I Can See Your Combat Power
Chapter 1837 - 268: Wealth Scattered, People Gathered

Chapter 1837: Chapter 268: Wealth Scattered, People Gathered

Three elder statesmen of Unparalleled City stood behind Shen Dafa, their eyes focused on their noses, and their noses on their hearts, as Shen Dafa expressed his pained emotions before Tang Luo.

The content of the statement wasn’t anything new; based on calculations by a few reckoners, in a month’s time, those self-proclaimed craftsmen, the refugees, would occupy every inch of Red Cloud Mountain.

And the financial situation of the municipal hall would sharply decline within half a month; at least the tuition fees gained last September were all spent this month, along with a large amount of minerals and timber.

This made the entire municipal hall pessimistic. Logically, the more craftsmen, shouldn’t construction be cheaper? How did it turn out the opposite for them?

Shen Dafa was extremely aggrieved, thinking Mi Bai was the criminal here to ruin Unparalleled City’s great situation.

After listening to Shen Dafa’s description, Tang Luo realized why the council members were dissatisfied with the currently bustling scene: "Impeachment over something yet to happen, did you discuss with Mi Bai before coming?"

Shen Dafa was about to say no when Du Ting suddenly stepped forward and said, "Mr. Mi Bai did mention that these excess craftsmen could be redirected by boats to support North Mountain’s construction, but that’s just empty talk. The municipal hall’s resource reserves can’t support such a huge group of craftsmen, and the resources from Unparalleled City itself can’t meet the needs of North Mountain’s construction. It’s a bottomless pit, so we believe Mr. Mi Bai’s judgment is no longer sufficient to grasp the future direction of Unparalleled City."

"Yes, Elder Du Ting’s words are exactly what I wanted to say. Nowadays, the people of Unparalleled City are anxious. Without adjustment, disaster is imminent!"

Shen Dafa, whose skin was dark like an old farmer’s, had visibly become paler after years in the municipal hall, so now his tearful appearance was less rustic and even a bit sly.

With a sigh, Tang Luo raised his chin and asked, "Then, what do you think we should do at this moment?"

Upon hearing Tang Luo’s inquiry, Shen Dafa hurriedly wiped away his tears and happily responded, "We’ve already thought about these issues over the last three days. The current plan is to immediately stop disseminating news about recruiting craftsmen and additionally ask the three major clans to help set up checkpoints at Lingjiang, preventing excess craftsmen from entering. Besides, when these academies on Central Avenue are completed, we can invite Master Ou to classify the craftsmen entering the city, to send away those who are inferior and retain the elite ones. This way, we acquire excellent craftsmen without giving outsiders any excuse, which should be perfect!"

The three elders of the Du Family resumed their honest and obedient posture as Shen Dafa spoke incessantly.

But standing silently is also a form of support, and what Shen Dafa said was also what they thought.

However, this plan greatly disappointed Tang Luo.

Once Shen Dafa had exhausted his proposals, Tang Luo stood up from behind the long desk and walked to the window, where he could gaze over the entire city from Xiling’s tallest building.

Unlike the usual view that only sees the clouds and not the citizens, Tang Luo’s vision allowed him to see not only the sweat on the faces of the city’s craftsmen but also information unseen by others.

Hope has a shape, at least that’s how it appears in Tang Luo’s eyes: these craftsmen who have just joined Unparalleled City believe they are destined to become part of Unparalleled City, so they swing their shovels with extraordinary strength, each stroke imbued with a valiant determination.

In contrast, the residents of Unparalleled City, already free from material worry, hold large bowls with chunks of meat glistening with fat and fragrant aroma stacked high.

They squat in front of their doors or on their roofs, watching these working craftsmen with a superior smile, chewing the meat loudly.

Unparalleled City is destined to suffer disaster?

Tang Luo couldn’t see that. He only saw the municipal hall’s panic, and this panic was simply because resources were transferred from the warehouse to the hands of the laborers, what ignorance...

"Remember what The Academy said."

Tang Luo placed both hands on the windowsill and said softly, "The purpose of establishing the academy and collecting tuition fees is to gain the power to reallocate resources. And what’s happening in Unparalleled City now is this process of resource distribution.

What disaster would befall Unparalleled City, if you walked the streets and asked the citizens or those craftsmen, you may get completely different answers.

Actually, what you truly fear are expenditures beyond your control and expectations. You believe that the more resources these laborers get, the fewer Unparalleled City will have.

Ha... what folly. The Academy wishes you could give all the money to these laborers tomorrow, and do so with legitimate reasoning, but you don’t understand, you’re like dragons guarding treasures, wishing to use all these jewels merely for showiness."

At this point, Shen Dafa and the others were already pale, and Tang Luo turned around to face these four men, scrutinizing their faces: "The gold of Unparalleled City is in the hands of these people, constantly circulating, and circulating at an increasingly fast pace, while in your hands, it merely gathers dust in the warehouse. Haven’t you considered why the city feels stifled after sealing it?

Because without tourists’ revenue, all the wealth of Unparalleled City is slowly depleting, and where is this depletion going? We drove out those malicious families from the city, and then the municipal hall took this gap, your relatives almost monopolized all industries in Unparalleled City, from raw materials to the shops on the street, there’s your shadow everywhere.

You might still be smug, thinking you’ve created preferential purchasing channels for the citizens, but in fact, as everyday resources dwindle, the gold in the citizens’ hands decreases, while the resources in your hands grow."

Tang Luo’s words made the heads of the four lower a bit more with each sentence, until Shen Dafa’s hands began to tremble at the last few words.

"No need to fear, The Academy doesn’t intend to pursue responsibility; anyone sitting in your position would find it hard to do better. At least when you provided conveniences to your relatives and kin, you knew to add restrictions, preventing Unparalleled City from turning into a human purgatory.

But that’s still far from enough; just relying on you won’t make Unparalleled City a better place, and even now, your positive influence is diminishing."

Tang Luo shook his head regretfully: "Those in power must understand that scattered wealth draws people, while hoarded wealth disperses them. Without Mi Bai, then in a few years, craftsmen wouldn’t be gathering at Red Cloud, but the young citizens of Unparalleled would be running outside seeking livelihoods."

As for the money scattered to the laborers, what are you worrying about? As long as they stay at Red Cloud, it will eventually return to your hands. Only through such cycles can Unparalleled City maintain its vitality and vigor for a long time."