So everyone shut up.
They lowered their heads, not daring to look at Carter, much less Lynn.
He cursed Caladogon a thousand times in his heart.
Old man, you've been planning this for so long, and not only have you gotten yourself into trouble, you've dragged us down with you!
Caladogon sat in the main seat, his withered fingers gripping the armrests tightly.
Anger lurked deep within her green eyes.
But his face remained calm, and he even managed a kind and friendly smile.
"Good."
"Since Your Excellency the Governor is so determined, that's all the better."
" Brevis's future rests in your hands."
He spoke very slowly, each word seemingly squeezed out from between his teeth.
Old fox.
Lynn returned the smile to Caladogon's forced one.
"Thank you for your support, Your Majesty."
He clasped his hands in a respectful bow and said, "I will certainly live up to your expectations."
The two looked at each other, their eyes meeting in mid-air, seemingly exchanging compliments.
But in their hearts, they had already sent their greetings to each other's families.
The meeting ended, and the dignitaries gradually left.
Everyone who passed by Lynn would stop, bow, and say a few words of flattery.
The difference in attitude between then and before the meeting was like night and day.
Lynn responded to each question with a gentle smile.
After everyone else left, only he and Carter remained in the hall.
Carter walked over to him and whispered:
"Sir, well done!"
Lynn turned to look at him and smiled.
"You did a good job too."
After exchanging a few words, the two went to the governor's car outside.
"But about the mole..." Carter's eyes gradually turned cold.
Lynn simply shook his head. "It's alright, there are so many people, we simply can't investigate them all."
"And that's exactly the feeling I want—he knows what I want to do, but he can't do anything about it."
Carter was surprised that Lynn had this quirk, but he still chose to respect it.
He nodded in agreement.
Back at the governor's mansion, Lynn took a deep breath.
The supreme commander of an army of fifteen million.
This result was much better than he had expected.
But you can't laugh yet!
As soon as Lynn walked into his office, he couldn't resist picking up the Ripper on the table, which was gnawing on one leg, and spinning it around.
"Hahaha! Rena, did you see that? Fifteen million!"
He held the miniature Ripper in the air, its six tiny legs kicking blankly.
Rena didn't understand.
Fifteen million people, is that a lot?
She wasn't good with numbers; there wasn't much difference between fifteen million and fifteen hundred.
But she could sense Lynn's excitement.
So she became "happy" too.
Its calves throbbed with glee, making a crackling, Ripper "laugh" sound.
Lynn put her in his arms and patted her head.
"That's great, now that we have military power, we can start reaping the rewards."
Just as Lynn had predicted, once the news spread, those independent minor noble factions quickly gathered around.
Chuck Faction, Isaac Faction, Glen Alliance.
At least a dozen factions lined up to meet Lynn, expressing their willingness to "please" him.
Following Carter's advice, Lynn carefully selected the candidates.
Finally, he chose the Chuck Faction and the Isaac Faction as his first vassals.
The selection criteria are simple: sufficient strength and a sincere attitude.
These two factions together control more than eighty food production lines and twenty water purification lines.
Rena, on the other hand, used her Psychic Power to probe the emotions of these people and confirm that they were genuinely siding with Lynn, rather than looking for a way out for themselves.
Other factions were either not strong enough or not sincere enough, and were therefore eliminated.
Next comes the issue of profit distribution.
Lynn took 300,000 PDFs and 700,000 militia from his 15 million-strong army and stationed them in the territories of Chuck and Isaac Faction, respectively.
They call it a reserve force.
In reality, this million-strong "garrison" was responsible for protecting the family businesses of the two factions.
Other nobles dared not easily touch them again.
The "protection fee" they were required to pay was a 40/60 split between Lynn and all the food and clean water they produced.
Lynn was four, and they were six.
Moreover, they are responsible for all the expenses of the garrison, including food, drink, and equipment maintenance.
In reality, only about 55% of them will actually be able to stay.
But the leaders of both factions agreed without hesitation.
Why?
Because if they don't agree, in the end, not even one of them might stay.
The Twelve Star Families were like a pack of hungry wolves, circling around them and slowly devouring their flesh and blood.
Now, although only a little over half remain, at least we can survive stably.
Moreover, by getting on the governor's good side, there might be a chance to turn things around in the future.
Thus, Lynn was able to obtain approximately 100,000 tons of food and 400 million liters of clean water daily from the two factions.
These resources are sufficient to support the daily lives of at least 200 million people.
His 15 million-strong army was fed with grain collected by the Noble Council.
He instantly became the Hive City version of "Monopoly".
With the supplies in hand, Lynn did not immediately set off for the front lines.
He sat in the governor's office, looking at the military documents on the table, his brow furrowed.
"An army of fourteen million," he muttered to himself.
"It looks intimidating, but what percentage of them actually have combat capabilities?"
"Apart from the 500,000 PDFs who are elite, the combat effectiveness of the other private soldiers and militia is uneven."
"Its overall combat strength is estimated to be less than that of a million Rena Swarm."
Lynn shook his head, thinking to himself that this was really troublesome.
If it weren't for the fact that Rena Swarm is currently unable to defeat Brevis's group, he wouldn't mind simply forcibly taking control of Brevis.
After all, becoming the supreme ruler is definitely easier than slowly grinding one's way up like this.
"So, we can't just pull it up like that."
"We need to practice first, and then expand the team further."
He looked at the Lower City region on the map, which had at least tens of billions of people.
Even if 30% starved to death, the population would still be enormous, and there would never be a shortage of manpower.
What they lacked were equipment and food.
Now, he has food; all he lacks is equipment.
He touched the Ripper's carapace and looked towards the Midtown.
Workers and the people: the sharpest sword throughout history.