172: Military merit incentives

Shen Xiaochuan's finger hovered over the confirm button, his fingertip feeling slightly tense.

Light from the side hall shone onto the bag of Star-Veined Vines on the table, causing the silver spots on the edges of the leaves to shimmer.

Qiao Yao sat opposite him, her sleeves rolled up to her elbows, her fingers tapping against the tabletop rhythmically.

"How do you plan to settle this?" she asked.

Shen Xiaochuan withdrew his hand and opened the System settlement interface.

After the data finished loading, a number appeared: 208,000,000 faith points.

He stared at it for three seconds before saying in a low voice, "I don't have that much in my account."

Qiao Yao raised an eyebrow. "You can't even come up with two hundred million? Where did all the money go after the war you fought earlier?"

"It all went into equipment and supplies," he said, pulling up the financial panel. "My current liquid funds are less than thirty-five million. If you want it all converted into Materials, I'd have to dismantle three warehouses."

Qiao Yao tilted her head, waiting for him to continue.

Shen Xiaochuan stood up, walked to the shelf by the wall, pulled out a sheet of blank talisman paper, and took a charcoal pencil from a drawer.

He lowered his head and drew a few lines on the paper to sketch out the shape of a notebook, then wrote a line of text: Skydome City Credit Voucher · Transferable · Guaranteed by System.

"We won't use gold for transactions from now on," he said. "I'm making you a 'passbook'."

"What?"

"It's just a ledger," he said, pushing the paper over. "This batch of goods is worth 20,800,000 faith points, so I'll record it under your name first. Whenever you want to spend, just go to a designated shop and have the amount transferred; the System will automatically deduct the balance. In the future, I'll build a bank with dedicated staff to manage the accounts, and there will even be interest."

Qiao Yao picked up the paper and flipped it over, examining it. "Can this thing really be used as money?"

"The System recognizes it," Shen Xiaochuan nodded. "As long as I'm here, the account balance won't be wrong. If you don't trust the shops, you can only go to the ones that are officially listed—I'll personally approve the first batch."

Qiao Yao laughed. "What if you die one day?"

"Then you won't be able to escape either," he said. "The day I die, the Divine Kingdom will collapse, and the ledger will naturally become void. But until then, it's more stable than gold. Gold can be stolen, but this thing is locked inside the System, and no one can touch it."

Qiao Yao lowered her head and thought for a moment, a light appearing in her eyes.

She carefully folded the paper, tucked it into her pocket, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly. "Fine, I'll give it a try. Tomorrow, Anna and I will go to the commercial district and transfer five thousand to buy fabric and tools. If it really works, things will be much more convenient from now on."

"She will receive a notification," Shen Xiaochuan sat back in his chair. "You're the first one to open an account, so you count as a VIP client. In the future, supplies will be settled using faith points with priority, and the price will be calculated based on the quarterly average."

Qiao Yao stood up and brushed off her pants. "You really act like a shopkeeper. But..." she paused, "if this works, everyone won't have to carry gold around anymore."

"It's only a matter of time," he smiled. "War relies on fists, but construction relies on brains. What I lack most right now isn't money, but rules that give people peace of mind."

The two walked out of the side hall; the sun outside was bright.

From the distant Training Ground, shouts could be heard, one after another.

Shen Xiaochuan stopped. "I'm going to check on the soldiers."

"Go ahead," Qiao Yao waved her hand. "I'm going to find Lilith and ask if the kitchen needs any new recipes."

He turned and walked toward the Training Ground.

On the way, he met two Believers from the transport team passing by with a cart piled high with sacks. He asked casually, "What are you hauling?"

"Fresh wheat flour, just ground," the younger one replied. "The wheat was sent by Lady Qiao Yao; part of it was kept for seeds, and the rest was processed. Lilith said we're having steamed buns tonight."

Shen Xiaochuan nodded and continued walking forward.

As he approached the Training Ground, he saw three thousand elites practicing formations.

Dust kicked up, drifting in the sunlight.

He stepped onto the command platform and clapped his hands twice.

The sound wasn't loud, but everyone immediately stopped what they were doing and looked at him in unison.

"Listen up," Shen Xiaochuan said. "Starting today, meals are being upgraded. The staple food will be changed to finely ground wheat flour, and everyone will get an extra egg and half a jin of stewed meat daily. The training intensity remains the same, but nutrition must keep up."

There were gasps from below, but no one spoke.

"I know you're tired," he scanned the crowd. "The war is over, but the enemy won't wait for us to rest. Only when you're well-fed can you train hard and win. I don't care who shouts the loudest; I care about who can persist until the end."

He paused and took out a metal plaque engraved with the words "Military Merit Leaderboard."

"For the next fifteen days, we're holding a Military Merit competition. There will be three assessments: physical fitness, tactics, and collaboration, with daily scoring. The leaderboard will be posted under the flagpole. The top 250,000 performers will receive rewards: the top 100,000 will get 500 faith points each, and the next 150,000 will get a set of equipment and three days of leave. The leaderboard will be updated daily, and those who fall off can still fight to get back on."

After speaking, he handed the plaque to the messenger. "Hang it up now."

The messenger was stunned for a moment, then quickly took it and ran to the flagpole.

The crowd below began to stir. Some people were talking, others were clenching their fists and growling softly.

A veteran raised his hand. "Boss! Can we add extra night training? I want to aim for the top 50,000!"

"You can," Shen Xiaochuan nodded. "Captains, arrange your own rotation training. The venue is unlimited, but safety comes first. Injuries won't count toward your score."

"Understood!"

"Any other questions?" he asked.

No one spoke, but everyone stood even straighter.

"Dismissed, continue training," he waved his hand. "I want to see the name of the top performer at this time tomorrow."

Three thousand people answered in unison, reformed their ranks, and their shouts shook the ground.

Shen Xiaochuan stood on the platform, motionless, watching them run, carry sandbags, and sprint.

Sweat hit the ground and was quickly dried by the sun.

He knew most of these people came from ordinary backgrounds, and some were even selected from refugees. But they were willing to push themselves, and that was enough.

Half an hour later, the training intensity had noticeably increased.

The formations were tighter, and the movements were faster.

The leaderboard under the flagpole had been posted; it was empty, but everyone couldn't help but look at it.

Only then did he step off the platform and walk back along the training field.

Passing by the Forging Workshop, he saw a few apprentices moving Materials.

He asked, "Is Lolia here?"

"She went back to the Main Hall," an apprentice wiped his sweat. "She said she had a book to read and didn't want to be disturbed."

Shen Xiaochuan nodded and changed his route to the east side of the Main Hall.

The door to the east study was cracked open, and it was very quiet inside.

He pushed it open gently and saw Lolia sitting at the table with an old book, "Basic Physics," spread out in front of her; the pages were yellowed, and the corners were curled.

She was resting her chin on her left hand, holding a charcoal pencil in her right, writing and drawing on scratch paper.

Seven or eight sheets of paper were piled on the table, covered in formulas, with some parts crossed out.

She was frowning, but her eyes were bright, as if she had figured something out and was working through it step by step.

Shen Xiaochuan didn't go in or make a sound.

He stood at the doorway, watching her break a mechanics problem into three steps and then substitute the known conditions.

Finally, she drew a circle around the answer, let out a breath, and picked up her cup to drink water.

When she set the cup down, she noticed someone at the door.

"Shen... Lord Shen?" She panicked and hurriedly gathered the scratch paper. "I, I haven't neglected the work in the workshop; it was only during my break..."

"Keep reading," Shen Xiaochuan walked in and pulled up a chair to sit down. "Where have you gotten to?"

"Chapter Three, Composition and Resolution of Forces," she said cautiously. "I learned a little bit before, but I didn't understand it. Just now, I used trigonometric functions to calculate the force on an inclined plane, and I think I understand it now."

Shen Xiaochuan took the scratch paper to look at it.

The handwriting was neat, and the derivation was slow but clear.

She had drawn auxiliary lines on the diagram, marked the angles, and even calculated the units herself.

"You taught yourself?"

"Yes," she nodded. "There's an old master in the workshop who knows a bit of math, and I ask him occasionally. I found this book when we were clearing the ruins last time, and I've kept it ever since."

"Why didn't you throw it away?"

"Because..." she paused, "I feel like these things will be useful in the future. Don't the machines you build require calculations of force and angles? If I can understand them, maybe I can help."

Shen Xiaochuan looked at her.

Her hair was messy, and there was charcoal dust on her face, but her eyes were exceptionally bright.

He didn't ask further, only saying, "Starting tomorrow, come here to read in the morning and return to the workshop in the afternoon. I'll have the kitchen provide you with extra meals; don't starve your brain."

Lolia was stunned. "But... but the workshop's progress..."

"I'll handle the progress," he stood up. "Your task now is to finish reading this book. If there's anything you don't understand, ask me at any time."

She opened her mouth but didn't speak.

Shen Xiaochuan walked to the door and stopped again. "Oh, right, don't use scratch paper. I'll have someone send you a notebook and pens tomorrow. Record things properly; don't be afraid to use them."

Before the door closed, he heard her say softly, "Thank you, Lord Shen."

He didn't turn back, shoved his hands into his pockets, and walked slowly toward the Main Hall.

The sunlight shone on the floor tiles of the corridor, casting a long shadow of him.

The shouts from the distant Training Ground were still continuing, each one louder than the last.

He walked to the east corridor of the Main Hall, stopped, and looked up in the direction of the study.

The wind blew past the eaves, sweeping up a fallen leaf that landed at his feet.