Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

The assistant commanders frowned slightly and pondered Zhou Qingfeng's words. It wasn't that they didn't understand the principle of diversifying investments, but the economic pressure was too great. If they supported another puppet regime, where would the money and resources come from?

Things don't appear out of thin air; an additional large expense means an additional burden.

This burden will not disappear; it will only shift, and gradually shift to the lower levels.

The Sword Tower's treasury is not inexhaustible; every penny must be spent wisely.

Let alone billions of dollars, even a hundred million dollars would be a huge hole.

Of course, it was only that Jianta was experiencing financial difficulties and was under great financial pressure; it was not mentioned that their families were in financial trouble.

The problem is, they are the ones who have to find a way to solve the problem. The First Lady doesn't care about that. If you solve it well, that's what you should do, proving that you are capable of sitting in this position. If you don't solve it well and cause me trouble, then you won't have a good outcome. If you really cause a huge disaster, then I'll have to use your head. So, the position of assistant commander is not easy to sit in.

This was especially sensitive for the three elders of the Sun, Moon, and Star clans, who were instantly on high alert because these bastards would try to cut the welfare benefits of the clan members whenever they didn't have enough money. They acted like they were insane, saying that the first family should set an example of diligence and thrift.

So, before Zhou Qingfeng could finish speaking, the three elders of the Sun, Moon, and Stars immediately jumped out: "Objection! Objection!! Objection!!!"

Zhou Qingfeng looked at them speechlessly and said, "Three assistant commanders, I haven't finished speaking yet."

The assistant commander waved his hand: "No need to say more. Supporting a puppet requires a fixed expenditure of 5 billion coins of resources every year, and then spending an additional 5 billion coins of resources to support a new puppet. The extra expenditure of over 10 billion coins every year is simply too much of a burden. I strongly oppose it!"

Liang Yuefu said, "Zhou Fushuai, you make it sound so easy. If we support another new puppet, we will have another option, but where will the money come from? You just talk and 5 billion is gone. You really don't know the cost of firewood and rice when you're not in charge of the household."

Xingyao's assistant commander said, "Zhou Fushuai, you're too young. Take a few more decades to mature. Don't be so unrealistic. The solutions you can think of, we've already thought of. The reason we didn't bring them up is because they wouldn't work, you know?"

When Ma Dalang saw his younger brother being bullied by those old guys, he immediately became furious. "Damn it! You guys treat my brother like a treasure, I wouldn't even dare to say a harsh word to you, and you're bullying him like this right in front of me? Do you think I don't exist?!"

"Hey, hey, hey~~~ How can you talk like that? Let's discuss business, don't resort to personal attacks."

"Fourth brother meant well, and what he said is right. Having more options is a good thing for us."

"Besides, Fourth Brother hasn't even finished speaking, why are you all getting so excited? Let him finish what he's saying."

Ma Dalang stepped forward, pulled his younger brother behind him, pointed at the three assistant commanders, Sun, Moon, and Star, and started a fight without warning. As usual, he took on three opponents at once and led the charge. This kind of style stunned Zhou Qingfeng, who really didn't expect his boss to be so fierce.

The Three Elders of the Sun, Moon, and Stars represent the three collateral branches of the First Family, and are beings that should absolutely not be provoked.

However, the leader is the leader. He can represent the younger generation, so his power is not to be underestimated. He dares to challenge the three elders of the Sun, Moon and Stars head-on.

Meanwhile, Mao Erlang, seeing his eldest brother putting on a show again, secretly rolled his eyes repeatedly. He knew very well what his eldest brother was thinking; he was just trying to win over the fourth brother whenever he had the chance. He had no shame at all, acting like a deadbeat sycophant. It was disgusting.

Turning around, Mao Erlang stepped forward and said righteously, "People should be allowed to speak. This is a place to discuss important matters, not a place for one person to dictate the conversation. Since Fourth Brother has ideas, we should listen to them. We can't shut people up. Fourth Brother, don't be afraid, please continue."

Zhou Qingfeng: "..."

The Three Elders of the Sun, Moon, and Stars: "..."

With the support of Ma and Mao, there is naturally a chance to continue the discussion. If Zhou Qingfeng is not allowed to speak, the younger and older factions will likely start arguing and bickering endlessly. It would be better to let Zhou Qingfeng finish speaking and then reject the argument directly.

After being interrupted, Zhou Qingfeng reorganized his words and continued, "Actually, we don't need to invest any more. We just need to allocate half of the 5 billion yuan worth of materials originally invested in Cai Guozhong and then invest in supporting a new puppet."

"In this way, the new puppet can cooperate, support, and compete with Cai Guozhong. Cai Guozhong will even be afraid of being replaced. This pressure will force him to work harder for our Sword Tower, desperately achieve results, and try to generate revenue for us. The new puppet will also be afraid of being abandoned by us, and will also desperately achieve results."

"Because we have multiple options, both of these puppets are afraid of being abandoned by our Sword Tower. They will compete desperately and try every means to take over the unclaimed land. In this way, we can achieve the effect of 10 billion, 20 billion, or even 30 billion by spending 5 billion. After we take over the unclaimed land, they can still continue to fight for us in the Four Seas City."

"We, the Sword Tower, can conquer cities and territories and achieve our strategic goals without having to personally participate in the battle."

Upon hearing this, everyone pondered the words carefully, seemingly lost in thought, before suddenly realizing something.

Yes, if we follow Zhou Silang's suggestion, we can achieve the greatest benefit with the least cost.

Even Cai Guozhong has to frantically produce results in order to protect himself. He will no longer think about relying on the support of the Sword Tower, but will think about how to generate revenue for the Sword Tower so that it will not be abandoned. This sense of crisis will force Cai Guozhong to work desperately.

Thinking of this, everyone nodded, their eyes filled with admiration and praise as they looked at Zhou Qingfeng, including the three elders of the Sun, Moon and Stars.

Ma Dalang laughed heartily, clapping his hands excitedly and praising Zhou Qingfeng's shoulder: "Good, good, good, as expected of my fourth brother, your wisdom is unparalleled and unmatched in the world. You even came up with such a brilliant idea. Brilliant, brilliant, so brilliant! I ask you, are you convinced? Are you convinced?"

Seeing this, the three elders of the Sun, Moon and Stars rolled their eyes helplessly, too lazy to pay attention to Ma Dalang. However, they did not object anymore, because as long as it did not increase the extra burden on the Sword Tower, they would not really object blindly, after all, they were not really stupid.

Mao Erlang faced Zhou Qingfeng and said approvingly, "Fourth brother's suggestion is truly brilliant. Judging from your confident demeanor, you must have already chosen someone to support. Why not share it so that Mother can hear it too?"

Zhou Qingfeng smiled and said, "To be honest, Second Brother, I do have a candidate in mind. This person is Fan Li, the leader of the resistance army and a surviving member of the Fan family, the former lords of Yumi City. He has a strong sense of righteousness and legitimacy. If we can provide him with financial and material support, with Fan Li's influence, he can quickly raise an elite force."