Chapter 18 – The Stingy Federal Government
“So when you hesitated to give me the communicator, it wasn’t because you were worried about those people mocking you for being at the bottom of the points ranking, but because you didn’t know how to take it off?” Xi Chunzhi finally realized.
Tu Ran smiled awkwardly.
That was indeed the case.
“But is 1000 points a lot?” She was curious about this.
“We’ve been working for a year and together haven’t accumulated 1000 points. And 10,000 points are needed to be promoted to an intermediate pioneer. What do you think?” Xi Chunzhi crossed her arms and leaned against the wall.
“It’s a lot indeed, but what’s the difference between intermediate and junior level?”
“Simple: higher salary, better benefits.” Xi Chunzhi counted on her fingers.
Sure enough, no matter which world, workers cared most about these four words.
As someone who hadn’t found a job in her previous world but had secured a stable one in this world, Tu Ran now looked forward to these once unattainable benefits.
“Wait a bit longer; the takeout I ordered will arrive soon. You can take it home and eat,” Xi Chunzhi said.
“Fried chicken?”
“Yes,” Xi Chunzhi replied flatly.
Tu Ran looked dejected.
She remembered the stinking corpse of the chicken spirit monster.
Noticing her expression, Xi Chunzhi stood up straight, “It used to be your favorite. You haven’t changed your tastes along with the amnesia, have you?”
“No, I just thought of the gruesome way I killed that weird bird, and I have no appetite,” Tu Ran replied honestly.
“In a few days, you’ll regain your appetite. Put it in the fridge; this fried chicken is something I earned through my merits, and it must not go to waste,” Xi Chunzhi said.
“What do you mean? Didn’t you just order it?” Tu Ran didn’t understand how fried chicken was related to her merits.
“Ordering always costs money, right? There’s no way our salaries could afford farm-raised chickens,” Xi Chunzhi scoffed. “I got it because one night, I happened to encounter a Herog creature in its juvenile stage trying to possess a human. I shot it dead with two shots and saved that person.”
“So that person rewarded you with fried chicken?” Tu Ran guessed.
“How could that be? That person was just an ordinary citizen, even poorer than me. How could they afford it?”
“Then why?”
“How do you not remember anything?” Xi Chunzhi complained before explaining, “Wasn’t it because, at that time, the Federal Government had stirred up public anger? Ordinary citizens believed the Threshold was a place of disaster and should be immediately sealed off. But the government not only ignored them but also trained pioneers to explore it. Over time, the tension deepened.”
“During that period, as a pioneer, I saved an ordinary citizen from an alien species. The government immediately seized the opportunity to control the narrative, widely publicizing it and portraying pioneers as heroes destined to save the world.”
“So,” Tu Ran continued, “the Federal Government rewarded you for your contribution to this major shift in public opinion with a piece of fried chicken?”
“Pretty much.” Xi Chunzhi sighed. She still wasn’t sure if saving that person was right or wrong. If she hadn’t, maybe the public would still protest the establishment of the pioneering team, and perhaps one day, the government would succumb to the pressure and suspend the Threshold exploration. Who knows how many pioneers would survive if that happened?
Tu Ran sighed as well. The Federal Government was really stingy. Such a significant achievement, and all they gave was some fried chicken?
Considering Xi Chunzhi’s hard-earned fried chicken, Tu Ran refused, “You should eat it. It won’t taste good if kept in the fridge for too long.”
