Chapter 808: Chapter 808: Good People Don’t Last Long in Troubled Times
As Miss Bella said, the situation inside Mammoth City is completely different from the "lease" by the Silver Moon Sect believers, even like two separate worlds.
The latter have beautiful marble buildings and clean and tidy streets, with passersby mostly dressed appropriately, almost no different from Silver Moon Bay next door.
However, the former is full of chaos. Don’t even talk about stone buildings; there’s not even anything that can be called a street.
Most of the dirt roads are trampled out by people, with only two open drainage ditches dug by the roadside.
On both sides of the road are shacks temporarily set up with wood, tree branches, or plastic boards.
Locals call them row houses, which can often accommodate two or three households squeezed in, leaving no room to step, yet they still have to squeeze in.
After all, many families here are like the slums during the Gallon Harbor Nihac era, where it’s hard for one family to gather two pieces of clothing, and they can’t stand naked in the street.
As for privacy between families, they can only compromise by making partitions inside the row house.
Besides, there are almost no young men visible here.
The local able-bodied youth either go to war, work in nearby factories or help with the lease, or board the labor output ships to the rebuilding North Island.
As for the old, weak, and women left behind, those with clothes sit at the door working, while those without clothes sit at home dawdling, waiting for the porridge relief points to open.
To say they’re suffering, these people really are, but the authorities didn’t make them eat dirt. Some of the left over food was distributed to them.
After all, the authorities need their men to work energetically.
Si Si didn’t go inside because Meat Meat’s size was really inconvenient and she feared scaring people here, so she just glanced from afar at the endless slum.
Next to the relief point, a row of planks stood with scribbled slogans such as "One person from each household, every family eats their fill."
"...This is basically treating people like goods." A subtle touch stirred Meat Meat’s heart, making her mutter.
She is straightforward, always saying what she thinks and not hiding her feelings.
Just a moment ago, she thought Laxi might be a good person, but now she feels he’s not a good thing.
Si Si pondered for a moment and said.
"...Turning from livestock into goods, it’s hard to say if it’s good or bad, but at least they have food to eat now."
Bella seemed to not want them to stay here longer, as nobody likes having their scars poked, so she hurriedly said.
"There’s no road ahead, let me take you to see somewhere else."
Si Si nodded.
"Yes, sorry to trouble you."
The group returned to the main road, heading towards a coastal industrial zone.
This is probably one of the smoothest places for reconstruction work in the entire Mammoth City other than the leased church area.
Especially the factories of the Lister Group and the surrounding area, almost showing no signs of disaster damage.
Tall workshops sit on high ground near the coast of Mammoth City, with a wide concrete road tightly connecting to the port area, and an already operational railway line beside it.
Various large and small processing plants and workshops surround the central factory, extending along the single road towards the train station.
Most of these belong to Lister’s industries, but some parts are made by locals themselves, especially in hardware tools, machinery repair, and even arms production.
Tail and Meat Meat even surprisingly discovered a scrap Conqueror No. 10 tank parked here!
"Wow! Army’s tank!"
"Well... is this captured?"
Watching the exclaiming Tail and Meat Meat, Si Si pondered and said.
"Ninety percent captured, the army wouldn’t sell weapons here... I estimate the authority also doesn’t have much Dinar foreign reserves, this thing isn’t cheap."
The entire tank’s body structure is basically intact, except the two tracks are broken.
It’s clear that this tank had its tracks broken on the front line, with the Empire’s crew abandoning it and fleeing, then it was dragged back from the front line by guerrillas.
Two repair workers wearing exoskeletons were circling beside the tank, with a high-ranking officer seemingly pondering together about how to fix the thing.
Although this area’s planning is somewhat slapdash, it already has some industrial zone prototypes.
Outside of that industrial zone sits rows of "corn buildings" full of Alliance flavor.
These residential buildings made from concrete prefabricated panels can be considered the most "luxurious" buildings around here.
What impresses the locals isn’t just their solid roofs but also their so-called "lavish" supporting facilities.
Besides the polished concrete road, every few buildings have a boiler room, communal bathroom, public canteen, and daytime child education and evening adult literacy school.
This setup completely replicates the dormitory buildings of the Giant Stone City industrial zone, with some region-specific improvements added to them.
For instance, Mammoth State’s winter isn’t as cold as the River Valley Province’s, so December weather only requires an additional coat, hence no heating installation in the dormitory buildings, and the boiler room only heats bathing water.
The workers living here are Mammoth City’s "new elite."
Getting a job at a Lister factory, even if just slicing veggies in the employee canteen or sorting on the assembly line, counts as prestigious within Mammoth City.
Though authorities have also spent money building some welfare housing in the city, their supporting facilities are far inferior compared to Lister Factory’s employee dorms.
It’s no exaggeration to say that the accommodations of these workers are even better than some Resistance army officers, and much nicer compared to the vast majority of civilians still living in row housing and eating relief porridge in the city.
Even Lister himself probably hadn’t expected that while viewed as a "flood and beast" by the Workers’ Association in the Alliance, he became a local humanitarian here in the eyes of the local people.
Locals spare no praise for him, even circulating tales that if a family has someone working in Lister Factory, it’s truly a blessing from above!
That’s why, when Bella brought Tail and her group here and introduced the situation, she couldn’t hide the envy on her face.
"...This entire factory district belongs to Mr. Lister, with over ten thousand people directly or indirectly working for him. He introduced production lines for steel, aluminum, and solid hydrogen batteries to our settlement. However, the only products we can showcase right now are hydrogen injectors, high-pressure storage tanks, and fuel electrodes."
Si Si gazed at the towering factory building and sincerely remarked.
"You’re doing quite well to produce these things without any industrial support."
Recently, the Alliance’s electrification progress has extended from household appliances like TVs, fridges, and air conditioners to the private car industry. The South Sea Union even plans to rebuild large ocean current power stations, with incredibly high demand for both small and large energy storage devices.
Hydrogen injectors, high-pressure storage tanks, and fuel electrodes are key components of solid hydrogen batteries, which have a significant market in both the Alliance and South Sea Union.
Especially since Lister Group itself operates industries like exoskeletons and new energy vehicles, as long as the produced goods meet quality standards, there’s no worry about finding buyers.
Evidently, Lister is very optimistic about this market; otherwise, he wouldn’t produce such crucial items here.
"Indeed, the foundation here is weak. We’re grateful to that gentleman’s help for reaching our current stage," Bella nodded, visibly grateful, and continued, "Before he came, there wasn’t a single factory in Mammoth City. Now, we have coal power stations, railroads, highways, steel mills, and aluminum plants, and we can process some export products."
"I’ve heard this factory district’s monthly output has reached 1,000,000 silver coins, and the capacity continues to grow!"
"At this rate, it could reach 3 million next year, which translates to 300 million in our currency! Mammoth State’s prosperity and wealth depend entirely on it!"
Watching the spirited young lady, Si Si couldn’t help but smile.
"Don’t belittle yourselves. The most we can do is bring some kindling, but it’s up to you to keep the fire burning. If one day you succeed and become wealthy, it won’t just be because of our help but largely due to your own hard work."
The Alliance stands to benefit from this process, given prosperity promotes itself.
Just like the Alliance and the South Sea Union.
Before entering Baiyue Province, Alliance’s "Buprestis" engineering armor could only manage onshore projects, but after incorporating underwater construction technology from the Southern sea area and undertaking the submarine freshwater pipeline project, it evolved into a series of models like "Crab Style" and "King Crab."
Now, both the Baiyue Strait coast and the islands in the southern sea area are developing like they’ve been propelled by rockets.
There’s no need to mention the Falling Leaves Province; Alliance’s fertilizers and seeds and agricultural machines more than doubled the food yield there. Not only are the Falling Leaves Province residents living better, but the River Valley Province residents are well-fed too.
If Mammoth State, the entire Poluo Province, and Jin Galun Harbor join the civilized world, it would greatly benefit both the locals and the Alliance.
If all survivors in the wasteland unite, this era of suffering and death will surely end.
Let’s hope that day is not too far...
...
Si Si and Tail spent the entire day investigating near Mammoth State’s industrial zone.
Overall, it’s a thriving market with several factories having great potential to expand, only lacking technology and funds, which happens to be what the Alliance has in abundance now.
It’s no exaggeration to say that even buying some land here and developing it into real estate would undoubtedly yield profits.
The group wandered until the sun set before returning to their hotel located in the church district.
This trip has been quite fruitful.
The only regret is that Tail and Meat Meat never saw the mammoths they’ve longed for...
As night deepened, only the church district remained lit along the entire coastline.
Among these lights belonged to the office of the Customs Administration.
Although office hours had ended, Ashi didn’t leave but paced back and forth in front of his desk.
He waited a long time until the phone on the table finally rang, quickly grabbed the receiver, and asked urgently before the person on the other end could speak.
"How are things? Are those guests from the Alliance satisfied?"
All day, he’d been worried about this, fearing anything might go wrong.
The voice on the phone quickly responded, and Bella, standing in the post office telephone booth, meticulously reported.
"...Overall, they’re quite satisfied, their opinion of us is above neutral, and they’re very interested in our development potential. I heard from a lady named Si Si that they plan to invest in a branch here, assisting us in financial reform."
Upon hearing this, Ashi’s face lit up with joy, clenching his fists in excitement.
"Fantastic!"
Though the influence of the White Bear Knights pales compared to Baiyue Corporation, it’s still a sizable bank.
Started during the Falling Leaves Province war at Petra Fortress, later based in Silver Moon Bay, it expanded along Alliance’s trade routes overseas, its business scope covering the Poluo Sea coast and even the southern sea area, nurturing many promising enterprises and trade groups.
Attracting the White Bear Knights’ bank here would be as significant as successfully welcoming another Lister Group!
Listening to the joyful voice on the phone, Bella paused for a moment and continued reporting.
"Additionally, I advised them to stay within the church district, but they still visited the nearby city. Unable to refuse, I took them to tour the industrial zone and nearby residential areas... But along the way, they saw the conditions in the slums."
Mammoth City’s slums are like an ugly scar; anyone who sees it can’t possibly have a favorable impression of the authorities.
Though some efforts have been made by the authorities, it’s not a short-term problem to solve.
Hearing that the guests from the Alliance went there, Ashi immediately became tense, cautiously asking.
"Did they say anything?"
Bella carefully recalled the earlier events, then shook her head and replied.
"No, not really."
Actually, not entirely nothing, but they spoke a language she didn’t understand, so she didn’t comprehend what they were saying.
Standing at the desk, Ashi fell silent, finally letting out a long sigh.
"...I can only hope they understand our difficulties."
He could sense that the purpose of these esteemed guests coming to Mammoth City was not merely for business inspection; they might also be carrying tasks assigned by the Alliance Managers, such as investigating whether the Mammoth State Authority is worth investing in.
Although it’s difficult to speak of, the support of the Alliance is really crucial for them.
He actually hoped they would give a definite opinion, even if it’s a negative evaluation. Firstly, so he could explain, and secondly, he could use their feedback to make amendments.
The absence of any comment made him the most anxious.
"Do they have any dissatisfaction? Any complaints...in any respect, tell me everything!"
Bella was taken aback, hesitated for a moment, then spoke with an uncertain tone.
"Uh... the lady called Tail seemed disappointed for not seeing a mammoth, that seems to be all."
Now, can that be considered a complaint?
Just as she was puzzled over this, Ashi forcefully slapped the desk.
"Quick! Immediately contact the Mammoth City Militia Group and have them catch one—no, two mammoths from the north bank of the Tasang River and bring them back for her! Make sure it’s one male and one female!"
Hearing this ridiculous order, Bella was completely dumbfounded, her mouth agape, frozen in place.
"Send, send two mammoths?"
Does this guy know how big those things are?
However, Ashi was unfazed and spoke with conviction.
"This is a necessary investment! It’s also for the future of Mammoth City! Do as I said, we cannot let the esteemed guests of the Alliance have any regrets!"
Seeing that he wasn’t joking, Bella could only gather herself, adjusting her expression, and earnestly accepted the order.
"Yes!"
...
At the same time, at the border of Mammoth State, inside the tent of the Grey Wolf Army of the Empire.
General Arai Yang, who served as the Chief Commander of the Grey Wolf Army, was looking at the list sent by the logistics officer, his thick eyebrows gradually twisting into two centipedes.
The logistics officer standing before him did not dare to breathe heavily, only standing there nervously.
However, what was meant to happen would happen eventually.
A sharp gaze shot at him, and with a slam, Arai Yang slammed the list in his hand onto the command table, staring at the logistics officer aggressively.
"Where’s the tank? Why hasn’t the Conqueror No. 10 tank that I requested been delivered? Why is this delivery all light weapons and dry rations!"
Hearing this, the logistics officer inwardly groaned, quickly explaining with a grim face.
"Sir, you may not know... recently the Alliance and the Army suddenly had a dispute, so the Alliance withheld the military goods originally promised to be sent to the Falcon Kingdom."
Upon hearing this, Arai Yang was stunned, his mouth gaping open for a long time.
"The Army’s weapons... were detained by the Alliance?"
This information was too much for him to wrap his head around at once.
How did the Army’s weapons end up with the Alliance? And why do they need the Alliance to get to his hands?
The problem caused by the information blockage was apparent, being at the front line, he didn’t know what agreements the Empire and the Army had reached, nor was he clear on what disputes the Army and the Alliance had during the Sticky Community Conference.
In his heart, he vaguely felt like a chess piece caught between two fists.
And not just him, the same was true for Laxi standing opposite him.
They were dragged from one unresolved outcome into a new game of chess.
Intuition told him that this war wouldn’t end so easily...
The logistics officer sighed and said helplessly.
"That’s all I know... It’s not just you, even His Majesty is very anxious right now, but it’s something we can’t rush. According to the Army, if the Alliance finds out the military goods were routed to here after going in circles, it’ll get complicated."
In fact, he didn’t need to be so polite with Arai Yang. In the past, it would have been the latter who had to speak kindly to him.
However, due to the growing unruliness of local powers, Tiandu now only had this central army, which was suppressing bandits on the border, to rely on.
Now Arai Yang in the Palace of West Winds was at his peak, regarded as a lifeline by both the Emperor and the Dukes and Marquises.
Looking at the helpless logistics officer, Arai Yang took a deep breath and said in a deep voice.
"So what do we do now? The rebels, equipped with the Alliance’s gear, have fortified their defenses like an iron wall. Without support from heavy equipment, we can’t break through! Even a frontal attack would just send soldiers to their deaths in vain!"
The logistics officer’s gaze wandered, stammering out after a moment.
"If it’s really not feasible... slowing down the offensive on the front line is not impossible either. The Army has said they’ll find a way to resolve the issue and advised us to be patient."
If the Alliance couldn’t find the evidence they were looking for, they would ultimately have to honor the contract and release the withheld military goods.
And even if they found the evidence, they couldn’t just seize those military goods; at most, they’d send them back to the Wufu Wilderness for the Army to handle themselves.
The Army does have ships, and those supplies would eventually make their way here, though it would take some time... at least that’s what the Weilante people communicated to them.
"Slow down..." Arai Yang let out a cold laugh, "If we slow down any further, the rebels will have their railway built up to the front line!"
And to think those paupers managed to acquire so much steel and cement.
The spies he sent into Mammoth City to gather intelligence hadn’t unearthed anything substantial, only that some construction material shipping came from Jin Galun Harbor, and some from the Southern Sea Area.
"If it doesn’t work... you can do this," the logistics officer gritted his teeth and finally pulled out the last card, "Before departure, His Majesty instructed me that if the battle situation is really difficult, the general can independently recruit soldiers in the Horse State and Bird State areas."
Arai Yang squinted his eyes upon hearing this, staring intently at the logistics officer.
"Did His Majesty really say that?"
Sweating coldly under the gaze, the logistics officer nervously replied.
"Absolutely true! How could I deceive you on such matters?"
Arai Yang stared at him blankly.
"Is there related documentation?"
The logistics officer quickly shook his head.
"No... His Majesty only instructed me orally."
Arai Yang looked at him deeply, then glanced at the list in his hand.
No wonder so many rifles were sent; that was the intent...
"I understand, you may leave."
"Yes, sir!" The logistics officer finally breathed a sigh of relief and respectfully took his leave.
Watching the logistics officer depart, the silent Gopal turned to Arai Yang.
"His Majesty allowing you to recruit soldiers locally—isn’t that a good thing? Why do you look so troubled?"
"A good thing?"
Arai Yang’s eyes showed a complex emotion, and he lightly said after a moment.
"Can’t you see... after this war, we’ll be abandoned pawns."
No documentation, only verbal command; whether His Majesty acknowledges it later is just a matter of a single sentence.
If acknowledged, so be it.
If not, even in a small sense, we’re driving civilians to the frontlines as cannon fodder.
And if His Majesty decides to investigate deeply, it would be a death sentence for rebellion.
Might even implicate family as well.
Realizing Arai Yang’s concerns, Gopal only gave a faint smile.
"Whether we’re abandoned or not, the soldiers are in our hands."
Arai Yang’s eyes narrowed, and a dangerous glint appeared as he looked at Gopal.
"What are you planning?"
Gopal calmly continued speaking.
"Wolf tribe people won’t follow you, their kin are in Wolf State; but Horse Tribe and Bird Tribe people might. I suggest you not only obey the command but do so decisively, not using Horse Tribe and Bird Tribe people as cannon fodder, but instead cultivating loyal followers for yourself—"
"Enough! Don’t speak further!" Arai Yang angrily interrupted him.
Gopal wasn’t upset upon being interrupted; he only bowed respectfully.
"I was merely offering a suggestion..."
"The Empire is about to fall into chaos. Good men don’t last long in troubled times."
After speaking, he left Arai Yang, who had a face full of uncertain emotions, and walked alone out of the military tent.
While the Empire’s Gray Wolf was stalled due to a lack of heavy equipment support, the opposing Moon Clan Resistance was busy sending people across the river at night to catch mammoths.
Evidently, every household has its own difficult story; the seemingly prosperous Mammoth State Authority is also struggling.
Meanwhile, new changes are brewing in the Wasteland.
The next day’s sunrise was just rising from the sea horizon in the Southern sea area, when the Alliance’s Sea Snail submarine carrier surfaced in the nearby Coral City waters.
A small transport plane from Ideal City flew over, landing slowly on the helipad of the Sea Snail.
It was a model Chu Guang had never seen before, resembling the Alliance’s Viper; another new enterprise creation, likely copying the Alliance.
But it doesn’t really matter to Chu Guang.
After all, the Alliance has often taken useful elements from enterprises; the engine of the "Overlord" transport plane was simply taken from the "Tiger Whale," so reciprocating favors isn’t a big deal.
Moreover, Chu Guang was quite pleased that recently, the deditated individuals from Ideal City seemed to have finally understood.
The enterprise council probably realized they too are part of the wasteland; if some lunatic escalates things, ultimately they would have to clean up the mess.
The Torch Church problem is precisely this.
If they had intervened in the Singular Point City crisis early, things wouldn’t have escalated into an uncontrollable situation.
Reflecting on their own issues, they’ve been increasingly active in wasteland affairs lately, with various long-range, high-speed aircraft emerging like bamboo shoots after a rain.
Soon, a middle-aged man in a suit and tie emerged from the cabin.
He wore a radiant smile, extending his right hand to Chu Guang standing beside the helipad from afar.
"Honored Manager, it’s a pleasure to meet again!"