Chapter 565, I'm Afraid Auntie Will Chop Them
Island Lord's Manor.
Wu Heng looked at the reputation panel, raising an eyebrow.
This time, his reputation was growing much faster than before—almost doubling in speed.
Did the story become popular?
But it was only the second issue, barely reaching 6,000 words in total.
There's no way it could have blown up this early, right?
Though he was skeptical, the reputation increase was real.
It seemed that Glenda's decision to change the protagonist's name to his own was the right choice.
As long as it boosted his reputation, switching the protagonist's name was no big deal.
As he pondered, Xiaoxiao flew in from outside.
Floating midair, she said, "Uncle, the newspapers sold really well today! I went to the port, and they were completely sold out."
"That many sales?"
He thought for a moment.
The port was a high-traffic area.
People arriving on the island would find it interesting and buy a copy out of curiosity.
Those leaving the island would have a long time aboard their ships—buying a newspaper to pass the time made sense.
"Do they suddenly have money now?"
"Some bought individually, some chipped in together to buy one," Xiaoxiao replied.
Splitting the cost and sharing the newspaper was an economical approach.
"That works too. As long as people enjoy our newspaper, it doesn't matter if they pool money to buy it," Wu Heng said.
The main goal was increasing his reputation, and it was proving effective.
Even if the newspaper didn't make money, as long as his reputation kept growing, he would continue serializing it.
Xiaoxiao flew to his other side, leaned in close to his ear, and whispered, "I also heard people cursing Aunt Glenda, saying she's evil. They even want to find out who wrote the story so they can break her legs. They definitely don't know that Auntie doesn't have legs anymore."
"Why?" Wu Heng asked.
"Because they didn't like where the story ended. The way it cut off made them uncomfortable."
Wu Heng understood—the classic cliffhanger issue.
He had seen Glenda's rewritten novel. The story itself hadn't changed, but she had deliberately structured it to end on a cliffhanger.
She probably learned this technique from modern novels.
"Don't tell your aunt. She might get angry."
Xiaoxiao nodded quickly. "Mmm! I'm afraid she'll grab a sword and chop them up."
...…
Lighthouse Street Tavern.
"Damn it! It cut off at a crucial moment again. I feel like punching someone!"
"That ghostwriter is messing with us! We paid for this newspaper, and they still deliberately ended it there."
"Absolutely infuriating!"
"Whoever wrote this deserves to die! If I find out who's responsible for this, I'll burn them alive!" A dwarf with a fiery red beard slammed the table and cursed loudly.
Smack! Smack!
Just as he finished speaking—
Crisp slapping sounds echoed through the tavern.
The man who had just stood up and cursed suddenly looked at his own hand in shock, then rubbed his stinging face.
"Why did you slap yourself?"
"I… I don't know."
The red-bearded dwarf stood frozen, his cheek burning hot from his own slap. His angry expression gradually softened.
After a moment of reflection, he cautiously sat back down.
In a low voice, he muttered a couple of apologies to the people around him.
Then he shut up and drank his beer quietly.
...…
Island Lord's Manor.
Glenda flew back.
"The newspapers sold really well today," she reported. "People everywhere were reading them. I think we should print more. Every day, new people arrive on the island, and we can also encourage the locals to develop a habit of reading newspapers."
Wu Heng did a quick estimate in his head.
The second issue would continue to sell until the next one was released.
Printing more copies seemed like a good idea.
"You're right. Let's increase the print run."
With his two wraiths in tow, he headed downstairs to the printing workshop.
He instructed the skeleton workers to produce more copies of the second issue.
"When do you plan to release the next issue?" Glenda asked again.
"Let's space it out—seven days. If we release it too soon, City Hall won't have enough time to gather intelligence. Our newspaper shouldn't just be about stories."
"Yeah, makes sense!" Glenda nodded before adding, "But I think a separate edition just for the story would be even more popular."
"That's basically just a novel."
After giving his orders—
They left the printing room. As they stepped outside, Robe came running to call him for dinner.
He followed the maids to the dining hall.
After lunch, he returned to his study and traveled to the zombie world.
...…
Emerging from the portal, he was still in the dormitory.
Wu Heng glanced out the window, then grabbed his charging radio from the nightstand and called Qi Hancai.
Shortly after, her voice came through. "Yanhong's here. We're in the conference room!"
Li Yanhong had arrived with her people?
That was fast.
Pressing the radio button, he responded, "I'm coming over now."
He grabbed his down jacket from the coat rack, threw it over his shoulders, and headed to the meeting room.
Inside the meeting room—
A long conference table was surrounded by people.
Qi Hancai sat on the left with her trusted subordinates, as well as Gao Rong and two other technicians.
On the right, Li Yanhong and her people had taken their seats.
最⊥新⊥小⊥说⊥在⊥六⊥9⊥⊥书⊥⊥吧⊥⊥首⊥发!
When Wu Heng entered, everyone stood up to greet him.
He took the seat at the head of the table, and the others sat down as well.
After a brief exchange of updates—
Li Yanhong asked, "Qi said you need people for zombie cleanup?"
Wu Heng nodded, glancing around the table.
Then he stated directly, "Recently, survivor bases across the region have been sending us distress calls. We're not a dedicated rescue team, but since we've developed well and have the ability, we should help where we can."
The others nodded slightly, indicating their understanding.
Wu Heng continued, "So, I plan to form two expedition teams. They will move along the railway in both directions, entering nearby cities to clear zombies and rescue survivors."
The group collectively furrowed their brows.
Aside from Qi Hancai, no one else had been informed of this plan.
Even Li Yanhong had only been told to recruit people for zombie cleanup—she hadn't been given the full details.
Since the radio communications were public, some things had to remain undisclosed until a final decision was made.
Now that they were hearing the specifics, everyone looked both puzzled and concerned.
Li Yanhong thought for a moment before asking softly, "What exactly will our teams be responsible for?"
Wu Heng explained, "The main combat will be handled by skeletons. Your teams won't need to fight directly. Their main roles will be communicating with rescued survivors, reporting progress, and handling supply logistics. Think of it this way—you'll be responsible for everything except combat."
Phew!
A collective sigh of relief swept through the room.
As long as they didn't have to fight, the rest of the work was manageable.
"Qi Hancai and Li Yanhong, each of you choose a team leader to oversee this."
Qi Hancai spoke first. "We'll have Bai Qing in charge of this."
Beside her, Bai Qing stood up.
He was under thirty, one of Qi Hancai's longtime subordinates from Dong'an Village.
"Leader, I'll get it done."
"Good. You know the process, so this shouldn't be difficult."
"Yes!"
On Li Yanhong's side, her group quietly discussed among themselves.
After a short while, she turned back and said, "We'll have Hong Dedong lead our team."
A bearded middle-aged man stood up. "Boss! I guarantee we'll complete the mission."
Hong Dedong was also one of the early members of their base.
"Alright. You two stay here and get familiar with the skeletons I assign to you."
"Understood!"
With the logistics teams settled—
Wu Heng continued, "Qi Hancai, tomorrow we're taking control of the provincial rescue team's old railway site. Get the convoy ready."
"Got it," Qi Hancai replied firmly.
As the meeting ended, everyone began heading out.
...…
Just as they stepped out into the corridor—
Footsteps rushed from behind.
Qiangzi sprinted over, calling out, "Boss, I've got new blueprints! Take a look and see if they'll work!"
"More blueprints?"
Back at the Xinfushi base, Qiangzi had always been full of wild ideas.
Things like iron wolf chariots, zombie-powered treadmills—his designs were all over the place.
Some were useless, but some actually had potential.
For example, the solid iron shells were his idea. Even though he didn't invent them, he came up with the concept and gathered intelligence from the Flame God Shelter.
They had been using them ever since, and they were still incredibly effective.
"Alright, let's see. Why are you sneaking around like this?" Wu Heng asked.
"Sister Hong won't let me mess around." As he spoke, he pulled a small notebook from his pocket and flipped it open, revealing the sketches inside.
The first page showed several wyverns. Qiangzi explained, "The first plan is to equip skeleton wyverns with machine guns. Their ribcage can serve as an ammunition storage chamber, allowing them to carry a massive amount of bullets. Also, I want to add a flamethrower—fuel pipes running along the neck to the mouth, with a fuel tank in the chest cavity. The mouth will have a flint ignition system, so when it opens, the flint sparks the fuel, creating a fire-breathing effect for large-scale zombie incineration."