Chapter Ninety-Four: Rong Huang, the Straight Man

Achievement Unlocked: Not a Single One Left Behind!

"Your Majesty, welcome back to your prosperous kingdom!"

After a grueling journey over mountains and through valleys, after enduring countless hardships, the field army finally returned safely to Block Kingdom with all fifty-four settlers intact.

As soon as they crossed back into the kingdom, Old Fu came with the royal officials to greet Mo Fangyuan’s return.

"You are the embodiment of wisdom, the darling of strength..."

"Here we go again!"

The moment they met, Old Fu dropped to his knees and began showering Mo Fangyuan with extravagant praise.

Mo Fangyuan had long since developed immunity to it. He stepped back a few paces, keeping away from that gleaming bald head.

But then he remembered that there would be plenty of time later for Old Fu to handle a great many matters, so he returned to his original spot and let Old Fu continue his “adoration.”

"You are light! You are water! You are hope! You are the springtime of the Block People..."

The village head of the nearby Little Valley settlement, Qi Qi, stared in dumbfounded silence.

So this was how one built connections?

"...This minister, on behalf of all your subjects, welcomes the King home!"

At last, after a good while, Old Fu finally finished that long, foul, and never-ending speech.

"How has the kingdom been lately?"

Only then did Mo Fangyuan speak at a languid pace.

"Your Majesty! The kingdom has indeed encountered a few minor problems lately, but overall the situation is excellent!"

By the end of that sentence, Old Fu might as well have had "I am utterly loyal" stamped across his face.

"Mm..."

Mo Fangyuan planned to ask for the details after returning to the central castle. For now, he told Old Fu to arrange the resettlement plan for these fifty-four new citizens of Block Kingdom.

"Housing, work, occupations..."

Unlike a year ago, when the court consisted only of Mo Fangyuan and Old Fu, the kingdom’s administrative system now had a little real substance to it.

Some young people who had received Old Duan’s education had become kingdom officials. They could do arithmetic, loved their country, hated monsters, and cherished the Block People.

Working with the building leaders, unit leaders, and district leaders at the grassroots level, they jointly maintained the order of Block Kingdom and infused it with new vitality.

"Old-timers, please come this way with us!"

Old Fu’s deputy was a fiery young man. With two equally young officials behind him, he went to record the settlers’ occupations so that work and housing could be assigned to them.

"They’re all fine young men!"

Standing beside Mo Fangyuan, Old Fu watched the three youths bustling through the crowd with a contented smile.

With them around, he would not have to work overtime every day anymore! Wonderful!

"Yes, the future belongs to the young!"

Mo Fangyuan, conveniently ignoring the fact that he himself was only seventeen, sighed with an air of solemn maturity.

"Sir, what is your occupation?"

"Come this way, old grandpa..."

The energetic young men threw themselves into the work of recording the settlers’ occupations.

"All right, leave this place to the young people. Let’s return to the castle!"

Block Kingdom had developed. One magnificent building after another had risen from the ground, and compared with those splendid new structures, the former central castle had clearly lost some of its luster.

Yet in the eyes of the Block People, it remained sacred and beautiful.

For it symbolized the indomitable will and stubborn spirit of the Block People. It was also the "brain" of Block Kingdom, and even more, the residence of the great king!

"Speak. How has the kingdom been lately?"

When matters turned serious, Old Fu became truly Old Fu; his entire bearing turned grave and focused.

"Your Majesty, these are the development figures for Block Kingdom over the past two weeks!"

Old Fu took a sheet of paper covered in writing from his inventory and handed it to Mo Fangyuan.

Ever since the sugarcane estate had been officially established and put into operation, Block Kingdom had never lacked raw sugar or paper again.

The kingdom’s records were no longer passed on by word of mouth; they were written down in detail on paper.

The emergence of cheap paper in a past life had been a great invention, vastly accelerating the progress of human society and fully deserving its place among the four great inventions.

Mo Fangyuan understood the importance of paper, so he attached great importance to it as well. Once large-scale production became possible, he ordered Block Kingdom to become fully “paper-based” and stop using outdated methods such as wooden plaques for records.

The thickness of the children’s homework could also finally increase!

"Please have a look, Your Majesty!"

Population: 831

Rising living standards had also improved infant survival rates. This month, two families in Block Kingdom had welcomed the fruit of their love.

All four children had survived.

"Mm..."

Including the fifty-four settlers he had brought back, it seemed likely that the population would break one thousand this year and reach a new peak.

Chickens: 347

Pigs: 107

Sheep: 89

Cows: 54

Horses: 5

"Unfortunately, that stallion turned into an experience orb, some leather, and horse meat."

"But one of the white mares gave birth to a little colt..."

Yes, the son inherits the father’s line. Say no more.

"Then I’m relieved..."

There were still three pregnant mares, and Mo Fangyuan hoped they would bear more colts to ease the pressure on the young foals.

"Oh, right. Old Fu, later send someone to remodel the pig farm. Don’t use wood anymore—switch to stone bricks... and make it fully enclosed!"

Thinking of the spider pigs that might appear in the future, Mo Fangyuan felt it necessary to protect the pig farm well.

Otherwise, if one day a spider pig quietly slipped into the pig farm, that would be a catastrophe of massive proportions!

Just imagine it: hundreds of pigs inside the farm, all transformed into spider pigs. How would they even be dealt with?

"Uh, yes!"

Afterward, Old Fu left to carry out Mo Fangyuan’s orders.

Mo Fangyuan, meanwhile, sat in his little cowhide work chair and began reviewing more detailed reports.

"You’re the new warrior? The one brought by His Majesty?"

"Yes!"

At Watchers’ Headquarters, Rong Huang nodded expressionlessly.

He felt very strange. Shouldn’t warriors be powerfully built and imposing, their bodies as solid and dependable as blocks of iron, giving the people hope and strength?

Then why did the woman in front of him look nothing like that?

Not only was her figure thin and slight, her hair was so long, too! Wasn’t she afraid it would block her vision in battle?

Even more absurd was that she wasn’t even wearing a complete suit of armor!

For heaven’s sake, that was iron armor! Iron armor capable of defending against most monster attacks!

In many villages, it would be treasured like a priceless relic!

But here she was!

She had an iron set and refused to wear it, insisting instead on some bizarre things!

She could clearly have worn an iron helmet, but she didn’t! It was as if that strand of hair on her head mattered more than her life!

Her upper body wore an iron breastplate, fine!

But what about her lower body?

She had put on an iron skirt that defended against air and white trousers on her legs—what good did those do? Did she think skeletons couldn’t shoot below her?

And her shoes were just leather shoes! She had high-defense iron shoes and still wouldn’t wear them! Was something wrong with her brain?

The straight man Rong Huang changed his mind. He no longer wanted to join the Watchers. He wanted to join the field army!

Yali, across from him, had no idea what Rong Huang was thinking. All she knew now was that a new companion was about to join them...

"Mm, once his work is arranged, I’ll go see His Majesty!"

Over the past few days, Yali had thought long and hard and decided that giving that power-bearing “stone box” to Mo Fangyuan was the best choice.

"Welcome... hm? Where did he go?"

Just as Yali came back to herself, her little tuft of hair swayed, and in the blink of an eye Rong Huang had vanished without a trace.

"If I followed that woman, I’d probably be completely ruined before long! Following His Majesty’s field army is the way to go!"

Rong Huang thought disdainfully.

Block Kingdom had two armed institutions.

The first was the Watchers.

They had the strongest combat power, with thirty professional warriors and twenty free-lance warriors, and were mainly responsible for maintaining security within the kingdom’s borders.

The second was the recently established field army.

It had only seven members, and its main duty was external operations. Although its combat power was lower, it answered directly to the king and had limitless potential.

The other logistical departments were: the Supplies Administration, the Human Resources Department, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Education Bureau.

All of these had been established one after another as the kingdom developed.