You became an emperor by letting me AFK.

Being able to view relevant information means you have more than half of the information under control.

She curiously investigated the cause and effect.

Then Xia He naturally figured out Feng Tianyin's groundwork before and after, not just when she decided to establish Yuhuopan. Even earlier, Daqian had already used its commercial influence to penetrate the South, so she knew the South very well.

It's much better than the vast fog-shrouded areas of the northern map, which is why the marches are so efficient, all thanks to one key asset:

map.

It was edited by the college a long time ago, and now it's finally coming in handy.

It was not the crude hand-drawn map popular in this era, but the "latitude and longitude projection mapping method" strictly inherited by the Great Qian Dynasty, combined with contour lines, mountain and river distribution, and the guidance of local insiders, which enabled them to be invincible in any direction on the Great Plains.

Even if the terrain is simple, the danger of getting lost should not be underestimated.

All the prerequisites have been met.

Xia He sighed with deep agreement: "For Tianyin, this is not a strategy set in the 50 years of enlightenment, but something that has been laid out long ago."

The continuity of the Daqian policy was remarkable, with the government consistently keeping the South in mind for many years.

That's right.

The immortal philosopher-king ensured the implementation of his long-term strategy, having already planted various spies within the plains city-states, so that he could detonate the attack when necessary—a brilliant move indeed.

She swept quickly across the northern part of the Great Plains:

[Note: Xincheng State has been added to the actual controlled area, currently holding the authority of a vassal state...]

Although the player cannot have complete control over the vassal states, they are considered a single entity in terms of data. They surrendered quite readily, without any resistance, and smoothly accepted the army led by Feng Tianyin.

Many people even believe that Daqian is advanced, prosperous, and intelligent, and that it should have joined long ago.

That's not wrong.

The Qianlong Emperor emphasized benevolent governance, considering it a disgrace that "the rich feast while the poor freeze to death on the streets." He advocated for providing relief and teaching people how to fish.

Every individual is a valuable source of labor.

Thanks to Feng Tianyin's selection and training, the elite class also adheres to the principle of "cultivating oneself, regulating one's family, governing the country, and bringing peace to the world." They are not a group of social Darwinists, so their moral bottom line is extremely high. In remote city-states, everyone is a parent official.

The people of the prosperous plains under their rule had long heard of it.

They naturally offer food and drink, and are warmly welcomed wherever they go, but there are also some tough nuts to crack...

Xia He lowered her gaze and discovered that the city currently under the control of the Imperial Guards was closed off, with many archers and spearmen hidden in the shadows.

Feigned surrender!

"That's despicable. It will only breed suspicion and lead to moral decay."

Even so, she wanted to test Feng Tianyin's judgment even more, because if he had made a mistake, an ambush would be inevitable.

The black-and-white-haired girl, acting as the commander-in-chief, rode a horse with a small squad of flags towards the city wall, while the general and city lord, who claimed to have surrendered, looked serious, adding to the tension of the atmosphere.

I wonder if the ambush would be effective against the high priest?

The name of divine protection resounded throughout the plains, but people are never truly resigned to their fate, clinging to a sliver of hope. They were unwilling to hand over the reins to the Great Qian Dynasty, preferring to be a big fish in a small pond rather than a small fish in a big pond, refusing to have another superior.

"You are lying—"

Suddenly, Feng Tianyin gave a hand signal, and the Imperial Guards, who had relaxed slightly, lined up in formation.

In an instant, a murderous aura swept over them, making the city-state soldiers tremble.

They were about to retort when Feng Tianyin interrupted them loudly: "Stop making excuses. We have seen through your feigned surrender. If you continue to be stubborn, you will die, and you will be infamous for breaking the trust between the city-states of the plains."

"you sure?"

Silence fell over the entire area. The group on the city wall exchanged bewildered glances, and could only grit their teeth and ask:

How did you figure it out?

"Good people need to be smarter than bad people to stop evil. Your clumsy tricks are nothing but this, and everyone can see through them."

Feng Tianyin could sense the ambush from the slightest sound.

There's no unnecessary calculation; it's all about the numbers.

The entire faith of the Great Qian Dynasty was concentrated in one person, causing the High Priest's spiritual power to surge wildly. In this era, it was not enough to affect reality, but it was more than enough to enhance physical fitness. Those people hiding in the corners were too obvious.

At the same time, the Imperial Guards beat their war drums and stood in formation, looking every bit like they were attacking a city.

Even though Feng Tianyin was still within the enemy's firing range, she remained unmoved, staring intently at the city lord and his entourage.

I'll ask again:

"Do you want to die as a morally corrupt person?"

As the Imperial Guards marched menacingly, they finally yielded and nodded, forced to surrender and open the city gates. Feng Tianyin, however, remained vigilant and took the lead, rushing in to take over.

It was a close call, but no real danger.

Xia He couldn't help but sneer at the scene. They weren't completely evil, and they didn't want to be good people either.

It did not disappoint in dealing with this kind of small robot.

Immediately seize control of the city lord and his entourage, strip them of all power, and imprison them. Declare their actions as "attempted crime" and take this as a warning.

We cannot be lenient.

The severe punishment imposed by the Great Qian Dynasty on those who feign surrender will serve as a precedent to prevent future imitations. Although given the tendency of human morality to spiral downwards, this is inevitable in the future, mitigating the moral decline is still necessary.

After a day had passed in the game, Xia He received a notification from the controller.

"It didn't show a fiefdom, it just directly occupied the territory."

Throughout the journey, Feng Tianyin was extremely cautious about directly annexing the territory, because granting fiefdoms would bring greater benefits—a strategy firmly established in the early classical era. Otherwise, she would encounter a troublemaker, someone she couldn't trust.

We must keep a close eye on it.

On the other hand, it also involved placing directly administered cities among the vassal states to monitor and restrain them, so as to prevent the emperor from being too far away.

Feng Tianyin completely occupied this city-state and used it as a future control hub.

However, the Imperial Guard soon made more discoveries:

The plan to feign surrender originated from the Southern Plains City-State. It was the reclusive city lord, Song Yan, who hoped to use this to delay the advance of the Great Qian Dynasty and make preparations to fortify the city...

"So restless?"

Xia He laughed, thinking to herself that there really was someone who kept jumping around.

She sensed something was amiss, so she shifted her focus away from the city-state where Feng Tianyin resided and headed towards the Southern Plains City Lord's Mansion. Theoretically, there were no Great Qian people here, but there were followers of the Heavenly Dao Sect, indicating a slight connection.

Such believers can already serve as Xia He's first-person perspective observation window.

"Let me see what's going on?"

The Lord's Mansion of Nanyuan City.

"Sir, the feigned surrender plan has failed. Those idiots are completely unreliable."

The rebuke from his confidant did not soften Song Yan's expression; he remained cold and stern, with a hint of mad crimson hidden deep in his eyes.

He gripped the letter tightly in his hand and crushed it into powder.

"Not only did it fail to stop the advance of Daqian, it also aroused Feng Tianyin's vigilance. Now they will definitely attack no matter what. Continue to strengthen the defenses, consolidate the city's defenses, and replenish the granaries."

"Wait a minute, and don't forget to disperse all gatherings related to the Heavenly Dao Sect. I don't like them."

Although the subordinates were a little surprised, they still nodded and said they would do as instructed.

Ordinary people wouldn't dare to mess with the Heavenly Dao Sect, which truly has a deity behind it, but the one who gave the order was the city lord. He should take the blame, so why should he worry about it?

This man is known for his decisive actions, and it's said that even his family members are implicated in his psychic research...

The Heavenly Dao Sect's faith is now a prominent field of study. Even in this office, there are hidden believers who secretly enshrine the tablets of the Heavenly Dao and the High Priest in their homes, but they never make a fuss about it.

Xia He observed everything from the perspective of these believers.

She looked through the possessed body's gaze at Song Yan, who, despite being called a hermit city lord, became increasingly impatient.

wrong!

Upon closer inspection, the spiritual energy around him appeared distorted.

This person is an awakened hero with considerable combat power, but he has also been corrupted by the warp and is tainted by demons of the war, slaughter, and bloodlust side, making him easily angered and violent.

"It looks like he's been infected for a while now, no wonder he often stays indoors claiming to be in seclusion."

Because they were aware of the danger they were in, they tried to suppress the pollution.

However, their strength was insufficient, and the disease had become incurable. The frequent wars on the Southern Blessed Plains allowed the power of the subspace to be projected further into the mortal world, subtly increasing pollution and erosion.

Pity.

From Xia He's perspective, this room, and even every corner of the city, was rife with signs of pollution.

As is well known, this person also enjoys studying the extraordinary.

This has attracted a lot of attention that shouldn't have been there, and the research that tried to save itself has actually promoted pollution, which is obviously due to subspace calculations.

The conditions in the southern plateau are not as good as those in the great Qian.

Leaving aside the fact that there are temple priests and other religious figures throughout the country who regularly perform purification rituals.

The sheer aura of the Heavenly Dao left behind by Xia He's frequent descents is enough to deter petty villains. Now, the capital is even more pristine, and the academy researches spiritual energy and undertakes major projects every day without any accidents. That's the difference.

"The wrong version is wrongly close to the subspace, and the protection measures are too crude."

It's truly regrettable that a hero of his generation has created so many hidden dangers.

However, Song Yan himself was no naive fool; he was always wary of Daqian and unwilling to relinquish power easily.

Otherwise, where would the money for research come from?

Xia He looked away from the city lord's mansion and down at the city-state. The information around her was also unsettled. She saw a large number of vagrants being captured by soldiers to build outer walls, trenches and other fortifications. Every household had little savings, which was obviously due to the heavy taxes and levies.

She saw that the mansion was well-stocked, but lacked any trace of the everyday life of ordinary people.

The intelligence report's assessment of the Southern Plains city-state's size was a general evaluation of its overall strength, suggesting the city lord had abundant resources. However, it failed to delve into the extent to which the people were exploited and their resentment was widespread.

"There's more corvée labor now, when will it end?"

"There's no other way. We must resist the impending attack from the Great Qian Dynasty, or we will all become slaves."

"How much better is it now?"