Time Is Short

Just as Lu Bai said, he had taken the secluded elevator once and then once.

Although the elevator moves up and down very quickly, and the interior space is not particularly cramped.

But it all depends on what you're comparing it to.

Admittedly, disregarding safety risks, the secluded elevator could cramm over a hundred people into it at once.

However, when the number of people who need to be relocated reaches hundreds of millions, the gap becomes too large.

A rough calculation will tell you.

Assuming each elevator can carry 100 people, and considering the time it takes for people to get in and out, a round trip would take 10 minutes, which is not unreasonable, and is even considered fast.

So, how long would it take to relocate all the residents of the Underground City to the surface?

The answer is nearly seven thousand days, almost a full twenty years, to transport all one hundred million people.

Moreover, the number of people who need to return to the ground is more than 100 million.

"Shouldn't there be other means of transportation?"

Li Shan said uncertainly, "With my limited authority, I don't know what the method is, but historical records say that the entire process of entering the Underground City took three months."

Since it's primarily a canteen for city council employees, the food quality is quite good.

So Feng Yixuan was focused on eating at first and didn't participate in their conversation.

It's a pity she doesn't have a big appetite; she felt full after just a few bites.

Unable to eat, he could only slump in his chair and say, "With Deputy Captain Lu's authority, you should be able to find out, right? Anyway, you won't come to any conclusions from this discussion. If you're really curious, Deputy Captain Lu, you might as well just go to the records room and check."

In the end, Lu Bai still didn't go to the archives.

Pu Xueli and his companion, who were about to leave after having eaten and drunk their fill, overheard their conversation and casually gave their reply.

Ultimately, there was no point in continuing to conceal intelligence such as the relocation to the ground, which had previously required strict secrecy, as the formal relocation was about to begin.

"So, that building inside the military restricted area is essentially a super-large staircase leading to the ground?"

Both Li Shan and Feng Yixuan were surprised by this answer.

But thinking about it carefully, it doesn't seem so strange.

Don't forget, this building is indeed the tallest structure in the Underground City, and it reaches all the way to the ceiling of the shelter.

From a distance, it looks like a pillar connecting the sky and the ground.

Almost no one could have imagined that the hidden parts of this building were far more than the exposed parts.

Pu Xueli hummed in agreement, then looked at Lu Bai: "You've been inside, but you probably don't know that the building has more than 404 floors; its actual height is 4404 floors."

Lu Bai stroked his chin. "So, that means there are many more secluded elevators above the 404th floor?"

At this point, Pu Xueli's expression became very complicated, and he slowly said, "That's right, the elevator you rode was actually the No. 0001 seclusion elevator. There are a total of one thousand seclusion elevators."

It must be acknowledged that no matter how urgent the city council's situation is, it's impossible for them to set targets that are completely unattainable.

One thousand secluded elevators, each carrying one hundred to one hundred and fifty people, will allow more than one hundred million people to return to the surface.

The minimum time required is exactly seven days.

This is precisely why Pu Xueli was furious upon learning the news.

This proves that the majority of people in the city council...

They didn't consider whether unexpected things might happen along the way, nor did they care about the feelings or even the lives of any individual.

It's fair to say that these people weren't treated as living, breathing individuals at all, but rather as simple, quantifiable data.

The councilor wearing gold-rimmed glasses tugged at Pu Xueli, signaling him not to be so obvious, as there were many eyes watching in the cafeteria.

Having served as principal for so many years, Pu Xueli quickly regained his composure and said, "Then we'll be leaving now. Don't worry too much. Now that the mission is over, relax and recharge. You'll probably have a lot to do later."

"That feels so good."

Feng Yixuan was wearing a silk massage robe and holding a wine glass in her hand. The deep red wine was less than a third full in the glass.

She sat on the sofa, swirling the wine glass in her hand, and crossed her legs contentedly.

Li Shan sat at the other end of the sofa, glanced at the clock on the wall, and took a sip of red wine. "The relocation has already begun, hasn't it?"

The light released by Lu Bai is a power, so it naturally cannot achieve the effects of sunset and moonrise like the sun or a holographic screen.

This resulted in [the situation occurring] even after midnight.

The entire Underground City remained as bright as day.

"Didn't they say the relocation of the people was brought forward?" Feng Yixuan picked up City Direct Military's personal communication device from the table and waved it.

It appears that the Coordination Committee members held another internal meeting and ultimately decided to bring forward the relocation time for the residents.

"It's a good thing, I guess. Although it's still very tight, having more time is always a good thing."

Li Shan finished the remaining red wine in her wine glass in one gulp.

It didn't feel like enjoying fine wine at all; it felt more like drinking cold water because someone was thirsty.

Feng Yixuan tilted her head, her eyes glazed over as she looked at Lu Bai, who was lying on the massage bed. "Deputy Captain Lu, are you really not going to have a drink?"

With his hands behind his head and his eyes closed, Lu Bai could tell he wasn't asleep.

No, thank you.

"Tch~"

Feng Yixuan randomly picked a movie and played it on the Projector, muttering things like "boring man."

Before the movie's opening credits had even finished, a man dressed as a secretary barged in, his attitude quite respectful. "Is Deputy Captain Lu here?"

"What's up?"

Lu Bai reopened his eyes and turned to look at the uninvited guest.

"Speaker Xiao wants to see you. Could you please come with me?"

"Please allow me to refuse."

Upon hearing this unexpected reply, Xiao Zhengyan's secretary was immediately at a loss.

He looked around, then gritted his teeth, walked to the massage bed where Lu Bai was, and whispered in her ear, "It's about Speaker Xiao's son."

Lu Bai was about to say, "What does Xiao Zhengyan's son have to do with me?" when he suddenly realized what he was saying and narrowed his eyes slightly, "Xiao Xueyin?"

After hesitating for a moment, Lu Bai sat up and let the secretary lead the way.

Strangely, the secretary did not lead Lu Bai towards the speaker's office, but instead went straight downstairs and headed towards the parking lot.

"So it seems that after Speaker Xiao left the lounge midway through, he left the City Council Building directly and hasn't returned yet?"

The secretary nodded in agreement as he started the car.

He then added, "You'll find out the specifics when you arrive."