Chapter 871: Changes
In the span of a month, Lecheng underwent earth-shattering changes. The once desolate streets became bustling with activity—garbage being cleared, buildings being repaired, and police and military personnel maintaining order.
The previously stagnant Lecheng now brimmed with vitality, all thanks to Administrative Chief Zhu Rong.
Upon assuming the role of Lecheng's Administrative Chief, Zhu Rong issued an order for all citizens, from the largest towns to the smallest villages, to relocate to the city proper. This decision was made for several reasons: convenience of management, uniting the strength of the populace, and, most importantly, protecting these citizens.
In this chaotic world, with demons running rampant, the safety of ordinary people was greatly threatened. If they remained too dispersed, they would only become food for monsters and targets for malicious deviants. Even if the Administrative Courtyard wished to protect them, its reach would be limited.
It was for these reasons that Zhu Rong ordered the relocation of ordinary citizens to the city.
Before the world fell into chaos, housing in Lecheng's urban area was scarce and quite expensive. Even if ordinary people spent their entire life savings, they might not have been able to afford a single apartment in the city.
After the world descended into chaos, many lives were lost daily, and numerous residential units in Lecheng's urban area became vacant. The once overcrowded Lecheng city proper became empty and desolate.
Zhu Rong's order to relocate the villagers to the city exactly allowed for the best use of resources; the citizens could choose these vacant homes as their new residences.
This was because none of them wished to die. Only by uniting all their strength would their chances of survival in this chaotic era be greater.
The villagers, in particular, not only supported but were deeply grateful for Zhu Rong's decision, even regarding her as a savior.
Ever since the world plunged into chaos, they had lived in constant fear. One moment alive, the next they could be dead at the hands of demons or others. Laws could no longer restrain these entities, and the Administrative Courtyard offered them scant protection, leaving ordinary citizens in perpetual terror, forced to seek refuge from nearby religious factions.
However, the protection offered by these religious groups was also very limited. They couldn't live in temples indefinitely, and often, by the time these religious forces arrived when something truly happened, the villagers would already be dead. Even if they managed to arrive in time, they might not be a match for the enemy and would end up sacrificing themselves.
Furthermore, these religious forces only protected their believers, and often only symbolically so. They offered almost no protection to non-believers.
But the Administrative Courtyard was different. It protected everyone, regardless of their faith or lack thereof, all fell within the Administrative Courtyard's protective scope.
Zhu Rong ordered them all to move to the city, where they could receive the Administrative Courtyard's maximum protection. This was undoubtedly a great blessing for the common people, offering them a path to survival. How could they not be grateful to Zhu Rong? How could they not regard Zhu Rong as their savior?
However, as more and more citizens gradually relocated to the city, a new problem arose: the vacant housing units within the urban area were no longer sufficient.
Regarding this matter, some factions secretly waited to watch Zhu Rong make a spectacle of herself. They all wanted to see how this newly appointed Administrative Chief would handle this difficult situation. Even some officials within the Administrative Courtyard were waiting for Zhu Rong to become a laughingstock.
Unfortunately for them, they never got to see Zhu Rong stumble, because she had long anticipated this point and was already prepared for it.
In her capacity as Administrative Chief, Zhu Rong gathered all ordinary citizens and assigned them various tasks.
A portion of them joined construction teams, expanding Lecheng outwards from its center and repairing the damaged buildings within the city.
After the world fell into chaos, large and small battles frequently occurred in the urban areas, leading to extensive damage to many buildings, including residential ones. Thus, whether vacant or occupied, or other important structures, they all suffered some degree of damage, with some even becoming uninhabitable or unusable.
Therefore, to solve the housing problem and rejuvenate the city, repair work was definitely necessary.
In addition to the construction teams, Zhu Rong also arranged for a portion of the population to engage in daily labor. After all, people needed to eat. Without a source of food, everyone would starve, so this team was also indispensable.
However, Zhu Rong's arrangements extended far beyond just these two matters. She made corresponding plans and deployments for healthcare, education, commerce, communication, and more.
Her aim in doing this was to quickly get Lecheng back on track. In the current situation, achieving this was naturally fraught with difficulties. Fortunately, Lecheng's original framework remained, making it relatively easier.
But this was merely relative. Getting Lecheng fully back on track would be a long process, and during this prolonged period, many unforeseen changes could still occur. After all, the world was still embroiled in conflict, and no one could guarantee that another city wouldn't attack Lecheng tomorrow.
Therefore, it was incredibly difficult to restore Lecheng completely to its former state. To not only restore Lecheng but also surpass its past glory would naturally be even more challenging.
Yet, no matter how difficult, some paths had to be walked, and some things had to be done. Zhu Rong understood this principle, so she did not give up in the face of difficulties. Instead, she was full of drive, bustling with activity from dawn till dusk.
While Zhu Rong was bustling around in Lecheng, Yang Haoran was equally busy in the Underworld. For the past month, he had spent most of his time there, not for leisure, but for serious business.
To successfully accomplish this task, his legs nearly gave out from all the running, and he didn't know how many forced smiles he had plastered on his face, which was almost cramped from the effort. Even for someone like him, who always had a smile on his face, it was overwhelming.
After all, there was a difference, and a significant one, between an unconscious smile and a deliberately maintained one. It was certainly exhausting.
Nevertheless, a month of rushing, a month of feigned smiles, a month of effort, finally saw its reward today.
At this moment, Yang Haoran was in a secluded street in the Underworld. There were quite a few secluded streets in the Underworld if one were to count, but only a handful were truly the most remote. The street he was currently on was one of those most secluded ones in the Underworld.
Before him stood a shop. Its style was largely similar to other shops in the Underworld, but this one was a standalone two-story building. Although it looked somewhat old, its footprint was quite large.
However, this shop had no name. It wasn't that it never had a name, but that it currently had none, because the plaque bearing its name had been removed. From now on, this shop would no longer exist in the Underworld.
Inside the shop, busy figures could be seen. These were ghosts inhabiting skins, bustling about, tidying and organizing the goods within the shop.
Under Yang Haoran's gaze, a figure emerged from the shop. Judging by this person's appearance, he looked only a few years older than Yang Haoran, but that was just his apparent age. His true age was hard to say.
This was because the man exuded considerable Spirit Power and possessed a physical body, indicating at a glance that he was an Underworld Official from the mortal realm, making it impossible to estimate his age from his appearance alone.
After stepping out of the shop, the man immediately walked towards Yang Haoran's location, a smile gracing his face.
Seeing this, Yang Haoran's face also broke into a smile, and he quickly stepped forward to greet the man, appearing very polite.
"Envoy Yang, are you truly not interested in these things of mine? You'd better think carefully; miss this village, and you won't find this shop again. You'll regret it when it's too late."
The man spoke with a smile to Yang Haoran even before he stopped walking. As his words fell, he came to a halt directly in front of Yang Haoran.
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