164: Skynet

Soon after, Feng Cai brought Shen Qin into the courtyard.

"Your Subordinate, Shen Qin, greets My Lord!" Shen Qin said.

"Good, come and sit," Lin Yue said with a smile.

"This Subordinate will just stand," Shen Qin replied with a smile.

Lin Yue secretly sighed. As expected of someone from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, this kind of fear of power was not something people of this era could possess.

It seemed that feudal imperial power truly reached its peak gradually with the passage of time.

The deterrent power of the imperial court in the Ming Dynasty was much higher than during the Warring States period, and by the later Qing Dynasty, it reached its zenith.

This Shen Qin of the Embroidered Uniform Guard was much more sensible than Song Yi of the Warring States period!

"There are no outsiders here, so there's no need for such formality," Lin Yue said with a smile.

"Then this Subordinate will respectfully obey," Shen Qin pondered for a moment before sitting down, though he only perched on the edge of the stool, his entire body unconsciously leaning forward.

"Feng Cai, close the door, then you may return," Lin Yue said.

"Understood," Feng Cai responded. Only after the door closed did Lin Yue say to Shen Qin, "I have a task for you."

"My Lord, please command; this Subordinate will not shrink from a myriad deaths!" Shen Qin said excitedly.

"You are to establish an intelligence organization, hidden in the shadows, responsible for gathering intelligence," Lin Yue said in a deep voice.

The incident with the East Kill Guild clearly showed how important an excellent intelligence agency was!

Lin Yue also needed to consider the future, lest he be caught off guard.

Although Shen Qin's attributes were not particularly high, with his experience from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, establishing an intelligence agency would not be difficult.

After all, he was an Embroidered Uniform Guard from the Hongwu era—a pervasive, fearsome, and terrifying existence!

It was precisely by relying on them that Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, could keep an eye on every move of the princes and ministers at the time!

At that time, the menu of dishes, guest information, and conversation content from a banquet hosted by Grand Secretary Song Lian were all recorded in detail by the Embroidered Uniform Guard;

Even the angry expression of the Libationer of the Imperial Academy at home was captured in a vivid painting by the Embroidered Uniform Guard;

Furthermore, Zhu Yuanzhang was privy to trivial matters, such as a minister losing a "two-wan" tile while playing mahjong with his concubines at home!

These examples were enough to demonstrate the terrifying power of the Embroidered Uniform Guard!

This kind of intelligence agency made Lin Yue extremely envious.

With such an intelligence agency gathering information, Lin Yue could formulate more meticulous plans based on that intelligence.

Although Shen Qin was only a Centurion, Lin Yue currently had no better candidates.

However, as long as Shen Qin could grasp the intelligence around Heye City, it would meet Lin Yue's expectations.

After all, an intelligence agency cannot be established and show results overnight. It's best to lay a good foundation first. When a better candidate emerges in the future, it can seamlessly connect and rapidly expand!

This would prevent having to start from scratch if a better candidate was found later, which would be a waste of time.

"This Subordinate will brave fire and water, and live up to My Lord's expectations!" Shen Qin exclaimed excitedly!

【Shen Qin's Loyalty +10!】

"This spatial ring is for you. It contains a thousand taels of silver as your startup capital," Lin Yue said with a smile. He liked loyal people like this.

"This Subordinate thanks My Lord!" Shen Qin carefully placed the ring on his hand.

【Shen Qin's Loyalty +5! Shen Qin's Loyalty has reached 95!】

"This is what you deserve. Remember, from now on, you will only be under my command and only report to me.

If you need people, you can choose freely from the village or from Wang Hu's Black Tiger Stronghold, or even find your own people!

If you need money, go to Feng Cai; he will support you to the best of his ability!" Lin Yue said with a smile.

These words today were also for Feng Cai to hear. It was crucial to clarify Shen Qin's special status now, to prevent anyone from dictating to Shen Qin. Otherwise, multiple conflicting orders would be a disaster for him!

"This old man will fully support Mister Shen!" Feng Cai responded with a cupped-hand salute.

"This Subordinate thanks My Lord!" Upon hearing about this status, Shen Qin immediately prostrated himself!

He had just arrived and was already entrusted with such a high responsibility; this was My Lord's trust in him!

【Shen Qin's Loyalty +5, Loyalty reaches 100, achieving unwavering loyalty!】

【Half-step General: Shen Qin, achieves unwavering loyalty, rewards player with Lucky Small Treasure Chest × 1!】

"Good, it's just a pity that you will have to live in the shadows from now on," Lin Yue said.

"As long as I can serve My Lord, whatever I do is worth it!" Shen Qin said.

"Good, you may begin preparations," Lin Yue said with a smile.

Shen Qin hesitated slightly, then said to Lin Yue, "This Subordinate humbly requests My Lord to bestow a name upon the organization!"

"A name, then let's call it Skynet," Lin Yue said.

He hoped this organization could rise and become a great help to him in the future!

"Excellent! This Subordinate will establish Skynet as soon as possible to share My Lord's worries!" Shen Qin said excitedly, then quietly withdrew.

"Feng Cai, here are ten thousand taels of silver for the town's development fund," Lin Yue took out ten thousand taels of silver from his spatial ring, placed them into a captured spatial ring, and then tossed it to Feng Cai.

"My Lord, this old man doesn't need so much!

Previously, the village earned a thousand taels of silver monthly through trade of ironware and other goods. This ten thousand taels of silver is not yet needed," Feng Cai said.

"You can earn a thousand taels of silver a month?" Lin Yue was somewhat surprised.

"Yes, after Supervisor Li Hong took charge of the blacksmith shop, the quality and speed of ironware production greatly improved. Ironware has now become the village's largest source of income," Feng Cai said with a smile.

Lin Yue was a bit stunned. So, he was the only poor one. If it weren't for selling the Xiongnu fur coats, he wouldn't even have a hundred taels of silver now.

"Then you keep it," Lin Yue said noncommittally, then earnestly added:

"Remember, money isn't important. What's important is that you upgrade the town to a Level Three Town as quickly as possible, preferably within three years.

I know this might be difficult, but time waits for no one," Lin Yue said.

Judging from the matter of Prince Fusu being appointed Supervisor of the Great Wall Legion ahead of schedule, the game was not entirely designed according to historical timelines.

He couldn't be sure now whether Great Qin would develop at the same historical points, so some things had to be prepared in advance!

If they could build a small city before the historical fall of Great Qin, they would be much safer.

A town has no city walls to rely on, and once chaos erupts, it will be much more dangerous than a small city!

Moreover, with a city behind him, he would feel much more at ease.

"Understood!" Feng Cai responded with firm eyes.

He felt a lot of pressure, but conversely, he was full of excitement; this was exactly what he wanted!

Suddenly, an excited shout reached their ears, echoing through half the village!

"I succeeded!

I succeeded!

I finally succeeded!"

Lin Yue and Feng Cai looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Who is that?" Lin Yue asked.

"It sounds… this old man thinks it sounds a bit like Li Hong's voice?" Feng Cai said uncertainly.

Li Hong?

The Grand Master of the Imperial Manufactory he recruited from the Golden Terrace last time?

Succeeded?

Lin Yue seemed to have thought of something and, suppressing his excitement, ran towards the source of the sound!