After listening to Qianqian, Chen Du raised an eyebrow.
"Are you finished?"
Qianqian was taken aback, unsure how to read his expression.
"Yes, I'm done."
Chen Du then flashed a smile.
"If this is all the confidence you have to recruit me, then forget it."
"You should know that since I alone could spend thousands of essential supplies on purchasing Fortress Wall—and even offer precious food and drinks to entertain you—do you really think I need to join your team?"
Qianqian was left speechless.
"So, don't waste your time on me."
"After all, we're neighbors. Just take this little gift. If there's nothing else, you may leave now."
Chen Du took out twenty essential supplies from his backpack and handed them to her.
Qianqian stared at the extra supplies in her bag, dumbfounded.
She never expected Chen Du to be so generous.
A hundred essential supplies casually given to someone he had just met.
Qianqian's eyes darted around, and she moved closer to Chen Du, sitting beside him. She intentionally brushed against his arm, wearing an embarrassed smile.
"You're so generous—it's making me feel shy. How about letting me keep you company…"
Qianqian reached out her hand, testing the waters, slowly moving downward.
However, Chen Du grabbed her hand and smiled politely. "Honestly, I'm not interested in you. Don't make me lose my patience, alright?"
Qianqian looked at the smiling Chen Du, sensing no hostility.
But she had a strong feeling.
If she continued to provoke him, she might very well lose her life.
Qianqian awkwardly withdrew her hand and sat up straight.
"Don't be mad. I was only joking with you."
Chen Du gently pushed her hand away and chuckled. "It's fine. Please leave now. Let's try to be good neighbors."
After escorting Qianqian outside the wall, Chen Du called Xie Li downstairs.
Xie Li's eyes were filled with confusion. "Chen Du, why did you give them supplies? Even if we have plenty, we shouldn't waste them like this!"
Chen Du chuckled softly. "You don't understand. Believe me, by tomorrow—or even tonight—their team will be unable to resist attacking us!"
Xie Li gasped, then muttered, "Then why did you give them supplies? Isn't that just exposing our stockpile and making them more eager to plunder us?"
"Or are you planning to let them eat first before fighting us…"
"That's exactly why I gave them supplies!"
Anticipating Xie Li's confusion, Chen Du patiently explained, "Before, when they saw that just the two of us managed to secure a gold-level blueprint, they must've started plotting something. But they weren't sure about our situation, so they hesitated to act."
"Today, they sent this woman over. Recruiting me was just a pretense; their real goal was to gather intel on us!"
Seeing Xie Li deep in thought, Chen Du continued, "By giving them supplies, I'm telling them we're loaded. That'll drive them crazy with greed—and we'll use that against them. We'll set a trap and wait for them to walk right into it."
"Moreover, I'm certain they haven't shared my information with anyone else. They see us as easy prey and won't let anyone else interfere."
Xie Li finally understood and asked, "So, what's your plan?"
Chen Du took combat supplies from his backpack: Molotov cocktails, iron traps, a large number of crossbow bolts, daggers, and an M9 pistol…
After organizing everything, Chen Du said, "I plan to set up various traps inside the walls. When they come, they won't stand a chance of escaping!"
"Hmph, daring to covet what's ours—they're walking straight into trouble."
Xie Li looked at Chen Du, who seemed to have everything under control, and couldn't help but smile.
"So, is there anything I can do to help?"
Chen Du handed her a few traps and instructed, "Since Dr. Xie is volunteering, place these traps along the corners of the walls. Cover them up with something. Consider this their appetizer."
Xie Li obediently took them and said, "Alright, I'll go set them up now."
With that, she walked into the villa's courtyard and carefully placed the traps in the corners.
On the other side.
Qianqian had already returned to her shelter, handed over the supplies, and reported the intel she gathered to Ethan.
Ethan sat on the sofa in the center of the villa's living room, his chin resting on his hand, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
Who would have thought that this 1945 had so many supplies?
It seems his foundation is still solid, and he hasn't faced any survival issues after participating in the auction.
Ethan could no longer contain his restless heart. He wanted to launch a surprise attack tonight and seize all of Chen Du's supplies, including the gold-level Fortress Wall, for himself.
As if reading his mind, one of his lackeys spoke up, "Boss, no need to hesitate!"
"You heard the intel Qianqian brought back. This 1945 has enough supplies to last our team for ages! And if we wait too long, other groups might show up in our villa area."
The other teammates chimed in.
"Yeah, boss. This 1945 just gave us twenty supplies as a gift. He must have hundreds more stashed away!"
Qianqian also added fuel to the fire, saying, "Ethan, time is of the essence. Let's strike tonight under the cover of darkness while 1945 is still off guard. We'll catch him completely unprepared!"
Ethan slammed a crossbow bolt onto the table and growled, "Let's do it! Tonight, we'll raid 1945's base!"
The crowd erupted in cheers.
"Boss is mighty!!"
Ethan began fantasizing about the spoils of victory, laughing wildly.
...
Chen Du wiped the sweat from his brow and surveyed the traps set up both inside and outside the villa's courtyard. He placed his hands on his hips and sneered, "This time, we'll play the role of the farmer waiting for the rabbit—an old strategy where we sit tight and let them run straight into our trap."
In the apocalypse, human nature is the most terrifying thing.
It's not that Chen Du is heartless, but in this post-apocalyptic world, having such a looming threat nearby makes it impossible to rest easy.
In critical moments, that group could become a sharp blade aimed directly at him.
So, when Chen Du saw through their malicious intentions, he decided to strike first and eliminate them completely!