat bitter. Explore hidden tales at My Virtual Library Empire

From the moment the woman spoke, the balance of power had already shifted.

"No."

"This is already the bottom line."

"You must understand that we are taking a significant risk by accepting this batch of fruit."

Ai Bing decisively shook her head.

As for the risk they needed to bear,

she turned to glance at Zhang Ye, and both saw a gleam of triumph in each other's eyes.

Risk, my ass!

It was nothing more than adding a production line at the cannery!

If it came to the worst, there was a dried fruit factory not too far from the cannery.

Whether it's canned food or dried fruit, both are excellent!

Just what's needed to replenish some vitamins!

After all, there are plenty of workers in the safety zone right now!