Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 946 - 754: Lighting Up Bit by Bit

Chapter 946: Chapter 754: Lighting Up Bit by Bit

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A zero-pressure society will bring people...relaxation, freedom, and happiness!

Residents of the Northern Archipelago couldn’t stop discussing the new changes a "zero-pressure society" might bring on the internet, and these profound changes quickly became a part of everyone’s daily life, faster than they had imagined.

The most obvious of these was food.

Not only did the price of nutrient paste drop from its original cost of one unit to being free, but restaurant food prices also fell by 30%-50%.

Many people previously mistook that the pricing at restaurants and supermarkets had all turned to zero; in truth, Nestor Corporation, mainly being a food supplier, didn’t own too many stores or sell directly, so it lowered the cost of raw materials and supplied boxes of free pork, vegetables, and fruits to the warehouses of participating Nestor partners.

When selling food, retailers would still add other costs, such as labor, facilities, and venue expenses; hence, the food still wasn’t free of charge.

Yet meals also became very cheap, with popular fast food previously priced between 10-15 units now reduced to only 4-7 units of funds, and the markets were full of inexpensive fresh agricultural products, including apples and oranges at three units per pound, and pork at two units per pound—prices seemed to have gone back to those from 15 years ago.

"Haha, gonna make a short video that’ll shock the foreigners, ’How much can you buy with one hour of wages in the Archipelago?’"

"Wow, I can finally eat out every day."

"Finally, I have enough money to buy some goodies for mom..."

"Never cooking at home again since restaurants outside are so cheap anyway."

"I love Nestor Corporation’s tofu chicken nugget rice boxes the most!"

"Now that I can afford fruits, I don’t want to eat that dry nutrient paste anymore!"

With a significant decrease in the proportion of food expenses in family spending, it was as if everyone had become a bit richer; everyone now had more money to spend on other desired goods.

In the zero-pressure society, "homelessness" also became a historical term.

For families and individuals who don’t own property and have ended other housing rental contracts, they could move into free lodging provided by Nestor Corporation. These lodgings take various forms according to region, including townhouses, apartments, group houses, and standalone housing, etc.

For those who were already living in housing under Nestor Corporation, rent would be waived from that day forward, though residents were still responsible for the routine maintenance of their rooms and compensation for any damage.

For families of 1-5 members, they provide free residences of different sizes ranging from 20 to 100 square meters.

According to this policy, even some idle people began contemplating whether they should find a partner, establish a stable relationship, have a couple of kids, and move into a proper large house.

"What, I’m genuinely in love with my Synthetic Human, why shouldn’t she be considered a member of my family? I want to spend the rest of my life with her!"

"This way, I can save the money that would have been spent on buying a house and open a grocery store instead, that’s great!"

"30 years of mortgage for nothing...feel like jumping from a building...may this absurd world perish..."

"The real estate market is over forever! Apartments 5 minutes from downtown Shangjing on the Third Ring Road going for just eleven thousand per square meter! A house is truly for living in now!"

"Finally moved in, good! Let’s start my great creative endeavor from this small dwelling!"

"No need to buy me a house now! Darling, just get me a bouquet of flowers instead!"

Free housing relieved everyone’s financial burdens, allowing them to spend their salaries on other consumptions, most importantly improving current living conditions and establishing confidence in the future.

Since they didn’t have to worry about buying a house, many people changed their life plans. They no longer had to spend a lifetime of effort to purchase a simple living space made of steel and concrete.

They could do many things they genuinely wanted to do instead of dedicating their lives to paying off a mortgage.

The free public transportation plan greatly revitalized the social mobility of the entire Northern Archipelago, which was great news for students with no economic income and those who long to head to big cities for work opportunities.

Many people took advantage of this opportunity for short or long-distance traveling, visiting the other islands of the Archipelago for tourism, given that the Northern Archipelago itself is not large, and several cities can be visited in a day if planned properly.

As a result, a very clear economic complementary phenomenon appeared.

Although Nestor Corporation’s transportation department needed additional subsidies, its tourism department began to profit extensively and started building new hotels to meet the emerging travel demands.

Free transportation became deeply integrated into people’s daily lives.

"The 200 units of travel allowance from the company are cancelled, such penny-pinching... really hope the boss surrenders to Nestor Corporation soon! That way, I can directly become a Nestor employee!"

"My home is too remote, it used to cost 2000 units each year to take the train to university, now I can finally save that money!"

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"Take this opportunity to have a good look at the great sea of the southern country!"

"Having a free ride on an airship for once, I realize how beautiful the world looks from such a high place..."

"Anyway, it’s all free, so I can finally stop cramming on the bus and switch to the light rail. My commute time is cut in half, feels great!"

Previously hindered by economic conditions, one could only choose the cheapest commuting option, but now you can go wherever you want.

Going to the hospital, school, or work has become very simple. People can use the extensive network of light rail, railways, giant shuttle machines, and subways to reach every corner of the city, going to places they never thought of before and buying products they’ve never bought before.

People continually try and experience the lifestyle in the new environment.

No longer having to run around for necessities, the biggest experience for most people is... relaxation; finally, they have relaxed.

Everyone can try a variety of professions, no longer desperately pursuing a "stable" job because now, even if the job is unstable, they won’t starve to death, allowing them to thoroughly express themselves.

Parents are less likely to force their children to chase stable jobs, showing more respect for their individual talents. Some jobs are inherently worthless, only having "stability" as an advantage, and such jobs have lost much of their appeal today.

Income inequality and uneven wealth distribution are issues that are being improved amidst rapidly changing times.

In a "Zero-Pressure Society," people experience minimal survival pressure, have a more stable outlook on the future, pursue a richer life, and have greater passion for the world.

Even the marriage and fertility rates, which had been declining for decades, have started to slowly reverse and rise!

This has made many people happy, thinking that humanity may finally avoid the tragic fate of extinction.

With beautiful aspirations for the future, many couples are getting together.

In the past, in the eyes of most people, having children meant sentencing them to suffering in this world. Now many people feel that they can show new life what the current "Zero-Pressure Society" is like, a society that has never existed before in history.

The consumer confidence of the residents of the Northern Archipelago has greatly increased, and with the rise in overall social demand, Nestor Corporation has been profiting massively.

After merging with the New Xisheng Group and swallowing up most of the companies of the Northern Archipelago, Nestor Corporation now produces 70% of the products and services of the Northern Archipelago. They have a complete industrial chain and department system, allowing them to transfer earnings internally.

Under the arrangement of the Hundred-eyes Demon, the excess profits from many high-income departments have in fact been transferred to subsidize the low-income departments.

Due to the Zero-Pressure Society strategy, some of Nestor Corporation’s businesses are operating at a loss and require subsidies. However, as consumer spending vitality rises, the revenue from other departments is also increasing substantially, enough to support subsidies for sectors like agriculture, transportation, and construction.

As an internally self-contained company, as long as overall profits continue to rise, the corporate strategy remains very promising.

Consumption capacity has always been the crux of the Northern Archipelago.

Too many people’s funds are locked in large expenditures such as housing loans. Once a person takes on a 50-year mortgage, they dare not spend money for the next 50 years, directly draining their consumption potential.

Once demand shrinks, a terrifying economic crisis emerges. No one wants to buy things or cannot afford them, leading to a mismatch between production and consumption. This is the biggest problem in the corporate system.

Nestor Corporation has always been weakening the real estate industry, eventually removing the mountain that looms over everyone’s head.

Now, with lighter burdens and more free time, the majority of people’s consumption capacity has been reactivated.

Only when consumers dare to spend money can the economy of the Northern Archipelago develop, and can Nestor Corporation survive.

Oyama Soseki, an economist from the Northern Archipelago, has also commented on this phenomenon. He used to work for Xisheng but moved to a neutral consulting organization to avoid conflicts of interest.

"100 years ago, the cyberpunk megacities people fantasized about often took reality-based places like Shangjing, Jialong Slope, Baraya, Red Sky City, and Yidu City as their prototypes. The best services, education, and industries were concentrated in a few specific cities, where they had to build tall buildings to increase capacity, and young people kept piling into these big cities. There, the buildings were tall, the people poor, and we had too many people who were too accustomed to hardship."

"We have three characteristics different from Westerners: the ability to endure hardship, a strong saving habit, and a high regard for school education. Generation after generation, they excel at enduring hardships, slaving away for companies, and saving money in banks, which helps banks to absorb people’s money for investments and loans; they work hard on education, turning themselves and their descendants into suitable workers. It is with these three characteristics that we have caught up with Westerners, creating various ’Miracles’ such as the Ten-Year Miracle, the Eastern Hemisphere’s Four Economic Miracles, the Silla Miracle... We are clear that only the Eastern Hemisphere has kept pace with the Taixi Continent and New Taixi State. We are proud of this, but we also have inertia, continuing to send the next generation into this meat grinder, hoping to create some more ’Miracles.’"

"Generation after generation, generation after generation. In many cities, the buildings are still so tall, and the people still so poor. People aren’t leeks to be harvested, they get tired. People need time to think, learn, spend money, to relax and take long vacations, to broaden their horizons. The times also change, and if we want to break free, we need more people with creativity, talent, and time to learn and think, instead of consuming human energy and blood to accumulate low-tech products."

"We are too tired, tired to the point where even resting now makes us feel guilty, as if only hard work can drive economic development. But we must understand that the productivity of this era is highly developed, and we worry about having too much material, too little consumption, and poor distribution. In fact, there’s no need for extra work. Excessive ’diligence’ might actually lead to further deterioration of the economy. I, on the other hand, praise the lazy. They don’t work, they don’t seek jobs, they consume the excess material of this era, preventing the economy from collapsing."

"Humans are the most fundamental element in economic activity, and Nestor Corporation’s ’Zero Pressure Society’ plan will change everything. It is a plan that releases human potential. I believe that before long, there will be a ’Nestor Miracle,’ and it will be achieved in a way unlike any before."

In the conference room at Nestor Headquarters, Lila and other senior management were holding a meeting.

"Mr. Oyama Soseki has highly praised our company’s operations. Now is the time for us to work with renewed vigor and implement new strategic policies. The ’Nestor Miracle’ will be realized by our hands," said Lila with a firm tone.

To maintain the forward momentum of this super gigantic wheel with 10 million employees, Lila must enact a new plan.