Chapter 688: First Arrival in the Territory, Money City!
After eight years of transformation in the vast wasteland, the overall terrain has changed again and again under the influence of disasters.
Those humans and marine aliens who once lived in the deep sea have basically been forced to move to the New World due to the increasing intensity of disasters.
Unfortunately, the area of the New World did not increase much in these eight years.
With little land and many people, there are disputes all over the continent.
Although the Tianyuan territory is not warlike, it is often attacked by foreign stragglers because the northern part of the territory is close to the coastline.
Therefore, according to the location distribution, the division of labor among the three major cities is also very clear.
Hope City, which focuses on the territorial economy, is located in the center of the entire territory and has the safest geographical conditions to drive economic development in the territory.
Tianyuan City, which focuses on the development of military conquests, is located on the west side of the territory close to the dwarves of all nations. There are a large number of military industrial research institutes and large war facilities to guard against dwarf sneak attacks.
The Murloc City, which focuses on a special economy, is located in the north of the territory where small wars are most frequent, and its main responsibility is to protect the back of the territory.
Driven by these three cities, there are four major super monopoly companies as enemies, plus hundreds of small and medium-sized development companies.
Tianyuan Territory is extremely balanced and strong in all aspects. Even if the number of people is much smaller than other super territories, it can still firmly occupy a vast land.
At the same time, some small human territories close to the surrounding areas may be independent on the surface, but secretly they have already become subsidiary cities of the territory.
Every once in a while, these territories will send caravans with various commodities to Hope City for trading.
Territories from other remote places will also come here to enter Hope City, eager to get opportunities for territory development.
Around this group of "real" migrant population, Hope City expanded again and again, gradually forming three areas outside the real core city circle.
One is called "Pojun", which is responsible for the troops stationed in the city defense.
One is called "Mingyue", which is responsible for trading, temporary residence, catering, etc. It is a trading place specially opened for foreigners.
One is called "mulberry field", which assists farming. There are hundreds of thousands of acres of fertile land, as well as experimental fields for various novel varieties.
For example, the current location of the station is exactly in Mingyue Town, the outermost part of Hope City.
Although it was just after noon at this time, the sun was high in the sky, bringing with it a rolling heat wave.
But outside the Great Hope Station, there are quite a few people going to other territories, coming to pick up relatives, traveling around selling small commodities, and carrying passengers into the city.
Coming out of the back door of the Wang Quan Guide, he led Huang Xiaojuan and Oreo, and was mixed in with the dense flow of people. It was not until he squeezed out to the exit to verify his identity that Sumo took off the simple mask on his face and breathed a sigh of relief.
He had just arrived in Hope City, and he was already a little uncomfortable.
Compared with Hope Village eight years ago, today's Hope City has developed to such an extent that he can no longer recognize any connection between this place and the previous one.
Whether it is Guoshu Mountain or Tieshi Mountain, these landmarks have all disappeared.
Nowadays, as far as the eye can see outside the station, there are planned asphalt roads and six- or seven-story high-rise buildings everywhere, giving people a feeling of returning to a civilized era.
And what is more familiar is.
"Hey, I'm unfamiliar with you guys. Are you new here?"
"Take a taxi? Take a taxi?"
"Modding, rubbing~~"
"If you are going to Mingyue Town or Sangtian Town, I have a three-seater car that can fit you all in. It only takes one transaction point to drive you there, ensuring a full ride experience."
"."
As soon as they saw the crowd pouring out of the exit gate, the "drivers" who had been waiting at the gate rushed over like bees smelling the fragrance of flowers.
Among them, after seeing that although Somo looks ordinary, his walking posture and temperament are extraordinary.
Most of the drivers with decent cars gathered around and started using all kinds of clichés to solicit customers.
Finding one of them who was more pleasing to the eye, Sumo raised his brows and cupped his hands.
When the other party saw this, he immediately happily led the way. After a while, the two of them passed through the twists and turns of the station and arrived in front of a slightly worn-out three-wheeled vehicle in the parking lot.
"Hey, don't think my car is old, but it has many functions!"
With that said, the dark-skinned man walked over first and inserted the key.
As he pressed the button on the front of the kinetic vehicle, he saw the rear seats begin to slowly change.
First, four poles were raised, and then a curtain-like thing was supported on both sides. When the man pulled it, it just covered the open-air carriage, blocking the harsh sunlight from the outside world.
"Ha, this is really useful!"
After touching the pole and realizing that this thing was not an ordinary iron pole, but an alloy-like substance, Somo couldn't help but take a high look.
To judge the development of a territory, one is to look at the ceiling of cutting-edge technology, and the other is to look at the degree of civilian use of ordinary technology.
Being able to use alloys for passenger drivers outside the station is enough to show how rapidly the current Tianyuan territory is developing.
"Brother, go to Mingyue Town or Sangtian Town. If you go to Mingyue Town, there are two of you and one dog. According to the pricing standard, the transaction point is 0.3."
"It's a little further to go to Sangtian, and it costs 0.5 trading points."
After inviting the two people and the dog to sit in the carriage, the dark-skinned man took out a sign with "Hope City Public Passenger Price List" and handed it over.
"Seeing as this is your first time here, don't worry, everything is now strictly regulated by the territory. For example, the business of illegal car drivers on our planet has long been impossible!"
"If I charge you one more point and you complain to me to the transportation department, I will be taken away to do hard labor tomorrow. It's not worth it!"
Seeing that Somo was looking at the explanation behind the price list attentively, the dark-skinned man was not in a hurry. He took out the water bottle placed in the back seat and drank it while explaining patiently.
"Okay, no trouble then, let's go to Mingyue Town"
The two places are 40 kilometers apart, and the heat wave makes people's scalp numb. The 0.3 point charge is not high.
I saw that this dark-skinned man was young, probably around twenty-four or five years old, but his attitude was so gentle and courteous.
Sumo handed the sign back, and his impression of this strange Hope City improved a little.
"Okay!"
Not afraid of Somo running away, after hearing his destination, the dark-skinned man turned around and started the car, driving on the asphalt road toward Mingyue Town.
Along the way, when he saw some novel things along the way, Sumo didn't pretend to be a fake and kept asking questions.
It didn't take long for the two to become familiar with each other.
The swarthy man's real name is Yang Wu, and he joined the territory two years ago.
It was just that at that time, he was only seventeen years old. He was still young and did not have any skills, so he was unable to catch up with the first wave of dividends of the territory's take-off.
This led to me hanging out for five or six years. In addition to having a territorial identity, I was also doing the most ordinary job of pulling a truck.
"I am satisfied. With this identity, I have surpassed 99% of the ordinary people in the wasteland. It is useless to think about anything else!"
"Besides, now that I am soliciting customers every day, I can eat and drink, and I can also save some money. Where can I find such a comfortable job in the wasteland!"
Yang Wu shouted with great enjoyment as the hot wind blew towards him.
Just like the natives who lived in the imperial capital in their previous lives.
Although they do not have a prominent family background, nor do they have high-paying jobs that everyone envies.
But with just one identity and a dilapidated house, they can surpass the efforts of ordinary people by ten or hundreds of years.
"Brother Su, you just came to the territory. I'm afraid you were a big shot before. Otherwise, you wouldn't be able to afford the status of our Tianyuan territory."
"Me? I'm just an ordinary person. I just got a little lucky and made a fortune."
Seeing Yang Wu turn around and ask curiously, Su Mo shook his head angrily and turned his gaze to the rolling farmland beside the asphalt road.
There are the magical plants he left behind before he left, plus the subsequent harvest from the tree people's territory.
The fields in Tianyuan Territory are growing extremely well, they are completely self-sufficient, and there is a certain surplus.
In addition to importing food from outside, even if there is a disaster, the territory will probably have enough surplus food to survive.
"Hey, are these people selling watermelons?"
In hot weather.
Looking along the road, Sumo found that there was a watermelon stall set up on the roadside. There were many people standing in front of the door. Sumo couldn't help but marveled.
This road is the only road from the station to Mingyue Town, and there must be many travelers passing by on the way.
In hot weather, even if this watermelon is sold a little more expensive, there will definitely be no shortage of sales.
really.
After hearing the word "watermelon", Yang Wu didn't speak yet. He sat on the other side with Huang Xiaojuan and stuck out Oreos on the ground.
Everyone, including the dog, raised their heads, their eyes full of desire.
"Okay, I'll buy one when we park the car."
Instructing Yang Wu to pull over, Su Mo jumped out of the car and walked all the way to the watermelon stall.
"A pound of watermelon sells for 1 dime, which is equivalent to 0.05 points in trading points."
"If you think about it, a 15-pound watermelon costs 0.75 trading points, which is a bit expensive!"
For ordinary people in Qingguo Territory, they can only survive by earning one point a month.
In the Tianyuan Territory, despite the increase in income, watermelon is still a very expensive consumer product. Most people would not be willing to buy one even if it is during the holidays.
However, for Somo, he couldn't take these points away, so he didn't feel bad about spending them at all.
"Sixteen pounds and eight taels, 0.84 trading points, I charge you 0.8 trading points, thank you for your patronage!"
Compared with the currency "Yuan Coin" in the territory, the purchasing power of the trading point is stronger and the possibility of depreciation is lower.
So after seeing that Sumo was willing to use the transaction point to pay, the store happily wiped off the money and even helped cut it into pieces.
"Huh, Brother Su is so willing!"
Watching Somo walking back with a large bag of watermelon, Yang Wu licked his dry lips, his eyes full of envy and complexity.
Recalling that the last time he ate watermelon was last year.
At that time, the watermelon was about to be sold out, so Yang Wu was willing to buy half of it to satisfy his craving.
From then on, the high selling price has always been a difficulty in front of him. In many cases, even the money in his pocket can fully afford it.
He would never be as willing as Somo is now.
However, these complicated emotions disappeared without a trace in an instant when Sumo came back and pushed San Ya in front of him.
Look at the ice slag that is still exuding a hint of white air on the outside, and the red and shiny melon pulp inside.
Just one mouthful of it will instantly make you feel the heat disappear, and you will feel so refreshed.
Three people and one dog should not have finished eating the 16-pound watermelon.
But in the end, with Yang Wu's distressed eyes, Oreo happily finished off the watermelon that was just over ten pounds.
"Brother Su, you have to spend this money sparingly. Money is used everywhere in our territory."
After starting the car again, Yang Wu's attitude became much better than before, and he began to talk about the expenses in the territory with serious words.
"You are a newcomer. Even if you have a job with your identity, you will definitely not be able to afford the houses in the city that we hope cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and require various restrictions in the short term, right?"
"So, you see, renting a house costs a lot of money."
"Let's not talk about the cheapest houses in the city that cost 500 points a month. In Mingyue Town alone, a single room costs 80 transaction points a month, and if you live there for a year, it costs 960 points!"
"After renting the house, you also have to pay for food, right? For the two of you and a dog, the minimum standard of food for a day is about 0.6 transaction points, and this year it is over 200 points."
With the hot air blowing, Yang Wu was still nagging at first, but later he started to complain like he was complaining.
"Actually, renting a house and eating food is okay. These expenses can be calculated, but other miscellaneous expenses are even more terrifying."
"We hope that although residents in the city do not have living taxes, they do have a fixed status maintenance fee. Depending on the price of your status, you will also have to pay a tax of 0.8% of the status price every month."
"Although there is no depreciation fee for the house, the water and electricity bills, maintenance fees, and foundation taxes cost a lot every month."
"When you travel to other places, you can't walk on your feet. If you take a taxi, you have to spend money. When you buy a car, you have to charge it. You also have to pay road taxes."
"."
After talking about more than a dozen places that needed to be charged, Huang Xiaojuan felt like her head was spinning, and Yang Wu stopped talking:
"Besides these, the most important thing is that 25% of your monthly salary in the territory will be included in the territory's natural disaster defense funds, and 25% will be included in the residents' medical insurance."
"Only half of it is really obtained!"
After complaining about the territory's existing system in one breath, Yang Wu breathed out a sigh of relief and felt much better when he saw Su Mo's expression changing slightly.
In the eyes of outsiders, people like them in super territorial areas live very comfortably. They have big rooms to live in, no worries about food and clothing, safety is guaranteed, and they live a life that is superior to others.
But only they know clearly, in a territory that only cares about "money", what a miserable end it will be if there is no money.
"It's okay for us old residents. After the trading points are cleared, we can still maintain our status for one year to raise funds."
"But newcomers like you, once the trading points on your body return to zero for more than three days, your identity will be confiscated and you will be kicked out of the territory."
"Besides, you have to be careful of some outsiders who only have temporary status. The scams they set up will have unpredictable consequences once you fall into them."
As a large-scale town appeared in sight, Yang Wu's chattering gradually stopped.
"Mingyue Town is just ahead. It's getting late. Brother Su needs to make plans early if he wants to rent a house."
"good"
The Neng car stopped at the entrance of the village, two people and one dog got out of the car, and Sumo raised his hand to pay the fare.
"Got it, come to me anytime if you need a car."
Handing over a handwritten business card, Yang Wu showed a bright smile, jumped into the car and drove away.
Obviously, even if he has no ambition, the rules of this city force him not to lie flat and must be running all the time in order to maintain various expenses.
"Brother Zong, do we want to rent a house first?"
After being informed by Yang Wu about the cruelty in the territory, Huang Xiaojuan looked a little timidly.
There is obviously a big gap between here and the beautiful life she imagined before.
Thorny Town and Mingyue Town are both towns.
But in comparison, the tallest building in Cili Town is only four floors, and most of them are bungalows, while the lowest building in Mingyue Town has three floors!
At the same time, even if you stand at the gate of the town, the noise and excitement inside can be faintly transmitted to the outside, which is enough to see the prosperity here.
"Don't worry, let's go and take a look first."
Glancing at the bright moon sign hanging high on the town gate and the cars heading to the city at the town gate, Somo took a deep breath and suppressed his inner impulse.
According to what Yang Wu said before, if you live in the urban area, the total monthly expenses will be at least a little over a thousand points.
Moreover, since renting a house accounts for a large part, status taxes and meals account for a small part.
As a result, many outsiders who purchased their identities basically rented their houses outside in Mingyue Town and Sangtian Town in order to save money. They took the round-trip bus into the city every morning to work.
"I want to save money, so it seems I have to rent the house here first."
"Compared to the previous two ruins missions, this one is really hell mode!"
Just like the poor boy who came to the imperial capital from a remote mountain village with a huge sum of "one thousand yuan" in his arms.
Sumo thought he could hold on for a while, but he didn't expect that it would be difficult for him to hold on for a month.
And when he thought that in this capacity, he would have a car and a house in the center of the city, he would even have to take control of the entire city within a year.
Somo couldn't help but feel happy and strode towards the town.