Great Xia.
Above Jialin Pass.
A helicopter streaked across the sky. Zuo Qing, draped in a dark red cloak, sat by the porthole and looked down at the magnificent steel pass below.
"How is construction progressing at Jialin Pass?" Zuo Qing turned and asked.
"It is basically complete. Only the last section of the residential area is still under construction, and it is expected to be finished within two months," Chen Moyu replied. "The other eleven A-rank War Passes are progressing at roughly the same pace."
Zuo Qing nodded.
"Our top priority now is solving the manpower shortage." A faint glimmer flickered in Zuo Qing's eyes. "Although we have these twelve A-rank War Passes, there are far too few people we can deploy to defend them. We do not need to worry about the military, but the Night Watchmen are scarce to begin with. If we want to send more people to defend the War Passes, we will have to draw them from Night Watchmen squads across the country."
Chen Moyu gave a quiet acknowledgment. "Commander Zuo, as instructed, I compiled the figures. After the consecutive expansion of Night Watchmen recruitment over the past two years, the number of Night Watchmen in Great Xia has risen from 1,992 to 2,709."
However, nearly a third of those 2,700-plus people were recruits enlisted within the last two years. If we follow the original plan and draw a large number of veterans from Night Watchmen squads throughout the country, the experience and average age of the Night Watchmen stationed in various locations will decline, weakening their combat strength."
"There is no helping it," Zuo Qing said calmly. "Great Xia's situation is highly unusual now. I do not need to explain the importance of the War Passes. Other than a very small number of