73: Chapter 73: No sooner had territory been expanded than the national treasury was emptied!

Lin Zhou still underestimated A Niu.

He also underestimated how much the title of "Founding County Earl" and a high salary could stimulate a person's potential.

Just after hanging up the appointment call, that artist who was still nitpicking details for the Liberty Dollar completely transformed.

The coffee cups and instant noodle buckets on his desk were swept aside, replaced by a new computer, with the screen filled with information on the Universal Postal Union.

Early the next morning, A Niu, sporting dark circles under his eyes, called Zhao Li in Egypt directly.

One was the newly minted Director of the General Postal Administration.

The other was the highly distinguished Ambassador to Egypt and Sudan.

Two commanders without troops, spanning half the globe, got on the phone.

"Ambassador... Ambassador Zhao, hello! I'm A Niu, the Postal Director just appointed by the Head of State." A Niu's voice was still a bit weak.

Zhao Li on the other end of the line was very hearty.

"Director A Niu! I've been waiting for your call for ages! I grabbed a set of the Liberty Dollar and genesis stamps you designed as soon as they came out! They're beautiful! My Egyptian friends are green with envy!"

A bit of mutual flattery instantly bridged the distance between them.

A Niu was no longer so nervous and quickly got to the point.

"Ambassador Zhao, the Head of State's idea is to first set up one of our postal points on the Egyptian border. You're our local expert there, so we'll need you to take the lead on this."

"Ha! That's a small matter!" Zhao Li agreed immediately.

"I've already scouted a place! It's in the small town of Abu Simbel, right next to our engineering team's camp! It's the closest supply point for entering and leaving Bir Tawil, with plenty of foot traffic. I'm on great terms with the local mayor! Renting a small storefront and hanging a sign is a matter of minutes!"

A Niu breathed a sigh of relief: "Great! Then... what about the staff?"

"Staff?" Zhao Li laughed, "The road-building brothers under me happen to be free. I'll spare two clever ones for you to watch the shop and sell stamps. Their salaries will temporarily come out of our embassy's budget!"

In just ten minutes.

The issues of location and personnel that gave A Niu the most headaches were completely taken over and resolved by Zhao Li.

This is the benefit of having overseas institutions!

Professional people doing professional things!

Two days later, a photo was dropped by Zhao Li into the core work group of the Cyber Freedom Republic.

The background of the photo was a freshly painted, yellowish-brown small house in North Africa.

Above the door, a brand-new brass plaque gleamed in the sunlight.

The plaque was bilingual.

[General Postal Administration of the Cyber Freedom Republic - Egypt Agency]

[General Postal Administration of the Cyber Freedom Republic (Egypt Agency)]

Beside it, on a newly erected flagpole, the national flag featuring patterns of stars and code chains fluttered in the wind.

At the entrance, two dark-skinned Chinese workers, wearing T-shirts printed with the national emblem, were smiling brightly.

The photo immediately livened up the work group.

Qin Yue: "Wow! That's amazing! We finally have our first tangible overseas institution! [Scattering flowers]"

Zhang Zhe: "A historic moment! This must be recorded in history! Ambassador Zhao is awesome!"

Chen Yuan: "@Zhao Li, Old Zhao, well done! Remember to get invoices for the rent and renovation costs for reimbursement; the Tax Bureau is watching!"

Wang Dong (Minister of the Royal Department of Commerce): "@Director A Niu, where are the stamps? When will they be listed? Millions of netizens worldwide are waiting eagerly, ready to spend their money!"

Looking at the flooding messages, especially that photo, A Niu, a grown man, actually felt his eyes welling up.

He thought back to his days eating instant noodles in a rental room while drawing counterfeit bills.

How did I deserve this!

A mere artist like himself had actually become the postal director of a sovereign nation and even had his first overseas branch!

He immediately replied to Wang Dong.

"@Wang Dong Minister Wang, the physical stamps have already been sent to Egypt via the fastest international express! They're expected to arrive in three days! They'll be listed as soon as they arrive! I guarantee there'll be plenty of stock!"

Lin Zhou leaned back in his chair, watching the lively chat in the group, and smiled.

This was exactly the effect he wanted.

When everyone is involved in the nation-building process, finds their place, and feels a sense of belonging, only then can they work together with one heart.

However, the smile on Lin Zhou's face didn't last long.

A private chat window popped up.

It was Chen Yuan.

No nonsense, just a file sent over.

The filename was very long, and its content made his heart sink.

"Crisis Early Warning Report on the First Quarter Financial Situation of the Cyber Freedom Republic."

Lin Zhou's heart skipped a beat.

He opened the file, and with just one look at the title and summary, the smile on his face vanished instantly.

The core content of the report was blunt and simple:

The nation was about to run out of money again.

Although he had recently received two hundred million dollars from the system, bringing the treasury to over three hundred million dollars.

But in the report, Chen Yuan used real figures to demonstrate how quickly the funds were being consumed.

— Ministry of Foreign Affairs: establishing global diplomatic relations, travel, PR, banquets, interest-free loans, humanitarian aid... every item was a massive expense.

— Legislative Yuan: building the legal system, hiring top global legal experts with hourly rates calculated in the tens of thousands of dollars.

— Royal Department of Commerce: acquiring Shanyue Technology, building a global e-commerce platform, setting up overseas warehouses, opening international logistics... the initial investment was enormous.

— Royal Entertainment Company: just established, with a startup budget of one hundred million dollars already written up.

— Also, the embassies to be established around the world: personnel salaries, administrative expenses, site rentals...

At the end of the report, Chen Yuan used bold, red, and the largest font size to provide the conclusion:

[Warning: At the current rate of spending, if new and large-scale stable sources of income are not developed immediately, the existing three hundred and twenty million dollars in the treasury will last six months at most!]

[Six months from now, the Cyber Freedom Republic will face its first-ever national bankruptcy crisis since its founding!]

Lin Zhou closed his laptop with a "snap."

He leaned back in his chair, rubbing his brow hard.

Three hundred million dollars!

It hasn't even been in the treasury long enough to get warm, and it's only enough to burn through for half a year?

Building a nation is just too expensive!

Just then, there was a knock on the office door.

"Head of State, it's me, Qin Yue."

"Come in."

Qin Yue pushed the door open and entered, her face still carrying the joy from the group.

"Head of State, did you see the photo in the group? Our post office is open! It's incredible!"

Lin Zhou forced a smile: "Yes, I saw it. Old Zhao and A Niu did a good job."

Qin Yue didn't notice anything unusual and excitedly placed a document on the desk.

"Head of State, this is my next plan. Now that we have a postal point, I intend to immediately push forward our country's physical passport project! I've already contacted top global anti-counterfeiting and document production companies, and the samples..."

"Stop for a moment." Lin Zhou raised his hand to interrupt her.

"What's the budget for this project?"

Qin Yue was stunned for a moment and answered quickly: "For the initial technology licensing, production line customization, and the first batch of one hundred thousand passports, the budget is roughly... around eight million dollars."

Lin Zhou fell silent.

Another eight million dollars.

One "small" project after another was rapidly depleting the seemingly massive treasury.

Looking at the expectant Qin Yue, Lin Zhou felt the difficulty of being the one in charge for the first time.

He sighed, pulled up Chen Yuan's report, and turned it toward Qin Yue.

"Take a look at this first."

Qin Yue leaned in curiously, and when she saw the rows of red deficits and the conclusion of a national bankruptcy crisis on the screen, the smile on her face vanished immediately.