Something Went Wrong

With Su Jie's command, Jieko Company received instructions, and its employees rushed out in all directions, extending the scope of the insect-catching plan to the entire Mande City region.

Especially in hundreds of townships and villages, farmers with meager incomes rejoiced with their families, excitedly joining the insect-catching teams.

For a time, people could be seen wandering in the mountains and wilds all over the Mande City region.

These people were all going into the mountains to catch insects to sell poisonous insects to Jieko Company.

At the sales points set up by Jieko Company, long queues formed in front of the entrances, with a continuous stream of people from morning till night, bringing newly caught poisonous insects to sell.

The sudden surge in insect numbers was more than the Thousand-Hand Centipede could digest at once, so large areas of land and warehouses were purchased.

Chen Yaoguang, specially transferred from Hua Country by Su Jie, led a group of breeding experts to transform these warehouses into insect farms, allowing more people to work for Jieko Company.

Not only in rural areas, but also in Mande City, a large number of citizens joined the insect-catching teams.

The income from catching insects far exceeded the meager wages earned from working.

While Jieko Company's insect-catching plan was in full swing, some local rent-seekers merely watched it as a joke.

In their opinion, Jieko Company was simply throwing money away and would soon exhaust its resources and stop.

However, they waited, and ten days passed, but Jieko Company was still booming.

Twenty days passed, and Jieko Company's acquisition sites still saw a continuous stream of people every day.

A month passed, Jieko Company's expansion continued, and the number of employees recruited even surpassed 2,500. More than half of the population in the Mande region were working for Jieko Company, catching insects for them.

Even due to the excessive number of people and to protect local insect resources, the reduction in poisonous insect numbers caused by insect catching led to a sharp decrease in people's income. Jieko Company thoughtfully proposed the initiative of "raising insects by people."

They distributed poisonous insects free of charge to the local populace and taught them artificial breeding, with slogans shouted loudly, such as "Get rich by raising insects," "To achieve a moderately prosperous society, start by raising insects," and "If you want to be rich, Jieko will lead the way."

Under this pervasive propaganda and financial offensive, almost all the labor force in the Mande City region was drawn into the torrent of insect catching stirred up by Jieko.

This time, the rent-seeking class in the Mande City region could no longer sit still.

Because people were no longer willing to work for them and only wanted to flock to Jieko Company.

A jeep drove up to the Jieko Company's headquarters building, followed by two military vehicles. A group of soldiers in green uniforms carrying AKs jumped out.

An officer, impeccably dressed in a crisp military uniform and shiny leather shoes, emerged from the jeep and, under the escort of a group of soldiers, swaggered into Jieko Company.

The employees working in the building looked stunned, unsure of what was happening.

It wasn't until they clearly saw the leading officer that many of these employees' faces changed drastically, recognizing his identity.

Because this face was too famous in the Mande region.

This person was Lu Wenbo, the actual controller of the Mande United Army, whom many people called General Lu.

He hailed from the Lu Family, one of the three major families. His Mande United Army numbered over a thousand men and possessed a large quantity of firearms and ammunition, including light and heavy machine guns, mortars, rocket launchers, and other military equipment. He also operated businesses such as taxation, casinos, brothels, entertainment centers, opium, fraud, and organ trafficking, making him a veritable local overlord in the Mande region.

The most sensational incident Lu Wenbo committed in the Mande region was a large-scale escape from one of his telecom fraud parks. He dispatched troops to suppress it, killing and injuring an unknown number of people, staining half a street red with blood.

Lu Wenbo pointed at an employee and asked, "Where is the person in charge here?"

"Boss, the boss went to the countryside to inspect the insect farm."

The employee pointed at trembled all over and explained tremblingly.

"Are you playing with me?"

A ferocious smile appeared on Lu Wenbo's lips. He drew the pistol from his waist and pulled the trigger without a word.

BANG!

The interrogated employee was shot in the stomach, blood gushing out and staining his clothes. He fell to the ground, writhing in pain.

"You tell me, where is your boss?"

Pointing at another employee, Lu Wenbo continued to question, exuding arrogance, completely unconcerned about firing a gun in the street.

"He really went to the countryside. I don't know where the boss is!"

Seeing the fate of the previous unfortunate employee, the second employee was on the verge of tears.

No other employees dared to speak up; they all trembled, as the muzzles of the other soldiers' AKs were also aimed at them.

Lu Wenbo snorted coldly, knowing that his timing was off and that the employees wouldn't dare to lie to him.

"Tell your boss to come to my military camp when he returns. From now on, your Jieko Company must pay a special business tax of 80%. If you don't pay, then tell him the consequences for a Chinese person who offends me here."

After speaking, Lu Wenbo aimed his gun at the ceiling and emptied the magazine.

Then, with a wave of his hand, he left with his troops, hands behind his back.

Only after Lu Wenbo was far away did the employees frantically help the injured man on the ground and rush him to the hospital for treatment.

As for calling the police, no one did.

Because the police station was merely a dog of Lu Wenbo; how could a dog dare to manage its master?

Lazhi Village!

Su Jie was inspecting a farm here, with Chen Yaoguang accompanying him.

"Mr. Su, we have modified the centipede and scorpion farms for the villagers according to local conditions. The tropical climate and temperature here are very suitable for poisonous insects to grow. As long as there are no serious diseases, breeding can be easily completed."

Chen Yaoguang pointed to a small farm, which was converted from a dilapidated earthen house. Centipedes crawled in and out between the cracks of the bricks and stones and the broken tiles.

A young man with dark skin was working, tossing yellow mealworms inside as food for these centipedes.

Su Jie nodded and walked closer, asking the dark-skinned young man, "What's your name?"

"This is our Boss Su from Jieko Company."

Chen Yaoguang reminded him, as he often went to the countryside to teach villagers farming techniques, so many people recognized him.

"My name is Miao Lun. Are you the big boss of Jieko Company?"

Upon hearing Chen Yaoguang's words, Miao Lun trembled all over, excitedly wanting to step forward to shake hands but not daring to.

"Genuine article. I'd like to ask, are you satisfied with your current life?"

Su Jie proactively stepped forward, patted the other's shoulder, and asked with a kind smile.

"Satisfied, of course I'm satisfied. Ever since your Jieko Company arrived, the money I earned from catching insects cured my mother's illness and allowed my sister to go back to school. Now my family has also invested in the village-run Poisonous Insect farm. This is the life I've dreamed of living day and night."

Miao Lun spoke passionately about the events happening around him. The villagers working near the farm, having heard that the big boss of Jieko Company had arrived, also gathered around one by one, expressing their gratitude volubly.

Su Jie smiled and responded to them one by one. Just then, Liu Yingying ran over in a panic and shouted to Su Jie, "Boss Su, something's happened."