It doesn't matter what the lord is.

Some things are not difficult to do from her point of view, while some things even she thinks are fantastic.

However, she felt that Lid's style of doing things was very steady. He was tough when he should be tough, and he backed down when he should backed down. Among all the lords she had met, Lid should be considered the more reliable one. What was rare was that Lid did not show any covetous eyes towards her. Although his eyes lingered on Skadi's chest for a few seconds when they first met, Skadi was already accustomed to this level of staring.

Skadi knew very well what the people looking at her body were thinking.

Some people looked at her with eyes that wished they could strip off her dark silk robe, but Lid was just surprised and curious, which was very restrained. This was also one of the reasons why Skadi felt it was okay to stay here for a while.

Lid was willing to do research on magic and invest money in it, which was a good thing in Skadi's eyes. She didn't want to see magicians fighting desperately on the battlefield, but she obviously liked to see more magicians delving into the subject of magic. She had also traveled to various territories in the past to get some material support for her magic workshop. She could see that Lid really wanted to build a research institute on magic.

As for whether this original intention will change in the future, Skadi doesn't care.

There is nothing unchanging in the world.

Dynasties will collapse, heroes will grow old, and beauties will grow gray.

Lovers who are deeply in love will lose to reality, the boy who dreams of being a hero will lose his edges, and even if she has reached the tenth level, she will die plainly one day in the future, taking nothing with her and leaving nothing behind.

On this point, Skadi is very open-minded, or it can be said that she has almost reached the point of having no desires or demands.

Maybe in the future she will find the meaning of her existence, but that may be a long time in the future.

1. Old repeater

Yunyang received its first external investment.

Since the new Finance Minister Griffa introduced the stock dividend system, Yunyang's enterprises have been clearly classified. Some core technologies, such as gunpowder, petroleum technology, alchemy, steelmaking, etc., are still technologies that are not passed on to outsiders. Enterprises that include these technologies are official enterprises of Yunyang. Only a small part of them are open to the outside world for financing, and the stocks issued are limited. In other words, it is difficult to buy the stocks of these companies even if you have money. Basically, they have been directly divided up by the Nanchu nobles who are more familiar with Xiao Hei.

There are many private enterprises, including the demon breeding industry, wine industry, new agriculture, daily necessities such as toothpaste and soap, and infrastructure industry, all of which have started large-scale fundraising. The common features of these enterprises are that they do not involve particularly cumbersome or confidential processes, require a large amount of initial investment costs, can drive the overall economic development of Yunyang, can create more jobs, and most importantly: their products are more competitive than similar products in other territories, and have a good market demand in Yongtian Country.

Lid could have kept all these things in his own hands, but he felt it was unnecessary. With more money, he could build more factories and help Yunyang recover quickly from the post-war depression. Nothing could be more practical than this.

However, what Lid did not expect was that he not only received investment from Nanchu, but also received investment from Lingwu.

The woman invested a full two million gold coins in Yunyang.

Although it was not as high as the 2.4 million investment from Nanchu, it was beyond Lid's expectations. On the one hand, he did not expect that woman to know something about economics. On the other hand, Lingwu was not as wealthy as Nanchu. Zhaozhao should have invested most of her cash in the army. The two million gold coins should be a considerable expense for her.

However, Lid could also understand why Lord Lingwu did this.

The current situation in the world is actually very chaotic. Lingwu will definitely move south, but Xiqin and Nanchu don't want to see Yuqingzhao move south so early. Xiqin took the initiative to form an alliance with the royal family, so that the current Lingwu lord dare not move. At this time, Yunyang is emerging and urgently needs some external support. Yuqingzhao naturally doesn't want Yunyang to completely surrender to Nanchu, otherwise it will add more unnecessary variables in the future.

From her investment timing and investment amount, it can be seen that Lingwu did not deliberately strive for Yunyang, but she also did not want to push Yunyang to others. According to this strategy, Yu Qingzhao chose to become a standard repeater, and she would follow what others did... After all, she could afford the money.

In addition to Lingwu and Nanchu, the current white-robed minister Wu Mi invested 500,000 gold coins in Yunyang's grain industry on behalf of the royal family.

Wumi fought for this investment for a long time because the king obviously did not want to invest in Yunyang.

"You want me to give money to that brat? Do you really think my money came from the wind? You, Wu Mi, you always tell me that it's the people's blood and sweat, but why are you so willing to spend it when it's your turn? What investment? Once the money is in the hands of Yunyang, can they spit it out?"

Wumi patiently told him the importance of food.

The royal family is not short of soldiers, but short of food, which is caused by historical factors. When Yongtian Kingdom was just founded, Tiance Mansion was the military institution that commanded the military power of the whole country. At that time, the prestige of the royal family was still there, and the strategy of "the land of the four directions feeds the soldiers of the central government" was pursued. Simply put, the royal family is responsible for commanding the troops to fight, and the food and grass are paid by various territories across the country. Later, the royal family had many problems and its strength dropped sharply. Although Tiance Mansion was still operating normally, the food and grass paid by various territories were obviously discounted. Coupled with the extravagant style of the royal family members, the lack of food became a dark cloud hanging over the army.

Nanchu is a traditional grain producer. Yunyang has high-quality rice and scientific planting, and its grain production is also very high. The royal family, like Nanchu, has accumulated a lot of treasures over the past hundreds of years. It is of utmost importance to convert this money into grain as soon as possible. Investing 500,000 gold coins in the grain industry will give them a lot of say in these companies. As long as Lid does not go to war with the royal family, the royal family can not only get their fair share of grain, but also influence the sales direction of these companies, such as refusing to sell grain to Lingwu Territory.

"To some extent, this is also a new battlefield..."

Wu Mi privately said to his follower Xiaolu:

"To be precise, it is a battlefield without swords and guns. Yunyang has brought out a lot of new things. If you want to get them, you either have to conquer them by force or pay money. Yunyang is remote and naturally isolated from many warlike territories. In addition, Lide has also brought in Nanchu as external aid. Other territories, even spiritual warriors, can only follow the rules. This is drinking poison to quench thirst, Xiaolu."

The little deer tilted his head:

"Drinking poison to quench thirst? Sir, this is not a nice phrase. Have we reached the point where we have to pour poison into our own mouths?"

Wumi sighed and replied:

"If we don't invest, we will lose the initiative; if we invest, we have to follow their rules. Moreover, all those factories are set up inside Yunyang. The agreement also states that if there is a war or other force majeure, the existing terms may be waived. This is equivalent to telling those investors that if a war breaks out in each other's territories in the future, it will be difficult to get the money back in full. Yunyang is now like a huge vortex, absorbing money from all directions and accelerating its own development."

The deer said:

"Then Lingwu and Nanchu are still willing to invest in them? Can't they see it?"

Wu Mi was silent for a while, then smiled:

"Because strength is what matters on the battlefield. Lingwu and Nanchu don't think they will lose, so they don't mind Yunyang developing for a while, and they don't mind keeping the money that won't be used in Yunyang for a while. We don't have such confidence, so I will worry and think about more things..."

Wumi drummed her hands on the table repeatedly and closed her eyes in deep thought.

More than a year had passed since the Royal Capital Incident, and the new reforms that Wumi had implemented in the Royal Capital had begun to bear fruit. The royal family at this moment could not be said to have completely thrown away the heavy burden of the past, but it was like a seriously ill person whose blood circulation had been restored and who was back on track. Wumi also began to shift his energy from the royal family to other territories. He had already written the decree that was crucial to the situation in the world, and it was just a matter of when to issue it.

At this time, in Yunyang Lingyun City, the center of the financial battlefield, Li De was concentrating on doing one thing -

Teach Chocolate to play Gobang.

2. I just want them to die

If we were to choose the most shocking event in Yongtian Kingdom recently, that event would probably not be Yunyang who made a fortune in silence, but Zhaochen who is about to face a decisive battle.

For Fang Yuan, the ninth son of Lord Zhaochen, this was also a prosperous year.

In other words, the past two years can be regarded as the two years of Fang Yuan's accumulation of strength. First, he conspired with Yuxi City to seize Fangli Tower's territory, then he won some external support when he went to the capital to celebrate the New Year, and then he led his army northward and defeated the powerful Fifth Prince.

Fang Yuan was once looked down upon because of his greasy white flesh. He was ordered around like a pig or a dog, received a box of slop as his birthday gift, the schoolbag that he treasured from his mother was thrown into the pigsty, and the walls of his home were covered with insulting graffiti.

During those years, Fang Yuan had been gritting his teeth and forcing himself to endure, with a smile like Maitreya Buddha on his face. When someone hit him on the left cheek, he would still extend his right cheek to be hit. No one could understand the bitterness in his heart, and the determination to tear everyone into pieces that was always hidden under his smile.

This year, Fang Yuan finally did it.

When he was wearing armor and standing solemnly on the city wall in the north wind, everyone could only look up at him, and only the maid Xi Que still stood beside him. Even the Lord of Zhaochen had to back down and personally named him the Prince of Zhaochen and the King of the South, and gave him the land he conquered as his fiefdom, declaring that Fang Yuan could inherit the position of Lord after he died, in order to beg Fang Yuan in disguise not to continue fighting.

In front of the messenger, Fang Yuan picked up the expensive robe that was sent to him with two fingers and put it on himself.

The robe was too small and very tight when he wore it. Whenever Fang Yuan moved a little, there was a sound of tearing cloth.

So Fang Yuan laughed, took off his robe and threw it into the fire.

He tore the decree from Lord Zhaochen into pieces, threw it off the city wall, and said to the messenger:

"I tried on the clothes, but they didn't fit. Anyway, I remember the Taoist robe my father was wearing was nice. Tell him I'll go get it myself before the Spring Festival this year."

Of course, everyone knew that even if the robe fit him well, Fang Yuan would not want it.

Anyone who knows Zhaochen knows what Fangyuan's position is in the family. This is different from the secret assassination of Lide. Fangyuan is bullied almost openly. He is the lowest in this small circle. His mother, the only one who loves him, is also bullied in every way. He is neither a living person nor a ghost.

Fang Yuan didn't want the power of Zhaochen to be smoothly transferred to his hands, and he didn't want to wait for Lord Zhaochen to die for several years or even decades. His idea was very simple, he wanted Lord Zhaochen and all the brothers and sisters who had bullied him to die without a single one, and he wanted to personally cut off pieces of their flesh to eat with wine.

The negotiations failed and both sides decided to fight a final battle.

Lord Zhaochen, whose eyelids were black from taking elixirs, became more energetic and prepared to lead the army in person. He used the elixir masters he had collected from all over Yongtian Kingdom to form an invincible army. He said that these people were living gods with great virtues and were invulnerable to swords and guns. Just a few hundred or a few thousand people could kill Fang Yuan.

There was a chorus of agreement from below.

After returning home at night, the rational people used all their connections to pass on key information such as the city defense map to Fang Yuan. They had never met Fang Yuan, but they knew that if they wanted to continue to maintain their wealth and glory, this was the only way to go.

What happened in the north naturally could not be hidden from Yunyang's Anbu organization. Before the decisive battle, all kinds of analysis intelligence had been sent to Shuang. After all, Zhaochen was Yunyang's neighbor, so he still had to pay attention to his neighbor's affairs.

Frost gave the information intact to Lid. Lid did not look at the military comparison between the two sides, but looked at what his own spies saw and heard in Zhaochen. After a moment, he shook his head silently.

The rich are in ruins, the streets are filled with cold bones, and since ancient times, heroes' ambitions have all been built on human lives.

But everything has to be done in moderation. Within this range, it can be said that war itself is not justified. But once the line is crossed, no matter how much whitewashing is done, there will always be a day when it will backfire. Lid tapped the table twice and said to Shuang:

"Take these reports to He Yue. Tell him that Fang Yuan doesn't call me big brother for nothing. No matter how chaotic Zhaochen is, Yun Yang won't enter during this time. Also, have the Succubus Communications Department contact Fang Shisan and tell her that the next round of military expansion is possible. In the future, there may be wars on both the east and north fronts at the same time, so let her be prepared."

Frost asked:

"Should we inform Prime Minister He Yue about the military expansion?"

Lidd replied:

"Let's talk to Fang Shisan first. It's just an idea. Whether we can expand the army depends on whether the nearly five million gold coins can create the expected value. If the company's development momentum is good and we have money in hand, we can carry out the next round of recruitment. If the development is not as expected, we will follow the previous plan and ignore Zhaochen. We will give priority to solving Tiancheng's problem."

Shuang lifted her hair, smiled under her veil, and replied:

"Little girl, I understand."

Lid sighed, looked at the ceiling, and thought of many things in an instant. Fang Yuan was a strange person. When Lid first met him, he knew that this person was not just a small errand boy. He carried too much hatred, so he was a collection of negative energy. But Fang Yuan was ruthless enough to eat the flesh and blood of his enemies alive. He would definitely make a difference in troubled times.

But that year in the royal capital, Fang Yuan was also a participant in King Xi's conspiracy.

At the most critical moment, he transferred Li De away from Tiance Mansion, and acquiesced to King Xi and others to use the blood of Tianyue Mountain to break through the national defense formation, intending to turn humans into slaves of the dragon clan.

Today, Fang Yuan is only one step away from the position of Lord Zhaochen, but no one in this world can judge whether he is a waste or a hero. It can only be said that success or failure determines success, and everything depends on what his final outcome will be.

Lid leaned back in his chair and rested for a while. Then there was another knock on the door. Lid said "Come in", and saw Yun Ye, who looked exhausted, walking in while brushing off the dust on her body. She bowed to Lid and said:

"My Lord, the rebels may be leaving the Great Wilderness Mountain."

Lid suddenly opened his eyes, looked at Yunye, and asked:

"When?"

Yunye replied:

"Not sure yet. The Anbu probably hasn't received the news yet. I heard about it when I visited Yinghua Territory. The Lord of Yinghua said that South Vietnam sought their assistance and Huangyan stationed troops on the South Vietnam border. I don't know when the battle will start. The news should be reliable. When I was in Yinghua, I saw their army's emergency training. The number of troops was about 20,000."

Lid nodded and said:

"I understand. You take a rest for a while, and then go to the capital as an envoy. Try to meet Wumi and test his attitude."

3. Listen to the tide and learn the truth, the sea roars

Yunhai.

Near the sea, the wind was howling and the waves were surging.

The sky was covered with thick dark clouds, with faint flashes of lightning.

In such extremely bad weather, most people would have retreated long ago, but the young man sitting on the reef remained calm. He closed his eyes, not seeing the raging waves, not hearing the howling of wind and thunder, and in his mind was only the momentum of the sky and earth changing color when Gabriel Bode drew his sword. The sea water soaked his clothes, and the exposed skin was frozen white, but the young man didn't care.

Far away, many guards were watching quietly. One of them said worriedly:

"If the water rises a little more, it will submerge Master Bai Ye. I say, is it really okay? If anything happens to the Master, we will all be finished..."

The man holding a sword next to him also showed a worried look, but his tone was still calm, and he said in a cold voice:

"Why are you panicking? The young master isn't panicking at all."

The man who spoke first gestured exaggeratedly and said excitedly:

"The young master is like an old monk in a fucking temple, he's already in a trance! How long has it been? Has he moved at all? When the water comes up, the young master will be washed away, floating on the sea like a jellyfish!"

The young man holding the sword hit him in the face with the hilt without hesitation and said:

"Shut up. Look at the dark clouds above your head, they are getting denser and denser. The thunder will probably come down soon. The young master is almost reaching the tenth level. If you interrupt him now, aren't you courting death?"

As if to confirm his words, several flashes of lightning flashed in the sky.

The oldest and calmest person in the crowd whispered:

"Retreat. The calamity is coming..."

Everyone present was nervous at once. It was said that the ninth level was more important than the tenth level, and one had to fight the heavenly tribulation alone, but after all, no one present had ever seen it, right? Yunhaiwei was unsure of the power of the heavenly tribulation, and he did not dare to stay too far away from his young master, so he could only symbolically step back a few steps.

They soon regretted their decision, because the sky full of lightning seemed to cover the entire area.

If this thunder really strikes, everyone present will die!

However, at this moment, the sea also changed. The strong wind had been blowing the waves towards the reefs, but now the waves seemed to break free from the wind and began to surge spontaneously. The sea was boiling and countless bubbles surged, and then like a dragon drawing water, a water column with a radius of several kilometers surged into the sky.

Bai Ye, sitting upright on the reef, slowly opened his eyes.

The look in his eyes was like a sharp sword reflecting the moonlight in the dark night. He slowly stood up, looked at the surging lightning in the sky, and clenched his fist. The sea surface continued to move. The surging sea water turned into an evil dragon, slowly dancing with Bai Ye's fist. A fishy and salty rain fell from the sky, and a lightning suddenly struck down. Bai Ye raised his head and punched the sky fiercely. The evil dragon instantly soared into the air and met the falling thunder.

At that moment, it was as if two extremely fierce forces exploded between the sea and the sky. A circular energy tore everything on the ground and evaporated everything.

Yun Haiwei, who survived the incident, told everyone he met that he had seen a sight that was rarely seen in a century.

A dragon rises from the sea and purple thunder falls from the sky.

The dragon formed by the sea water exploded in the air, and the purple lightning light faded a little, but still fell on Bai Ye. At that moment, the young man in the Yunhai Guard couldn't help but shout out:

"Master, be careful!!"

Bai Ye was completely unaware, standing on the reef like an iron tower, letting the lightning strike him. His body suddenly flashed with strange lightning, Bai Ye's hair stood on end, he spat out a mouthful of blood into the sea water, and his body unconsciously hunched like a shrimp. But then, Bai Ye raised his head again, and a woman appeared in his blurred vision.

A woman who was not standing with Yunhaiwei, but standing alone at a farther place.

His maid, Linglan, was the woman who had met Lid and Alaiya in Lingwu.

Linglan's face was full of worry, and she clenched her hands tightly together and placed them on her chest to pray.