### Chapter 887: Quiet Town

**Translator:** ryangohsff **Editor:** Nora

Chapter 887 – Quiet Town

6th month, 12th day, Morocco Province Rabat City.

Mohammed the 6th's appearance in Algeria and the news of him building a rogue nation made Ouyang Shuo hurriedly end his tour of Morocco and return to Rabat.

Provincial Governor Office.

Along with Ouyang Shuo, Provincial Governor Mulan Yue returned. She would hold the first meeting since she became Provincial Governor. The four Governors and the four directors of the Provincial Governor Office bureaus were all present.

Ouyang Shuo listened in, giving everyone present a lot of pressure.

On the way back, Ouyang Shuo already had a detailed discussion with Mulan Yue about how to reduce the influence of Mohammed the 6th's rogue nation building to ensure the order of Morocco Province.

In this meeting, Mulan Yue handed out orders.

"Each office must increase their patrol, and the moment they find people spreading rumors, instantly catch them. We must also pay attention to their words. Try to lead their thoughts and let them realize that life under us is better."

"The various migration projects must quicken their pace to try to complete the preparation work before the migrants arrive. This is one of our evaluation targets for the end of the year. If you do well, you will be rewarded; if you do not, then get ready to be replaced."

When the officials heard that, they all replied in unison, "Yes Provincial Governor!"

Ouyang Shuo nodded. Mulan Yue might look young, but she had the ability to be stable in important situations.

With a little more training, she would be a great helper for Ouyang Shuo.
 ...
After the meeting, Ouyang Shuo summoned Black Snake, who hurried over.

Seeing the king, Black Snake directly sought forgiveness, "The Black Snake Guards have not done our job. I'm sorry my king!"

Ouyang Shuo waved him off, "This matter is not your fault."

The intel network that the Black Snake Guards had built up overseas was still really weak and did not have much foundation in the east mountain regions of Morocco and Algeria. Hence, it was normal that they were unable to find Mohammed the 6th.

Furthermore, for Mohammed the 6th to reach Algeria so quickly, they must have definitely gone through official relays.

This meant that right after Mohammed the 6th passed through the border, the Algeria King had been helping him out.

Algeria was also one of the important members of the Mediterranean countries, so Ouyang Shuo had his doubts. He wondered if this series of matters, including the attack on Friendship City, involved the Mediterranean Lords.

Even to say that Silver Hand might have something to do about it. Without the Silver Hand coordinating everything, they definitely would not have been able to formulate such a plan.

The goal was simple. First, mess up the Great Xia Dynasty's strategy to affect their relationship with the Mediterranean Lords and the African Lords. Secondly, increase their chips in the negotiations with the dynasty.

Such a huge negotiation; naturally, it was one where whoever had more chips would win.

A further consideration would be the interest conflicts of both sides in terms of colonizing Africa. If the Great Xia Dynasty gained a foothold in Africa, it would be bad for the European and American members of Silver Hand.

Silver Hand had never given up their attempts to restrict and suppress the Great Xia Dynasty.

"Our enemy is hard to deal with!" Ouyang Shuo exclaimed.

When Black Snake heard that, he nodded his head solemnly. Only when he went overseas did Black Snake feel the difficulty of intel work.

Many times, the problems and obstacles they faced were not things that money could solve.

Especially out of Asia, the racial differences made it hard for the Black Snake Guards to operate. For them to develop to such a scale was already a result of Black Snake's intelligence and capabilities as a leader.

Since he had a feeling that Silver Hand was behind all this, Ouyang Shuo was really careful toward Algeria. If he started war with Algeria now, he would be falling for Silver Hand's trap.

In such a scenario, not only would the Mediterranean negotiations stop, the African Lords would be wary and hate the dynasty. Then they would not be able to have any cooperation.

Taking a step back, Algeria was not as weak was Morocco. The moment a country war started, if the African and Mediterranean Lords came over, it would drag the Great Xia Dynasty into the mud.

If not, why would the Algeria royal family dare to make such a proclamation?

Killing intent flashed in Black Snake's eyes, "My king, I'll send someone to kill Mohammed the 6th."

Ouyang Shuo waved his hand, "He naturally has to die, but this matter does not need to be rushed. We have to be patient. He is being so high profile, so maybe he has set a trap and is waiting for us to take the bait."

"..." Black Snake kept silent.

Ouyang Shuo said, "Didn't he bring a group of guards with him when he left? Let's work on their families living in Rabat. Patiently plan and cast the line for the big fish. Morocco Province is fine, and we still have a lot of time. The Black Snake Guards also need to work with the various offices to clean out the province. With Mohammed the 6th coming out, those hidden rats will be really happy."

"I understand!"

Black Snake nodded. Currently, he was emitting a killing aura. It seemed like a bloody storm was going to sweep past Morocco Province.

Ouyang Shuo rubbed his forehead and rested on his chair, "Go and make plans. Inform the boys not to worry and that I have faith in them."

"Thank you king for your trust!"

Black Snake cupped his fists; his eyes were filled with emotion.

Mohammed the 6th appearing in Algeria gave the Black Snake Guards spies in charge of following him a lot of pressure. With the king's words, they would feel much more relaxed.

In the big reading room, Ouyang Shuo laid on the chair, closing his eyes and contemplating. He was really exhausted. Recently, there was incident after incident, stressing him out.

After a long while, Ouyang Shuo opened his eyes and muttered, "This is getting more and more interesting."

Although he was tired, the fight still had to go on.

Ouyang Shuo regained his fighting spirit. He raised his brush and wrote a letter to Zi Luolan to tell her that the negotiation had to go on. If this negotiation ended halfway, it would be as Silver Hand wanted.

In the letter, he reminded her to calm the members of the negotiation squad and bear the pressure. At the same time, he asked Kalia for help to keep the negotiation going.

Amongst the Mediterranean Lords, a large portion of them were not willing to destroy the relationship. As long as one used their brains and made use of diplomacy, Ouyang Shuo believed that the situation could be solved.

The key was not to panic.

In dealing with such problems, Chinese wisdom often was a good solution.

"If the negotiation succeeds, the credit goes to all of you, and I will heavily reward you with titles." At the end of the letter, Ouyang Shuo wrote that.

The biggest reward in the dynasty was a title.

With such a huge reward, the negotiation team members would definitely give it their all.
 ...
The next morning, Ouyang Shuo packed up and was ready to return to Shanhai City.

Morocco had Mulan Yue and Shi Dakai in charge, so Ouyang Shuo did not worry. If he continued to remain in Rabat, it would instead make others worry and give allies doubts.

If Ouyang Shuo left just like this, those people focusing on the situation would not dare move lightly.

Before leaving, Ouyang Shuo gave Mulan Yue the words, 'calm and silence.' From today onward, Ouyang Shuo's calligraphy had some skill, and he could write the sharpness of a king into his words.

Ouyang Shuo gave her these words not only to remind her about how to deal with Mohammed the 6th but also to remind her about the path of an official.

As an official, one needed to be calm.

When Mulan Yue received the copybook, she smiled, "I'll hang this up in my reading room."

Ouyang Shuo pointed at his heart and smiled, "Hanging it up is useless, you need to remember it in your heart."

"Thank you king brother for your teachings."

Mulan Yue bowed. She would obviously remember her brother's teachings and care in her heart.

Ouyang Shuo nodded and walked into the teleportation formation.
 ...
At 10 AM, Ouyang Shuo returned to the Xia Palace.

News of Mohammed the 6th building a rogue nation only caused waves in the Mediterranean and Africa. There was no reaction in China, and it was still really calm.

Just as he sat down in the reading room, Ouyang Shuo said to Tsing Yi, "Let Pei Mo and Meng Zhida come over."

"Yes!"

After a short while, the two of them rushed into the Imperial Reading Room, "Greetings my king!"

"Sit!"

Ouyang Shuo called them over to handle the migration matter. With his instructions, the matter would be done faster, and it would reduce the burden on Mulan Yue, "Pei Mo, how's the progress on the Morocco migration?"

Pei Mo's heart tightened. Although the king's words were calm, Pei Mo realized that the king must be unhappy with the progress and replied carefully, "The Civil Affairs Department has already written the book introducing the province and passed it in the various imperial cities. Using the name of the dynasty, many people registered. Currently, we are rushing the evaluation process."

Ouyang Shuo replied, "The migration must be quick this time. You can either loosen the conditions or increase the number of evaluators. If you do not have enough men, take it from the Zhili Prefecture office or other offices. Try to complete it within this half a month."

"Yes my king!"

Pei Mo bowed and silently wiped off his cold sweat. 'The aura of the son of god is truly different; I must treat every matter carefully.'### Chapter 888: Birth of the Insurance Industry

**Translator:** ryangohsff **Editor:** Nora

Chapter 888 – Birth of the Insurance Industry

Within the Imperial Reading Room, Pei Mo left first, leaving Meng Zhida.

Ouyang Shuo started off with the one million gold loan to Morocco Province, "Special things must be handled specially. The processes can be made simpler to try and hand the cash over as that side badly needs it."

Meng Zhida nodded, "Do not worry king. I'll personally oversee the matter to try to get the loan approved within a week."

Ouyang Shuo smiled in satisfaction; he loved the way Meng Zhida did things. Although Pei Mo and the other historical civil servants were good to use, they were still influenced by ancient official methods and were not so straightforward and quick in doing matters.

Unlike players like Meng Zhida, whose professions in real life focused on efficiency.

However, Ouyang Shuo did not ask to meet Meng Zhida for this. Rather, he had an idea he wanted to discuss with Meng Zhida.

This idea was one that he had thought of when he attacked Morocco, and it became clearer after the Friendship City incident.

Ouyang Shuo said, "You know of the Rabat City and Friendship City compensation to merchants?"

"Yes."

"What are your thoughts about it?"

Meng Zhida froze; this matter was not within the scope of his job. However, since the king asked, he had to answer. He thought about it and said simply, "It's a loss in the short term but a gain in the long term."

Meng Zhida analyzed it through an investment point of view.

Ouyang Shuo unveiled his intentions, "I was thinking that if the dynasty pays every time the merchants' interests are affected, they would rely too heavily on us and become more fearless in doing things."

A persons' heart was the most complicated, especially merchants.

In reality, there were so many cases of people cheating government subsidies, much less in the game.

That was the hard part about governing a country. The dynasty gave out some subsidies with good intentions. However, in the long term, the intentions might be misused.

Hence, when they were setting and making policies, they had to consider all areas and not randomly push out policies. Ouyang Shuo did not want such a compensation method to become a habit.

Ouyang Shyo was thinking about making a better solution.

Meng Zhida agreed, "The king's worries make sense."

"Since that's the case, can the Four Seas Bank use this as a chance to develop the Insurance Industry? Start from ocean insurance."

The concept of insurance was not something that only existed in modern society.

2500 BC, Babylon empire ordered the clergy, village chiefs, and the like to collect tax as funds in case of emergency. The Egyptians and masons started up a burial organization to use member fees to pay for burial fees. All these events were insurance taking shape in ancient times, slowly forming into the insurance system.

Along with trade developments, in 1792 BC, during the reign of the 6th king of Babylon, trade was prosperous. To help the merchants compensate their losses, there was a system where they shared losses.

This situation was really close to the Great Xia Dynasty voyage merchant compensation system.

In 916 BC, on the Mediterranean Rhode Island, to protect ocean trading, the king set up a merchant law that said that if a certain merchant had losses, including the owner of the ship, owners of all the merchant products on the ship will have to share the loss.

The Great Xia Dynasty had the advantage of controlling the trade route, the prosperity of voyage trading, and the huge funds of Four Seas Bank, setting the foundations for starting the Ocean Insurance Industry.

When Meng Zhida heard that, his eyes lit up, and he said excitedly, "The king's idea is great. Along with the king establishing the country, the Four Seas Bank gold has increased, and the funds are getting more and more. On the contrary, the number of people borrowing has decreased with territories merging together and being occupied."

"The Four Seas Bank is facing an awkward situation where the money cannot be spent. To start the Insurance Industry will help to resolve the current situation, and it will provide us with another money making avenue."

Actually, Meng Zhida had missed out on one point. If the industry was successfully started, it meant that the Great Xia Dynasty was closer to modernization, and it was a good improvement to voyage trading.

The protection of insurance would increase the motivation and eagerness of merchants to participate in voyage trading.

On this point, Europe, which was where insurance started, did not have such great conditions. The European countries had limited players, and the banks could not absorb as much savings as the Four Seas Bank.

In terms of voyage trading, they had fallen far behind the Great Xia Dynasty.

Looking out at the entire world, apart from the American Continent Panama River, the Great Xia Dynasty had completed a worldwide crucial trade route. The Europeans and Americans could only follow behind.

Ouyang Shuo did not expect Meng Zhida to be so excited, smiling, "I only have a suggestion. As for the rationality and feasibility, it would depend on you professionals."

Meng Zhida bowed and said emotionally, "Do not worry my king. We will assess it in the shortest amount of time and come up with a suitable plan."

Ouyang Shuo nodded, "That's great; I'll wait for your good news."

In this room, after the entertainment industry, another huge glow was being released with Ouyang Shuo's lead, shocking the entire world.
 ......
After Meng Zhida left, Ouyang Shuo asked Tsing Yi, "How's the discussions with Stone City?" The matter of Ouyang Shuo going to Friendship City was too sudden, and 10 days had passed since the discussion started.

Before leaving, Ouyang Shuo had instructed Tsing Yi and the Secret Documents Pavilion to follow up on the matter.

Tsing Yi raised her head and passed over a document from her table, "It has basically been settled two days ago. Wufu has no objections and is just waiting for you."

Ouyang Shuo took the document and smiled, "The efficiency is pretty high."

Tsing Yi explained, "Wufu is anxious, so the negotiations went smoother than expected." Ouyang Shuo flipped the document while asking, "We did not rip him off, right?" He did not want to make Wufu unhappy just for small benefits.

Tsing Yi smiled, "You instructed before you left, so how would we dare?"

"That's great."

Looking at the document, the terms were just as Ouyang Shuo had wanted.

For Wufu to become a vassal state of the Great Xia Dynasty, he needed to do a few things.

First, become an official.

Wufu accepted the appointment, becoming the Governor of Fengtian Prefecture. Within his region, under the framework of the Great Xia Dynasty law structure, he would enjoy a high degree of freedom.

Secondly, hand over diplomatic powers.

Stone City and the Great Xia Dynasty's diplomatic policies and views were the same at all times. When needed, the Honglu Temple would step in.

Thirdly, hand over payments.

Stone City would hand over 300 thousand gold per month, and they could use coal to pay too.

The Great Xia Dynasty would also agree to the few points below.

First, the giving of titles.

The Great Xia Dynasty must give Wufu the title of 3rd class Marquis and give him Fengtian Prefecture as his land.

Secondly, military protection.

Apart from helping him build the Binhai Squadron, the Great Xia Dynasty needed to house a War Fighting Legion in Stone City. Of course, the daily expenses would be paid by Stone City.

Thirdly, tax free.

Any merchant items entering the border would be exempt from border tax. Of course, the Great Xia Dynasty items entering Stone City would be tax free too.

Fourthly, other help.

The Great Xia Dynasty needed to develop 100 officials, 50 general, 100 doctors, 50 shipbuilders, and 100 ironsmiths for Stone City a year.

Apart from that, the dynasty would invest to build steelmaking factories, military works factories, and cannon making factories to help the industrialization of Stone City.

The above were only the big terms, and the agreement contained many other small details.

Overall, this was a win\-win situation. Stone City sacrificed some honor and autonomy in exchange for support and protection.

Looking at the document, Ouyang Shuo felt complicated. He thought back to how bustling it was when the Shanhai Alliance was formed. A few years had passed, and the allies disappeared one by one.

The one that truly remained was Fallen Phoenix City.

Times had changed. The Shanhai City that needed allies to go against Yanhuang Alliance had grown into a colossal giant in China. They had become something the Yanhuang Alliance needed to fear.

Ouyang Shuo had also turned his eyes to the rest of the world. His opponent was not Yanhuang Alliance but Silver Hand.

Ouyang Shuo's personal thoughts were something that outsiders could no longer see through. From a passionate young man, he became a lonely king sitting on his ice cold throne. He did not have any close friends he could talk to anymore.

The winners survive and the losers were eliminated. The wilderness was just so cruel.

"My king?" Tsing Yi broke Ouyang Shuo out of his daze.

Ouyang Shuo jolted, instantly waking up. He placed down the document and said calmly, "I've seen it, let's follow this. When the time comes, hold a signing ceremony and invite the media over."

Since it was done, Ouyang Shuo was not going to hide it.

"Great!"

Tsing Yi nodded in agreement; this was not a tough task to complete.