The City's Economy

"Luzhen's thoughts align with This Seat's. Since everyone is here, let us properly discuss how we should proceed from here."

After Dongfang Mao waved his hand to signal everyone to take their seats, he opened the floor with this question.

"Governor, in my humble opinion, now that the New Martial Army has won a great victory, our momentum and morale are at their peak. We should press our advantage and expand as quickly as possible, before the Tian Kingdom can react."

"Oh? And why not focus on reorganization, recuperation, and developing the people's livelihood? The city is currently in a state of total disarray, after all."

Hearing Luzhen's statement, Dongfang Mao asked instinctively.

Luzhen gently waved his feather fan and spoke with a solemn expression.

"Not to mention that under the current administrative decrees, the city's commercial system has suffered a massive shock; it is hard to say how much time it would take to recover."

Even if it were to recover, the commercial taxes, tariffs, and even the land taxes of Tsukimiura are insufficient to support the massive expenditures of the New Martial Army, let alone the research funding for the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Health."

He paused, closing his feather fan.

"Once the money and grain seized from the raids are exhausted, the development of the Grand Governor's Mansion will grind to a halt."

"By then, the Tian Kingdom, which views the Governor as a thorn in its side, will certainly not let this rest. They might even request assistance from their allies, the Thunder Kingdom and the Fire Kingdom. At that point, the situation of the Grand Governor's Mansion will be precarious indeed!"

"Therefore, I propose that we must strike out as soon as possible, and even seize more territory with the utmost speed while the Tian Kingdom is caught off guard!"

Dongfang Mao's pupils constricted sharply upon hearing this.

Although he had been busy improving his own strength and training his troops, he had indeed considered the economic issues within Tsukimiura.

Utilizing the strategic vision from his past life, he had launched several novel commercial ventures, such as department stores, milk tea shops, and fast-food outlets.

But one must not forget that no matter how good a business model is, it requires people to consume.

Currently, due to Dongfang Mao's policies, a large portion of the city's population was unable to engage in normal commodity trade or consumption.

This had caused a significant impact on the local commerce within the city, and Dongfang Mao's own shops were suffering the same fate.

As for things like banking, finance, bonds, or stocks, without a foundation of public trust, those were impossible to implement; they were out of the question for the time being.

In fact, most of the commerce in the city was currently being kept on life support through massive procurement by the burgeoning Grand Governor's Mansion.

So, while the Grand Governor's Mansion appeared to have just won a great victory and looked infinitely glorious, was it actually teetering on the brink of collapse behind the scenes?

It seemed that he truly needed to follow Luzhen's advice and seize more territory as soon as possible.

By absorbing more of the population, he could supplement his military strength while gaining a larger labor force and consumer base, thereby revitalizing the current decaying economy and achieving a virtuous cycle.

Dongfang Mao's expression darkened slightly. He rested his chin on his fingers and paced back and forth before the desk, then suddenly came to a halt.

"Does anyone have any objections to what Luzhen has said?"

"We concur!"

None of those present were fools; they could naturally see that Dongfang Mao had already made up his mind. How could they be so blind as to jump out and play the contrarian?

"Very well. Once Commanders Yasuke and Kyuzo return in triumph, we shall immediately convene a military council to discuss the grand plan for our campaign!"

After the meeting dispersed, Dongfang Mao dragged his exhausted body back to his bedroom.

Between guarding the city by day and raiding camps by night, even with his formidable constitution, his spirit had reached its limit.

The "Multiple Shadow Clone Package" he had planned to claim from Tsunade would simply have to be postponed.

He looked at his bed, longing to collapse and fall asleep immediately.

But just then, a light knocking sound echoed.

"Master, this servant is here to help you change."

Dongfang Mao frowned, about to dismiss her, but then thought that sleeping while covered in blood and grime would indeed be uncomfortable. He had to force himself to stay alert.

"Come in."

"Creak!"

The door opened slightly.

A dainty-looking maid with almond eyes and rosy cheeks walked in carrying a washbasin.

Dongfang Mao stood with his back to the maid, spreading his arms to wait for her to remove his armor.

But suddenly, noticing that the maid's footsteps behind him seemed a bit more urgent than usual, his eyes, which had been half-closed, snapped open.

Turning around to look at the maid walking slowly toward him, Dongfang Mao narrowed his long, phoenix-like eyes dangerously, his fatigue vanishing in an instant.

"Haru, how is your sister doing lately? Is her illness any better?"

Dongfang Mao asked in a gentle voice.

"Haru" froze at these words, then forced a stiff smile onto her face.

"Thank you for your concern, Master. My sister's illness is already almost..."

However, before she could finish her sentence, Dongfang Mao, who had been leaning against the side of the bed, suddenly erupted into action!

He flashed toward the maid like a ghost, and before she could react, his iron-like hands had already clamped onto the arms holding the washbasin.

"Rip—!"

Amidst the sound of tearing flesh, two lotus-like arms were ripped clean off! Blood sprayed onto the floor tiles like a gushing fountain.

"Ah—!"

Haru collapsed to the ground, her face contorted as she let out a heart-wrenching wail.

"Transformation Jutsu? Hah!"

Dongfang Mao tossed the two still-twitching severed arms onto the floor, watching with cold eyes as the face of the person on the ground melted and shifted like wax, eventually revealing a strange, deathly pale visage. He let out a cold sneer.

"You must be that fish that slipped through the net, right?"

Yet, the only response Dongfang Mao received was that same harrowing, miserable shriek.

Dongfang Mao did not particularly care about the lack of manners, however; he turned toward the door and barked a command.

"Someone, come in!"

Two guards appeared at the doorway instantly. Upon seeing the bloody and cruel scene inside the room, their hearts skipped a beat, and a chill crept up their spines.

The turmoil of the ninja attack on the Grand Governor's Mansion tonight had yet to subside; seeing this, how could they not understand that an assassin had snuck into the Governor's quarters?

In an instant, cold sweat beaded on their foreheads, and they hurriedly knelt on the ground.

"We have failed in our duties! We beg the Governor to punish us!"

Seeing this, Dongfang Mao waved his hand dismissively.

The methods of a ninja were inherently impossible for ordinary people to guard against. Even he, had he not been familiar with Haru's usual footsteps, might have fallen for the trap earlier while in such a mentally exhausted state. How could he possibly blame two guards?

"Drag her away and hand her over to the Night Patrol Bureau. After the interrogation, expose her corpse on the city walls to serve as a warning to all!"

"By your command!"

Hearing that the Governor did not intend to punish them, the two breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly dragged the wailing female ninja away.

At the break of dawn, the gates of Tsukimiura slowly swung open with the roar of heavy hinges.

Yasuke and Kyuzo, draped in morning dew, led a triumphant army that wound like a dragon as they slowly stepped into the city.

Behind them, prisoners of war chained together and carts laden with captured ordnance and grain stretched out like a giant python, endless to the eye.

The city walls and the teahouses along the streets were already packed with onlookers.

Those "new citizens" who had received their new identities began to cheer and leap for joy. As they rejoiced in their choice, their sense of identification with the Grand Governor's Mansion climbed to a new height.