Roast duck, roast young chicken, roast suckling goose!
Braised pork, braised duck, soy sauce chicken, cured meat, preserved ham, small belly, air-dried meat, sausage!
Steak, foie gras, Roujiamo, donkey meat burger, egg tart, pizza, Tasi Mi, solitary fish tofu...
So many, too many to count!
There was everything from light to heavy, sweet to savory, and over 36 kinds of alcohol alone. The scale was astonishing!
Many soldiers swallowed, glancing at the wine section, then back at Liang Wan.
Liang Wan was whispering and laughing with Jiang Ye in the distance, not looking this way.
The pretty girl in charge of selling wine, with a quick glint in her eye, took out a small bottle of beer from under the dining table and silently handed it over.
The soldiers quickly stuffed them into their pockets, then left as if nothing had happened, pretending to look at the green leafy vegetable section next to them.
"Are there no steamed buns, rice, or scallion pancakes?" one soldier asked after looking for a long time.
The plump chef tapped a bright red lobster with his spoon. "Staples? This is it."
Liang Wan suddenly appeared, and the soldiers in front of the wine section scattered in fright.
"You can order what you want to eat, but don't waste it!" Liang Wan said. "This mess hall is funded by Commander Jiang, so you have to pay for your meals! Absolutely no taking without paying, understand!"
"Understood!" The soldiers became anxious, feeling that most of them couldn't afford it.
"Put up the price tags," Jiang Ye said, clapping his hands.
The chefs immediately took out bundles of price tags from their pockets and placed them in front of each dish.
The soldiers' eyes widened, their faces filled with disbelief.
Stir-fried lamb with scallions, 2 yuan/serving
Fried chicken leg, 2 yuan/piece
Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, 4 yuan/bowl
The lobsters didn't even pretend anymore; a kilogram of large lobster was only 18 yuan!
Hundreds of dishes, all emitting heat with symbolic prices.
The soldiers felt so happy they could faint. What was the difference between this and eating for free? Some reacted quickly, grabbing their trays and quickly clearing out the lamb ribs, which were five yuan for half a kilogram.
Jiang Ye and Liang Wan also sat at a table in the center of the dining hall and ordered over a dozen dishes.
"Because it's the first day, you're offering 'jumping off a building' prices, right?" Liang Wan picked up a cup of chocolate milkshake, a price tag still stuck to the rim, one yuan.
"Not at all, these are all original prices," Jiang Ye said. "If nothing unexpected happens, the prices will remain the same in the future."
"You are truly generous," Liang Wan said. "With such good treatment, there's something I feel a bit embarrassed to ask."
"Military pay, right?" Jiang Ye said immediately.
Liang Wan was surprised. The commander's mind worked too fast. She then said sheepishly, "To be honest, with room and board, and such good food and lodging, it doesn't cost much. However, some of my subordinates have families..."
"There must be military pay. Food and lodging are just basic needs. Since I requested to be fully responsible for your military expenses, I must take care of everything. I have no excuse for this," Jiang Ye said with a smile. "May I ask how much monthly military pay your troops used to receive?"
"I receive a hundred thousand a month, and my subordinate officers receive ten thousand less in descending order," Liang Wan said. "Ordinary soldiers receive thirty thousand a month."
"Add ten thousand to each," Jiang Ye said.
Liang Wan smiled and nodded. "Thank you very much."
She felt a slight sense of disappointment.
Given Jiang Ye's financial capacity, doubling or even tripling the salary wouldn't be an issue. She had expected a much higher salary.
However, a ten thousand increase was still quite good. There was no reason to complain. She couldn't be someone who bites the hand that feeds them. She had already received so many benefits on Jiang Ye Star, far more than she had received in all her years of service! Liang Wan quickly regained her composure.
"I have another request, which I'd like to discuss with you," Jiang Ye said with a smile, as if preparing to launch another "sugar-coated cannonball."
"Please go ahead," Liang Wan shivered, feeling a palpitation as if under heavy fire. "Not again? Is he really going to be so relentless? Is his ammunition so abundant?"
"Jiang Ye Star is just starting, and the local troops are also just starting. They are all inexperienced and unskilled rookies, lacking systematic training and development," Jiang Ye said. "I have already established an officer academy, but we are short of faculty and suitable teachers."
"You lead a mighty army, experienced in battle, with brave generals and strong soldiers. If you have free time from your regular duties, could you take a part-time teaching position at my academy to teach students?" Jiang Ye said. "I've inquired with the higher-ups, and as long as it doesn't affect your normal work, it's permissible. After all, it's also about promoting the development of the Jiang Ye Star army."
"This..." Liang Wan was somewhat hesitant.
"If it's possible, you could hold the title of Dean. The university has many different secondary colleges, so you can take charge of whichever area you specialize in. The Dean's base salary is one hundred thousand a year, and if you teach, each class is five thousand," Jiang Ye lowered his voice. "As for officers, they can hold the title of Associate Professor, and ordinary soldiers can be Lecturers. The base salaries are fifty thousand and twenty thousand respectively per year. The lecture fees are one thousand and four hundred per class. There are also academic activities and special allowances, but they are too numerous to detail."
Liang Wan's heart pounded.
The money was substantial.
There was also the honor of the school. This was something that would be very useful even after retirement, allowing her to apply for positions at universities to spend her twilight years.
It would also allow her to develop her network. As Jiang Ye Star developed, the faculty at the university would surely become more diverse, likely including people from various planets and military units. Getting to know each other would be highly beneficial.
Liang Wan blushed. She felt as if her chest was being squeezed. Why were there so many benefits?
"This matter should not be a problem. I will discuss it with my subordinates later," Liang Wan said. "It is also something the military hopes to see, to be able to teach and train young military talents."
"Then I thank you on behalf of my subordinates, Dean Liang," Jiang Ye said, raising his cup.
...
Twelve o'clock at night.
Jiang Ye returned home exhausted.
His son, Jiang Senlin, was already asleep. Cen Yemeng was applying a facial mask. Seeing her husband return, she solicitously and gently helped him change his clothes, acting like a virtuous young wife.
"You must be very tired after a day of hard work. How did things go?" Cen Yemeng asked softly.
"It's settled. This Liang Wan is inexperienced and easily managed," Jiang Ye said with a tired smile. "I've also secured her soldiers. The Music City experiment will continue tomorrow."
"How much benefit did you give her?" Cen Yemeng handed him a glass of orange juice.
"She has monopolized seventy percent of the tea market for the past two years. From now on, she will only maintain a market share of one to two percent. I can't give her too much. If Jiang Ye Star eventually has billions of people, the annual tea consumption alone will be trillions. She's not worth that much," Jiang Ye said, gulping down the orange juice as he was thirsty. "I've arranged for her and her soldiers to be integrated into the officer academy system. This way, her entire unit will become my subordinates. Generally, troops parachuted in from the military are considered semi-peers to me. Now that she's fallen into the trap, she's become a subordinate on the same day."
"I spoke with my father this afternoon. He has friends in the music industry, and they say the potential of Zhi Jun Music for the next ten years is at least twenty trillion," Cen Yemeng said softly. "It's truly terrifying."
"It is indeed terrifying. Zhi Jun's current composition ability already surpasses any artificial intelligence or composer," Jiang Ye said. "It's absolutely invincible. Twenty trillion is nothing; I bet it's more than five times that."