Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Su Ximu's mind conjured some terrifying scenarios, but with someone still kneeling before him, he could only pause briefly before reaching out to help the person rise.

If the person had been less perceptive, they might not have stood even with assistance.

But Green-132 was different—he was highly observant. After pledging his loyalty and sensing Mr. Su’s intention to help him up, he promptly rose on his own, needing no aid. As he stood, he repeated, “Mr. Su, I can do it myself—I can do it myself! I’m dusty—please don’t soil your hands.”

Unnoticed by Green-132, a flicker of satisfaction gleamed in Blue-242’s eyes as he stood beside Su Ximu.

It must have been a joke.

At this, Green-132 bowed deeply once more and pleaded, “Please—don’t let the Financial Group fire me! I ask for almost no pay—I’ll work for free! Please, I just want to stay here quietly. For that, I’m willing to do anything for the Financial Group.”

Hearing this, Su Ximu sighed inwardly with relief, realizing his earlier assumptions had likely been mistaken.

After all, if Su Financial Group were truly a shady or unlawful enterprise, its employees wouldn’t fear layoffs so intensely.

Yet he still couldn’t offer any reassuring assurances—Su Financial Group belonged to his *elder brother*, not to him.

So he could only say, “I know Mr. Su of Su Financial Group fairly well. He’s a boss who places great emphasis on ‘value’ and possesses sharp judgment. Since he invested time and money into acquiring Tourism Park, it must mean Tourism Park itself holds genuine value.”

If Tourism Park held no value, why not simply purchase an empty plot of land?

That was Su Ximu’s most straightforward reasoning.

Uncertain and speaking purely from speculative insight drawn from his *elder brother’s* perspective, he merely mentioned having some familiarity with Su Financial Group’s boss—emphasizing that his analysis was for reference only and carried no endorsement.

Even so, it offered some comfort to Green-132 and other nearby employees listening in.

That’s right—Mr. Su, who had amassed such immense wealth, must be an exceptionally capable and astute figure. His acquisition of Tourism Park surely stemmed from recognizing its intrinsic value. And if Tourism Park has value, then its employees must possess value too.

As long as they worked diligently and proved themselves once operations resumed, Mr. Su would surely recognize their worth!

The neighboring zoo served as a good example.

The circus had thrived initially, but after the new owner took over and converted it into a zoo, business had noticeably declined.

Green-132’s emotions were volatile and easily stirred—but he had one advantage: he also calmed down quickly.

Most of his colleagues, however, lacked the patience to reassure him.

Before departing, he respectfully offered half a mushroom.

Not wanting to reject his sincerity, Su Ximu accepted the mushroom and gave him a pack of candies in return—the candy left over from what his “third brother” had given him last time.

After Green-132 left, fearing someone else might kneel before him, Su Ximu deliberately took a shortcut back to the dormitory with Group Leader Lan-242.

Back in the dorm, he asked Group Leader Lan-242, “Where can I check out books in Tourism Park?”

“Tourism Park doesn’t have a library. What kind of books are you looking for?”

“Well… world history—or something about customs across different countries.”

“World history is rather dull. Why do you want to read that?”

When Su Ximu heard Group Leader Lan-242’s question, his gaze drifted, lost in thought—fixed on the small potted soil. Snapping back to himself, he replied evasively, “I just… want to learn.”

Kill.

Slave.

Use.

He hadn’t forgotten those words. Yet after observing the entirely normal reactions of the other employees around him, he realized he’d jumped to conclusions again.

What he perceived as oddities in individuals were, in fact, perfectly ordinary within this context—their behavior simply clashed with the common sense he’d accumulated over the past decade or so.

Relative to this world, they were normal.

Was he the odd one out?

Su Ximu pressed his lips together, feeling neither particularly emotional nor sentimental. His sole thought was that he probably needed to systematically study this world.

Otherwise, continuing to apply his old common sense here would only lead to embarrassment.

“If you finish reading—and discover the world isn’t what you imagined—how would you feel?” Blue-242’s tone sounded relatively calm.

Su Ximu tilted his head. “It’s alright?”

Growing up is inherently a process of constantly updating one’s understanding of the world. He might simply be updating his understanding in a different world.

Alright?

That’s good.

***

Amid the mounting anxiety of all Tourism Park employees, they finally welcomed the day of their new boss’s inspection.

It was the day after the broadcast.

This time, Su Ximu guessed correctly—Su Xuanxiao had no intention of shutting down Tourism Park or carrying out large-scale layoffs. His focus lay instead on the benefits Tourism Park could deliver to him.

Thanks to the previous director’s “rainbow hat” promotion system, most of Tourism Park’s current staff remained diligent and hardworking.

At 7:30 a.m., Su Xuanxiao sat in the director’s office, listening to financial reports from three orange-level managers. There should have been four orange-level managers—but one had unfortunately been consumed by the previous director.

After hearing the reports, Su Xuanxiao was somewhat satisfied.

Yet for a qualified Financial Group leader, greed was a fundamental trait.

Being “somewhat satisfied” wasn’t enough—he believed the park’s financial performance could satisfy him even more.

So he closed the financial report and raised another matter with the three managers standing before him.

“On my way to the park, I looked up some online visitor reviews of Tourism Park.”

“Many visitors expressed dissatisfaction with the folk-park programs. Were you aware of this?”

Su Xuanxiao remarked, “Visitors buy tickets to Tourism Park not to watch a wealthy lord marrying off his concubines. That kind of content easily stirs resentment toward the rich among visitors.”

"And also, the folkloric performances in the Tourism Park haven't changed for a full decade. Can any of you tell me what the previous Director was thinking? Why were there no corrective measures?"

The three managers, Orange 01, Orange 03, and Orange 04, exchanged glances. Orange 01 stepped forward and reported respectfully, "Respected boss, this involves legacy issues of the park. Clearly, the previous Director was not as powerful and wealthy as you are."

"Regarding the several folk gardens in the park, we believe that with your strength, you can already sense it while sitting here—there are several other powerful anomalies within this Tourism Park."

"They are all indigenous residents of the folk gardens. After the previous Director acquired their estates, they banded together to form the Park Folk Association. Sometimes, even the previous Director couldn't command them too forcefully."

This essentially meant that within the vast Tourism Park, several autonomous estates had been carved out. Most of the time, if the anomalies in these estates followed the Director's arrangements and didn't reject park actors from working in the estates, it was already considered cooperation.

"During today's management report, did they show up?"

The three orange managers shook their heads in unison.

Seeing this, Su Xuanxiao leaned back in his chair, finding it novel.

"It's been a long time since I've encountered such rare specimens."

The man in a sharp, well-tailored suit, exuding authority and efficiency, scanned the three before him and waved his hand magnanimously. "You may leave. Tell those outside to return as well. They can report another day."

The three managers felt as if they had been granted a reprieve. They bowed and didn't dare linger for even a second, vanishing from the Director's office in the blink of an eye.

They had a feeling that if their attitude during the report had been even slightly off, they would have been made an example of by the new boss.

Fortunately, the scapegoat had presented itself.

At eight o'clock, all employees preparing to go to work received a new notice from the Director's office.

They were instructed to stop their current work and proceed to the circled locations on the park's latest map.

Upon arriving at the designated spots, employees would receive a gift from Mr. Su: an estate access pass.

Employees holding the pass could explore the circled areas on the map within the day.

After today, the employee with the deepest exploration within the designated areas would gain management rights over that location.

The circled areas on the map were the several largest estates within the park.

Wang Family Mansion was prominently listed.

In other words, Su Xuanxiao was going to play a dungeon-cracking game with the anomalies in these estates.

However, the players he was sending were the Tourism Park employees—anomalies themselves, who were more destructive, more fearless, and more greedy.

Before this, which employee in the Tourism Park hadn't envied the anomalies in the estates?

Not only did they have spacious living quarters, but their work was also relaxed, and from time to time, humans known as 'players' would appear for them to toy with.

Most importantly, on average, each anomaly managed at least several dozen lesser anomalies!

With this notice, it was also a reward from the new boss, Su Xuanxiao, for the employees' hard work in the past.

The previous Director had already lost his Tourism Park.

Now, it was time for the old anomalies in the estates to lose their estates as well.

Author's Note:

Big Brother: As a boss, you must know how to balance kindness and authority. *Hands behind back.jpg*