I said you are all war criminals

You try to keep your tone light, as if you're talking about the weather today rather than something as awful as a country being taken over by monsters, something that could start a world war.

“She won’t mess around.”]

Hongxia seemed to have heard a huge joke. She practically roared, "Sense of propriety? You're telling me she has any sense of propriety? Hakuno, wake up! She turned the entire Japan into a nation of monsters. Is that what you call having any sense of propriety? She locked up every official, from the Emperor to the petty officials. Anyone without half-monster blood was locked up!"

Hong Xia took a deep breath, trying to suppress her anger. She spoke word by word, "Tell me, has she grown up in these twelve years? Has she matured? She's still that high school girl! That impulsive, childish, reckless high school girl!"

Hakuno couldn't help but laugh.

That’s right, Hongxia is right.

No matter how immersed she is in the role outside of the simulation, Xiangzi is still just a high school girl.

How could there be a good outcome for a high school girl to establish a country?

"I'm just waiting for Japan to explode. I'll be disappointed only if she builds well."

Hakuno snapped his fingers, "Let me see you blow up the country, Xiangzi!"

74

Chapter 74: Prime Minister Xiaoxiang.

Controlling a country is easier than Xiangzi thought.

First of all, you just need to demonstrate your strength and control the lifeline of this country.

Just like the saying goes, as long as you control these people's eggs, they will be at your disposal.

Then, you just tell these people the consequences.

You become taller than the building, then poke your finger through the window and tell them, "If you don't give up, then I will make you give up."

Then you take those who are being persecuted and ask them to run the country.

...Everything went smoothly.

At least Xiangzi felt that everything was going smoothly.

Now she has replaced the emperor and is in charge of the entire country from the top.

The Prime Minister's official residence was decorated in the same style, except for a new official portrait of Xiangzi on the wall—a blue-haired woman in a smart suit, her expression calm and resolute. The framed photo showed Xiangzi sitting at a large desk, twirling a pen in his hand, listening intently to a report.

The official who reported was not a half-demon, but a human. Xiangzi did not replace the official like he would remove the minister. Thanks to Japan's separation of officials from administrative officials, even if all the ministers were removed, the officials could still maintain the country's operation.

"Prime Minister, the countermeasures regarding economic sanctions have been drafted. Please review them."

Xiangzi flipped through the documents handed to her by the official. The dense economic data and policy plans made her dizzy. She rubbed her temples and asked calmly, "So, what is the current unemployment rate?"

"Prime Minister, the current national unemployment rate is 12.7%, of which the human unemployment rate is 21.3% and the half-demon unemployment rate is 3.8%."

The official answered meticulously, with a barely perceptible nervousness in his tone.

Xiangzi tapped the table irritably, his pen twirling between his fingers.

"So, the human unemployment rate is caused by my policy of prioritizing half-demons?"

There was a hint of self-mockery in her tone. She clearly intended to eliminate discrimination, but ended up creating new inequalities.

"Prime Minister, this... is only a temporary phenomenon. As policies are gradually implemented, I believe the situation will improve."

Officials chose their words carefully, fearing to anger the young prime minister.

“21.3%…ah.”

Xiangzi repeated the number, her tone unremarkable. She tossed the document onto the table with a thud. "Very good, next question. How has the international community reacted to our 'monster regime'?"

Xiangzi deliberately emphasized the four words "monster regime", which was full of irony.

The official lowered his head even lower, almost burying it in his chest. Although he was only a vice-minister, he had seen Xiangzi grow to the size of Godzilla before him, and he knew that the female Prime Minister before him could really crush him with a single finger. He was deeply afraid of Xiangzi, just as he would be afraid of a tiger that was not imprisoned and was free on the street.

"Prime Minister, more than thirty countries have already imposed economic sanctions on our country, mainly targeting..."

"stop!"

Xiangzi interrupted him impatiently, "Tell me something I can understand. What are the consequences of the sanctions?"

The official's Adam's apple rolled, and he uttered a few words with difficulty: "Prices will rise by 37%, and some daily necessities will be in short supply..."

"37%? You said 37%?" Xiangzi stood up suddenly, and the documents on the desk rustled.

"You mean to say that my people now have to pay a third more for a bag of rice? Just because I'm a monster?"

“Please don’t be angry…”

The official's voice trembled. He felt like a rabbit that had strayed into a lion's den and could be eaten at any time.

"Calm down? How can I calm down?"

Xiangzi paced around the room impatiently, his heels tapping on the floor, making a crisp sound.

"People outside call me a monster, and people inside think I'm too kind to humans. I'm neither human nor fair!"

This is not Xiangzi's nonsense.

The team she brought in from Wildfire wasn't quite so volatile, but the hanyou in Japan were furious...very furious. In the five years since the concept of "hanyou" became public, hanyou have faced discrimination in nearly every aspect. From employment to daily life, in a country that shuns those who are "different," hanyou face limitations in every aspect. According to some media reports, for every hanyou in a family, the cost of living increases by approximately 30%.

Ironically, famous people, such as actors or idols, can use their half-demon identities for promotion.

Regardless, the half-demons who had been liberated by Xiangzi were now furious. They believed that they had been discriminated against in the past five years and should receive compensation from the state, and that the state should punish those who had discriminated against them.

It is best to repay blood with blood.

...There were many such requests, which made Xiangzi dizzy. Fortunately, although Xiangzi himself did not know how to maintain a country, he was not stupid enough to maintain it alone.

"Tell me, what should I do?"

Xiangzi glared at the Deputy Minister of Affairs.

This official, known only as "Vice Minister," but actually the true authority in the Ministry of Finance, sweat broke out. He knew exactly how to resolve the situation—reverse those ridiculous orders, return the elected ministers to their posts, meet with the other nations, and then restore Xiangzi's abdication. The current problem stemmed from Xiangzi's perverse actions, which had practically terrified the entire world. Each nation feared their own half-demon citizens would follow Xiangzi's example, and so they were relentlessly suppressing him... This had nothing to do with Xiangzi's own decrees; Xiangzi's very existence was a threat to the nations.

But could the deputy official say to Xiangzi, "You should abdicate"?

Not to mention that Xiangzi is a monster, even if Xiangzi is just an ordinary prime minister, the vice minister would be seeking death by saying this, at least his political career would be over.

...For these officials, the most important thing was never who was in charge, but how to maintain the functioning of the country and their own interests. When necessary, they could give up the former and keep the latter.

So, based on this criterion, the Deputy Minister quickly gave his advice.

"Prime Minister, you can announce that you will accept refugees from all countries, but only if they are half-demons."

The Undersecretary of Finance offered a suggestion that even he considered foolish. Luckily, he did this so often that his face didn't betray a single flaw. "You could offer to accept refugees as a condition for negotiations with countries struggling with them. As I'm sure you're aware, France and the United States are both struggling with refugees. You could accept them and use that to lift the economic sanctions."

No one with any common sense in economics would think this was possible.

But as the Vice Finance Minister expected, Shoko Toyokawa knew nothing about economics.

"Okay, then just go ahead and do it!"

Xiangzi waved his arms and gave a crisp order, "You go and come up with a plan. I want to resolve the sanctions issue this way... I don't care what the method is, but I will never allow my people to starve. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Prime Minister."

The Deputy Finance Minister said so.

75

Chapter 75: The Monster Emperor.

At the beginning, Japan only accepted half-demon refugees in exchange for the lifting of sanctions from other countries.

Then, after discovering that this still could not support the people, all kinds of bizarre policies were issued.

It targeted countries that couldn't be self-sufficient in food, attacking their grain ships and hijacking the food. It stole granaries and sent out half-demon armies to plunder the grain fields of smaller nations... Under the guise of "special military operations," Japan, which shouldn't have an army, launched attacks everywhere, frantically sucking away their blood.

This behavior quickly drew strong condemnation from the international community, but Japan seemed unconcerned. Xiangzi openly declared that this was a necessary measure for survival, which was a complete betrayal - the Japanese people were not willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of survival.

Other countries began to band together, using various means to put pressure on Japan, hoping that Japan would change its practices that were not retro enough to the Age of Exploration. However, this time, Xiangzi did not compromise as he had done before when accepting refugees. Instead, he made it clear that he would fight to the end.

As a result, economic sanctions, once lifted, have returned. Japan's overseas assets have been frozen, and trade routes have been blocked. Prices on the once bustling streets of Tokyo are now soaring, supermarket shelves are bare, and only overpriced synthetic foods lie there. Public complaints are rising and falling, protests are escalating, and crime rates remain high.

Faced with such a dangerous situation, Xiangzi made another decision.

Go to the universe!

She wants to move farmland into space, free it from the constraints of Earth's resources, and make Japan a pioneer in space agriculture!

This plan immediately sparked an uproar. Opponents called it a fantasy, exorbitantly expensive, and unprofitable. However, Xiangzi overcame all opposition and pushed for its implementation. She mobilized national resources, recruited top scientists, and, leveraging the supernatural powers of the half-demons, invested heavily in developing space colonization technology.

Ten years passed by in a flash, as if in the blink of an eye.

SIDE 1, Japan's first space colony, finally shone brightly in space. The massive cylindrical structure slowly rotated, simulating Earth's gravity. Within its interior, lush green crops thrived, heralding the arrival of Japan's space age. What had been a beleaguered situation was unexpectedly revitalized by Xiangzi's sudden inspiration.

For Xiangzi, these ten years weren't truly spent. Just like before, she simply read simulated text, then was dragged into immersive illusions at key moments, making crucial decisions one after another. It could be said that many of these events were prepared by the bureaucrats who truly supported Japan.

However, when she really stood in the center of SIDE1, she still felt a sense of pride - Ah, this is what I did, this is what I can do.

She was in a daze.

Come to think of it, I originally just wanted to make music...

Just then, a call interrupted Xiangzi's thoughts. A slightly nervous official appeared on the screen. It was Yamada, the head of the Agricultural Department of Side 1. He had no connection to Yamada Ryo, but was a half-demon official Xiangzi had promoted over the past decade.

"Prime Minister!"

Yamada's voice trembled slightly, as if from excitement. "SIDE 1's crop yields have far exceeded expectations! The first batch of space vegetables is ready to be shipped back to Earth!"

Xiangzi smiled happily, "Oh? How much higher than expected?"

"Preliminary estimates suggest it's at least 30% higher! Furthermore, due to the unique environment in space, the nutritional value of these vegetables is also higher than on Earth!"

Yamada was so excited that he was almost incoherent.

"very good."

Xiangzi nodded with satisfaction. "Let's make some arrangements. I'm going to hold a grand celebration and announce to the world that Japan, our country of monsters, does not need human mercy!"

The first batch of SIDE1's space vegetables, packed in specially designed refrigerated containers and escorted by a spacecraft, returned to Earth in a grand procession. As the spacecraft passed through the atmosphere and circled over Tokyo, the entire city erupted in excitement. People filled the streets, cheering and gazing upwards at the sky, as if welcoming a divine gift.

The celebration took place in Tokyo's largest square. Shoko, dressed in a gorgeous kimono, stood on a high platform, looking down at the jubilant crowd. The spotlights shone on her, making her look as holy and majestic as a deity.

"My people!"

Xiangzi said in a clear and firm voice, "Today is a day worth remembering! We have finally broken free from the constraints of Earth's resources and opened up a new home in space! The success of SIDE 1 marks our entry into a new era - the space era!"

The crowd erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.

"I know everyone has had a hard time over the years."

Xiangzi's tone became more upbeat. "Economic sanctions and material shortages put everyone under tremendous pressure. But we persevered! We didn't give in, we didn't give up! We created a miracle with our own hands!"

"To thank everyone for their continued support and dedication,"

Xiangzi paused, then continued, his voice rising, "I declare that the first batch of space vegetables from SIDE1 will be distributed free of charge to all citizens!"

The square was instantly boiling with cheers that were deafening. People hugged each other and cried tears of joy, as if they were celebrating a grand festival.

"Queen of the Universe!"

"Monster Emperor!"

The crowd erupted in thunderous cheers. Xiangzi smiled faintly, his heart filled with a sense of accomplishment.

Over the next few days, free space vegetables were distributed to every Japanese citizen. People savored these gifts from space and raved about them. These vegetables were not only delicious and nutritious, but were also said to enhance the power of demons.

Xiangzi's reputation reached an unprecedented height. Her portrait was hung in the streets and her name was repeated by the people. In the minds of the people, she was no longer just a political leader, but a savior who would lead them to a glorious future.

After doing all this, Xiangzi finally breathed a sigh of relief in the Prime Minister's Mansion. She thought of Hakuno, the man who had haunted her dreams. It was time to find him and tell him that she had finally done it.

"There's no need for a hundred or two hundred years. Just ten years is all I need—with these ten years, I can save the half-demon!"

"No, you didn't save the hanyou."

In the Prime Minister's Office, which should have been heavily guarded, a strange voice suddenly rang out.

Xiangzi subconsciously clenched his fists and looked towards the source of the sound.

She saw her old friend.

...Kotoko Iwanaga, whose appearance is almost the same as it was twenty-two years ago.

"Monster Emperor, your country will perish today."

Kotoko said this with a slightly sad expression.