Chapter 282: Chapter 282

"So now I announce that both competitors have passed the assessment, and both will simultaneously become vice presidents!" Chairman Tie exclaimed, his voice choked with emotion, tears streaking down his wrinkled face. It was over; he had been forced to cede his position. That damn Zhou Bapi had given him two choices: either announce his own resignation and graciously step down, or let Zhou Bapi announce the outcome.

Zhou Bapi had disdainfully said at the time, "I’m even leaving you some dignity. You decide for yourself."

Chairman Tie was also desperate. What could he do?

Amidst a chorus of cheers and applause, the two were simultaneously crowned with the title of ’Vice President’ of the Medicinal Materials Association. After undergoing cumbersome procedures and computer data entry, all of this was to be filed in the big data archives.

This even included many transfers of authority. Of course, after the announcements and the assessment project concluded, Jing Shu and Wang Daxian were led away to complete the necessary procedures, while the others went to collect Seeds. Now, the Medicinal Materials Association was about to embark on a major sixty-day initiative. Jing Shu had Wang Danai distribute the Seeds, instructing them to start planting immediately. If any problems arose later, they could come to her.

Oh, right, the Seeds weren’t free. Each Seed cost 5 Contribution Points, payable to Jing Shu. Members were advised to take only as many as they could manage. Seeds obtained from the Medicinal Materials Association could not be distributed outside; each Seed had a record of its destination and had to be planted within a documented Medicinal Materials Association facility.

Contribution Points were the internal currency of the Medicinal Materials Association. Each plant grown, including the seeds it yielded, was valued according to its worth, awarding between 1 to 10 Contribution Points depending on the plant. The more one planted, the higher the value, and thus the more Contribution Points earned.

Contribution Points could be used to purchase various Seeds for planting. According to their quality, unsoaked Seeds cost around 5 to 10 Contribution Points, while soaked ones cost 1 to 5 Contribution Points. Jing Shu, therefore, hadn’t inflated her price; she was adhering to the Medicinal Materials Association’s regulations, which could be considered quite humane.

Just as Jiaojiao had said, if one took the association’s Seeds, whatever was grown belonged to the association, including any new Seeds produced. However, members could earn Contribution Points once the plants reached medicinal grade.

During the annual review, whoever had accumulated the most Contribution Points would be promoted to a full-time employee.

Non-full-time employees could only use Contribution Points to purchase some soaked Seeds, fertilizer, and similar items.

Full-time employees, however, could purchase nearly extinct varieties of Seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, and even use Contribution Points to acquire more planting space, along with various other resources and tools.

Most importantly, full-time employees could directly purchase medicinal herbs accepted by the association using Contribution Points.

As a vice president, one could do even more with Contribution Points. In addition to the aforementioned benefits, they could even exchange them for living supplies and certain special privileges. As soon as Jing Shu accessed her new permissions, she found all sorts of items listed in the Medicinal Materials Association app on her phone. These could be exchanged for cars, fuel, and daily electricity allocation using Contribution Points. There was a long list of other items as well, but unfortunately, because Jing Shu didn’t have enough Contribution Value, they weren’t displayed.

Of course, there was a monthly quota for these. Jing Shu realized that supporting a vice president required so many resources that it was indeed impossible for the association to offer more such positions; any more would be unsustainable.

If, before becoming vice president, Jing Shu was merely an executor—a player entering a game, unable to alter its rules or game mechanics, unable to change any procedures—then after becoming vice president, her privileges changed immediately. She became an administrator who *could* change the rules.

She was like a game GM, overseeing the ’players’ of the Medicinal Materials Association as they planted various medicinal herbs, guiding them to generate more benefits for the association. And if any bugs occurred, she would need to resolve them.

The responsibilities of a vice president were indeed very significant.

However, from that day on, she was finally among the true circle of power... Although she didn’t have much actual power, her status had fundamentally changed. Her identity within the big data archives was even altered, officially making her Jing Shu, the nationally recognized ’Vice President of the Wu City Medicinal Materials Association.’ She now possessed higher-level authority and could view the detailed personal information of others.

In terms of job rank, she was one level higher than Li Yuetian, two levels above Niu Mou, and surpassed Mrs. Jing by a significant three major levels. Although, much like an honorary noble, she held a title with no real power—not even matching Mrs. Jing’s actual authority—at least the title itself was impressive.

Jing Shu loved this kind of job—cushy, incredibly lucrative, and high-ranking. It suited her perfectly!

If she had to go out and work every day like Mr. Jing and Mrs. Jing, that really wasn’t what Jing Shu wanted. She was accustomed to her freedom and couldn’t bear being constrained.

Wang Daxian settled into Chairman Tie’s cultivation laboratory, while Jing Shu was assigned to a new one, which essentially meant she gained another cultivation space. Jing Shu surveyed her future private office, feeling a wave of emotion. Even though it was a bit rundown and the facilities were somewhat crude, she was inexplicably filled with joy; she had never imagined achieving such good fortune in the apocalypse.

"President Jing, hello."

"Thank you for the Seeds, President Jing!"

"President Jing," Wang Danai reported with a wink, "after the evaluation and submission of the tobacco from these shelves, you have received a total of 20,200 Contribution Points. Additionally, after distributing all the Seeds this afternoon, you’ve received another 17,000 Contribution Points. All have been credited to your account."

"Good job," Jing Shu said. "It seems you have a lot of room for advancement, Danai. Keep it up; I have high hopes for you."

After she finished speaking, Jing Shu and Wang Danai couldn’t help but burst into laughter. They continued until Wang Daxian approached from behind them. The old man, possessing an immortal-like aura, swayed as he walked, a box in his hand.

"President Jing, look! I’ve brought you a twenty-year-old ginseng." Behind Wang Daxian stood Wang Xiaoxian. The little girl kept her head down, not speaking. Occasionally, she would tilt her head to sneak a peek at Jing Shu, her face etched with extreme grievance and shame.

Jing Shu raised an eyebrow. "So, you wouldn’t come to the Hall of the Three Treasures without a purpose, eh?"

"I’m a straightforward person, so I’ll get straight to the point," Wang Daxian said. "My kind words for you today were because I had prior knowledge. After learning you had planted tobacco, I knew you would also definitely become a vice president. As for now... I have my eye on your astragalus. It hasn’t been processed for medicinal use yet, has it? How about we trade?"

"Aren’t you getting the short end of the stick here?" Jing Shu remarked, looking at the twenty-year-old ginseng. It was indeed much larger than the ones in her space, although, truth be told, not quite as plump. Read full story at 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝•𝖿𝗂𝗋𝖾•𝘯𝘦𝘵

"Not at all, not at all!" Wang Daxian exclaimed. "To be honest, I want to use your astragalus to cultivate seeds from it. Only astragalus of such quality is truly worth propagating."

Wang Daxian made his offer with a smile that always seemed to hint at something more. Jing Shu didn’t discern any hidden agenda. If he wants to trade, then let’s trade, she thought. Besides, she also needed Wang Daxian’s ginseng to establish a plausible public source for such a valuable herb.

Wang Daxian left with the astragalus, overjoyed. When Zhou Bapi found out later, he was so furious that he slapped his thigh. "That old Undead! He always knows how to snatch my peaches!"

It’s said that when a person’s luck is down, it tends to stay down; but if one stumbles into a stroke of incredible luck, that good fortune often continues. Jing Shu wondered if she had stumbled into many such strokes of luck to be so fortunate, because not long after, Chu Zhuohua informed her that her RV had been remodeled.

Of course, that wasn’t the most exciting part. The real surprise came from Su Xiangnan, and it was somehow related to her RV!