Qin Gu had someone collect relevant information about the "Belt and Road Initiative" for the judge. This was a classic case of common development and win-win cooperation, which was very suitable for the judge to use as a reference.
From the moment Ruan Bei uttered the phrase "able to work while alive, and capable even after death," he remained silent, trembling and hiding to the side, afraid to utter a sound.
That's terrifying. How can we ever say things like "death ends everything" again?
If those people knew that they would have to carry bricks in the underworld after they die, and that it would be less enjoyable and efficient than carrying bricks in the mortal world—they even have to dig roads by hand, which shows how backward they are. Carrying bricks in the underworld would mean their standard of living would regress by decades, which would be the least of their worries.
As the judge studied the materials, Qin Gu would explain the parts he couldn't understand, since he hadn't been to the human world for so long and his knowledge had become outdated.
Although he found Kunkun particularly terrifying, Ruan Bei still had to help him. He bought the judge a cell phone and downloaded some video materials for him to watch. Things on paper are never as shocking as seeing them with your own eyes.
The judge went from being nonchalant at the beginning to becoming increasingly serious and focused.
He sent a message to the underworld, deciding to stay in the mortal world temporarily, living in Ruan Bei's house. Ruan Bei served him well, providing him with good food and drink, and finding him whatever he needed.
He stayed in the human world for three days, during which he returned to the underworld with a large amount of data stored on the laptop, tablet, and phone that Ruan Bei had bought for him.
When he returned, he went straight to Qin Gu and Ruan Bei and asked, "What do you mean by 'win-win cooperation'?"
Ruan Bei is just a bridge for communication, used to liven up the atmosphere; at times like this, you still have to rely on Qin Gu.
Qin Gu has been quite busy these past few days, flying to the capital several times, having several private talks with his father, and producing version after version of the plan, with a thick stack of alternative options.
Essentially, he and Qin Zhengze are the same kind of people: if they don't do something, they don't care; but if they do, they're unwilling to be mediocre.
The Qin family has grown and prospered under Qin Zhengze's leadership. Compared to when he took over, Qin Zhengze has been an outstanding pioneer in the past twenty years, not only expanding the proportion of domestic industries but also developing overseas markets quite well.
As he said, he would work with the company for at least another ten or twenty years. By then, the Qin family would have likely covered most of the overseas markets. It would be difficult for Qin to surpass his father.
Of course, it's not to say that it's definitely impossible. The world is so big and there are so many industries. If it doesn't work out, we can develop other industries. It's just that it's more difficult.
But now a new and excellent opportunity has presented itself to him: the underworld.
That vast territory could almost be described as an undeveloped wilderness, where everything was in dire need of development. If he were to make even a slight mistake, the future of the Qin family would be entirely different.
Qin Gu didn't rush to produce his stack of plans, but instead said seriously, "You should know that Xiao Bei and I come from Xuanqing Temple. Within the Xuanmen, our sect has influence. I've met my senior brother before; he's from the Special Affairs Bureau—"
Ruan Bei explained the origin and functions of the Special Affairs Bureau to the judge at the right time, and even showed him the super difficult-to-use app. As a result, the judge found it very convenient, which gave Ruan Bei a new understanding of the backwardness of the underworld.
"Therefore, if the Underworld is willing, the Chinese government is willing to cooperate with the Underworld, support its construction, and contribute to the building of the new Underworld."
"Can you keep your word?"
Qin Gu shamelessly revealed his connections: "I have an elder in my family who serves as an official in the imperial court, and I have consulted him."
"Moreover, China is very willing to help other countries or regions develop and build on the basis of adhering to the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence."
"Yes, yes, that's right." Ruan Bei also felt that cooperation was very possible. Their country was even willing to help foreigners. After all, the underworld was the underworld of their country, and the ghosts were once citizens of China.
Judge: "What can you do to help us? And what do you expect the underworld to give in return?"
"This requires the authorities to send someone to talk to you. My word is not enough. However, I can represent the Qin family to provide the underworld with a batch of supplies, including paper money, funerary objects, building materials, etc. I can give you a list later."
The judge nodded approvingly: "You're not bad."
Qin Gu smiled in response, saying that this small investment was nothing.
If the state begins to cooperate with the underworld, it's impossible for the government to intervene in everything. That will be his opportunity, and the Qin family's underworld branch can be prepared to open.
As for company employees and management, he preferred Ran Yusheng. Although he had never met him, he knew about his life and thought that it was a waste of his talents to have this big shot doing manual labor.
He had already spoken with his father, who agreed that the Underworld branch would be under his management. His father had also provided him with a list of key members of the Qin family who had died unexpectedly over the years, which could be recruited into the Underworld branch.
However, he prefers Ran Yusheng to be in charge. Those Qin family employees will definitely be more inclined to his father. He is not in a hurry to seize power now. Since he is in charge, he will definitely prefer to use people who are biased towards him.
He also told his dad the truth, and his dad wasn't angry. He just laughed and scolded, "You little wolf cub, you're just like me."
Of course, he had never met Ran Yusheng, so he didn't trust him much. But he trusted Xiao Bei and believed in his judgment.
Furthermore, to put it bluntly, Ran Yusheng's biggest weakness lies in the areas he cannot reach. As long as Madam Ran is alive, Ran Yusheng will not betray them.
Moreover, he is a smart man. As long as he realizes Xiao Bei's extensive connections with the underworld and the favoritism shown to him by a powerful figure like the Judge, he will never have any wicked thoughts.
Therefore, Qin Gu can be said to have considered all kinds of situations, and even made many plans for the future development direction of the Underworld branch.
The land must be claimed first. Previously, because the underworld was vast, ghosts could easily squeeze through. Except for some capable and picky ghosts, most of them didn't care much about territory, since they often moved to different places.
Things will be different from now on. Once the cities of the underworld are built, land prices will definitely rise. Ghosts are also transformed from humans, and who doesn't want to live a good life?
If the city has internet, cinemas, restaurants, supermarkets, and good public security in the future, who would want to wander around outside the city? They would definitely try their best to get into the city.
Qin Gu had already thought it through. Given the nature of ghosts, they could all squeeze into a city, but that wouldn't be conducive to development.
He planned to suggest to the judge that each city in the underworld should restrict the number of ghosts, granting permanent residency only to those with houses, and otherwise only temporary residency with time limits.
In order to accommodate the huge number of ghosts, more cities will need to be built, and the area to be developed and constructed will need to be expanded so that he can occupy more territory, develop more industries, and make more money.
What? He earned ghost money but it was useless?
Just kidding. Who said they only accept ghost money? There are so many good things in the underworld, and in other worlds, even a lump of mud can be studied and might have unexpected uses.
Speaking of mud...
Qin Gu's heart stirred: "My lord, how's the cleaning of the mud on the road to the underworld going?"
With so many ghosts working together, they must have dug at least a large section by now, after three days.
"That? It hasn't started yet. They're currently recruiting ghost craftsmen," the judge said indifferently. Time meant nothing to him; three days was as short as three minutes.
Qin Gu: "..."
With the inefficiency of the underworld, it's no wonder it's fallen behind.
"It's better that it wasn't cleaned up," Qin Gu said. "You originally planned to burn that silt, right?"
The judge frowned and said, "What can we do if we don't burn it? If that stuff accumulates too much, it will spread on its own, becoming more and more useless, and there's nowhere to throw it away."
Qin Gu was somewhat excited: "Sell it to me."
Judge: "???"
For a moment, he began to doubt whether he had made a mistake in partnering with him. Buying mud? Was this kid an idiot?
"I'm serious, I think this kind of thing is very valuable for research. Please sell it to me. I'm willing to pay for it and provide the materials."
Judge: "...I didn't force you to do this."
"Yes, yes, I want to buy it myself," Qin Gu immediately assured him.
"I'll go back and tell them, and I'll bring it over for you then," the judge agreed.
Thus, the first sales contract signed by the Qin Group's Underworld Branch, which had not yet been formally established, was for an unknown number of cubic meters of silt.
Because he was pitied for being a fool, the judge took it upon himself to set a very low price for him, almost like giving him away for free. But with so many of them, it still added up to a considerable sum.
Qin Gu didn't care at all about being treated like a fool by the ghosts; he was happy as long as he could get something for nothing.
The ability of those silts to reproduce automatically is very strange. Their peculiar buoyancy and ability to stay dry without sticking to clothes or the body are well worth studying.
If the research proves useful, he could make a fortune just by selling the raw materials.
After the matter was finalized, Qin Gu first reported to his senior brother and his maternal uncle about the issue of supporting the construction of the underworld.
The senior apprentice was alright, but his great-uncle was dumbfounded, never expecting him to be so capable of causing trouble.
But this kind of thing can't be taken lightly, so it was reported immediately. The core group of elders in the council who knew about the existence of the supernatural immediately held a meeting.
China was much more efficient than the underworld. Before long, it sent representatives to meet with the judge and held several consultations on cooperation between the two sides.
Because the judge clearly trusted Ruan Bei more and treated Qin Gu differently, the two of them attended the meetings many times. Apart from the two of them, the other attendees were all bigwigs who frequently appeared on television, especially on CCTV.
Ruan Bei didn't get involved in the subsequent cooperation plans, but he knew about a newly established department: the Human and Underworld Cooperation and Development Committee, or the Underworld Development Committee for short. Ruan Bei held the position of vice president, and he was needed when it was necessary to coordinate and communicate with the Underworld.
However, such times are rare. The government is actively helping the underworld with its development. They didn't know this before, but now that they do, how could they not work hard? If they didn't work hard, wouldn't they have to work as bricklayers after they die?
We should strive harder while we're alive, so that we can have a good life after we die.
The batch of silt that Qin Gu bought was delivered one after another. The judge couldn't run errands for them every time, so the ghost messengers had more opportunities to run to the human world. This is called going on a business trip to another place.
He Guicha told Ruan Bei that this task was quite popular. Now everyone knows that the mortal world is better than the underworld. When they came up, Ruan Bei treated them very well, providing them with good food and drink. The ghost messengers liked him very much.
Ruan Bei already has five of the chains that He Guicha gave him before. He splits them with Qin Gu, and there's not enough room for one on each hand.
Qin Gu took the silt delivered by the ghost messenger to the laboratory under the Qin family's name for examination and testing. He originally thought the research would take a long time, but unexpectedly, good news came not long after.
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