Great Power Reclamation

The integration process was not smooth sailing. Old interest groups, marginalized tribal forces, and external interventionist forces were constantly looking for opportunities.

In the Risang region, the son of a former chief who has lost power, unwilling to accept the decline of his family, secretly colludes with foreign forces in an attempt to create unrest within the former Risang territory.

They incited some members of the public, claiming that the Solomon Islands' policies had destroyed traditions and plundered resources.

However, their plan had already been under the surveillance of Yang San's intelligence department.

On the eve of their planned attack to burn down a new school, Yang San's special forces descended like divine intervention, precisely arresting all the core members and seizing a large quantity of weapons and inflammatory material.

The operation was swift and decisive, without harming any innocent bystanders. Subsequently, the alliance media quickly released the truth of the incident, displayed the seized evidence, and defined the incident as "a conspiracy by a small group of traitors bribed by foreign powers to undermine peaceful development."

Public opinion overwhelmingly supported the Alliance government, and the former chieftain's son was even ostracized by most of his own tribe. A potential civil war was nipped in the bud, and the Alliance's control was actually strengthened.

The integration of the port of Kibera has also run into trouble. A Tricolor shipping company that originally controlled most of the port's operations is unwilling to accept the alliance's new management and tax policies, and is attempting to incite dockworkers to strike and use its influence to lobby European countries to pressure the Solomon Islands.

Ye Mei's approach was both forceful and skillful. She first ordered Yang San's coast guard to temporarily detain several of the company's vessels, suspected of having incomplete documentation, under the pretext of "security checks," causing the company significant financial losses.

Meanwhile, a Singaporean shipping company under Brothers Investment Holdings quickly stepped in, recruiting workers with higher wages and promising to comply with all alliance regulations, and soon restored the port to normal operation.

Internationally, Ye Rou personally presented evidence to relevant European countries that the tricolor company had attempted to bribe Union officials and evade taxes, and emphasized that the Union welcomes fair competition from all law-abiding companies.

With the evidence irrefutable, European countries had no choice but to remain silent. The tricolor company, having failed in its attempt to gain an advantage, ultimately slinked into accepting the new terms, and its market share was significantly reduced.

After completing the initial internal integration, Ye Rou decided to elevate the strategy to a new level.

She was no longer satisfied with territorial expansion, but wanted to build a regional economic and political system centered on the Solomon Islands.

At a regional summit hosted by the Somali Alliance, Ye Rou proposed the initiative to establish an "Economic Community of the Horn of Africa." The initiative includes:

Customs Union: Member countries gradually eliminate tariffs and implement a unified tariff system externally.

Free trade zones: promote the free movement of goods, services, capital and people.

• Infrastructure connectivity: Led by Brother Investment, build important transportation, energy and communication networks connecting countries.

• Joint security mechanism: Establish intelligence sharing and joint counter-terrorism mechanisms to jointly maintain regional stability.

This initiative has generated tremendous appeal for small countries that have not yet joined the Solomon Islands Union but whose economies are becoming increasingly intertwined with it.

They saw the development benefits gained after the incorporation of northern Aden and parts of Risang, and began to seriously consider joining the community to share the benefits, rather than passively waiting to be "integrated".

This is essentially a more advanced and milder form of "expansion." It weaves a vast network using economic ties and shared interests, naturally drawing neighboring countries to the Solomon Islands.

Military deterrence has taken a backseat, becoming the ultimate means to ensure the smooth implementation of this economic strategy.

On the other side of the world, Ye Yuze and Yang Geyong are also echoing the actions in Africa in their own way.

Hope grass has been a huge success in California and has even begun to be promoted in the arid southwestern United States.

Cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture is deepening. This gives Ye Rou tremendous confidence on the international stage.

The technology that the world's most developed agricultural powers are adopting, so who can accuse it of being an "invasive species" or "outdated technology"?
As Yang Geyong predicted, those commercial spies who had tried to steal the Hope Grass technology spent huge sums of money and a lot of time researching the non-existent "special fertilizer," but ultimately gained nothing and became a laughing stock in the industry.

Meanwhile, the "African Agricultural Experience Zone" at the California farm is even more popular, with an increasing number of people donating to and supporting African development, which has inadvertently won the Solomon Islands Alliance goodwill from the Western public.

Ye Yuze and Ye Rou regularly video call to exchange information and analyze the situation. Their father's experience and global perspective remain one of his most valuable assets.

The annexation of neighboring small countries has come to a temporary halt, and the size and influence of the Solomon Islands have risen to become a regional power.

Ye Mei was busy integrating the new territory and implementing the economic community plan, while Yang San's army became stronger after integration, and his intelligence network penetrated deeper and wider.

Ye Rou, on the other hand, strategized and steered this ever-growing ship.

They successfully achieved significant expansion of territory and population at minimal cost. The process was fraught with peril, but they ultimately turned these dangers into opportunities to consolidate their power.

However, the chessboard has become larger, and the opponents are also stronger and more cunning.

Although the issue of the Tricolor State's military base in Djibouti has been temporarily shelved, it will never accept defeat.

More major powers outside the region are beginning to turn their attention to this rising Horn of Africa alliance, some seeking cooperation while others remain wary or even hostile.

The "ice melting" project was successful, but the melted ice water flowed into a wider and deeper, unfathomable ocean.

Standing before the redrawn map, Ye Rou knew that the real challenge was only just beginning.

The next game will take place on a grander stage with more complex rules. She and her partners are ready.

In northern Aden, there once lay a desolate expanse of gray and yellow. The old shepherd Hassan Abdil, wrapped in a tattered wool blanket, gazed at the sparse pastures and emaciated goats before him, his eyes filled with the numbness of years past.

His son, Muhammad, went to work in a southern city a few years ago and has been out of contact ever since, leaving him and his wife to guard their ancestral pasture and struggle to make a living.

The change came quietly. First, several technicians dressed in uniforms from the Somali agricultural department came to the village, bringing seeds called "hope grass," which they distributed for free and taught everyone how to plant them.

Hassan, with nothing to lose, set aside a small plot of land to try planting. A miracle occurred. After the rainy season, the land sprouted an unprecedentedly lush and vibrant green.

He hoped that the grass would not only grow quickly and be easy to graze on, but that his sheep would also love to eat it.

A few months later, Hassan's flock of sheep had become noticeably stronger, and their milk production had increased. To his even greater surprise, a convoy of livestock cooperatives from Somalia drove into the village and directly purchased fresh milk and lambs at fair prices.

Hassan received far more money than he had previously earned selling to the middlemen in Adan. He used the first sum to buy his wife a new headscarf and himself a new pair of sturdy boots.

One day, several education officials from the Solomon Islands came to the village to promote the newly established school.

Hassan's heart stirred, and he thought of his son who had disappeared without a trace. Perhaps his grandchildren would have a different fate?
He went door-to-door to persuade all the school-age children in the village to go to school.

The school was newly built, spacious and bright, and the children could also enjoy a free nutritious lunch. For the first time, the sound of children reading aloud replaced the sound of the wind in the wilderness, becoming the most beautiful melody in the village.

However, the integration process was not without its challenges. Small units of the Adanese government forces attempted to collect taxes and drive away Somali nationals, resulting in a standoff with patrolling Somali border guards.

For the first time, Hassan and the villagers didn't hide. Instead, they spontaneously picked up their shepherd's staffs and makeshift weapons, standing before the Somali military technicians and soldiers. Their silent but resolute stance expressed their choice. Ultimately, the Adanian soldiers left dejectedly. At that moment, Hassan felt a long-lost sense of dignity in protecting his homeland.

Now, Hassan's pasture is lush and green, and his sheep are plump and healthy. Under the guidance of technicians, he has even begun to try processing fodder from Hope Grass and selling it to the surrounding herders on a small scale.

He often sat on the grass, gazing at the school in the distance, and muttered to himself:

"Muhammad, my son, if you were still here, how wonderful it would be to see all this. This place is no longer a land of despair."

Kibera Port was once shrouded in corruption and inefficiency. Joseph Callum, an old dockworker, has been carrying bags here for thirty years, his back bent under the weight of heavy cargo, yet his income is meager enough to support his family.

His daughter suffers from a chronic illness, and the cost of her medication is a bottomless pit. The union is a mere formality, bought off by management and the Tricolor State Corporation, and the workers' protests always come to nothing.

The takeover by Somme initially brought doubt and fear. Joseph and his fellow workers worried that their new masters would be even harsher.

However, changes soon occurred. The new port management company (Brother Investment Holdings) brought in brand-new equipment—cranes and conveyor belts—which greatly reduced the physical burden on the workers.

More importantly, the salary was doubled and paid on time without any deductions.

The company also established a new medical insurance system, and most of Joseph's daughter's medication costs can now be reimbursed.

But not everyone welcomed the change. Nzok, the former union leader, having lost power and his illicit income, secretly incited workers to boycott the new company, spreading rumors that Solmen would eventually lay off workers and replace everyone with machines. He even attempted to organize a strike.

Joseph was torn. Although Nzok had been corrupt in the past, he had at least been a fellow worker. However, the thought of his daughter finally having access to better medicine, and of himself finally being able to stand tall and support his family, made it impossible for him to accept going back to the past.

At a workers' rally, when Nzok again incited them, Joseph was the first to stand up; his voice was not loud, but unusually firm:
“Nzok, you told us the past was good, but my daughter almost died because we couldn’t afford medicine! Now, my family can survive! I don’t care who takes care of us, whoever lets me and my family live like human beings, I’ll go with them!”

His words resonated with many of his fellow workers. Long-suppressed anger and a yearning for a new life erupted.

Nzok was isolated, and his strike plans fell through completely. Shortly afterward, Nzok was handed over to the police by the new management on suspicion of embezzling old union funds and inciting sabotage.

Joseph was elected by his fellow workers as one of the representatives to prepare for the new union and to participate in the development of new charters that better protected workers' rights.

Standing on the modern dock, watching the giant ships being loaded and unloaded in an orderly manner, Joseph felt an unprecedented sense of peace. His back may never straighten again, but his heart has straightened once more.

In a remote tribe in the Risang region, a young girl named Natasha Ochion possesses extraordinary academic talent, but due to her gender and poverty, she is almost destined to follow in her mother's footsteps—marrying young, bearing children, and toiling away her entire life. The tribal elders scoff at the idea of ​​girls studying.

The arrival of the Someng was like a stone thrown into stagnant water. The principal of the new school personally visited the tribe to persuade parents to send their children, especially girls, to school.

Natasha's father, Ochion, initially strongly opposed it, believing it was a waste of effort and would lead to the adoption of bad habits from the outside world.

The turning point came from the Solmenia Development Community's "development voucher" policy and a female teacher named Amina.

Amina, from the core region of the Sodom Alliance, was capable and passionate. She approached Ochion, and instead of engaging in empty rhetoric, she helped him calculate the economics:

If Natasha goes to school, her family will not only receive development voucher subsidies (equivalent to the income of a laborer), but if she becomes a teacher or doctor after graduation, her income will be much higher than it is now, allowing her to better support her family.

Amina also promised that the school would provide accommodation and meals, so as not to increase the family's financial burden.

Ochion wavered. In the end, despite the pressure from the elders, he hesitated and allowed Natasha to go to the school.

Natasha seized this hard-won opportunity and studied voraciously. Her grades were always among the best, especially in mathematics and science, where she showed remarkable potential.

However, the conservative forces within the tribe did not disappear. One night, a group of young people dissatisfied with the changes, instigated by the remnants of the former chief's forces, attempted to set fire to the girls' dormitory, wanting to "teach those restless women a lesson."

The alarm sounded in time and the fire was extinguished, but Natasha and her classmates were quite frightened.

This incident alarmed Yang San's security department. The attackers were quickly apprehended and severely punished.

Yang San even dispatched a small team to be stationed near the school to ensure safety. More importantly, the alliance media extensively reported on the incident, characterizing it as an "attack on progress and the future by ignorant forces," which sparked widespread social sympathy and support for girls' right to education.

After the turmoil, Natasha became even more determined. In her essay, she wrote:

"That fire didn't burn our dreams; instead, it tempered our steel and made our will even stronger. I want to become an engineer and return here someday to build dams and roads for my tribe, so that light can dispel all darkness."

Ms. Amina sent her essay to the Union's education department, and Natasha's story began to be known by more people.

Thousands of miles away in California, at the Chinese Rural Ecological Farm, the sun shines brightly. Chinese-American engineer Li Ming is debugging a model of a state-of-the-art intelligent irrigation system. This system integrates cutting-edge American technology with water-saving experience gained from cultivating hope grass in Africa. He is one of the experts hired by Ye Yuze at a high salary.

After get off work, Li Ming likes to volunteer at the farm's "Pet Paradise".

He especially liked a one-eyed Chinese domestic cat named "Warrior," who used to be a stray cat but had an exceptionally gentle personality.

Li Ming brushed the cat's fur while chatting with tourists from all over the world.

Today, he met an elderly couple from the East Coast who were very interested in the farm's project of collecting cat and dog hair to knit sweaters.

Li Ming explained to them, “This is not only about the circular economy, but also a symbol. Every sweater bears the ‘Chinese Pastoral’ logo, and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to our sister project in Africa, the place where we plant hope grass to help drought-stricken areas.”

The elderly couple were deeply moved and immediately bought two sweaters, expressing their intention to donate money. The old man said:
"I never imagined that playing with cats in California could help people in faraway Africa. This world is truly amazing."

In the evening, Li Ming, Ye Yuze, and Yang Geyong had dinner together. On the table were spicy hot pot made with peppercorns produced on the farm and Pu'er tea.

Ye Yuze looked at the latest message on his phone, a briefing sent by Ye Rou about Natasha's essay and the story of Joseph, a worker at the port of Kibera.

Ye Yuze handed his phone to Li Ming and said with emotion:
“Look, we farm, raise cats, and work on technology here. It may seem ordinary, but every effort we make can be like a butterfly flapping its wings and stirring up a storm of change on the other side of the world. Perhaps there is a glimmer of starlight from here in that African girl’s dream.”

Yang Geyong picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks, grinned, and said, "That's why I always say, plant more grass and raise more cats, it's sure to be good! It's much more fun than fighting a war!"

Looking at the cats playing outside the window and the brightly lit farm processing plant in the distance, Li Ming felt an indescribable sense of participation and accomplishment.

He realized that the irrigation system he designed might soon be used on the arid land of the Horn of Africa to nourish more hope grass and support more people like Hassan, Joseph, and Natasha to start a new life.

This bond, silent yet resilient, spans continents and oceans, connecting ordinary individuals with grand narratives.

The phone rang; it was Yifei calling. Ye Yuze was a little curious; his daughter-in-law rarely called him. Could something have happened in Junken City? (End of Chapter)