Chapter 264

Seven o'clock in the morning, Tokyo Government Affairs Hall.

The building that originally hung the "Foot-Basin Chicken Cabinet Office" sign now had a brand-new sign: "Longguo Dongying Special Administrative Region Government Affairs Center."

A long line formed at the entrance, all there to apply for new ID cards.

"Don't crowd! Line up according to street numbers!" The Longguo staff maintaining order held a megaphone.

"If your materials are complete, you can finish in ten minutes!"

In the line, twenty-three-year-old office worker Sato Kenichi clutched his material bag, feeling a bit nervous.

He stayed up late last night memorizing the "Longguo Citizen Code"—the new ID card application required passing a basic legal knowledge test, though it was said the questions were very simple.

"Next!"

Sato hurried forward and handed over his materials: old ID card, household registration book, and a "Certificate of No Criminal Record"—this was automatically generated by the Torch Dragon-3 system, everyone had one.

The staff member was a young woman who smiled as she took them: "Mr. Sato Kenichi, right? Please sit."

She quickly scanned the materials and then pulled up the test questions on her tablet:

"Question one: What is the capital of Longguo?"

"Kyoto," Sato answered instantly.

"Question two: Who is the head of state of Longguo?"

"Uh..." Sato got stuck.

The staff member kindly reminded him: "It is a collective leadership system, there is no individual head of state. You pass this question."

"Thank you!"

"Question three: If you encounter illegal or criminal behavior, what should you do?"

"Call the police, or find the nearest police mech."

"Very good." The staff member nodded and clicked pass in the system, "We will take back your old ID card first; the new ID card will be mailed to your home in three days. Also—"

She handed over a silver card: "This is a temporary identity certificate, which contains a 1,000 Long coin 'welcome allowance,' which can be used in any shop connected to the Longguo payment system."

Sato took the card blankly: "This... they even give money for free?"

"It's considered a transition period benefit," the staff member smiled, "Working hard and paying taxes on time is the best reward."

Sato walked out of the government affairs hall, looking at the silver card in his hand, still feeling a bit dazed.

He walked to the convenience store next door, wanting to see if the card could be used.

"Welcome! Did you get your new ID card?" The clerk actually greeted him in Chinese, although with a heavy accent.

"Y-yes, I did," Sato handed over the card, "Can this... buy things?"

"Of course!" The clerk took it and swiped it on the POS machine, "Beep—payment successful. What do you want to buy?"

Sato grabbed a bottle of water and a rice ball.

"Total 8 Long coins," the clerk handed him the bag, "By the way, starting today, all product prices have been changed to Long coins. The exchange rate is 1:100; that 1,000 Long coins in your hand is equivalent to 100,000 yen before."

Sato's eyes widened.

His monthly salary used to be 300,000 yen, which is 3,000 Long coins. And now a bottle of water only costs 0.5 Long coins (equivalent to 50 yen), half the price of before.

"This..." he muttered, "I suddenly feel like I've become rich?"

"If you have money, spend more!" The clerk grinned, "Our store is having a promotion today, Longguo-produced instant hot pot, buy one get one free!"

At the same time, different scenes were playing out everywhere.

In the auditorium of the original Tokyo No. 1 High School, all teachers and students watched as workers removed the old school badge and replaced it with the new "Sakura Province No. 1 Middle School" sign.

The principal was now an acting principal; the original principal had been taken away for investigation due to "history textbook tampering," and the acting principal said into the microphone:

"Starting today, our textbooks will all be replaced with the new version approved by the Longguo Ministry of Education. History class will objectively recount the past, Chinese class will learn Chinese, and a new course on the community of human destiny will be added."

A student below asked in a low voice: "Teacher, then... do we still learn Japanese?"

"Yes, but as a second language," the principal paused, "Just like you used to learn English."

Another student raised their hand: "Then how are exam scores calculated? Can we still take the original universities?"

"Yes," the principal pulled up a holographic projection.

"The Longguo Ministry of Education has announced a policy that students in Sakura Province can apply for all Longguo universities through special recruitment channels."

"Wow—" the whole room was in an uproar.

"But the prerequisite is..." the principal added, "Chinese must be up to standard."

Instantly, all the students below took out their phones and started downloading Chinese learning apps.

Osaka, inside the original Panasonic headquarters building.

In the conference room, a representative from the Longguo State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission was reading a document:

"... According to the 'Asset Liquidation and Restructuring Ordinance,' the original Panasonic Group is officially reorganized into the 'Longdian Group Sakura Branch.' All production lines will undergo intelligent transformation, and production tasks will shift to..."

He paused and read the most critical sentence:

"Components for the Heaven's Punishment defense system."

The original executives below looked at each other.

"Um..." the former president asked cautiously, "Aren't we... aren't we supposed to make home appliances?"

"Starting now, you're doing military industry," the representative smiled, "Don't worry, technical drawings, production standards, and quality control will be guided by the Longyin Research Institute throughout the process. As for the salary..."

He pulled up the salary table: "Ordinary workers, monthly salary starting at 8,000 Long coins, which is three times the original. Technical personnel, starting at... Executives... depends on performance."

8,000 Long coins is equivalent to 800,000 yen.

And the original monthly salary of an ordinary Panasonic worker was 250,000 yen.

A sound of gasping echoed in the conference room.

"Also," the representative added, "the company will provide three meals and staff dormitories, all of the newly built kind, with private bathrooms."

"There are commuter shuttles to and from work; those who don't want to take the bus can apply for an employee discount to buy electric vehicles."

The former president swallowed his saliva: "Um... is it still too late for me to apply?"

Sapporo, the original right-wing rally square.

Now, long stalls were set up here, and a Longguo Food Festival was being held.

"Authentic Sichuan hot pot! Spicy, fresh, and fragrant!"

"Kyoto roast duck! Sliced on the spot!"

"Cantonese morning tea! Shrimp dumplings and siu mai!"

The best part was the big stall in the middle, with a banner that read: "Tested by the former editor-in-chief of 'Tokyo Shimbun,' Longguo food is really delicious!"

Behind the stall, a middle-aged man wearing glasses was sweating profusely while eating hot pot, saying to the live stream camera:

"Family! This tripe, you can eat it after dipping it seven times! The texture is crispy and refreshing! And this fatty beef, wrapped in sesame sauce... ah! It's so delicious!"

The chat was flying:

"Editor-in-chief Yamamoto? Didn't you always curse Longguo before?"

"For the sake of living, it's not shameful."

"To be honest, watching him eat makes me hungry too."

"Where can I buy this hot pot base? I want to buy it too!"

Yamamoto—former right-wing media figure, now a Longguo food blogger, wiped his sweat and smiled bitterly at the camera:

"I used to write articles saying Longguo food wasn't clean, but now... it's really fragrant."

He paused and said seriously: "Actually, I've figured it out. What do ordinary people want? It's to eat well, live well, and have money to earn."

"Those who shout 'Jade Shatter' and 'Divine Wind' all day live in luxury houses and drive luxury cars, but they trick young people into going to their deaths."

"I'm a food blogger now, earning 50,000 Long coins a month, which is ten times the original. And I can eat good food every day."

"So..." he picked up a slice of lamb, "living life, it's better to be practical."

This live stream was edited and spread, becoming the hottest meme in Sakura Province.

Trending topic: #The Law of True Fragrance Never Goes Out of Style#

At three in the afternoon, the data was released.

The Longguo State Council held a press conference to announce the data for the first month of the establishment of Sakura Province:

"The unemployment rate has dropped from 25% to 5%."

"GDP grew by 15% month-on-month."

"The crime rate dropped by 90%—mainly due to the comprehensive deployment of the Torch Dragon social management system."

"Electricity prices dropped to an average of 10% of the original price; in the Okinawa region with the lowest electricity prices, it even dropped to 5%."

"Foreign investment increased by 300% year-on-year, mainly due to Longguo companies coming to build factories."

The spokesperson finally said: "Behind these numbers are the tangible improvements in the lives of 4.3 million Sakura Province residents. We believe that as long as the direction is correct and we work hard, tomorrow will be better."

The press conference ended, and foreign reporters crowded around to ask questions.

An Eagle Country reporter asked sharply: "This is cultural aggression! Forcing them to learn Chinese, use Long coins, and change their lifestyle!"

The spokesperson looked at them and asked calmly:

"If we are really 'aggressing,' why did their wages triple?"

"Why did the crime rate drop by 90%?"

"Why are there no more protests on the streets, but instead long lines for ID cards?"

The reporter was speechless.

"The people will vote with their feet," the spokesperson turned and left, "Data doesn't lie."

In the evening, at the Longyin Control Center.

Chen Guang stared at the real-time monitoring interface of the Torch Dragon system.

"Social sentiment index: 72 (out of 100), classified as 'stable and positive'."

"Livelihood satisfaction: 85, the main plus points are electricity prices, public safety, and employment."

"Political identification: 53, still climbing—after all, it's only been a month."

Feng Yan nodded: "Better than expected."

"However, there is a small episode," Chen Guang marked a data point, "Seventeen high-ranking officials of the original Foot-Basin Chicken cabinet applied for Longguo ID cards collectively today, and all were rejected."

"Reason?"

"Still in the three-year observation period," Chen Guang pushed up his glasses, "System prompt: suspected of embezzling war reparations, further investigation required."

Wang Hao laughed on the side: "Serves them right! Why didn't they think about today when they were grabbing money back then?"

"Also," Li Yang sent communication back from Sakura Province.

He sent back a few photos; the library was full of young people reading Chinese books; the community center was teaching Tai Chi; some were even learning to sing Peking Opera—although they were very off-key.

"This is a good thing," Zhao Kaiyuan's holographic projection said, "Cultural identity takes time, but at least they are willing to start."

As they were talking, the alarm went off.

Chen Guang's face changed: "Brother Feng, Torch Dragon-3 captured abnormal spatial fluctuations on the outer side of the Kuiper Belt."

He pulled up the spectrum map: "And the fluctuation characteristics of Proxima Centauri before... similarity 92%."

Feng Yan stared at that eerie curve:

"Harvesters?"

"Not sure, but..." Chen Guang marked the coordinates, "The fluctuation source is moving toward the inner side of the solar system. Speed... 0.1 times the speed of light."

The control room went quiet instantly.

0.1 times the speed of light doesn't sound fast, but for interstellar travel, this is already a terrifying speed.

Calculating based on this speed...

"Time to reach the edge of the solar system..." Chen Guang calculated quickly, "Revised to: 3 years and 11 months."

Feng Yan remained silent for a long time, then said:

"Notify all factories in Sakura Province."

"The production priority for Heaven's Punishment system components is raised to the highest."

"We have to accelerate."