The Path to Lordship Begins in the North

After the meeting, Laurie was kept behind by Lind alone.

Laurie is now one of the Empire's prime ministers, but because Lind is energetic and a bit of a workaholic, most of the prime ministers Lind appoints are actually just symbols of status.

Of course, these prime ministers will gradually gain real power in the future. After all, Linde knows that his descendants will not all be as energetic as he is. Historical experience tells Linde that even if prime ministers are not appointed, his descendants who are not capable enough will definitely set up something like a secretariat, which will eventually become a prime minister's cabinet.

Rather than letting future generations make a mess of things, Lind should build the framework himself first.

However, now that he's in this position, Laurie certainly can't command the army like before.

"I've heard some things about you."

Although Laurie was older than him, Lind's tone became earnest.

"You should read less of those weird conspiracy theories and magazines."

Lind handed the map and intelligence to Laurie: "I have plenty of reasons to deal with you, so don't cause trouble for the police department and the court."

Laurie took the map and intelligence and gave an awkward laugh, saying, "I just thought that's how people used to do it. If everyone has been doing this before, there must be a reason for it."

Lind rolled his eyes and said, "You think too highly of yourself. Your fame isn't big enough to warrant self-degradation. Instead, you've caused chaos in the courtroom. Colin is eager to pull off a big one for you."

Although Lind said it like that, he had already said it, so Laurie was definitely fine. Moreover, his slightly teasing tone reminded Laurie of the days when he and Lind were on the run together.

The two were originally friends despite their age difference, but they gradually became ruler and subject. Even so, they still had some tacit understanding.

The moment Laurie saw the map of the Solon continent, she understood what Lind wanted to do: "No rush, His Majesty and Sean are still young, we can use a more prudent approach."

The map is densely marked with various resource areas, especially some magic stone veins. Due to the backward mining technology of the Soren continent, most of the veins have not been fully mined.

To be honest, Laurie wasn't very good at fighting. As an old soldier who fled with his lord, he didn't know anything about troop deployment. Although he had some experience in leading troops, his experience was insufficient on large battlefields. Fortunately, everyone's skill level was about the same at the time, so Laurie could make steady progress. With the help of the newcomer Dalsey and the veteran Hammond, the old and the young helped each other to steadily reach where they were now, reaching heights that even General Lars dared not imagine.

However, Laurie is not without merit; otherwise, she wouldn't have been promoted to one of the first prime ministers by Lind. Besides having a close relationship with Lind, Laurie is also particularly good at understanding people's hearts. Her ability to use people and assess situations is just a branch of this strength.

"If Your Majesty only wants magic stones and mineral resources from the continent of Soron, you can release those nobles who are being watched, let them smell the scent of blood, and they will send resources from the continent of Soron in an endless stream."

"But the continent of Solon is also part of the empire, it is now, and it will be in the future. Moreover, according to His Majesty's plan, we cannot focus our attention solely on these two continents."

To pierce through the fog or set foot on the vast universe, resources alone are certainly not enough; talent is always the most valuable asset.

"In addition to the intelligence sent by Lord Sean, the people of the Soren Continent do not have a unified consciousness. I think we can assimilate them over a long period of time, let them know the prestige of the Empire, and let them receive education. After all, His Majesty is still very young and has enough time to do this. After two or three generations, the people of the Soren Continent and the Mu Continent will be no different."

"We can certainly take over the continent of Solon in one fell swoop and acquire resources, and we are indeed capable of doing so. However, we are already short of officials on the continent of Mu, and His Majesty cannot allow those nobles on the continent of Solon who are able to divide their own country without any psychological burden to continue to hold power. Therefore, my suggestion is that we can expand, but we should proceed slowly and cultivate the land meticulously."

On the map, Laurie casually pointed out a few places and said, "We can prioritize occupying key roads, build railways, and use them as a base for development. Then, after ten or twenty years, when the next batch of people in the empire who have received a full education are capable of working, we can send the new batch of graduates to take up positions there and continue to expand."

Of course, things won't be that simple. Once Sean develops his business on the continent of Solon, a large number of people from other countries will likely flock to his territory. We'll need to send some elven druids there to help with farming and increase food production to prevent famine.

However, the continent of Soron has also suffered from environmental disorder due to super-level magic. In a magic-free environment, the planting of food may need to be replanned and bred again. These are all fatal but not obvious problems.

After discussing the issue with Laurie, Linde instructed the ministers, who had been idle, to go back and discuss and devise a five-year plan before reporting back.

By the time Laurie left the palace, it was already dark, but unlike the darkness Laurie remembered, the capital was brightly lit. The remaining magic of the obelisk had been bought by some merchants and made into lanterns that shone brightly in the streets.

The capital city today can be described as a true city that never sleeps.

Laurie got into the car, lit a cigarette and took a puff. He had learned this from the female dragon of the Shining Gold Alliance; he liked to have a few puffs when he was under a lot of pressure.

After the driver started the car, Laurie rolled down the window and looked up at the still-brilliant starry sky, which reflected the lights on the ground.

Even though she had been by Lind's side from the beginning, Laurie still felt that she would not be able to keep up with Lind's thinking. After all, no matter what, it was too dreamy for a newly unified country to dream of stepping into the stars.

But now the empire is indeed moving forward step by step toward this goal. What makes Laurie even more bewildered is that he himself is among those who are pushing the empire toward this goal, and he has become the "master" he never dared to dream of before.

Did Laurie, who once gazed at the stars on the night she enlisted, ever imagine that decades later she would become the prime minister of an empire spanning two continents, and be gazing at the same stars as her past self?

Laurie didn't know that, looking at the starry sky, Laurie couldn't help but want to recite a poem, but as the prime minister of the empire, he couldn't even fart when he was almost home. In the end, Laurie had to give up. If that bard were here, he probably could have farted a lot.

Thinking of this, Laurie smiled and decided to discuss with the other ministers how to formulate and implement the next five-year plan. After all, this was one of the few tasks that His Majesty the Emperor, who was always busy with work, had entrusted to the ministers.