Over the next few days, Zhao Chen gathered in the seven surrendered T1 ships.
Earlier Zhao Chen had had Charlotte buy 500 beast-folk slaves in one go at Arctic Fox Starport, and had assigned 100 of them aboard the T2 Queen Bee-class Heavy Carrier Starship.
Counting the hundred beast-folk slaves bought all at once earlier at the Northstar Starship Military Academy, 50 of whom worked aboard Blizzard Zero—
—that left, in all, 450 beast-folk crewwomen without formal posts.
So he had them take over these several T1 ships for the time being, charged with the Owl Dragon Star System's security work, and with gathering up all 35 ship-wrecks of the Three-Clawed Serpent Interstellar Pirate fleet from the battlefield out by Dragon-Tail Planet.
All this made the Owl Dragon Star System seem to return to calm, everything as before.
But the true state of things was that the Owl Dragon Star System had, at this moment, undergone an earth-shaking change.
The Zhao family — the lord's house in name, yet all along shoved to the margins — had, in the span of a single night, taken thorough control of the Owl Dragon Star System from top to bottom.
The T2 Queen Bee-class Heavy Carrier Starship, leading its interstellar drones and some of the Zhao family's combat mecha, went to bring every enterprise of the families on the death list into the Zhao family's hands.
Because these families had all been branded rebels, their family enterprises and property were, one and all, confiscated by the lord.
Just seeing to this alone took near a week.
"Second Young Master, this is the property scraped together over these past days from those rebel nobles; their enterprises, too, we've taken over entirely, and production has already resumed as before." Jiang Hong stood before Zhao Chen, reporting these matters.
Set against Zhao Wan'er, Charlotte, and the rest—
—when it came to handling the affairs of the Owl Dragon Star System, no one was fitter than Jiang Hong.
In standing she'd been no more than a minor manager in a trade department; but relying on her web of connections across the Owl Dragon Star System, she knew the place inside and out, through and through.
And so Zhao Chen had handed all these matters over to Jiang Hong to see to — which Jiang Hong, for her part, did not refuse.
Her task, after all, was to guard the Zhao family's foundation on the Zhao Eldest Miss's behalf.
At this moment the two of them were in Zhao Chen's temporary office at the Zhao residence.
"The property of any value — how much does it come to?" Zhao Chen asked.
"Over 600,000 star coins in all," Jiang Hong said.
Zhao Chen was truly taken aback. "Over 600,000 star coins? These fellows — quite the hand at lining their own pockets, weren't they? To have salted away so great a fortune!"
Jiang Hong went on, "In addition, several dozen noble families — the Jiang family among them — have relocated their whole clans out of the Owl Dragon Star System within this past week. The enterprises those families left behind we've likewise gathered in, and the things they couldn't carry off have, of course, become our Zhao family's as well. That portion, too, comes to some hundred thousand star coins in value."
Another hundred thousand star coins.
All at once, that made 700,000 star coins!
Zhao Chen was pleased past telling — his T2 Iron-Hammer-class Heavy Interstellar Industrial Ship was in reach now.
"Second Young Master, you'd simply let those Jiang-family nobles and the rest leave, just like that? Is that wise? That list of yours earlier already purged half the Owl Dragon Star System's noble powers, the two giants of the Bao and Cui families among them. And now even the Jiang family has gone, taking a batch of noble houses with them. As things stand, the noble families left in our Owl Dragon Star System come to under 20% of what there were before!" Jiang Hong looked at Zhao Chen with some worry.
Zhao Chen's letting those noble houses leave was, for the Owl Dragon Star System, truly no small loss.
"Those willing to stay would stay whether we asked them to or not. And those who mean to go — no use our stopping them," Zhao Chen said placidly. "This way's for the best, in fact. A clean sweep of them saves me the trouble of watching each of them play the two-faced game later, until I couldn't help but take a few heads."
Jiang Hong frowned. "Second Young Master, have you given thought to the Owl Dragon Star System itself! After this upheaval, the Owl Dragon Star System's already-thin foundation has… has…"
"The Owl Dragon Star System was a shambles to begin with — can it really get worse than it already was?" Zhao Chen spread his hands and said frankly, "Rather than agonize over a foul, murky Zhao family, better to break it clean and build anew! To raise a city on the ruins is far simpler than to remake a rotten one."
Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap.
Applause rang out.
Zhao Chen and Jiang Hong looked over, and saw the old madam coming out on her cane. "Well said — raise a city on the ruins; break it and build anew. Jiang Hong, I say Chen'er has the right of it. Rather than dither and mother-hen it out with that pack of families, better to drive them all off and start over fresh."
Seeing that even the old madam spoke so, Jiang Hong had no way to gainsay it — though in her heart she still didn't approve of Zhao Chen's way of handling things.
"Second Grandma, how is it you've come out again?" Zhao Chen came over and helped the old madam sit.
"I just came to have a look. I hear you're to leave the Owl Dragon Star System in a few days and head back to the Northstar Starship Military Academy?" The old madam looked at Zhao Chen.
Zhao Chen nodded. "Yes. It's late September now, and the academy term starts in early October; crossing the star-system edge-space beyond the Owl Dragon Star System takes us two weeks. Though I've long since arranged my leave, the academy's assessments are strict; if I fail to complete the required coursework assessments, I won't be able to pass at term's end."
"True enough — studies come first. It's only a pity our Owl Dragon Star System has no star gate; otherwise it would be a great deal more convenient." The old madam heaved a long sigh.
The Owl Dragon Star System's lack of a star gate had always been a sore point for it.
Existing star-gate technology required, without exception, that a gate be built in a system with a binary-star arrangement.
The Owl Dragon Star System had but a single star, and so no star gate could be built.
"Second Grandma, don't fret. Our Owl Dragon Star System will soon have a star gate of its very own — and when that day comes, if you miss me and Wan'er, just say the word, and we'll hurry back to see you," Zhao Chen said with a smile.
A star gate!
This was a threshold Zhao Chen simply could not sidestep in his plan to build up the Owl Dragon Star System.
Among the T2 goods of the system store, there was no technology that met the requirement.
Then the only way was to upgrade the store to T3, and pin his hopes on those T3 goods!
"Hahahaha — if such a day truly came, that would be wonderful." The old madam laughed heartily, though she didn't take it to heart.
Their idle talk done, the old madam patted Zhao Chen's shoulder. "Chen'er, you've grown up. Whatever you have a mind to do, do it, bold and unafraid; Second Grandma is behind you. As you said yourself just now — the Owl Dragon Star System's state right now is a shambles; how much worse can this shambles get?"
Zhao Chen nodded.
After the old madam had gone, only Zhao Chen and Jiang Hong were left in the room again.
"Jiang Hong, I know you've never submitted to me. You believe the one who should sit in the Owl Dragon Star System's lord's seat is not me, but my eldest sister — am I right?" Zhao Chen looked at the coldly composed Jiang Hong across from him.
Jiang Hong's face did not change. "That's right."
"I don't need you to submit to me. So long as you're truly for the good of the Owl Dragon Star System — whether you're loyal to me or loyal to my eldest sister, it comes to the same thing," Zhao Chen said.
Jiang Hong said nothing.
Zhao Chen fixed his eyes on Jiang Hong. "Wan'er and I mean to leave the day after tomorrow. When we go, I'll leave you 200 beast-folk crew, and those seven T1 ships as well; you'll have full command of them. The whole of the Owl Dragon Star System's affairs, I hand over to you to see to. Before I leave, I'll make it known: you are the Owl Dragon Star System's acting lord — to see you is to see me."
Jiang Hong was taken aback; she'd never imagined Zhao Chen would make such an arrangement.
Knowing full well that it was not to him she was loyal — and yet willing to hand her the Owl Dragon Star System?