Over this stretch of time, Zhao Chen had been observing Jiang Hong as well.
And had come to know Jiang Hong's history.
Jiang Hong was a little girl the Zhao family's Eldest Miss had come upon, in her childhood wanderings, on a planet in another star system — sprawled, at the time, over the body of her mother, already starved to death, wanting to cry but too far gone with hunger to make a sound.
It was the Zhao Eldest Miss who had taken Jiang Hong in, and buried Jiang Hong's mother.
From then on, the Zhao Eldest Miss had treated Jiang Hong as she would a true younger sister, teaching her her letters, imparting to her all manner of knowledge.
By and by, Jiang Hong's own gifts began to show.
She learned everything quickly, and she was, besides, exceptionally skilled at management. In truth, over these past years a good many of the Owl Dragon Star System's affairs had been Jiang Hong's to manage in the shadows, the commands then relayed through the old madam.
Zhao Chen was lord in name only; the Zhao Eldest Miss had, years ago, become an easy hands-off overseer.
Little by little, Jiang Hong had grown thoroughly practiced at handling every sort of affair.
And most important of all — to the Zhao family, or rather to the Zhao family that had raised the Zhao Eldest Miss, she was loyal absolutely!
At present Zhao Chen had no capable hands at his side, and he could not remain in the Owl Dragon Star System — the place was, after all, far too poor.
Charlotte was a general; directing ships in battle she could do, but to have her govern the Owl Dragon Star System — better not.
And so Zhao Chen had chosen Jiang Hong.
This woman who would not submit to him.
"You're willing to hand the Owl Dragon Star System over to me to manage?" Jiang Hong asked, voicing her doubt.
Zhao Chen nodded. "Hand it to you to manage — that I can rest easy on."
For a moment Jiang Hong didn't know what to say.
Zhao Chen went on, laying out the plan in his heart. "For the Owl Dragon Star System to rise and prosper, it needs three turning points. First: a star gate. A system without a star gate has no prospect of development. This problem can't be solved in the short term — but I'll find a way. Second: industry! The Owl Dragon Star System has always had only the lowest sort of T1-tier industry, enough merely to keep the system self-sufficient; indeed, let some sudden trouble strike one of these planets, and people starving to death is no rare thing. If I remember right, the Galactic Alliance has a rating — from 0 to 10, based on a system's people's living conditions, yes? Our Owl Dragon Star System's rating is a mere 0.3 — not even reaching the average of 5! So we must develop an industry with real prospects — one that carries an advantage in foreign trade! Only so can we draw in funds from outside to build up the Owl Dragon Star System. On this point, I've already worked out what to do; I need only a little time to prepare. Third: a new order! Now the old nobles are mostly dead or gone. The Owl Dragon Star System needs a new order. Much as I dislike those nobles, there must always be some great houses in existence. Your task over this coming while is to consolidate anew the Owl Dragon Star System's order — an order with the Zhao family at its core. You may raise up the standing of some of the lesser houses loyal to the Zhao, or newly foster and establish loyal families from scratch. This task, I trust, you can manage?"
Listening to Zhao Chen hold forth on all this, Jiang Hong thought the first two points sheer fantasy, flatly impossible to realize.
But the third — that was the one point she agreed with.
The Owl Dragon Star System now lay in ruins awaiting renewal; and first of all what it needed was a new order and system.
"The task the Eldest Miss gave me was, in her absence, to keep the Owl Dragon Star System safe, and the Zhao family safe." Jiang Hong looked coldly at Zhao Chen. "I do this not for your sake — I do it for the Eldest Miss."
Even now the woman had to put on a bit of her prickly pride.
Their agreement simply struck, Jiang Hong took her leave.
Zhao Chen used his handheld terminal to project a holographic map of the whole Owl Dragon Star System, and gazed out over it.
Zhao Chen raised a hand, as though caressing this expanse of star-strewn sky.
"Since this was once your wish, then let it be me who sees it realized for you." Zhao Chen seemed to be speaking to someone, a faint smile on his face.
Then he opened the system page.
Host: Zhao Chen
Profession: Master Starship Engineer
Special Attribute: fleet Luck-value bonus, Eye of Insight
Points: 1100
Task points: 8
Starships: 2
Mission: none
Warehouse: T3 Blizzard-class Light Interstellar Battlecruiser blueprint; T1 Wolf-Louse-class Medium Interstellar Destroyer blueprint; T2 Queen Bee-class Heavy Carrier Starship blueprint; T2 Iron-Hammer-class Heavy Interstellar Industrial Ship blueprint
There were 1,100 System points now, and eight task points besides.
He took another look at the conditions for upgrading the system store.
T2 System Store upgrade conditions:
First — redeem two T2-tier items (1/2)
Second — complete two C-rank system missions (1/2)
Third — spend 2,000 System points to upgrade the store (1,100/2,000)
Zhao Chen's face fell. So this little nest egg of his was nowhere near enough to upgrade to the T2 system store.
Never mind — he'd knock out the upgrade conditions one at a time.
The third couldn't be rushed.
The second, a C-rank mission, would have to come as fate allowed.
So he'd settle the first for now — redeem two T2-tier items; redeeming the T2 Queen Bee already counted as one, so he was one short.
As it happened, Zhao Chen had had a plan in mind for some time.
"I remember seeing it somewhere before — where was it now." Zhao Chen searched through the T2 goods column of the system store.
At the last, he finally turned up that "item" he'd seen before.
T2 Bronze-Eden-class Starship blueprint
Because he hadn't yet redeemed it, he couldn't see the detailed data, but he could see a brief description.
T2 Bronze-Eden-class Starship: a support-type starship, capable of running agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery operations in an endless cycle, without consuming resources.
Put simply, this was an interstellar farm, ranch, forest, and fishery all in one! And at no cost, no less!
Spend 400 System points and 3 task points to redeem the item "T2 Bronze-Eden-class Starship" blueprint? [Y/N]
"Confirm."
Congratulations — acquired: the "T2 Bronze-Eden-class Starship" blueprint.
Your remaining System points: 700.
Your remaining task points: 5.
Zhao Chen at once set to reading over the ship's data.
The T2 Bronze-Eden was, just as its description said, a support-type starship. It could sail the interstellar deeps, and, drawing on nutrients converted from cosmic microparticles, could raise agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery within the ship without end.
Put simply — with no expenditure of resources whatever, it could grow grain, raise livestock, and so on.
In truth this sort of technology the Galactic Alliance had researched as well; but its value-for-cost fell far short of growing crops on a planet, and so it had never been made commercial or brought to mass production.
For Zhao Chen, though, it was another matter.
A single T2 Bronze-Eden cost a mere 3 million star coins to build!
By comparison, that ran a bit pricey, to be sure — the T2 Queen Bee cost only 1,000,001 half to build, and the two differed twofold!
But the crux of it was this: a single T2 Bronze-Eden's monthly crop yield came to roughly 1 million star coins in market value, the exact figure depending on what was cultivated.
And that yield could meet the living needs of at least 1 million people!
By this reckoning, so long as 500 T2 Bronze-Edens were built, the Owl Dragon Star System would never again face a food crisis!
And naturally grown crop food had always been a hard currency in interstellar trade!
In the future it could become a vital part of the Owl Dragon Star System's foreign interstellar trade as well.
This was exactly why, when Zhao Chen spoke to Jiang Hong of that second point earlier, he'd already had a plan.
This was his plan.
He meant to achieve "food freedom"!