What can Grand Infrastructure bring?
That depends on asking Aililan, a person with the pure soul of an infrastructure maniac.
“First, the economy will be more prosperous.”
“Second, and most importantly, it can foster the vigorous development of countless related industries.”
Aililan summoned Chief Executive Alistair.
After just a brief discussion with him, at least dozens of industries had been listed. Mills, bakeries, farms, slaughterhouses, brick kilns, furniture workshops, luxury jewelry and precious metal workshops, smelting workshops… Too many, far too many.
For most of the livelihood workshops, Aililan had the finance department outsource them to outside merchants in the form of orders. Driven by profit, the merchants unleashed terrifying power.
In less than half a month, over a dozen brick kilns had sprung up alone, producing at least thirty thousand city bricks per day steadily.
“Too slow.” Aililan sighed.
“Saintess, this is already quite good.”
“Grace, you can select some workshops with fast output and good quality for rewards, and place more orders. Then penalize those with high defect rates, or even cancel their orders.”
“Saintess, you want to…”
“Force them to upgrade their industries and technology.”
“Saintess, Guangyue Workshop is likely to go bankrupt in droves.”
“Grace, you are small.”
“What is small?”
“Your vision is small. I understand now, but do we really need that much?”
“The two orc cities, if built as small to medium cities, have a deficit of at least five million bricks. Moreover, look at our Atester City—the Inner City cannot be touched, and the Outer City is crowded. I’ve long wanted to expand it.”
Aililan walked ahead, pointed at Atester City, then spread her arms and said with high spirits:
“My goal is at least to build Atester into a super-mega city. The current Inner and Outer Cities, including the planned new city, will be called the Upper District. Then build at least three rings of walls for the Lower District. At that time, even tens of millions of bricks might not be enough.”
“After finishing Atester, we can build other cities too.”
Grace was dazed upon hearing this. In her eyes, she vaguely recalled that her Saintess had once said she wanted Atester City to become a World City of Desire.
Then she couldn’t help but laugh. She even felt that only such a super-mega city could be worthy of being her Saintess’s dwelling.
Two months later, the first batch of over six hundred thousand bricks was transported to the Beastman Plains with a steady stream of carts and horses. Jackal Chief Hucli, excited, laid the first brick himself at the chosen city site.
“Quick, bring those slaves up here! I want them working day and night without rest, and finish the city within half a year!”
“Chief, after all, they are orcs too…” A subordinate felt some reluctance.
Hucli snorted coldly and said: “When have these northerners ever looked at us with respect? In the past when they were starving, didn’t they often come to prey on us? You sympathize with them, but when have they ever sympathized with us?”
“And what about the Northern Royal Court?”
“You go tell them that the humans are powerful, and we have no choice but to be forced by human tyranny. We are forever loyal to Lord Lion King, and long for Lord Lion King’s arrival to rescue us from dire straits. Boohoo.”
Hucli fake-cried a couple of lines. In reality, his heart was clearer than anyone. What happened to the War Pigs—how could he not know? Moreover, his ambition was to become the Wolf King.
Once he established his own kingdom, it would be a fight to the death with the Northern Royal Court. So this was just a game of hypocrisy.
He had even informed the human Saintess of these words in advance. Although he was the proud Wolf King, Hucli swore he would forever be the most loyal dog of that Saintess.
These orcs being worked to death on city construction were all captured or traded from the north, so he felt no pity in exploiting them.
Compared to the Jackal Tribe’s speed, the War Pigs were far too slow. Moreover, the Winged People and the War Pigs had conflicts, so getting them to work together seemed somewhat difficult.
Finally, in desperation, Aililan had to order them to build separately. For the War Pigs: reduce the city-level scale to a large castle construction scale.
For the Winged People: permit them to build a pass-level fortress at an important mountain pass near the border. If completed, ten thousand could defend against a hundred thousand with ease.
Deep in the north, on the throne of the Beastman Royal Court, a robust, towering figure radiating a terrifying presence looked at the intelligence in his hand.
The Orc Minister said with some worry: “My King, there has been considerable activity in the south lately. You must be on guard.”
The Beast King crushed the intelligence report in one hand, and after a long while, sighed and said: “I know what you say, of course, but the War Pigs have already resisted, and I have seen their loyalty. They merely failed.”
“My King, the Jackal Chief is an ambitious fellow.”
“Enough, enough. With the War Pigs’ example, the Jackals must be acting under duress. Once our royal army arrives, they will eventually return to the embrace of the orc family.”
“The Beast King is wise.” An orc flattered. More flattery followed.
They were too arrogant. Even after being driven from their Ancestral Land deep into the plains, they still despised humans inwardly, believing that humans only relied on numerical superiority, while in terms of strength, orcs were undisputedly number one.
“My King, our situation is becoming increasingly bleak. The population has far exceeded the land’s carrying capacity. If this continues for much longer, within twenty years, our dwelling place will turn into a desert.”
“Lord Beast King, the hurricane half a month ago caused massive casualties and losses to many tribes. Now there is widespread resentment below.”
“Your Majesty, when will we march south?”
The Lion King fell silent. The pressure of population explosion, the onslaught of natural disasters—everything seemed like a cycle.
Every few decades, they would march south; it seemed to be the mission of every Beast King. Being able to retake the Ancestral Land would be best.
Even if they couldn’t, they could cull the population. But now, humans had already firmly established themselves. Did he really still have a chance to reclaim the Ancestral Land and become the greatest Beast King?
The Lion King thought for a long time, and finally named a time.
“Before winter.”
“Rather than let the wind and snow take their lives, let them die on the battlefield.”
“Pass my orders.”
“Gather provisions.”
“Suppress all voices of opposition.”
“Use their corpses as provisions for our campaign against the humans.”
“This is the last meager contribution they can make for the orcs.”
Death? Is not the end.
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