The Era of Military Officials, War Preparations

After Long Ye left, Ye Chen clasped his hands behind his back, gazing at the world map behind him, his eyes deep as an abyss.

"Ah, Imperial We's heart was a bit too eager, but thinking of the cosmic upheavals centuries from now, Imperial We wants to lead the empire to repel enemies beyond the stars, and also wants to lead the Yanhuang Civilization to stand at the pinnacle of the universe—wanting too much, the pressure is immense."

Thinking this, Ye Chen couldn't help but let out a bitter smile, silently scolding himself for his greed.

Recalling the original storyline, where the Huaxia Civilization was as insignificant as a ghost before civilizations like Denuo, Styx, and Lieyang, without even a voice, Ye Chen felt distressed.

Of course, it wasn't that he had any feelings for this world's Huaxia—after all, he wasn't from this world, so he had no damn attachment to its Huaxia.

But now he was on Blue Star, and as an emperor, Huaxia would eventually fall under the Yanhuang Empire, so this matter concerned him.

Because he now regarded Blue Star as his own territory, and in the future, he would be the one facing all of this.

With his temperament, how could he tolerate a bunch of aliens fighting on his turf without even having a say?

He absolutely would not allow that situation to happen.

Time passed bit by bit.

An hour later.

Yuan Lan came in to report that all the civil and military officials had assembled.

Hearing this, Ye Chen changed into his court attire and strode briskly toward the Star Hall.

Star Hall.

"We pay homage to Your Majesty, may Your Majesty live ten thousand years."

"All beloved ministers, rise!"

Looking at the drowsy civil and military officials below, Ye Chen smiled and said, "Beloved ministers must all be curious why Imperial We suddenly summoned you here.

I see everyone is quite sleepy, and some elder ministers can't handle such a fuss, so Imperial We will get straight to the point."

Hearing this, the last few ministers still fighting sleep jolted awake, instantly wide-eyed and alert.

Seeing this, Ye Chen chuckled inwardly.

If there was any fun in holding court, aside from watching the ministers below sometimes argue fiercely and even come to blows, it might be occasionally startling a few of them.

"Some beloved ministers should know that not long ago, the Kunpeng Project under the Imperial Academy of Sciences was completed, and the aircraft developed by the Kunpeng Project will soon be put into use.

These aircraft will first be deployed to the military, so Imperial We intends to establish the Imperial Air Force to guard Yanhuang Airspace.

Beyond that, Imperial We also plans to establish the Imperial Navy to guard Yanhuang Territorial Waters.

Thirty years from now, the three imperial armies—the Army, Navy, and Air Force—will point their swords at the entire globe, beginning the path to imperial unification."

Ye Chen's words struck like a thunderclap, leaving the civil and military officials' heads buzzing.

That there were many nations beyond the empire was no secret—it was taught in elementary school textbooks—so they were all well aware of the global situation.

They had all predicted that Ye Chen would eventually go to war with other nations, but they never expected it to be so soon, so sudden.

Yet, after the shock, they were filled with excitement.

Because once war began, it would be the time to build achievements.

For two hundred years, the Yanhuang Empire had been quietly developing, never clashing with other nations.

If there had been any conflict, it was only with the natives when the empire expanded its territory and opened up new lands.

So, other nations probably didn't even know the Yanhuang Empire existed.

Seeing the excited ministers below, Ye Chen nodded inwardly—excitement was good; he wasn't afraid of them being excited, only of them not being excited.

The empire had been too peaceful for too long, leaving the military officers pent up, their blades nearly rusting.

If not for the occasional skirmishes with the surrounding natives, they might have gone mad.

Now, hearing that a world war was about to begin, they were the most thrilled.

Then, without beating around the bush, Ye Chen laid out the preparations needed for the empire's war efforts.

Along with a series of appointments.

For the next thirty years, the empire would focus entirely on building up its war reserves; otherwise, when war broke out and logistics couldn't keep up, the trouble would be immense.

By the time the court session ended, it was already dawn outside.

The civil and military officials walked out of the Star Hall, all brimming with energy, not a trace of sleepiness.

They gathered in twos and threes, discussing the matters from today's court session.

"Congratulations, General Xiao, General Qin, on being entrusted with such heavy responsibilities by His Majesty. From now on..."

Looking at the ministers crowding around them, Xiao Feng and Qin Yu exchanged glances, a hint of amusement in their eyes.

Among these ministers crowding around, a few old fellows had once looked down on them as mere warriors; back then, when they tried to speak with them, these people wouldn't even bother to respond.

Now, they were all currying favor—quite amusing.

Although Ye Chen didn't favor civil over military, and even leaned toward the military side, the empire had been at peace for so long that, over time, the status of military officers had become somewhat awkward.

After all, there were too few wars, so military officers couldn't shine; even the occasional fights with the surrounding natives were like swatting flies, offering no sense of accomplishment.

Now that a world war was imminent, anyone who wasn't a fool could see that the military faction was about to soar.

For a long time to come, it would be the era of military officers.

Thus, every one of these old foxes was ready to cozy up to the military officers and hitch a ride on their coattails.

If they could arrange a marriage alliance, that would be even better—it would make the bond that much tighter.

"General Xiao, this old man has a granddaughter, just sweet sixteen. She's admired you from a young age. How about you two meet in a few days? Perhaps our families could..."

Xiao Feng: "..."

What a shameless old bastard—we're of the same generation, and you want to be my grandfather.

The ministers nearby saw this and their eyes lit up.

They immediately racked their brains, thinking about whether they had any eligible girls at home to recommend to these military officers.

In an instant, the military officers, who had previously been as invisible as air, suddenly became hot commodities.

Faced with this kind of fox-like enthusiasm, they could barely handle it.

In the end, hounded beyond endurance, they could only turn tail and run.

Inside the Star Hall, Ye Chen listened to the commotion outside and couldn't help but shake his head with a smile.

"These old foxes, their faces really are thick as leather."

Then Ye Chen turned and left the hall.

For the next few decades, he would be plenty busy—after all, starting a world war wasn't something you just did on a whim.

Even with Blue Star still threatened by the Denuo Remnants and that scumbag Su Mali, he couldn't rely entirely on outside help. Though he had the Angels to deter them, he still needed his own trump cards.

So, he had to figure out a way to exchange for a big killer weapon from the system, so that if anything unexpected happened, he'd be prepared.