The police station, meeting room.
Five police officers sat squarely at the edge of the table, all in pristine black uniforms, their caps neatly arranged on the table, their expressions solemn.
Jiang Ye uncapped five bottles of orange soda one by one and placed them in front of each officer, then opened one for himself. The soda was from the town's soda factory, incredibly cheap, and served as the meeting beverage.
"I've called everyone here today to discuss changes in the police department," Jiang Ye said.
The five officers gazed intently at their superior, awaiting his address.
"Don't be so stiff, sit back and relax," Jiang Ye smiled.
The officers smiled and relaxed slightly, though their demeanor remained serious.
"Our town originally had a hundred people, and within the next half-month, it will expand to three hundred. Chief Shao should have already informed you about this," Jiang Ye began to get to the point.
All the officers nodded; they had just finished processing identification for the new residents and were aware of the influx of newcomers.
"The town's area will triple, and the population will triple as well. This will significantly increase your workload."
"And most importantly, many military factories will be built soon."
"Military factories are crucial. For example, with the newly operational assault rifle factory, if workers take out one rifle and a handful of bullets each day, an armed force can quickly be formed. Therefore, measures must be in place to prevent theft from military factories."
"Even in extreme situations, if a group of townsfolk attempted a power grab and stormed a military factory, they would gain access to a large quantity of weapons and ammunition, making them incredibly difficult to deal with."
As Jiang Ye spoke, the officers nodded frequently.
They had also considered this possibility.
After all, this was a colonial planet with lax laws, and any kind of trouble could arise. No amount of worry was excessive.
"What is your intention?" Shao Wan asked seriously.
"I plan to guard against threats from both facilities and personnel," Jiang Ye blinked. "First, I've contacted the construction company to help build a new set of surveillance systems to closely monitor the military factories and newly constructed town areas. These facilities will be erected soon."
"Second, we need more police officers."
"Each military factory will be assigned at least three police officers."
"The town will also need more auxiliary police to handle less significant matters."
"What are your thoughts on police staffing?" Jiang Ye asked.
"Ten Zhi Zhizi spoke first, 'How about recruiting more mercenaries?'"
Jiang Ye smiled, neither confirming nor denying.
Shao Wan pondered for a few seconds. "We should recruit police officers and auxiliary police from the townsfolk. If the police force consists entirely of hired mercenaries, while it ensures reliability, they won't be familiar with the town's situation. Only the townsfolk understand each other, which can better prevent riots."
"Chief Shao and I are on the same page," Jiang Ye nodded, his smile satisfied. "My idea is that each of you five will lead a team of auxiliary police, with five people per team, totaling twenty-five auxiliary police recruited from the town. Military factories, in particular, will have two auxiliary police, and each of you will be in charge of one military factory.
"You will select the auxiliary police yourselves, and Chief Shao will be responsible for the final review. The auxiliary police should include both men and women, from different ethnic groups, preferably residing in dispersed areas, and most importantly, their character must be unimpeachable."
"Each auxiliary police officer will receive a salary of ten thousand yuan per month. For you five leading these auxiliary police teams and with increased workload, your salaries will also be increased by fifty thousand yuan."
"This is my current plan. Does anyone have any thoughts to share?" Jiang Ye's gaze swept over each officer.
"Will the auxiliary police be issued firearms?" Shao Wan asked.
"Those at the military factories will be issued handguns. Those not at military factories will not be issued firearms, but they will be equipped with batons and bulletproof vests," Jiang Ye said. "And the auxiliary police uniforms, I will deliver them to you tonight."
The officers exchanged glances, and finally, they all looked at Jiang Ye.
"No problem, I agree," Shao Wan said.
The other officers expressed their agreement.
"Good, then it's settled," Jiang Ye nodded. "Be very careful in selecting personnel. I trust you all."
Over the next half-month, the town underwent significant changes.
Delivery spacecraft brought in more than ten new residents every day.
Rows of base vehicles appeared on the open ground outside the town. Many unfamiliar faces gradually appeared on the streets.
More and more people donned auxiliary police uniforms, batons at their waists, appearing on various streets of the town.
There were also more surveillance cameras on the streets and in the factories. The entire town had only three hundred people, yet there were over a hundred surveillance cameras.
Jiang Ye had initially worried that such increased security measures would cause unease among the townsfolk.
However, after half a month, everyone not only felt no fear but also strongly supported the enhanced security.
After all, a group of colonial officials living together, ensuring safety was the most important thing. The more cameras there were, the higher the safety factor. Some even wanted to install cameras in their own yards.
Auxiliary police were not easily appointed; after being selected, they had to attend training classes.
Shao Wan and several regular police officers took turns teaching, covering topics like "police and citizens as one family" and hand-to-hand combat. After the lectures, there were exams, with the test papers sent directly to Jiang Ye for approval. Candidates who failed the exams would be summoned by Mayor Jiang for personal reprimands.
Jiang Ye was so busy that he barely had time to earn money.
However, with the increase in the town's population, his passive income also soared!
Before the town's expansion, his daily passive income was only around four million.
After the expansion, his passive income quickly surpassed eight million!
At its peak, Jiang Ye earned nine million yuan in a single day without doing anything.
This earning speed even frightened him.
The reason for earning so much passively was the expansion of various industries in the town.
The bar hired a bartender and merged with the grilled fish shop, instantly monopolizing the town's catering. It was renamed "Spirited Grilled Fish Restaurant," and every night, dozens of patrons enjoyed food and drinks, creating a lively atmosphere.
As the scale increased, the bar's environment also needed improvement.
The owner, Khrushchev, bought a large batch of fish-attracting light bulbs from the Cao County citizens and placed them in basins to provide nighttime illumination. He used tens of thousands of yuan worth of light bulbs each night, which was quite extravagant. The daily consumption of baijiu was even more staggering.
Tian Rao's clothing store also officially opened, currently accepting only online orders. She hired two young girls from the town to help organize clothes and purchased two clothing printers from Jiang Ye, which worked day and night.
The Cao County citizens had the largest number of employees, reaching fifteen, both men and women, all young people.
These employees were responsible for inventory and online sales, rapidly increasing the Cao County citizens' sales volume. Her savings also surpassed one hundred million for the first time, making her the first centi-millionaire in town besides Jiang Ye.
Forestry and fishery also took off. Over fifty new town residents made a living by planting trees. The saplings were sourced from the Cao County citizens, picked up at the express center. They planted trees in the morning and harvested them in the evening, also renting Jiang Ye's tree harvesters for thirty thousand yuan per night.
A portion of the trees was directly sold to the trading warehouse, and another portion was transported to Fuyuan Chunmu Furniture.
Fuyuan Chun had ten apprentices under him, who spent their days carving wood in the open space, creating not only furniture but also small wooden boats.
The dock by the sea had been expanded and now housed ten small wooden boats.
Every morning, people set out in boats, scattering bait and casting hand-thrown fishing nets.
All the boats belonged to Jiang Ye, with exorbitant rental fees of one hundred thousand yuan per day.
The bait also belonged to Jiang Ye, costing ten thousand yuan per bag.
Hand-thrown fishing nets were not very efficient, catching only a small number of fish per cast.
After a day of hard work at sea, the fishermen, after deducting the money owed to Jiang Ye, made a profit of only about ten to twenty thousand yuan.
Thus, Jiang Ye felt a slight pang of guilt.
Was this considered exploitation?
Should the boat rental fees be reduced?
But seeing the fishermen's smiling faces, this guilt disappeared.
How could this be called exploitation? It was clearly helping them make money!
If Jiang Ye hadn't provided the boats, fishing nets, and bait, these people wouldn't have been able to earn twenty thousand yuan a day.
Apart from those doing business, these fishermen were the wealthiest in the entire town.
The town was moving into the right direction, but Jiang Ye's ambition did not stop there.
His savings had already reached one hundred and twenty million yuan.
There was still a considerable distance to go before investing in the anti-aircraft machine gun factory.
Jiang Ye decided to upgrade his base vehicles in a continuous series of upgrades!
He would take a gamble to see if there were any money-making opportunities after upgrading the base vehicles.