“Heavenly Pride, we can’t even get a full meal, where will we find the energy to dig the mountain?” Elder Nian was wearing a bitter smile on his face. He knew that if they planned to dig through the mountain, they would need stone craftsmen and laborers for sure. However, his men were surviving on half a kilo of rice every day, feeling dizzy with hunger. They didn’t even have the energy to meet their wives, let alone talk about digging a mountain.
“YOU need not to worry about that.” Tang Luo carelessly said, “I will feed the men working for the construction of the city in the mountain. This will certainly satiate their hunger. What is difficult about it?
“Even if the issue of food supply can be resolved, what about the materials and wooden components?” Ou Yu asked, frowning. “Red Cloud Mountain has a lot of crystal ores but lacks timber. Copper and iron materials are even rarer. Making a delicious soup is challenging without rice. Even if we agree to help Heavenly Pride to build the city, the lack of materials makes things impossible.”
“Why are you speaking as if we are building the city for me? You also have to live here, right?” Tang Luo first got angry and then laughed. “Master Ou, there are a lot of craftsmen in the world who use stones and woods to build houses and palaces. It’s not like we are desperate without you. If we lack timber, copper, and iron, we can build the city with the crystals from Red Cloud! The first city made of crystals in the history of Longzhou, this unique opportunity is right in front of you, and yet you are treating it like a normal city, doesn’t that seem improper?”
His words were very inspiring and enlightening.
Ou Yu’s massive body shivered, and millions of his pores suddenly opened. The words of a young man lightened up his passion for craftsmanship.
He walked towards the map in a trance, and the only part he noticed was the area that represented the main peaks of the Red Clouds. He gently ran his calloused fingers over the peak, as if he could flatten the mountain top with just that.
A gigantic city made of crystals suddenly appeared in his mind, majestic and magnificent.
The sunlight scattered on the city, creating an illusion of a miracle.
The light was so bright that Ou Yu had to squint his eyes, and still tears seepedout.
“A city made of crystal, how splendid it would be!” Ou Yu turned his head and asked, “What’s its name?”
“I am thinking of calling it ‘Unparalleled City.’ What do you think, Master Ou?” “Unparalleled City?” Ou Yu suddenly felt as if he had wasted his entire life. His ideas of a ‘Glorious City’ and ‘Red Cloud City’ seemed far inferior to the ‘Unparalleled City’ a fifteen-year-old boy had conceived.
“I have a humble request.” Ou Yu pleaded to Tang Luo, “Although Tang Clan has many master craftsmen, I still plead to the Heavenly Pride to assign the design work of Unparalleled City to me! I beg of you!”
“Of course.” Tang Luo had announced this because he wanted these reputable figures of Xiling in front of him to take on the task.
Let the professionals do their job. In his previous life, Tang Luo had seen many impressive buildings, and he could manage simple tasks like making mud play dough, but it would probably be a hassle for him to make a chair by himself. An amateur directing a professional was always fatal.
Therefore, Tang Luo only set the goal. Just like chess, the final result depends on the moves of these top-notch craftsmen from Xiling.
“Not only you, Master Ou, just your craftsmanship won’t be enough to build the Unparalleled City.” Tang Luo looked at notables in front of him and chuckled. “So this is the job I have arranged for all of you. Is anyone unwilling?
Tang Luo’s style was to say the demotivating part first. He wouldn’t provide food and shelter to these notables without a cost. If they wanted these essentials, they had to pay for them or earn them by working.
It was easy to guess that these people wouldn’t carry a lot of gold while climbing the mountain. Those who believed that the floods would recede would keep their money and treasures hidden in the clan’s vault which means they wouldn’t have a lot of gold or silver treasures.
So, whether they were willing or not, they had to participate in the construction of Unparalleled City in order to eat.
It could be said that the main task of the Righteous Gang at the moment was to assemble followers, converting these independent citizens of Xiling into their subjects.
These reputable figures from Xiling were contributing to the city’s building. They were the best among the industry’s Five Elements and Eight Works in Xiling. Although they were not as good as the elders and famous people from the clan, the cost of using them now was considerably low.
For others, sourcing food during a disaster would be as difficult as ascending to heaven, but for Tang Luo, it was not a problem at all.
Before the flood, he might have to exhaust all the supplies of his clan to build this massive crystal city. But now, he only needed a bit of food.
A few kilos of food could employ a craftsman to work for him for a day. He couldn’t even have imagined this scenario before the floods.
Although he had never thought of making a fortune in this disaster, he unknowingly gained a lot.
Well, this is how the world works. There are always people who make a fortune even during hard times, and bankruptcy during prosperous times. The only differences are capabilities and means.
The advantage of a noble plan is that everything is clear and transparent. If you can accept it, we can cooperate, and even if you can’t, there are no underhand dealings.
The honesty of the plan laid down by Tang Luo calmed the fears of the reputable figures, and they accepted his terms of exchange. They were, after all, workmen whose ancestral skills were used to earn a living. They felt fortunate to be alive and able to use their skills during the disaster.
Soon, voices of agreement filled the air, and the group of men committed to building the Unparalleled City, beating their chests.
Tang Luo walked back to his seat with a smile on his face, and then said, “Now that we have agreed on the construction of the city, let’s discuss something else.”
“In three days, the Xiao family will send ten million kilos of grain and the spiritual grass that will be enough to suppress the plague. Master Sun, I request you to stay in Du family’s territory. I will hand over the herbs and grains to you for distribution. What is your opinion?”
Sun Jinfang was stunned. He couldn’t believe that Tang Luo would trust him with such a significant responsibility. He wanted to say yes at first but then tactfully declined, “Heavenly Pride, you are overestimating me. I am just a doctor, and it’s my duty to treat and heal people. As for the distribution of resources, it would be best to leave it to the elders of the Du family.” “They have other matters.” Tang Luo casually said, “Owing to Master Sun’s high moral integrity and independent status, people will trust you the most with the distribution of food. I will arrange for the members of the Righteous Gang to assist you. What do you think?”
It’s not that he didn’t trust Du Ting and his people. Firstly, they were expected to accompany him on the food shopping trip, and more importantly, he could not trust these individuals’ ethical standards. He was worried that they might cause public outrage. The axiom “If the moral character doesn’t match a position, calamity occurs” was the reason why Tang Luo insisted on handing over the task to Sun Jinfang.
“This….” After hemming and hawing for quite some time and after a lot of thinking, Sun Jinfang finally decided to accept, “Rest assured, I will not let down your trust.”
Tang Luo nodded, “Okay then. I will leave it to you, Master Sun.”
While these few were conversing, the three elders of the Du family completed their task allocation in the Righteous Gang and returned to the council hall to report to Tang Luo.
“You all have returned at the right time.” Tang Luo gestured to the three of them to not report in a hurry and went straight to the point, “In three days, ten million kilos of grains and spiritual grass will be transported from the Xiao family. At that time, Master Sun will be overseeing the distribution in the Du family mansion. You should tell your Du family warriors to cooperate with Master Sun and the Righteous Gang.”
Du Ting looked at Tang Luo, shocked. “You really managed to get the grains from the Xiao family?!”
Both Du Wei and Du Ling couldn’t believe their ears either..
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