"Sir, did you accept that S-rank mission from Xilin?"

"What? You took on this task too, Monkey?"

"No, I'm not high enough level to get a mission there." Hou Wu pointed to the high-rise apartments in Helenburg. "But I've been hired by people who offer this mission several times because I'm a local and I've done my research..."

“Xilin is my hometown, a small village with about 500 people. The total debt owed to Prince Reinhard is 180,000 gold coins,” Hou Wu said sincerely. “The mission also stipulates that this money cannot be paid out of pocket, so sir, this is an impossible mission.”

"180,000 yuan, 500 people... that averages out to 360 yuan per person. You can't even come up with that?"

“Sir, you probably can’t understand how poor and miserable that place is.” Hou Wu scratched his head sheepishly. “Sir, you probably can’t imagine that 100 gold coins are enough for a family’s expenses for a month in Xilin.”

"Then I'm even more eager to go and see it." Zhang Fan became increasingly interested. How could there be such a place in the most developed capital planet of the Principality of Ryan?

"Monkey, can you lead the way?"

"Sir, I suggest you rent a car to go to Xilin. It's a remote place with no direct trains. Taking public transportation is time-consuming with transfers, and overall, renting a car is more cost-effective," Hou Wu said. "If you trust me, sir, you can leave it to me when you arrive. 500 gold coins should be enough to rent a car. Also..."

“I can be your driver. I know the way to Xilin very well. You don’t need to pay me extra. I only have one request, which is…” Hou Wu said somewhat embarrassedly, “that is, to take my two younger brothers with me. They haven’t been back to Xilin for a long time, and their school is on holiday these days.”

"Can."

So Zhang Fan handed everything over to Hou Wu to handle, since four people could fit in one car anyway.

Less than half an hour later, Hou Wu arrived in an old-fashioned SUV. His two younger brothers were already sitting in the back seat, looking very happy to be able to return to their hometown.

“Sir, don’t let the age of this car fool you,” Hou Wu patted the car door, “it’s in excellent condition and was recently serviced.”

Hou Wu was very well-informed, which was also related to the nature of his work.

The four of them set off by car towards Xilinhot.

The road to Xilin is over 300 kilometers long. We drove halfway and then turned onto a dirt road. No wonder Hou Wu wanted to rent an off-road vehicle. For a small place like Xilin, it's not worth building a paved road.

The journey took about 5 hours. Around noon, the two younger brothers in the car started to get excited and pressed their faces against the windows to look out. They must have arrived in Xilinhot.

Zhang Fan observed the area through the windshield.

Indeed, there is a world of difference between the cities and the countryside of the Duchy of Ryan, a difference that cannot be summarized simply as the urban-rural divide.

High levels of urbanization concentrate resources in and around cities, and leaving the city can feel like returning to a primitive society.

The gravel road was dusty under the sun, and villagers along the roadside had built small shacks one after another using planks, straw, and a large canvas. Several women were cooking porridge in an open-plan makeshift kitchen, while babies in their arms were crying loudly, and dirty, barefoot children were chasing after off-road vehicles.

Zhang Fan now understands why the debt of 180,000 gold coins cannot be collected. Compared to this place, the slums around Helenburg can be considered "middle-class homes".

As soon as the SUV was parked, the two brothers inside happily shouted and ran out to find their friends in the village to play. As soon as Zhang Fan and Hou Wu got out of the car, the area outside was already surrounded by children with wide, curious eyes.

Hou Wu took a large bag off the car and took out handfuls of candy to give to the children. The children who received the candy shouted with joy, and it was not easy to disperse the group of children.

"Sir, I'm sorry to have made you laugh." Hou Wu scratched his head sheepishly. "Let me take you to my house for a while."

As the two walked, many people greeted Hou Wu, and Hou Wu responded to each one with a smile.

"Hey, isn't that a monkey? Back from the big city?"

"Hello, Uncle! How are your legs? I'll bring you some medicine next time."

"The monkey's back? When are you leaving? Come over for dinner tonight!"

"Thank you, Auntie. I'm back for work this time, so I won't trouble you any further."

...

Hou Wu was very popular in the village. He would exchange a few words with every household he passed by. It took him half an hour to walk from the village entrance to his house, which was only a few hundred meters away, with many stops along the way.

To be honest, once inside Hou Wu's house, it wasn't much better than his home in the slums near Helenburg.

The whole thing is a wooden house of about 30 square meters, with a roof covered with straw and canvas. Because it's been around for a long time, light leaks down from the top. If it rains, the inside would probably be quite stuffy.

However, there was nothing in the room that could get wet in the rain. A large pot was hanging in the middle, which was probably the kitchen. There were wooden beds on both sides against the walls, and the wooden planks on the walls let in the wind.

The house was bare; those four words perfectly describe its condition.

"The house has been uninhabited for a long time, please forgive me, sir," Hou Wu said somewhat embarrassed.

After moving to Adelaide, the Hou brothers did not return to Xilin for a long time, and the house was never repaired, so it was naturally drafty.

"It's great, much better than the treehouse I used to live in." Zhang Fan was telling the truth; at least this place has a roof, unlike his treehouse on Mars.

Zhang Fan looked around the room, but there wasn't much to see. There wasn't even anything that could be called furniture. However, a "wardrobe" in the corner of the room caught his attention.

There was a piece of clothing hanging in the closet.

What attracted Zhang Fan was that the clothes were colorful. Upon closer inspection, he discovered that they were covered in patches, with at least a hundred patches of different colors.

"Hahaha." Hou Wu noticed Zhang Fan looking at the clothes and couldn't help but laugh. "Sir, those are clothes that the three of us brothers used to wear. We couldn't bear to throw them away when we moved to Adelaide."

"Is this even wearable?" Zhang Fan took the clothes out of the closet, somewhat speechless. "Monkey, I'm not trying to be mean, but even a beggar's clothes would be better than this, right?"

The garment was wrapped in a transparent bag. Although it was old, it was very smooth and looked as if it had been specially ironed. It was obvious that it had been carefully arranged and stored away.

"Just to keep as a memento," Hou Wu said with a smile. "Our parents died early, so we three brothers grew up eating food from many families and wearing clothes from many families."

"Back then, when my clothes were torn, one neighbor would help mend them, and another neighbor would help mend them, and that's how I ended up with this piece of clothing."

“Your neighborly relations are really good.” Zhang Fan nodded. From what he saw and heard upon entering the village, he could tell that the villagers were simple and honest, and none of them were lazy people who relied on the weather for their livelihood.

"Yes, although our village is relatively poor, everyone helps each other and they are all good people."

"Let's go for a walk outside." Zhang Fan hadn't forgotten his S-rank mission; he was here to "collect debts."

Led by Hou Wu, Zhang Fan walked around the village several times. Hou Wu introduced the village in detail, and he even knew clearly which pond had the most small fish and which place was good for finding bird nests.

Zhang Fan walked to the villager's field and grabbed a handful of soil.

The soil is loess, and it crumbles easily when squeezed. It has a high sand content and insufficient moisture, making it unsuitable for cultivation.

No matter how hard you work, you can't get rich growing crops on this kind of land. No wonder the villagers are all dirt poor.

“That’s not right,” Zhang Fan asked Hou Wu. “I’ve looked at the map. Xilin is at least 20 square kilometers in area. The swamp to the south is all fertile black soil. Why are the villagers all struggling against the yellow earth here?”

“Xilin is very large, but our village is the only one inhabited,” Hou Wu replied. “Xilin is the fiefdom of Prince Reinhard, and everything here, down to the smallest blade of grass and tree, belongs to the prince.”

"Without the prince's permission, we dare not go to the other side of the mountain to cut firewood, nor dare we go to the other side of the river to fish. Our land is actually only the area around the village that we can see now."

"Moreover, these lands are all leased from Prince Reinhardt, and the villagers have to borrow money from all sides every year just to pay the rent, not to mention..."

Hou Wu didn't continue speaking, but Zhang Fan understood that he meant it was impossible for him to collect this "debt".

"Monkey, go and gather all the villagers in the open space in the center of the village." Zhang Fan tossed the yellow dust in his hand into the air. "Oh, and tell the villagers to bring their debt notes. I'll settle all their debts tonight."

"Sir..." Hou Wu was somewhat panicked. What did it mean to settle all the debts at once?

"It's alright," Zhang Fan said with a smile, patting Hou Wu on the shoulder. "I won't take a single penny from here."

"Every worker deserves respect."