The New City Plan Leaves Bibi Dong Stunned

"What's the meaning?"

On the mountaintop.

Golden Crocodile was stunned for a moment, then he realized what was happening and looked down at Li Mubai.

He didn't understand what Li Mubai had just said.

What do you mean by "the Spirit Hall absolutely must participate"?

If the Spirit Hall isn't involved in the construction of the new city, then who can?

These lands rightfully belong to the Spirit Hall; how dare anyone else interfere?

Or, could we let those merchants come and develop this new land themselves?

Ridiculous.

How is that possible!

Those local gentry and wealthy people aren't fools; why would they do something so thankless and exhausting if there's no profit to be made?

Think about it carefully.

Far away.

The voices of the youth resounded once again.

The voice pulled Golden Crocodile back to reality. He shook his head, sweeping away all the thoughts in his mind.

"Young people are inevitably proud and arrogant. If they don't listen to the advice of their elders, they'll suffer the consequences."

Watching the young man's departing figure, the Worshipper Golden Crocodile chuckled softly.

He did not approve of Li Mubai's earlier remarks.

Developing a wasteland would only be a loss for the Spirit Hall, and he wouldn't allow such a loss to happen to the Spirit Hall. At that time, he would only need to use the financial power held by the Worship Hall to interfere with the financial expenditures, which would not be a big deal.

He wouldn't let Li Mubai squander the Spirit Hall's wealth because of this, not even a little bit!

At this moment.

Li Mubai had already leisurely descended the mountain.

With a few flips and leaps, they left the desolate wilderness and entered the city.

The great sun, high in the sky, had already begun to set in the west.

Noon passed.

The first thing Li Mubai did upon arriving in the city was to find a restaurant and order a table full of food, all of it fine wine and meat—an exceptionally extravagant meal.

In the past, he wouldn't have dared to order like this.

After all, his salary was limited, and he still had to keep it for listening to music in brothels and appreciating flowers and beautiful women, so he wouldn't have a penny left.

As for now...

Eat! Eat to your heart's content!

They don't order the good dishes, they only order the expensive ones.

Why, you ask?

Li Mubai could only reply with one sentence, "I'm not short of money!"

Not long after.

The table in front of Li Mubai was laden with various dishes: steamed, braised, stir-fried, boiled, grilled...

All kinds of dishes are available.

Seeing that most of the dishes were served, Li Mubai picked up his chopsticks and began to eat.

After a while.

The once neatly arranged dishes on the table were now a mess. The steamed mandarin fish was reduced to a skeleton, and the braised beef had only two pieces of potato left...

"Waiter, the bill!"

Li Mubai wiped the grease off his mouth with a silk handkerchief, then shouted in a strong voice.

"Welcome, sir!"

A sharp, bright sound rang out

Not long after.

A figure dressed in a hempen robe appeared in the hall and trotted over to Li Mubai.

The person who came was the shop assistant, who was in charge of all kinds of business in the shop.

"Sir, how much is it in total..."

The waiter was about to speak when Li Mubai interrupted him directly:

"Keep the change, please."

As he spoke, Li Mubai lavishly pulled out a golden-orange Gold Soul Coin from his pocket and then lightly placed it on the corner of the table.

After paying, Li Mubai stood up and strode away.

The somewhat bewildered waiter then realized what was happening.

What do you mean, "no need to look anymore"?

Brother, even with all this food you've ordered, one gold coin isn't enough!

Are people these days so confident in dining and dashing?!

The boy, regaining his senses, grabbed the gold coins from the corner of the table and chased after Li Mubai, who was already about to walk out the door.

While chasing after them, they shouted loudly, "Wait a minute, sir! Wait a minute, sir!!"

The guests along the way all put down their chopsticks, looked up and stared with expressions of amused enjoyment.

"You called me?"

Li Mubai had already reached the gate, with one foot already across, when he heard someone calling from behind. Judging from the direction of the voice, he realized it was calling him, so he turned around in confusion.

Then they saw the waiter hurrying forward.

"What's going on? Didn't I say I didn't need change? Why are they still chasing after me? Does this restaurant have a rule that they have to give change to customers? This is really a great restaurant!"

Thinking of this, Li Mubai smiled.

But.

He's not short of money now!

"You..."

Li Mubai was about to refuse the change, but before he could speak, the boy interrupted, "Sir, one gold coin isn't enough!"

What?

Li Mubai, who was about to speak, immediately froze.

What's not enough?

Money?

This is a gold coin, how could it not be enough!

He had just eaten and found the food delicious, especially the ingredients, which were very fresh and fragrant, like a first love, leaving a lingering aftertaste.

"Waiter, are you sure you haven't made a mistake?"

Li Mubai immediately changed his story and asked with some doubt.

"No mistake, sir! The one gold coin you gave me is really not enough! If you don't believe me, I have a bill here, please take a look."

The boy looked distressed and took out an account book, handing it to Li Mubai.

As Li Mubai examined the item closely, the waiter explained from the side:

"Sir, the ingredients used in the dishes just served were all of considerable value."

I was going to remind you, but you said you had plenty of money and could just go for it, so I brought it up anyway.

Who would have thought that you would only give me one gold coin in the end!

Our restaurant is one of the better ones in Spirit City, so our prices are definitely higher than other restaurants.

In addition, the ingredients are precious; sir, this meal has cost you a full fifteen gold coins!

Upon hearing this...

Li Mubai's eyebrows twitched involuntarily.

He had already glanced at the prices on the bill, and just as the waiter had said, the prices of the ingredients were outrageous, much more expensive than in a normal restaurant.

How embarrassing!

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Li Mubai felt like he had nowhere to put his feet.

If it weren't for the pair of cloud-patterned boots he was wearing, everyone would have seen his toes clenched tightly together.

Embarrassed!

The soles of my shoes are practically worn through!

Li Mubai felt extremely uncomfortable, especially under the gaze of all the guests in the room, and the waiter's wary look, as if he were about to dine and dash.

Final.

Li Mubai paid the money and rushed out the door. In a few quick steps, he nimbly darted and turned, escaping this place of trouble.

The Pope's Hall.

After leaving the east of the city, Li Mubai went straight here.

He had already buried the embarrassment he felt earlier deep inside.

The sole purpose of coming here is to hand over the blueprints to Bibi Dong and let her decide on the new city's plan.

Although Bibi Dong had previously stated that the construction and development of the new city would be entirely handled by him.

However, Li Mubai felt that this was no small matter. Once the new city was developed, a large amount of cash would flow into the Spirit Hall's account. This situation would inevitably make some people in the Spirit Hall envious, especially those in the Worship Hall.

If the other party interferes with the project's progress, it will make potential investors hesitant and timid.

Therefore, we must first report this matter to Bibi Dong and explain the pros and cons.

"Pope Holiness, these are the blueprints for the new city. Please take a look."

In his previous life, Li Mubai had studied this field extensively and worked in engineering for quite some time, so drawing blueprints was naturally a piece of cake for him.

But Bibi Dong was different.

When she got up and went to Li Mubai's side, and took the blueprints Li Mubai handed her, she was completely stunned.

The drawing was covered with haphazard lines and a bunch of reference numbers labeled on it.

Bibi Dong couldn't understand it at all.

"Very good! I trust you to get things done!"

Bibi Dong looked at it 'seriously' for a while before nodding and saying with a satisfied expression.

Judging from her expression, it seemed as if she truly understood.

[This woman really understood it? That can't be right. I spent some time learning this myself. Should I test her?]

Hearing the familiar voice in her ear, Bibi Dong knew something was wrong.

To be honest.

She couldn't understand anything about the blueprint Li Mubai presented, except for some of the marked patterns.

The numerous lines on it are dazzling and their meaning is completely unclear.

But in order not to lose face.

Only then did she show an expression of understanding and praise Li Mubai.

She thought the matter was over, but she never expected that Li Mubai would be such a serious person.

"Pope Holiness, what do you think about turning this small hill into a park?"

Li Mubai held up one finger and pointed to a pattern on the drawing.

Is this a small hill?

Bibi Dong looked over and frowned slightly.

If Li Mubai hadn't said anything, she would have thought it was just a drawing...

Also, what is a park?

Bibi Dong didn't quite understand.

After thinking for a moment, she simply shook her head and said, "I'm leaving this entirely to you. You'll have to figure these things out for yourself."

This statement effectively shifted the question back to Li Mubai.

"Pope Holiness, you trust me that much? Aren't you afraid I'll...?"

Li Mubai's lips curled into a smile, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Bibi Dong chuckled softly, "Li Mubai, we've known each other for quite some time now, haven't we? Do you think I don't know what kind of person you are? You wouldn't do that."

Bibi Dong looked confident.

There was one more thing she didn't say: Even if you can embezzle without anyone noticing, you can't hide it from me. Everything about you is under my control.

Li Mubai smiled and said, "Pope Holiness, don't you know that you can't see into someone's heart? Do you really understand what kind of person I am? If I were to use my position to amass wealth, how would you know?"

"I don't know about others, but I know you perfectly well. Your own heart has already betrayed you."

Bibi Dong's lips curled slightly, a smug look appearing on her face.

However, she only thought these words to herself; there was no way she would say them aloud.

Never!

Seeing that Bibi Dong just smiled and didn't say anything, Li Mubai lost the desire to argue with her.

He came here with a purpose.

"Pope Holiness, I'll keep it short. I've come here to give you a heads-up."

The money that can be generated from the development of the new city is absolutely enormous.

I've roughly calculated that this sum will yield at least 6.5 million gold coins.

"What did you say?!"

Bibi Dong stared at Li Mubai in disbelief, then exclaimed in surprise.

She even doubted whether she had misheard.

Six and a half million gold coins—what an outrageous number!

How could a new city development possibly generate so much profit?

"Aren't you the Pope? Why are you making such a fuss? It's just 6.5 million gold coins. And that's just from selling the land. Once the new city is built, there will be a huge amount of tax revenue. In the future, this new city alone will contribute a large amount of revenue to the Spirit Hall."

Li Mubai was speechless.

It's just over six million Gold Soul Coin, isn't it?

Why make such a fuss?

But.

After thinking about it carefully, Li Mubai suddenly realized that these millions of Gold Soul Coin didn't seem like a small amount.

You need to know.

The monthly salary is only seven thousand Gold Soul Coin.

"It's just over six million Gold Soul Coin? Li Mubai, do you even know how much income the Spirit Hall earns each year?"

Bibi Dong stared at Li Mubai and asked.

Scratching his head, Li Mubai asked, bewildered, "How many?"

"Why don't you guess?" Bibi Dong wasn't in a hurry to tell him the answer, but instead asked him to guess a number.

Thirty million Gold Soul Coin?

Li Mubai asked tentatively.

In his opinion

The Spirit Hall is such a behemoth with a large number of Soul Master and cooperation with the two great empires, its annual income must be considerable.

His estimate of 30 million was a conservative one.

Upon hearing this answer, Bibi Dong shook her head expressionlessly, rejecting it.

"Then, forty million?"

Bibi Dong glared at him. "Why are you guessing more and more? If I really had forty million, what would I need you for?"

"No way, not even 40 million?"

Li Mubai found it hard to believe. The Spirit Hall, a massive and influential institution in the Soul Master World, actually had an annual income of less than a mere 40 million?

"If the Spirit Hall had an annual income of forty million, it would dominate the entire Soul Master World."

Bibi Dong said calmly.

Did you get that 20 million?

Li Mubai asked again.

Bibi Dong shook her head again.

"Ten million?"

This time.

Bibi Dong didn't shake her head; instead, she held up her finger and made a "V" sign.

"Thank goodness. If they didn't even have ten million, the Spirit Hall might as well just go bankrupt."

Li Mubai nodded.

That's not what I meant.

Just as Li Mubai breathed a sigh of relief, Bibi Dong's voice rang out again.

What does that mean?

Li Mubai blurted it out subconsciously.

"The Spirit Hall's annual revenue is still two million short of ten million. That means the Spirit Hall's annual revenue is only around eight million."

Bibi Dong's tone was full of regret.

Eight million? That's way too poor!

Li Mubai was somewhat puzzled.

Did he know that the Spirit Hall, in addition to its various branch halls, also had a large Guard Corps and army?

The latter two are, in a way, similar to the military.

The military has always been the most expensive sector, so how can the Spirit Hall, with only eight million in revenue, support all of them?

"So, according to you, the revenue generated by this new city is equivalent to more than half of the Spirit Hall's annual revenue?"

Li Mubai then realized what these six million yuan meant to the Spirit Hall.

"That's right! Now you understand why I was surprised, right? If what you said is true, then the Spirit Hall's revenue will increase significantly, and its power can be further enhanced!"

Bibi Dong's eyes were like fire, bright and piercing.

Just as Bibi Dong was still pondering the glorious achievements of the Spirit Hall, Li Mubai laughed and said:

"That's me! My contribution is enormous! How does His Pope plan to reward me?"

"You don't want the Spirit Hall to lose these revenues, right?"