"You're the one becoming a nun!" Chu Xuan shot Zhao Chen a glare, and explained, "By the Empire's side's order, my grandfather is required to lead a fleet to occupy and control those masterless systems the Mechanical Race fleets have withdrawn from. The Holy Radiance and the Warhammer have both already made their moves; and the conglomerate powers on the Empire's side couldn't possibly let slip this wealth laid out right before their eyes either. Even though my grandfather still holds some worry over the reason for the Mechanical Race's withdrawal this time, he can't hold back that pack of insatiable fellows. Even the Emperor has given the order; my grandfather can only carry it out. And this time I'll be going on campaign together with my grandfather."
Hearing this matter, the teasing look on Zhao Chen's face vanished; he said in earnest, "Mind your safety out there. Though the Mechanical Race has withdrawn now, who knows what schemes that pack of iron-lumps has in mind. If you truly do meet with any danger, don't go flinging your life away charging in headlong; when it's time to run, then run."
"How is it you've gone as long-winded and naggy as my grandfather." Though Chu Xuan said it with distaste on her lips, in her eyes there was, all the same, a trace of gladness. "Actually, on this campaign, my grandfather isn't worried about the Mechanical Race, on the contrary. Our interstellar reconnaissance-ship fleet has been monitoring the Mechanical Race's every move all along; were they truly to make any large-scale military action, there'd be no keeping it from us. What my grandfather worries over, on the contrary, is our two 'allies.'"
Zhao Chen at once understood the Governor of Chu River's meaning.
Interest-distribution.
The masterless lands left vacant by the Mechanical Race's withdrawal this time were a full half the size of the whole Starlight Empire! And among them were a great many resource systems. How were these resources to be divided?
Perhaps someone might say: let the three powers split them evenly. That was easy to say — but when a truly vast wealth of resources was laid out before you, would you really be willing to let go? The reason the Galactic Alliance had existed before was the threat of the Mechanical Race. Once the Mechanical Race's threat vanished, what would happen thereafter went without saying.
"In sum — mind your own safety." Zhao Chen reminded her once more. Chu Xuan counted as one of the few friends Zhao Chen had in this world; the two of them had fought shoulder to shoulder several times, through life and death. In some unseen way, it was as though certain bonds had formed.
"I know. This young miss is, after all, the eldest miss of the Chu family! Just you wait for this young miss's good news of opening up new territory." Chu Xuan put on the proud, tsundere airs of an eldest miss, then bid Zhao Chen farewell and cut the comm.
Opening up new territory…
This was, indeed, no small temptation.
Zhao Chen pondered a moment, turning over in his mind this matter of the Mechanical Race's withdrawal. He discovered that the interests left vacant by the Mechanical Race's withdrawal, in fact, affected not only the Galactic Alliance's three powers — they might even lead the Starlight Empire, internally, to have its existing divisions grow all the fiercer over the distribution of these interests. For, after all, when the time came, the matter of which hand to entrust the operation of those controlled masterless systems to was likewise a question of interest-distribution.
"We can only watch quietly and see how it changes." Zhao Chen shrugged. Thereupon, he led the Owl Dragon Fleet onto the long, long road home.
……
The Owl Dragon System · Galactic Star Calendar, year 3032, early March.
It had been over a month since the North Wind Star Region hive-race campaign. And at the same time, a decree that had long been prepared for promulgation had been put off for a stretch. In the end, it was formally promulgated on the first of March, to be formally implemented in the coming quarter, on the first of April!
And at the very moment the decree was promulgated, the whole Owl Dragon System boiled over!
Any resident of the Owl Dragon System who registers a household and accepts the management of the Owl Dragon System will be able to purchase natural grain at cost price!
In fact there were other related livelihood decrees besides — such as building some free skill-advancement academies, and so on. But these were all overshadowed by the halo of the natural-grain-supply decree.
The people regard food as their heaven!
For the ordinary common folk, there was nothing more real than this welfare they could eat, could touch, could hold.
But from the very moment this decree was promulgated, the interior of the Owl Dragon System was rife with a great many voices of distrust. All of them questioning the credibility of this decree — indeed, some stepped straight forth to denounce it as, beyond all doubt, a swindle. And those who doubted and distrusted were, the vast majority of them, people who'd chosen not to join the Owl Dragon System household register back at the time of the registration. Perhaps it was the working of jealousy in their hearts; they were unwilling to believe that welfare of this kind could exist!
The Owl Dragon System main planet · lord's residence.
Jiang Hong was, just now, handling the affairs of the Owl Dragon System. With Zhao Chen playing the hands-off boss and taking his comfort, she was, every day, busy from dawn to dusk. One who didn't know might well take her, Jiang Hong, to be the lord of this Owl Dragon System. But happily, her own welfare and treatment had risen with the tide as well. On the desk before her, there was a supply of fresh fruit every day, and a bit of military-mobilization ability besides.
Just then, a little hand silently reached out, groping about a few times on the desk, seeming to be searching for something.
Jiang Hong couldn't help a private laugh; she spoke up. "You've groped the wrong spot; the fruit plate's on the right."
"But it's always on the left, usually…" a very small voice came from beneath the desk.
The little hand withdrew, and half a minute later emerged again from the right side of the desk, and with a speed that gave one no time to cover one's ears, snatched a fruit away.
Crunch, crunch.
Jiang Hong could hear the smacking, chewing sound of a little mouth. Having finished the matter in hand, she said, "What's this visit for? Not, surely, specially to eat my fruit? You — the grand Chief Engineer of the Owl Dragon Fleet — your salary and treatment can't be so low you can't afford these?"
A little head poked out. It was precisely the Owl Dragon Fleet's Annie.
Annie said with a broad grin, "My salary and welfare are high, sure enough, but they can't hold up against the five mouths in my household. You know it too — once you've eaten natural food, those nutrient rations genuinely won't go down the throat. And I can't bear to watch my mother and my younger brothers and sisters eating those nutrient rations, now can I… so 70 or 80% of my salary goes to the family…" As she spoke, Annie in passing snatched another fruit from the desk.
"Let's talk business, my grand Chief Engineer." Jiang Hong looked at the little dwarf before her. Because the Owl Dragon System was, just now, to build some foundational industry, Zhao Chen had arranged for Annie to come into contact with Jiang Hong. It had to be said, this little girl Annie seemed to carry a halo about her; even Jiang Hong, this strong-woman, quite liked this dwarf — a genius in the field of engineering technology, but in other matters for all the world like a naive little child who'd never grown up. The two of them had soon grown familiar. And every time Annie came to find Jiang Hong, she'd carry off, in passing, a few "little gifts."
"This is the construction plan for those several planets' industrial zones you wanted earlier; I've drawn it up for you." Annie projected a construction-technical document before Jiang Hong.
Jiang Hong cast an eye over it — very complete. "Couldn't you have just transmitted this thing to me directly?"
"Isn't it that I was missing you, Sister Jiang Hong?" Annie pouted, striking a pose of cute wheedling — and at this point, a few more fruits went missing from the fruit plate. Jiang Hong knew Annie's little scheme, of course, but didn't expose it.
"Annie, I have a doubt; perhaps this question of mine crosses a line a bit. But you know, too — ever since the lord's second decree was announced, a great many people outside have been questioning the authenticity of this grain decree. Even the subordinates within this residence of mine are doubting it. As of now, the residents on the Owl Dragon System household register total 190 million people. If, when April comes, we can't satisfy the needs of the Owl Dragon System's residents, then the Zhao family's prestige in the Owl Dragon System will be gone. So I want to ask you — does he… truly have the assurance for it?" Jiang Hong was somewhat worried.
"Sister Jiang Hong, on this matter you can set 100,000 hearts at ease. So long as it's something he's said, there's nothing that can't be brought about. At least, by what I understand, there's no problem. I'll be off first," Annie said, light and easy as a passing cloud.
Jiang Hong smiled and rubbed at her own temples. "True enough — I'm only an acting lord anyway; what am I fretting over this for?"
Having muttered this to herself, Jiang Hong made to take a fruit while she was at it — only to discover that her fruit plate, somehow, was nowhere to be found?