Chapter 132: Design Department (II)

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Sorry, I overslept... I forgot to send this from the scheduled-post folder. My apologies~~

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The most beautiful traditional Chinese residential courtyards were reputed to offer a different view with every step.

Qin Ye quickly weighed the pros and cons.

The advantage was that once these residences were built, they would certainly become the greatest attraction in the entire Underworld. There would not be enough room for everyone, so only the important figures could move in at first. People did not fear scarcity as much as unfairness; this would greatly spur the other spirits to join the construction frenzy!

The New Underworld... had to become a massive construction site as soon as possible!

This was his foundation, especially with Truth-Listener sleeping below...

The downside was that the ghost citizens would certainly refuse to accept it. Why should they be unable to live there after contributing their own labor?

Fortunately, he now had enough power to suppress them by force. His heart had hardened as well. Anyone who refused to obey could be sent down directly, and the various ministers of the Netherworld Construction Bureau would be granted the authority to execute first and report afterward.

Once there were people—and once more and more residential communities were built, most of the residents settled in, and everyone had been reassured—then they could discuss further expansion. Only then could the construction of the Underworld's special facilities gradually be placed on the agenda.

It seemed he would have to make another trip to the Netherworld Office and discuss with the ministers how to determine the residents of the first high-end housing development that would establish the Construction Bureau's reputation.

"Good grief... The first residential district in a newly established realm isn't a cave settlement, but a direct branch into real estate... Who else could possibly do this?" After sighing, he continued, "All right. I'll leave this design to you. Next... I want to ask, what if we also built a municipal government center near this community?"

"What?!" Before he had even finished speaking, it was not Old Li this time but Sun Kangliang who nearly leaped to his feet. "A government center? Forgive me for speaking frankly... Young Master Qin, what exactly are you trying to build? A government center... Wouldn't that violate the regulations?"

"Do you want to know?" Qin Ye blinked and looked at Sun Kangliang expectantly.

Just say yes, and I can send you down there in minutes to enjoy eternal bliss...

Perhaps his gaze was too blatant. The word "yes" that had reached Sun Kangliang's lips was forcibly swallowed back down. He gave a dry laugh. "I was just asking... Just asking..."

What a hypocrite!

Qin Ye was rather displeased. A talented man... What the Underworld lacked now was not labor, but talent... Wait. The residents of the next housing development could be assigned according to a talent-based system... Hmm? If the real-estate industry developed smoothly, then a financial system should not be far behind. At least there would finally be things people could spend money on...

He was getting ahead of himself.

Qin Ye coughed lightly. "You don't need to concern yourself with how I plan to proceed. In reality, you can regard these five square kilometers as an undeveloped county. I need a county government and all its departments. The reason I asked for the design of this housing development first is that it is our top priority."

Old Li felt his lips go dry. He pushed his glasses up desperately and opened his mouth several times, but nothing came out. All he could do was stare frantically at Sun Kangliang. Even though Sun Kangliang had been mentally prepared, he was now completely dumbfounded.

Their eyes met, conveying only one message:

Has he gone insane?

"I... I have to ask..." Old Li took a deep breath and forced himself to recover. In a hoarse voice, he said, "You mean the Bureau of Land and Resources, the Labor Bureau, the Employment Bureau, the Workers' Committee, the Archives Bureau..."

Qin Ye's expression grew solemn. He nodded. "All of them."

Gulp.

Old Li swallowed hard. "The Organization Department, the Publicity Department, the Armed Forces Department, the Political and Legal Affairs Commission..."

"Those too."

Old Li's voice began to tremble. "The Disabled Persons' Federation, the Association for Science and Technology, the labor union, the library, the hospital..."

"Not the Disabled Persons' Federation or the hospital. As for the Association for Science and Technology... just leave space for it." Qin Ye ignored the fact that both men had already stood up nervously and smiled casually.

"Oh, heavens!"

Sun Kangliang rushed to the doorway, opened it, and looked outside several times. He immediately returned and locked the door. His voice trembling, he said, "Young Master Qin... You... What are you..."

Are you planning a rebellion?

Are you rebuilding a county within China?

So that housing development just now was an unavoidable assignment? Were you merely testing our capabilities along the way?

"What are you thinking?" Qin Ye said with a smile. "I simply happen to have such a large piece of land. Shouldn't the island be planned according to the model of a county? Or do you expect me to take a deserted island and play by myself?"

So it was an island...

Sun Kangliang still did not believe him. Where in China had an island come from? Still, he had to admit that this explanation eased his taut nerves considerably.

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"I'm afraid I can't comply." Old Li offered a bitter smile. "Mr. Qin, for a request of this scale... I'm afraid you really need to seek out the China State Construction Engineering Corporation for the necessary talent."

"How could we possibly get involved in planning an entire county or city? Without even mentioning anything else, most of the people who understand this field are currently working in Africa on Belt and Road projects. Where in China is there room for them to put their skills to use?"

He waved his hand. "I can help with a residential development, or even a landmark building, but an entire county... That is truly too difficult."

Qin Ye was unwilling to give up. "What if we simply enlarged the model of a residential development a thousand times?"

This time, even Sun Kangliang laughed. "Young Master Qin, you are making the real-estate industry sound far too simple. Leaving everything else aside, do you even have an overall map of your land? Have you hired anyone to conduct an actual survey?"

An overall map?

Qin Ye blinked. "What's that?"

Sun Kangliang was both amused and exasperated. "For a place this large, even if you merely want to build a county for fun, you need at least an overall map of the area, don't you? How large is the planned zone, and where is it located? Which areas are to be preserved, which will be used for residential purposes, and which for offices? Without an overall map, it is impossible to design anything."

"Is it really necessary?"

"Absolutely necessary!" the two men said in unison. "For large-scale construction, the overall map comes first. Without one, far too many accidents and complications will arise later. It would be no exaggeration to say that the entire area might have to be torn down and rebuilt!"

Old Li continued, "And judging from your tone... Are you planning to build a city? Very well... I'll temporarily treat that as a joke. But even if you really intend to build one, there is an enormous amount of preparation required."

"Electricity." He raised one finger, then a second. "Fiber-optic cables."

Then he raised a third. "Roads."

Qin Ye had just been about to say that none of those things were necessary—they all used oil lamps, after all, and they could generate electricity through the power of love.

But after thinking it over, he obediently kept his mouth shut.

Did they really not need those things?

He was not certain. He had never asked Alsace how the Underworld had handled lighting, transportation, and communications in the past.

Everything was difficult at the beginning. His ghost citizens were crying out for everything, and they did not even have proper homes yet. Fortunately, they were ghosts and did not need to eat, and they could make do with the clothes on their backs. Otherwise, he might already have exploded.

"There is also the drainage system, the resources in the surrounding area, how to make use of the terrain, and how to defend against possible attacks. How to strike the enemy under special circumstances. Whether the city would obstruct a sortie, and whether there were faster routes for deployment... City construction... Forgive my frankness, but China's best experts are all abroad helping with construction projects. You may have difficulty finding anything useful within the country."

"I understand." Qin Ye stood up. "Thank you very much. Please prepare the blueprints and renderings for the housing development first. As for the rest, I'll look into it and decide what to do afterward."

With that, he gave Sun Kangliang a meaningful glance, and the two of them left the design department together.

They did not take the elevator. Instead, they casually pressed the button for the top floor and went up to the roof.

There was a café there.

From this vantage point, all the high-rises of Daishan City could be seen. The most modernized part of any city was ninety-nine percent likely to be its high-tech development zone. After all, such zones were built from scratch, whereas demolishing and rebuilding the older urban districts was far more difficult.

Tower after tower reflected the sunlight. Most of those who could come here were middle- or senior-level managers. When they saw Sun Kangliang arrive, they all smiled and nodded at him.

The two men sat at a table in the corner. A waiter soon brought over the day's featured coffee and pastries, all entirely free of charge.

Qin Ye stirred his coffee gently with a spoon, then suddenly lowered his voice. "How much construction material can you get?"

Sun Kangliang's hand trembled, and even his lips began to shake. "Young Master Qin... What... What do you need it for?"

What island? Was private ownership of land even permitted in China? Was he joking?

Qin Ye smiled, seized his hand, and enunciated every word. "To start a rebellion."

Clang!

The spoon in Sun Kangliang's hand jerked, nearly overturning the cup. Brown coffee spilled all over the table. Several people looked over. Sun Kangliang's expression changed repeatedly, and he immediately waved his hands.

"It's nothing, nothing..."

After sitting back down, he took several deep breaths in succession. With a pained expression, he said, "Young Master Qin... You can't joke about something like that..."

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Qin Ye gave him an expression that plainly said, What the hell is wrong with you? Then he curled his lips. This man was useless. He could not take a joke.

"Don't overthink it. It's merely part of my assignment." He straightened his expression. "I need to purchase construction materials from you and build houses. If I were only thinking of an old friend and trying to give you a hand, I would have gone to someone else long ago."

Then go to someone else!

And who exactly is your old friend? We've only had one meal together!

"All right..." Sun Kangliang had already begun regretting why he had foolishly provoked Qin Ye that day. With a lifeless expression, he said, "Tell me what you need. Make a list and send it to me on WeChat. I'll definitely get everything here within a week. But you must remember to come and take delivery within a day..."

Why did he feel as though these construction materials were actually bombs?

"Fine. Also, help me rent a crematorium."

You've really decided to cling to me, haven't you?

Sun Kangliang's mind was flooded with images of rebellion, crematoriums, and the profound cosmic connection between them and construction materials. The corner of his mouth twitching, he said, "All right..."

After taking care of everything, Qin Ye immediately returned to his dormitory and shut the door. He took out the talisman paper Alsace had given him, pulled out the red sheet supposedly used for transmitting voices, and immediately set it alight.

Now there was only one final matter left. Once it was done, everything would be ready except for the final catalyst.

After completing this task, he could wait for the design institute to produce the plans, then return and work out a detailed procedure. The Netherworld Office would be able to begin construction immediately.

The countless threads of the Underworld's development had finally begun to come together.

Swish...

The talisman paper turned into green smoke. There was none of the acrid burnt-paper smell of ordinary paper, and the smoke vanished almost instantly.

He waited patiently.

Three minutes passed...

No reply.

"Counterfeit junk?" He blinked and burned another sheet.

Still no reply.

He burned another.

Still nothing!

"Damn it... This is just psychological comfort, isn't it? Didn't you say I could burn paper whenever I needed to contact you?" Unable to restrain himself, he picked up three sheets at once and burned them all.

At last, Alsace's furious voice rang through the room.

"Are you done yet?!"

"I..."

"You what?! Do you think I can't see you burn one sheet? Then you send a second and a third? Are you trying to summon my soul? Are you being reincarnated, or are you holding a funeral?!"

"...You said..."

"Yes, yes, it can contact me. But did you not realize that this is my television time? I'm sitting there with tears in my eyes, and then you suddenly barge in. You've completely ruined my mood!"

Right.

So the talisman only worked if she was willing to answer?

Then what the hell was the point of it? You doomed-to-die-in-front-of-a-computer loser silicone woman!

End of chapter.

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