Revisit Azur Lane

"It would be impolite to have it raining today."

Below, Zhou He saw Cleveland and his crew carrying buckets to catch the sea on the beach. Further out in the bay, Yi Bei was adapting to his ship equipment, with Hu Teng assisting him. Both of them were wearing mechanical dragon ship equipment, and they looked quite interesting together.

'Bismarck's dragon is a bit small, but Cai's Bismarck dragon is quite large. I wonder if the system will classify them as two separate ships.'

With a strange thought in mind, Zhou He turned and headed towards the restaurant, where he ran into a group of people, including Long Island, Ayanami, and Cassin, who were returning from their meal and chatting about something. Upon closer listening, he realized they were talking about game content. He couldn't help but click his tongue. Why couldn't he find such a group of companions when he played games? He was so envious.

As for the possibility that his own ship girls might get addicted to games and neglect their duties? His assessment is that they can get addicted as they please, and he'll cover for them if anything happens, since he's hoping to infiltrate the game after he 'retires'!

"Good morning, Commander."

A group of people greeted Zhou He politely. Zhou He smiled in response and passed them by as he arrived at the restaurant. Through the doors and windows, he could already see Ms. Hood and other members of the royal family elegantly drinking tea inside, seemingly discussing something. Upon noticing his arrival, Javelin and London even stood up and bowed to him through the door.

Although the nobles, including Queen Elizabeth, don't seem to do much in the game, the lower-ranking members are polite, capable, and proactive. They may seem a bit rigid, but the overall impression they give is great. It's no wonder they're known as a faction that can turn commanders into useless individuals.

He pushed open the door and entered the restaurant. After nodding to the group, he didn't rush to inquire about the construction. Instead, he sat down by the window and started ordering. Then, he clasped his hands together, leaned against the table, and gazed at the scenery outside. The vast green lawn was a thing of the past. The lawn had now become a non-mainstream sight, a mixture of withered yellow weeds, relatively green weeds, and bare ground. To put it simply, it was natural; to put it in perspective, it was sloppy. This was something that needed to be addressed when building the plaza.

'Find a reason to photograph the White Eagle and Sakura Empire's bases before the temperature completely drops, and then proceed with the formal design.'

Zhou He narrowed his eyes. It wasn't that he didn't want to make changes, but there were many things to consider when building the port area. If the site was built first and then some functional buildings were added around it, it would be much easier to pave the roads. If the roads were built first, the selection of the locations of the subsequent buildings would be very rigid, and they wouldn't be able to choose whichever location they wanted.

Of course, all these difficulties stem from insufficient economic conditions. If he could complete the entire port area construction in one go, he would only need to go through three simple steps: drawing up plans, surveying the terrain, and taking pictures of the buildings. He wouldn't need to be so meticulous.

"Once the bases of the major factions are all set up, we'll build all the Rubik's Cubes."

He has already made a decision: he certainly cannot build a good relationship with every ship girl one-on-one. Just like London and Elbe now, when new ship girls come out, he will have the old members of each faction take them to get familiar with the situation. They only need to know that he is the commander-in-chief.

Anyway, as the commander, his job is to oversee the overall development of the port area. When it comes to various faction conflicts and personal matters, he can use numerous secretary ships to help with announcements or handling. If he has to do everything personally, he will surely die from overwork.

"..."

Zhou He sighed inwardly; this was the best he could do.

"What's troubling the commander?"

Hermione, who was delivering the food in place of Manju, came over and placed the breakfast bowls in front of Zhou He, holding the plates with both hands and leaning down to ask him in a gentle voice.

"It's not a big problem; it can be resolved naturally in the future."

Zhou He hummed in agreement, but didn't elaborate. He knew that mentioning the lack of funds for construction would only cause Hermione and the others unnecessary trouble.

"Well."

Hermione didn't press the matter, but instead stepped behind Zhou He and looked in the direction he had been gazing. She quickly caught sight of him and said with a light smile, "Commander, should we transplant or plant some trees here?"

"Let me think... I'll plant some ornamental trees next spring."

Zhou He had just picked up his spoon when he heard Hermione's words and knew that she had guessed his thoughts. He couldn't help but chuckle twice: "After the Royal Manor is completed, remember to save me a room so I can use it when I visit."

【boom】

He had barely finished speaking when he was hit on the head, the plate making a sharp, painful sound. Not only Zhou He, but even Man Qiu who was passing by and Hu De and the others in the distance were shocked.

"hiss."

Hermione's light tap made Zhou He lunge forward, but he was more confused than angry. He touched his flattened hat, glanced back at the sulking Hermione, and immediately shrank back: "Did I say something wrong?"

"Yes."

Hermione bit her lower lip, suppressing her frustration, and corrected him carefully, word by word: "The Commander is not a guest, but a host, so you can't say 'visiting,' but rather something like 'coming back (home).' If you say it like that, other people will definitely get angry too. Do you understand?"

"remember."

Wrong. Saying that was purely out of survival instinct. It wasn't until Hermione nodded in satisfaction that Zhou He realized that Hermione thought his word choice was too unfamiliar. But he couldn't be blamed for that. After all, in his subconscious, the house he built belonged to whoever he built it for. Even if he was the designer and builder, he couldn't say that the house belonged to him. That would be too domineering.

"Hmm! Commander is really smart."

Hermione praised Zhou He very smoothly, her tone like that of someone coaxing a child. Zhou He thought that such praise might be a bit childish to a child, but it was just right for him.

So he selectively forgot his memory and began to eat.

Hermione lingered there for a moment before leaving. Mrs. Hood asked why, and Ambition and Jarvis sought advice from the side. However, they soon realized that this way of getting along only applied to Hermione, and Zhou He's tolerance for others might not be as lenient as Hermione's.

In short, it wasn't a big problem, which relieved Hu De and the others. Publicly criticizing their superior could lead to a military court, even though there wasn't one in the port area.

Soon after, Yuudachi rushed over to have breakfast. Zhou He was drinking hot water after finishing his meal. He got up, ruffled Yuudachi's hair, and left the restaurant with Hu De and his group as if nothing had happened.

Standing on the road in front of the restaurant, Zhou He pointed to the area next to the Iron Blood Mansion, which could be reached directly from this road: "There's a place over there that I think is alright, want to go check it out?"

"Okay, Commander, please go first."

Hood glanced at the Ironblood Mansion. In her opinion, it would be best to place the mansion in a slightly more inward location, preferably in the central area of ​​the port, so as to better highlight the royal prestige.

However, from the memories she has obtained, it is clear that Royal Navy and Ironblood are 'neighbors'. Perhaps she can respect some historical facts and reluctantly become Bismarck's neighbor again—this way, the Royal Navy ship girls joining the port in the future might feel more realistic.

After walking for a few minutes, the group arrived at a grassy open space on a higher elevation. Standing here, they had a wide view and could see the foot of the mountains in the distance. Turning around, they could also take in almost all the buildings in the port area. There was plenty of open space around them, offering a great deal of room for maneuver.

These advantages are precisely why Zhou He chose this location. The reserved beach leisure area is not far from here. If no one is willing to settle here, he plans to build his own summer palace here, surrounded by a wall, with an open-air hot spring inside, some vegetables and fruits planted, a pavilion and the like, so he can enjoy himself in the summer!

"What do you think?"

Zhou He didn't explain, but let Hu De and the others observe for themselves. After all, his preferences only represented his personal opinion, and saying too much would be too subjective and would affect Hu De's thinking and judgment.

"Please allow us to discuss this."

Hood, being an experienced pilot, immediately assessed the advantages and disadvantages of the situation. After gesturing to Zhou He, she joined London, Hermione, and the others in a group. Only then did Zhou He realize that Royal Ark wasn't with them. Since joining the port, Royal Ark's stealth rate had been approaching that of Kursk. However, there was a place in the port where a large number of destroyers gathered.

He guessed that Royal Ark was currently peeking through the window next to the game room, so he moved a short distance towards the sea, took out his binoculars, and glanced at the area next to the command post. Somewhat surprisingly, he didn't see Royal Ark.

In reality, at that moment, Royal Ark was playing games with Ayanami in the Japanese-style room, beaming with joy.

……

"Commander, our estate will be located here."

After a brief discussion, Hu De's proposal to expand into the island was rejected by everyone. This was the first time she had encountered a setback within her own camp, and her voice was somewhat weak when she spoke with Zhou He later.

"Shouldn't we consider other locations?"

Seeing that Hu De seemed reluctant, Zhou He pointed to the inner area between the dock platform and the command post: "There are two more site selection points over there, shall we go and take a look?"

"No need. The view here is very expansive. We can see the sea as soon as we wake up. It's the perfect location for our estate."

Hood resolutely refused. She had her own ideas, but this was the location chosen by everyone. This was not the royal family in history. The fact that the ship girls in the faction were willing to support her was giving her face. She wasn't so confused about the difference between kings and queens. Moreover, being neighbors with the Bismarck Ironblood faction was a plus for her, so she wasn't particularly resistant.

"Hmm, so, would it be okay if the main door opened this way?"

Having said all that, Zhou He stopped worrying and began discussing the location of the manor gate with Hu De and the others. After much deliberation, they finally decided on the old arrangement of facing south. Although having the mountains to the east behind them was also an option, those mountains were at least several kilometers away and they couldn't rely on them. Therefore, they rejected that orientation and chose one that would provide better lighting and ventilation.

"Then I'll start."

After everything was agreed upon, Zhou He opened the self-selected furniture box from the warehouse. The Ironblood mansion could at least be described as a house, but the royal large buildings, Zhou He flipped through them and felt that they were all castles of different styles and sizes, and they were the kind of castles with their own outer and inner courtyards. Just from the small pictures, he could tell that this thing probably occupied an absurd amount of space.

After some deliberation, he chose the manor that most resembled a 'residence' and previewed it. With a blink of an eye, the virtual manor appeared before him: first, a wall with unique patterns; inside, a large, simple courtyard; and finally, a long, narrow, pointed building with a strong European style. In the center was a main house of about three stories, with buildings extending out on both sides. The outermost buildings were two and a half stories high, while the middle ones were only two stories high, extending inwards from the edges to form a square.

Zhou He's favorite foreign architectural style is that of the Northern Alliance. European architecture seems to be somewhat similar to that of the Northern Alliance, and this manor in front of him is just like that. It also incorporates a little modern style, which reduces the sense of heaviness brought by time. He feels that it is barely acceptable.

As for the area occupied, the central building is at least 1,500 square meters, and with the surrounding courtyards and iron walls, Zhou He estimates it to be around 2,500 square meters.

It looks very big to the naked eye, several times larger than the command building, and surpasses the Ironblood mansion in terms of its courtyard. However, it is not as exquisite as the Ironblood's courtyard—it is just a flat lawn that you have to maintain yourself.

"That's outrageous."

Zhou He clicked his tongue in amazement. If he were to use his Homeland Coins to buy this thing, it would cost at least 250.

Despite his admiration, after confirming that the place could accommodate the manor, he selected 'Confirm Placement'. In an instant, a large number of blue dots appeared and began printing from bottom to top at an extremely fast speed. In half a minute, the vast and magnificent royal manor appeared in everyone's sight.

Chapter 164 Training Program

"Well."

After the estate was completed, Ms. Hu De stroked her chin with one hand, walked around the gate twice, then went into the courtyard and strolled around twice more, concluding: "It's much smaller than I expected. Given the layout of this building, it shouldn't be this small."

"Well, I can only say that our resources are currently only sufficient to complete a manor of this size. We'll have to make do with what we have."

Zhou He looked around. To him, this 2,000-square-meter manor with a courtyard was already quite a grand mansion, but it was still far inferior to the orthodox royal style of Hu De, which he had truly witnessed.

"Ah, Commander, don't worry about it. I just have some questions about the architectural style of this manor. How can you compare a manor on an island with a manor on the mainland? To achieve this level of quality without any resources, Commander, you're already very impressive."

Hu De realized that there was something wrong with his statement and quickly added, then smiled and pointed to the large open space that stretched out from the yard to the mountainside: "Moreover, if we really want to calculate the size of the territory, this area should also be included in the calculation."

"It's okay, that's what I was planning anyway."

Zhou He glanced at the open space on the side of the bay: "Next, I will develop the area near your base. Hu De, if you have any ideas, you can come and discuss them with me. I will try my best to accommodate you."

The size of the manor wasn't a problem for him, as he could expand it later by demolishing the outer walls and building two smaller side halls—he could make it as grand as he wanted. However, Hu De's comments made him realize that the furniture selection box wasn't as versatile as he had imagined; it seemed that he could only select buildings worth around 300 homestead coins at most.

A true 'mansion' still requires him to use Home Coins to select building components and design it step by step himself.

Ultimately, it all boils down to a matter of capital investment, yes, a matter of capital.

"..."

Zhou He raised his hand and touched his chin. He had been thinking of using the self-selection box to take pictures of the greenhouse and amusement park. Luckily, he didn't. If he had, it would probably have looked like a 'children's version' of the amusement park, and he wouldn't have been criticized by Hu De alone.

"Commander, there's no need to rush. We'll be stationed here for a long time to come. Whether it's the size of the fleet or the development of the port, we can proceed gradually."

As a veteran member, Hu De naturally understood that Zhou He was troubled by the port's development speed. Although Zhou He would occasionally use such competitions as rewards to help them build their bases, the port's development resources must actually be very tight, as evidenced by the fact that there are only a few buildings in the port so far.

"Yeah, I understand."

Zhou He listened to the advice and quickly shifted his attention elsewhere. He smiled and spread his hands towards Hu De and the others in London: "I am not familiar with the royal architecture and decoration style, so I will not accompany you inside for a tour. Just like what I said above, if there is any unreasonable design inside, you can come and find me to deal with it."

Today, his job wasn't just building a garden for the royal family. There were still unredeemed rewards from Bismarck, and he needed to find out what Bismarck wanted before spending Homestead Coins to pave roads and decorate the area.

"Commander, please take a rest as well."

Hu De did not stop him, but instead chatted with others and escorted Zhou He out of the manor gate.

"Hurry up."

After leaving the royal estate, Zhou He looked back at the surrounding area and came up with a rough decoration plan in his mind. Then he went straight to the dock to look for Bismarck. However, what puzzled him was that Bismarck did not seem to be watching Hutten and the others train on the dock today.

There was no one at the dock.

As he walked, he kept looking towards the dock, his attention so focused that he didn't notice Bismarck coming out of the command post next to him. Bismarck followed Zhou He for a while, then realized that things weren't going well, so he quickened his pace and called out, "Commander, I'm here."

"what?"