CHAPTER 385: 295, GREAT XIA NATIONAL ID_2

"Tsk tsk! Great Xia People sure have high-handed tactics, using a whole city to harvest astronomical wealth from the Shapudian people."

"How much money do the Shapudian people really have? Great Xia People might not even care about that amount; they’ve formed a Pioneer Alliance, and just the seat fees have collected a massive fortune of over ten trillion Xia Yuan."

Anthony listened in silence.

During the Age of Calamity, his home country Yilete grew weaker by the day, and life became increasingly difficult for ordinary people.

Although it still held the title of an old developed country, the number of people who couldn’t afford to eat was growing steadily.

That’s why he was willing to leave his homeland and travel thousands of kilometers to Shapudian—because life was becoming so hard at home.

Yet Eastern Great Xia was able to rise against the tide, growing stronger day by day.

In comparison, how could he help but be impressed in his heart?

The bus continued to move forward, and Anthony noticed that the construction sites along the road were increasing in number.

Despite the deathly cold weather, many construction vehicles were still at work, and he could see workers dressed warmly everywhere.

This scene gave one a sense of vibrancy and exuberance.

Anthony couldn’t help but sigh again.

This kind of scene hadn’t been seen in his home country of Yilete for many years; the infrastructure in various places had aged drastically.

However, during the cold wave disaster, Great Xia still maintained such large-scale infrastructure development.

The discussions of the passengers around him drifted into Anthony’s ears again.

"Isn’t that a residential building being built over there? This scale is really grand; I feel like there are at least a hundred buildings, although they aren’t very tall, seemingly only six stories."

"While it looks like six stories from the outside, it’s actually more; this is a semi-buried residential building designed by Great Xia People to tackle the Age of Calamity, with six floors above ground and six below, totaling twelve stories."

"Living underground is dark and damp, right? How could anyone want to live there?"

"Aren’t Great Xia People smarter than you? With the cold wave rampant, the underground temperature is much higher than the surface, making it much warmer to live underground, and the security is higher too. Many of these residential buildings have been constructed in Great Xia; many people are vying to live underground. In case of an emergency, the underground floors are the most suitable refuge."

Anthony gently nodded.

Before the Age of Calamity, many rich people spent vast sums building well-equipped shelters, all of which were located underground.

In terms of security, underground is indeed much higher than above ground, so Great Xia People’s approach is correct.

Due to the exhaustion from long flights and the ample heating inside the bus, Anthony unknowingly dozed off.

He wasn’t sure how long had passed.

He felt a few taps on his shoulder and immediately woke up.

Without opening his eyes, Anthony’s first response was to reach for his briefcase.

This was the instinct of every Yilete person.

The moment his fingers touched the briefcase, he breathed a big sigh of relief.

Thankfully!

Everything was still there!

Anthony opened his eyes, glanced out the window, and realized the bus had reached its stop.

He turned his head and immediately saw the male passenger beside him looking at him with a silent expression.

The male passenger pointed outside the window, his tone quite subtle: "This is Eastern City of Great Xia People; it’s very safe here. You don’t need to be so tense."

Anthony smiled awkwardly: "Thank you!"

The male passenger nodded and headed toward the front door of the bus.

Anthony remained seated, not getting up.

He watched the male passenger’s back and murmured softly, "’Eastern City of Great Xia People,’ huh?"

Judging by appearance, the male passenger was most likely a Shapudian person.

Eastern City was clearly on Shapudian land, yet the locals considered it a Great Xia city.

That’s rather interesting.

Anthony thought to himself, "So many Shapudian people are eager to get a Great Xia National ID and become bona fide Great Xia People?"

He enjoyed the warmth of the heater for about ten seconds until only two people remained on the bus, and then reluctantly stood up and moved towards the door.

The moment he got off.

"Woo~"

The cold wind howled by.

Anthony shivered hard a few times.

He cursed and quickly headed toward the exit of the parking lot.

Five minutes later.

Anthony finally understood why the male passenger said, "This is Eastern City of Great Xia People."

Because in the streets and alleys here, Great Xia Language signs were everywhere.

Only about half of the signs had Shapudian language written in small print below.

Anthony also noticed that although Eastern City was a brand-new city, the number of people here far exceeded his expectations.

The faces he saw were approximately seventy percent Shapudian people, twenty percent Great Xia People, and the rest were people from various countries.

He even saw several Caucasian faces.

But Anthony didn’t have time to converse with them; he was now very tired and planned to head directly to the hotel he booked.

Before the Age of Calamity.

Booking a hotel anywhere in the world was a very simple task—it could be easily done with a mobile app.

After the Age of Calamity.

This task wasn’t so simple anymore; the vast majority of hotels became "offline" for various reasons.

Either the hotel directly shut down, or the local network had problems, or even the platform was gone.

Fortunately, Eastern City is under Great Xia control, and Great Xia has maintained quite stable order, making hotel bookings very convenient here.

Soon.

Anthony hailed a taxi.

He had just sat inside when he heard the driver ask a question: "Sir, do you have a Great Xia National ID? If so, there’s a 5% discount on the taxi fare."

Anthony was slightly stunned, shook his head, and replied: "I’m a Yilete person; I don’t have a Great Xia National ID."

The driver uttered an "Oh," and immediately pressed the accelerator, controlling the vehicle forward.

Anthony’s gaze flickered.

He was well aware that this was yet another bothersome "Great Xia preference."

Ten minutes later.

He arrived at the hotel.

Anthony walked to the front desk and said: "I’ve reserved a room."

The front desk clerk promptly asked: "Do you have a Great Xia National ID?"

Curiously, Anthony asked: "What discounts come with a Great Xia National ID?"

The front desk quickly stated: "There’s a 5% discount on accommodations and a 10% discount on dining, plus free room service delivery. Without a Great Xia National ID, food delivery incurs additional charges."

Anthony couldn’t help but ask: "Why does having a Great Xia National ID provide discounts on transportation and accommodation? Clearly, you’re making less money."

The front desk, having clearly explained this multiple times, answered without hesitation: "The accommodation fees are indeed less, but the government offers us tax reductions and citizenship points. Accumulate enough points, and you’ll be granted a citizenship slot."

Anthony silently thought, "As expected."

He initially speculated that behind the Great Xia preference policy was likely a comprehensive system.

The front desk clerk’s words corroborated his suspicion.

Great Xia People systematically build a society where "Great Xia People stand above others" to attract more people to join Great Xia.

As these individuals strive for citizenship points, their minds are gradually being indoctrinated.

Anthony still had one doubt: "Great Xia already has 1.8 billion people; do they feel that’s not enough?"

He found it difficult to understand.

Upon entering the room,

Anthony put down his briefcase and prepared to shower.

He walked to the bathroom door and noticed a piece of paper stuck there with a few lines written on it:

"Due to high energy costs, hot shower water is free for 10 minutes; exceeding the time will incur an additional charge of 2 Xia Yuan per minute.

"With a Great Xia National ID, 15 minutes of free hot water can be supplied."

Anthony felt utterly numb.

Why is everything about the Great Xia National ID everywhere he goes?!

He turned on the faucet, feeling the warm water hitting his skin, and for the first time felt a strong urge to get a Great Xia National ID.

After all, the benefits of a Great Xia National ID are so alluring, it’s hard to resist wanting one.