"Morning, Factory Director."
"Morning."
"Good morning, Mister Ji."
"Mm, good morning."
New Spring Town was already bustling and noisy in the early morning. The rebuilt market district, now several times larger than before, was packed with people.
Passersby eagerly greeted Ji Jue as he walked by. He waved back, taking in the morning scenery. A stall owner leaned out and asked, "Out this early, Mister Ji? Want a bowl of rice noodles?"
"Sure. Add an egg. Got any chili?"
"Coming right up. Please wait a moment."
The stall owner grinned and quickly served him a paper bowl of soup noodles piled high with beef and sprinkled with chili. One mouthful of noodles and broth, and the damp chill of the morning vanished beneath the salty, fragrant heat.
The taste was pretty good, and the meat was decent too.
It was just... somewhat technological.
But out in the Wilderness, let alone worrying about technology, being able to eat rice noodles fresh out of the pot was already progress. Who had that many standards?
The price was fair enough. Nobody had any reason to complain about anyone else.
Ji Jue slurped his noodles and watched idly.
The market teemed with people. Amid the lively clamor was a chaotic din of chickens squawking and dogs barking, with greetings drifting over from the passing crowds now and then.
The bleakness and desolation of the rainy season had already disappeared.
It was not just settlers from the Wilderness and Garbage Collectors. Merchants from Yacheng and Tide City had gradually begun to arrive as well.
As Coast Industry expanded further, more and more employees—and their spending power with nowhere else to go—had drawn in even more businesses. Prosperity had arrived so suddenly that even Ji Jue had trouble reacting to it.
Even if this prosperity was