Endless Winter: My Camp Infinite Upgrades

Chapter 430 The Purpose of the Hongmen Martial Arts Tournament, the Ancestral Sacrifice Day is
May 30th, the ninth year of the Great Xia Dynasty
At night, the Hongmen Siya building was brightly lit.
In the main hall on the top floor, Lin Kai sat in the main seat.

Seated below are seven people: Li Longkai, military commander of the Logistics Department; Liu Yuan, military commander of the Military Affairs Department; Zhao Bao, prison commander of the Prison Department; Ying Yi, civil affairs commander; Yuan Shan, hunting commander; Chen Hua, logging commander; and Kong Xiu, craftsman.

"The martial arts competition will officially begin tomorrow. Tonight is the last round of discussions. Ying Zhengling, please give us an update on the preparations for the competition!"

Lin Kai's face was full of anticipation. He had been preparing for this martial arts competition for almost half a year, making three or four trips to other towns. Now that it was finally about to bear fruit, he was naturally very excited.

The core purpose of this grand martial arts event is to accelerate the integration of the three towns proposed by the lord last year. The speculations from the outside world about attracting talent, promoting the strength of young people, and showcasing the style of the Great Xia are all secondary.

The question Lin Kai was most concerned about at the moment was how many young people from the eight towns had been attracted to this martial arts competition, as well as the current overall population of the city. Therefore, the first person he asked was the Civil Affairs Department.

"Registration for the martial arts competition has officially closed as scheduled at midnight. There are currently a total of 115285 participants, including 45413 in the junior group aged 15 to 20 and 69872 in the youth group aged 20 to 25."
Of these 110,000 people, our own people make up the largest proportion, over 30%, approximately 40,000; Jiangxia and Muyin towns are slightly less, together accounting for about 30%, approximately 35,000; the remaining 40%, or over 40,000, mainly come from the other six towns, with a very small number from outside the region.

"Over 11, wow..."

"so much!"

How many young people are there in the eight towns in total?

"That's at least half, right?"

…………

Upon hearing Ying Yi's announcement of the total number of participants, Liu Yuan and the other six couldn't help but exclaim in surprise. Even Kong Xiu couldn't help but guess that about half of the young people from the Eight Towns had come.

Upon hearing Kong Xiu's words, everyone immediately lowered their heads to think, but quickly shook their heads, denying his guess.

The total population of the nine towns is at least 15 million. Based on the normal age structure of the camp population, the number of young people aged 15 to 25 is at least in the millions. 115,000 is estimated to be less than one-tenth.

"It's unlikely that half of the young people from the nine towns have come, but if more than half of the young elites from the nine towns have come, then there's no problem!"

Upon hearing Lin Kai's words, everyone's eyes lit up.

Yup!

Although this year's Three Towns Martial Arts Tournament did not impose any other restrictions on participants except for age, it was still a selection competition. Those who came all the way to Hongmen to participate were all somewhat confident in themselves. It was certainly true that these 110,000-plus people were the elite of the Nine Towns.

Lin Kai's gaze then shifted to Ying Yi, and he continued, "These are just the participants. The overall population growth in the city over the previous two months should be even more impressive, right?"

Upon hearing this question, Ying Yi's expression brightened slightly, and he nodded emphatically, saying, "With the successive cracking of the three cases in March—the serial beheading, the Snow Night Butcher, and the Daytime Door Breaking—the city's population growth trend has resumed. By the end of March, it had exceeded 35. After the announcement of the martial arts tournament in early April, the population growth momentum became even more exaggerated. In April alone, 13 people came, and in May, it was even more exaggerated, with 19 people coming. Currently, the population of Hongmen has exceeded 67."

67 million!
Whoosh...

When Ying Yi uttered that final number, all six people in the hall, including Lin Kai at the head of the table, couldn't help but shudder, their faces filled with excitement.

This is almost as big as the population of the town!
"No wonder the north part of the city has become so crowded these past few days. The population has increased to this extent without us even realizing it. This is terrifying."

"No wonder Mu Sizheng rushed over from Xia City three days ago to start planning the expansion of the city. 67 people, tsk tsk, with the current 25 square kilometers, how can it accommodate so many people!"

"Our craftsmen's company has been constantly looking for suitable residential buildings to demolish and rebuild in the east and west districts of the south city, just to make more living space. I had a feeling that the population would surge, but I thought it would be at most 50. It's actually 67. It's really scary!"

………………

"Lord Li, how have the revenues of the Supply Department been these past two months?"

Unlike the others who were concerned about certain things, Lin Kai immediately turned his attention to Li Longkai upon hearing the figure of 67, and inquired about the revenue of the Operations Department.

"3158 million taels in April, and 4821 million taels in May!"

Lin Kai showed no surprise when he heard Li Longkai's data.

A surge in population inevitably leads to a surge in trade volume.

Moreover, Hongmen's profit-making methods are not limited to trade. The food, clothing, housing and transportation of the outside population in the city are not free. Although the income from this part is not as much as that from trade, once the population base is large, it is still a very considerable income.

If he remembered correctly, Hongmen's profit in March was 1682 million taels, which means that it doubled in April and tripled in May.

"This surge in population is due to the martial arts tournament, but how many people will remain after the tournament ends will depend on our abilities."

Lord Kong, the city is indeed already extremely crowded. The expansion work needs to be accelerated and completed as soon as possible within this month.

Then the warden must maintain order in the city. If any strange disturbances occur, they must be reported immediately and resolved as quickly as possible. If the population is to be retained, safety is the top priority.

Finally, there's the Logistics Department. The vast majority of these people are there for the cultivation resources of Wanbaolou and the supplies sold by merchants and vendors in the South City. We should try to get the Logistics Headquarters in Xia City to send more supplies over to meet their needs and earn more silver for the camp.

If these three things are done well, the total population of Hongmen won't drop too drastically after the martial arts competition ends.

Upon hearing Lin Kai's words, Kong Xiu, Zhao Bao, and Li Longkai immediately clasped their hands in greeting and nodded solemnly, replying, "Your subordinates obey!"

Lin Kai looked at the seven people below and suddenly asked with a smile, "You seven all received a grade B in your year-end performance evaluations last year, right?"

Upon hearing this question, the expressions of Liu Yuan, Zhao Bao, and the other seven people below immediately became somewhat excited, and they all nodded emphatically.

The official system of the Great Xia Dynasty is now gradually maturing.

At the end of each year, the eight ministries of Xia City conduct a centralized evaluation of all officials. Based on their performance in the past year and other factors, an official rating is given, and then a corresponding year-end bonus is distributed according to their official rank.

Of course, this rating is not only reflected in your year-end bonus, but it will also be included in your resume, affecting your future job retention and promotion.

As a result, this year-end evaluation naturally became the most important thing for all officials in the Great Xia Dynasty, without exception.

The year-end performance evaluation system started in the third year of the Great Xia Dynasty and has been implemented for six years now, so the evaluation rules have naturally become more sound and mature.

The rating is determined by political achievements, which account for at least 70% of the factors. The amount of political achievements of an official is basically determined by the total annual profit generated by the area where he is stationed.

It's easy to see that the original intention of setting up external outposts in Daxia was ultimately to acquire resources for the Xia City headquarters. The Yingchuang value is the final data reflecting how much resources an outpost acquires. The higher the value, the better the person in charge of the outpost has done their job.

Hongmen only fell into the hands of Daxia at the end of April last year, and then officially opened as a port in July. So strictly speaking, it has not been a year yet. But even though it has been less than a year, Hongmen ranked 10th among all the major garrisons in terms of total revenue last year, second only to the six districts of the outer city, and the three major external garrisons of Longshan, Wuyuan, and Bashang.

It was thanks to this remarkable achievement that the top officials of the Eight Divisions of Hongmen were all rated as Grade B or above.

Lin Kai himself was a B1 Upper. If he remembered correctly, among the seven people in front of him, only Liu Yuan was rated the same as him. Of the remaining six, Li Longkai was a B2 Middle, and the other five were all B1 Lower.

A fourth-rank official with a Class B rating, divided into upper, middle, and lower grades, could receive a reward of 180 million to 120 million contribution points. This is why the seven people were so excited when he mentioned last year's rating.

Earning over a million contribution points in one go is extremely tempting, even for mid-to-high-level members of the Great Xia Dynasty. Not to mention that the higher the rating, the more contribution points are awarded, and even higher ratings come with additional and better rewards.

Lin Kai wouldn't bring up last year's year-end evaluation for no reason. Liu Yuan, the military commander of the Military Affairs Department, was the first to react and asked with a smile, "Sir, at this rate, Hongmen's total profit value this year should be able to break into the top five, right?"

Upon hearing this question, everyone's eyes immediately lit up with excitement, and they all turned to look at Lin Kai at the head of the table.

"Top five?"

Lin Kai asked a question with a strange expression, then looked at everyone and said in a slightly solemn tone, "I went back to Xia City at the beginning of the month to report on my work. Not counting May, in the first four months of this year, our Hongmen's cumulative profit ranking has reached seventh among all the major outposts in the entire camp, second only to the four districts of East 1, East 2, East 4, and East 5 in Xia City, as well as the two external outposts of Longshan and Bashang..."

Upon hearing the ranking, the seven people's faces were immediately filled with excitement and surprise.

As if the crowd's reaction wasn't strong enough, Lin Kai continued with a fiery expression, "I estimate that with the May earnings value added, Hongmen's ranking can rise another two places."

If the seventh place moves up two places, it will be fifth place!
Everyone's expressions suddenly changed, and their joy intensified.

No wonder Lin Kai reacted that way when Liu Yuan said they were going to break into the top five. Only five months have passed. If they can maintain this momentum, Hongmen is basically guaranteed to break into the top three this year, and they might even be able to challenge for the championship.

"The top-ranked outpost in terms of profit creation value, with officials from the eight departments all rated at least Class A, which, based on the fourth-rank official level, would guarantee a minimum salary of 250 million contribution points. Moreover, they could have a weapon custom-made by the artisan department, and there would be additional rewards from the lord at the year-end Hanyuan Banquet..."

Hearing Zhao Bao's whisper, Liu Yuan and the other six, including Lin Kai at the head of the table, couldn't help but fall into reverie, their eyes burning with even more passion.

Finally, Lin Kai was the first to snap out of his reverie, his voice carrying a hint of encouragement: "Everyone, there are so many benefits to being number one, it's not just us from Hongmen who are envious."

Let's not even talk about the top-ranked districts in Dongcheng; Longshan is backed by such a large resource-rich area and holds five silver mines; Wuyuan has such a large body of water; Bazhou has Mount Mo'ao and the winding Jiuqu River...

These major outposts aren't easy to surpass, and they won't just sit idly by while we try to climb the ranks! Earnings are earned through hard work; if we want our ranking to continue rising, the most important thing next is to successfully organize this inaugural Three Towns Martial Arts Tournament. The preliminary and semi-final rounds are expected to last two months, meaning the city's population shouldn't fluctuate too much over the next two months. But after the preliminary and semi-final rounds in August, how many people will ultimately choose to stay in Hongmen will depend on us!

Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions turned slightly solemn, and they nodded earnestly.

Hongmen is currently the only port of entry for the Great Xia Dynasty, serving as a forward outpost for attracting outsiders. It can be said that whether outsiders are willing to further explore the other aspects of the Great Xia Dynasty depends primarily on Hongmen City.

Only when a desire to learn more is generated will there be a subsequent decision to switch allegiance to Great Xia and become a member of Great Xia.

The final form of Hongmen City was basically determined by them, so the seven of them immediately took Lin Kai's words to heart.

"Our core purpose in this martial arts competition is not to select talents, but to accelerate the integration of the three towns and even the nine towns, and to attract more people to Hongmen to learn about our Great Xia, and even eventually to make them members of Great Xia. So winning or losing doesn't matter, but it is essential to be fair, just and open, so that everyone is convinced."

I will remain in the city for the entire next two months. Anyone who dares to engage in favoritism or corruption, regardless of the reason, will be dismissed from their post and sent back to the Xia City Prison headquarters for punishment. Do you understand?

"I obey my orders!"

All seven immediately stood up, cupped their hands, and gave a solemn reply in unison.

Since the preliminary and semi-final rounds are both being held in Hongmen, the referees will naturally be from their Eight Divisions. Lin Kai gave this stern warning because he was worried that these people would favor the young people from Daxia when they were officiating the competition.

Having been colleagues for so long, Lin Kai had a basic understanding of the seven men's personalities. So when he saw that they had given such a serious reply, he knew that they all understood the seriousness of this martial arts competition, and his expression gradually relaxed.

"By the way, Lord Yuan, we heard that the preliminary selection method this time was your idea. It's almost dawn, why don't you tell us about it?"

Everyone was obviously curious and immediately turned to look at Yuan Shan.

Upon hearing this, Yu Yuanshan, the hunting director, immediately smiled and cupped his hands, saying, "There are simply too many contestants participating this time. If we want to select them quickly, we can only eliminate a large number of people. So I thought we might as well use a timed hunting method."

The preliminary rounds will last for one and a half months, a total of 45 days, with one session every evening, each with approximately 2500 participants. The specific schedule is as follows: participants will start from the South City Archway, head to the outskirts of Beining Mountain, hunt down a mid-level cold beast, and bring it back. The top 300 participants with the fastest times will advance to the semi-finals.

Upon hearing about the preliminary selection method, Lin Kai and the others' eyes lit up.

"This selection method is novel and excellent!"

"The difficulty is still a bit high. I've been looking around the city these past few days, and the vast majority of the young people who came to participate are only at the Earth-Digging Realm, especially in the junior group. There are very few at the Cold-Controlling Realm. Wouldn't it be too dangerous to ask them to hunt mid-level cold beasts?"

"If you're not strong enough, you have to rely on your brain. The rules say that you only need to bring back one mid-level cold beast. There are no restrictions on the hunting method, which means you can team up or go solo."

"Luck is also very important. There are 300 intermediate-level cold beasts every night. The area on the outskirts of Beining Mountain is definitely not enough. So the earlier you participate in the selection, the better. The further you go, the deeper you have to go into the snow forest. At that time, both the danger level and the difficulty of hunting will be much higher."

"That's right! Just like the previous lumberjack selection in Xia City, the preliminary rounds not only tested strength, but also brains and luck."

"The key is that we can also pick up some cold beasts for free. 300 intermediate cold beasts every night, for 45 days, that adds up to 13500."

"Haha, it's nothing compared to 3000 million taels of silver, but it's enough to recoup some of the costs."

"Once the competition is over, our exploration progress on Beining Mountain will increase dramatically. That's killing three birds with one stone, right?"

"Lord Yuan, you've really got something going for you!"

………………

Lin Kai looked at Yuan Shan and couldn't help but show his approval. Yuan Shan's selection method was indeed good, no wonder it was adopted by Li Longkai.

Although all eight departments participate in the annual martial arts competition, the main responsibility is actually borne by the Logistics Department, which provides the funding. Therefore, Li Longkai is the one who ultimately makes the final decisions on all aspects of the competition process at Hongmen.

Lin Kai turned to look at Li Longkai and continued to ask, "According to Yuan Shan, there are about 13500 people who can enter the semi-finals, more than 5000 in the junior group and more than 8000 in the youth group. The semi-finals will only last 15 days. What is the specific competition format?"

Li Longkai immediately cupped his hands and said, "The semi-finals will no longer be a hunting game. I plan to use a timed arena format for both groups, with each person having five chances to enter the arena. The top 1000 people with five consecutive wins in the shortest time will directly advance to the finals. The competition should be completed within 15 days."

Lin Kai nodded upon hearing this. This timed arena competition system was used in the first martial arts tournament in the second year of the Great Xia Dynasty. It is also a screening mechanism that can quickly distinguish the strength of the participants, which is much faster than a slow one-on-one fight.

"With two different competition formats, it sounds like the preliminary rounds are riskier?"

Li Longkai immediately cupped his hands and nodded, saying, "Rest assured, sir. I have already discussed it with Yuan Sizheng and Liu Dutong. During the month and a half of the preliminary rounds, the Yunjiao and Tulong armies will take turns guarding the outskirts of Beining Mountain. This will serve two purposes: first, to maintain order and ensure the fairness of the competition; and second, to intervene and rescue people in extreme situations to prevent too many casualties..."

He paused for a moment, then continued with a smile, "Of course, it will require our people to take action, and the contestants will naturally lose their qualification to advance."

Lin Kai nodded in satisfaction and said, "It seems you have made thorough arrangements. I am relieved."

After saying that, he turned his head to look at the sky outside, which was already beginning to brighten, and continued with a smile, "Alright, everyone hurry up and get ready! We'll be busy for the next two months."

The seven nodded upon hearing this, and were about to leave the main hall when Ying Yi from the Civil Affairs Department suddenly remembered something. He turned around, cupped his hands, and smiled, "Oh, right, there's something I almost forgot to inform you all. The Xia City Civil Affairs Headquarters issued an official document yesterday, moving this year's Ancestral Sacrifice Day to the fifth day of the eighth lunar month. This year's date is quite special, and all the heads of minor clans must return to Xia City to participate!"

Lin Kai, who was at the head of the table, and the other six people were all stunned when they heard Ying Yi's words, their faces full of confusion.

Since the sixth year of the Great Xia Dynasty, when Lord Xia Hong officially added the content of establishing a clan and setting up a shrine to the Xia Rites, it has been clearly stipulated that the day of the clan sacrifice is the ninth day of the ninth month every year. This year is the fourth time. Why is it suddenly going to be moved forward again?
Moreover, the Ministry of Civil Affairs issued a document requiring all minor clan leaders to return to Xia City to participate, which made the event even more solemn.

The "Rites of Xia" (Xia Li) already made clear provisions on the system of rites:

The Daxia clan is divided into two categories: the main lineage and the minor lineage.

There is only one major clan, the Xia clan, and the clan leader is Lord Xia Hong;
The term "minor lineage" refers to the various families that have established their own lineages and ancestral worship in the ancestral temple.

The head of a minor branch is the patriarch of these families.

According to the current rules of the Great Xia Dynasty, only those who have been granted a title are qualified to enter the ancestral temple to erect a monument for themselves and their families. Therefore, the head of a minor clan can, in layman's terms, refer to all those who have been granted titles in the Great Xia Dynasty.

In the Great Xia Dynasty, being granted a noble title is no easy feat. To date, the Great Xia Dynasty has a total of over 1000 officials, but only a little over 300 people hold noble titles, which shows just how prestigious the title is.

These 300-plus people are now almost all military and political officials from various places, or at the very least, military officers. Getting all 300-plus people to return to Great Xia to participate in this early ancestral sacrifice would be no small matter.

Snap...

Liu Yuan immediately thought of something, slapped his forehead and said, "It's the two princes, they're about to have their hair-adding ceremony, right?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Kai and the others immediately realized what was going on.

"Yup!"

“I also remembered that the fifth day of the eighth month is the birthday of both princes.”

"Yes, yes, yes! The chapter on rites says that ancestral rites should not be simplified. When the two young masters of the main lineage perform the hair-adding ceremony, all the heads of the minor lineages must be present."

"I remember that the two princes appeared here last September. I saw them then, and their basic strength was over 10,000 jin. For this hair-addition ceremony, I estimate that their basic strength is at least 15,000 jin, right?"

"Just kidding. The Spirit Milk Pill was only created last year. Both princes must have used it. I estimate there are at least 20,000 of them."

"Incredible! To have reached the Earth-Digging Realm before the age of six, the talents of the two princes are probably even stronger than those of the lord."

"The two young masters of the major sect possess such talent, which is a blessing for the Great Xia Dynasty, and even more so for us minor sects!"

………………

Since Xia Hong is the head of the sect, it is perfectly acceptable for everyone to address Xia Yuyao and Xia Yusheng as the young masters of the sect.

Lin Kai, sitting at the head of the table, nodded slightly and said with a smile, "I estimate that there will be more than just the two young masters' hair-adding ceremony in August. You've forgotten, the year before last, when the lord broke through to the Manifest Yang level and came out of seclusion, it happened to be the day of the clan sacrifice."

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately remembered and their expressions brightened slightly.

Yup!

In the seventh year of the Great Xia Dynasty, Xia Hong emerged from seclusion on the day of the ancestral sacrifice.

This time, maybe I'll be out of quarantine on that day too!

(End of this chapter)