Chapter 995 - 844: Uproar

Shi Chun was puzzled, "How can a weak background represent the Heavenly Court in the Battle of Great Pardon?"

Young Master Nan seemed not to hear and instead was thoughtful, saying, "In this case, the position of Commander below is also a well-sought prize... Brother Chun, are you sure it's Manxi targeting you?"

Shi Chun: "Can there be any doubt? It's him who stirred the matter of population introduction. He even admitted it himself. As you said, I'm holding three out of four positions here; he definitely wants to target me."

Young Master Nan nodded slightly, still somewhat unsure, muttering to himself, "That's how it is, but still, something feels off..."

As they spoke, Feng Chi brought in three men.

Bringing them before Shi Chun, Feng Chi first introduced Shi Chun, "This is our Southern Commander."

"Greetings, Commander," the three saluted in unison, then introduced themselves one by one.

One was named Sang Ruhai, a disciple of Qiankun Sect, the top Array Sect, responsible for overseeing all the construction of the city defense arrays within the Southern territory. The fact that Shi Chun had killed a disciple of Qiankun Sect was well known, and Sang Ruhai's gaze at Shi Chun was somewhat peculiar.

It's understandable why. This Commander had risen to this position over the blood of the Qiankun Sect disciple, and this involves a massive deal of several billion. It would be a shame to forgo it, seeming somewhat irrational. Yet, the Heavenly Court was rushing the project, simply saying, are you taking it or not? If not, they would find someone else, without any fuss.

Qiankun Sect was also surprised, not expecting the Heavenly Court to push so hard, giving them no time to consider.

After a brief hesitation, Qiankun Sect's higher-ups had to put aside grudges and prioritize the benefits. It was a rare deal of several billion a month.

They then had higher-ranking disciples inquire about what was going on. Once they learned the internal reasons, they were more reassured.

This was also why Sang Ruhai's gaze was strange, for he knew Shi Chun's time in this position wouldn't last long. Sooner or later, he would be replaced, and everything Shi Chun was doing was essentially for someone else's benefit.

Apparently, the Sect had also taken an interest in some positions within the Heavenly Domain. Before his visit, Sang Ruhai was instructed to ensure the work was impeccable to avoid any inconvenient repercussions later.

The second visitor was named Su Han, responsible for construction and building.

The third was named Yan Changjiu, responsible for soil works and such.

These three were representatives sent by the skilled artisans to negotiate.

After Shi Chun gestured them to skip formalities, he, unfamiliar with these men, didn't bother with pleasantries and spoke directly: "Gentlemen, can you extend credit? Here's the situation: the Southern side's finances are currently tight, and we can't come up with so much money at once."

The three representatives exchanged glances. Was this the hazy reason why Domain Master Manxi sent them here to talk with Shi Chun?

Sang Ruhai forced a smile, "Lord Shi must be joking. From what we know, each division just received three billion for setting up offices and building cities, so how could the accounts be tight?"

Shi Chun sighed, "It's a long story; not something I can explain in just one or two sentences. I have other esteemed guests to attend to here. For specifics, you can talk with Feng Chi."

The three were uncertain, but Feng Chi was already inviting them with a smile, "Gentlemen, please follow me."

After the three left, Young Master Nan curiously asked, "Just got an allocation of three billion, how can you be tight on funds? I'm telling you, you better not get greedy with this money."

Shi Chun replied calmly, "Most of my subordinates are fresh out of prison. Not only do they have no money, but also no supplies. Many are also injured, and our medical system here isn't established yet. Going out for treatment or to buy supplies costs money. The little salary they receive after deductions is not enough, so I simply paid everyone five years of salary in advance, including Wu Jinliang and Tong Mingshan's sides."

"Paid five years of salary in advance..." Young Master Nan muttered as he calculated. After roughly estimating it, he stared wide-eyed at Shi Chun. Based on Shi Chun's previous words, he vaguely understood his intentions, realizing that even if Shi Chun steps down, he wouldn't make it easy for others.

After a detailed discussion with Feng Chi, Sang Ruhai left with a gloomy face.

There was no choice. Knowing the funds here were indeed insufficient, if debt was necessary, the bulk of it would fall on them. Their defensive arrays were the most expensive.

The key issue, damn it, wasn't just in the Southern region; Feng Chi clearly stated that the Western and Northern regions were the same.

Owing several billion, this wasn't something Sang Ruhai could decide on his own. He urgently needed to return to the sect for instructions, suspecting Shi Chun was deliberately targeting Qiankun Sect.

Because Feng Chi mentioned that the Commander had given clear instructions, prioritizing payments to the city construction personnel due to the large number of artisans involved.

In reality, Shi Chun wasn't specifically targeting Qiankun Sect. It was just that the array could wait, while city walls and buildings needed to be erected first. People couldn't live in caves forever, could they? When others move into luxurious homes, they can't still be living in caves. How would that look? Wouldn't that make the Commander seem incompetent?

Additionally, with the population introduction coming later, houses needed to be built to settle them right away.

But the funds still weren't enough. Just enclosing the city walls alone was significant, so it'd still require some credit. However, they had promised to prioritize supplementing salaries, thus Su Han and Yan Changjiu also needed to discuss with others.

The discussion's outcomes were quite favorable. Firstly, the debt to them wasn't too significant. Secondly, they agreed to pay them back first when funds were available. Thirdly, they promised exclusive rights to build houses in the nine cities of the Southern Region in the subsequent years, provided there's no overpricing, as it would affect population introduction.

Relatively speaking, the third term was the key to a happily accepted negotiation, as it was a lucrative deal.

With the contracts signed, as soon as the initial funds were in place, the construction activities in the Southern, Western, and Northern regions commenced with great momentum.

The Eastern region, with ample funds, naturally faced no issues and advanced even more comprehensively, with corresponding defensive array setups proceeding simultaneously.

On the bustling streets of the Heavenly Capital, a man watched his friend conducting brisk sales at a shop with slight confusion. As his friend came out carrying his purchases, he couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Li, you've just received some money. Spending like this, tell me honestly, did you stash money somewhere before being detained and managed to keep it hidden?"

His friend was taken aback, "The amount given this time is quite a lot, tens of thousands in hand. What's wrong with spending a bit? The Heavenly Domain is still a wasteland, with nothing. You better buy more and take it back. Who knows when you can come out again?"

The man grabbed his friend's arm, "Wait a moment, you said you received how much salary?"

His friend was puzzled, "Over four hundred thousand gold. Didn't they issue any in the Eastern region?"

The man flung his arm away, sneering, "Over four hundred thousand? Your Commander's monthly salary couldn't possibly be that much. Lying won't kill you?"

His friend was astonished, "What, one month? Didn't they pre-pay your salary for five years in full once?"

"Five years? How is that possible?"

"Why wouldn't it be possible? Not only was it issued in our Western Region, but I heard the Eastern and Northern troops received the same. With so many people, just ask around and you'll know. Could it be that your Eastern Region didn't issue it at all? How much did you get?"

"I got more than three thousand points... I'm telling you, don't mess with me. Didn't they say the Heavenly Court's finances were tight, so they issued one-third first and would make up the rest later?"

"No, you stop teasing me. No matter how tight it gets for the Heavenly Court, can they really be short of a bit of payroll? Besides, the Heavenly Court might skimp on anything, but how could they skimp on salaries?"

The two were each firm in their argument, neither believing the other's words. The eventual result was naturally to seek verification.

Similar situations weren't unique to just the two of them.

Upon seeking verification, the Eastern and Domain Central troops became a bit agitated. They didn't expect five years' pay all at once, such a method seemed too exaggerated. But for others to get five years and for their monthly salary to be only one-third was outrageous.

Someone embezzled our salaries!

Someone has withheld our salaries!

This was everyone's initial reaction. An individual dared not cause uproar, so whoever knew began to connect all over.

And that's how the Southern, Western, and Northern troops found out that even the Domain Master's core troops had only received one-third of their monthly wages. After inquiries back up the chain, they learned their Commander thought of everyone's practical difficulties and decided to use the funds for establishing offices and building cities to pre-pay everyone's salaries for five years to alleviate urgent needs.

Previously, Shi Chun and the others intentionally kept quiet. Now that it's spread and heard all the way up, there's no need to say more; just acknowledging the Heavenly Court did indeed issue less is enough.

Once the truth spread among the Southern, Western, and Northern troops, the three groups naturally felt various forms of relief.

"The commander truly comes from the grassroots, understands our hardships. We're fortunate to follow the right person."

"Those assigned to the other sides have it rough. To the point of neglecting subordinates' salaries just to live in luxury."

"Just the beginning, and it's already like this. What's to come?"

Comments like these spread wildly.

The facts are one thing, but nothing can withstand comparison. Once compared, people only believe what they see. As for the truth, it's inherently the most complex thing in the world.

The commotion grew too large. While playing in the wilderness, Young Master Nan and his group overheard discussions everywhere, making for quite the show in the wild. They asked Wu Jinliang what was going on, to which Wu Jinliang confidently assured, pounding his chest, that all comrades in arms, none can be mistreated.

"Loyalty."

"One-time pre-payment of five years' salary—impressive!"

A group of drinking buddies gave him thumbs up, while Young Master Nan smiled knowingly.

In the Eastern Central, a large cat napped curled in a corner of the cave, while the still-recovering one-armed Dongguo Shou paced back and forth, frowning.

He was healing initially, but the voices outside grew loud, forcing subordinates to report the situation.

The other three regions issued a one-time full payment for five years, whereas he had only given one-third of monthly salaries. Despite the spreading news, he couldn't believe it, still thinking it was a rumor. So he tried to contact Shi Chun for confirmation, only to realize there was no direct way to contact Shi Chun and them, and thus dispatched someone for personal verification.

Originally not very interested in governance, he paid attention only after the Sect expressed importance toward this land.

A figure strode in quickly. The dispatched person finally returned, urgently reporting, "To the Commander, confirmed: the Southern, Western, and Northern groups indeed issued a full five-year salary to everyone at headquarters, having used the city-building funds. The Mother-child Talisman is now delivered directly to the Southern Commander Shi Chun; you can contact them anytime."

Certainly, contact is necessary. Dongguo Shou immediately took out half of the Mother-child Talisman with his one arm, sending a lifetime's first communication message to Shi Chun, inquiring about the situation with this move.

What else could it be? Shi Chun repeated the righteous refrain: many brothers just came out of prison, penniless, many were injured without good treatment available, and material shortages demanded immediate relief.

These messages rendered Dongguo Shou silent.

He realized he had never considered these issues; he began reflecting on himself, seemingly truly ignorant of the hardships of grassroots people.

Regaining his senses, he wrote another inquiry, asking why the Southern, Western, and Northern sides didn't contact him before acting.

Yet halfway through writing, he cleared it. No other reason mattered; first and foremost, they lacked a direct line of contact.

The issue now was massive dissatisfaction down below, not moderately massive, but pervasively so.

Suddenly, he lifted his head, stating, "The protection array fund is the bulk. Follow Shi Chun's example, redirect it first."

A subordinate replied with a wry smile, "The contract is signed, and advance funds to Qiankun Sect are the bulk... With smaller sects or factions, perhaps there's room to renegotiate."

The implication was asking Qiankun Sect to return the money was impossible.

Dongguo Shou fell silent, considering whether to borrow money from the Sect.

He wasn't the only one distressed.

Seated in the Domain Master's cave residence, Manxi wore a dark expression, having never anticipated the money issue would cause such a stir. He wanted to distribute similar funds, but substantial amounts were spent on office-establishing and city funds, leaving too little in hand. Partial disbursement would have the same effect as no disbursement.

After much deliberation, he ordered, "Instruct Shi Chun, Tong Mingshan, and Wu Jinliang to retrieve the excess funds!"