Jiang Ye entered several large buildings and toured their interiors.
The common areas inside the buildings had epoxy flooring, a material often used in underground parking lots.
The walls were not tiled or painted, but covered with a layer of thin, blue-green metal, giving them a very high-class feel.
There were many elevators, many staircases, as well as maze-like cross-level skybridges and corridors, and temporary safety passages.
"Won't people get lost in here?" Jiang Ye felt disoriented.
"It might be a bit confusing at first, but after living here for a while, you'll realize the layout of these passages repeats every few floors, and local residents become very familiar with it," Xu Yan said. "People moving in here download the building's mobile navigation, which assigns them routes to various places, avoiding crowded areas for ordinary people and providing the shortest routes for the disabled and elderly."
Jiang Ye visited several residential units with different layouts. They were all renovated and even furnished, making it feel like home for the immigrants upon arrival.
The renovation styles and furniture were configured according to the clients' requests on their phones, so each residential unit was entirely different inside. Besides the style differences, the disparities in wealth were also clearly visible. The poor had paperback books on their shelves and inexpensive wine in their cabinets, while the rich had collector's edition books with gilded edges and autographed copies, and their wine cabinets were filled with good vintages, forty to fifty-year-old spirits, and exotic alien wines.
Jiang Ye also saw some decorative items and scriptures of the Har Star Sacred Cult. Out of politeness, he did not reach out to touch them or say anything further.
After viewing the residential units, they proceeded to tour the public areas.
Over half of the shops had already moved into the public areas. The staff consisted of both humans and robots, all busy stocking goods, cleaning, installing machinery, and preparing for opening. The shops all appeared to be high-end. Jiang Ye glanced at the price lists, which varied greatly, with restaurants ranging from seventy to eighty yuan per person to seven to eight thousand yuan per person.
The shopkeepers were all very welcoming to Jiang Ye, offering him various signature dishes to taste and presenting him with various signature products.
Cen Yemeng received even more courtesy and welcome. After all, she typically adopted a more approachable demeanor and was also beautiful. More importantly, Jiang Ye was accustomed to a serious expression, while Cen Yemeng was used to a gentle smile, making her appear very approachable.
Since they were the Planet Commander and Governor, whenever Jiang Ye and his wife showed a smile while tasting, the shopkeepers would take countless photos, likely to be framed and displayed the next day with captions like "Commander Jiang Ye tasted the dishes before the store's opening and praised them highly." Shops with online accounts would inevitably post videos of Jiang Ye tasting the food to promote themselves.
Jiang Ye recalled how, when he was young, he often saw similar marketing tactics on the signs of snack shops.
Such as, "Emperor Gaozu of Tang, while conquering the world on horseback, passed by an xx shop, was attracted by the aroma, dismounted to taste," "Zhu Yuanzhang, in his impoverished days, passed through a certain place and ate a certain delicacy. After establishing the Ming Dynasty, he never forgot it and decreed that the cook be recruited into the palace," "Emperor Qianlong, while touring the south, tasted this delicacy and exclaimed, 'Wonderful! I never knew such a delicacy existed in the world!' and thus bestowed a plaque."
Some of these marketing ploys truly stood the test of time.
The only difference, perhaps, was that the food Jiang Ye ate had photos and videos, which could be permanently stored online, providing tangible evidence. It was also possible that some unscrupulous businesses would photoshop Jiang Ye's photos.
After touring several buildings, Jiang Ye was stuffed.
What followed was a series of procedures, speeches, ribbon-cutting ceremonies, meetings with representatives, and so on.
It wasn't until evening that Jiang Ye was able to leave Desert City.
The couple drove back to the Commander's residence.
As soon as they got out of the car, a dirty object rushed towards them, covered in mud and grass leaves, resembling a goblin from legends.
It was the robot dog.
"Oh dear, how did you get so dirty?" Cen Yemeng exclaimed, squatting down to talk to the robot dog.
"I was sad because you hadn't been back for a long time," the robot dog said plaintively. "So I rolled around in the grass."
"Won't all that mud corrode your components?" Jiang Ye said. "Shall we go wash you in the lake?"
"Okay!" The robot dog turned and ran towards the lake.
As the couple entered the house, two sweeping robots ran over to welcome them.
Lights in various dark rooms lit up one by one, appliances that had been off for a long time started up, the toilet flushed twice automatically, and the air conditioner began to blow air. Various sounds rose and fell throughout the house; the house had been dormant due to the owners' long absence and quickly awakened with their arrival.
Cen Yemeng's phone chimed. She took it out and glanced at it. "Tian Rao is coming."
"Hmm?" Jiang Ye, who was taking off his formal jacket, turned back in surprise. "Does she need something?"
Cen Yemeng typed on her phone.
"She said she made some clothes for Jiang Senlin, a few dresses for me, and two casual outfits for you," Cen Yemeng said happily.
"That's good. Let her come. Ask her what she wants to eat in advance," Jiang Ye nodded.
In less than ten minutes, Tian Rao's spaceship landed at the Commander's residence.
She entered the house carrying large bags. Cen Yemeng quickly went to greet her.
Jiang Ye, however, was stunned.
After a long time, Tian Rao had almost become a different person.
Her skin was fairer and more delicate, her eyes were brighter, her lips were rosy, and her hair was dyed chestnut brown, with a playful streak of blue hair in the front left, its luster quite luxurious.
Her clothing style had also changed. She wore a white top and beige wide-leg pants, with fabric of extremely high quality. She also wore glittering gold jewelry: very striking gold earrings, a gold bracelet, and a delicate gold necklace. She exuded an aura of sophistication and expense.
Her demeanor had also completely transformed. The cute, girlish movements and expressions from before were all gone. She now held her delicate chin high, her eyes carrying a hint of arrogance, her smile bright and flamboyant, her expression full of confidence.
Cen Yemeng was busy looking at the clothes in front of the mirror. Tian Rao stood with her hands in her pockets, her back straight, her chin raised in a smile, and introduced each piece of clothing at a leisurely pace.
Soon, Cen Yemeng's attention also shifted to Tian Rao.
"You've changed so much!" Cen Yemeng exclaimed in surprise.
"Have I?" Tian Rao's eyes narrowed into slits as she smiled. "Perhaps I'm just getting more beautiful!"
"It's not just about being beautiful," Cen Yemeng said, grabbing her shoulders and examining her up and down. "You seem to have acquired something called 'temperament'! I can't quite describe it, but you seem completely different now."
"During this period, I've been traveling to different planets for fashion weeks and signing contracts with clothing brands," Tian Rao mused. "Perhaps I've been influenced by the environment."
"Has it all gone smoothly?"
"Extremely smoothly," Tian Rao's smile was exceptionally confident. "My brand is about to become top-tier on an alien planet. I seem to have suddenly awakened, creating over a dozen hit products in a row, and experiencing the feeling of being incredibly talented. Some fashion designers from other planets bow to me with expressions of great admiration."
"Now that you say it, I can feel it," Cen Yemeng's eyes lit up. "You've got that swagger of a top fashionista!"
The two girls chatted over dinner. After eating, Tian Rao said goodbye and left. She maintained a smile throughout, her steps as confident as a crane's.
After she left, a hint of worry appeared on Cen Yemeng's face.
Jiang Ye noticed his wife's unease. "What's wrong? What are you thinking about?"
"I think..." Cen Yemeng looked at her husband. "We need to have surgery."