Chapter 37

Chapter 37

Lu Yunqi nodded: "That's right, that's right, they're my little assistants in this world. Come on, come on, let me introduce you—Yuan Pingya, Liu Bao."

Du Ze stepped forward and nodded at them: "Mr. Yuan, Mr. Liu."

Yuan Pingya and Liu Bao: ...

Liu Bao: ...Mr. Liu... what an awkward way to be called.

But Yuan Pingya and Liu Bao were still dazed, their faces full of shock and confusion. Liu Bao asked: "Young Lord, won't you tell us—what exactly is this place?"

Lu Yunqi pointed into the distance and replied: "This is my secret experimental base. I want to build a utopia—a world of great harmony. Would the two of you be willing to join me in realizing this dream?"

Liu Bao didn't understand anything about "great harmony" or not—all he knew was that whatever the Young Lord told him to do, he would do it. Following the Young Lord was never wrong.

Liu Bao was the first to nod: "Sure! As long as the Young Lord commands, Liu Bao will do anything."

Yuan Pingya's eyes, however, were filled with longing. He asked: "Great harmony... does that mean everyone is equal, everyone has enough to eat and wear, and everyone has a house like this to live in?"

Lu Yunqi snapped his fingers: "You guessed it! That's exactly what it means. So, are you willing to join in?"

Yuan Pingya's eyes reddened, and he nodded heavily: "I am willing! I am willing! I am more than willing!"

Lu Yunqi chuckled softly as he pulled up their management permissions: "Good, willing is all that matters. Then our Utopia Great Harmony Huaxia Company is officially established today. From now on, you can call me 'Boss.' I've already sent you the company rules—take a good look at them."

After saying that, he also pulled up new mini-programs for them and added them to the NPC management group chat.

Liu Bao's vision flashed again and again—mini-program after mini-program popped up, nearly blinding his eyes.

He gasped and shouted in astonishment: "Y-Y-Y-Young Lord, i-i-is this some kind of immortal magic?"

Yuan Pingya felt it was necessary to teach him what these things were, so he pulled Liu Bao over to the bank of the Wanping River and began teaching him how to recognize and use those mini-programs.

Meanwhile, Lu Yunqi inspected his territory once more and asked Du Ze: "So? Any new progress?"

Du Ze nodded: "The enlightenment of the people has made great strides, but we're short on manpower. If we had more population and boosted the prosperity level, we could immediately dam the river and build a hydroelectric hub. For now, though, I'd like to try solar panels—they're time-limited, but using them occasionally is doable."

Lu Yunqi nodded: "Excellent, excellent. Truly, professional matters should be left to professionals. Good work, Du Ze. Let me know if you need anything—I'll pour all available resources into prioritizing our construction here."

Du Ze said: "People, Boss—don't forget, the world is people-oriented. First you need people, then you can talk about development."

Lu Yunqi understood and said: "Wait right there—I'll have my little assistants start recruiting people!"

And so, in the following period, Lu Yunqi had Liu Bao and Yuan Pingya begin extensively recruiting people with high loyalty.

In the early stages of the Wanping Wasteland's development, loyalty was the only requirement for residents.

Lu Yunqi was also afraid—if they encountered someone who stabbed them in the back, that would be a huge mess.

While Lu Yunqi was recruiting with great fervor on one side, the refugees were still wreaking havoc on the other—and then a piece of good news arrived.

He cheerfully ran off to find Murong Jie, slinging an arm over his shoulder and saying: "Murong Jie, did you know? Your three dear brothers have already turned into fighting cocks over a woman! Haha, as things stand, the Crown Prince's odds are still pretty good. The most useless one is your third brother—he's been grounded again recently, and he'll probably be the first to be eliminated. I think it's time for us to head back to the capital."

Murong Jie glanced at the hand resting on his shoulder and asked: "Had enough fun here?"

Lu Yunqi grinned slyly: "Fun? We need to start preparing for your succession to the throne!"

Murong Jie scoffed: "Don't be so naive. I have foreign blood—there's absolutely no way I can inherit the throne."

"Where there's a will, there's a way!" Lu Yunqi said. "Some things—when you become the only choice, everything else stops being a problem. Hey, your father is currently at each other's throats with his ministers over the refugee crisis. Do you have any good strategies for disaster relief and pacifying the refugees?"

Murong Jie said: "Conscript able-bodied young men into the army—one, it solves the shortage of soldiers; two, it prevents the refugees from revolting."

Lu Yunqi snapped his fingers and gave him a thumbs up: "Good, very good. But most refugees are the old, weak, sick, and disabled. Able-bodied young men probably don't even make up ten or twenty percent—that only solves a small part of the problem."

Murong Jie asked: "Oh? So you have a better solution?"

Lu Yunqi blinked, then whispered something in his ear. Murong Jie's brows furrowed slightly as he gazed deeply into Lu Yunqi's eyes and said: "This... this is your real ability, isn't it?"

Lu Yunqi waved his hand: "Told you before—I read it in a book."

He possessed five thousand years of Chinese history and culture, and his methods for disaster relief were countless—this was only one of them.

Lu Yunqi added: "When the time comes, you can say this to him. Leave the rest of the problems to me."

Murong Jie was silent for a moment, a complex emotion flashing through his eyes, but for the first time, he nodded at him: "Fine. Since we're cooperating, I'll trust you this once."

Hearing those words from Murong Jie, Lu Yunqi felt like crying. Sure enough, the male lead wasn't convinced through persuasion—he was convinced through the pillow.

A relationship forged in bed was different, after all. Pillow talk was always easier to blow than ordinary wind.

That night, Murong Jie returned to the capital residence with Lu Yunqi. The next morning, at the early court session, Lu Yunqi made a rare appearance before the assembled ministers.

Everyone who saw him wore expressions of disdain. At the sight of this pairing, the court officials nearly rolled their eyes.

Though some didn't—because they were fervently shipping the couple, occasionally sneaking glances at them.

The Emperor cleared his throat and announced: "Alright, stop staring. Young Lord Lu is no longer young, and he does hold an official position—it's indeed time for him to attend court and gain experience. Let's continue yesterday's discussion. Regarding disaster relief, anyone with good strategies may present them one by one."

At that moment, the Crown Prince spoke up: "Father, your son is willing to donate fifty thousand taels of silver to comfort the disaster victims. I have also set up porridge stations outside the city, distributing porridge to the refugees daily—this should help alleviate their unrest."

For some reason, hearing the Crown Prince's words made Lu Yunqi feel like vomiting. The next second, he couldn't help but let out a: "...Ugh~~~~~~"