Chapter Thirty-Six: A Brief Peace

Dong, dong, dong! “Come in.” Sun Li sat in the spacious office of the newly constructed government building in St. Tallon, glancing at the papers before him as he spoke.

The door swung open, and a tall, upright figure entered.

“Your Majesty, I, Zhuge Liang, wish you a good afternoon.”

“Oh, it’s my trusted aide, Zhuge Liang. Please, have a seat. Is there something you need?” Sun Li looked up and smiled at Zhuge Liang.

“Your Majesty, after our diplomats’ initial negotiations, it seems the British governor in the Caracas region has little interest in war—perhaps due to insufficient troops. The Caracas governor has expressed a desire for open trade and peaceful coexistence. What is your opinion?”

“In recent times, we’ve gained some understanding of the situation in the Old Continent and the Northern Continent—what is called Gold Province. The British colonies are not only nearest to us, but their sphere of influence stretches north of the Southern Continent, from the Caribbean Islands to the vast territories of Mexico and Phoenicia in the southern Gold Province. The northern part of Gold Province belongs to the Franconian Empire’s colonial domain.

Moreover, the discovered gold and silver mines in Gold Province far surpass those in the Southern Continent, and unlike the latter, Gold Province is not overrun by innumerable orc rabble—only a handful of wood elves who merely scurry through the forests! Wood elves are not naturally combative, so the British and Franconians have a very stable colonial rule in Gold Province. With the twenty thousand troops we’ve gathered from plundering the native Madrid people, taking Caracas would be simple. But if we anger the British Empire and they send a hundred thousand soldiers, we’d be in real trouble. The British are hardly the backward savages of the orc tribes!”

Hearing that the British had no intention of waging war, Sun Li felt a wave of relief mingled with frustration. It seemed time to prepare for a journey to Gold Province and the continent of Europa. The Old Continent was so peaceful now that nobody dared provoke Song with its current power. These old, cross-continental empires had no pressure for war; mobilizing a hundred thousand troops to crush us would be no great strain!

“Your Majesty, peace is certainly not difficult, but the British have some objections to our racial hierarchy. How should we respond?”

“That’s simple. Most of those under our control are Madrid people. The British, being newcomers, have hardly any settlers yet. We can interact with the British as equals while continuing to oppress the Madrid. As for reasons, just pick a few—hatred, inferiority of race, whatever. I imagine the British see themselves as more intelligent than the Madrid anyway. If they don’t, we can help establish that notion. If this mindset spreads to Europa, it will truly benefit us—a once-mighty Madrid being discriminated against by emerging empires? Quite amusing, wouldn’t you say?”

Sun Li chuckled as he spoke to Zhuge Liang.

“Your wisdom is indeed unmatched, Your Majesty. I will have someone draft a contract for your review and ensure the British perceive us as friendly and utterly non-threatening!” Zhuge Liang dutifully flattered Sun Li, proving himself a highly intelligent minister of internal affairs.

In the year 561 of the continental calendar, the Madrid “freemen” under the oppression of Song met the “Non-Aggression Pact between the Song Empire and the British Empire” with despair, amid widespread grievances and a sliver of hope for the British legions. At last, the Madrid natives realized the importance of a nation—even if the British shared their skin and lineage, they cared nothing for the fate of commoners from enemy states. To go to war for the remnants of tens of thousands of vanquished foes and challenge Song’s twenty thousand modern troops—only a fool would do that!

Thus, abandoned by the British Empire—the Madrid riffraff believed the British had forsaken the honor of their kind—the tens of thousands of Madrid exiles and wanderers saw the truth and submitted, becoming compliant subjects of the Song Empire. Any troublemakers swiftly became mere points for Sun Li’s tally.

Looking at the system map, where most Madrid natives had turned into green dots, Sun Li nodded in satisfaction. As expected, the quickest way to govern was still at the point of a bayonet!

With the Madrid natives’ cooperation, Song’s immigration policies were quickly perfected. Kalimdor Town and St. Tallon Town were established with haste; St. Tallon, having some foundation, recovered even faster. After the Song administration building was erected, Sun Li moved in to handle state and military affairs nearby. After all, the Song capital was populated only by system-generated characters, and orcs were few or had been thoroughly cleansed, making it extremely safe. Thus, Sun Li shifted his administrative center and main forces to St. Tallon—partly to guard against the British, partly to keep watch on the Madrid rabble.

Though Song’s hierarchy stipulated: first-class citizens (system-generated characters) could carry any equipment except heavy weapons; second-class citizens (Madrid humans) were forbidden arms, save for a small dagger for self-defense; third-class slaves (orcs) were not allowed any sharp objects in town. Still, with the rabble outnumbering first-class citizens several times over, it was safest to keep them under the army’s watchful eye.

Under Song’s racial hierarchy, each class occupied distinct roles. Officials were all recruited from the system’s university elite; militia maintaining order were all system civilians; merchants engaging in profitable enterprises were almost entirely first-class citizens, as were factory and farm owners. In short, all lucrative and boss-dominated industries were controlled by first-class citizens. Second-class citizens could only work for others or operate small stalls and farms for sustenance. It was not that the law forbade them from engaging in lucrative businesses, but whenever second-class citizens amassed wealth, profit-driven first-class citizens would use their privileges and collude with authorities to exploit them ruthlessly. The lucky became vassals of powerful merchants; the unlucky lost everything. With privilege and government-business alliances, no civilian escaped being drained dry. In time, no commoner could ever rise to the wealthy class.

Human civilians, though life was hard, could still eat their fill with diligence. Third-class orc slaves had it far worse: they had no rights whatsoever (since they weren’t considered people!), doing only backbreaking labor or dangerous tasks, and their deaths required no compensation! Most worked in arduous mining, and the hazardous toil served as a natural check on their numbers—no matter how freakishly they bred, peacetime would never see their population grow too much.

By the end of 561, after a year of recovery from the ravages of war, the Southern Continent had returned to harmony and prosperity, and Song’s foundation was thoroughly stabilized. Sun Li began planning his journey abroad.