Great, now we are dead!

Chika continued chatting there, becoming increasingly familiar with the stall owner.

"There's nothing we can do. The residents need to build houses too, and the lotus pond is blocking the road and house construction."

The middle-aged man pulled out a short stick from somewhere and pointed it into the distance: "It's right there... It's a building now."

"it's a pity"

Chika expressed her regret.

There are too many regrettable things. Young lady, you are too young to understand.

Cherish what you have now, and don't wait until it's gone to regret it, understand?

"hey-hey"

Chika smiled nonchalantly, "Of course I know that, Uncle! You don't need to teach me!"

"Well"

"Is there anything else fun to do in this town? We probably won't be staying for two days, so we should try to see as much as possible."

"...not many left."

The stall owner became saddened as he spoke of this: "And there will be fewer and fewer of them."

"Ok?"

"Oh, right, about this... let me explain."

When she finally encountered a topic that she could participate in, out of respect for being the host, she began to tell Chika the whole story.

In short, the land has been contracted by developers and is currently being planned. It is estimated that various large-scale facilities will be built in about one or two years. However, given Japan's infrastructure efficiency, it is not impossible for it to be delayed for three or four years.

"I heard it's going to be an amusement park, but some say it's going to be a waste incineration plant."

"Such a beautiful town, why build an incinerator...? An amusement park would be more acceptable."

Chika was puzzled: "Do all the villagers agree? Won't this affect the surrounding environment?"

"I don't know that."

Seeing Zi shake his head, he said, "I wasn't there when everyone was making the decision."

At this point, Ye Shou finally spoke up: "Presumably, the local government has given its consent, and the villagers have also cast their votes."

"……I see."

Needless to say, Qianhua nodded knowingly as soon as she heard the word "vote".

"Ugh?"

Seeing that Zi was completely bewildered, he asked, "What's going on?"

"This is a very common technique, Yotsuya-kun."

Liuli glanced at the boss, who also had a curious expression, and then explained to Jianzi, "From a legal point of view, building large facilities around residential areas requires taking into account the impact on the surrounding environment, conducting strict reviews from all aspects, and obtaining the consent of the residents before construction can begin."

For example, sunlight, water quality, air quality... these are the legitimate rights of residents, and contractors cannot infringe upon them arbitrarily—in theory.

"theory?"

"The same thing—contracting a piece of land to build an amusement park versus building a garbage dump—gives residents a completely different impression. The former is far more likely to be approved by the vote than the latter."

So, they first lure residents with good news to get their consent and promise compensation, then negotiate with the government to secure the contract—however, the project to be built in the official documents may not be the one promised to the residents.

"Isn't this a scam?!"

"Plans can't keep up with changes."

Liuli spoke as if talking to a child, laughing, "This method used to be very common, but it's slowly becoming less effective, especially with the increasingly strict regulations on large-scale facilities in urban planning."

Therefore, many companies would rather spend more on infrastructure than relocate to rural areas where things are easier to manage.

Due to declining birth rates and the emptying of rural communities, many towns and villages in Japan are predominantly populated by middle-aged and elderly people. These people find it difficult to resist corporate propaganda campaigns, and once they realize something is amiss, they lack the energy to fight back.

In addition, once compensation is received, the matter is usually dropped.

"Won't the government investigate the problems inside?"

"All you need to do is win over the local councilor."

"It's that simple?"

"Occasionally, things can get out of control,"

Liuli said nonchalantly, "That's a problem for the government and banks. A mature company should learn to control costs and plan ahead."

"This is really..."

"Hey, gentlemen, what kind of agreement were you talking about earlier? The contractor's... does it mean that as long as you get the land from the daimyo, you can decide what to build on it?"

Unlike Jianzi, the boss seemed very excited.

"In other words, it's okay to not let it build anything, right?"

Country? We stopped doing that twenty years ago!

Liuli's first thought was of some outdated practice, but looking at the boss's wise eyes... it probably wasn't that.

“It’s normal for land to sit for a few years, and some can even sit for decades… but ultimately it depends on what agreement is reached with the government.”

Speaking of which, why are you mentioning a daimyo? Are you from the Edo period?!

"The government... is that the shogunate?"

The boss scratched his head, unable to come up with any good solutions.

"Hmm... Actually, just becoming a councilor is enough. As long as there is someone who can speak up in the local area, businesses can't act recklessly."

At this moment, Chika came up with an idea.

"Uncle, you should run for councilor! Haha!"

A member of parliament? His/Her full name?

—The buckwheat stall owner seemed to be deep in thought.

"how should I do it?"

"Every day I have to stand under the sun and spout nonsense in front of a lot of people that I don't even believe myself."

Chika smiled and said, "If you can do that, you'll have a foundation to climb the ladder."

"..."

Can't do it!

The boss shook his head: He doesn't like the sun or crowds!

"No way? That's a shame. It's actually not difficult at all. Several of my relatives do it this way. You'll get the hang of it once you do it a lot."

The Fujiwara family has been a first-class noble family since ancient times, with many branches and factions.

In modern times, Chika's family has even produced a prime minister. Although her father is currently just a diplomat, he has a good chance of becoming the Minister of Foreign Affairs in two terms, which is a powerful position in Japan.

Among her relatives are quite a few members of parliament... She might not know anyone anywhere, but she can establish a connection as soon as she introduces her family.

"I'm a little afraid of getting sunburned..."

"Then there's no way!"

Chika shook her head decisively.

Being afraid of the sun is not an option!

Regardless of social class or faction, anyone aspiring to become a member of parliament or even a high-ranking official like a governor must cultivate a populist image. They must rush to give speeches regardless of the sweltering summer heat or howling winds, and campaigning in the rain is a basic requirement.

On this point, a prime minister who gave an open-air speech had something to say: even the most famous bigwigs are not immune to this!

"Ugh!"

The boss sighed, completely giving up on the idea, and said bitterly, "In the end, it's all the developer's fault!"

"Uh-huh!"

"Even the local names have problems!"

"That's right"

Chika simply went along with him, saying, "I hate unscrupulous merchants the most too!"

"By the way, which company is the contractor?"

Ruri asked Miko, "Do you know, Yotsuya-kun?"

"This... the sign at the construction site seems to say New World Heavy Industries."

"..."

Upon hearing this, Liuli blinked and subconsciously looked at her master, while Ye Shou also widened his eyes slightly and instinctively straightened up.

"Businessmen are all the same no matter where they are, but the county councilor definitely pocketed some benefits. I'll check it out, hehe."

Qianhua opened her phone and scrolled through the search engine—

Suddenly, I stopped laughing.

"Hey, guests, why are you all so quiet?"

"It's nothing... I just think this noodle dish is pretty good."

"Isn't it delicious! This is a long-established brand! Haha!"

Chapter 102 Obik: I'm so moved I could cry.

The once delicious noodles suddenly became tasteless.

Qianhua became unusually quiet, and Liuli also became cautious in her words and actions. Ye Shouze then took over the conversation.

"Uncle, did you really like your old village?"

"Of course!"

In his excitement, the boss messed up his wig and instinctively shook his hair to straighten it. This action made Ye Shou's eyes twitch and his heart beat faster.

"It's not so much that I like the village, but that I am the village... I was born here, and I will die here, just like the villagers have for generations."

—That's what I wanted to do.

But the changes that have occurred in these decades are more than those in the previous hundreds of years. Without realizing it, I can no longer find the village I used to live in, and even the cemetery has changed.

The kids I used to play with, the guys I used to fight with, the raccoon dog that stole my fried tofu... I can't see any of them anymore.

I'm so scared.

If one day I also fall into darkness and never come out again, and I can't find my old friends inside, and am all alone... what should I do then?

This uncle doesn't look very old, but he talks like an old man on his deathbed—Qianhua wondered to herself, but dared not speak.

She just looked up information online and found that the district councilor is an ordinary politician you can see everywhere, the kind who goes to visit the presidents of companies during holidays. The people who promote these projects are from the prefectural council, and the person who has the final say in the council is named Fujiwara.

Judging from her name, she's probably from the same generation as her father... It's best not to mess with the locals in such a remote and impoverished place.

Incidentally, Shinsekai Heavy Industries is a subsidiary of Kuse Heavy Industries—for the soba noodle stall owner, this is like enemies sitting together.

However, Chika and Ye Shou are truly innocent:

With such a large family and business, who knows what their own family's business or what their relatives are doing!

As for garbage disposal plants, Ye Shou would never bother with such a small business!

In reality, the companies under his management all generate income automatically. He only pays attention to them when he needs to earn "Destiny Coins".

Therefore, Qianhua rarely behaved herself, and when she heard Ye Shou bring up the topic, her big eyes widened in surprise.

"Well……"

Ye Shou's toe was stepped on, but he calmly withdrew his foot and continued chatting with the stall owner.

"You'll experience these things as long as you live... but you can also make new friends."

"You're still young and can't understand how I feel. Besides, people these days don't bother with old things like mine anymore."

The boss suddenly became serious and complained to Ye Shou in a solemn tone: "Once again, I was walking on a dark path at night and went to check on a drunk man as usual. But the man actually said that I was a tokusatsu freak and that my suit was very realistic. He wasn't afraid of me at all!"

Young man, what exactly is tokusatsu?

"..."