175: Rusty cage

As the first fleet of warp ships, laden with dreams and ambition, vanished in an instant, the bustle in Earth's orbit gradually returned to calm.

Lei Wen withdrew his gaze from deep space, but his journey was not over.

Today, he decided to visit another place—the red neighbor that held a pivotal position on the Human Federation's map yet always remained outside his direct line of sight: Mars.

Lei Wen's personal transport ship detached from its berth at the Babel Tower. Instead of returning to Earth, it turned and flew toward that dark red planet.

In the macro-data reports of the 'white flower', Mars was the industrial heart of Human Civilization, the engine of GDP growth, and a second home that countless adventurers yearned for. But in Lei Wen's eyes, those cold data charts were always obscured by a mist called 'statistics'.

There are things that cannot be seen through the eyes of a ruler; they must be measured with one's own feet... A few hours later, Mars, Olympus Mons Spaceport.

When the transport ship passed through the thin, dust-filled atmosphere and landed at the massive spaceport built at the foot of the Solar System's tallest volcano, Lei Wen first felt an oppressive yellowish hue.

Even with the ship's hull isolating the external environment, the iron oxide dust dancing across the sky outside still made one's throat feel dry. There were no blue skies or white clouds like on Earth, only an eternal clay-yellow firmament and giant machines roaring tirelessly.

"Welcome to Mars, Director Raven!"

The hatch opened, and he was greeted by a red carpet, flowers, and a group of smiling elites in suits. Leading them was David Thor, the Executive President of the Nikola Group's Mars branch—a fat man with slicked-back hair and shrewd eyes.

"Mr. Elon specifically instructed us to receive you with the highest standards," Thor said, warmly shaking Lei Wen's hand. "Please follow me; we have prepared a welcome banquet for you in Eden City."

The so-called 'Eden' was an ultra-giant, fully enclosed ecological dome city established by the Nikola Group near the Martian equator.

As Lei Wen rode a luxury hovercar into the massive transparent dome, the scene instantly transformed from a desolate wasteland into a luxurious futuristic metropolis.

The air here was fresh and moist, and one could even smell the scent of synthetic negative ions. Precious trees transplanted from Earth were planted along the streets, exquisite luxury advertisements played on holographic billboards, and well-dressed men and women strolled the streets or sat in open-air cafes chatting and laughing.

Everything here was built according to Earth's highest standards, perhaps even exceeding them.

The banquet hall was located on the top floor of a skyscraper in the city center. Outside the massive floor-to-ceiling windows lay the magnificent and desolate surface of Mars, creating a sharp visual contrast with the decadence inside.

"Director, try this," Thor said attentively, handing over a glass of red wine. "This is Cabernet Sauvignon we cultivated in the low-gravity environment of Mars. It tastes even richer than the ones on Earth."

Lei Wen took the glass but did not drink. His gaze swept over the guests; most of them were executives from the Nikola Group, high-ranking officials of the Mars colony, and contractors dependent on this vast commercial empire.

They talked about stock prices, options, the discovery of new ore veins, and plans for their next vacation.

In their words, Mars was a heaven full of opportunities, a paradise for the brave.

"It is indeed beautiful here," Lei Wen said flatly. "But I've heard that Mars doesn't just have Eden; it also has broader industrial and residential zones. I want to go there and see."

Thor's smile stiffened for a moment before returning to normal: "Of course, of course! However, the environment in the industrial zone is quite harsh—lots of dust and noise. I'm afraid it might offend your eyes..."

"It doesn't matter," Lei Wen interrupted him. "I'm here to inspect the work, not for a vacation. Lead the way."

Seeing Lei Wen's firm attitude, Thor had no choice but to make the arrangements. However, he still tried to be clever by attempting to take Lei Wen to visit a few fully automated, 'dark' model factories.

But Lei Wen did not give him the chance.

"No need to follow your route." Lei Wen pointed to the dim area shrouded in smoke and dust in the distance outside the window—a cluster of buildings that had been expanding on satellite maps over the past few years. "Go there, the worker residential area. I want to see how the heroes who built Mars are living."

...If Eden City was heaven, then when Lei Wen stepped into Worker Residential Area No. 104 on the edge of the Tharsis Plateau, he felt as if he had entered a cyberpunk abyss.

There was no transparent dome, no simulated blue sky. The massive residential area was actually a series of honeycomb-like structures buried deep underground, or underground cities converted directly from abandoned mine pits.

The air was thick with a mixture of machine oil, cheap synthetic food flavoring, sweat, and an indescribable musty smell. Although the ventilation system was running at full capacity, the sense of oppression still made one's chest feel tight.

The streets were narrow and crowded, with intricate pipes and cables overhead, dripping steam or unknown liquids from time to time.

Millions of industrial workers lived here. Most had once been recruited from Earth, signing long-term contracts with 'interstellar gold rush dreams' to come to this red planet. Now, the vast majority of workers were descendants of that first generation of pioneers.

Lei Wen rejected Thor's suggestion to clear the area and walked into the crowd accompanied by two high-performance armed robot guards.

What he saw were not the vibrant pioneers he had imagined.

Everyone here was in a hurry, their faces pale—a characteristic of long-term lack of natural light and living in a low-gravity environment.

They wore uniform gray work clothes printed with the Nikola Group logo. Even after work hours, a sense of exhaustion seemed etched into their very bones.

"Today's Special! Synthetic beef-flavored energy bar, only 5 credits!" a roadside vending machine emitted a piercing electronic voice.

Lei Wen stopped and watched a young worker who had just finished his shift. He looked to be only in his early twenties, but his back was already slightly hunched. He skillfully swiped his wristband on the terminal—it was his only identification on Mars and also his wallet.

"Beep—Insufficient balance, please top up."

The young man froze for a moment, slapped the vending machine hard, cursed, and then turned toward the nearby free nutrient paste distribution point.

Lei Wen had seen that free nutrient paste in records; it was synthesized from recycled organic matter and algae. While it guaranteed basic carbohydrate and protein intake to prevent starvation, the taste... was said to be like chewing wet cardboard.

"Why is there an insufficient balance?" Lei Wen turned to ask a sheepish Thor behind him. "As far as I know, the nominal wage for Martian workers is three times that of Earth."

Thor wiped his sweat and explained: "Uh... Director, prices here are relatively high. After all, the cost of transporting supplies... and the Group provides them with housing, life support systems, and medical security. These all require a service fee to be deducted from their wages."

"Service fee?" Lei Wen sneered.

He walked up to the young man and asked gently, "Young man, can we talk?"

The young man looked warily at this well-dressed man who was out of place here, then at the bionic robot guards behind him, not daring to speak.

"Don't be afraid." Lei Wen signaled the 'white flower' to hack into the nearby vending machine, which spat out a large pile of expensive synthetic canned meat and drinks. "Lunch is on me."

Under the temptation of food, the young man finally opened up.

Through their conversation, Lei Wen learned of a shocking reality.

Although the workers here nominally had high salaries, they were actually trapped in a carefully designed 'consumption loop'.

They lived in company-provided dormitories. Every breath of filtered high-quality air, every cup of recycled purified water, every use of entertainment facilities, and even making a video call to family back on Earth required paying expensive fees.

And these fees could only be paid with 'internal credits' issued by the Nikola Group. The Nikola Group only made a superficial promise that credits could be exchanged for any national currency on Earth.

"Actually, it's impossible to save money," the young man said bitterly while wolfing down the food. "My grandparents came from Earth. They told me how beautiful Earth was. I want to go back, but the return ticket is too expensive. To save enough for that ticket, I'd have to work for five years without eating or drinking. But here, if I get sick once or even just want to have a decent meal, a month's savings are gone."

"We signed contracts. If we don't work for ten full years, we have to pay a massive penalty for breach of contract."

"We can't leave."

These were the indentured slaves of the interstellar age.

They weren't locked in iron chains, but they were nailed to this planet by debt, contracts, and the expensive cost of survival.

They didn't have to worry about food and clothing because a dead slave has no value, but they were limited to merely existing—living like parts on a machine until they were scrapped.

Lei Wen continued deeper into the residential area and saw even more.

He saw old workers whose bones were deformed from long-term heavy labor in a low-gravity environment. After being judged as 'having lost the ability to work', they could only collect a pittance in basic security and linger on in the slums of the lower levels.

He also saw the so-called medical centers. While there were advanced medical pods, those were reserved for senior technicians and management.

If ordinary workers suffered industrial injuries and hadn't purchased expensive commercial insurance, they could only receive the most basic treatment—just enough to keep them from dying.

"Mama, I want to see real stars."

At the entrance of a narrow residential pod, Lei Wen heard a little girl speak to her mother.

The mother, wearing faded work clothes, helplessly hugged the child tight: "Baby, once Daddy has saved enough money, we'll go to the observation deck above to look."

On Mars, even looking up at the starry sky cost money.

Because the residential areas were underground, one had to pay to enter the observation levels or buy expensive life-support protective suits to go to the surface to see the sky.

For these 'Martian second-generation' born on Mars, they were trapped in this giant steel box from birth. The world in their eyes consisted of pipes, display screens, and gray walls.

An uncontrollable surge of anger rose in Lei Wen's heart.

This was completely different from the interstellar age he had envisioned.

Paradox Technology had brought a leap in technology and an explosion in productivity, but he hadn't expected that after these dividends were swallowed by those greedy behemoths, what they spat out would be even more exquisite and inescapable shackles.

On Earth, because of the supervision of the Earth Council and himself, a relatively complete legal system, and Lei Wen's secret guidance, the situation was somewhat better.

But on Mars, in this lawless land where the Nikola Group held absolute power, the greed of capital was infinitely magnified.

There were no nations here, no unions—only the company.

The company was the law, the company was the government, the company was everything.

"Mr. Thor."

Lei Wen stood on that underground street filled with odors and oppression, turned around, and looked coldly at the sweating Executive President.

"Is this the treatment that your so-called heroes who built Mars deserve?"

Thor was still trying to defend himself: "Director, you have to understand, the Martian environment is harsh, and the cost of maintaining life-support systems is high... and we are also working hard to improve..."

"Enough."

Lei Wen interrupted him.

"What I see is not improvement; it is exploitation—exploitation that sucks the very marrow from their bones."

"You used their dreams, drained their youth, and then threw them here like waste slag."

"You built the most advanced factories on Mars, producing ships capable of crossing galaxies, but your workers don't even have the right to look at the stars."

Lei Wen's voice wasn't loud, but to Thor, it sounded like thunder.

"white flower."

"I am here, Father."

"Record everything I saw today, including the air quality data here, the price index, the wage levels, and that damn labor contract."

"Organize it into a report titled 'Investigation into Martian Human Rights and Monopoly Capital'."

Lei Wen took a deep look at this massive underground honeycomb, as if to etch every detail into his mind.

"Let's go."

On the way back, Lei Wen remained silent.

He looked out the window at the receding Martian surface, at the factories spewing smoke and the brightly lit Eden City.

The class divide here was reified into geographical isolation.

Above was heaven; below was hell.

And the passage connecting the two was tightly blocked by money and power.

"Elon..." Lei Wen muttered the name. "Is the future you wanted like this?"

"If this is what Human Civilization looks like after stepping out of the Cradle, then this civilization won't go far."

Lei Wen closed his eyes.

He knew he had to do something now.

Not just against the Nikola Group, but against this social distribution system that was becoming increasingly deformed as productivity exploded.

The knife of reform must cut where it hurts the most.

"white flower," Lei Wen opened his eyes, "notify the Earth Council. I want to launch a special motion at next month's general assembly."

"Regarding what?"

"Regarding the 'interstellar anti-monopoly law' and the 'Human Federation Basic Survival Guarantee and Resource Sharing Act'."

"Also," Lei Wen added, "prepare to initiate the breakup procedure for the Nikola Group."

"This behemoth has eaten too much; it's time for it to spit some out."