This Game Is Too Real
Chapter 525: I Will Consider Taking a Few Days Off for Myself

Chapter 525: Chapter 525: I Will Consider Taking a Few Days Off for Myself

Night Queen Bar.

Recently, this place has started operating earlier, especially for those generous VIP customers, it is open around the clock.

However, to the slight disappointment of patrons, the artworks made of Devil Silk seem to have vanished from the bar, replaced entirely by nylon replicas.

In a sense, this has become more convenient, but people still feel like something is missing.

After all, humans are not animals, and aside from that particular issue, there is still some spiritual pursuit. Artworks made of indestructible Devil Silk managed to make the otherwise vulgar dance moves seem less so.

And what better way to provoke the human desire to conquer than to refuse something?

People complain that the stuff is too familiar, yet they are more willing to spend money on it.

Nevertheless, when it comes to "banning Devil Silk artworks," the owner of the Night Queen Bar, Luo Bo, is very resolute.

Even though he was the first to benefit from it.

The Survivor Daily’s supplement mocks his girls nonchalantly; after all, neither he nor they care about face, only about chips. But that guy dared to take a dig at the Inner City’s noble grandfathers too, he’s really asking for trouble!

He definitely doesn’t want to get blood splattered on him...

Right now, in the most status-confirming VIP room.

Several powdered and slicked-up young masters were lounging on plush sofas, surrounded by a cluster of disheveled beauties.

Their casually discarded belts revealed their opulence—the skins were from Dead Claws, and of older ones at that.

Immersed in the gentle embrace from all sides, Kishu comfortably squinted his eyes, and after a moment of uninteresting shuddering, smacked his lips and said with a smirk,

"There’s no place more enjoyable than in Giant Stone City."

Over there, he always had to handle things himself, but here, without even having to move a muscle, one look and they understood everything.

And they were incredibly submissive and considerate...

Sitting across from him, a young man asked with curiosity.

"Aren’t there many artificial humans in Ideal City?"

His name was Kumarit, and he was Sid’s son.

As for Sid, he was a well-known noble of the Inner City, with shares in both Vijia Commerce and Giant Stone City Bank. When it comes to chips, for someone like him, it’s just a number.

Logically speaking, his father’s status was somewhat higher than Kishu’s father, and Kishu should have been acting as his sidekick. However, Kumarit greatly admired this guy in front of him and willingly lowered his status to let him sit in the ’big brother’ position.

Because this guy always had countless sneaky ideas, and every time they were bored, he could lead them to stir up some new trouble.

It’s just that incident five years ago; they really went too far.

The girl was about the same age as his sister, and it was crazy of him to come up with that idea. When the matter was exposed, and that stubborn old man refused to accept their chips, insisting with tears and snot that they take responsibility... but how could they take responsibility?

Were they to draw straws and decide who would marry the girl? That would not only make their fathers’ noses turn crooked with anger, but they would also beat them to death!

There was no choice; they had to make that family disappear.

It’s just a pity that the matter wasn’t handled well; the fire accidentally spread to the surrounding houses, causing the city defense chief to fly into a rage. It was because of that incident that Kishu was packed off by his father to a merchant outside, sent to the distant Ideal City to lie low. And they were also scolded at home and confined for several days to reflect.

Kumarit thought he’d never see this good brother of his again, but unexpectedly, the company suddenly opened flights to Qingquan City.

And his good brother indeed did not disappoint him, returning at the first opportunity to reunite with them.

Kishu disdainfully curled his lip.

"How could artificial humans ever understand humans better than actual humans... and can’t you guys grow up a bit? After all this time, still thinking of only that, vulgar!"

Kumarit said playfully.

"We don’t have any other entertainment, you’re the sophisticated one; tell us, what are some fun things on the East Coast."

The others also chimed in.

"Exactly!"

"Come on, spill it already."

A group of fair-weather friends looked eagerly at the buddy who had returned from afar, hoping he would share more about the East Coast.

Although their elders were mostly upper-class people of the Inner City, not everyone had the opportunity to send their children to the Ideal City.

Three thousand kilometers was too far.

And the further from Giant Stone City they got, the less their power was worth.

Unless it was the most trusted and powerful businessperson, no one dared to entrust their own flesh and blood to them.

Outside the giant wall, in the Wasteland, it only took a minor accident to end a life, especially where currency didn’t circulate; there, life was cheaper than paper.

And to tell the truth, even if they had the chance to go to Ideal City, they actually didn’t really want to stay there for several years.

But that didn’t stop them from listening to the stories of those who had been.

And a good buddy’s personal experience was always more reliable than the stories told by those merchants who one couldn’t be sure had actually been or not...

Basking in the admiring gazes that surrounded him like stars around the moon, Kishu’s eyes unwittingly filled with a sense of superiority as he leisurely began to speak.

"Ideal City... it’s actually not as good as you imagine."

Kumarit looked at him incredulously.

"But it must be a bit better than Giant Stone City, right?"

"You’re overthinking it," Kishu shook his head, "There’s a ton of rules there, clearly stating what you can and can’t do, with absolutely no room for flexibility."

In reality, there might have been some.

It was just that he wasn’t at a level where the council might bend the rules, so of course, he wouldn’t know where leeway could be found.

Kumarit still wore a face full of disbelief and continued to question.

"What about the nobles in the Inner City there? They’ve got to have it better, right?"

Kishu spoke indifferently.

"Of course they do, but in my opinion, those people lack foresight; you might even call them short-sighted. Perhaps the real big shots are different; I’ve heard they are more secretive and conservative... But aside from that, they’re really no different from us. It’s precisely why their lives there are so dull—otherwise, why would they bother coming out to the city?"

For him, that place was another kind of Wasteland—a wasteland of the spirit.

He could only live in a dog kennel of forty square meters, hooked up to a Neural Connection Device, squabbling online with the trash of Endpoint Cloud... That was the cheapest and most hassle-free form of entertainment. At the very least, he didn’t have to worry about being mysteriously in violation, getting locked up to be forced to watch something, or thrown out by the guards.

The complexity of the rules there was maddening, and one could only imagine how low the efficiency was—something unthinkable in Giant Stone City.

Enjoying the adoration in the simpletons’ gazes, Kishu ate a grape fed to him by a Beauty, and lazily commented on his hometown.

"But speaking of changes... it used to take at least two days to walk from here to North Suburb, but now it takes less than a day."

Kumarit replied with a smile.

"Indeed, those busybodies in North Suburb keep picking fights with Looters; almost all Looters from the north have fled south."

Another chubby guy chimed in excitedly.

"I also heard that they are doing a lot of construction there recently, they’re even repaving the roads under the outbound overpasses!"

A tall man’s eyes lit up as he spoke.

"I know! My father has invested a lot of money in it!"

Kishu curled his lip.

"How much money can selling steel and cement make... don’t you guys have any interest in the really profitable trades?"

Kumarit’s eyes instantly lit up.

"Do you have connections?"

"More than just connections."

Kishu smiled mysteriously, beckoning his eager buddies to come closer with a gesture.

He cleared his throat, keeping his voice very low.

"...I have a project that can make big money."

"You don’t have to do anything, just lie down and you’ll make money!"

...

In a mansion in the City of Dawn.

Sitting in his study, List toyed with the black room card in his hand, glancing at the clock on the wall and yawning with abject boredom.

He began to feel somewhat bored.

Initially, for the sake of this "Black Card," he hadn’t spared any chips to clear the way through relationships, spending at least several million altogether. Finally, with the help of a few nobles, he managed to gracefully usher out a down-and-out impoverished nobleman with a hefty "relocation fee" and took his place as a new member of the Inner City nobility.

There, the dignity and elegance of the nobility were more important than anything else, but the identity of the nobility itself was not so mysterious.

As long as one owned a single room in the Stone Building, no matter how small, one could be considered a member of the Inner City nobility and possess voting rights on major decisions.

As for how to own one, it depended on one’s ability to get along with others; it wasn’t something explicitly priced and circulated in the market.

Most nobles did not actually reside within the giant Stone Building. The numbers on their cards symbolized identity and power more than anything else. Beyond the pre-war Stone Building, there was a circle of buildings constructed later that also fell within the Inner City’s borders.

Living conditions in those places were much better.

Furthermore, if a noble lived day in, day out, in the small room associated with their card, it essentially meant they weren’t far from bankruptcy.

People would assume they intended to sell their power for a good price at the end, doing so in a way that wouldn’t offend themselves or their neighbors.

Such as the noble he had replaced.

That fellow had lived on the lowest floor of the building, without children or any impressive skills to speak of, like a pampered pig, hoping night and day to sell their card at a price that would not offend anyone, and then use the chips to start afresh elsewhere.

If all of Giant Stone City was likened to a massive casino, then undoubtedly, buying a card with one’s "gambling capital" meant one had made it ashore.

That was also why he didn’t hesitate to spend such a tremendous sum.

It wasn’t just because with that status, other Inner City nobles couldn’t mess with him using unofficial means; it was also because he had ambitions far beyond the ordinary—plans to use his business acumen and initiative to change Giant Stone City and the entire River Valley Province, establishing an immense business empire!

If he could join the core power circle of Giant Stone City, make some like-minded friends, his plans would go much smoother.

However, not long after entering this circle, he quickly became disillusioned.

There were no like-minded friends there; in fact, not even a single person with a modicum of competence.

Those guys were like a bunch of pigs bred from inbreeding.

Not a hint of the wisdom expected of people could be found in their heads, or rather, they had used up all their brains on infighting.

Even Slave Owners knew that shovels were faster than digging by hand, and would occasionally buy some generators or update their farming equipment from merchants like him. Yet those pampered swine insisted on removing the hooves of oxen and horses to eat them, smugly calling it an achievement.

How could such characters fare better than the old town mayor on Bet Street and the farm owners of Brown Ranch?

List pondered this question over several nights but could not understand.

In the end, he could only conclude—

They indeed had a good father.

Those who had the courage to stand outside the shelters, facing the radioactive dust and the perpetual winter without daylight, were truly heroes.

They not only endured the despair of plummeting from Utopia into the abyss, but they also took care of what should have been done by those sponging descendants ahead of time.

And that was precisely what shouldn’t have been.

They created a "fairy-tale-like world" for their children, so much so that after two hundred years, the nobles could no longer see the Wasteland.

Actually, that understanding was not wrong.

Their Wasteland had indeed ended long ago...

At this moment, there was a knock on the study door. His most trusted subordinate, Han Long, opened the door and walked in.

"Sir, the Manager is here."

List tossed the Black Card aside and immediately said to him,

"Please show him in."

"Yes," Han Long nodded slightly, his electronic eyes swiveling left and right before he turned and left List’s study.

It wasn’t long before Chu Guang pushed the door open and walked in with a smile.

"Your house is quite large."

He didn’t bring any Guards and was still wearing that suit of power armor. List had long grown accustomed to it and had even replaced all the sofas in his home with iron-core ones in case there was nowhere to entertain him.

"You should live in a bigger one, I just happen to have a new house I can’t live in for now—"

"The shelter’s environment is quite good."

"But isn’t your Residents quite keen on building beautiful houses?" List smiled and tried to persuade, "The shelter is too cramped after all. Even if you don’t mind, you shouldn’t diminish the future Manager’s lady and the future heir of the Alliance."

Chu Guang smiled faintly.

"We’ve known each other for so long, don’t you understand me yet?"

List fell silent for a moment, letting out a light sigh, and leaned back in his chair, dismissing that unrealistic thought completely.

"To tell you the truth, the longer I know you, the less I understand you... Sometimes, when I’m in front of you, I even feel afraid."

"Have I done anything to make you afraid?"

"No."

Watching his silent demeanor, Chu Guang vaguely guessed something and smiled with implied meaning.

"Old Brown is still running his farm. He accepted our transformation, released the slaves in his house, and disbanded his armed forces. Bygones are bygones, and we allow him to continue living on his land as a citizen of the Alliance. And the person who did this is none other than City of Dawn’s City Lord Luka, who almost got executed by him. You see, we can even forgive our enemies, and you haven’t done ’anything’ to wrong us, so what is there to worry about?"

List shook his head.

"The mismatch between money and status is an original sin. At least in the Inner City, I could bribe nobles, even become one... But here, I have no way to become a Resident of the refuge, nor can I understand your logic of operation, let alone figure out what you sometimes really want to do. Anyway, I just hope that one day when you need money, you’ll give me a chance to offer it proactively."

Chu Guang couldn’t help but say,

"Why can’t you change your mindset a little? The Alliance is the Alliance; we have our own rules. We are different from any other Survivor Settlement... Look at Batch, he’s almost not even human anymore, and isn’t he still living happily every day?"

List said helplessly,

"He’s a resident of Ideal City. Even if he commits a huge crime, there are people who will cover for him... And I can’t see his face."

Chu Guang sighed and said,

"I’ve said it many times, identity isn’t important in the Alliance. Even if he undergoes such a transformation that even his father can’t recognize him, as long as he identifies with us, we will unite him."

List said with a wry smile,

"I hope you will always keep your promises... So, what do you want me to do for you this time?"

Seeing that List had guessed that his visit was purposeful, Chu Guang decided not to beat around the bush. He leaned back in the chair and explained with animation.

"I plan to issue something called Bonds."

"What’s that?"

"A financial instrument, it can solve both our funding problems and the difficulties of the Inner City Nobles when it comes to investing."

List coughed.

"If you need money, just say the word. I’ll lend it to you."

Chu Guang said with a smile,

"It’s not me that needs money; it’s the Alliance that needs it. And we will always need it. We need a lot of chips, how much could you lend me? A billion?"

List said, his scalp tingling,

"That... would indeed be difficult."

He hadn’t expected this Manager to have such a big appetite.

Chu Guang spread his hands.

"See? It’s not a cake one person can swallow. We need a large number of chips to purchase products from Giant Stone City, expand our market size, and right now, the pockets of the Inner City Nobles are bursting with chips. So, why not use that money they can’t spend for the time being to make some profitable deals?"

List stroked his chin with interest, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"This sounds quite interesting..."

Chu Guang smiled and continued progressively.

"We can offer five-year and ten-year bonds, with total issue sizes of one and two billion respectively. They’ll be bought and redeemed with chips - very fair. And the most important part is safety! The coupon rates are 3% and 4%, respectively. Take the ten-year bonds, for instance: a 100-chip bond would earn 4 chips in interest every year, and at the end of the tenth year, the principal of 100 chips all at once."

List’s gaze flickered slightly, keenly picking up on his intent.

"It’s like splitting the debt... Now not only banks can invest, but large and medium-sized Business Associations and even individuals can participate as well."

Chu Guang said with a smile,

"Exactly! We even provide physical certificates and supporting electronic accounting services... Those holding our bonds can even freely buy and sell on our trading platform. So, if someone urgently needs money, they can liquidate their holdings and sell the bonds, only paying a small transaction fee."

Too bad, it seemed that List hadn’t grasped his true intention, simply instinctively feeling that he wouldn’t harbor good intentions with this.

"Then why don’t you go find Melvin?" After looking at Chu Guang for a while, List couldn’t help but ask, "I’m a factory man, not someone who does this."

Chu Guang shook his head.

"Melvin is an old fox; he wants to get something from me, but he definitely won’t allow me to use borrowed money to repay old debts. Starting from that 200 million in chips, every loan we took from the Giant Stone City Bank has had stipulations on how the loan should be used, and the money must be held in an account at the Giant Stone City Bank, under their supervision."

He paused, then continued.

"So I need two issuance channels to issue bonds priced in chips. However, I can assure you that the bonds issued through both channels will have the same rights. It’s just that one is issued by the League Central Bank itself, and the other is issued through the banks in Giant Stone City."

"I consider you one of our own, so for the League’s issuance channel, I plan to let you handle it."

List stared at Chu Guang in surprise, not expecting him to divulge such matters as "using borrowed money to repay old debts" to him.

Swallowing, he asked cautiously,

"Do you... really plan to repay it?"

Chu Guang looked at him strangely.

"If I didn’t plan on repaying the money, why would I go to such great lengths?"

List fell silent for a moment, then spoke up hesitantly.

"I’ll give it a try."

He had to take the Alliance’s opinion seriously.

No choice.

Who made him prosper thanks to the Alliance?

If not for List’s factory, he could never have become a noble in the Inner City in his lifetime, not to mention helping to raise funds—he would even have to think of ways to help commit murder if asked.

"Go and give it a shot!"

Chu Guang rose from the sofa, walked to the door of the study, then suddenly stopped, turned back to look at List, and encouraged him with a smile.

"Try your best. The business opportunities of the Alliance are all spelled out in the newspapers. I will cooperate with you as much as possible here. Trust me, if this works out, both the League and Giant Stone City will thank you. If it really doesn’t work, it’s no big deal; I’ll look for someone else."

List responded respectfully,

"I will do my utmost."

The study door closed.

Listening to the footsteps fading away, List leaned back in his chair and massaged his temples with a headache.

The total amount to be issued was one billion and two billion, respectively...

Normal people would be scared away by these numbers, right?

Esteemed Manager indeed gave him a tough puzzle to solve.

Yet at this moment, List’s gaze suddenly fell on the black card on the table, and a flicker of realization surged in his heart.

Picking up the black card again and fidgeting with it in his hand, List’s eyes grew more excited, and he muttered softly to himself,

"Maybe it’s not such a difficult task after all..."

...

Just as List was instructing his subordinates to pack up and prepare for a trip back to Giant Stone City, a not-so-small incident had just taken place in Giant Stone City.

Survivor’s Daily, which had been the talk of the entire Stone City and had nearly put Mr. Hauser out of a job a few days ago, inevitably ran into trouble.

At the moment, the door of the newspaper office was sealed shut, with several guards pushing away onlookers who had gathered at the entrance.

"Back off!"

"Anyone who doesn’t want trouble, stop freaking crowding around!"

Hearing the stern tone, people who didn’t want to cause a scene dispersed.

Only one man didn’t leave and couldn’t help but shout,

"We are customers waiting for the new issue... not here to gawk!"

He was the owner of the Walnut Tavern, the one next to the industrial area, and his name was Tang.

On usual days, the workers came to his place to pick up cigarette butts to smoke, and incidentally, they would find someone literate to read the free newspaper.

Although he didn’t much like those gloomy poor sods, they were pretty much his only patrons, and sometimes when they got happy, they couldn’t resist buying a beer, even a newspaper to take home for keepsakes.

Even for the sake of that beer, he felt he should say something for them.

However, the two guards exchanged a glance upon hearing his words, laughed heartily, and kicked the bumpkin—who had appeared from who knows where—sending him tumbling to the ground. As he scrambled up, they mocked him.

"Get lost!"

"We don’t have that stuff anymore!"

Meanwhile, in the upstairs office.

Upon hearing the decree issued by the city hall, Hal almost passed out. He glared at the guard who was reading the order to him, wishing he could kill the man with his gaze.

Yet the authority of the royal family meant squat here; the soldiers of Giant Stone City didn’t care about some prince from the desert, who at most could avoid a beating.

"Publication suspension?! Why?" Hal shouted, spittle flying.

The guard looked at him mockingly.

"The city hall thinks you’re spreading false news. Who asked you to not do proper work all day?"

Angry and red-faced, Hal gripped the issue of "Playboy" in his hand, his fingers trembling uncontrollably, and barely managed to choke out a sentence.

"But this is just a joke! It’s not even the ’news’ you’re talking about!"

The content of the joke was about a guy wearing Dead Claw skin from head to toe trying to prove his bravery to his cronies by boasting that he had personally stripped the gear from the Dead Claw’s body.

However, his friends clearly didn’t believe him. So to prove his valor, the guy who dared not step out from behind the city wall had to pounce on a woman of ill-repute nearby, only to be exposed by undamageable Devil Silk as an idiot...

It was supposed to be a joke with two embedded soft advertisements, even including brand names, but perhaps his wording was too realistic, inadvertently offending some noble granddad who had actually done this here.

The guard’s response confirmed his suspicions.

"Yes, however, a resident of the Inner City didn’t find it funny and felt offended by it. Of course, we both know he’s not the person in the joke, but he kindly thought it wasn’t good."

"What about the ’Worker Report’? We haven’t published any news about the rich for a long time, and it even helped a noble lady find her lost cat!"

The guard retorted.

"So why don’t you continue to publish those things? You were doing well before, able to do some stuff for the Lords. Those serialized stories are too exaggerated, though. How could barehanded Awakeners possibly defeat power armor, and a mercenary buying an Inner City Black Card is nonsense. What do you take the status granted by the city lord for? I’ve never heard of any mercenary capable of that, aren’t you misleading people?"

Hal tried to argue.

"We can remove that part of the content!"

"Mr. Dulon’s opinion is no."

"What about Hauser? He talks more nonsense than I do! If you’ve ever listened to his broadcast, you’d know my writing is not even a cold joke!"

Hal’s face reddened, the last thing he wanted was to bring up that fool who spewed nonsense, but now he had no choice but to use him as an example.

In terms of boasting, he was one in ten thousand compared to that guy, at least he couldn’t make black seem white.

However, the guard was indifferent to his explanation and said impatiently.

"He has a permit. Oh, you’re going to need one of those to operate from now on, I’m not too sure about the specifics, you can find out for yourself."

Hal looked at him pleadingly.

"Then I want to apply now! Please don’t kick me out."

The guard shrugged indifferently.

"That’s your freedom, but first you need to clean up your stuff here. We’ll be sealing this place tomorrow. Anything not taken will be considered trash and disposed of."

If this guy wasn’t a prince of the Lion Kingdom, he wouldn’t bother wasting so many words and would just use a gun to make him behave.

After throwing out his last words, the guard turned and left with his crew, leaving Hal standing there, spiritless and disheartened.

He felt like a clown.

The Alliance had defeated the invincible Army, and he had been elated for a long time. However, the day before the victory celebration, the fruits of his half-year’s labor were taken away with a single sentence.

Looking at the employees who dared not speak, the spiritless Hal spoke slowly.

"Do you understand... This feels like I placed a fresh flower on cow dung, yet they insist on seeing themselves as the cow dung. Is that all that’s left in their shallow perception—cow dung?"

"I only wrote about a guy in Dead Claw skin having fun in the joke, yet they insist it’s an offense to the Inner City nobles. Because humans clip their nails and horses have their hooves trimmed, are humans equivalent to horses? What kind of bullshit logic is that?"

An employee whispered quietly.

"...Indeed, residents of the Alliance also wear Dead Claw skin clothing, and they like you more than Mr. Hauser."

Another slightly younger employee couldn’t help but ask.

"Clearly this is a misunderstanding... can we appeal?"

The slightly older editor shook his head.

"Difficult."

Everyone fell into a protracted silence, worrying about the future. The two journalists looked at each other, then couldn’t help but turn to him.

"Boss..."

"What should we do?"

Hal said angrily.

"I don’t know, don’t ask me! You just stood by and watched the excitement, not saying a word to help me, and now you come ask me what to do! How should I know what to do?"

He had originally planned to dedicate an entire column to the Alliance’s celebration and its series of bold actions, and had been working overtime to prepare a draft. Then, out of nowhere, this terrible news had arrived.

Looking at the helpless eyes of his employees, Hal suddenly felt as if all his strength had been drained, and he let out a long sigh.

"...I’ll pay you your wages, then we’ll all go our separate ways."

Perhaps he really wasn’t cut out for this business.

The employees all showed expressions of reluctance.

And that slightly older editor immediately asked,

"Can we settle in silver coins?"

Hal was slightly stunned.

"Silver coins?"

Those standing next to the old editor nodded in unison, whispering one after another,

"We used to work for Mr. Haus... We were fired because we disagreed with him; he definitely won’t take us back."

"And I’ve written articles mocking him..."

"We plan to try our luck in the Alliance; don’t they have a ’Survivor’s Daily’? They should need us."

"That’s right! And right now, one chip can be exchanged for two silver coins, but in Giant Stone City, a chip can’t even buy a loaf of bread!"

"The Alliance isn’t much better..."

"But I heard that there, 0.9 silver coins can buy a kilogram of corn! The excess nutrient paste can even be used to feed pigs!"

Listening to his employees’ various comments, Hal’s previously despondent mood suddenly felt a little relief.

The Wasteland was large; there were still many places they could go.

Come to think of it, his original purpose for starting the newspaper was just to find a job that would support him, then to complete the trial his father had given to him and his brothers: bring back something valuable from the Wasteland.

But gradually, he grew fond of the newspaper, so much so that he completely forgot his father’s instructions.

In fact, he increasingly felt that not vying for the throne was all right; that thing was nothing but a burden. Drinking and writing poetry were what he truly enjoyed.

After he leaves, he wondered how Mr. Haus would cover the Alliance’s celebration, but having completely let go of everything here, he no longer cared.

Whatever.

It was just a settlement.

He should be the cloud in the sky, writing poetry for those who were worth it, singing for those who deserved to hear it.

He had once said,

To spread the ’Survivor’s Daily’ across the entire Wasteland! His employees hadn’t given up on this profession, so how could he be discouraged at a time like this?

"Then let’s go together; it’s safer with more people!"

The crowd looked at him in surprise.

Especially the old editor, who asked in disbelief,

"Are you planning to leave with us?"

"What are you talking about? I was never a survivor of this place. I told you I come from a place shrouded in Xiaguang... even though I gave up so easily, indeed letting down Manager Sir’s expectations, but I will apologize to him sincerely."

Hal’s face broke into a smile again as he gave a light cough and continued.

"If you like me as your boss, after we arrive at the League, you can continue to follow me... The survivors in the desert don’t have a newspaper of their own yet. They should know what is happening in the Wasteland every day. We could start afresh there! Grow bigger, stronger, and create new glories!"

"Although, that place is much poorer than here."

At this very moment, Miss Dolly had no idea that she had already lost her job. She was eagerly dragging Fang Chang all over the streets of City of Dawn, frantically gathering information for the special column of a celebration that had already fallen through.

Afni from Honey Badger Kingdom was sitting at the window of the embassy’s attic, gazing at the setting sun slowly descending toward her homeland, sighing as she worried whether the gifts soon to be presented could adequately represent the hearts of the Royal Family and the citizens of the Kingdom.

A Mosquito that had been implanted with Xiaoyu brand symbionts was once again trapped in the tin can it made and, coincidentally, got snapped by Crow as it passed by, who then posted it on the Forum for a hearty round of mocking—paying back a long-standing grudge from a previous encounter.

Young Batch had taken Makabazi and gone up the mountain to fish by the lake, while the brothers of the Storm Corps, including the Spring Water Commander, were in the Road Town Inn’s lobby, taking turns in making Zhang Hai, the indefatigable noodle shop owner, drink, as Lisa looked on helplessly, trying to persuade them to drink less. She wanted to inquire about pangolin news but felt too embarrassed to ask.

Wild Wind and End-of-the-world Lone Wolf had run off again to tinker with reactors in West State City, and Night Ten was levelling up with his younger sister Jiujiu by hunting Crack Claw Crabs nearby.

Old White and a female researcher from the Academy had gone to the East District forest of Qingquan City; she was curious about the Mind Interference Instrument there, while Elena had brought back a bunch of miraculous ingredients from the desert and seemed to be contemplating a new batch of dark cuisine with scrambled eggs and tomatoes.

There was only one last night left until the Victory Celebration.

The liveliness of City of Dawn remained as ever.

Having just left List’s house, Chu Guang didn’t return to the shelter but instead went to the farmlands on the eastern edge of the city, lost in thought as he looked over the cultivated land.

Seeing him gazing into the distance for quite some time, Lu Bei, who was following behind him, quietly asked,

"Sir... Is there something over there?"

Chu Guang replied casually,

"There’s nothing."

Lu Bei scratched his head and said apologetically,

"I saw you looking over there for a long time... I thought there might be a problem."

"Yes... There is a bit of a problem."

Chu Guang thought for a moment, then said,

"I was thinking we can’t let them down."

Food security was of utmost importance, and could not be entirely left to vassal countries. These farmlands were precious resources. Maybe he should allocate a part of the tax revenue to subsidize those who stayed and labored in the fields, to alleviate their concerns about next year’s grain prices.

At that thought, Chu Guang’s head ached again.

He hadn’t been aware of it before, a flick of his wrist was just a row of figures.

But once the scale of the League had increased, he immediately felt how difficult it was to maintain the stable operation of a vast settlement.

There were far too many places where money had to be spent...

And a thought of his no longer just decided the livelihood of a few individuals, but instead, the fate of numerous families looking to him with hope.

If he made a mistake, people would go hungry.

Some methods that worked with fewer people were no longer effective with more people. Yet how many is too many, and how few is too few? It was very hard to grasp.

As he watched the Manager deep in thought, Lu Bei hesitated for a moment but eventually couldn’t help but say,

"Manager...?"

Chu Guang looked toward the young man.

"What is it?"

Lu Bei earnestly said,

"I think you should take a proper rest... It’s been three days since you came back from the frontline, and you haven’t rested at all."

Chu Guang was slightly startled, then chuckled and patted his shoulder.

"You don’t have to worry about me, kid. I know when to rest."

"... I just hope you will take better care of yourself," Lu Bei whispered, "It’s not just my suggestion, I feel... that’s what everyone hopes."

Looking into the young man’s concerned eyes, Chu Guang nodded with a smile.

"I’ll consider taking a few days off."

-

(Can ten thousand words be counted as two Chapters? T.T)

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