Countless people exchanged bewildered glances at Uchiha Kō. "Wait, bro, you're going all this way! You even have to supervise your own wife."
Uchiha Kō's actions also extinguished the desire of some smaller clans to embezzle public funds. There was no way around it; some things couldn't withstand scrutiny, and many things would lead to serious trouble if investigated.
At the same time, the leaders of the various ninja clans couldn't help but nod in approval. This was good news, as they believed that this large sum of money would definitely be used for village construction.
"Who else wants to apply for funding? Raise your hand if you'd like!" Uchiha Kō's words were filled with encouragement and expectation. He looked at the crowd; wasn't this also a time to select talent?
In his eyes, Konoha still had too few public officials. They couldn't assign specific tasks to specific individuals, nor could they immediately take on and handle the issues raised by the people.
This is not good, so today we will conduct selection and appointment based on the questions raised by the clan leaders. This was also something that Uchiha Kō came up with on his way back.
Uchiha Izuna raised his hand in signaling, which surprised Uchiha Kō. Did his grandfather have some good idea?
"Please explain the amount and purpose of the funds you are requesting Uchiha Izuna," Uchiha Kō said calmly.
Uchiha Izuna stood up, went up on the stage, first bowed slightly to Uchiha Kō, and then bowed to the clan leader and the representatives of the commoners below the stage.
"I have a suggestion. In order to improve everyone's quality of life, increase the speed and connection of transportation between Konoha and other villages within Konoha, and accelerate economic prosperity, we should build roads." Uchiha Izuna's words made everyone somewhat puzzled.
We're all ninjas, so running errands doesn't seem necessary.
Uchiha Kō in everyone's expressions and sighed inwardly. These people were really short-sighted; he could roughly guess what they were thinking.
However, it's important to know that Konoha isn't entirely populated by ninjas; a large portion of the population are ordinary people working in various professions, such as textiles and food processing.
Could their raw materials only come from Konoha? Impossible, that wouldn't be enough to feed the entire Konoha. So what do they do?
We need to go to nearby towns to negotiate and finally agree on the purchase price and shipping costs.
Uchiha Izuna smiled and explained the pros and cons. Most of the ninjas then understood the importance of this move.
Only a small minority of people, who are not very sensitive to economic development, hold a skeptical and negative attitude.
"Izuna, how much funding do you plan to apply for?" Uchiha Kō asked calmly. He looked at his grandfather, Uchiha Izuna, and couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive; this was a lot of money.
Uchiha Izuna laughed and said, "I only need 50 billion." As soon as Uchiha Izuna said this, everyone was stunned. They didn't expect that so much money would be needed, which would cost more than the hospital's equipment.
What puzzled them even more was that Uchiha Kō was thinking to himself. He shook his head, and everyone thought he didn't want to pass the suggestion.
Uchiha Kō spoke up, "Five hundred billion isn't enough. If you want to implement this policy, you'll need at least one hundred billion. Uchiha Izuna, I'll give you one hundred billion. The Senju Hyūga Clan will supervise and cooperate with you to complete this together."
"The road construction progress must be reported every five days (small report) and every ten days (large report), with detailed information required, including the flow and destination of every penny of funds."
Everyone was shocked. A hundred billion? That's five times the cost of the hospital, just to build a road? Is it even worth it?
Uchiha Kō spoke up, "If you want to get rich, build roads first. Izuna's idea was a hundred years ahead of the entire Ninja World." Uchiha Kō made the decision, setting the direction.
With no objections from the group, the specifics would be decided by the Uchiha, Senju, Hyuga themselves after the meeting.
Just like that, 120 billion was gone. Uchiha Kō sighed, "As expected, money is spent like water. But this is good for Konoha, so it's worth spending even if it's expensive!"
Nara Rokumei raised his hand, Uchiha Kō nodded. "Lu Ming, please speak freely."
Nara Rokumei stepped onto the Tsunade, bowed like Uchiha Izuna had just done, and then offered his suggestion. "I believe that since Izuna- sama has already covered transportation (clothing, food, shelter, and transportation), let's talk about shelter."
"In Konoha these days, most of the houses belonging to various clans are only one or two stories high, occupying a large area, but there may not be enough people living there. I think, if we could build taller buildings, wouldn't it be able to accommodate more people and make Konoha more prosperous?" Nara Rokumei said earnestly.
Writing this hits a nerve with many families. Many family ninjas take pride in these big houses and villas, which symbolize their family's strength, economy, and status.
The Nara Rokumei incident is undoubtedly a blow to their interests; how can this be allowed!
"The ninja clan has always built this kind of architecture. Lord Lu Ming, isn't what you're doing a bit inappropriate?"
"Exactly! These houses represent the face of our family; how can we just abandon them like that!"
"I disagree! I absolutely disagree!"
Nara Rokumei glanced at the speakers and found that they were all from small families. Although the expressions of the large families were not good, they did not speak up themselves.
Uchiha Kō glanced at Nara Rokumei. So he's going into real estate. People in real estate are all dirty-minded. Lu Ming must have already prepared countermeasures for all sorts of situations before proposing this. He'll just have to wait and see.
Nara Rokumei took a deep breath. "Everyone, the compensation for building a new house will be double the value of your original house. Alternatively, you can choose to receive a new house for free."
"This will not only increase the population that Konoha can accommodate, but also allow your relatives and friends to live together and enjoy family life." As soon as Nara Rokumei said this, the commoner ninjas were all interested.
These commoner ninjas weren't from any clan; all they cared about were their relatives and friends, and the new house seemed to meet their needs.
However, faced with so many families, they were only tempted, and no one stepped forward to observe further.
Nara Rokumei spoke again, "Those who support now can enjoy a 20% discount."
The commoner ninja immediately raised his hand, "That's enough! A house costs a lot of money, and this 20% discount will ease their burden. Besides, it's just raising your hand, it won't do any harm."
The clan ninja's faces were grim. Nara Rokumei glanced at them and said, "Demolition and reconstruction can only proceed with the clan head's approval. There will be no forced demolition. You can all observe and see what the new houses look like before making a decision."
Now, all the ninja clans reached a consensus and raised their hands in agreement. After all, they were all from Konoha, and who wouldn't want Konoha's population to increase?
The more people there are, the more prosperous Konoha will become.
Uchiha Kō nodded and asked, "So, how much funding do you plan to apply for?"