Rebuilding Base is Under Construction (BASE)
What is the cafeteria?
It's a large multifunctional venue that combines dining and entertainment, serving as the cornerstone of building a civilized prison.
Of course, it's not used for detaining or transferring prisoners.
Zhang Dianyu couldn't bear to use it for that purpose.
He even considered canceling outdoor recreation time and replacing it with meal times—moving activities indoors wouldn't make much difference and could avoid exposure to wind and sun.
After all, the courtyard was too small. With over 100 hormone-driven burly men crammed inside, fights were prone to break out.
Although the armed guards were diligent and ready to fire at any moment, the Corpse Transports outside the prison had already clogged the main road.
One Corpse Transport could carry four bodies.
Every night at 11 o'clock, the Corpse Transports would arrive punctually based on the day's death toll, and the guards would load the bodies onto the vehicles during their free time.
However, since new bodies were produced daily, the guards were always quite busy.
As a result, yesterday's Corpse Transports were still stuck at the prison gate, while today's had already lined up beyond the walls.
Zhang Dianyu stepped out to admire the scene—it was quite spectacular.
But it was also somewhat eerie in this simulated reality.
With this in mind, he wanted to slightly reduce the prison's mortality rate, at least enough to have the Corpse Transports leave before dawn.
Zhang Dianyu opened the game panel and counted the Corpse Transports on the map—he didn't know the exact number, but they had already extended beyond the map's boundaries.
This meant that as long as the guards sped up the body transportation process, they could quickly free up space in the morgue to build Single Cells.
For 15,000 dollars, Zhang Dianyu was quite generous.
Not only did he plan to complete the task of building a Single Cell for the transferred prisoners, but he also intended to equip their rooms with TVs, bookshelves, and radios, allowing them to happily spend their time in prison.
—And cause less trouble.
Zhang Dianyu hired five more guards to accelerate the body transportation.
For some reason, the game's speed-up button in the top-right corner had disappeared, and time now passed as slowly as the 24-hour cycle in the real world.
In this mundane world, only the efficiency of the construction team could bring him a glimmer of comfort.
Although the construction team's remarkable speed was also slowed down by the real-time 24-hour cycle, building a cell in just a few hours was still an efficiency unattainable in the real world.
Once the guards had finally transported enough bodies, Zhang Dianyu immediately called the construction team to start working overnight to dismantle a few Corpse Platforms to convert them into Single Cells.
The dismantled Corpse Platforms couldn't go to waste—it would be a shame to let them gather dust in storage.
Zhang Dianyu installed them along the southern wall of the cafeteria.
After all, the cafeteria was also a hotspot for riots, and storing bodies there was quite convenient.
After everything was arranged, Zhang Dianyu felt somewhat drowsy.
—Did this game even require sleep?
He paused for a moment then opened the map to check the progress of the staff dormitory construction.
The sky had darkened, but for the prison, this was no different from daytime.
From 11 PM to 7 AM was the prisoners' sleep time—staff didn't have such a schedule, as their work hours were 24/7. If they were tired, they could take a nap in the break room.
This "staff" category, in fact, included the Warden as well.
The Warden was a balding middle-aged man who only took strolls around his office, but sometimes a "fatigue" prompt would appear at his feet, and he would then go to the staff lounge to rest for a while.
Zhang Dianyu had never understood what he needed to rest for, but now it suddenly dawned on him.
The so-called fatigue likely meant drowsiness and the need to sleep.
The staff dormitory was almost complete and built to the same specifications as the prisoner dormitory.
Patterned flooring covered the ground, and double-decker bunk beds lined up to accommodate a large number of people in a limited space. Adjacent to it were narrow toilets and showers.
The only downside was that Zhang Dianyu noticed there were only two sinks in the hundred-person dormitory. Since sinks weren't a mandatory requirement for dormitories, he had casually added two for aesthetic purposes.
Is it really necessary to wash your hands after using the toilet? Isn't it the same if you just go straight to the shower?
That said, Zhang Dianyu would refuse to sleep in the dormitory now.
On the map, employees occasionally entered the dormitory to rest with their faces in slumber adorned with sweet smiles. Zhang Dianyu felt a pang of bitterness.
The pixelated characters had worked hard and deserved a raise once the prison developed further.
As for now... Zhang Dianyu opened the panel then glanced at the prison's total assets, and silently closed it again.
Hang in there, pixelated characters.
Zhang Dianyu had initially thought about sleeping on the sofa, but the potted cactus across from it was rather unsettling.
It was unusually large and lush, and accidentally bumping into it would surely lead to a painful outcome.
Then he remembered the secret room he had set up behind the outer area, which contained a bed. And, out of a fantasy of "assuming I were the Warden," he had also designated a reception area in the office, it was even complete with a toilet and shower outside.
It seemed he wouldn't have to sleep in the dormitory after all.
Zhang Dianyu pushed open the office door and locked eyes with the red-haired assistant outside.
He had almost forgotten there was someone outside.
He glanced at his watch; it was nearly midnight. Did she still need to work at this hour?
"Natasha?" Zhang Dianyu said while somewhat surprised. "You're still here?"
—Would you like to share the bed? Zhang Dianyu almost blurted out.
Fortunately, he didn't.
For some reason, this beauty always gave him a sense of danger.
He meant no harm; he simply thought it was too cruel to let such a delicate and beautiful woman squeeze into the crowded dormitory with employees covered in grease and dust.
But upon reflection, something seemed off.
His face had probably been just a hair's breadth away from the red-haired assistant's slap.
Natasha fell into a brief silence after the Warden's question and was unable to answer.
When she accepted this undercover mission, she had read the mission report.
The risk rating was only E, but Director Fury believed that only a Level 10 agent like her had the resilience and endurance to handle it.
At first, she didn't understand why, but now she knew.
Because the working hours were 24/7, all year round!
And apart from her, the other employees seemed to have no objections.
In fact, it wasn't until this afternoon that she received the first suggestion letter regarding the need for staff dormitories and a cafeteria.
Were the employees here all robots?
"Because this is my working hours, Mr. Warden," she replied expressionlessly.
Zhang Dianyu: "..."
Well, that seems to be the case.
Feeling somewhat guilty, he unconsciously touched his tie and said, "Go inside and rest, there's no need to work at night."
Only after Zhang Dianyu turned around, entered his office, and closed the door did he remember a crucial question—where should he sleep then?
..........
The next morning, Zhang Dianyu was grumbling as he pulled cactus thorns from his right hand when the phone on his desk suddenly rang.
Holding a freshly pulled thorn, he frowned and wiped a few drops of blood from his cuff before picking up the phone receiver.
"What is it?"
The caller was the Lawyer, which surprised Zhang Dianyu.
The surprise lay in the fact that this Lawyer would actually take the initiative to report to him...
Originally, he was just a tool to initiate new policies.
"Mr. Warden, the transferred prisoner has died, and the Mayor's office is sending people to investigate. You might be held accountable for this."
Zhang Dianyu: "..."
His $15,000 just arrived and already died?