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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 252: High-altitude Operations
When Jiang He stepped out of his room, he was surprised to find the workplace filled with people. Not only was Jones and his crew present, but another group was also gearing up. They were not foolish; just a few days ago, they had been at odds with Jiang He over the water tank issue, nearly leading to a conflict. Now, they had come uninvited. In truth, Jiang He was quite satisfied with the current situation. Although heavy snow had arrived as expected, it was still uncertain whether all the Zombies had been frozen to death. With over a hundred people on the floor, including Field Personnel and technical staff, it would be a waste of resources to have them idle. However, during a breakout, every additional hand would count.
Song Yao linked her arm with Jiang He as they walked into the hall. A circle of people outside turned to look at them in unison, making Jiang He feel somewhat awkward. These days spent cooped up with Song Yao had led to their relationship deepening; not only had their feelings grown warmer, but the once fierce Song Yao had also softened, becoming more like a gentle woman. In the past, she would never have dared to link arms with him in front of so many people.
Jones stepped forward from the crowd, looking particularly pleased today. His suit and tie were nowhere to be seen; instead, he wore a Field Personnel uniform, complete with a helmet and holding a gun, looking quite the part.
"You did it!" It was clear that the American guy was in high spirits today. Before he even reached them, he opened his arms for a hug. After embracing Jiang He, he lightly wrapped an arm around Song Yao as well.
The two exchanged glances, both thinking that this guy must be going crazy. The snowfall was merely luck; what did it have to do with Jiang He? Besides, when they were preparing to stay behind earlier, this big-nosed man had brought people to confront them. Now that heavy snow was falling like goose feathers, it seemed he had forgotten all about it. A few remaining members of the Establishment hurried over; clearly, they were closer friends.
"What’s going on?" Jiang He met American Guy's gaze and glanced at the group of onlookers before asking, "Are you waiting for me?"
"Of course! You are one of the commanders for this escape operation," Jones said casually. Rubbing his fingers together, one of the Field Personnel handed him two handguns, which Jones promptly passed to Jiang He and Song Yao. They accepted without hesitation; although they already had guns given by Wang Zhongyu and the Establishment Soldiers, no one would ever complain about having more.
"Commander?" Jiang He frowned and declined, "Leave professional matters to professionals; I can't handle that."
"You absolutely can," Jones said warmly as he draped an arm around Jiang He’s shoulders and led him toward the group of Field Personnel who were causing division. A few Soldiers attempted to protect Jiang He, but Song Yao stopped them. It must be said that the Soldiers they encountered were quite loyal—except for Cheng Long.
"This is Captain Dong; he’s responsible for coordinating with them—get acquainted," Jones introduced them in a mock-serious manner. Unexpectedly, Captain Dong didn’t regard him or Jiang He as significant at all; he merely nodded in acknowledgment.
Jiang He sized up this fellow and decided to stick close during the breakout; this guy was genuinely robust—broad-shouldered and muscular—clearly standing out from other Field Personnel. One could see why he could lead a rebellion. Captain Dong wasn’t very friendly either; naturally, Jiang He wouldn’t go out of his way to be warm towards him either. The key point was that he still didn’t understand what Jones meant by being one of the commanders. He had always followed along without any notion of leading others.
Jones didn’t explain Jiang He’s confusion but called Captain Dong over with a nod instead. The three of them crossed through the Glass Workplace and headed toward the stairs leading up. Song Yao thought for a moment but decided not to follow; instead, she quietly instructed several Soldiers to stay alert. The Field Personnel and technical staff remained inactive—some stood while others sat quietly resting their spirits in preparation for the imminent life-and-death breakout.
Once again on the rooftop, as they exited the stairwell, a gust of cold wind swept towards them, mixed with snowflakes that stung their faces like ice needles. Jones brought them to the edge of the railing and pointed down at the vast expanse of white below while shouting excitedly, "Our chance has come!"
Jiang He leaned over to take a look down, feeling a bit deflated. The situation below was not what he had anticipated. Although the heavy snow had fallen, the zombies in the CBD Zone were not frozen like those in Jiuquan; despite their growls being somewhat muffled, they were clearly still moving and capable of attacking. The disparity in strength was overwhelming, and the idea that a hundred or so people could break through the horde of zombies in the CBD was nothing short of a delusion.
"Where's the opportunity? They're all still alive," Jiang He said with disappointment. The supplies upstairs were completely depleted, and the water in the tank was barely enough to last. If the snow lost its effectiveness, they would be in serious trouble.
"No, look over there," Jones said as he took off the binoculars hanging around his neck and handed them to Jiang He, pointing towards the street between two tall buildings on the outskirts of the CBD. "Take a look."
Jiang He took the binoculars and looked in that direction. The lens swept over frantic faces and settled on a wide pedestrian street. In an instant, the flame that had just extinguished within him reignited! The snow was indeed effective! The street was littered with numerous zombies sprawled out haphazardly; the snow cover wasn't thick enough to completely conceal them. From up high, it was hard to see clearly, but through the binoculars, everything was evident!
"Is it really happening?!" Jiang He couldn't contain his excitement and let out a low shout.
"Yes, I suspect that the zombies in the CBD Defense Zone will need some more time to freeze up completely. But this is perfect; we can use this time to prepare as we head downstairs," Jones said, clearly pleased with Jiang He's astonished expression. He seemed to forget that when he first saw this scene in the morning, he had been far more excited than Jiang He—almost kneeling on the ground to draw a cross. Captain Dong, who resembled a bear, had remained silent, but it was evident that his furrowed brow was gradually relaxing; he too could see a glimmer of hope as despair slowly dissipated from his heart.
"Good, good, good." Jiang He suppressed his inner turmoil and asked, "What do you mean by that? And what about your earlier mention of command?"
Jones opened up at this point, his tone becoming more relaxed as he explained, "The folks from Establishment have a good relationship with you; we'll need your help coordinating when the time comes."
"Oh?"
"Right. Captain Dong and I will each lead a team. Your task is simple: just ensure that the Establishment personnel cooperate with our actions," Jones said lightly, but Jiang He felt an uneasy sensation creeping in.
"So what’s your plan?" Jiang He glanced around; there was no one else nearby, and Song Yao hadn’t followed them, which made him feel anxious. To be honest, after everything he had experienced, Jiang He felt increasingly inadequate. Without Song Yao by his side now, he worried about inadvertently falling into an American Guy's trap. However, upon reflection, he felt somewhat reassured—the soldiers from Establishment plus himself and Jones made fewer than ten people; their role was neither too significant nor too trivial. The real burden would likely be those technical personnel, so there shouldn’t be any traps—most likely just an effort by American Guy to unite all available forces.
"There are two plans; that's why we called you here to discuss." Captain Dong seemed irritated by Jones's roundabout way of speaking and got straight to the point: "Jones means we should go down through the elevator shaft while I plan to clear any obstacles in our escape route."
Jiang He immediately dismissed Jones's suggestion in his mind. Having seen how technical personnel conducted tests that day, it was clear that using the elevator was not an escape route but rather a recipe for disaster. No matter what Jiang He said, he wouldn’t take that one-way elevator ride. So he nodded at Captain Dong and asked, "How do we handle the escape route? Didn't they say that the lower levels have collapsed?"
"The overall structure hasn't loosened; otherwise, if zombies had been causing chaos in the stairwell for so long, the building would have collapsed already," Captain Dong replied tersely, seemingly reluctant to explain much further—likely due to Jones's presence. However, Jiang He found himself genuinely interested in his plan and shamelessly pressed on: "What happens after we clear away the collapsed sections?"
Captain Dong shot him a glare and patiently replied, "We'll break out later."
"Idiot," Jiang He retorted with a dismissive gesture, cursing under his breath. He had thought there would be a better plan, but it turned out to be no different from a flashy suicide. The Zombies in the corridor were blocked by the collapsed building; moving the obstacles would only lead to death. This was a skyscraper over a hundred stories tall, not some five-story apartment complex. Even a tank might struggle to crush its way through; what could they achieve with just under a hundred guns? It was a pipe dream.
"What did you say?" Captain Dong raised an eyebrow, not catching Jiang He's mumbling.
"I said you're a man, but I still have a suggestion: jumping down from here would be more straightforward," Jiang He snapped back, refusing to indulge his arrogance. At this point, what was there to be proud of?
Jones, having spent years in the Asian scene, quickly sensed the tension in their voices and jumped in to mediate. "This is serious business, so we should come up with a specific and feasible plan. If you think our ideas won't work, do you have any suggestions?"
"My idea is simple: support Captain Dong, but not right now," Jiang He said as he turned to the railing and pointed at the mass of the Horde below. "Since we've already waited for the heavy snow, what's wrong with waiting a few more days? The outer Zombies are already reacting; we should hold our position. Not to mention whether the ones inside will freeze to death, we should at least wait until things calm down in the CBD. Otherwise, charging down from here will waste a lot of ammunition—how will we break out then?"
Jones and Captain Dong exchanged glances but remained silent; their expressions showed they weren't taking Jiang He's words seriously.
"What do you mean by that?" Jiang He couldn't hold back any longer and asked directly. "You two don't seem stupid; after waiting this long, what's wrong with waiting a few more days?"
Captain Dong looked up and said, "What if the snow stops?"
"Then we'll admit defeat and charge," Jiang He rolled his eyes, revealing a hint of roguishness. "Anyway, I'm definitely not going to rush into anything today. I suggest you both calm down too."
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