Chapter 1063: Cancelled Second Place

Chapter 1052: The Second Rank Removed from the List

To achieve this level of development was due to both the excellent resource endowment of the Yangshan Archipelago and the initial success of He Lingchuan's efforts. But most importantly, he gained something more valuable than money:

Population, labor, and an army.

And a system that was running more smoothly and efficiently by the day.

During the peak palm harvest season, over ten thousand people were on the Yangshan Archipelago. They witnessed and experienced island life firsthand and became convinced that the islands were no longer plagued by malevolent spirits. The Yangshan Archipelago offered them favorable terms: if they leased land on the islands, they would receive tax breaks and housing benefits.

At this time, the war between Bailie and Yaguo had not yet ended, and the turbulent times and harsh taxation made many commoners and displaced people yearn for a quiet and reclusive life. Consequently, after the palm season concluded, nearly five thousand external laborers chose to remain on the islands, most of whom brought their families. This number far exceeded He Lingchuan's expectations. After all, the Yangshan Archipelago was undergoing vigorous development and construction, ensuring that everyone could find work. In these times, having work, earning money, and ensuring one's wife and children were well-fed was enough to satisfy most people.

As for the army, with pirates and Bailong people forming its foundation, He Lingchuan tightened recruitment requirements, selecting only the fittest and strongest. Nevertheless, its numbers quickly surpassed 2,300. The Rongshan people, led by Qiu Hu, intensified their troop training. He Lingchuan, following the precedents of Panlong City and Yuheng City, introduced a reward system within the Yangshan Guards. Participants who won or excelled in drills, combat exercises, competitions, and certain actual battles would receive generous rewards.

Having originated from the Panlong Patrol and having risen through military merits, He Lingchuan was intimately familiar with designing such a system and could implement it with little effort. As for the rewards, they were even easier to manage. In addition to cultivation methods, gold, silver, food, elixirs, and materials, recipients could also redeem blind boxes.

Recently, the salvage team had been continuously unearthing all sorts of trinkets from shipwrecks and pirate treasures within the sea area. He Lingchuan found auctioning these fragmented items too troublesome, so he simply added them to the military merit system to enrich the prize pool. When people redeemed blind boxes, they were guaranteed at least some gold and silver, and sometimes even magical artifacts and jewelry, creating a dazzling and exciting experience. He Lingchuan's original intention was to save himself some money, but to his surprise, as soon as this feature was introduced, everyone went wild. Some people saved all their military merits, accumulating them day after day just to exchange for blind boxes.

The gambling instinct inherent in human nature was at play.

Qiu Hu, feeling helpless, finally had to stipulate that each person could only redeem one box every half month, to prevent priorities from being reversed. He Lingchuan, Qiu Hu, and the others all clearly understood that training the troops and enhancing their combat strength were top priorities. The wealthier the Yangshan Archipelago became, the more envious people it attracted. The sooner they possessed the ability to defend themselves and counterattack, the safer they would be.

When He Lingchuan first journeyed across the sea to this place, he had only a mere dozen people with him. A few months later, the permanent residents of Yangshan Archipelago, combined with the army, already approached eight thousand people. Building something from nothing is always the most challenging. The daily lives and productivity of these thousands of people, the development of Yangshan Archipelago's resources, and external trade relations all required dedicated management. The makeshift team he had assembled was also rapidly integrating, growing, and strengthening. These were not things that could be simply bought with gold and silver, but they were crucial components of his future vision. Therefore, breaking even this autumn and winter was a significant gain.

Now, besides money, the only thing he desperately lacked was:

Talent.

His enterprise was bound to expand, and the number of matters needing attention would increase. The few people he had under him were simply not enough. Thus, He Lingchuan needed talent from all walks of life; not only experienced and capable individuals, but also young ones! The Yangshan Archipelago was in a period of upward expansion and development. What it needed was not stability and complacent preservation, but vitality, keenness, and drive. In He Lingchuan's words, they needed people who could work overtime late into the night without complaint, and be energetic and ready for work when the rooster crowed the next morning.

Where could he find such talent?

Ding Zuodong took this question to his employer, but He Lingchuan waved his hand. “I’ve already cast a wide net with invitations, asking some old acquaintances to come and help.” After much thought, he realized he still needed the many Imperial Academy students he had befriended during his travels in Beijia! The Imperial Academy in Lingxu City and other academies attracted students from all over the world. Among them, students from Mouguo and other smaller and medium-sized countries accounted for more than half. He Lingchuan had meticulously selected them back then, and now that goodwill was finally about to pay off. He hoped his extravagant and carefree spending back then would prove worthwhile.

On the same day, Fang Canran had someone deliver a piece of intelligence to He Lingchuan — he was now an important source of information for the Yangshan Archipelago. He Lingchuan quickly scanned the intelligence and immediately relayed it to the Spider Demon Sisters:

“Good news, great news, excellent news! Big Sister and Second Sister, your Sky List bounties have been cancelled!”

Before the Spider Demon Sisters could react, Dong Rui's voice rang out first. “Huh? When did that happen?”

“Firsthand news just came from the west…” He Lingchuan frowned. “You have a perfectly good Clover Island; why are you at Pansilk Island?”

This fellow had a large island all to himself, and He Lingchuan had even assigned a few attendants to him as apprentices and assistants.

“I came here for tea and a visit, is that not allowed?”

“…” Was there tea in Second Sister Zhu’s burrow? Who would brew it?

“I need some materials from Second Sister for my research,” Dong Rui quickly cut back to the main topic. “Did you say the Sky List bounty removed Second Sister’s name?”

“Yes, it was cancelled about a month ago.”

Dong Rui immediately burst out laughing, but Big Sister Zhu felt a bit depressed. “Just like that, removed?” She was originally ranked second on the Sky List, which was quite prestigious to mention, and now that title was suddenly gone. Dong Rui couldn't stop smiling. He had previously been on Beijia’s most-wanted list, but Grand Tutor Shuangye had helped remove his name, making him an ordinary citizen. These two beside him were ranked first and second on the Sky List, and it annoyed him greatly. Now it was good; Second Sister Zhu was also removed from the list, just like him.

He Lingchuan leisurely said, “Only the top-ranked remains, standing firm.”

Second Sister Zhu could not hide her disdain. “What is there to be proud of? Isn’t Beijia canceling the pursuit absolutely fantastic news?” She truly couldn't understand the thought processes of these three. She also had her doubts. “Could it be a trick? Is Beijia trying to make us lower our guard?”

He Lingchuan smiled, “Highly unlikely.”

Big Sister Zhu interjected. “You gave Yu Zecheng’s subordinates a good beating, so why would Beijia cancel our bounties instead?” She couldn't wrap her head around the logic. If she had known Beijia enjoyed being beaten so much, she would have acted earlier.

“They probably don’t intend to pursue it anymore,” He Lingchuan analyzed. “They can’t catch us anyway.”

Dong Rui also found it hard to believe. “That flexible? Are they just giving up their dignity?”

“A state’s methods can be very flexible, if it chooses,” He Lingchuan shrugged. “Allowing Second Sister Zhu to remain on the list for a long time, especially at such a high rank, would only bring them more shame. The word outside is that Beijia is currently powerless. If the top two ranks are perpetually on the list but uncatchable, what then? It’s better to simply cancel them. That’s called being pragmatic.”

Second Sister Zhu pressed further. “Does this mean we are all safe? And Beijia no longer intends to do anything to you?”

“At least for the short term, yes,” He Lingchuan said seriously. “I don’t know how Grand Tutor Shuangye did it, but he managed it. The cancellation of this bounty can be seen as Beijia accepting your explanation, and temporarily not planning to take action against you or the Yangshan Archipelago.”

Dong Rui let out a long whistle.

But He Lingchuan immediately added, “But the crisis isn’t over yet. This news only means Beijia is too bothered to deal with us.”

Big Sister Zhu asked curiously, “Who else do you fear?” This young man feared nothing, daring even to offend Beijia. Who else would he even consider?

“Grand Tutor Shuangye.”

At the mention of that name, everyone fell silent. He Lingchuan had outmaneuvered Grand Tutor Shuangye; wouldn't the Grand Tutor hold it against him?

After some more time, a servant reported:

“Suoding Island is hosting two distinguished guests, surnamed Dou, who say they have come a long way at your invitation.”

He Lingchuan's spirits lifted. “The Dou brothers are here?”

Ding Zuodong, of course, had no idea who those people were, but the Soul-Capturing Mirror let out a long “Oh.” “It’s them, then?” Its memory was excellent.

He Lingchuan personally went to the supply station to welcome them, but after two rounds of searching, he couldn’t find them. He finally found the Dou brothers in the dining hall. Both were tall and slender, in their twenties, with somewhat similar appearances. One was eating yellow croaker noodles, while the other was intently tackling mackerel dumplings.

He Lingchuan strode over, clasping his hands in greeting first. “Oh, honored guests have arrived! Long time no see, gentlemen!”

“Brother He!” As soon as they saw He Lingchuan, both men put down their chopsticks and stood up, returning his bow.

He Lingchuan said enthusiastically, “It’s been over a year since we last met. Are you both well?”

These two brothers were friends he had made during his travels in Lingxu City: Dou Wenguan and Dou Wuxing. They had both originally been students at the Lingxu Imperial Academy, but hailed from the Shahe River basin near Mouguo. He Lingchuan had attended elegant gatherings and traveled with them no less than four times, so he understood them quite well. He had always remembered the brothers. When he inquired through someone, he learned that the Dou brothers had already returned to Shahe. So he immediately wrote a letter, inviting them to “come and assist” him, with very earnest words. The letter, once sent, sank like a stone into the sea. He had thought the Dou brothers were unwilling to come, and had planned to invite them again during the New Year, but to his surprise…

Dou Wuxing was too busy chewing to reply. He was known to be taciturn and introverted, so He Lingchuan didn't take offense. Dou Wenguan chuckled, “Thanks to your blessings, we’re just getting by.” His reply was measured. He Lingchuan called them honored guests, but the brothers were actually seeking refuge with He Lingchuan. If they claimed to be doing well, why would they come to the Yangshan Archipelago?

He patted the noodle bowl. “He, Boss He, have you tried the yellow croaker noodles here? They’re really delicious.” The best part is, they only cost five copper coins. The large portion and great taste made them excellent value.

“Of course I have! This cook is someone I scouted from a small tavern in Blade Harbor. He’s been making yellow croaker noodles for twenty-five years. Within a hundred li radius, no one makes a fresher, more flavorful broth than him!”