Wealth Everywhere - Extra Chapter Named by Fu He Huan, 18

Even though a single Galil can buy a large bucket of clean water from the water cart, many people here don't have any money, not even a single galil.

Based on the current Exchange Rate of Galil to Federal Sol, one Galil is roughly equal to one Federal Sol, but in reality, it's less than one Sol.

But they didn't even have a single penny! This shocked the Provincial Governor, and filled him with even greater fear.

"Why...why are they broke? I know these people live a hard life, but no one ever talks about it." The Provincial Governor Drag's eyelids twitched uncontrollably. He rubbed them, but it didn't help.

Perhaps the uncontrollable twitching of his eyelids gave him a sense of fear of losing control of his body, and his tone became increasingly urgent, "It's just one dollar!"

His voice caught Lano's attention, and after some time, he finally got a name of his own, which was the highlight of his life.

But he didn't dwell on this brief moment. He felt his future would be even brighter, after all, he would inevitably take the Scepter of Power from the Provincial Governor Drag and become the most powerful man in the province.

So, he was also curious about the question his father had raised at this time. You know, just the daily necessities for the family, such as food, cost tens of thousands of Galil. He didn't think a dollar was much, and he wouldn't even bend down to pick it up if he saw it.

The butler felt that having the Provincial Governor come out was not a good idea, so he had to explain again.

Those elderly people do not represent the entire lower class of society; they are just the lowest of the low. They have been abandoned by their families or have lost their families for other reasons. They cannot find jobs that pay cash and can only survive on food. Therefore, they cannot afford to spend a single dollar to buy a bucket of water.

Even if they had a dollar, they wouldn't do that; they'd rather fill their stomachs than use water to cool off.

This explanation eased the Provincial Governor's tension somewhat, especially when the butler mentioned that ordinary families actually earned several thousand Galil a month. The Provincial Governor was no longer as anxious as before.

He asked another question, "What about those stray dogs? Are they kept by these people?"

This question changed the butler's expression. It had been a casual question, and the Provincial Governor's thought was probably something like, "Even though they seem terrible, they can still afford dogs, so they can't be all that bad."

He wanted to get a result that could deceive himself, but the change in the butler's expression immediately made him think of another aspect. He snorted coldly, not letting the butler continue to answer, and instead gave an order, "Starting tomorrow, find some work for our police to hunt and kill stray dogs."

The Provincial Governor continued walking forward with a dark face, but Lano held onto the butler tightly, asking, "What exactly happened?" His life experience was not yet enough for him to understand some cruel things.

The butler whispered something in his ear, and his face turned gloomy.

This was destined to be no pleasant undercover visit.

The more places he traveled, the more three-dimensional an ordinary society appeared in the eyes of the Provincial Governor Drag, but the more he understood it, the less he understood it.

Why would such a barren and backward place attract the attention of so many capitalists from the Federal? If it were covered in jewels and gold, he could understand, since he wanted those things too. But there was nothing here, so why did those people still come here? "I don't know, Father. There's nothing here except people!" Lano complained. This question was really too difficult.

But it was this very statement that gave the Provincial Governor Drag a vague sense of enlightenment.

Looking at the densely packed people around him, who seemed like walking corpses, a terrifying thought crossed his mind.

What if one day all these people came back to life? What would that be like? Perhaps that's what those capitalists are after? He had this thought, though he wasn't sure.

Just as the Provincial Governor Drag began to truly contemplate his power, status, and the country as a true ruler for the first time since taking over power from his father, a cruise ship docked at the distant shore (a few days later).

As soon as Lin Qi got out of the car, the Sergeant and his former Young Men came to greet him.

Besides Lin Qi, many more soldiers were sent here after a short period of training.

In fact, they do not need training. They are all soldiers who have just been demobilized in the army downsizing. They have not even fully realized that they have said goodbye to their past identities. They can be fully committed to combat missions at any time.

As for the issue of loyalty, it's not a big problem. Once they figure out who pays their salaries, who feeds them and their families, and who brings them glory, they will understand who they should be loyal to.

I have to say, money is a damn good thing! "During my absence, did anything unusual happen?" Lin Qi took off his sunglasses, looked at the sergeant standing in front of him giving him a standard Sergeant, and returned the salute in a seemingly standard manner.

There are ways to interact with soldiers, just as there are ways for Lin Qi to interact with bankers. He doesn't force these people to shake hands with him, allowing them to use a military salute instead, which in itself is a way to win people's respect.

"No, boss, everything is peaceful here, and it's even a bit quiet..."

A group of foreigners with guns—even the most troublesome wouldn't dare approach them rashly.

As they were talking, the Sergeant's gaze was drawn to what the soldiers behind Lin Qi were carrying: boxes of gray matte-colored wood coated with waterproof paint. The Sergeant knew what was inside just by looking at them.

Lin Qi glanced back and said with a smile, "Recently, many people have gone abroad to seek opportunities. The President is pleased to see such thoughts and actions, but considering that the lives and property of those Federal citizens abroad may be endangered, the Presidential Decree allowing the purchase of all types of weapons."

"All types?" The Sergeant's face showed a hint of surprise.

Although the Federal does not ban guns, not everything can be sold. Automated weapons, some explosives with enormous destructive power, including various large-caliber weapons that can be described as "cannons," are prohibited from being sold to individuals.

However, this time, the Federal has made an exception: people can purchase these weapons when leaving the country and carry them with them, but they cannot enter the country.

Lin Qi bought some new and Standard Weapon weapons and sent them over to replace the weapons that were not very suitable for them before.

The Sergeant was excited, as were the other Young Men. They quickly became friends with the new Young Men. They were all from the army, all unlucky guys who had been laid off, all from the same place, and now working for the same company and the same boss.

With so many similarities, they blended in almost without much barrier. The Sergeant had the car loaded onto a truck and sent to the base first, while Lin Qi and the others went to see the Provincial Governor.

His company will soon be recruiting here, and he'll definitely need to inform the Provincial Governor first. He also wants to see if Drag's attitude is any different now than it was in the Federal.

Lin Qi's car entered the Provincial Governor Drag's courtyard without any trouble. The Provincial Governor was already waiting for him at the gate. The two greeted each other warmly for a few minutes before entering the Provincial Governor's study.

"This is my third son, Lano. After I come down, he will replace me as the Provincial Governor," Drag introduced his son before letting Lano leave.

Lano saw that Drag valued and doted on him, but he didn't know that Drag's true favorite child was about to arrive in the Federal.

"Before we talk about what we should be discussing next, may I ask a question?" The Provincial Governor Drag was still pondering his questions, and now that Lin Qi had arrived, he was even more eager to know the answers.

Lin Qi nodded slightly. "Please speak."

The Provincial Governor Drag looked into Lin Qi's eyes and asked, word by word, in very standard Common Language, "What is it here that attracts you and others?"

"I think I've guessed something; it's probably related to people, but I still can't figure out what those people could do!"

"If you don't want to answer, you can refuse to answer; I understand."

After asking his question, the Provincial Governor Drag breathed a sigh of relief and looked expectantly at his relatives.

Lin Qi said almost without thinking, "Humans are worthless, Your Governor-General. A natural human being... do you understand what that means?"

"It refers to humans born naturally..." Drag knew the term and understood it without any problems.

Lin Qi nodded and continued, "Yes, people are worthless, even less valuable than some useful beef cattle. When a cow dies, you can eat the beef, but when a person dies, we have to spend money to dispose of their body."

"However, Your Governor-General, labor has value, or rather, productivity has value."

"A piece of iron ore may only be worth a few cents, but through labor, it is transformed into a small iron ingot, and then it is worth about fifteen cents."

"This small iron ingot worth fifteen cents will be turned into hundreds or thousands of needles during the processing. Let's say a thousand needles, and each one is worth five cents, so that would be fifty dollars."

"If we remove the material costs, which account for less than a third of the finished product's value, what's left, besides the profit, is the value of labor."

"People are not valuable, but their labor power and productivity are valuable."

"When these people realize their self-worth and receive compensation through labor and production, they regain the right to be exploited."

"In your eyes, this is just a barren land, but in my eyes, wealth is piled up like mountains here!"