"Suppose we view people as water, and illegal immigrants as a flood of rain falling onto our planet," Jiang Ye said. "There's a word for dealing with water: it's better to guide than to block."
"Ancient military strategy has an old saying: 'When besieging an army, leave a gap for escape.' If you surround an army and leave no escape route, the surrounded enemy soldiers will fight to the death, causing immense casualties to our side. But if there is a gap, the enemy army will easily collapse, scrambling to escape through the opening. The army will be routed, and few will think of fighting to the death."
"Why do illegal immigrants from all planets risk their lives to come here?" Jiang Ye scanned the room. "What is the deepest underlying reason?"
"Longevity surgery?" asked the girl with the bun.
Jiang Ye shook his head. "Fear of death."
The expressions in the conference room varied, some blank, some instantly enlightened.
"Because everyone fears their lifespan will run out, everyone fears death, so they find ways to extend their lives," Jiang Ye said. "Legitimate immigration methods are not feasible, hence the illegal immigration. It's like a besieged army with no escape route; they have no choice but to break through by force, carving out a bloody path. This path is illegal immigration to our planet."
"We've been discussing containment methods in our meeting, but this kind of containment will cause us great losses. We have to deploy too many social resources to curb these illegal immigrants," Jiang Ye said. "It's better to guide than to block. Instead of continuously increasing the intensity of anti-illegal immigration efforts, it's better to redirect these immigrants to directions that promote social development, shifting our relationship from confrontation to cooperation."
"You mean..." the girl with the bun's eyes widened.
"I'll find another planet as soon as possible, a barren one," Jiang Ye said. "Then we'll set rules: aliens who want longevity surgery will need to live and work on the new planet for a certain number of years and create a certain amount of value to qualify for the surgery."
"At the same time, we'll further tighten the qualification for longevity surgery on the three planets. For example, the quota for surgical slots will be counted until this week. After next week, these three planets will no longer accept surgery appointments," Jiang Ye said. "Tighten on one side and loosen on the other, surround three sides and leave one open, driving all the illegal immigrants to the new planet for production and construction. This is also contributing to humanity."
"What do you think of my proposal, everyone?" Jiang Ye scanned the room.
The meeting commenced.
The content was straightforward, discussing the public security issues after a large population enters a brand-new planet, as most of those present were from the police force.
An afternoon and an evening passed quickly.
The meeting was highly efficient, and the general plan was quickly finalized.
...
At five in the morning, the first ray of light pierced through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, entering the office that had been dark all night.
Jiang Ye's eyelids fluttered, and he woke up from the small bed in the corner of the office. He suddenly felt the warmth of the quilt, an abnormal temperature.
He lifted the quilt and saw Cen Yemeng, wearing a red sweater, curled up beside him like a fox, playing with her phone. Her beautiful face was illuminated by the light from the phone screen.
"When did you get here?" Jiang Ye snuggled down, bringing his face level with his wife's, then pulled the quilt over both of them.
"Just ten minutes ago," Cen Yemeng smiled. "Have you chosen the new planet yet?"
"Not yet, I called you here to discuss it," Jiang Ye said. "I've screened them several times. Director Dai called last night and helped screen them, leaving a few preliminary plans for us to choose from."
"We'll talk about it later, let's lie here a bit longer," Cen Yemeng yawned and put down her phone. "I've been feeling sleepy lately."
"Have you had a physical?" Jiang Ye also yawned.
"My body is normal, hormone levels are slightly down. The doctor said it might be due to irregular sleep," Cen Yemeng squinted. "We'll get up in half an hour, okay?"
Jiang Ye nodded and pointed at the sweeping robot passing by. "You, the one like a plate, wake us up in half an hour."
The sweeping robot remained silent for two seconds. "Did you say me?"
"Are there any other pieces of furniture in this room that look like plates?" Jiang Ye retorted.
The sweeping robot turned around angrily and disappeared under the sofa.
Half an hour later, a violent crashing sound came from under the bed.
Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng were startled awake together. They grabbed the edge of the bed and peered down. The sweeping robot was repeatedly ramming the bedpost.
"Okay, okay," Cen Yemeng said. "We're awake, you can go do your work now."
The sweeping robot made no sound, silently left, and once again hid under the sofa.
The couple got up and went to the desk.
Jiang Ye tapped the screen a few times, and a string of planet information immediately popped up.
Planet size, atmospheric composition, cosmic location, native life forms, climate, rotation period, mineral distribution...
"You look at it first, I'll go get you a cup of hot water," Jiang Ye said.
Cen Yemeng hugged her legs and curled up in Jiang Ye's chair. She nodded and began to read the planet information seriously.
Jiang Ye returned with two cups of hot water, handing one to his wife and holding one himself.
"Who do you plan to put in charge of this new planet?" Cen Yemeng asked. "Ju Lanlan?"
"How could that be?" Jiang Ye laughed. "Ju Lanlan has a dark history; she doesn't value human lives enough. This new planet will have a large population, and a planet with a large population cannot be entrusted to Ju Lanlan."
"Then... Liu Jizi?" Cen Yemeng asked.
Jiang Ye nodded. "I'll be in charge for a while. Once this planet is on the right track, I'll step down and hand over the management to Liu Jizi."
"Then shouldn't we ask for her opinion?" Cen Yemeng said. "I feel like all these planets are quite suitable, and they all seem to have excellent development prospects."
"These have already been screened by her," Jiang Ye said. "In other words, these planets are satisfactory to her, and she can't find fault with them."
The office door was suddenly knocked.
"Come in!" Jiang Ye said.
The door opened, and Liu Jizi entered, panting. She was wearing a pure white tracksuit, and her forehead was covered in sweat, clearly having just finished her morning run.
"Perfect timing, we're picking a planet," Jiang Ye said. "Come discuss it with us?"
"There's a new development," Liu Jizi's expression was subtle. "Zhi Jun says it wants a planet."
"What?" Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng exclaimed in unison, their expressions astonished.
"Ju Lanlan used a part of Zhi Jun to analyze the planet trading market. Zhi Jun has been doing well recently, effectively predicting market trends and analyzing data," Liu Jizi said. "But this morning, Zhi Jun suddenly proposed that it wants a planet."
"What do they want a planet for?" Jiang Ye asked.
"They say they can help us conquer planets and transform the environment," Liu Jizi said. "As long as we transfer some Zhi Jun to that planet and provide certain assistance according to its instructions, Zhi Jun can quickly help us reshape the planet's environment and develop resources."