I Am Extraordinary Alone
Chapter 424 - 422 Bad Times

Chapter 424: Chapter 422 Bad Times

Yin Country.

After the Fengrao City incident, a full week had passed.

The incident had been an unmitigated disaster that destroyed the most prosperous city in Yin Country.

Economic losses were incalculable, international reputation had plummeted to rock bottom, and there was a lot of resentment among the populace.

The United Council and the Sethiyan Federation called for sending aid teams to Yin Country. Ostensibly, they were there to provide humanitarian aid, but their real purpose was to gather intelligence related to Zhao Ling.

In the face of all these problems, Venerable Qin was hardly worried.

Li Lianhua would take care of everything for him.

At 3 p.m., Venerable Qin gathered more than a dozen of his trusted subordinates for a closed-door meeting in his luxurious residence in Bianhai City.

Fengrao City was now in ruins, and the progress of rescue and reconstruction was slow; Venerable Qin couldn’t wait for it to be rebuilt, so he decided to relocate the capital to Bianhai City.

That was the ancient capital of Yin Country, and moving the capital there now could also be seen as setting things right.

At this moment, Venerable Qin sat upright on a purple sandalwood bench, with Li Lianhua standing by his side, slightly stooping his body. Venerable Qin extended his right hand to rest on his.

After the formalities were over, everyone sat in two rows on the sandalwood chairs, and then servants came in to serve tea.

"Ah, how pleasing it is to see such ceremony! This truly reflects the etiquette of the Dayin Dynasty," Venerable Qin said with a laugh.

"Hehe, the old ancestral codes have all come back today," Li Lianhua chuckled.

Venerable Qin’s face slackened as he looked to one side and then laughed again, "But it’s still not enough!"

He stood up and continued, "There are plenty of old ancestral codes to follow! You must all properly revive them!"

"You’re right, how could we not? Losing Zhao Ling just like that, really, what a major loss! Just give the word, and I’ll have someone handle it!" Li Lianhua said hastily.

"First, abolish this absurd six-tier division of citizens. From now on, in the Dayin Dynasty, there are only Yin people and the lower class!" Venerable Qin declared sternly.

At that moment, some of the ministers present voiced their agreement, "Exactly, exactly! The six-tier system is meaningless. Nowadays, everyone wants an office job; who’s willing to work in the factories? And they’re still complaining about low wages every day!"

Venerable Qin slapped the armrest of his chair and exclaimed, "A bunch of ungrateful curs! They’ve no idea about serving the nation!"

"You’re speaking the truth!" Li Lianhua was also deeply anguished.

"All of it, gone! No more court exams either!" declared Venerable Qin.

"Aiyo, you couldn’t be more correct! How right you are! We’ll also reduce various benefits and save a large sum of money," Li Lianhua said with a smile.

"Don’t talk about reductions as if that’s enough; is the country supposed to support idlers?" Venerable Qin said, patting the armrest again.

"Right away, my lord! I’ll take care of it, and I’ll ensure it’s done exactly as you wish! We’ll keep the news under wraps and implement the policies!" Li Lianhua said, clapping his hands.

Venerable Qin was pleased and said, "That’s the spirit."

The ministers also began to laugh.

"All right, let’s get to serious business. A country cannot be without a ruler for even a day; besides, these are extraordinary times. Now that Zhao Ling is dead, her followers have distanced themselves from her due to her actions over the past few years. At present, there is no one who can challenge us in the entire court and government," Li Lianhua said.

Venerable Qin nodded in agreement.

"Venerable Qin’s hard work and outstanding abilities have been apparent to all of us these past years, especially in the absence of the other venerables. She has toiled for the sake of the nation and its people, which I am sure has not gone unnoticed or unremembered by you all," Li Lianhua continued.

The ministers also nodded and smiled in agreement.

"Our Dayin Dynasty now needs not only a new Emperor, but also revisions to our laws and regulations! We must erase all the mess Zhao Ling has caused and left behind!" Li Lianhua went on.

He walked in front of Venerable Qin and knelt on both knees with a loud thud.

"From today onward, I boldly request that you take the seat as the first Qiansui Lady of the Dayin Dynasty, and lead us to soar to new heights!" Li Lianhua said.

Seeing this, the ministers also stepped down from their seats and knelt behind Li Lianhua, thudding their knees on the ground, and exclaimed, "Qiansui Lady! Long live, long live, everlasting life!!"

"Hahaha~~ My loyal subjects, rise!" Venerable Qin laughed.

Everyone stood up, and Venerable Qin had become the de facto ruler of Yin Country within the core circle of power. The following matters only needed to be carried forward by the various ministers.

As for the rescue operation in Fengrao City and the reconstruction plans, Li Lianhua also briefly mentioned them.

"The Foreign Affairs Bureau has already compiled the casualty figures of Fengrao City and sent them over in an encrypted document, which we reviewed last night..." Li Lianhua did not mention the specific numbers.

"Hmph...the Foreign Affairs Bureau, always the bearer of bad news!" Venerable Qin was somewhat irritated.

"Please calm down, Qiansui, we must handle this matter smoothly, or it cannot be justified both domestically and internationally," Li Lianhua said.

"How much money will that cost?! Now, the online world is quite happy to hurl abuse, spoiled by Zhao Ling!" Venerable Qin shook her head.

"We have a brilliant plan. It’s a two-for-one solution that allows us to push the blame onto someone else to defuse the situation, and also deal with the remnants of Zhao Ling’s influence," Li Lianhua said.

"Do tell~" Venerable Qin smiled.

"Zhao Ling is the main culprit behind this incident, and the researchers at the medical institute are in disarray as it stands. When we pin the blame on them, they’ll have no choice but to accept it," Li Lianhua chuckled.

Venerable Qin clapped her hands with laughter, "Brilliant, truly brilliant! Order it done, smear Zhao Ling’s reputation! Dig up her past dirt! Portray her as a lascivious and extravagant woman! Transfer some of the achievements of the Foreign Affairs Bureau and various technology departments onto us; completely separate the Yin Dynasty from Zhao Ling!"

"Consider it done!" Li Lianhua said.

With this closed-door meeting, Yin Country would enter a brand new era.

What was destroyed was not just Fengrao City; they had lost more than just an Emperor.

The advanced force, established through reprehensible means at all costs, was now completely discarded.

Just like Wang Ye, who was still engaged in the rescue operations, filled with indignation and doubt, yet unaware of what exactly had gone wrong with the nation.

Zhao Ling’s obvious loss of control was the apparent primary cause, so the dead became the target of all accusations—after all, the dead could not speak in their defense.

However, such actions did not resolve the fundamental issues, or rather, they led to fundamental issues.

History has seen countless "dark ages," and compared to epochs of human progress, darkness is perhaps the norm.

Reality is always harsh and helpless, yet in reality, harshness and helplessness are not permissible, leading to the aforementioned actions: attributing tragedy and impotence to the deceased.

On this day, the loyal Yin people lost their great Emperor, and a power monstrosity named Qiansui Lady made a grand entrance.

This would be the beginning of a dark era, but the people living in the present did not realize this reality.