"Didn't you hear? It's a side job for him. He is already a government Visitation Specialist, and now he is doubling as a manager here. Damn, that's like hitting the jackpot in this mess," someone whispered in the back, the voice carrying a mix of awe and jealousy.
Manager Tuo lifted his plastic loudspeaker, his thumb clicking the trigger. He squinted at his handwritten notes under the flickering lights and began shouting to the assembly, "Alright, I will explain the salary and ranking system first. Listen up, everyone. You had better record this on your phones if they still have power, or take notes on whatever paper you have. Our benefits are real and verifiable."
"Holy shit, I guess it's legit then," a man near the front murmured, his eyes widening.
"Shut up, quiet down!" someone else hissed.
The place went dead silent, the only sound the faint hum of the energy-saving lights overhead.
"First of all," Manager Tuo continued, his voice echoing in the rafters, "there's no difference between full-time and temporary workers here. We only have employees ranked from zero-star to ten-star. The higher your rank, the better your benefits will be.
The first hundred people to reach three stars will be promoted to team leaders, and the first ten to reach five stars will become shift supervisors.
Five-star employees and those ranked even higher will receive free daily necessities, unlimited vegetables and buns for their whole family to eat, private rooms, and even an electric scooter with a rechargeable battery!"
The crowd broke into a commotion again as people digested the information. The benefits sounded almost too good to be true in a world where a moldy bun was a luxury. One person's salary could apparently feed an entire family of three without much struggle.
"Now I know you're all curious about how to get promoted and how the pay works," Manager Tuo said, letting the noise die down. "Here is how. Your salary depends on your daily completed work, which is paid in the form of points. Points can be exchanged for food and supplies from the factory, or converted into virtual coins on the government app at a 1:1 rate. However, virtual coins can't be converted back into points. Points can't be traded between people, but you can use them to buy things for others. Both have equal value."
Everyone exhaled in collective relief. As long as they could convert them to virtual coins, that was good enough for their needs outside the factory.
Manager Tuo flipped another page of his notebook. "Second, your star rank depends on your total accumulated points. Spending points doesn't affect your ranking, so don't worry about falling behind.
LV1: 10 points.
Benefits: two free cafeteria meals a month. Shared dorm, 16 people per room, 1 point monthly rent.
LV2: 100 points.
Includes all previous perks plus two monthly VIP rice or bun rations. Shared dorm, 8 people per room, 5 points monthly rent.
LV3: 1,000 points.
Adds three monthly VIP vegetable rations and one winter coat. Shared dorm, 4 people per room, 10 points monthly rent.
LV4: 5,000 points.
Includes all previous perks plus unlimited cafeteria meals for yourself. Shared dorm, 2 people per room, 50 points monthly rent.
LV5: 10,000 points.
All of the above, plus unlimited cafeteria meals for your whole family and an electric scooter. Private deluxe room, 100 points monthly rent."
Gasps filled the hall. People listened closely, counting with their fingers and muttering calculations. Just reaching LV2 meant two free cafeteria meals and two bun rations each month; they were worth 8 virtual coins already! And the next rank gave precious vegetables too.
As the crowd murmured and calculated, Manager Tuo smirked at the hungry look on their faces. "Fools," he thought. "You really think you can outsmart Boss Jing?"
Some of them probably believed they could slack off once they hit five stars. They were naive. There's still a minimum monthly points quota to maintain their status, and once they realized how much more they could earn at higher ranks—seven, eight, or nine stars—they would end up working even harder than before. Like the saying goes, "Wool comes from the sheep," but when you make it look free, everyone feels like they're getting a bargain.
He remembered Jing Shu's words on the matter:
"Remember, free things are usually the most expensive. The moment you chase something free, you have already started paying for it."
No kidding. Just look at them. For the promise of free family meals, everyone looked ready to go crazy with effort. Shaking his head at the predictable nature of it all, he continued,
"Maybe some of you don't get it yet, so I will give you a concrete example. Let's take Collector Zhang San, Inspector Li Si, and Team Leader Wang Ermazi.
Zhang San's task this week is to collect 100 tons of carrion scavengers for a value of 1,000 virtual coins. Once completed, he will receive 100 points.
When Zhang San's batch passes inspection, Li Si, the inspector, gets a 1% cut, earning 10 points. Team Leader Wang Ermazi rechecks the batch and gets 0.1%, or 1 point.
If a batch fails inspection, Zhang San and Li Si each lose 10 points, while Wang earns 20 for catching the error. In case of disputes, anyone can appeal to a supervisor or above, and if proven right, the management staff involved will lose their position."
Manager Tuo paused, letting the weight of the accountability sink in.
"Now, let's say Zhang San is sitting at LV2 with 100 total points. He gets two free cafeteria meals per month, two bun rations, and an eight-person dorm, but he must pay 5 points rent for the space. He can exchange points for virtual coins if he wants, though I would suggest keeping them. After all, a cafeteria buffet costs only 1 point per meal. It's a steal compared to the prices outside."
The hall erupted again. Everyone was talking at once, asking when the work would start and how the jobs would be assigned.
Then someone raised a hand in the crowd. "The dorm is already packed. If some people get two-person or four-person rooms, what about the rest of us?"
Manager Tuo slammed his hand on the table to get their attention. "Good question. Here is the deal. LV1 employees get sixteen-person rooms. LV0 employees, well, you will have to stay in the hallway for now. If it's too crowded, you will need to move out entirely.
The factory officially starts operations in a few days. Until then, we will post small temporary jobs to get things ready. The people with the highest points will get to pick their preferred positions first.
There are only limited openings for the best roles, so it's first come, first served. I will post the list shortly."
Right then, a scruffy man with a greasy head suddenly jumped onto the stage, his boots clattering on the wood. He scowled at the officials, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Manager Tuo, I have been listening for a while now, and all I hear is you spinning fairy tales. These benefits sound too good to be true. Isn't this just another way to make us work for nothing? What is the difference from digging up corpses every day?"
Manager Tuo frowned, eyeing a few restless troublemakers in the crowd who were nodding along, but he forced himself to stay calm. "If you have got doubts, speak up. Tell me what you're not satisfied with."
The man, nicknamed Lai Ziba, glanced smugly at a silent group of thugs behind him before turning back with a smirk. "I'm just saying, Manager Tuo, your whole system is too complicated. I can't remember all that. I just want a simple deal. I work here every day, you feed and house me like a four-star employee, and we call it even. What is with all these fancy rules?"
A soft voice came from the corner of the stage. Jing Shu stepped forward into the light, smiling faintly at the man. "Oh? So what you're saying is, you don't want to work, but you still expect to eat and live here for free?"
Lai Ziba looked her up and down with a contemptuous gaze, then he sneered, "And who the hell are you?"