Chapter 1122
Chapter 1122 - 1108: Perhaps It’s a Smile
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8 min read
"I, it seems I am changing this world, at least, I’ve changed my hometown...."
When the change materialized before his eyes, even if he still walked alone on the streets, a skewer in one hand and a Coke in the other, Lu Ping’an had to admit that it appeared he had changed quite a bit.
The Ancient City was expanding at an incredible pace, this was a major trend, the convergence of many people’s desire to see their cities rise, but it was Lu Ping’an who had turned it into action, occupying a part in this process.
"I really didn’t expect it to be this fast..."
A 37% GDP growth might not have an intuitive representation, but when converted into "treatment" accessible to everyone, it became clearly evident.
"The average salary rose from 1900 last year to 2700 this year....."
This increase could no longer be described as exaggerated; it was simply an explosion.
As a quasi-third-tier city, even in the year of lower prices like 1999, the Ancient City’s wages were on the lower side in Changping State, which was also a result of the lack of industrial and educational overflow.
It was a well-known problem that each year high-quality graduates had difficulty finding a job and staying; if leaving could double their salary, why not go?
And now, such an "average" skyrocketing implied that most working people were actually experiencing explosive salary increases.
"It’s hard to calculate average assets, but according to random sampling, the increase exceeded thirty percent....."
This was still just one year’s increase, but a closer look revealed that most of these increases were primarily in "real estate".
Although the thought of skyrocketing house prices in later years is distressing, in the previous environment where real estate prices in third-tier cities were generally low, and residents on average had a high living area, the "value increase in real estate" meant that most citizens reaped benefits from this segment.
Ultimately, it was the arrival of the Extra-territorial Residents that had significantly raised the intrinsic value of local housing, with average rents doubling within a year. This was the situation even with the Official’s active interventions to suppress it.
Consequently, the "house prices" naturally exploded, and according to individual sampling data within Lu Ping’an’s Team, just the immovable properties left on Earth, each person’s "Total Assets" had at least doubled.
This was similar to the boom of a new city’s development in another world, where the first beneficiaries were actually the local residents, with most residents owning at least one property....Of course, there were also those who suffered losses in the process, but they were a minority compared to the general trend.
And due to the continuously rising "salaries", the attitude towards life of locals had become noticeably more positive.
The most cunning part was the local Official’s introduction of a series of "Guarantee for the People" systems.
If a foreigner wanted to work in the locale formally, they required a household in Ancient City to provide a certain degree of "guaranty", which needed to be "reassessed" every three months, a system similar to a work visa.
But in reality, this was a form of "land rent"; even the poorest families could make a good amount of money by "selling household registrations" to extraterrestrial workers from the Exotic Races.
One can say that in this year, the life of every person in Ancient City had changed, and decidedly for the better...
"Yo, Ancient City hero."
Those familiar with Lu Ping’an would even make a joke when they saw him.
This was actually a running joke, as the deadly fight against the Aus people was repeatedly broadcast on TV, and locally, a Warrior Monument had been erected.
As the Conductor of that War, Lu Ping’an naturally became the focus of the propaganda, even having his posters plastered everywhere at one point.....The fact he was still alive was the main reason he hadn’t been turned into a statue.
It was not just because of his War achievements, which in the eyes of the superiors were superficial and troublesome, but more importantly, it was his victory over a Rule-level opponent that was truly consequential, serving as a guarantee of strength and proof of safety for the community.
"We have Rule-level combat power protecting us, everyone can live and develop safely."
The violent force on the side of Order... Just the mere existence of the top-tier power in This World provided the locals with order and stability.
Indeed, the current trend in Ancient City was directly linked to Lu Ping’an in various aspects.
Without him and Chris’s battle, this city actually nearly perished twice directly.
Afterward, the Aus people’s campaign even brought back most of the core combat power and also seized the outstanding "overseas mining area" of the Green Planet.
This series of "victories" allowed the higher-ups to give the Ancient City the most favorable development strategies and policies relaxation... Only with the Great Gate wide open could wealth and interests be attracted.
The rapid progress in living standards now is, after all, due to the newcomers and the incremental bonus brought by new industries.
The fact that industry could develop steadily is the result of collaboration between the local Exotic Races and the Official, but it was still the "external conditions" fought for; local Order also needs enough deterrence to be assured, and the foreign wars broadcast on Official TV every day are the best deterrents against the foreigners.
The factions of Wang Xier had actually placed multiple bets long ago, and now they are all in here because of the development opportunities brought by the Green Planet, as well as the entire Exotic Planet’s "resource reserves".
Explorers like Lu Ping’an, each operation they performed outside actually brought a huge amount of "resources" to the locals, some tangible and some intangible. Lu Ping’an’s "reputation" alone brought a large amount of foreign investment to the Ancient City... Liquid capital is the most realistic, and safe, and stable development is always their top pursuit.
With foreign investors, new technologies from the Foreign Domain (fused with local technologies), mineral resources from the Foreign Domain’s mining areas, and demographic dividends from immigration, it would be inconceivable not to progress.
Lu and his team could indeed claim to be fighting for themselves every time, but with each of their victories, whether in terms of reputation or actual achievements, they substantially gave back to their hometown.
Compared to these massive gains, his personal taxes were relatively insignificant.
"No wonder, my battles, they care so much about them..." If Lu Ping’an were to really die in battle, it would likely be an unbearable loss for the entire Ancient City.
It’s true that the Development Zone tentatively has a Rule-level figure stationed, but the more this is the case, the more the native Strongmen are needed to balance against those eager to move, and that includes more than just Wang Xier’s kin.
And a societal order supported by sufficient combat power is the guarantee of economic vitality and an efficient market.
Walking in the streets, feeling a completely different vibe from the lifeless atmosphere a year ago, that sense of the whole city coming alive infused everyone with energy and motivation.
With economic and development momentum on the rise, most people could benefit; when the broader situation seemed hopeless, everyone would naturally become conservative and silent.
Unconsciously, Lu Ping’an realized that he might have taken on the future of this third-tier city...
"...This Lei, really can’t be detonated."
The "Auto City" can now be said to be propelled by the "Xingzhou" project of the Development Zone. While "car" industry jobs might not be numerous, the industry chain above and below is just too large, with hundreds of thousands of directly or indirectly affiliated workers and their families.
If things really went as Wang Xier said, topsy-turvy or even bankrupt... those bankrupt "Auto Cities" would face a grim fate, and the Ancient City, with more racial diversity and abundant martial spirit, would only fare worse.
From the beginning, the Ancient City officials were making a bold gamble, betting everything on the opportunity of the era to grow like rolling a snowball.
But now, they won their initial gamble, the snowball they bet on grew as they had gambled, only...
"They didn’t expect the snowball to grow too big, so big it couldn’t stop rolling..."
In this moment, Lu Ping’an felt a bit numb.
He understood why the decision-makers were so anxious, for the "happy life" now was brought by high growth; not to mention halting or regressing, even a slowdown in growth over the next few years could lead to economic and social crises.
"Why should I, an Ordinary Person, worry about such things..."
In fact, Lu Ping’an could completely ignore it all, he could do whatever he intended to do, and even if it truly exploded, moving to another city to reside wasn’t out of the question, and staying in the Exotic Realm was also an option.
But still...
"...I might as well try a little harder, maybe it’ll work out."
All along the way, what he had seen, what he owed, what he had given, and perhaps those smiling faces, were worth that extra bit of effort from him.
— End of Chapter 1122 —