Chapter 85: Uniting Revival City
Sitting in the Alliance Council Hall, Gu Hang gazed around.
The construction here was quite impressive.
The circular dome had many intricate reliefs, with content that seemed quite religious, and images of the God Emperor were everywhere. It seemed to tell a grand story of the ancestors’ arduous efforts in establishing the Alliance amidst the ruins.
At the top, there was a small glass-covered opening through which sunlight poured in, making it very bright even on clear days without the need for lights.
Beneath the dome was a long table where the Alliance Council Members presumably held their meetings.
Above the long table, after ascending five steps, there was a throne-like chair.
According to the original design, that seat was supposed to be exclusively for the Governor.
During the revival of the Alliance, the first-generation Governor should have sat in that high position, watching the council members below discuss and resolve various issues in the process of rebuilding Fury Owl Planet.
Each proposal was brought up, each problem was solved, and each plan was implemented…
That must have been a glorious era.
Even now, many people on Fury Owl Planet still reminisce about that time—especially after experiencing the subsequent second-generation Governor.
Gu Hang didn’t know much about the deeds of that first-generation Governor, nor did he consider himself an heir to that legacy. But that didn’t stop him from doing similar things in the same place.
As he sat down, new information appeared in Gu Hang’s system.
[You have occupied the city: Revival City.]
[Fixed monthly income from Revival City: 68 Grace Points]
Seeing the occupation notice and Revival City being included in the system statistics made Gu Hang happy.
Months ago, when he first landed as Governor, he had been anticipating this message, but it had never come. Today, he finally got what he wished for.
However, when he saw the number 68, his brow furrowed deeply.
This was too low!
Ridiculously low!
His Governor’s camp, built from scratch, plus the ragtag Wasteland Society when he took it over, could provide him with 61 Grace Points.
To reach that number, the combined population of the two camps was just over ten thousand. How could a city with nearly a million people only generate this much?
Then, he saw a series of negative effects listed under Revival City in the integrated internal affairs interface.
[City Shutdown: Significantly reduces city income.]
[Anarchy: Greatly reduces city income.]
Besides [Anarchy], there were several other statuses listed that also greatly reduced city income, including: [Uneasy Population], [Extremely Low Average Living Standards], [Starving City], [Low Management Level], [Poor Infrastructure], [Low Population Quality], [Low Public Order], [Rebels], …
And there were quite a few statuses moderately reducing income as well: [Chaotic Market], [Trade Interruption], [Rough Development], [Post-War Chaos], [Martial Law], [Administrative Confusion], [Grassroots Out of Control], [Heretical Cults]…
Let’s not even mention the minor income reductions; there are quite a few of those as well.
Gu Hang was at a loss for words.
With so many negative effects, it’s no wonder the Grace Points income plummeted to rock bottom…
However, Gu Hang quickly adjusted his mindset.
This situation wasn’t entirely unexpected.
Previously, he thought that even if he captured the city through military means, he would still need to govern it afterward to have the system recognize the city as his.
And now, with this multitude of negative effects stacking up, drastically reducing the income, it was likely the same idea.
Likewise, this could be seen in a positive light.
These clear negative effects explicitly pointed out the issues Gu Hang needed to address.
Tackling them one by one should improve things.
In his view, these debuffs on Revival City could roughly be divided into two categories: development issues and management issues.
The former couldn’t be resolved overnight.
Production needed to improve, trade routes needed to be restored, so people could have enough to eat and wear, have the energy to transform the city, and achieve a higher standard of living.
As for management issues, some deeply entrenched problems would also take time to resolve. But at least some of them could be addressed immediately.
For instance, the biggest debuff: [City Shutdown].
Factories were closed, shops were closed, and the city’s residents, either due to military control or fear and unease, didn’t even dare to go out on the streets.
Inability to work, insufficient food reserves… This was something Gu Hang had to deal with immediately.
He needed to establish an administrative system that, no matter how rudimentary, could at least function to address the city shutdown problem.
It would be a completely new administrative team.
Previously, he had hesitated about whether to do this, but old Hodgson’s death had completely extinguished that thought.
If he had someone who wholeheartedly supported him, someone with longstanding prestige in the Alliance to assist him, he might have taken over Revival City’s existing administrative system and gradually reformed it.
But now?
Forget it.
Using the old administrative system would surely result in constraints.
The battle has been won, so why continue to be entangled with Revival City and the original system of the Alliance government?
Moreover, was there anything good about the original system of the Alliance government? Past governors lacked control, needing to coordinate various factions and make mutual compromises.
However, Gu Hang didn’t need to.
At least not for now.
He had no need to create a parliamentary system where every faction, industry, and power holder had to be gathered to get things done.
He decided to abandon the old system entirely and rebuild a highly centralized government and system to efficiently implement his will.
He would retain the name “Alliance,” as it was a necessary political title for conquering and ruling settlements outside Revival City. But beyond that, he planned to leave little else.
He would completely abolish the council, replacing it with the Alliance government.
The government would have multiple departments, with civil servants taking the lead, and in the future, policy officers would be appointed to make decisions and guide the city’s development.
The old system would be swept away; the once powerful authorities and rent-seeking class would be liquidated; the entire class of factory owners would be directly eliminated, replaced by collectively owned government factories…
With the elimination of the old interest groups, the positions and benefits they vacated would become the interests of the newcomers.
The new interest group would grow from the new system, emerging because of the Governor. In return, they would become the Governor’s staunchest supporters.
This process would be seen by some as a harsh revolution.
Footsteps were heard at the door, ending Gu Hang’s contemplation. He looked up to see a slightly frail girl in a gray-blue shirt walking in.
Osena had arrived.