Chapter 855 - Taking advantage of me again! (1/2)

The Great Hoodwinker did not follow Wang Yun, Ji Zi’ang, and the rest to the North this time as there was still plenty of intelligence-gathering to do once war broke out in the North. He also wanted to take advantage of the chaos to recruit more talent for the Northwest.

The Northwest’s field intelligence unit had already quietly started preparing a plan called “The Prosperous Northwest” that was aimed at recruiting more ambitious people to join in the developmental efforts of building up the Northwest after the war ended…

However, they would definitely not take any real action for now since they needed to stand united against a common enemy. The Great Hoodwinker was only making plans for the future.

Therefore, Wang Yun and the others still needed to find the person responsible for liaising with them after arriving in the North, and that person was Zhang Xiaoman.

As Wang Yun took in the sight of Stronghold 144 in front of him, he could see many merchants traveling back and forth through the open stronghold gate. Some of the merchants had just arrived from the Central Plains while others were preparing to return to the Central Plains with goods purchased in the Northwest.

Outside the stronghold where the original town stood, it had turned into a huge wholesale market after going through multiple expansions. There were people peddling their wares in the marketplace while shop owners from the stronghold came to replenish their goods.

The entire town was full of life and bustling with activity.

Ji Zi’ang viewed the sights and asked, “Have you been to the Northwest before this?”

“Yes.” Wang Yun nodded and said, “When I was still active in the field some years ago, I came to the Northwest to hunt down some traitors. At that time, the Zong Consortium was still in charge of this place.”

“And what did the Northwest look like back then?” Ji Zi’ang asked.

“At that time, I did not enter the stronghold and only stayed in town for a short while. Back then, the town was no different from those in the Central Plains. You could even say that the refugees here had it much tougher than those in the Central Plains. After all, there’s a lack of resources in this region,” Wang Yun recalled. “But it’s completely different now. Even the town in Luoyang City is not as prosperous as the Northwest.”

“Yeah.” Ji Zi’ang nodded. “How could this be the town we imagined? Perhaps we made the right choice after all.”

Wang Yun walked up to a hardware wholesaler and asked, “Bro, where do you come from?”

“Me? I was born and raised right here in the Northwest,” the middle-aged man answered with a smile. “Why do you ask?”

“We just came from the Central Plains, so we wanted to ask about the situation here. Bro, did you come from the stronghold?” Wang Yun asked. In his opinion, these people were likely to be stronghold residents. How could refugees possibly have the capital to start a business?

“No, I’m a refugee,” the middle-aged man said with a smile.

“Then where did you get your capital from?” Wang Yun asked.

“Fortress 178 approved of small, interest-free loans saying that it would help us start a business. I heard that refugees are also eligible to apply, so I went for it,” the middle-aged man explained with a smile.

Wang Yun was stunned. Even though all the consortiums’ banks provided loan services, they had to evaluate the borrower’s eligibility and ensure they had some assets to put up as collateral before lending the money.

But the refugee in front of them definitely did not have any assets that could be mortgaged. Furthermore, he had never heard of any consortium banks that would lend money to refugees, especially not interest free!

Although they were called loans, it was actually more like a subsidy. This was a sum of money that could help refugees turn things around in their lives.

The middle-aged man smiled and said, “There isn’t a distinction between refugees and stronghold residents here in the Northwest anymore. Everyone is free to enter and exit the city, so it’s not like the IDs of the refugees are any different from the ones that the stronghold residents are carrying.”

Wang Yun lamented, “Fortress 178 is so resolute and daring.”

When the Wang Consortium opened up a stronghold to refugees some time ago, the entire world felt they had made a very bold decision at the time. However, no one expected the Northwest would completely eliminate the class differences between refugees and stronghold residents.

Of course, the stronghold residents would definitely despise the refugees a little. But over time, since refugees essentially looked no different from stronghold residents, no one would be able to tell them apart.

Wang Yun and the others were witnessing the enormous changes in the Northwest that had only taken a few months to implement. They were truly shocked, but for some reason, they also felt motivated. They were inspired by this vibrant scene as well.