Fifty million a day, trapped in the county town, can't spend it all.

The car quickly stopped in front of a health club called "Bai Jie Foot Massage".

Zhang Yang stared at the sign for a moment, feeling that something was off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

He shook his head, went through the door under the sign, and took the elevator to the second floor.

The receptionist, a young woman, was chatting with a colleague when she saw Zhang Yang walk in. She quickly switched to a professional smile and greeted him.

"Mass, or foot massage, sir?"

Zhang Yang glanced at the lobby's decor. Apart from the cashier, there were only a few sofas and a glass table against the wall.

Such a large foot massage parlor, if not decorated in the same glittering style as those in big cities, should at least have a few money trees planted on it, right?

It's fair to say that it's worth the price of its 168 deluxe package.

"Foot massage," Zhang Yang replied.

"Okay, sir, do you have a preferred technician?"

"This is my first time here," Zhang Yang shook his head and pointed to the price list, saying, "I'll take the 168 deluxe set meal."

Upon hearing this, the woman's eyes lit up, and she quickly took out her walkie-talkie and began calling for help.

Soon a waiter arrived and led Zhang Yang to the room at the end of the corridor.

The room is small, about 30 square meters, and contains two large electric sofa beds.

The walls are covered with European-style floral wallpaper, which looks a bit old, perhaps because the decoration has been around for a while.

The TV was playing a promotional video for their services, featuring young and beautiful technicians with slim waists and long legs.

"Sir, please change your clothes first. The technician will be here shortly." The waiter took a disposable bathrobe from the cabinet next to the door and handed it to Zhang Yang before leaving.

Zhang Yang changed his clothes and lay down on the sofa to wait.

He didn't actually enjoy foot baths; he just wanted to investigate what kind of services he could expect at 168 in Mou County.

Just as I was pondering this, there was a knock on the door.

"Enter."

The door was pushed open, and a woman in a purple technician's uniform walked in carrying a wooden basin.

Zhang Yang looked up, then quickly glanced at the promotional video on TV, and was completely dumbfounded.

The woman who entered was severely overweight, with permed hair like a landlady's, full of curls dyed burgundy, paired with her purple outfit...

Who says purple is charming?

The woman placed the wooden basin on the ground, skillfully laid out a towel, and looked up with a smile: "Technician number 35 is at your service. Boss, please test the water temperature first. If it's not suitable, I'll add more water for you."

Zhang Yang sat up from the sofa and pointed to the promotional video on the TV, saying:

"Hey lady, this looks different from the promotional video on TV!"

Upon hearing this, Number 35 wasn't surprised, and simply smiled: "That's just a guy, there's definitely a difference between him and reality."

"Isn't this difference a bit too big?"

Number 35 maintained her smile: "Boss, if you're not satisfied, how about I ask the front desk to send you a different technician?"

"Are there any younger technicians?"

Number 35 shook his head: "No, they're mostly people our age."

Zhang Yang sighed as he looked at the technician in front of him and put his foot into the tub.

"Fine, you'll do."

"Hey, thanks, boss."

Number 35 then pulled over a small stool and sat down, starting to massage his feet. His technique was indeed professional, with precise pressure, making Zhang Yang feel relaxed all over.

The masseuse was very attentive, and Zhang Yang took the opportunity to chat with her.

"Sister, how much do you usually earn in a month?"

Number 35 looked helpless: "The wages in the county are low, so even fewer people are willing to go out and spend money. During the Spring Festival, I can earn seven or eight thousand, but usually it's only four thousand or so."

"So little?" Zhang Yang frowned upon hearing this.

"What can we do? Four thousand is considered a high salary in a county town."

Zhang Yang continued the conversation, "Why doesn't your shop hire more young technicians in their twenties?"

"Why stay in the county town at your age?" Number 35 shook his head. "Go to those big cities and work in factories. With room and board included, you could earn four or five thousand a month, right? If you want to do this kind of work, working in those bathhouses outside, wouldn't you earn two or three times the salary in the county town?"

"I've heard that the starting price for a foot massage in big cities is 128 yuan, and some luxury packages even reach 688 yuan. How much money do they make from just one sale?"

Zhang Yang nodded. The different distribution of urban commercial structures means that high income represents high consumption, which is necessary to maintain the domestic economic cycle.

"Then why don't you go out?"

Number 35 sighed and said, "I've been out, but I'm too old. I want to go to those high-end foot massage centers, but they won't take me. I can only go to those roadside foot care shops, which don't pay much. Plus, I have to rent a place to live in another city, so I don't have much money left at the end of the month. It's better to stay in my hometown and take care of my elderly parents."

"Is your child also working in another city?"

"Yes, you can't make money staying in the county. I only come back once a year."

When the technician mentioned her child, the melancholy in her eyes reminded Zhang Yang of the expressions on his parents' faces when they saw him off.

"Sigh!" Zhang Yang sighed.

Seeing that Zhang Yang was not speaking, No. 35 also shut up. She took Zhang Yang's feet out of the basin, dried them, and placed them on her thighs. She then focused on massaging them. When she pressed the Yongquan acupoint, Zhang Yang's face changed color in pain.

"Young man, you have kidney problems," the technician casually remarked when he noticed Zhang Yang's expression change.

"My kidneys are fine. I was just thinking about something when you suddenly did that, which startled me. Also, big sister, your strength was a bit too much," Zhang Yang said stubbornly.

How can a man admit that he has kidney problems?

We all have 24K titanium alloy kidneys!

Number 35 smiled. In their line of work, they'd seen far too many people who were stubbornly refusing to admit their mistakes.

"Do you often stay up late? You have insufficient kidney energy. Look at your dark circles. Staying up late less will be good for your health."

Zhang Yang pursed his lips and changed the subject: "Is the job market in the county really that bad right now? I remember there was a chemical plant and an aluminum alloy factory that were doing quite well, weren't they?"

"It's been a long time since then." Number 35 said while pressing down, "Young people these days can't take hardship. Plus, after working in a chemical plant for a long time, they get a lot of health problems and don't even earn enough to pay for medical treatment, so naturally fewer people are going there."

"As for the aluminum alloy plant... it seems the land has been taken back by the county."

Number 35 sighed and continued, "These days in the county, it's incredibly difficult for ordinary people to find a stable job with a decent income, unless they get a government job. A few years ago, you could work on construction sites, but now there aren't any construction sites left. Besides delivering food, selling insurance, or real estate, I don't know what young people can do when they come back."

As Zhang Yang listened to her complaints, his mind was racing.

Mu County currently has a resident population of 500,000, and the system upgrade requires a population of 1 million.

It's a full half short.

Five hundred thousand people, that's equivalent to adding a county town.

People need to eat, go to work, have a place to live, see a doctor, and go to school.

All supporting measures must be in place.

Secondly, simply luring people back is not enough; they need to make money, and they need to make more money in their hometown than they would outside. Only a fool would want to leave.

The first step to attracting people back is to create jobs.

We must create a large number of high-paying jobs.

Zhang Yang thought to himself that he had 50 million yuan every day, which amounted to more than 18 billion yuan a year. If this amount of money were invested in the county, it would be like a nuclear bomb.

It seems that the tasks assigned by the system are not impossible to complete.

The room's air conditioning was set to a perfect temperature, and after being thoroughly relaxed by the technician, Zhang Yang, who hadn't slept all night, drifted off to sleep.

After some time, number 35 woke him up: "Boss, it's time. Do you want to extend the time?"

"Add it! But don't press it anymore, let me get a good night's sleep."