Armed Train in the Apocalypse-Chapter 198 - 165: Tongzhou Association

Zhang Qiang's heart tightened instantly.

Unexpectedly, these ability users are so powerful, doesn't that mean all the complaints he secretly muttered were heard?

"Another brother has joined us!" The middle-aged man raised a piece of paper, a kind smile on his face, "Welcome to the 'Tongzhou Association', I'm Liu Ming, I had a steady job in Dongping City before the apocalypse."

Zhang Qiang was stunned.

Dongping City?

It's right next to his home in Jinzong City, and this Liu Ming was actually an official?

Liu Ming noticed his surprise and wrote, "Don't be nervous, here, we are all equal. With the apocalypse, all those so-called statuses have lost their meaning. What matters now is that us ordinary people band together, mutually help each other."

The flashlight only illuminated Liu Ming in the middle, everyone else's faces remained shrouded in shadow.

The contrast in light was too great, Zhang Qiang couldn't see their expressions.

Liu Ming continued his "speech", the only sound in the compartment was the scratch of pencils, a rather sacred feeling welled up inexplicably.

"Look at our current situation!" Liu Ming spread his arms, "The people in the front carriage live it up while we have to queue just to use the toilet! They get private rooms while forty of us cram into one carriage! Is this fair?"

Pairs of bright eyes fixed on him.

"The attendants serving the core members in the front get fresh food daily, even hot meals, but what about us? The hard-earned biscuits we manage to get still require overpriced tickets, but no one cares about our survival."

"And why do we have forty people in one carriage? Everyone knows in their hearts, right?"

"Because we've lost half of our people!"

"No one cares about us!"

"No one protects us!"

"We're slaughtered like pigs and dogs!"

"Elders and children alike fall in pools of blood!"

The writing became more flamboyant, carrying immense anger, Zhang Qiang didn't know what others were thinking, he just felt his throat choked by something, a surging flame rose in his chest, burning him with a fierce intensity.

"We never asked for much, just the shelter we deserve, the sustenance to survive, a humble, living hope!"

"But the train took our hope without providing any shelter!"

"We should stand up, protect ourselves in our own way!"

"Crack—"

The pencil broke from excessive force.

The room fell into silence, only heavy breathing and an increasingly heated atmosphere remained.

"What should we do?"

Zhang Qiang's voice was hoarse, even he couldn't believe it.

Like a fuse, it ignited everyone instantly, eyes ablaze with a roaring fire, ready to explode at any moment.

Seeing this, a sigh of relief escaped Liu Ming internally.

He had many plans next, but this prelude was crucial; without arousing the passengers' emotions, he couldn't unite them all into one.

Fortunately, it's been just a month since doomsday, and those accustomed to freedom hadn't yet been tamed by the train.

Next, he demonstrated his ability.

A bright flame flickered from his palm, burning the sheets of paper covered in pencil marks.

Though it wasn't an immensely powerful ability, it was enough to intimidate the ordinary people present.

"The goal of Tongzhou Association is simple." Liu Ming withdrew his power, "Mutual assistance, securing better living conditions, but to achieve that we need more people, more resources."

He signaled his assistant to take out a box, opening it to reveal several packs of compressed biscuits and boxes of clean water.

"These I obtained through 'special channels', members who join us and perform well can receive supplies every week, anyone wanting to join, raise your hand."

Zhang Qiang swallowed, for the first time finding those unremarkable biscuits so enticing, and a bottle of mineral water immensely tempting.

He raised his hand almost instinctively.

Watching as everyone in the dimly lit carriage raised their hands, Liu Ming smiled with satisfaction.

The assembly continued deep into the night.

Liu Ming explained the rules of Tongzhou Association in detail, confidentiality being the top priority, any betrayal would be severely punished. There would be weekly meetings to exchange information and distribute supplies. Most importantly, everyone must contribute to the organization's growth.

As the meeting adjourned, Zhang Qiang was asked to stay behind.

Liu Ming put an arm around his shoulder, like a close friend, handing him a note.

Reading its content made Zhang Qiang's heart race, he hesitated, looking at Liu Ming.

Liu Ming smiled, "As a reward, you will gain more..."

"I'm willing!" he mumbled indistinctly.

Liu Ming smiled contentedly.

Once everyone departed, aside from him, four others remained.

Liu Ming stood in the center, expression serious, took out a small device, pressed it, then casually pushed the door open.

"Follow me."

Zhang Qiang glanced thoughtfully at the camera on the carriage hallway's end.

Liu Ming led them to the link between Carriage 20.

After a brief wait, the tightly shut door cracked open slightly.

A person wearing a mask, sunglasses, and a loose coat stood across, like a hidden beast in the dark.

Holding two bulging backpacks.

"I've brought the goods." The mysterious figure's voice was hoarse and odd, clearly disguised.

Zhang Qiang was startled but seeing Liu Ming and others unperturbed, it was evident the mysterious figure had means to shield against the eavesdropping ability user.

Liu Ming took the backpack, checking it, finding five kilograms of compressed food, ten liters of purified water, as well as a handgun inside.

A flicker of greed crossed Liu Ming's eyes, but he quickly restored his composure, "What exactly do you want me to do?"

The mysterious figure lowered their voice, "I need your people to sabotage the train's water system and some internal facilities, like the power supply, making it look like it was due to faulty installation."

Liu Ming's gaze flickered, "You're talking about the front carriages, right? We can't get in there."

"Don't worry, we will find a way for you."

"Alright."

The transaction concluded swiftly.

Liu Ming looked around at everyone, eyes gleaming with ambition, "This is an opportunity, brothers; that mysterious figure clearly isn't alone, proving there are conflicts within the front carriages too, we can use this to strengthen ourselves."

"Once we have enough power," Liu Ming's voice was full of temptation, "it's not impossible to even replace those good-for-nothings in the front carriages."

Listening to this, Zhang Qiang's heart raced faster.

The future Liu Ming painted was so beautiful, spacious quarters, ample food, even power he never possessed before doomsday.

For these things, what's a little risk?

Liu Ming suddenly called on him, "Zhang Qiang, what did you do before?"

"Just an ordinary person." Zhang Qiang answered honestly.

Liu Ming's eyes gleamed, "You won't be ordinary for long."

...

The barbecue feast in the dining car had entered a fervent stage.

Apart from consuming a lot of meat, with Su Huan's tacit consent, He Jie and others also consumed four boxes of beer, even Yu Yue and others drank some fruit beer.

He Jie and Qu Hang were having a drinking contest, while Mountain Goat and Lao San were egging them on from the sidelines.

After too much drink, Huang Sea was lecturing Xiaoba on farming techniques, and Xiaoba was all ears, learning whatever he could hear.

Wan Xing, Yu Jing, and Director Xu were in a heated discussion nearby.

Beside them, Lin Jin was tending to a barbecue grill, the flames obediently licking the skewered meat, sizzling juice and oil under the heat saturating the skewers.

Yu Yue was busily pouring tea for the train conductor while also feeding the little girl hovering around her.

Professor Ma was holding a small cup of white wine by the side, face flushed, smiling peacefully while watching the scene.

"Xiaozhao, look here. There are soldiers, doctors, scholars, drivers—adults and children. No matter the identity or social status, we've all gathered here because of doomsday. Though the cause isn't good, and this situation won't last forever, the present moment still holds meaning..."

Xiaozhao was adjusting the screen nearby and replied casually, "All good things come to an end, but teacher, why the sudden sentiment?"

Professor Ma chuckled and shook his head.

Suddenly, the student's puzzled voice arose.

"What's wrong?"

"Some monitoring data seems off but there isn't any anomaly found, it's from the rear carriages."

"That's not an academic attitude, feeling something's off, then find what's off."

Xiaozhao stated seriously, "I'm working on it."

The old man suddenly squinted, "What's Li Hong been up to lately?"

Xiaozhao paused, "It can't be..."

"Go check."

"He's currently doing routine maintenance in Carriage 11, nothing unusual."

Professor Ma downed his white wine, lightly exhaled a breath of alcohol, "I hope I'm just overthinking."