"It's here, hahaha! We're finally here! ”

The majestic wall finally appeared in everyone's eyes, and the man wrapped in a white robe cheered happily.

Old Luca, who was walking on the elevated road of the Third Ring Road, finally stretched a trace of relaxation on his face.

They traveled for two whole days.

With the exception of the guy named Blake who they first met, they encountered at least three waves of attackers along the way.

Of course, the next two waves were small minions, not only with tattered weapons, but also with low morale.

As for the man in the white robe who followed them, he had saved him from the last wave of marauders.

His name is Hal and he is from the province of Luoxia, and according to him, he is the prince of the lion tribe, the successor of the oasis, and believes in the spirit of the sand sea.

And when asked why he, as a prince and heir, would travel thousands of miles to the south of Qingquan City and be captured by a group of villains with burning sticks, he said embarrassedly.

“…… There are many princes in our kingdom, and you must do something to prove that you have the courage and quality to govern the kingdom. ”

A young diplomat asked curiously.

"For example?"

Hal said in a satiant voice.

"For example, it is our tradition to bring back something that is not in the desert, and whoever brings back the most expensive thing is eligible to be a candidate for the throne."

Another elderly diplomat asked.

"Did you find it?"

Hal looked a little embarrassed, and coughed slightly.

“…… Didn't I just arrive in Boulder City? Trust me, I'm sure I'll find it. ”

Not to mention finding anything of value, his two guards and the dinar he had brought with him were all gone.

If he hadn't met this group of kind people, he would have been buried in the oil pot.

Like the hapless guy in the same cage as him.

He had even begun to regret that he had not gone south to Jinchuan Province with his brother, preferring to go to Boulder City.

The people here were more fierce than he could have imagined, and they were completely different from the endless sea of sand, where there were tall buildings everywhere, and every window seemed to hide a gun.

The two diplomats who followed Lukka looked at each other.

As survivors living in the area of Qingquan City, what throne and prince are completely unfamiliar concepts to them.

If you were to compare a manager to a king, this guy would ...... Presumably the son of the ruler of the Lion Kingdom?

Thinking of this, everyone's faces couldn't help but be a little envious.

I wish their managers could have more ......

"Dear Sir, do you need a guard?" Hal looked at Luca, who had not spoken, and said respectfully.

His instinctive instincts told him that the old man should be the highest ranking of all the people here.

Lukka gave him a strange look, not knowing where this guy's confidence came from.

Still, Lukka eventually gave the young man some self-esteem and said it succinctly.

"No, what's wrong?"

With an embarrassed expression on his face, Hal hesitated for a moment, but finally spoke.

"My money has been robbed and I have nowhere to go...... Can you give me a job? ”

Lukka asked.

"What will you do?"

"I can make tea, play the piano, write poetry, and paint, of course...... Shooting is also included. I can prove myself, if you give me a revolver or a rifle, I can hit a plastic bottle 100 meters away! ”

Hal said confidently, but the dog brother and the dagger brother who were walking nearby couldn't help laughing.

Plastic bottles 100 meters away were ok.

With the hit rate of the revolver, it would be good to be able to hit someone from a distance of 100 meters.

"If we don't help him, he may not even be able to pay the entry tax."

An elderly diplomat lowered his voice and whispered next to Luka.

"If he can really play the piano and draw, his status should not be low...... It's not a bad thing to give him a hand. ”

That's right.

Although the new alliance has not yet established diplomatic relations with the survivors of the provinces, it is only a matter of time.

It's always good to walk outside and make two more friends.

Lukka nodded, looked at the hapless young man, and said.

"I just don't have a clerical man, so you can follow me first."

Hal said overjoyed.

"Thank you so much! By the way, I'll also have twelve artistic fonts—"

Lukka coughed lightly.

"That's not necessary, just write things neatly."

The group continued to move forward, and soon came to the foot of the majestic giant wall.

The plaque of the Far Away Wind Hotel hangs on the building opposite the giant gate, and all kinds of merchants and tourists shuttle back and forth in the square in front of the door, occasionally seeing a prosthetic body made of metal or silicone, or a machine with an antenna inserted in the cover of the heavenly spirit.

Poorly clothed people stand by the roadside, holding wooden signs and waiting for work to come to their doors.

The polarization of living standards is the same here year after year.

Hal craned his neck excitedly and looked around, everything here was new to him.

However, those players who have been here countless times have long been familiar with the people and things here.

"A new mission has been triggered." Looking at the VM on his arm, the old white eyebrows provoked a trace of surprise.

"What task? I'll see. Fang Chang leaned over.

I saw a line of words written on the screen.

[Mission: Go to the Pirate Bay Tavern to find Bit and ask about the employer]

Lao Bai stared at the task for a while.

"It should be the follow-up quest for that muscular guy named Black...... I'm in the queue. ”

"Tavern? This Elder Brother Fang is familiar. Killing Dagger said with a hippie smile.

"Boss, when will I write a Fengyue strategy, we've been waiting for a long time!" The dog thing also coaxed on the side.

"Roll on, Lao Tzu is a pure group, how can you old demons know art every day."

Looking at the group of teammates with hippie smiling faces, Fang Chang rolled his eyes angrily.

Lao Bai didn't laugh at him, just said with a smile.

"How so? After sending the NPCs to their destination in a while, let's go to the Pirate Cove Tavern and inquire? ”

Fang Chang sighed and said.

"Do you think this kind of thing is something that can be asked by walking into a tavern and shouting at a loud voice?"

Lao Bai asked curiously.

"Then what do you say?"

Pinching his chin and thinking for a moment, Fang Chang's gaze fell on the poor people holding signs on the side, and his eyes moved slightly.

“…… Blake lives in the slums, and we find out where his home is. Regardless of whether there are relatives alive or not, there are always friends who understand him. Through his friends, we should be able to find out who the man named Bit really is. ”

"Is it so troublesome?" Killing Dagger was stunned.

"This game really needs to use some brains," Lao Bai said with a smile, "Just follow what Fang Chang said, let's go to the city first." ”

The entrance tax was paid.

The group deposited the forbidden explosives and passed through the towering city gates.

The militia at the gate didn't say much about the exoskeleton on their bodies, after all, in a place like Boulder City, this thing was not so rare that they could stare at it all the time.

At the behest of the administrator, Lukka was about to go to the Alliance's office in Boulder City, but as soon as he reached the street, he noticed that something was wrong with the atmosphere here.

I saw a sea of people at the door of the warehouse area, and it was black and oppressive.

Citizens in linen shirts and hyena fur jackets gathered, looking angry, holding wooden signs in their hands, shouting a haphazard but loud slogan, as they marched towards the heart of the outer city.

"Say no to unequal trade!"

"Give us the job back!"

"Get the New Alliance stuff out of Boulder!"

"Ask for bread! Don't have a nourishing paste! ”

"Guy who eats inside and out, get out of the giant wall!"

The noise was like a boiling heat wave, and it was even more scorching like a soldering iron in the June sun.

The guards standing at the edge of the crowd looked helpless, and the sticks in their hands were beginning to lose control of the crowd.

Militiamen loyal to the lord of the castle watched from the sidelines.

As long as it doesn't turn into a shootout, they don't care about these things.

Hal, who came to Boulder City for the first time, craned his neck excitedly and looked at the surging crowd.

"Are they having a holiday?"

The diplomats on the side had heavy expressions.

“…… Do you think they're celebrating? ”

"That's right...... Anyway, are they shouting for someone to get out? ”

Lukka glanced at him, ignoring him, and instead looked at the diplomat on the side.

"Let's go fast, it's better not to stay on the street for too long."

Everyone nodded and quickened their pace.

The players who are following the NPC are curious and want to go over to see what is going on, but the task is important.

“…… It's really strange," the dagger muttered quietly, "it wasn't like that the last time we were here. ”

"I didn't expect it to come." Looking at the surging crowd, Fang Chang said thoughtfully.

"What should I come?" The dog asked curiously.

Fang Chang: "Didn't you see it, they were protesting that the things we sold them were too cheap." ”

Too cheap?

I don't really understand, the dog is confused.

"Ah......h We gave them cheap goodies, what do they have to complain about? ”

"Under normal circumstances, 10 sticks of paste for a loaf of bread would be reasonable, but now suddenly a person has appeared who is willing to exchange 1,000 sticks of paste for a toasting oven, and at the same time make the business of both paste and bread unprofitable."

"No matter how cheap bread is, it is only those who have chips. For the average survivor, who doesn't have a job and can't afford it, it doesn't help, and they will be happy that that's a coincidence. ”

The factories of Dawning City have taken the jobs of the residents of Boulder City, and recently the city hall in the outer city has been planning to expand its trade with the New Alliance.

The out-of-town residents, who were themselves on the verge of poverty, exploded.

But......

Is the root of the problem really because the goods of the new alliance are too cheap?

The essence of the crisis is that wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few, and once money is no longer in circulation, it loses its role in the market.

The residents of Boulder City have no bargaining chips to spend, the factories produce less, the jobs are reduced, the residents are poorer, and finally enter a lose-lose cycle.

The large import of external industrial products has only accelerated this process.

The easiest way to do this is nothing more than foreign colonization.

Whether it is economic colonization or military colonization, as long as the surplus goods can be continuously sold to small and medium-sized survivor settlements such as Bate Street and Brown Farm, and exchanged for industrial raw materials from them, the original chain can be maintained.

Unfortunately, the New Alliance not only did not want to be a colony of Boulder, but even liberated part of the survivor colonies of Boulder City's economic colonization, and exported industrial goods to their markets.

The economic crisis in Boulder City began a long time ago.

It's just that in the wasteland, the economic crisis is not worth mentioning in the face of an existential crisis, so no one has ever realized it, and no one has the leisure time to care about it.

The nobles of the inner city did not care about the intrigues of the "providers" of the outer city, and in the eyes of the city lord, everything except the things that really deserved his attention were ants.

Moreover, even in poverty and unemployment, the inhabitants were still much luckier than the inhabitants of Bate Street and the serfs of Brown Farm a year ago.

Only recently, those poor people have finally found someone to vent their anger.

Thinking of this, Fang Chang couldn't help but have a look of interest in his eyes.

It's not that he's cold-blooded.

For a pure player like him, NPCs are just a piece of statistic, and he doesn't sympathize with them.

It's just that what he didn't expect was that the game's economic system was unexpectedly real.

Not only the relationship between supply and demand has been made, but even the relationship between production has been restored.

Excellent.

It seems that the day of the open beta is one step closer!

The group arrived at the office, which was located on the edge of the warehouse district.

When they arrived, they found a large crowd around the door, and several orderly guards standing in front of the crowd.

Judging from the chaos at the scene, eighty percent of the bad things happened just now.

The news of the delegation's arrival was received early, and Shuyu, who was in charge of the operation of the office, had already come out of the door.

"You're safe, I'm worried about whether something will happen to you on the way." Shuyu had a comfortable smile on his face, although it looked a little tired.

Obviously, he has been anxious about what is happening here in the past few days.

Looking at the rubbish and stones on the ground, as well as the smashed glass, Lukka frowned, and led the group through the crowd to Shuyu.

"What the hell is going on here?"

Shuyu followed his line of sight and saw the shards of glass spilled on the ground, and he couldn't help but have a helpless expression on his face.

"Most of the factories in the industrial zone gave the workers a holiday, and the residents who had lost their source of income took to the streets...... The city hall sent guards, but as you can see, there are so many people that one or two guards can't settle down. ”

"You're not hurt, are you?" Lukka asked with concern.

"No," Shuyu shook his head, "We have a lot of 'players' living here, and the city hall has sent guards to maintain order, so there is no big security problem...... But at this critical point in time, it's best not to go out at will. ”

I'm afraid that someone will take advantage of some small actions at this time.

For example, suddenly firing a shot in the crowd.

Given the proliferation of weapons in the wasteland, this is not surprising at all.

The so-called order is nothing but relative security, and absolute security does not exist even in Ideal City, let alone here.

Speaking of this, Shuyu paused for a moment, glanced at the guard next to him, and continued.

"The situation here can't be explained in a few words, anyway, let's speak first."

……

After sending the NPCs to their destination, the players spread out and went about their business.

Lao Bai took the two brothers and went to the slum outside the giant wall.

Fang Chang took off his equipment and changed into civilian clothes, and blended into the crowd of demonstrators.

There were some things he cared about, and he wanted to look into them.

In my own words, it is - "Participating in this special event is not good enough to trigger the hidden mission".

As for old Luca, after comforting the staff of the office for the manager, he followed Shuyu to the lounge on the third floor.

The young waitress approached and poured a cup of hot tea for each of them.

Shuyu took a sip slowly, and was about to talk about some topics to ease his mood, but when he saw Lukka sitting there indifferently, he couldn't help but put down the teacup with a wry smile.

After a pause, he spoke.

"Last night, the warehouse in the industrial zone caught fire."

"On fire?"

Looking at the surprised Luca, Shuyu nodded.

"Well, the 1,000 tons of Didiwe paste stored there were burned...... It wasn't resistant to heat, and it was basically completely destroyed. ”

1,000 tons of nutritional paste, calculated according to the wholesale cost, is worth close to 100,000 to 200,000 chips.

If it is the retail price, it is often added to the wholesale price by a 0.

Lukka's heart tightened slightly.

"Seriously?"

"If the warehouse buys insurance, it will pay a part of it, but it is not clear how much it will be paid in the end."

After a pause, Shuyu continued in a serious tone.

"You should have seen when you entered the city that the demonstrations against us are intensifying, and these contradictions did not accumulate in a day or two, but they all broke out in a concentrated manner in the past few days."

"I'm worried...... Recent events will affect the conclusion of a treaty of friendship and cooperation between us and the town hall. ”

"In order to avoid long nights and dreams, I suggest that it is better for us to sign the contract as soon as possible."

Hearing Shuyu's suggestion, Lukka pondered for a while and spoke.

"The manager said that the treaty is just a piece of paper, and if the problem is not fundamentally solved, even if we go back with a beautiful agreement, they will tear that paper off at any time."

Shuyu pressed his eyebrows with some headaches.

"There is no solution to the problem you are talking about...... Do you know what those people are yelling about? They kept asking the town hall to impose a special tax of 100 per cent on us and to distribute the collected tax to the poor who had lost their jobs. ”

"Not only that, but they also require us to deposit all our chips in their banks, to settle foreign exchange in a book-entry manner, to exchange rates determined by the market, and that all chips must be used in the way they prescribe."

Plainly.

Not only do they want the New Alliance's merchandise to be unprofitable in Boulder, but they also want to dictate how the profits the New Alliance makes from them are to be used.

If they do, the new alliance will become a dumping ground for their industrial goods, or even deindustrialized, becoming a large farm and mine.

The residents of Dawning City also need to work.

This kind of agreement is impossible for any individual to sign.

The protesters, and the factory owners behind them, clearly had no intention of solving the problem at all, but wanted to turn the tables off with some impossible demand.

Since I can't play with you.

Then we won't play.

"Of course there is a solution," Lukka said in a serious tone, "and that's what I'm here for." ”

Shuyu looked at him with a slightly stunned expression, not understanding what method he could come up with.

Just as he was about to ask curiously, there was a knock at the door.

The maid who had made tea for them had re-entered.

"Sir, Mr. Chief of the City Hall is downstairs now, would you like to invite him up?"

Shuyu was stunned, and he didn't remember that there was such an arrangement today.

He ...... Have you made an appointment? ”

The maid shook her head.

"No, he said he came here improvised while inspecting the scene of the fire in the warehouse area."

Shuyu looked at Luka, saw the latter nod, and looked at the maid again.

"Mr. Director, please go to the reception room on the second floor."

The other party has already gone downstairs, and they can't turn people away.

"Yes, sir."

The maid bowed slightly, turned and exited the lounge.

“…… What are you going to do? This guy was definitely not passing by temporarily, eighty percent of them were blasted out by the survivors who surrounded the town hall...... I'm willing to bet he's not coming to make peace this time. ”

Shuyu said in a low voice.

However, at this moment, he suddenly noticed that there was no nervous expression on Old Luka's face.

A hint of abruptness instantly appeared in his eyes, and Shuyu immediately reacted.

“…… Your Excellency has already explained what you should do? ”

Old Luca didn't answer, just gave him a reassuring smile and got up from the couch.

"Let's go, let's go meet Mr. Chief."

……

Reception room.

Duron's face was filled with sleep deprivation anxiety and irritability.

He couldn't figure it out.

He obviously signed a beautiful agreement to go back, which not only made the new alliance give up its claim to the airspace of Qingquan City, but also opened the market in the northern suburbs without spending a little price.

He thought the crowd would cheer him for his wisdom.

However, apart from the fact that the lord of the castle and the giant stone military industry did not have any opinions, the residents of the outer city and the other factory owners almost scolded him to the blood.

Dulong didn't understand it at all.

These factories in Boulder City need to be skilled and have people, and they don't have a bunch of rules and regulations on 12-hour work restrictions and minimum wage standards, and they are afraid of a small workshop made by a group of waste pickers?

They dump low-priced industrial products, and you also dump them back, won't it be over?

This doesn't work, that doesn't work, what the hell do these insatiable vampires want!

Duron couldn't help but start thinking that it would be nice if the town hall also had a militia regiment.

He doesn't have to be as strong as the city lord, as long as his combat power is a little higher than that of the mercenaries, he won't need to negotiate so hard.

These people are not willing to give themselves the rights they deserve, and they are not willing to give money, what else can they expect him to do?

At this moment, footsteps were heard outside the reception room, and after three knocks, the door opened.

Looking at the acquaintance he had seen in the hologram before, Dulong got up from his seat out of politeness, cleared his throat and took the initiative to speak.

"Hello...... Mr. Castle Lord. ”

When he said this, his expression was slightly unnatural.

After all, in Boulder City, the city lord is the exclusive title of that adult.

"Hello, Mr. Duron, don't be so polite, please take a seat......" Luca sat down opposite Dulong with a soothing smile on his face, "Actually, it's okay for us to call each other by name." ”

"These are trivial matters," Duron, who had re-seated, waved his hand, without the slightest politeness from before, "I said it straight to the point, I know I said it abruptly, but our agreement will have to be renegotiated......"

It wasn't a surprise to Duron's proposal, but Lukka frowned.

"It's not the same as saying yes."

"Because the situation is different now," Duron stared at him, and continued, "You can see the situation out there, and if I can't go back with an agreement that satisfies those people, they will tear me apart along with the agreement, and then the person sitting here and talking to you will not be me." ”

"So what we talked about is nullified?" Lukka asked quietly.

"There is nothing to talk about only the part about trade, airspace and borders...... This is the request of our city lord. ”

Although Dulong's tone was tactful, his tough attitude still did not change in the slightest.

Lukka nodded.

"We can understand your difficulties."

Seeing the other party's unexpected compromise, Du Long was pleasantly surprised, and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, and a smile finally appeared on his face.

"That's great...... Rest assured, I'm not unreasonable, and in exchange for your concessions, we'll take care of you more on security issues, after all, we're friends now. This includes the rental of aircraft, as well as more powerful weapons...... I will try to help you get some concessions within my purview. ”

Shuyu looked at old Luca incredulously.

He remembered what he should have said just now, what those people were asking for.

With a look of victory on his face, Duron took a list from his assistant's hand and placed it on the table in front of him.

"We've listed some of the residents' demands, and I think many of them are legitimate. The details will be worked out, but I hope that the negotiations will follow this framework. ”

In his opinion, the other party has relented, and this matter has basically stabilized.

However, things didn't go as smoothly as he had imagined.

Lukka just glanced at the list on the table and set his eyes on him.

"We can sense your sincerity in wanting to solve the problem, but it's clearly not a solution."

Duron looked at Lukka blankly and slowly frowned.

“…… What do you mean? ”

"Putting a heavy tax on our goods, requiring us to keep the money we earn in your pockets and spend it the way you wish, will not do this kind of buying and selling."

Looking at Duron, who had a stunned expression, Lukka shook his head and continued.

"It makes no difference whether this agreement is signed or not, if I do, there will be no more trade between the New Alliance and Boulder City, and if there is, it must be in the form of a black market."

“…… Do you have a better way? Duron frowned.

Lukka nodded happily.

"Of course, our esteemed administrator has a better proposal in comparison."

Although his instincts told Dulong what tricks these cunning blue coats were up to, he decided to hear what they had to say first.

“…… What a proposal. ”

Seeing that the fish was about to take the bait, a smile appeared on Luca's calm face.

"The dissatisfaction of your factories and residents boils down to the fact that the former needs the market to make a profit, and the latter needs to work to support his family."

"In that case......

"Why don't you lend us a bargaining chip?"