Chapter 368

Seeing the count lower his posture so much just to get something hard, Ji Ming could only nod.

"Fine, since you want to get down to business, I can also give you some pointers."

"If you want guns, one or two, I think many Pioneers would be willing to sell you some as long as you pay; they might even throw in a few boxes of ammo to seal a good karma."

"But if you want dozens or even hundreds, enough to fully arm your troops and form a complete musket company… sorry, I can only say it's very difficult, almost impossible."

The Wind Shadow Count widened his eyes upon hearing that.

"Why!!"

He then suddenly realized, yeah, one or two don't matter, but if you gather them in a pile, become a sizable force, they'd worry you'd take the goods and blackmail them.

Just like those so-called mage alliances and caster guilds, casual buyers can just take the goods, but for big orders they'd love to dig up your ancestry eighteen generations deep.

"Wait, you just said…… it's difficult? Not impossible, right?"

Wait a minute, what you just said was…… difficult? Not impossible! Right?

Ji Ming clapped his hands.

Ji Ming clapped his hands.

"Although I can't directly help you connect with them, I can point you to a clear path, a clear path they will definitely be willing to cooperate with you on!"

Although the southern nobles have many riffraff, the Duke of Jueqiao and the Marquis of Fengying, as the top figures, are at least not weak; they are objects that players would choose to cooperate with.

But as a martial aristocratic family that has operated at Jueqiao Pass for over five hundred years as a top noble, at least for now, players absolutely cannot be considered equals in status before the Duke of Jueqiao.

Therefore, between the two sides, rather than saying it's cooperation, it's more like business, and the fields that can be opened are also quite limited; whether it works basically depends entirely on the duke's mood.

Even so, what leaks from the duke's fingertips is enough to support the food, drink, and waste of several large player guilds.

Moreover, being able to have the friendship of the Jueqiao family can also avoid that group of riffraff nobles getting angry and banding together to attempt a counterattack.

——Even the great uncle hasn't spoken, what are you little shrimps rushing about for?

But the relationship between the two sides is ultimately too distant; many relatively important matters cannot proceed at all, such as the planned "Second Industrial Zone".

Then, the existence of the Marquis of Fengying is just right.

He needs the Pioneers' new-style weapons, and afterward he might also need to hire the Pioneers to train his army, or even directly employ them as mercenaries.

And players also need to have a sufficiently weighty foothold on the southern edge, to fully prepare for later advancing into the kingdom's central region; this is a genuine mutual effort.

So the path Ji Ming pointed out to the Marquis of Fengying is: let him quickly tidy up, see if there are any tasks in his territory that can be dispatched.

Plant phoenix trees, attract phoenixes; as long as he can generate enough gold coins here, the number of players coming will definitely not be few, and by then there'll be no fear of not being able to buy what one wants.

Whether contacting the various major guilds for small-scale purchases to accumulate bit by bit, or forming a strategic alliance with those top guilds, both count as a route.

"I see, so the so-called Pioneers are really just a general term; internally they also have several factions, just like our nobility."

"Of course, this is a massive group of hundreds of thousands of people; how could they all sit on the same drum?"

"Ah, your analogy is good, too vivid and lifelike..."

The marquis fell into contemplation for a moment.

"So which drum do you think would suit me better?"

???

Early the next morning, Ji Ming, amidst everyone's reluctant farewells, without even taking a horse, set out alone on the road to the kingdom's central region.

"Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on your news at all times, striving to meet outside the royal capital when the time comes!"

Although his words were spoken boldly, after walking a distance along the gradually descending slope and confirming no one was paying attention to him, Ji Ming suddenly vanished into the forest.

But in these wild mountains and ridges, there aren't many places where he can loaf around, so he kept walking forward along a small stream, as if looking for something.

As the saying goes, in a big forest all kinds of birds appear; so when he felt his way to a clearing in the woods, he saw a huge-headed magic wolf lying on a stone there.

This sense of déjà vu reminded Ji Ming of when he first mustered courage to embark on life's first adventure, which ended with him successfully following the Iron Rope Squad into being surrounded by a wolf pack, nearly resulting in total annihilation.

Hmm, this is indeed a classic old trope, even the people are the same old cast……

Thus Ji Ming quietly crept up to the magic wolf's mouth, took out a bottle of poison gas, preparing to let her taste the doctor's love.

But he obviously underestimated the psychological trauma that event left on Cloi; before he could even open the bottle, she suddenly screamed awake, covering her head with both paws like some cat meme, begging for mercy repeatedly.

"No no no! Don't! Don't continue any further!"

Ji Ming pretending he didn't do anything. jpg

Cloi, seeing this, hesitantly lowered her paws and spoke resentfully.

"Um, I... I had a nightmare, it's really scary!"

As another participant in that event, Ji Ming could roughly guess what kind of nightmare she had.

So he quickly changed the subject, steadying his voice.

"Good, you're awake, then let's set off."

Although it was said he would travel solo, Ji Ming, a great savior of an era, surely couldn't really rely on just his two legs to measure whatever damn kingdom land.

Although divine power flight is indeed simple and convenient, with that path of thunder and lightning... better not add fuel to the already extremely tense southern border situation.

So Ji Ming thought it over and decided to take wisdom from the khan who organized the Iron Bow Wolf Cavalry, adopting a low-carbon, eco-friendly green travel lifestyle.

——Little wolfman, you're the one!

Frankly speaking, since she early on earned a bit of merit by surrendering and being considered to have some dragon-related achievement, and being the weakest so no one guarded against her, she became the so-called Spirit Council chairperson; this period has absolutely been the highlight of Cloi's life.

Although everyone in the council doesn't put this weak and cowardly little wolfman in their eyes, no matter how you say it, she is still the chairperson, the only one among those who have submitted who possesses the right to petition heaven.

Therefore, at least on the surface, although feeling nervous and afraid of being targeted by those bizarre bigwigs, one still ought to give them some respect, at least fixing the basic superior-subordinate relationship.

For example, if they brew too many potions they'll send her a bottle; when lunch is ready they'll call her over; in daily encounters they'll also sincerely shout "chairperson," not letting her lose face.

Originally, having failed to fit into the circle and nearly reducing her career goal to 【gatekeeper】, Cloi suddenly enjoyed the feeling of chatting and laughing with all the bigwigs.

But before she could enjoy it for a few days, she received Ji Ming's notice: 【Hurry to the Fengying territory, there's an important mission for you】

If it were someone from the Production Team, they would think the producer indeed has an important task to hand over to themselves.

If it were someone from the Spirit Council, they would feel that their hard work has finally gained the leader's favor, possibly hoping to become permanent and thus rest easy.

But no matter what, normally people wouldn't, and there's no need to lure you all the way out here just to kill you, so it's definitely a good thing.

Only Cloi stared at the light screen ahead, her oily big nose twitching in her demon-wolf form, and she sensed a faint ominous premonition.

The facts proved her judgment correct; the exalted deity had made her run all this way just to need… a… what the players call… a taxi?

Ji Ming: "Can't we?"

Cloi: "I feel this is an insult to me! I will absolutely not agree!"

"Hold on steady, you've still got someone lying on your back."

"Oh oh, okay okay…"

Having finally gotten into the taxi, Ji Ming didn't whip the horse to speed toward the central plains he should have gone to; instead he made a 180‑degree turn and headed back to the southern hills.

Of course, since they were riding a wolf, they certainly couldn't take the main road, lest they scare passing travelers, so they proceeded entirely through the mountains and forests.

Fortunately, Cloi, whose gaze was pure but who had no animal friends, had lived in the mountains since childhood and was skilled at navigating complex terrain, so they quickly reached their destination.

This is a small noble domain called 'Mai Xiang', lying three territories away from the Feng Ying domain; it has been ruled generation after generation by a family whose ancestor earned great military merit a hundred years ago defending the southern border and was ennobled as a baron from knighthood.

True to its name, this is a rare plain basin in the whole hill region; although mountain barriers limit commerce, the irrigation from many waterways makes it a rare granary.

Thus, standing on the cliff and looking at the verdant expanse of the farmland where the crops were jointing and forming ears, stretching all the way to the horizon, Cloi lay down again on a rock.

"Exalted deity, there's no more forest ahead for cover, so let's stop here."

"Mm."

Sliding off Cloi's back, Ji Ming stretched his limbs, which were about to be shaken apart.

"Then you wait here; I'll go down to handle some things and should be back in a day or two…"

Looking at Cloi huddled in place, with an expression saying, 'You can treat me as a beast of burden if you want, but do I have to experience wilderness survival too?'

"All right, you can turn human, right? I'll bring you along."

Thus, on a spring afternoon, a black‑clad person with a wolf‑person attendant arrived at the main city of Mai Xiang domain.

The old guard on the city wall yawned and glanced up.

"Hey, why'd you bring a wolf‑person along?"

Ji Ming handed over the forged identity he'd prepared on the road, meanwhile slipping twenty copper coins inside.

"Haha, little brother, I travel the four directions selling potions—this isn't because I'm afraid of being robbed, right? Come, Ah Hui, come greet the old sir."

Tall and big‑boned, Cloi, resembling a normal‑sized demon wolf walking upright, said: "Hey! Hello!"

The old fellow shrank back in fright, didn't dare utter a sound, and instead sped up his writing of the clearance documents.

"Good grief, he brings his own high‑class bodyguard and tips double digits on a whim—this must be a rich guy, I can't afford to offend him…"

Although commerce isn't highly developed, Mai Xiang city, with grain as its core competitiveness, is still fairly prosperous, and among the passersby are many merchants wanting to pre‑order grain.

Thus, even if the goods are somewhat limited in variety, the baron can still earn a decent commercial tax all year round.

Although Cloi had bragged when she surrendered that her looks could make heaven and earth collapse, Ji Ming couldn't even tell her gender, yet her beauty—capable of stopping a child's night‑crying—finally received some confirmation.

After witnessing the past wolf‑people's hundred percent whistle‑joining rate and their brave behavior of risking being beaten to death to come over and chat, Ji Ming pulled out a piece of black cloth.

"Cover your face; I'm not here to take you on a street‑corner blind date."

Cloi: QWQ

He stared at the system map for a long time, finally stopping his steps at the door of an inn.

Entering, he saw a fat old man sitting behind the counter, half‑asleep in the midday sun.

"Cough, are you here to eat or to stay?!"

Following the old man's terrified gaze toward the masked bad‑person wolf behind him, Ji Ming hastily pulled off the black cloth from Cloi's face before he could scream.

"Sorry, my little brother here is too ugly, so I covered his face lest he frighten everyone."

"Oh oh."

The old man's blood pressure, which had risen until his face flushed, finally dropped again, and he shoved something back into the side compartment of his hand without knowing what.

"Then may I ask who you are…"

Ji Ming, however, didn't answer but lowered his voice.

"Two jars of good wine, two catties of braised beef, a dish of peanuts, and one fat chicken."

Despite the odd ordering, the fat old man showed no difficulty; instead a glint of shrewdness flashed in his eyes.

The braised beef was gone, but there were still three pig trotters.

Hearing that, Ji Ming also responded to that final code phrase.

"Then the trotters must be stewed until soft and falling apart, served with two bowls of rice."

The fat old man's expression instantly relaxed, and he produced a key and handed it to Ji Ming.

"Go on up; it's on the third floor."

When Ji Ming followed the name tag on the key to the corresponding room and knocked, the door opened to reveal an old acquaintance.

"Wai Shu? You came pretty fast; I thought I'd have to wait until tonight."

"I've recently looked into some interesting stuff; I definitely need to fill you in right away, Brother Tiaozi."

Since the man standing by the window is 【Great Desert Cang Lang】, this inn is indeed the newly developed contact point of the Yangyue Affairs Bureau.

In fact, it's not just an inn; after several days of negotiation and wrangling, the bureau has successfully reached a cooperative agreement with the Baron of Mai Xiang.

As for the reason…

"It's obvious that the local wheat isn't much different from ours; it can be considered the same species."

"Yes, but the seed quality is appallingly poor; there are hardly any individuals resistant to disease or lodging, and even if we asked a mage to cast a spell to fix it, the yearly loss would still be significant."

"So these will be the research topics for our work group over the next year, but before that we still need to find a mage skilled in plant magic who can promote crop growth…"

He pricked up his ears to listen to the tense, bustling team meeting next door, and Ji Ming could only marvel at how terrifying the talent for farming is.