Manager, give me a membership card too!

The blonde girl looked a little conflicted, and after hesitating for a long time while holding the teddy bear in her arms, she finally spoke in a hesitant tone:

"Today, before coming to Mr. Rorschach's place, I heard a lot of discussion on the street about the 'work points' system. Although most people agree with the system, some people seem to hate it. They are well-dressed gentlemen who go around saying bad things about Grandpa Delapour, which makes me feel very uncomfortable."

Luo Xia, who had been looking relaxed, raised an eyebrow upon hearing this and looked at the blonde loli in his arms.

"Oh, what did they say?"

Upon hearing this, Abigail subconsciously rubbed the teddy bear in her arms, her delicate eyebrows furrowing unconsciously, making her look exceptionally endearing.

"They said Grandpa Delapour was breaking the rules, that he stole everyone's jobs, and that he was blaspheming..."

The blonde girl stopped there, unwilling to continue. She looked at the man beside her, whom she felt a strange sense of trust, with a bewildered expression, and asked the question that had been on her mind.

“Mr. Rorschach, I can sense that you and Grandpa Delapour are doing good things, so why do people dislike those who do good things?”

"Because what we do is not a good thing in the eyes of some people, little Abigail."

Gently stroking the blonde loli's head, Rorschach's gaze deepened. Abigail's assessment wasn't entirely wrong; old Delapour was unruly, or more specifically, it was Rorschach, who stood behind old Delapour, who was unruly.

Double the market rate, an eight-hour workday, weekends off, paid leave, sick leave, annual leave, and a comprehensive social security and housing fund system—these are what those people call "not following the rules." Because Luo Xia is using his own methods to take money out of those people's pockets and return it to those who deserve it.

In the United States today, most workers work 14 to 16 hours a day, some even up to 18 hours, but their wages are not high. A foreman at a shoe factory in Massachusetts once said, "If I put a strong, healthy 18-year-old boy to work next to any of the machines here, I can make him gray-haired by the time he's 22."

The reason they do this is ultimately for money, more money, and an insatiable thirst for wealth.

Capital never sleeps.

However, for Luo Xia, money was the least valuable thing. He had countless ideas in his mind, and even corresponding development models. Any one of them could make his net worth skyrocket, and the shop manager did just that.

While studying at Johns Hopkins Medical School, Rorschach created the 'Umbrella Corporation'. This company, possessing wisdom far exceeding that of humankind by hundreds of years, easily achieved success and made remarkable achievements in fields such as home appliances, medical care, personal care, construction, light industry, and heavy industry, becoming the most prominent dark horse in recent years.

However, along with this dark horse came some things that made the 'old money' unpleasant.

What? Your employees only work eight hours a day? You even give them days off? You even help them with their medical care? You'll even give them houses after they've worked for a certain number of years? Do you know how much that costs? Are you crazy?

Similar remarks have been frequently heard since Rorschach came to this world, and often accompanied by the look of those well-dressed 'upper-class gentlemen' as if they were looking at a fool, a madman, or even an enemy.

Rorschach and his Umbrella Corporation faced resistance, attacks, and slander from the traditional class. Under the deep-rooted influence of those powerful families, a considerable number of people who benefited from Rorschach's policies even came forward to accuse him of 'blasphemy,' 'going against the tide,' and 'intending to harm the people.'

However, contrary to everyone's expectations, Rorschach and his Umbrella Corporation did not falter. Instead, like a rising sun, they became increasingly unstoppable, radiating a brilliance that some could not bear to look directly at. As Rorschach and Umbrella's influence gradually expanded, many had to admit that Rorschach and his 'Rorschach system' had become an irreversible trend.

When Rorschach offers benefits that are countless times better than others, it's obvious to anyone whether to continue enduring the exploitation of those vampires or to go to Umbrella to enjoy a new life.

Soon, those once impeccably dressed upper-class gentlemen were forced to confront the embarrassing reality that they had no workers. Without workers, the factories could not operate, and if the factories could not operate, they would lose money, or even go bankrupt.

Faced with this embarrassing reality, the gentlemen had to make a painful decision—to emulate Rorschach and his Umbrella, implementing the same systems and welfare policies. Only in this way could their idle machines be put back into operation and their factories be filled with workers.

As for sabotaging, using underhanded tactics, or employing malicious methods to oppress and bind those low-level workers? Umbrella has a professional legal team of up to three hundred people on standby 24/7, just waiting for these guys to slip up.

Even if these legal teams can't handle it, there's still Rorschach, the ultimate boss, backing them up. Facing those capitalists whose every cell is soaked in the blood and tears of workers, Rorschach doesn't mind using some less-than-humane magic to make them 'return to the right path' and stand firmly on Umbrella's side.

Even if that person is the so-called mayor, governor, or the one in the white house, after meeting Rorschach, they will become the shopkeeper's strongest 'backbone'.

Now, it's time to bring the ancient city of Arkham into the Umbrella family.

After all, it's truly good when everyone is doing well.

Thinking to himself about dealing with those most troublesome ones when the time was right, Rorschach gently stroked Abigail's silky, radiant golden hair, whispering words of comfort:

"Don't worry, little guy, those people are just 'out of their minds' for a moment. Once they've come to their senses, they won't say those things anymore."

Abigail blinked her jewel-like, crystal-clear eyes, as if she had overheard something from the man beside her. However, she quickly abandoned her previous thoughts and recounted another observation:

“But besides those wealthy gentlemen, some people from the lower classes were also complaining. They felt that moving stones was too tiring, building houses was too dirty, and the machines were too complicated to operate. They could only earn a few work points a day. And if they wanted to exchange them for a job as a worker in the processing plant, they would need a lot of work points, which would not be enough for them to buy anything else.”

“Mr. Rorschach, why can’t we lower the work points required to get jobs and school places? That way, everyone can go to work in factories and go to school to learn.”

Hearing the innocent and pure words of the little girl in front of him, Luo Xia couldn't help but show a look of affection on his face.

What a pure soul! It's as if I'm seeing myself ten years ago, right after graduation.

Having long since lost his innocence after nearly a decade of being battered by society, the man sighed with regret at his lost youth and began to explain to Abigail in a low voice.

"Because that's not fair."

"Unfair?" The blonde girl looked up at the man beside her, her cute little face full of confusion.

"Yes, if the threshold is lowered to a level that everyone can easily obtain, not only will the reward lose its original meaning, but it will also disadvantage those who truly work hard, truly persevere, and truly want to earn a better life through their own efforts. Therefore, this is unfair."

"I have arranged for people to conduct a detailed investigation of those families who are truly in difficulty, and we will provide them with certain resources so that they can return to normal life as soon as possible."

"However, I will not give a kind look to those who have hands and feet and all four limbs intact, but are unwilling to work hard to earn the fruits of their labor. Instead, they only think about cheating and shirking their responsibilities, waiting for a windfall to fall from the sky."

At this point, Luo Xia's tone became serious, and he unusually put on a stern face in front of the two little ones.

"Sakura, Abby, I need you to remember one thing today, and keep it firmly in your hearts."

"What is it, Lord Rorschach/Uncle?"

"Those who help themselves will always be helped by others. A person must be able to 'save' himself in order to be qualified to receive help and a reward commensurate with his efforts. Those who seek help without expecting anything in return deserve to rot in the mud."

Chapter 423 Son of an Old Friend

Chapter 423 Son of an Old Friend

Arkham at night is not much quieter than during the day. The lights from several large construction sites illuminate the entire town, making it as bright as day and dazzling to the eye.

Paul, dressed in simple work clothes, accepted a card from a man wearing an umbrella-shaped badge on his chest. A smile, a mixture of fatigue and relief, appeared on his young and handsome face.

After receiving the card, he left the long queue and stroked the plastic card etched with his name.

'Jack Paul 1 point'

This small card can be exchanged for five dollars or goods of equivalent value at the Umbrella office in Arkham and at various construction sites.

Five US dollars! That used to take me three days to earn, and sometimes the foreman would deduct it from my earnings. Now I can earn it by working only eight hours.

That's...unbelievable.

If he could have earned that much money in the past, he wouldn't have had to take that nightmarish bus to Arkham; he could have chosen the more comfortable and safer steam train instead.

However, in that case, I probably wouldn't have experienced those magical 'adventures'.

With the image of that decaying, ancient fishing village in his mind, Paul greeted a few familiar coworkers and walked into a brightly lit restaurant near the construction site.

Because the construction site operates on a four-shift, three-rotation, 24-hour rotation system, many workers need to eat and rest even at midnight. As a result, nearby restaurants have recently switched to a 24-hour operating model.

However, despite having hired more waiters and chefs, these restaurants still made substantial profits, several times more than before. This was evident from the smile on the face of the still-charming owner, who, despite having slightly dark circles under her eyes, could not hide her radiant charm.

Perhaps in just half a month, this restaurant will be able to open a branch at another large construction site? I heard that the owner's daughter seems to want to take over the family business and manage the branch ahead of schedule, but it seems that the owner has rejected the idea.

Paul walked to an empty seat in the restaurant lobby and pressed the call button on the wooden table. The restaurant owner, her face showing fatigue but her eyes gleaming with a shrewdness, walked gracefully towards Paul with the allure of a mature woman.

"The same old routine, little cutie?"

Paul smiled shyly and nodded slightly, having been the subject of many jokes from his coworkers about his appearance lately.

"Just a moment, my little cutie, dinner will be here soon."

The still-charming proprietress chuckled and gently touched Paul's cheek. As the young man awkwardly dodged, she cheerfully walked towards the kitchen, leaving Paul alone to deal with the jeers and whistles of several familiar coworkers nearby.

"I never thought I'd be approached by a woman one day!"

Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar handsome face reflected on the smooth surface of the call bell, Paul subconsciously reached out and touched his chin with his hand, which was still covered in mud.

Smooth and delicate, with a soft touch, even after a day of strenuous physical labor and exposure to wind and sun, my skin is even better than that of the shop owner.

Since being dragged by Jill to that mysterious private clinic for 'treatment,' Paul not only got rid of the ugly mutations brought about by his Innsmouth bloodline, but his body also began to change.

His height increased to 1.8 meters, and his body became strong and powerful, but without the incongruity of those muscular monsters. Instead, it presented an almost graceful streamline, like a cheetah running across the grassland.

Aside from his body, the biggest change was in his face.

Paul was an ordinary person before, with an unremarkable appearance and no distinctive features in a crowd.

Now, not only has his black hair turned into a special textured 'dark gold' color, but his appearance has also become androgynous.

Handsome, gentle, even faintly glowing, to use a less flattering description, he was like the "pretty boy" people talk about, only an upgraded version, and this was Paul's own effort to cover it up with plaster.

He had excitedly dressed up after his transformation, wearing only his own decent clothes, and went out shopping, hoping to find love.

Paul soon found his own love, and not just one, and it didn't even discriminate between men and women.

When he stepped onto the street, every creature that saw his face was captivated by this handsome man, who resembled the legendary sun god Apollo. Paul, who had initially been eager to find love, was quickly overwhelmed by the throngs of people who flocked to him.

Countless people crowded around him, wanting nothing more than to touch his skin, hear his voice, and catch a glimpse of his mesmerizing face. Surrounded by these zombie-like men, women, and even cats and dogs, Paul screamed and protested in terror. Unfortunately, the louder and more piercing his cries, the more excited and fanatical his followers became.

When Paul regained consciousness, shivering, with seven or eight different colored lipstick marks on his face and most of his clothes stripped off, he found himself in a deserted alley. Standing before him was a man in a black trench coat, holding a silver carved cane.

The man, who was even more handsome and masculine than Paul was now, looked at Paul with great interest for a while. Paul looked like a girl who had been dragged into an alley by thugs and was now in a state of panic and unease. His voice was full of amusement and surprise at seeing something interesting.

"Is the serum already showing its effects? This appearance, the app value has reached at least 18, it's almost reaching 'mythical' level, isn't it? How interesting, I didn't expect it to have this kind of effect..."

Hearing the laughing voice beside him, Paul, who had gradually recovered from his previous terrifying experience, looked at the man in front of him with awe, as if he were being observed as some kind of lab rat.

Paul recognized the man before him; he was the doctor who had previously treated the 'Insmouth Disease,' the owner of the clinic with at least two 'Upper Predators,' whose name seemed to be... Rorschach?

To Paul's relief, the unknown being named Rorschach seemed to be preoccupied with something and didn't devote much energy to him. Rorschach simply handed Paul a cheap trinket that looked like it had been picked up from a roadside stall, telling him that as long as he wore it close to his body, the previous 'contamination' phenomenon would not occur. Then, without looking back, he turned and left, taking the hand of a purple-haired girl who had been waiting at the entrance of the alley, and they chatted and laughed as they disappeared from Paul's sight.

"Dinner's here! I made it myself, have a taste!"

Paul's memories were awakened by the restaurant owner's slightly hoarse voice. Looking at the dinner in front of him, which was obviously much more lavish than that of his fellow workers nearby, and even had some extra bacon and vegetables, the young man thanked her gratefully and lowered his head to eat heartily.

He was really hungry; the intense physical labor had emptied his stomach, leaving his movements devoid of any elegance or grace.

Even with this rough way of eating, the still-powerful proprietress across the table watched with great interest, her captivating eyes undisguisedly fixed on the young man before her, making Paul's eating movements somewhat unnatural.

Such blatant behavior naturally attracted the attention of other workers nearby. These straightforward men exchanged thoughtful glances, and finally, a loud-voiced, bald, middle-aged man shouted in a somewhat joking tone:

“Maggie, this isn’t fair! Why does Paul have so much bacon and vegetables on his plate, while I only have a few pieces of meat in mine?”

"Exactly! Exactly! This isn't fair, we want bacon too!"

"Bacon! Bacon!"

Several other customers who were acquainted with the proprietress also took the opportunity to stir things up, showing a willingness to watch the drama unfold.

The proprietress, who had been watching Paul eat with a smile, had her good mood completely ruined by these guys. She slammed a beer glass on the long table next to her and scolded them with her eyebrows raised:

"If you guys cause any more trouble, I'll put dead rat meat in your food next time and eat you bastards to death!"

The proprietress, who must have been very beautiful in her youth, had a special charm even when she was angry. Several diners who were already familiar with her were not afraid at all, but instead laughed even more loudly and continued to fan the flames.

"I think Maggie, you've fallen for our handsome Paul and want to keep him as your lover. Paul doesn't have a girlfriend either, so I think you two should just get together!"

"Sure! Sure! I'll give a wedding gift if it's a wedding! Double the amount!"

"This is good! This is good!"

Hearing the half-joking words of his usually kind coworkers, Paul lowered his head even further, neither admitting nor denying. Seeing his expression, the restaurant owner, Maggie, blushed instantly; the veins around her eyes, which she had been carefully tending to due to her recent good fortune, bulged, and she retorted:

"Nonsense! All nonsense! I was just looking out for Paul, this young man! He's just a kid, how could he be keeping a lover? Besides, how can a woman without a husband be considered keeping a lover? This is just normal dating!"

Then came a series of incomprehensible phrases, such as "husband died young" and "daughter has grown up," which made everyone burst into laughter, filling the shop with a joyful atmosphere.

While the proprietress was arguing with her regular customers, Paul continued to eat his rice with his head down, silent and efficient. After a few minutes, he picked up the cup full of warm milk, ate the last of his food, wiped the milk stains from the corners of his mouth, and finally looked up at the woman in front of him who looked to be around thirty years old.

"Maggie, the bill."

The landlady, who had been indignant, felt her mood improve upon hearing Paul's voice, and looked at the man who was almost ten years younger than her with a smile in her eyes.

"15 cents. If you don't have change, just put it on your tab."

'The bacon I ate alone cost more than fifteen cents.'

Knowing that Maggie was taking care of him, Paul didn't say much. Instead, he silently took out the plastic card he had just received from the construction site manager, covered it on the table, and pushed it in front of the restaurant owner.

"Give me change."

In Arkham, these uniquely textured plastic cards have become a form of hard currency, comparable to gold, as you can readily exchange them for equivalent amounts of money and supplies at Umbrella's offices. Merchants and shopkeepers are eager to collect these plastic cards, generally at a premium, buying as many as they can get.

After glancing at the card on the long table, the proprietress Maggie didn't take it. Instead, she bent down her still slender waist, leaned close to Paul, and whispered, "If you don't have any money, this meal is on me. You should take this back. The machine processing plant in the suburbs is almost finished. You need a more respectable job."

“The buildings in the slums are all demolished, and New Hope College has already started laying its foundation. You need it more than I do, Maggie.”

Paul pushed the plastic card toward the proprietress again, then got up from his chair, said "Put the rest on your tab," and pushed open the restaurant door into the night, ignoring Maggie, the proprietress who was hurriedly chasing after him with the plastic card in her hand.

Walking through Arkham under the cover of night, Paul hurried along, but his mind drifted back to memories from over a decade ago when he was still a child.

At that time, he accompanied his mother back to his hometown in Arkham to visit relatives. During that short time, what impressed him most was a beautiful young girl with fiery red hair and the delicious meals she served to him and his mother.

Now, more than a decade later, the young girl from back then has become the restaurant owner, while I am no longer the 'self' I once was.

Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar face reflected in the puddle by the roadside, Paul sighed and continued walking towards his rented room with his head down.

It's getting late, he needs to rest well, a new life awaits him tomorrow.