Chapter 122: Chapter 107: Our Daqian Co-rules the World with the Sects
Watching the logistics personnel leave, Li Kang turned his head again to stare at Chu Bamboo.
"What’s wrong, Uncle Li!" Chu Bamboo’s tone was as light and cheerful as ever.
"You! Just! This! I..."
"Just a coincidence." Chu Bamboo shrugged. "I didn’t know he was a member of the Captain’s Office logistics department! Besides, I helped him three years ago. He probably hadn’t even joined the Captain’s Office back then, right?"
Li Kang was silent for a moment.
"As for what I’ve been doing..." Chu Bamboo counted on his fingers. "I just can’t stand how messed up this world is."
"Five years ago, because I couldn’t stand it, I flipped the table. In the end, it was because I didn’t want to completely destroy the shantytown redevelopment area, didn’t want to see bodies piling up there, that I reluctantly reached an agreement with those big Factory Directors... which led to the birth of the union!"
"Three or four years ago, I stepped down from my position as the union’s general secretary. But, I’m the kind of person who just can’t stay idle!"
"So, let’s just say it was because of a few small ’accidents’!" Chu Bamboo narrowed his eyes, as if recalling that day again. "Maybe it was the pure, pitiful eyes of the children I saw when passing through the city outskirts! Or maybe... it was the elderly, waiting for death in a daze of helplessness. Or maybe I was just too bored at the time, so I pulled up a small stool, sat next to them, and listened to them tell stories that were meant to be forgotten!"
"The end result was, I set up some nursing homes and orphanages! And while I was at it, I brought the orphaned children and family members of fallen heroes to these places to be cared for."
"The families of heroes shouldn’t be treated like this!"
Chu Bamboo looked up at the ceiling, let out a sudden, cold laugh, and said indifferently, "This Daqian Dynasty, I really can’t stand it! Heroes die for their country and people, but they aren’t given adequate benefits! They just let their descendants fall into the mud?"
’Never mind the nations of the Real World!’
’Even in feudal times, the Han Dynasty had the Yulin Army for the orphans of its martyrs! The children of such martyrs were seen as having an inherently noble and loyal background!’
’The Daqian Dynasty doesn’t do this. That either means the person making the decisions is short-sighted, or they simply don’t care about those who shed blood for the country.’
’But the most ridiculous part is that while the Daqian Dynasty doesn’t provide money to support these orphans, when they grow up and want to join its institutions, it’s actually much easier for them than for ordinary people.’
’Chu Bamboo really couldn’t figure it out. It felt like they had copied the policies of the Real World, but only partially.’
’Did they only copy the political screening part? But not the part about providing adequate benefits? It’s seriously hard to stomach!’
’There were many times Chu Bamboo truly felt this way. Although his political knowledge was limited to what he’d learned in political science classes in the Real World—a truly insignificant level by its standards—in this Dream World, he felt like he stood out like a crane among chickens, to an almost ridiculous degree!’
"...Don’t talk about state affairs!" After a long silence, Li Kang could only force out this sentence. He was still loyal to Daqian! So he couldn’t bear to hear such words... especially when they were the honest truth.
"Actually, it’s you who’s strange..." Chu Bamboo glanced sideways at Li Kang. "Do you really think that if you died, the Imperial Court would treat your family well? So why are you always the one charging to the front lines?"
Li Kang closed his eyes and finally said calmly, "I understand!"
"But there’s no other way! We are the strongest dam in this seemingly peaceful world!"
"If I shrink from my duties out of fear of death, then when chaos sweeps across the entire country, my wife and children will also die in the end! And their deaths will be even more miserable."
Chu Bamboo didn’t say anything more. He just gave Li Kang a deep look, shook his head, and said, "I actually thought that even if you didn’t report me, you would at least chew me out."
"? Report you? Report what?" Li Kang looked at Chu Bamboo, confused.
"That’s the part I have nothing to say about!" Chu Bamboo shook his head. ’Any normal person who saw that I’d set up these orphanages and nursing homes specifically for the orphans and elderly parents of heroes, and then saw my earlier conversation with Gao Changming, would realize just how terrifying the things I’m doing really are!’
’Although Chu Bamboo hadn’t intended it at the time—three years ago, he still treated this world like a game—the fact of the matter was that he was indeed digging at the foundations of Daqian, eroding its grassroots institutions in Jinghai City.’
"Alright, enough of that!" Chu Bamboo cut off Li Kang’s potential follow-up questions. "So, why did they come looking for you?"
Seeing Li Kang’s conflicted expression, Chu Bamboo raised an eyebrow and said casually, "I know they’re from the logistics department! Well, if you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to..."
"? You know? Right, of course you do!" Li Kang quickly relaxed, sighing in relief. "Then there’s no reason not to say it! They came to deliver Cultivation Resources."
"...Oh."
_Hmm?!_ On the surface, Chu Bamboo remained calm, but inside, his mind was in turmoil.
He watched as Li Kang casually pulled a tube out of his drawer. The tube was transparent, with a milky white liquid flowing inside.
It was viscous, with a visual texture similar to milk, yet distinctly different.
"...Fushui?"
"That’s right." Li Kang smiled and nodded, remarking, "This is the one good thing about joining the Captain’s Office! Half of our monthly salary is paid in Big Qian Coin, and the other half is Cultivation Resources... We’re not like those wild Transcendents, who are no better than stray dogs!"
Li Kang’s words carried a hint of pride. He then glanced at Chu Bamboo. "There’s a share for you, too! Just a smaller one... It’s a pity your status is so sensitive right now, you can’t join us completely. The title of Honored Guest Elder... ultimately, it only makes you half one of us at the Captain’s Office."
"I’m a little curious, do they also distribute Radiant Stones?" Chu Bamboo asked, seemingly at random. "Ning Linglong is a Cultivator, don’t they allocate any for her? Or do they give Ning Linglong Fushui? I remember Fushui is useless for Cultivators, right?"
"They do, they do! But..." Li Kang pulled out a small box with a peculiar expression and opened it slightly. "The amount is only about this much... Better than nothing, I guess! If Vice Ning had to rely on this stuff for her Cultivation, she’d starve to death."
"..." Chu Bamboo stared at the mung bean-sized, golden particle, looking like he wanted to say something but holding back. Finally, he asked, "So, where do her main Cultivation Resources come from?"
Snapping the box shut, Li Kang gave Chu Bamboo a slightly strange look, but didn’t overthink it. "She’s a disciple of Natural Taoism! So of course she gets her resources from them... although, strictly speaking, the officials trade the resources to Natural Taoism first, and then Natural Taoism distributes them to her!"
Pausing briefly, Li Kang shook his head. "Don’t be fooled by how Vice Ning acts! In reality, her background is incredibly deep... Even though she’s always talking about ousting me, to be honest, her time on our little team might not be as long as she thinks."
"Young people are always like that, always dreaming about the future! But in reality, the future she imagines is... completely different from the one her elders have arranged for her."
Chu Bamboo’s brow furrowed slightly. He actually knew Ning Linglong’s master; they had what could loosely be called a gentleman’s friendship.
But if he were being honest, they weren’t that close... because that person didn’t live in Jinghai City for long periods.
Chu Bamboo knew the person often traveled back and forth between the Celestial Capital and the Imperial Capital... but he had never been able to find out their official government identity! He only knew they were highly regarded by the officials.
’Well, damn, now it seems...’
’Wait!’
"Can people from Natural Taoism hold official positions in the Daqian government?" Chu Bamboo’s gaze sharpened. ’That’s not right. According to my previous understanding, didn’t joining the God Worship Sect basically cut off any possibility of advancement in the official hierarchy?’
"To rule the world via Huang-Lao School of Thought!" Li Kang only uttered those eight words.
"...I stand corrected." Chu Bamboo grinned. ’He actually knew about this, but once the Extraordinary and Taoism were involved, those words became much more intriguing!’
"Then I don’t get it. Why is the God Worship Sect so discriminated against?"
"Wrong..." Li Kang’s expression twisted for a moment. "To be precise, it’s the Westernized faction of the God Worship Sect that’s discriminated against! And even so, the Celestial Capital is still considered a major stronghold for the God Worship Sect!"
"I know you think I’m hostile towards Zhang Hai, but what can I say? This is Jinghai," Li Kang said patiently. "Daqian is vast. The situation in each region is different! You can’t generalize."
"In the Celestial Capital, the God Worship Sect that reveres the Supreme God has its followers entering the halls of power..."
"In the Imperial Capital, the God Worship Sect that venerates the Jade Emperor is practically on the verge of becoming the state religion!"
"Of course, openly declared believers of any sect really can’t climb too high in the official hierarchy! But the key word is ’openly’—if you hide it a little, there’s actually some wiggle room! You could call it an unwritten rule, I guess?"
Chu Bamboo was speechless.
"Besides, within the Imperial Court, undercurrents are surging!" Li Kang stopped abruptly and said with a wry smile, "Why am I even telling you all this?"
"Never mind, I’ve got business at the Underground Temple! Let’s talk next time." Seeing that Li Kang had come to his senses, Chu Bamboo realized he couldn’t dig out any more information. Without pushing further, he casually rolled his eyes, waved a dismissive hand, and made a quick exit.
On his way to the women’s restroom, Chu Bamboo’s expression gradually grew serious. He already knew most of what Li Kang had said.
After all, while he knew less about the Celestial Capital and the Imperial Capital, that was only in comparison to what he knew about Jinghai City!
He knew parts of the political landscape of the Two Capitals, but he didn’t know what role the Extraordinary played in it all!
But now, combining this new information with what he knew before, he was finally able to build a rough theoretical model of the power structure in the two cities, and indeed, across all of Daqian.
’I originally thought the Daqian Dynasty was incredibly powerful! Now it seems that, in essence, the major cities where the great Extraordinary Sects are based are semi-independent territories ruled by those sects—no, to be more accurate, it’s that the Heavenly Monarch, or the Imperial Court, rules the world jointly with the various sects!’
’No wonder stacks of Cultivation Resources are all sold to the various sects...’
’But from this perspective, the situation in Jinghai City is quite special!’
Chu Bamboo narrowed his eyes. The problem with Jinghai City was that all the sects were outsiders; no single one held a dominant position.
If one had to say, Jinghai City didn’t even submit to the Celestial Capital, one of the Two Capitals—
The city beneath his feet only followed the orders of the Imperial Capital!
’No wonder it’s so chaotic! And no wonder the All-Powerful, the Five Poisonous Creatures, and Hehuan have bases here, making a huge mess! After all this, it turns out the situation in Jinghai City isn’t the norm at all...’
Finally, he entered the base. Looking at the familiar silver-white walls, Chu Bamboo breathed a sigh of relief. ’I’m back, it’s all back! Nuwa, I missed you so much!’
He called out the name, and heard Nuwa No. 17’s familiar reply: "I am here."
For a moment, Chu Bamboo was genuinely moved.
He closed his eyes to calm himself, replaying his recent experiences in his mind and carefully extracting useful information. Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him!
"Wait a minute!"
’I remember Gao Changming periodically takes people from the Special Operations Brigade’s logistics department out into the wilderness to transport a batch of supplies!’
’Now, factoring in his identity in the Captain’s Office and this business of transporting Cultivation Resources—does that mean he’s going out into the wilderness to collect resources for Cultivation?’
’So the place he’s going to should be the Cultivation Resource excavation site in Jinghai City that Zhang Hai mentioned before?’
Chu Bamboo’s expression became increasingly peculiar. He was currently contemplating a very serious question—
If he happened to choose the exact time Gao Changming was out transporting supplies to go stake out that nuclear facility...
...would he be able to watch Gao Changming lead his team and open the gates to the nuclear facility?
