Yes, Emperor Xiaochuan had done all of this. Xi Yan certainly hadn't deliberately instructed the Empire's administrative bodies to obstruct the aliens at every turn until they couldn't get anywhere.
All those supposed procedures were fake, too. No such rules had ever existed.
The so-called offices and the like were entirely made up, their sole purpose being to thoroughly piss off these aliens.
In reality, with support from AI and the central database, the procedures for handling all sorts of affairs in the Empire were extremely streamlined.
In short, after being obstructed and thoroughly disgusted, Grugulum stormed off in anger.
Farming? Forget farming!
I'm going into interstellar telecom fraud! Sure enough, the real economy can't make money like finance can!
Grugulum didn't believe these humans, who had only just ventured into space, could defend themselves against interstellar scams backed by the Criminal Enterprise's years of advanced experience.
Dejected, Grugulum bought a RELX Fifth Generation at a general store on the street. Even the old man minding the shop gave Grugulum the cold shoulder.
Grugulum stuck the cold vape pen into a mouth, and vapor! Mist! seeped into the body through the rock's microscopic pores.
(Smoking is harmful to your health.)
"Even Stone People can vape this stuff. It actually tastes surprisingly good."
Yet vaping the RELX did nothing to improve Grugulum's mood.
Stone People had massive bodies riddled with pores, and Grugulum soon emptied a cartridge. With practiced ease, Grugulum replaced it with a taro bubble-flavored cartridge and silently boarded the private spaceship that had cost a fortune to modify.
On the way, an enormous modified cargo ship sped overhead and vanished around a corner.
"They're letting modified ships onto the streets these days?"
Grugulum gave it no further thought and flew back to the entrance of the Criminal Enterprise