Boulder.

In the conference room on the third floor of the city hall, the long conference table was silent, except for the occasional shaken soot and nicotine that could never be dispersed.

The legion is gone. Or rather, he ran with his tail between his legs, and probably didn't care about the side of the river valley province for a long time.

This would have been a cause for rejoicing.

However......

The crowd at the conference table was not happy at all.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the conference room was solemn and not like a meeting, but like a funeral.

The only thing that didn't fit in with the funeral-like atmosphere was probably the brown shirt that Duron wore behind under his black coat.

It wasn't until he sat here that he realized he was wearing it backwards, but it was too late to change it, so he had to play with the collar of his coat repeatedly.

The meeting lasted from the second half of the night until dawn.

Struggling to hold his heavy eyelids, Du Zhen quietly glanced around at the conference table again, trying to read some change in position from their expressions.

However, there is still no clue.

In order to temper the stiff atmosphere at the conference table, he cleared his throat and spoke in a tactful tone.

“…… At least, he didn't lie to us. ”

Seeing that no one interrupted him, Dulong continued.

"There wasn't a single bullet last night...... Even if the bullet casings landed on our huge wall, and the ammunition they fired was undoubtedly a fireworks. ”

"I don't think there's any need for us to be overly nervous, the Alliance is a very friendly neighbor and they've always cared about our relationship."

When he said this, Duron lowered his posture and used a soliciting tone. After all, there are few people sitting here who are lower than him.

Except for Malvin, the president of the Bank of Boulder, and Jaeger, the deputy director of the hall who always disagrees with him, the rest of the people are either nobles in the inner city or officers in the militia regiment... And the latter are the real magnates of Boulder City.

In contrast, he is more like a servant of the lord of the castle, a butler who takes care of his "non-core business".

Several people at the conference table exchanged glances and whispered a few words.

The expressions of several inner city nobles appeared a little relaxed, and they felt that what he said seemed to have some sense, after all, the alliance did not take the initiative to provoke them, and sold them a lot of interesting gadgets, enriching their day and night.

Only the man in the uniform of the militia regiment still had a straight face, staring at Du Long without the slightest change in his expression, and snorted coldly with his nose as an answer.

"Oh? So we have to thank them? His name is Wei Lun, the commander of the 1,000-member team of the Megalith City Citizen Regiment, a veteran nobleman in the inner city, and the most difficult hardliner to deal with.

While isolation is the consensus of the inhabitants of the inner city of Boulder, how and how to isolate is something that can be discussed.

"You're mistaken, that's not what I meant.

Du Long sighed softly, looked at the old officer with a headache, and continued.

"We look at the problem objectively, that airship...... Or that 400mm main gun, in the hands of the Alliance, is better than the Legion in the hands, isn't it? Even if those people in the northern suburbs are a group of hillbillies, the clawed crabs playing with mud are relatively civilized.

The officer narrowed his eyes slightly and said in a cold voice.

"You mean I'm not objective enough?"

Duron: Seeing that the meeting was at an impasse again, Malvin, who was sitting in the corner of the long table, coughed lightly and said in a round-up tone.

"I think Mr. Director should want to express that the situation we are facing has improved a lot compared to half a month ago, and there is no need to be sad like this."

Seeing his ally speak, Duron immediately picked up his words.

"That's what I meant.

Sitting next to Wei Lun, a star officer who was in charge of Qingcheng Defense suddenly sighed.

"Automated anti-aircraft fire, hundreds of artillery pieces......... The god of bighorn is on top, how did they break through that thing.

At 7:58 p.m. last night, the coalition set off fireworks for an hour and two minutes, and the anti-aircraft guns and missiles on the giant wall were also loaded and on standby all night.

If the dense pyrotechnics were replaced with shells with proximity fuses, not a single plane in Boulder would have been able to take off.

After all, even if the fighter with vertical take-off and landing can switch to fixed-wing mode, it will need a distance of more than ten kilometers to complete the acceleration.

Until then, it doesn't take a lot of cutting-edge technology to shoot it down, and a volley of broadside fire is enough.

There is no doubt that the hillbillies in the northern suburbs are showing them their poor muscles in the name of celebration.

Thinking of this, the officer couldn't help but grit his teeth and curse in his heart.

It's just a fluke that he won the legion, and he flaunted his might in front of them.

This villain's face is proud......

It's too bad!

"I still think that way," Wei Lun said with a blank face, "we should tighten our aid to them!" Immediately!

Duron sighed.

"For example?"

Wei Lun said without hesitation.

"Loan moratorium! Suspend trade with the North Side! ”

Du Long was not surprised that he would say this, the bosses of these militia regiments did not know that firewood, rice, oil, and salt were expensive.

He was about to say something.

However, before he could speak, a richly dressed man said everything he wanted to say.

"The latter one is unrealistic, what you eat, wear, and use...... It's all from trade between us and other survivor settlements. ”

Duron glanced at the man, whom he recognized, his name was Sid, a well-known nobleman in the inner city, and he was also the majority shareholder behind the Vega trading house.

This guy's property is not only in Vega Comptoir, but also in Boulder City, including the farms in the south and the mercenary groups raised there, all of which have his shares, and his family is so thick that it is difficult to calculate with chips.

At the same time, Dulong also noticed the devil's silk garment on his body, and the leather shoes made of death claw leather on his feet.

In a sense, he was right, and his food and clothing did come from trade with the outside world.

As soon as Sid's words fell, another nobleman from the inner city, who was also not low, spoke immediately.

"That's right, and it's simply not realistic to suspend trade with one side alone! Out of the wall, the caravans won't let you know where they've gone. Even if you close the door to the north, even if you leave only one gate to the south, as long as the trade in the northern suburbs is still profitable, they will run around in a big circle. ”

Wei Lun's brow twitched.

Although his attitude was still tough, he probably realized that his words did not go through his brain, so he changed his words and made a slight concession.

"Trade doesn't matter, at least that loan has to be stopped!" He knew that the money was in the Boulder Bank.

It's easy to stop taking out a loan, and you can freeze hundreds of millions of chips at the touch of a finger.

The nobles didn't have any opinions, anyway, the alliance's money bags had nothing to do with them, but just when Wei Lun's face was about to show a smile, the bank president Malvern coughed dryly and suddenly spoke.

"Guan Gan, I also have something to say.

Seeing that the crowd was looking at him, he continued.

"Those loans are not so much about their aid as they are about ourselves. The residents of Boulder can't afford to pay for our stuff, and if we suspend our loans to the Union, at least half of the factories will go out of business as a result. ”

Hearing this, Sid hurriedly spoke.

"That's not going to work! Loans can't be stopped!

The nobles nodded in agreement, expressing almost the same opinion.

"That's right!"

"The idea of stopping the mortgage is just stupid! Our factories have already started, their loans have been stopped, who will pay the workers! ”

"Even if you want to stop, you'll have to wait for the hillbillies to settle the payment!"

Seeing that there were more and more allies on his side, Malvin breathed a sigh of relief and continued to speak while the iron was hot.

"I think so too, the economy that has been stagnant for a century is finally showing signs of recovery, and we can't let it stop there......... At least not now.

The officer sitting next to Wei Lun couldn't help but clench his fists and scolded.

"Is it just watching them get bigger?"

Dulong said softly.

"I have to say that their power is growing, but we are also getting stronger.

"Don't say anything else, let's just say that the three thousand mercenaries who were hired to the front line to participate in the war, except for the dead and those who stayed there, at least one or two thousand of them came back, they are all soldiers who have been on the battlefield, not the kind of battlefield where slime molds are cleaned, but a hot war of firepower and firepower, we can completely integrate them and train them as grassroots officers!"

He had always dreamed that the town hall would have its own armament, and now is undoubtedly the best opportunity.

Seeing that Wei Lun fell into deep thought, Dulong's heart was slightly happy, but before he could be happy, his ally Malvin suddenly betrayed him.

"On the expansion of the army...... I don't think that's necessary, we just need to make sure that we have the ability to destroy each other with our neighbors. They are financially dependent on us and will depend on us even more in the future, and those loans are the chains around their necks...... This is more effective than army expansion.

Joke.

Once the army is expanded, it means that taxes will be raised, and the city hall is not peaceful, and he can't care less.

The residents of the outer city are almost drained, and there is no oil or water at all, and it is only recently that the number of jobs has increased, and the situation has only improved a little.

Where the money will come from, that's a clear thing.

Ignoring Duron's frantically glared at him, Malvin continued.

"If our city lord has no intention of expanding his territory, raising so many troops will only become a burden for us."

The nobles sitting at the conference table also nodded.

Most of them have properties in the city, and if they expand their army, it will inevitably lead to tax increases, which will further increase their operating costs.

At least on this matter, their position is the same as that of Boulder Bank.

Wei Lun frowned.

He could not care about Duron and the Malvern Governor, but he could not ignore the nobles sitting here.

Two centuries of intermarriage have left the power structure of the inner city intertwined.

Especially those old aristocrats, many of them did not spend money to buy "tickets" to enter the inner city, but were in the original building from the beginning.

Some of them maintain the operation of the castle lord's "core business", and some of them manage the assets of the distant world, and even the castle lord listens to their opinions.

At least listen selectively.

At this time, Malvin coughed lightly and said again.

"Don't worry too much, our neighbors are very trustworthy

After a pause, he continued

"Just yesterday, the man sent by the administrator brought us 12 chests of treasure. Those are all McLen's collections, and the valuation given by my professional appraisal team is 800~9.6 million chips...... The money will be used as an advance to repay the interest for the next three years. ”

Before the words fell, his eyes instantly warmed when he saw the nobles.

In particular, the shareholders of Boulder Bank,

Although these treasures go into the bank's vault and are not directly related to them, they will soon appear at auction.

Chips are just numbers for them, and the money spent can last forever, whether it's buying real estate, rare metals, imported goods from Ideal City, or treasures from the pre-war era.

Legion Captain's Collectibles......

I guess I won't let them down.

The atmosphere at the conference table suddenly became lively, and the excited exchanges and sleepy faces caught Du Long and Wei Lun off guard for a while.

"I didn't expect those hillbillies to be quite generous."

"This is not called generosity, this is the interest that should have been paid to us!

A nobleman sighed.

"War comes so fast.

Looking at the nobles who were talking excitedly, Malvin breathed a sigh of relief and a smile appeared on his face.

It looks like this card was played at the right time...

If there is anyone who is most unacceptable to the termination of financial cooperation with the Alliance, it is undoubtedly the Bank of Megalith.

The bankruptcy of the factory in Boulder City will make the nobles in the inner city uncomfortable and unable to eat, and even live a poor life, but it will not break the bones.

Malvern, however, is different.

Not only was his bank a creditor of the Alliance, but it also lent money to the factories in Boulder City so that the factory owners could expand production.

If the alliance's loans are frozen, those factories will not be able to collect their accounts and will not be able to repay their money, and a large area of bad debts will instantly detonate systemic risks.

That is, liquidity dries up.

Those hillbillies in the northern suburbs were very cunning, and as soon as they got the loan, they signed a lot of orders with the factories in Boulder City, and the production tasks were even scheduled for next year.

Malvern is only now reflecting on why the Alliance's representatives were so happy when signing contracts, including a series of unequal treaties that could not be used for spot trading, including the use of chips, including the establishment of escrow accounts, and so on.

The daring guys had already thought about tying him to their chariots from the beginning.

There is no doubt that he is the richest man in the city, but not all of his money is his own, and a large part of it is put by others.

Including those who live in the outer city, the nobles of the inner city, and even the lord of the city. In addition to private accounts, there are also taxes from the town hall, as well as military expenses from the militia regiments, etc.

If something goes wrong, it can't be solved by burning a few ledgers and dying a few people.

Thinking of that series of consequences, Malvin had a headache but also couldn't laugh or cry.

He had never been to the Alliance, but he was forced to become a member of half of the Alliance, and even had to withstand the pressure from the inner city for the Alliance...

And he just can't quit.

Because the benefits given by those people are so many......

After the meeting, I finally returned home.

Sitting on the soft sofa, Malvin rubbed the sour bags under his eyes and couldn't help but curse in a low voice.

"These cunning skunks......"

Alyssa, who was looking at the newspaper, tilted her head.

"Dad?

"What's wrong with my good daughter" Helvin immediately changed to a gentle expression, and rubbed his daughter's fluffy hair dotingly, "Dad is just a little tired, it's good to rest for a while."

Alyssa blinked, and Ice said smartly.

"Because of the war?"

"Not really, but it's a little bit of a deal......," Malvin sighed and said to himself wearily, "Ideally, the Alliance would take our money and fight the Legion so that we can make deals with the Alliance that wants us, and let the Alliance do what we want."

"But things went wrong, and they got the airship.

Alyssa said thoughtfully.

Glancing at the newspaper in her hand, Malvern smiled and nodded.

"That's right...... They got the airship and told us with fireworks that they had fixed it and that it would work...... These cunning little foxes. ”

"Isn't it a skunk?

"Ahem," Malvin coughed dryly, "don't learn from Daddy...... By the way, what do I say all this boring stuff for?

He didn't want his cute little daughter to think about those annoying things, and his two sons were very good people

One is familiar with business in the inner city, and the other is traveling in the ideal city, and he can safely entrust the future of his family to them.

Malvern yawned.

"It's getting late, your music teacher should be here in a moment... You'd better put the newspaper away, or your mother will see it and she'll be upset again.

Alyssa made a helpless expression and put down the newspaper in her hand.

"Okay"

The voice was full of reluctance,

She dragged out the last syllable very long.

Before dawn in the wasteland.

The night's festivities have come to an end, but the excitement at the forum continues.

And the reason for everything is naturally because of the announcement of the dog planning Ah Guang's release.

[The "Battle of Ruigu City" campaign rewards have been distributed, and the lottery will be opened for a limited time, so please exchange your points for prizes in time!] 】

[The "10,000 Miles of Sands" expansion pack has been officially launched, and in order to consolidate the fruits of victory, we will support our neighbors and drive the legions of chaos and plague to the desert

West! 】

[Expeditionary Force registration opens! ] (Note: Only combat classes are counted, life professional players don't have to worry, there will be exclusive expansion-related missions released in the future.) ）】

Tail: "Cough cough!" Golden Legends! (OwO) "Roshan Big Bun:"!! What did you draw? Tail: "Wait a minute, wait for me to talk about Kangkang first."

Quit smoking: "??? ”

Sisi: "Oh, it's worthy of Ah Wei, compared to the lottery, it's really the first floor is more important!" (マ一)

Battlefield Atmosphere Group: "Cry, I can't get the prize I won in Luoxia Province at all." ”

I'm the blackest: "It's okay pangolin, we'll use it for you first!" (funny)

(Angry)"

Quit smoking: "Fang Chang! The new expansion is out! ”

Irena: "What about analysis?" What about the commentary? Why hasn't it come out yet! Haven't had enough to eat? (funny) "Raven: "It's time for Cloud Planner to go to work!" ”

Canyon fugitive mole: "Damn....... This guy shouldn't have drawn the jackpot and didn't dare to bubble! ”

Spring Commander: "(shivering.jpg)"

Debt Big Eyes: "Grass! The Dogecoin Emperor is out!

(Angry)"

The construction site boy and the brick: "Tell me honestly what you draw!"

(Angry)"

Commander of the Spring: "Ahem...... Lollipop. ”

Construction site boy and brick: "Hahahaha! Rookie! ”

Fujito: "You... You really believe what he said.

Night Ten: "Damn, Fang Chang, this dog thing has really disappeared.... Damn, don't wait, it's going to be a few minutes later, see you online, brothers! ”

Lao Bai: "See you online." (bared teeth)"

Tempest: "(squinting smiles)"

Picking up trash level 99: "Whoa!! Meet at the entrance of Sewer Mission 117! Depart on time at seven o'clock, brush the sequence level quickly! ”

Looking at the noisy little players on the forum, Chu Guang was also sincerely happy for them.

Although he was bleeding profusely this time, and the league spent the expected entire year's budget in just one month, his young players have gained a lot.

The vast majority of players are rewarded with more than 2,000 credits, which is enough to buy a miner-type exoskeleton, while many players with outstanding contributions are rewarded with more than 20,000 credits.

In addition to a series of expenses such as ammunition, supplies, weapon attrition, logistics attrition, etc., the "direct rewards" issued to players in this battle alone reached 30 million silver coins!

And that's not even counting the cost of the draw.

At present, the price of silver on the official website trading platform is also fluctuating violently, but Chu Guang does not care very much.

The Bank Exchange is not a casino, let alone a wealth management product.

It is a "financing" channel for the closed beta "Wasteland Online" and players, or a tool he uses to "pay wages and subsidies" to players.

When the volume has shrunk to the right position and most speculators have left, he will put some technology that is not too difficult for the 21st century to digest.

Alternatives include jet fuel, laser components for ignition of controlled fusion, and so on....... These were pre-boom technologies.

As for how to properly use these technologies, it is not a matter for him to worry about, and I believe that he does not need to worry about it.

Chu Guang also discovered it suddenly.

Although his "business ability" was a little rusty at first, he has been in the position of manager for a long time, and he has become more and more comfortable in handling these affairs.

In addition, the points accumulated from the previous expansion to the present have finally come in handy.

Except for the fraction of the primary blind box and the intermediate blind box, most of the equipment issued by the advanced blind box was listed on the official website as a prize for the lottery.

Chu Guang divided the rewards into three "reward pools".

The first-level reward pool is mainly the loot captured from the legion, as well as the basic weapons produced by the alliance, the light weapons of the Boulder City military aid, etc., and the value is between 1~500 silver coins.

The secondary reward pool is dominated by relatively expensive equipment, including weapon attachments and exoskeletons, which are worth between 500 credits and 2000 credits.

The third-level reward pool is mostly the prizes that Chu Guang opened the blind box by himself, as well as the good things he got from the Ideal City, and so on.

The quality of these equipment is quite good, and Chu Guang believes that his little players can give full play to their brains and give full play to their value in the right places.

As for Chu Guang himself, the need for equipment is not so great.

Not to mention that he didn't have many opportunities to go to the front line, this god suit itself was close to full matching, if he was really given another axe, wouldn't he change from "Carl Franz" to "Hill Dwarf"? That's too fishy!

Now that even Niko has put on an exoskeleton, Chu Guang is even confident that he can overturn a tank alone on a frontal battlefield.

That's not an exaggeration.

After all, the nitrogen-powered hammer itself is used to destroy bunkers and anti-armor.

In addition, in addition to the high-tech equipment opened by those blind boxes, what surprised Chu Guang even more was the changes that had occurred in himself.

This time back from the front.

His level has finally broken through level 30!

1 second to remember: