Lu You watched the shelves on both sides rapidly retreat, occasionally catching sight of robots skillfully retrieving goods.
The visual impact brought by Future Technology was something he never tired of seeing.
Finally, after traveling for a few minutes.
He passed through a huge gate marked [Living Area].
The scene before him suddenly opened up.
The original villa had transformed directly into a large estate!
"Did this automatically upgrade too?"
After a moment's thought, that made sense; after all, this Living Area was also part of the Back Warehouse.
Lu You jumped down from Xiao Bai, surveying his new home with satisfaction.
"Not bad, not bad. The System finally did something humane." he praised sincerely.
Just as he was about to walk toward the villa.
The small service vehicle extended a tiny mechanical arm, blocking his path.
At the same time, the smiling emoticon on the car's screen disappeared.
It was replaced by a string of emotionless text.
[This "ride home" service is complete. Distance traveled: 2.8 kilometers. Time elapsed: 3 minutes and 42 seconds.]
[According to the internal transportation service fee schedule, the fee due is: 30 business points.]
The smile on Lu You's face instantly froze.
The air seemed to stand still at that moment.
He read the words on the screen, syllable by syllable.
Then, in disbelief, he pointed at himself, and then at the screen.
"You? Cha—charging a fee? Thirty business points?!" His voice cracked.
[This service is provided by Intelligent Butler No. 007. Prices are clearly marked, fair trade guaranteed.]
Lu You's mouth twitched uncontrollably.
He felt his blood pressure skyrocketing at rocket speed.
"Woah! You're kidding me!!" A roar filled with grief and indignation echoed through the empty Living Area.
"In my own warehouse! Riding a car you assigned to me! Going back to my own home! And you still dare to charge me money?!"
"Are you out of your mind from poverty?!"
He pointed at the screen displaying the text, so angry he nearly jumped up and down.
"Even a capitalist would cry and offer you a cigarette after seeing this!"
However, no matter how much he roared, the text on the screen remained indifferent.
[Detected significant emotional fluctuation in Host. Deep breathing is recommended. Friendly reminder: Long-term delinquency in service payments will affect your System Credit Rating.]
"I... I $@#%..." Lu You choked, nearly passing out from lack of air.
He had finally seen through it completely.
This System, except when it was upgrading or giving rewards for completed missions, acted like a person.
The rest of the time, it was simply an out-and-out profiteer!
It tried every possible method and created every opportunity to extract business points from his pocket.
He watched helplessly as his business points decreased by another 30.
"Fine, fine, so this is how you want to play." He gritted his teeth and said to Xiao Bai, which had already reverted to its `^_^` expression.
"You just wait. Sooner or later, I'm going to dismantle you and see what kind of black-hearted components you're made of!"
After a full day of busy work, and then being infuriated by the System.
Lu You felt even more exhausted.
He dragged his heavy steps into the villa.
He threw himself onto the enormous, soft sofa in the living room, a piece of furniture that felt like it could swallow a person whole.
"Sigh, life is hard. Brother Lu sighs." he groaned weakly.
However, when he looked around and saw the luxuriously decorated, fully equipped villa.
Most of the displeasure in his heart dissipated.
This was life! This was living!
Wasn't the meaning of striving just to enjoy this moment of comfort?
Too lazy to move, he shouted into the air: "Hey, you... Xiao Bai! Yes, you!"
"Go to the Gourmet Zone and get me something to eat, I want substantial dishes! And a bottle of ice-cold water!"
"Beep beep." Xiao Bai responded cheerfully.
The screen displayed: [Takeout Delivery Service, starting price 10 business points, dynamic pricing based on dish complexity and distance.]
And then it sped off.
Lu You: "..."
He was beyond the point of complaining.
Forget it, let it be.
He might as well be paying to raise a father.
The food was quickly delivered and placed on the coffee table in front of him.
While eating heartily, Lu You brought up all the contracts signed today.
"Based on the delivery times in these contracts, formulate a detailed shipping plan for me, and have the intelligent employees start preparing and packing the goods."
He issued instructions like a real boss.
[Instruction received. Shipping plan generated. Tasks are being allocated to the Warehouse Robots.]
Watching the orders being processed systematically on the light screen.
An unprecedented sense of accomplishment welled up in Lu You's heart.
He was no longer alone; he now possessed a logistics team so powerful it was unimaginable.
But then he thought that this group of robots must also be gold-swallowing behemoths!
Cue another headache.
"Forget it, they can't work for free." Lu You certainly couldn't be one of those wicked capitalists.
After eating and drinking his fill.
He leaned back on the sofa and began contemplating the task that gave him the biggest headache—[Provide 10,000 local employment positions].
"Ten thousand... that's not a small number." he said, rubbing his temples.
"I'm just a Hardware Store owner, how am I supposed to know how to create ten thousand jobs..."
Just as he was at a loss, the System's notification sound rang out again.
[Detected Host is worried about the mission objective. The System can provide constructive solutions.]
Lu You's eyes lit up, but he immediately grew wary: "Tell me, how much consultation fee are you charging this time?"
He already had psychological trauma.
[Solution provided for a fee. Cost: 1000 business points. Includes a feasibility analysis report and preliminary framework concept as a bonus.]
"Right, right, I knew it." Lu You rolled his eyes.
His face clearly screamed, "I knew you were eyeing my business points."
"Fine, fine, a thousand it is. Speak!"
[Solution generated. Please review.]
A light screen unfolded before Lu You, clearly listing several directions.
[Solution One: Establish large-scale labor-intensive manufacturing factories. Examples: Garment factories, electronic product assembly plants, etc.]
[Pros: Can quickly absorb a large workforce.]
[Cons: Low technological content, thin profit margins, high management difficulty.]
[Solution Two: Develop a chain commercial empire.]
[Using "Old Lu Hardware Store" as the core, open branches nationwide.]
[Pros: Strong brand effect.]
[Cons: Long cycle, massive initial investment, extremely high requirements for the management team.]
[Solution Three: Establish a High-Tech R&D and Manufacturing Company.]
[Utilize the technical support provided by the System to conduct R&D and production of cutting-edge products.]
[Pros: High technological barriers, substantial profits, ability to attract high-level talent, and a massive driving force for urban industrial upgrading.]
[Cons: Requires solving a series of issues in the early stage, such as policy, land, and talent acquisition.]
Lu You's gaze was instantly and firmly drawn to the third solution.
R&D Company!
These four words struck a corner deep within his heart like a bolt of lightning.
When he was young, his dream was to become a scientist.
Although he didn't know exactly what scientists did back then, he knew they were great.
It was just that he himself was a disappointment, and he knew exactly what kind of person he was.
His childhood dream had thus been hidden deep in his heart.
Coupled with the video he saw recently about being technologically choked, his desire grew even stronger.
And now, the opportunity was right in front of him!