154: Chapter 154 A Nominal Existence, Public Opinion Forces a Resignation!

While Lin Xiao led his people toward Carriage 06, the door to Room 06-01 was tightly shut.

Chu Yu stood before Pei Qingzhao, head bowed, looking like someone who had done something wrong.

Pei Qingzhao sat by the bed, gripping that red-tasseled spear in her hand.

The bloodstains on the shaft of the spear had long since dried, but she still felt the scent of blood lingering in the air.

Liu Qian's wide-eyed expression before she died would surface in her mind from time to time.

But right now, there was another troublesome matter waiting for her to deal with.

"You secretly withheld the fish caught and submitted by the passengers, conducted trades in the dark, and lined your own pockets."

Pei Qingzhao's voice was cold, as cold as the deep sea outside the window. "Now that you've been reported with concrete evidence, tell me, how should I deal with you?"

Chu Yu raised her head, tears swirling in her eyes.

"Sister Pei, I know I was wrong..."

"Sister Pei, think about it. Now that over a dozen people have died in Carriage 06 due to the zombie incident, everyone is in a state of panic."

Her voice carried a perfectly timed tremor. "You need someone by your side to help handle this matter and help stabilize everyone's emotions, don't you?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Qingzhao's expression changed visibly, and her fingers tightened on the spear shaft.

"Bai Li has gone missing," Chu Yu continued. "And another teammate, because of what happened today, left the team directly and joined another room. Sister Pei, right now, only I am by your side..."

"Enough!" Pei Qingzhao shouted angrily.

But from her tone, Chu Yu detected a trace of wavering.

Chu Yu struck while the iron was hot. She took a small step forward, lowering her posture further, her voice becoming softer.

"Sister Pei, do you think those people who reported me are really doing it for justice?"

"Even if you give in to their wishes, drive me out, or kill me, do you think they will thank you?"

"I can guarantee that these people will never appreciate you. Once this matter passes, they will still fight and snatch as they always have!"

She paused, raised her head, and looked directly into Pei Qingzhao's eyes.

"Sister Pei, you need a trusted person of your own!"

At this point, Chu Yu immediately raised three fingers and said solemnly, "Sister Pei, I will never make such a mistake again. I will definitely listen to you, act according to your wishes, and help you solve your problems!"

Pei Qingzhao fell silent.

Chu Yu was right about that.

Two things had happened today.

She had asked passengers to hand in their fish catch to exchange for resources, but it was discovered that the registered forms did not match the actual quantity submitted.

Also, a passenger had accidentally eaten infected fish, leading to a zombie transformation.

Carriage 06 originally had forty people, but now only twenty-something remained.

These two incidents had completely ruined her reputation.

The remaining passengers' looks toward her had all changed.

In the past, they would call her "Sister Pei" affectionately; now, when they saw her, they would bow their heads and dodge her, and she couldn't even get them to stop.

If this continued, she, as an administrator, would truly be a figurehead in name only!

It was indeed as Chu Yu said; she needed an assistant.

Someone willing to stand on her side, someone to help smooth over relations!

Pei Qingzhao looked up, seeing Chu Yu's red-rimmed eyes.

Those eyes were full of remorse and earnestness.

"Then, I will give you a chance to make amends for your mistakes." Pei Qingzhao finally spoke, her voice filled with irrepressible exhaustion. "Don't let me down again."

Chu Yu bowed her head, her shoulders trembling slightly as if suppressing the urge to cry.

But in the moment she lowered her head, a trace of mockery that no one could see flashed in her eyes.

When she raised her head again, her eyes were still red, and her face wore a perfectly timed look of gratitude: "Thank you, Sister Pei. I will definitely not let you down."

As soon as she finished speaking, the door was knocked upon.

Chu Yu turned to look at the door. For a split second, her eyes became vacant, revealing a hint of realization, but they quickly returned to normal.

"I'll go open the door!"

At this time, Lin Xiao, accompanied by several team leaders, Princess Xiyao, and a group of Merfolk Guards, walked through the corridor and arrived at Carriage 06.

He asked everyone to wait in the corridor while he walked alone toward Room 06-01.

He raised his hand and just knocked on the door.

The next second, the sliding door was opened.

As if the person inside had been waiting for a long time.

"Lin Xiao?" Seeing the person knocking, Chu Yu showed a look of surprise, her tone subconsciously rising a few notches.

Pei Qingzhao sat by the bed, still holding the red-tasseled spear. After seeing who it was, her expression also became surprised.

She immediately stood up, came to the door, and looked on with vigilance: "What do you want?"

Lin Xiao didn't beat around the bush and got straight to the point: "Miss Pei, there is a matter that requires your cooperation."

"Mermaid Princess Princess Xiyao and her Merfolk Guards need a place to stay. I heard that quite a few people have died in Carriage 06, so there should be many empty bunks. Consolidate them and clear out four rooms for me!"

Upon hearing this, Pei Qingzhao's expression changed instantly.

Clear out four rooms? What kind of joke was this Lin guy making?

She stood up abruptly. "On what grounds do you..."

But before she could finish, a gasp from beside her interrupted her questioning.

"Sister Pei!" Chu Yu covered her mouth, looking surprised. "Isn't this too unfair to our carriage? We already have few people, and now we have to clear out four rooms..."

Lin Xiao frowned slightly, his gaze lingering on Chu Yu's face for a second before shifting away.

"I am talking to Miss Pei," he said coldly. "Who are you?"

Chu Yu quickly lowered her head, her voice unconsciously becoming much softer: "Sorry, I was abrupt. I am Sister Pei's teammate. I spoke in a moment of panic just now..."

After speaking, she turned and retreated to the bed in the room.

Lin Xiao withdrew his gaze and looked at Pei Qingzhao. "Continue, what were you going to say just now?"

"I said, I don't agree!" Pei Qingzhao gripped the red-tasseled spear tightly, saying word by word, "Carriage 06 is my carriage. Why should I clear it out just because you say so?"

Lin Xiao chuckled.

The laugh was light, but to Pei Qingzhao's ears, it was gratingly harsh.

"First." Lin Xiao raised one finger. "The broadcast just now already made it very clear that we must protect the Mermaid Princess at all costs and help her fulfill her wish."

"Therefore," he looked at the wall of the room and continued, "providing accommodation for the Mermaid Princess and her Merfolk Guards is also our duty."

"But..." Pei Qingzhao was about to retort, but Lin Xiao raised a second finger.

"Secondly, you might not have experienced a public event, so I will patiently explain it to you once."

His tone remained calm, but it was indisputable.

"Public events provide generous rewards."

"Points, stardust, equipment, blueprints—the more people who participate, the more generous the rewards."

"But if because of you, because you are unwilling to clear out a few rooms, it affects Mermaid Princess Princess Xiyao, or even hinders the progress of the public event..."

Lin Xiao took a step forward. "Who will bear this consequence?"

When he said this, he deliberately raised his voice.

This was intentionally spoken for others to hear, especially the passengers in Carriage 06 who were watching the show.

To deal with an arrogant and conceited woman like Pei Qingzhao, unless it was in bed, the more one argued with words, the more agitated she would become!

Therefore, one must use external forces to press her until she can't catch her breath!

For example, the public opinion she cares about most!

Pei Qingzhao wanted to establish an all-female carriage.

Then, Lin Xiao would use the utopia she built with her own hands to destroy her pride and arrogance!

At this moment, he didn't need to actively spread the news.

The female passengers in the same carriage who were watching the show had already posted these words, with added embellishments, to the chat channel.

[06-04 Sun Yiyao: Family, who gets this? The administrator of Carriage 06 is arguing with Mermaid Princess Princess Xiyao. She won't ruin the public event, will she?]

[06-08 Jiang Shiyun: That Pei Qingzhao, she always does things like this. She's used to being selfish and never considers everyone else's feelings.]

[06-08 Jiang Shiyun: I used to be in her team, but I already quit and changed groups. I'm living much more comfortably now!]

[06-09 Zhuang Xuan: F*ck, f*ck, f*ck, is she crazy? That's a public event! The kind where you get rewards just for participating!]

Everyone hadn't cared about the situation in Carriage 06, but once they heard that Pei Qingzhao was going to hinder the progress of the public event, they were so angry they started cursing Pei Qingzhao's family directly.

New passengers who hadn't experienced a public event asked the old passengers in the chat channel why they were so agitated.

The old passengers responded very simply: "During the first phase, there was a Harbor Town public event. I didn't do anything at the time, just went through the motions, and I received a participation award—500 points and 1000 stardust."

Afterward, another person added: "Now it's the second phase; the rewards will likely be even more generous!"

Once these two sentences were out, the new passengers immediately joined the camp denouncing Pei Qingzhao.

Some passengers who were so angry they lost their temper even rushed directly to Carriage 06 to hurl insults.