Chapter 41

The latter half of the tenth month of the lunar calendar in the third year of the Yingli era passed amidst excitement and bustle, and the穿越者们 (time travelers) had also cooled down from their nouveau riche mentality. Now that they had their first pot of gold, they needed to start planning for their long-term development.

On the afternoon of the 25th of the tenth month, all the time travelers gathered in the forest behind the Jade Void Palace for their second full assembly meeting since their arrival. The main topics of the meeting were two: the management and distribution of team assets, and the direction of future investments. Everyone present spoke freely, expressing their views. Summarized, the main points of view were as follows:

The first suggestion was for equal distribution, dividing all assets into thirty-one equal parts, with each team member receiving a share. This would apply not only to the current income but also to any future income.

The second suggestion was similar to the first, advocating for equal distribution, but only for the proceeds from this auction. Future income would depend on individual capabilities, and team members could invest their share in areas of personal interest, with profits and losses being their own. However, if an investment was profitable, a certain percentage would need to be contributed to a public fund to benefit the team as a whole.

The third suggestion was for a combination of public and private management, with clear distinctions. The proceeds from the auction would be divided into two parts. One part would be equally distributed to each team member for personal daily expenses. The other part would be a collective fund for external investments. Profits from these investments would be partly retained for further development, with the remainder distributed based on each member's contribution, following the principle of "more work, more gain; less work, less gain; no work, no gain." Additionally, it was suggested that those involved in the auction should receive appropriate additional rewards, as the trade, security, and material management groups had expended considerable effort.

There were other suggestions, but they were mostly minor adjustments to the above points and were not widely supported, so they were merged into the main suggestions. The committee summarized and refined these three suggestions, forming a written proposal, which was then submitted to the full assembly for a vote. The proposal that received a majority of votes would be implemented.

After a full vote, the third suggestion, after appropriate refinement, received the support of the majority of members and was passed. The specific content was as follows: one-tenth of the auction proceeds would be distributed to all team members, with a base amount of 500 strings of cash, and additional bonuses based on involvement in the auction, determined by the committee. The remaining nine-tenths would be a collective investment fund, managed by the team for various investments. Profits from these investments would be partly retained in the investment fund, with the remainder distributed as wages based on each member's role and contribution, paid monthly, with annual dividends based on the year's profits. The specific amounts of wages and dividends would be determined by the committee, functional groups, and the newly formed finance group, to encourage all team members. This system was based on modern company management practices, emphasizing collective ownership while acknowledging individual contributions.

After the resolution was passed, the committee nominated and the full assembly voted to approve the composition of the finance group. The finance group would consist of Wang Xiaojun and Hong Yan, with Wang Xiaojun serving as the group leader. Although Wang Xiaojun, as a department manager in a software development company, might not be as proficient in business as Hong Yan, he still had a good grasp of relevant accounting knowledge. His role as group leader was mainly to execute the committee's supervisory responsibilities, while the specific business work would still be handled by Hong Yan, the professional. This way, each of the four committee members would have a functional group to oversee: Wang Xiaojun for finance, Zhang Weixin for external communication, Xu Shaowan for security, and Li Junwu for technology.

In fact, from Wang Xiaojun's perspective, he was not particularly concerned about whether he should be the group leader. Initially, when he had nothing to do after the time travel, he might have been interested in the job. Now, although he had not been assigned any specific tasks, his free time and easy-going personality made him very popular among the time travelers. Whether it was the Dongshan faction or the Xigu faction, whether it was the repair camp or the infantry camp, everyone was familiar with him. They were willing to share their thoughts and seek his advice, and he would patiently guide them. As a result, he became a mediator among the various factions, focusing his energy on coordinating team member relationships. The leisurely days he had when he first arrived were long gone. If not for the attention to financial issues and to appease some members of the Dongshan faction, who were dissatisfied with the lack of a specific role for a committee member, he would not have wanted to spend his energy on those tedious numbers. However, he knew that if he did not take on specific responsibilities, he would likely spend even more time on ideological work in the future.

After the full assembly meeting, the committee communicated with the trade, security, and technology groups to determine future investment and research directions and to discuss corresponding security plans.

After the trade and technology groups finalized their recent plans, Xu Shaowan, as the committee member responsible for security, expressed his views on the challenges of future security work. He believed that with the implementation of development plans, team members' work locations might become more dispersed, and the security group's limited personnel would find it difficult to complete the necessary security tasks without additional members. Therefore, he suggested that, at an appropriate time, a certain number of local people, who would be strictly vetted, could be recruited as guards, led by the security group members, to protect the team's main activity areas.

Regarding Xu Shaowan's suggestion, everyone present expressed their views, both in favor and against. Those in favor believed that the difficulties Xu Shaowan pointed out were real, and with only nine people in the security group, expanding the group was inevitable. Those against believed that while there was a shortage of personnel in security, it was not yet appropriate to recruit locals, as the team had many secrets that could not be known by outsiders. Recruiting locals would greatly increase the risk of leaks, which could be more harmful than the lack of security personnel. At this stage, the issue should be addressed by adjusting the composition of the functional groups, with some members who were not involved in recent development plans being added to the security group.

After careful consideration, the committee members believed that recruiting locals was a more reasonable solution. Since this matter concerned the interests of all time travelers, the recently dissolved full assembly meeting was reconvened for a vote.

The resolution was ultimately passed, and the specific recruitment matters would be handled by the security group, the external communication group, and the audit group. Although those who opposed the proposal could not change the voting results, they still raised their concerns about the recruitment standards, emphasizing the need for comprehensive investigations and strict vetting. Xu Shaowan, Zhang Weixin, and Liang Ziyue, who were responsible for the three groups, accepted these concerns and promised to prioritize the team's interests and not to take the matter lightly.

The full assembly meeting lasted until evening, and after the meeting, the functional groups that received tasks began to formulate detailed plans, waiting for the venue issues to be resolved before implementing the resolutions.

The most fundamental issue of the work venue still needed to be resolved through the Zhong family. The Zhong family naturally understood the time travelers' earnest expectations and spared no effort in this matter. In the last few days of the tenth month of the lunar calendar, the Zhong family became regular visitors to the Jade Void Palace. The father and son had comprehensive discussions with the committee members of the time travel team, who the Zhong family saw as leaders, regarding the purchase of land, shops, and other properties, and ultimately determined the selection criteria. Through the Zhong family, they investigated potential sellers in nearby counties and provided the information to the time travelers, who made the final decision.

Zhong Youpeng, who had already seen the time travelers as family, did not take the matter lightly. In the early days of the eleventh month of the lunar calendar, he was almost always out, gathering information and communicating through various channels. Finally, on the 10th of the eleventh month, he returned to the Jade Void Palace, bringing the best solution after thorough selection.

In Wang Xiaojun's room, all committee members, group leaders, and key members of the functional groups listened carefully to Zhong Youpeng's introduction and asked some questions, gaining a basic understanding of the sellers' information.

Although this transaction involved two large plots of land, three shops, and two residences, the fact that all these properties belonged to one person, Qi Nanhai, and that he required them to be sold as a package made the process relatively simple. If the time travelers were interested, they could directly negotiate with Qi Nanhai, and once the price was agreed upon, the transaction could be completed immediately. As for Qi Nanhai's credibility, Zhong Youpeng vouched for him, stating that Qi Nanhai was an acquaintance who was moving his entire family to the Southern Dynasty and needed to sell his land and business in this area. Qi Nanhai had a clean background, was very trustworthy, and had a good reputation. The price, while initially quoted, was not fixed and could be negotiated.

Upon hearing the quoted price, Wang Xiaojun, who had just been appointed as the finance group leader, was particularly interested and quickly asked, "Zhong Youpeng, what is the seller's asking price, and how does it compare to the current market price?"

Zhong Youpeng thought for a moment and replied, "The land at the foot of Baojin Mountain is 300 acres, of lower quality, and not primarily used for growing grain. Qi Nanhai bought it for the same reason I bought land in Huangshandian Village, to build a residence for summer retreats and to attract tenants to increase the population. The land is cheap, and the yield is low, so it was not expected to be profitable. The small village next to the land originally had only about ten households, but after Qi Nanhai arrived, another five or six tenant households came. However, due to the poor soil, the rent was very low, just a formality to gather some people. The land is priced at 2 strings of cash per acre, and the summer retreat residence, which is quite large but only used for three to four months a year, is priced at 150 strings of cash. The land outside Fan Yang City is 1,500 acres, of higher quality, and already fully rented out, with good annual yields, so it is priced at 3.5 strings of cash per acre. There are only a few grain warehouses, no residence. In Liangxiang City, there is another residence, smaller than the one at the foot of Baojin Mountain but with excellent materials and craftsmanship, priced at 200 strings of cash. In Liangxiang City, there are also a grain store, a silk store, and an idle shop. These three shops, along with their inventory, are priced at 800 strings of cash. In total, the properties are priced at 7,000 strings of cash. Of course, this is just the seller's quote, and we can negotiate."

7,000 strings of cash, while not a small amount, was not a significant sum for the time travelers, who had 170,000 strings of cash in the material group's warehouse. However, as people who grew up in a market economy, they would not simply pay the asking price and would certainly try to negotiate.

After a discussion, it was decided that the trade group would meet the seller through Zhong Youpeng, first to inspect the properties and get a preliminary impression, and then to negotiate to achieve a win-win situation. Zhong Youpeng had no objections and offered to arrange the meeting, with the specific time and place to be determined after further discussions with the seller. After saying this, he bid farewell to the time travelers and went to find the seller. The time travelers thanked him repeatedly and saw him off at the gate before returning.

After sending off the enthusiastic Zhong family, Wang Xiaojun and the others