Ursus: The Advantage Is Ours! / Putting Reins and a Saddle on the Heavenly Steed!

The heads of state, especially Columbia, held a congressional meeting on the same day they received the news, and ultimately decided not to get involved.

The honeymoon period between Columbia and Utopia is not over yet, so it's too embarrassing to issue international condemnations.

Development, reckless development!

Only by becoming strong ourselves can we avoid being threatened from the outside!

"My dear lawmakers, it's time for you to relinquish your power."

A month after Victoria joined Utopia, Huang Cao decided to dissolve the Lower House.

Utopia has only one supreme noble family, so the newly arrived Victoria must change the existing social system.

Only those who pass the Utopian official exam can be reinstated; otherwise, they can only stay obediently in the specially designated area to retire.

However, this was thanks to the widespread enthusiasm of lawmakers for Master Huang.

The reform proceeded without any bloodshed, much more smoothly than Huang Cao had imagined.

Huang Cao did not take away the wealth of these people, but only their privileges as nobles. They could still use money to hire people to serve them.

They should still enjoy what they have, therefore the outgoing lawmakers stated:

We've followed the Speaker in building this empire for so many years; it's time for us to retire and enjoy our later years with our families.

Chapter 453: Ursus: This advantage is on my side!

"With the throne of many kings, I am my own Khan! My achievements are far more glorious than those kings who are still enjoying the thrill of battle. The Khan is just a reckless brute who knows how to fight."

Huang Cao walked into his private collection room, which was filled with heirlooms from various countries.

The crowns and orbs of Gaul and Victoria, and the royal set of Iberia —each of these treasures in Rogue can unleash tremendous power.

Now they all reside in Master Huang's private collection room, and Doctor who enjoy tinkering with integrated strategies would probably be green with envy if they saw them.

"So much time has passed, why hasn't Jie made a move yet?"

Huang Cao touched the necklace around her neck, a necklace that Shu He Xi and she had worn repeatedly.

Huang Cao was always present whenever he and his wives encountered each other at home.

But why has there been no response after all these years?

Upon opening the Utopia's government system, Huang Cao discovered a letter from Lateran in his inbox.

"International Messenger? Lateran, you're playing with fire!"

Daring to challenge the hegemony of Utopia, Evangelista XI, do you think you're Emperor of Gaul?

Even the Emperor of Gaul of the past dared not challenge the authority of Utopia!

After completely annexing Victoria, Utopia possessed power comparable to all the nations of Terra.

Because it wasn't just Victoria, but also Kazdel, Iberia, Gaul, and most of Sargon.

And almost half of Leithanian's territory, and parts of the Great Wilderness City of Yan Country.

If you dare to mess with me like this, your entire family is in wholesale!

This is no longer an ordinary small country; we must take decisive action!

"Wait, even without my intervention, this year's International Messenger probably wouldn't have been able to start. Never mind then."

While organizing the intelligence he had, Huang Cao discovered that Ursus seemed to be planning a surprise attack on the East Country this year.

Thinking of this, Master Huang made a phone call to Black Snake.

"I heard you're going to attack the East Country. How are your logistical preparations going? I can offer you a friendly loan~".

Black Snake on the other end of the phone immediately said, "Your information network is really good, but judging from your tone, it seems you don't intend to get involved in this war?"

"There's not much profit in it, so whether we fight or not doesn't matter. I don't care much about martial ethics when dealing with small countries; underhanded tactics will only waste my time."

The main purpose of confronting major powers is to ensure the integrity of their infrastructure; otherwise, it would become a genuine effort to alleviate poverty.

"I can provide some equipment, as long as you can afford the price."

Black Serpent refused directly over the phone. "I can't afford your weapons and equipment, and who knows what strange things might be inside. You should keep your plants for yourself. We Ursus aren't so badly defeated that we can't even beat the East Country."

"The Eastern Army Group of Ursus is more than capable of dealing with the East Country! We will surely achieve another victory!"

Is that right? Absolutely!

In the original storyline, Ursus, which hadn't been severely weakened by Utopia, couldn't even defeat the East Country, let alone the fact that the country is currently in a state of near collapse.

It's completely unplayable.

Huang Cao: "Looks like I won't be making that money, but I wish you good luck anyway. We've known each other for almost a hundred years. Also, when will your Talulah Puppet Project be implemented?"

Black Snake: "It's not time yet. Let's talk about it after this battle. If the battle goes smoothly, I might be willing to let this little girl go."

For Black Serpent, every scheme is a high-stakes gamble.

But no gambler wins every day; most gamblers lose.

If Ursus' internal and external conflicts are eased, it will have no need to rely on Talulah as a pawn.

The pieces have been prepared in advance, but whether or not to place them depends on your subsequent strategy.

"This year is a good time of year. Yan Country is suffering from disaster again, and the current international environment is very favorable for Ursus! Even you, Master Huang, seem more adorable now."

Black Serpent was already feeling quite smug; Ursus had weathered the most difficult hurdle, and a bright spring was on the horizon.

Huang Cao didn't speak, but secretly suppressed a laugh. Unfortunately, the plot had already determined that this war would end in Ursus's crushing defeat.

Furthermore, a Great Rebellion will soon sweep across Ursus, followed by the death of the current Emperor of Ursus, Vladimir Ivanovich.

Huang Cao had a high opinion of this emperor; although he was indeed physically weak, his intelligence had transcended the realm of anthropomorphism.

While his performance wasn't exactly outstanding, Vladimir was already considered one of the better rulers compared to the previous Emperor of Ursus.

Under the emperor's stern command, Ursus achieved initial industrialization and substantial economic growth.

Unfortunately, Ursus's defeat in the war against the East Country completely interrupted the country's future development and ruined its chance to rise.

When Vladimir Ivanovich died, he left his son an Ursus Empire beset by internal and external troubles, and who was constantly at risk of being sent to the guillotine.

"Good luck. I need to help my brother-in-law now, so let's stop here for today."

Huang Cao hung up the phone, and the next second she dialed the Utopia Food Minister's number.

"A batch of grain will be inventoried and sent to Yan Country under the guise of humanitarian aid, but this grain must be delivered to Yu so that he can decide on the form of distribution."

Two months later, on a day when heavy snow was falling.

Outside a cold, ancient temple, Yu was kneading dough incessantly as he pondered.

How many bowls of noodles would it take to feed the common people at dawn?

Not enough, not nearly enough.

But this is already my brother-in-law's intention; we can't expect him to support the entire population of Yan Country.

The Yan Country has a vast territory, and like any other country, maintaining such a large empire is extremely costly.

Each Mobile City is almost independent of the others, and most residents of Yan Country do not like living in Mobile City. Instead, they live in various villages of different sizes.

This type of living often leads to encounters with robbers and bandits, and one wrong move can result in the destruction of one's family and death.

Because there are no Mobile City, the people of Yan Country have almost no way to cope with natural Catastrophe and can only follow the warnings of the Calamity Messenger and leave their homes.

The humanitarian aid provided by Huang Cao could barely sustain the needs of hundreds of thousands of refugees for a week, precisely so that Yu could provide disaster relief to the victims without any reservations.

As for why it wasn't directly provided to the Yan Country's government, it's because the distribution speed was far slower than Yu's, and it could only alleviate poverty but not provide emergency relief.

I am able to sense through my own abilities who truly needs food, and therefore I can always serve the right person a bowl of hot, meat-filled noodle soup at the right time.

The flavor is very plain, but it's enough to simmer for a while.

The Great Yan True Dragon tacitly approved of Huang Cao and Yu's actions. Although this might give Utopia the opportunity to continue strengthening its ties with the Sui camp, this was not the time to pretend to be something it's not.

Meanwhile, Mo Bufu, in the future, also picked up his own bowl of noodles.

A bowl of noodles serves only one purpose: to fill one's stomach. But the person eating noodles possesses limitless possibilities.

Chapter 454: Putting Reins and Saddles on the Pegasus!

It was the year 1072 in the Terra Calendar, the third month after Alistair II was beheaded.

The Ursus - East Country War broke out.

A commander from Ursus led his Eastern Army Group in a triumphant rampage, arriving in the Far East with overwhelming force.

... and then, under the watchful eyes of the entire world, Ursus defecated a huge mess for everyone.

"How could we lose? Losing to Utopia is one thing, losing to Kazimierz isn't unacceptable either, but why did we have to lose to such a small East Country?"

Upon learning of the defeat, Black Serpent sat in a chair in the center of the castle, looking haggard, as if he couldn't believe the battle report from the front lines.

"The intelligence is correct. Utopia has not participated in this war, nor has it engaged in any arms dealing."

Black Serpent carefully observed the entire course of the war.

The turning point of the war was the Battle of Bloodpeak, which not only wiped out the elite troops of the Eastern Army Group, but also damaged the territory of Ursus.

In the past, Ursus was always the one conquering other countries and occupying their lands; there was no reason for a small country to occupy its land.

"Master Huang, you're calling me at this hour not to congratulate me, are you?"

Huang Cao also learned about the situation on the eastern front of Ursus, so he immediately came to congratulate Black Serpent.

"That's truly a pity. Judging from the outcome of the war, even if you had purchased my weapons a few months ago, the result of this war in Ursus wouldn't have changed much."

Black Snake lowered his head. "Is the commander at the front an idiot? How could he play such a good hand so poorly!"

After an afternoon of exploration, and with Master Huang's guidance, Black Snake finally figured out the tricks of the trade.

In short, the failure of this war was ultimately a failure of the Ursus political system.

On paper, the Eastern Ursus Army Group's equipment is considered excellent.

In reality, it wasn't just the equipment that was skimped on at each level; the soldiers' physical fitness and the generals' abilities were also largely questionable.

Most of the soldiers were not carefully selected elites, but rather civilians conscripted from the surrounding area, and had not even received professional military training.

After they went into battle, firing two stray arrows was a fitting tribute to the Tsar. It's just a pity that such heavy weapons don't exist in this world—they can fire a shot from the left and a shot from the right, allowing the soldiers to collect their medals while recovering from their injuries.

Black Snake truly regretted it; now he'd lost everything, even his underwear.

"Master Huang, may I still apply for a loan from you? The kind where I can repay with my body?"

"Ugh~. You old slut, be serious for once, or I'll hang up right now. And don't you think Ursus has been a bit quiet lately?"

"His Majesty's health is very poor; he is likely to die soon."

Black Snake thought Huang Cao was referring to this incident, because the Tsar collapsed on the spot after learning of the defeat.

Forget it, why bother reminding this snake?

Huang Cao couldn't help but shake his head. He couldn't reveal the information about the army group's defection to him in advance, otherwise how could he make a hefty profit?

The Ursus Great Rebellion is also an important supporting element to the main storyline; without it, the plot wouldn't feel right.

Importantly, however, the Lateran's plan for International Messenger, which had only been proposed for less than a year, suffered a setback after the war.

The Yan Country suffered Catastrophe, Ursus War was lost...

Just as Black Serpent was about to hang up the phone, it suddenly received news that Kazimierz had declared war on Ursus.

"Wait, why is Kazimierz joining in this? Master Huang, I need a loan to purchase a batch of weapons. Please transport them to me as quickly as possible."

Huang Cao, on the other end of the phone, already knew about Kazimierz's actions, but the question remained: should they provide the weapons?

"Black Serpent, I have businesses in Kazimierz, providing you with weapons is very easy for me..."

Black Serpent took a deep breath. "Rest assured, once the current Tsar dies, Ursus will lose its ability to expand outwards for decades without a suitable pretext."

"Besides, this time it was Kazimierz who took the initiative to challenge Ursus. As long as the border army has your support, it can strike at their knightly class as much as possible. Wouldn't it be easy for you to come out and reap the rewards then?"

Huang Cao: "Aren't you afraid that after I conquer Kazimierz, I will pose an even greater threat to Ursus?"

Black Snake gave a wry smile on the other end of the phone: