People in America started by developing the Yellow Turban Army.

Is there some other reason besides a fake one for the abandoned town?

A flood of information rushed into my mind.

Oh... I see!

No wonder the system marked it as very important; the underground water veins were destroyed by mining, and the location of the blockage was clearly marked.

Once the blockage is blasted open, the water veins can be restored, and the underground currents that surged decades ago will return to the surface.

It concerns the drinking water of the entire town, how could it not be important?

Previously, he had been anxious about the water supply problem in his town, wondering when someone would come and dig a deep well.

Similar to what is done in China, microwaves are used to explore underground water veins, and then a vertical shaft is drilled down to extract the groundwater.

However, this money could be a huge sum. Drilling wells is expensive in China, let alone in a place like the United States where labor costs are ridiculously high.

Drilling a well in China costs around tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of yuan, depending on how shallow the well is.

If it's deep, it could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per well.

If this were applied to the United States, the amount would roughly double.

However, after doubling this amount, you'll need to change the currency unit from RMB to USD, and that should be about right.

How much money does Chen Ping'an have right now?

At most, thirty or forty thousand US dollars!

So forget about drilling a well. We'll just buy a water truck, a secondhand one that costs a few thousand yuan, and then buy water from the city every day and transport it here.

Now?

Now that he has this intelligence, Chen Ping'an only needs to find some explosives to clear the mountain, go down to the blockage in the mine's water vein, drill a hole, bury the explosives, and blast open the blockage.

The underground river water will gush out from the old mine tunnels, and then this water will be taken for testing.

If it's drinkable, then the drinking water problem for everyone in Ping'an Town will be solved.

Unexpectedly, Chen Ping'an was just soft-hearted and wanted to do what was right, but he ended up getting such a great deal.

Watching Sofia's husband's hands tremble and weaken as he held the mineral water bottle and drank several mouthfuls of holy water as if it were nectar, he finally let out a sigh with a look of ecstasy.

Standing next to Chen Ping'an, Hathaway couldn't bear it and secretly glanced at Chen Ping'an, whose expression showed some joy.

It turns out the movie was right: Eastern monks are born with more compassion than those of Western religions.

So, could we perhaps try to appeal to their feelings?

"Boss!"

Hathaway quietly tugged at Chen Ping'an's clothes. She had seen movies from Hong Kong, where girls would act cute like this when asking their elders for favors.

"Sophia's husband has come this far, which shows he has done his best."

"Could we take him in too?"

As Chen Ping'an said, only those who arrive today are qualified to stay in Ping'an Town.

Those who have fallen halfway through have clearly failed the test, and Sofia's husband is one of them.

But if her husband is rejected, can Sofia still stay in the peaceful town?

This may be the only chance for these homeless people at the bottom of society to turn their lives around.

She felt a little reluctant!

An 18-year-old girl, tugging at her own sleeve, clumsily trying to act cute with obvious signs of performance.

Hathaway's acting was atrocious, but Chen Ping'an saw through her intentions.

Not only Chen Ping'an noticed, but Lin Zhiyong and Sophia, who was helping her husband fill a mineral water bottle with holy water, also noticed.

Sophia reacted the fastest, quickly kneeling in front of Chen Ping'an, her hands clasped to her chest in prayer: "Father, please, give my husband another chance."

I will definitely accompany him to the end of the journey; we are determined to do so!

Looking at this frail woman, who was now pleading with him with such devout and expectant eyes, Chen Ping'an, to be honest, felt a pang of sympathy.

But he can't agree to it now.

You can't just agree to something every time someone asks you for it.

This is not good!

However, there is a way.

He looked at Hathaway: "Go and get a few more bottles of holy water!"

Hathaway happily agreed and quickly climbed into the car to get the pre-filled water bottles.

Then he looked at Lin Zhiyong: "The one in the back seat of the pickup truck, the one who fainted, does he look like he's almost recovered?"

Lin Zhiyong nodded: "He should be almost fully recovered. He was snoring just now, and his voice was very strong!"

It's probably not that he fainted, but rather that after drinking the talisman water, his body replenished its energy, and he recovered and fell asleep.

Chen Ping'an nodded: "In that case, put him down and give him two bottles of talisman water each, along with Sophia and her husband."

If they can support each other and rely on the two bottles of talisman water each, they can reach the town of Ping'an.

Then I can make an exception and accept them again!

Including those people who are now exhausted and lying on the roadside, give each of them two bottles of talisman water.

Then we don't need to worry about it anymore. If they are determined to go, these two bottles of talisman water will be enough to get them to our peaceful town.

If you don't have the will, you can't force it!

Sofia and her husband were so happy to hear Chen Ping'an's offer to give them another chance that they almost cried.

He nodded rapidly, as if pounding garlic, promising that he and his wife would help the unconscious man get back to the peaceful town.

When they returned to Ping'an Town, it was already dark. The twenty-odd homeless men who had finished cleaning up the garbage in the old buildings were now waiting for them at the tavern, hungry.

Waiting for dinner!

No, it's waiting to drink the holy water to fill our stomachs!

Before Chen Ping'an and his group left, they told Hanks that they were going to help those who had collapsed on the roadside. If they were going to be back late, they should wait a bit.

We've been waiting until now, and it's almost dark!

"Boss's car headlights!"

Seeing Chen Ping'an's returning car lights, Hanks Gan led everyone to wait outside the tavern, eagerly watching the car slowly approach.

Chen Pingan got out of the car, and Hanks Gan led everyone, bowing their heads and shouting in unison, "Boss!"

This is so damn embarrassing!

Moreover, looking at Hanks' current stance, did you learn it from Brother Chen in the movie Kung Fu Hustle?

It's very likely that Hanks learned it from watching Stephen Chow's movies before.

Of course, it's also possible that others saw it and reminded Hanks, leading Hanks to decide to adopt this uniquely Eastern welcoming ceremony.

Anyway, there's plenty of work to be done!

It was Chen Ping'an's toes that were tightly curled up, which was really embarrassing.

But he couldn't show it on his face, so he waved his hand and said to Hanks, "Gan, take some men to unload the remaining holy water from the car and distribute it to everyone."

After you finish your drinks, I'll call a meeting!

Three large buckets of talisman water were used to help those who collapsed from exhaustion by the roadside. In reality, not much was needed, not even a whole bucket.

There are still two large buckets left, but there are no more than 30 people on site who are starving and waiting to drink the talisman water to fill their stomachs and regain their strength.

Still worried about not having enough to drink?

After the batteries were replaced, the emergency lights in the tavern barely illuminated everyone's faces.

They drank the water quickly, but almost no one finished their large mug of water immediately.

They only took a few sips to relieve their hunger, and then held the remaining half-cup, inhaling the intoxicating aroma of the grains.

Waiting for Chen Ping'an's reprimand!

Yes, they calmly accepted Chen Ping'an's intention to give them a lecture.

Chen Ping'an had been preparing for this speech, or rather, for this meeting, for two days.

"Ladies and gentlemen!"

"You should all be less hungry now, because I can see that you're not so eager to drink the delicious holy water in the cups."

Chen Ping'an stood at the top of the stairs in the tavern. There was no stage for stand-up comedy here, so if he wanted to stand higher so that everyone could see him clearly, he could only stand at the top of the stairs.

His two sentences just now drew laughter from everyone, but there was no other meaning behind them; it was purely out of flattery.

Or perhaps they felt they should relax and laugh it off.

Although it wasn't very funny.

"To tell you the truth!"

Chen Ping'an's tone turned somber: "Before coming to America, I never dared to imagine that there were so many homeless people on the bustling streets who had no place to live and no food or clothing."

My friend Mr. Lin Zhiyong told me that I'm fine now, I'm just hungry.

Winter will be even more difficult for you.

In the heavy snow, the bodies of homeless people would often be found frozen solid, carried out of their tents, and taken away to be sold for money.

Ugh……

By the way, I have a question for you!

I wonder... what kind of country the East is in your eyes.

Does anyone know?

Does anyone know anything about the East?

Chen Ping'an looked at the twenty or thirty people below and asked this question.

Everyone below looked at each other, and for a moment no one answered. Perhaps they didn't know, or perhaps they didn't know how to answer.

"Father!"

A thin woman stood up; she was one of the three women who had come here.

Among the homeless on the streets, women are far less resilient than men and are more likely to die.

Even now, after wandering and becoming emaciated, he still managed to pass Chen Ping'an's test, walking 60 kilometers without food or water to reach Ping'an Town.

She was also a strong person with a resilient spirit. Seeing her get up, Chen Ping'an nodded and smiled to encourage her to speak.

"Father!"

For Americans, Eastern monks are most likely Eastern clergy, or priests.

That's the right way to address a woman.

"I have some understanding of the East!"

The average American might only know about Europe, Spain, or Mexico, or Jamaica.

But I have explored ancient Asia and the ancient great Eastern powers.

I've searched online and read news reports!

Although the East is powerful, it is still not inferior even when facing the United States.

But economically, it's really bad.

The lagging industrial system learned from the Soviet Union has caused the East's economic development to lag far behind the world.

In the 21st century, this once-great Eastern country has become the world's largest bicycle kingdom.

Isn't this a tragedy in itself?

To be honest, Chen Ping'an could understand English, and he could also understand what this woman was saying.

However, when these words were put together, Chen Ping'an really couldn't understand them.

Now?

In the second half of 2023, you told me that the East is the world's largest bicycle kingdom?

Moreover, is the industry and the economy failing?

no……

Lin Zhiyong smiled and whispered in Chen Ping'an's ear, suppressing a laugh as he told him, "There are two regional networks in this world, one is the domestic regional network, and the other is the American regional network."

Domestic regional networks block a lot of malicious attacks from abroad, but you don't need to use a VPN to search for and access legitimate foreign websites through some portal websites.

For example, you can find relevant news on reputable foreign websites by searching on Baidu or other search engines.

These are all ways for ordinary people to access foreign news portals.

Domestic regional networks only block some excessive pornography, as well as the infiltration and fraud crackdown on domestic netizens by foreign Chinese-language websites.

In other words, it's a mechanism to protect fools.

Similarly, the external network also has regional networks, such as the regional network in the United States.

There is also a firewall, like the one in China, which can block all truth and information from the East.

According to many American netizens, the East is now a poor, bicycle-dominated country.

The industrial base is quite poor, and the economy is also quite poor.

This perception isn't limited to regional networks in the United States; it's also prevalent in European networks.

Moreover, some Americans believe that we Easterners may still be wearing queues!

Compared to the openness of domestic regional networks, the Great Firewall in the United States is much thicker!

"Even any child from the East knows that the United Nations headquarters is in the United States."

I also know that Brazil, Argentina, and Chile are South American countries.

I know that Canada and the United States are North American countries, and I also know that Mexico is right next to the United States.

They also know who the presidents of most countries are, and most likely know where the capitals of these world countries are.

This is us Easterners!

But Americans are different.

Go to any American on the street and ask them if they know who bombed Pearl Harbor.

The likely answer will be that it was bombed by any country in the world, possibly even the United States itself.

They wouldn't even know where Palestine or the Middle East are.

The American internet has a very thick barrier that traps them in cocoons.

Only a select few elites and the upper echelons know the truth of the world!

(This is a fact, and the truth was not discovered until 2025 when the US and China settled accounts among civilians.)

Chen Ping'an felt he had learned something new today after hearing Lin Zhiyong's explanation.

"In that case, let me describe my country to you!"

to be frank!

Before coming to America, I had never seen anyone who didn't have food to eat!

Decades ago, at least thirty or forty years ago, no able-bodied person in our country went hungry!

I only realized after arriving in America that there are indeed people in this world who don't have enough to eat or wear.

In winter, they would even freeze to death in piles in tents on the street.

I just feel like it's magical!

At that moment, I thought, are these people fucking stupid?

If you can't make it in the city, why don't you go back to your hometown?

Surely we can make a living back in our hometown?

Even if you don't have a house or a job in the city, you can still go back to your hometown. Although the old house is dilapidated, it can still provide shelter from the wind and rain. Although there isn't much farmland in your hometown, it should be enough to support your family, right?

Why stubbornly stay in the city, wander the streets, and then wait to starve or freeze to death?

What are you after?

Chen Ping'an paused here, then emphasized as he continued, "But my brother told me that the lower classes in America don't have a hometown!"

Without a house in their hometown or land in the countryside, those who own land in America are big businessmen and rich people, but they are definitely not poor!

It was at that moment that I realized it wasn't that Americans were stupid, but rather that I had been too well protected!