Chapter 619 The troubled Zhou and Kong ConsortiumsWang Fugui nearly vomited blood. How could his hard-earned money not even match up to what Ren Xiaosu had?

Ren Xiaosu felt they should continue plying the northwestern trade route business. Once Old Wang and the others had rested enough, they could set off for the Northwest again.

After much thinking, Ren Xiaosu still felt that the Wang Consortium, Zhou Consortium, and Kong Consortium were not suitable for Wang Yuchi and the other students to further their studies at. The most suitable place for them would be Qinghe University in Luoyang City.

With this action from the Wang Consortium, the Zhou Consortium, Kong Consortium, and even the Pyro Company and other smaller consortiums were going to be affected. Only the refugees living outside Luoyang City were the least affected.

The refugees in Luoyang City were not even interested in becoming a so-called stronghold resident.

Ren Xiaosu would have to approach Qin Sheng to arrange for Wang Yuchi and the others to enroll in Qinghe University. He asked Qin Sheng, “Is it true that anyone can get into Qinghe University?”

“Of course,” Qin Sheng nodded and said, “Why? Wang Yuchi and the others wish to attend uni? But I can’t make the decision, though I can ask my teacher to apply for the necessary passes for them. But if they want to attend Qinghe University, they’ll have to take the entrance exam. Spring enrollment will start soon. It might be difficult for them to pass the exam since they didn’t attend the supplementary classes held outside town.”

Ren Xiaosu looked at Wang Yuchi and the others. “Time is very tight. Do y’all think you can pass the exam?”

Wang Yuchi smiled confidently and said, “We’ve never fallen behind in our studies, so there’s no need to attend any supplementary classes. But, Brother Xiaosu, we don’t want to attend university anymore. We just want to stay here and help. Even if we don’t attend uni, we can still study by ourselves. Also, Uncle Fugui needs help. He can’t handle the bandits alone.”

Ren Xiaosu advised him with a smile, “Since y’all’re capable of passing the exam, you should continue your studies. Don’t worry about the bandits. We can have Zhang Xiaoman send some people to escort him. Institutional education is still better than having to learn everything slowly by yourselves.”

Ren Xiaosu had always been serious when it came to learning. Although he did not have the chance to go to university and further his studies, Wang Yuchi and the others were all fine young prospects who should not waste their talents.

Next to them, the Great Hoodwinker hurriedly said with a smile, “That’s right, Zhang Xiaoman can send people to escort Bro Fugui. If those bandits were not based in the Wang Consortium’s territory, we could even send in troops to eliminate them.”

If Wang Fugui’s convoy were escorted by Fortress 178’s troops, wouldn’t they become recognized as the official merchant for Fortress 178? In that case, who would be so foolish as to offend Wang Fugui in the future?

With Wang Fugui’s ability, it would even be possible for him to monopolize the entire northwestern trade route.

By this time, more and more refugees had moved into Stronghold 61. Some small media outlets began to follow up closely on the matter to report about it. For example, they interviewed the new stronghold residents and asked them how they felt and whether the Wang Consortium had made things difficult for them.

These refugees unanimously expressed that the Wang Consortium was really wonderful. They didn’t expect they would get the opportunity to become stronghold residents one day. Moreover, the jobs the Wang Consortium had arranged for them were much easier than working in the mines like they did before. They had already decided to settle down here for the rest of their lives.

The Wang Consortium not only gave them jobs but also paid them well.

It was like buying a carcass with a thousand taels of silver.[1] These 20,000 refugees who were the first to move into the stronghold were the “carcasses” bought by the Wang Consortium with a large sum of money!

The Zhou and Kong Consortiums were also trying their best to keep the refugees in their territories. But how could they possibly do better than offering the refugees a chance to be stronghold residents?

Surely they could not have their troops guard the refugees daily like they were prisoners, right? Besides, they could not enforce something like that either!

The Wang Consortium’s move instantly reversed their losses, turning a disaster into a good outcome!

Half a month later, Stronghold 61’s town started getting lively again. Ren Xiaosu thought the current population in the vicinity of Stronghold 61 must have exceeded the original number of people that used to live here!

Of course, the Wang Consortium’s factories had also been affected by the disaster. However, they were prepared for this. In fact, the first people to arrive at Stronghold 61 were the refugees in their own territory. At that time, the Wang Consortium’s factories had come to a standstill, but they did not reject those refugees from moving into the stronghold.

Following that, a large number of troops and military vehicles started assembling at Stronghold 61 due to the ongoing rescue efforts. When the refugees in the stronghold reached a certain number, Stronghold 61 stopped accepting the refugees who had just arrived. Then they transported the newly arrived refugees to the various factories in their military vehicles.

The refugees who came late were sad to learn they would not get to be stronghold residents.

However, the Wang Consortium immediately promised they would still be treated very well. Although it was not much better, it was still slightly better than how the Zhou and Kong Consortiums treated them.

As such, the refugees thought that since they were already here and it would take them at least another 10 days to a fortnight to return to their former homes, wouldn’t it be the same working for any consortium? Besides, the salary given by the Wang Consortium was also higher.

As a result, the Wang Consortium’s factories were the first to restore their operations, while the Zhou and Kong Consortiums’ factories remained at a standstill. Although these two consortiums also thought of improving the refugees’ benefits, the refugees had already left their territories. Even if they improved the benefits at this moment, the refugees would not want to make the long journey back.

The consortiums could not go to the Wang Consortium’s territory to steal back their former refugees, right? That was as good as declaring war!

At this moment, they would probably have to increase their previous wages by 40% to 50% if they wanted to get the refugees to go back.

Ren Xiaosu did not pay attention to the consortiums’ subsequent actions as he was not really interested in it.

However, the Wang Consortium seemed to have planned all of this way beforehand. The more Ren Xiaosu thought about it, the more afraid he felt.

When Luo Lan said they would have to form alliances with the other forces to deal with the Wang Consortium, he felt that Luo Lan and Qing Zhen were being too cautious. But now it seemed like the Wang Consortium’s intention was clear. Qing Zhen had thought ahead of everyone else again.

Ren Xiaosu initially thought that the Wang Consortium would start a war very soon. But after this, they fell silent again and focused all of their energy on opening the trade route and getting their productivity restarted. They completely ignored the talk in the rest of the world.

During this period, the Hope Media reporter, Zhou Tao, remained at Stronghold 61 as he reported on the latest updates to the situation after the refugees were let into the stronghold.

At first, he thought the entire stronghold would descend into chaos. After all, the people in Stronghold 61 were now made up of refugees. Those people did not have any manners, nor would they obey any laws, so there should be a lot of theft and robbery.

But the Wang Consortium’s artificial intelligence started displaying its usefulness at this moment. Some of the people who had just committed robberies were caught by the Wang Consortium’s newly appointed Public Order Division staff right after turning the corner on a street.

Others were handcuffed immediately after they stole something.

The artificial intelligence was like an omniscient god that regulated everyone’s actions.

Before this, Zhou Tao could not really grasp the concept of the Wang Consortium’s artificial intelligence. It was not until he experienced the transition from chaos to order in Stronghold 61 that he gained a deeper understanding of the role the artificial intelligence played in maintaining the peace of the stronghold.

He suddenly felt that Stronghold 61 was more like a pilot project for the Wang Consortium and a demonstration piece. They were using a practical example to tell the world how powerful the artificial intelligence was in governing a stronghold and the stability it brought to people’s lives.

[1] To show that one is sincere about doing something