Chapter 75: Getting Better and Better, We’ll Do as She Says From Now On

“What a massive pier. Just where did this Bai Family come from? To think they could build such a large pier on an island out at sea.”

“And it is more than just this one island.”

“Word is the Bai Family has been operating at sea for several generations, achieving this only after long years of effort. Ordinary merchant houses like ours naturally cannot compare.”

“Operating for several generations? No wonder then.”

The ships of the fleet docked one after another. After landing on the island, the people were quickly guided to stay in the island’s taverns. These establishments provided not only lodging but also food and drink to order.

Unlike the fleets arriving for the first time, those who had visited many times were already accustomed to life on the island. They treated the island not just as a transit station, but as a place for leisure and relaxation.

And this was merely one of the islands.

Life at sea was inconvenient, and most islands at this time were uninhabited. The few that had people were usually occupied by those who had passed by by chance and become stranded. Bai Miao had sent people out to take over these islands, and those stranded souls were overjoyed, even willing to leave voluntarily to live in more populated areas.

Gradually, several islands were established at sea for fleets to rest.

Once a fleet visited any one of these islands, they would receive a map. They could follow the map to other transit islands. As long as they paid a fee, they could rest on the island, and the Bai Family fleet would even provide escort support.

“Miao Miao, this is the news we just received,” Bai He said, handing a slip of paper to Bai Miao. “Our fleet has captured a pirate island and needs someone sent to take possession of it.”

“I thought it was a request for reinforcements.” Bai Miao looked at the content of the note and walked over to a hanging map, searching for the island’s location to mark it.

Bai He followed behind her, replying with a smile, “Our fleet possesses the best armor and weapons in the world. Our men train day and night and have consumed many things that increase strength. As long as the opponent’s strength does not far exceed ours, our people have the power to fight.”

The strength-increasing substances Bai He mentioned were brought back from the Magic Plane. They were powders made from a mixture of meat containing Magic Elements and various plants, all ground together.

However, because things from the Magic Plane had rather strange tastes, the amount of powder added was never too high. Even so, it was enough to give their people significantly more strength than ordinary men.

The three Bai sisters had cultivated Spiritual Power and magic for several years, making their abilities far superior to commoners. However, for the time being, they still had no intention of wandering far outside their own territory within the Magic Plane. Most of the time, when they visited that plane, they still lived only in the immediate vicinity.

After all, their home was here. No matter how good the Magic Plane was, it did not belong to them. Consequently, aside from occasionally bringing back many items from that side, their interactions with the Magic Plane had actually weakened slightly.

But this was also because they had been incredibly busy these past few years.

Bai Yu and Bai Xi, adhering to the principle of steady progress, had not drawn too much attention to themselves over the years. Instead, they expanded production and increased their manpower step by step.

Because their style of doing things was unique, every time they expanded their territory, large numbers of commoners would flock to join them. Over time, their strength grew increasingly formidable. Now, except for a few small factions still desperately holding on, the Feng Kingdom had completely ceased to exist.

At the same time, the maritime forces were expanding rapidly under Bai Miao’s efforts. The pirates who had once reigned supreme at sea were either in hiding or had been beaten into nonexistence, posing no further threat to the Bai Family fleet.

Bai Miao finished marking the newly seized island and looked at Bai He beside her. “Sister He, do you want to go this time?”

“Can I?” Bai He asked excitedly, but then quickly shook her head. “I’m afraid I won’t be up to it.”

“It doesn’t matter, you have to try eventually. You are very strong now, Sister He.” Bai Miao pointed to the location on the map. “This island isn’t too large. It’s just a matter of taking possession, so the difficulty isn’t high. However, its location is quite good; we can turn it into a Tourist Scenic Area.”

“A Tourist Scenic Area?” Bai He asked in surprise. “What does that mean?”

Bai Miao thought for a moment and, following the contents of the books from the future, gave her a serious introduction to what a Tourist Scenic Area was.

After hearing her words, Bai He pondered for a moment and nodded. “That is actually quite good. Although we already have several islands serving as rest areas, in terms of business, the scenic area you described would likely attract more people. It just so happens this island is relatively close to our country. When your Eldest Sister and Second Sister finish handling domestic affairs, we can fleece those wealthy merchants and aristocratic families.”

“That’s exactly what I was thinking,” Bai Miao laughed. “Right now there is a war going on, so those merchants and families don’t have much strength and don’t dare to cause trouble. But once Eldest Sister and Second Sister have solved all the problems, they will definitely try to stir things up. Rather than waiting for them to cause trouble, it’s better to give them something to do.”

Bai He watched her intently, waiting for her to continue.

Bai Miao raised her hand and pointed to the map. “There are several islands here. We will only occupy one; the other islands can be funded by those wealthy merchants.”

“But with so many scenic areas, will they believe they can actually make money?”

“It might be a bit difficult. After all, if the country has only just begun to develop, there might not be that many people willing to come out and play. But things must be done. We’ll start with the infrastructure first.” As she spoke, Bai Miao clapped her hands. “Once Eldest Sister and Second Sister have the whole country, we’ll let those wealthy merchants pay for the infrastructure. No, that’s not right… the first step should be land distribution and dealing with the local tyrants¹…”

Bai Miao thought about the contents written in her books.

Aside from that one strange period, other places in the future had developed very well. This proved that such a model could make a country strong.

And the best time for a national transformation was right when Bai Yu and Bai Xi had just conquered the land.

Although some things were difficult to achieve, not all the development processes written in the books were impossible.

With this in mind, Bai Miao immediately sat down and took up pen and paper to begin writing the next schedule of plans.

Bai He stood by and watched for a while. Seeing that Bai Miao was immersed in her own thoughts, she did not disturb her and turned to walk out of the room.

Before long, she saw her mother and Eldest Aunt weaving. She walked over with a smile to watch, then remarked with a sigh, “Every time I see this, I find it so miraculous. They are both looms made of wood, so how can this one weave so fast?”

“Indeed, we always say the same. If we had two looms like this back then, we wouldn’t have had to make a living on the water. With just a little time, we could have saved enough money to buy a house on shore.”

“It’s our fault for not realizing sooner that Miao Miao was actually this clever.”

“Isn’t that the truth.”

“But Miao Miao is so smart, she would live well no matter where she was.”

“Yes. By the way, Xiao He, what did Miao Miao call you for?”

“I was the one looking for her. The fleet that went out a few days ago took another island and needs someone to take possession. Miao Miao said I should go.” Bai He recounted the conversation she just had with Bai Miao. “I’m a little worried.”

“What is there to fear? Won’t the people from the fleet be there to help you?”

“Xiao He, you are very capable now. Since Miao Miao said you can do it, then go.”

Hearing the two of them say this, Bai He hesitated for a moment before finally nodding.

The title Overlord of the Seas for the Bai Family was not just for show. Nowadays, the strength of the Bai Family fleet did not just rely on the three Bai sisters, but included everyone in the fleet.

Even so, the three sisters could easily suppress these people, which ensured that the fleet members were not only powerful but also exceptionally loyal.

By going out to sea, Bai He could accumulate experience on one hand, and on the other, as a member of the Bai Family, she also needed to grow.

While Bai He was leading the fleet out to take possession of the island, Bai Yu and Bai Xi’s situation within the country was also seeing tremendous progress.

With the subtle development over these years, it was not just the commoners within the territory who were thoroughly convinced by the power of the two sisters. Many people outside the territory had also long heard of the Bai Family’s influence.

For the commoners, being able to live a stable life was their ultimate pursuit. Consequently, even when those smaller factions forcibly conscripted men for war, most of the soldiers were extremely half-hearted. Countless men were taken prisoner, which caused the strength of these small factions to grow weaker and weaker.

By now, these small factions had gradually lost their combat effectiveness.

“They’re surrendering and still trying to set conditions with us?”

“It’s not that we can’t agree to them.”

“Eldest Sister!”

“Take a look at this first. Miao Miao just had someone deliver it,” Bai Yu said, handing a document to Bai Xi. “I think Miao Miao’s idea is excellent. Although we are about to take over the entire country, if we don’t carry out a thorough rectification, those powerful landlords will still occupy the vast majority of land resources. However, killing them outright would be far too crude. It’s better to use a more indirect method.”

Bai Xi opened the document and read through it very seriously.

After finishing, she said in surprise, “Sending Southerners to the North and Northerners to the South²… this really is a brilliant method. It solves a major problem for us in one stroke. This way, we don’t have to worry about local tyrants influencing us, and those small factions that surrendered can be settled properly.”

“It’s not just that, there are these as well,” Bai Yu pulled out a large stack of proposal papers. “With a strategist like Miao Miao around, we’ll just follow her instructions from now on. I won’t say the country’s development will be perfect, but at the very least, it won’t be worse than before.”

“It wouldn’t have been worse anyway. We brought high-yield sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn, as well as new looms and ships. Even without these proposals, things would go well,” Bai Xi said, looking down at the stack of plans with a smile. “But with these plans from Miao Miao, the country’s development will certainly get better and better.”

“This isn’t just Miao Miao’s idea; it’s a long-term plan,” Bai Yu flipped open a proposal and pointed to the timeline written on it. “The first step is a five-year and ten-year plan³. Xiao Xi, are you ready?”

Bai Xi nodded immediately.

“Eldest Sister, I’m ready.”

“Are you sure? Given our situation, even if we didn’t take on these tasks, our lives would be very comfortable. But by taking this on, we will both become very, very busy in the future. If you decide on this, you can’t go back on your word.”

“I won’t go back on my word,” Bai Xi shook her head. “I want to see this country become better and better. Besides, Miao Miao worked so hard to write such a thick stack of plans. If we don’t follow through, wouldn’t we be letting her hard work go to waste?”

The two sisters looked at each other.

“Then let’s work hard together.”

“Mhm!”

Author Note:

The main story ends here. [Hugs] [Hugs]

Translator’s Notes