In early Sea Circle Calendar year 1520, several months had passed since the announcement of the astronomical bounty that had shaken the world.
West Blue, Chang'an City.
The winter chill had yet to fade completely, but the capital of this rising empire already brimmed with vitality. Merchants and travelers crowded Vermilion Bird Street. Voices reciting texts and shouts of training rang out from the newly completed Chongwen Academy and Hongwu Hall, while newly launched Dark Bird-class warships lay moored in the harbor district-all of it showed that, after its baptism of blood and fire, the empire was recovering and growing stronger at an unprecedented pace.
Inside Zichen Hall, morning sunlight streamed through the tall glazed windows, casting streaks of golden light across the polished black marble floor.
Chen Yu sat upright on the Dark Bird imperial throne, his black imperial robes draping down. Behind the beaded curtains of his twelve-tasseled crown, his calm gaze swept over the senior civil and military officials standing solemnly in the hall. After several months of recuperation and rewards, the Kaiyuan Empire's war machine had completed another round of consolidation and strengthening. It was time to turn their eyes toward more distant seas.
"Your Majesty," Grand Commander-in-Chief Zhuge Liang stepped forward, holding his Jade Tablet and gently waving his Feather Fan, his voice clear. "According to secret reports from the Wind-Listening Guard and intelligence compiled from multiple sources, internal unrest has ended, and the entire West Blue has largely been pacified. Government decrees pass unimpeded through every province and commandery, the legal code is being implemented smoothly, and the people's allegiance is gradually growing. Preparations for the Marine Headquarters in Hua Country are more than halfway complete, and Commander Zhou Yu has trained several combat-ready naval forces. The defense systems of the four grand military