In the apocalypse, I hoarded goods and handed over my storage space to the government.

Swish.

All eyes were instantly focused on it.

Su Ran's position is very special.

He belongs neither to the military command structure nor to the administrative system.

But he is the one who "understands the end times best," and his attitude often determines the balance of power.

Su Ran slowly stood up and said calmly, "General Wang is right."

The first sentence brought a smile to Wang Jianjun's face, while the civil affairs official's expression darkened.

"Maintaining the status quo is like sitting around and eating away at our resources! Without industry, we can't fight a protracted war."

His tone was very calm, "But I do not agree with General Wang's plan."

Wang Jianjun was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"I think 30 million is too much."

Su Ran held up one finger. "At this stage, we do not have the capability to build a ground-based air defense network covering 30 million people."

The threat of mutated bird flocks remains, and industrial production inherently holds a unique attraction for mutated creatures. Large-scale gatherings of people could very well result in mass casualties.

He walked up to the sand table and pointed to several red circles with his finger.

"My suggestion is to bring them back in batches, with the military industry coming first."

"The first batch will consist of skilled and experienced industrial workers, with the number limited to under five million."

"Moreover, only military-related industrial chains will be restarted! Core nodes such as Yanshan Iron and Steel Plant, North China First Machinery Plant, and Northwest Chemical Base."

We'll fortify these factories, making each workshop a fortress. Our goal isn't the revival of the entire industrial chain, but rather to establish self-sufficient armed outposts for our ground forces!

At the same time, some of the current military-grade air defense forces will be dispersed to prioritize the protection of heavy industry production.

Su Ran turned around, her gaze sweeping over everyone present, her voice turning cold.

"As for light industry and other sectors that meet basic living needs, they can be slowed down. Except for food production lines that maintain a minimum level of subsistence, all other light industry should be postponed."

Su Ran looked at the civil affairs official and said, "For the basic needs of ordinary people, let's be patient for now. Staying alive is more important than the quality of life."

"Once our 'Sky Shield' system is complete, and we have sufficient air defense firepower, we will consider sending back a second and third batch."

A compromise solution.

This statement can be seen as a synthesis of the viewpoints from both sides.

We must both fight and survive.

We need to restore the body's ability to generate blood, but we cannot blindly send people to their deaths.

"Consultant Su's plan is feasible."

Wang Jianjun pondered for a moment, then nodded emphatically, "What we need are tools that can kill the enemy; I have no objection to putting everything else aside for now."

The attitude of the civil affairs department has also softened considerably. As long as it's not a matter of pushing 30 million people onto the ground all at once, they can accept it.

The wind direction in the conference room visibly became uniform.

Just when everyone thought the matter was almost settled.

The leader, who had been silent all along, suddenly raised his head.

His somewhat cloudy yet exceptionally sharp eyes slowly swept over everyone present.

"Have you finished discussing it?"

The old man's voice was a little hoarse.

"It's over."

Everyone spoke at the same time.

This appears to be the optimal solution at present.

Everyone looked at the leader, waiting for the final decision.

"General Wang's plan is bold. Comrade Xiao Su's supplement is very comprehensive."

The leader's voice was soft, yet everyone could hear it clearly.

"But it's all too slow."

Su Ran was taken aback.

Too slow?

The leader stood up, walked to the huge map, and turned his back to the crowd.

"You're still calculating the gains and losses now, still thinking about how to reduce the number of deaths, still thinking about what's 'safe' and what's 'perfect', but..."

The old man turned around, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. "In the apocalypse, how can people not die?"

boom!

These words struck like a heavy hammer blow to everyone's heart.

Everyone present was taken aback and fell silent instantly.

Everyone was waiting for the leader to continue.

"To value one person's life more than the interests of humanity as a whole when it comes to the survival of the race is a crime against the entire human race!"

That's just womanly compassion!

The commander's voice suddenly rose, his tone stern, "In this special period, let's not use those ridiculous trolley problems from the past to test humanity!"

Any kind of moral fastidiousness is irresponsible towards civilization! Right now, the entire Great Xia, the entire civilization, faces only one primary problem: 'survival'!

Survival at all costs!

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines, and a surge of heat rushed to the top of their heads.

"I've decided that the 'Population Return' plan will be launched immediately!"

The commander held up two fingers, his eyes flashing like lightning. "And the scale should be twice as large as General Wang's proposal!"

"Sixty million!"

"boom!"

This number exploded in everyone's mind like a nuclear bomb.

Sixty million?!

This is not just about restarting the military industry; it's about bringing along the upstream and downstream industrial chains, and even reviving the entire industrial system of the North China Plain overnight!

"Sir, this is insane!"

A civil affairs official stood up, trembling. "We simply don't have enough troops to ensure the safety of these 60 million people!"

"Who said we need to use military force to protect it?"

The leader looked at him coldly and said something that sent chills down everyone's spine.

"We'll give them guns and grenades! In this era, there are no civilians, only soldiers! To survive, you have to take up arms and protect yourself!"

crazy!

Totally crazy!

This was the first thought in everyone's mind.

This was the first thought in everyone's mind.

The commander is trying to mobilize the entire population as soldiers and wage a true people's war!

The current surface cities do not have any defense systems. What kind of hell will these 60 million people face if they encounter mutated beasts?

Even Su Ran couldn't help but want to stand up, her lips slightly parted.

"Sir, this..."

The commander raised his hand to interrupt him, "Xiao Su, I know what you want to say. The risk is high, people will die, and there could even be mass casualties."

He turned to look at Su Ran, his eyes filled with a resolute determination that showed he had long since disregarded life and death, and even abandoned his fame and fortune.

"But the zombies and mutated beasts we face in the future will gradually become smarter; they are evolving!"

The leader slammed the "Next Ten Years: A Timeline Report on the Evolution of Alienated Creatures," a document that had been read countless times, onto the table.

"If we continue developing step by step, how long will it take to recover to pre-disaster industrial levels? Three years? Or five?"

"How long will it take us to gather enough strength to confront the overwhelming trend?"

The commander suddenly waved his hand, pointing to the twelve main bases on the map, "This is a tribal war. Either we kill them all, or we are all wiped out."

"Our only advantage is to crush them completely while they are still beasts, while they haven't yet developed their minds, using the full power of our civilization!"

"Bang!"

He slammed his hand on the table, making a loud bang.

"Get all factories running, whether military or civilian, as long as they can be operated, to start running!"

All civilian factories were to switch to military production; if they couldn't make cannons, they'd make bullets; if they couldn't make bullets, they'd make bayonets!

"Even if it costs lives, I will run the Great Xia's war machine at full power within a year!"

"We want to cover a ten-year journey in one year!"

We must sacrifice one generation to secure the right to survival for future generations!