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Chapter 348: A Tiny Nation
🕑 Added 2024-09-28 06:49:47 +0000 UTCThrough the old man's words, Lin Qian finally understood why the citizens of the Qin Dynasty had such expressions on their faces. The Qin Dynasty treated its citizens like livestock, showing no concern for their lives or suffering.
Take Old Qi's son, for example. Though he was thirty years old and only at the ninth stage of the Origin Realm, which was considered extremely low in talent, he could still hunt low-level soul beasts and sell their pelts to make a living.
However, the taxes imposed by the Qin Dynasty were incredibly heavy. Ordinary citizens had to give up 80% of their income to the dynasty, leaving them with only 20% for themselves.
As if that weren't bad enough, soul warriors of the Qin Dynasty, such as the city guards of Yushui City, would often extort even that remaining income from the common folk.
As a result, the people of the Qin Dynasty were impoverished, with only the soul warriors of the dynasty enjoying any wealth.
This grotesque system made Lin Qian deeply despise the Qin Dynasty. He felt an overwhelming urge to destroy it immediately. The way the dynasty enslaved its own people was no better than how other races treated their human slaves.
Moreover, the common people had no means to resist. In a world where power ruled, even if all the citizens of Yushui City united, they would still be no match for a thousand-strong city guard.
And the city guard didn’t just number a thousand—it had a force of two hundred thousand soldiers.
Because of this, ordinary citizens like Old Qi harbored no sense of loyalty to the Qin Dynasty. In fact, they eagerly hoped that Shuangji Palace, Xiaoyao Sect, and Blood Spirit Valley would destroy the dynasty.
If possible, Lin Qian would have preferred to avoid war, as it would inevitably bring suffering to the common people. But he now realized that waging war against the Qin Dynasty could actually be a blessing for its oppressed citizens. Overthrowing the dynasty might be the most righteous thing he could do.
With this thought, Lin Qian couldn’t help but smile as he looked at Old Qi. "Old man, to be honest with you, I am an emperor of an empire."
"An emperor?" Old Qi rubbed his eyes, which had recovered after taking the potion, and looked at Lin Qian with confusion. "I've only ever heard of 'ren huang' or 'da di'—I've never heard of an emperor."
Hearing Lin Qian's words, the old man laughed out loud. His grandson had just been pulled back from the brink of death, and his spirits were clearly lifted.
At first, Old Qi didn’t believe Lin Qian's claim to be the ruler of an empire, but seeing the sincerity in his eyes, he found himself believing it.
"In my empire, the citizens are protected by the imperial army. There is no mistreatment of the people, and anyone earning less than four thousand low-grade soul crystals doesn’t have to pay any taxes," Lin Qian explained with a smile when Old Qi asked about life in his empire.
To Lin Qian, the people were the foundation of an empire. Only when the citizens lived in peace and contentment could the empire flourish.
Soul warriors also came from the common people. If they grew up in a country that they felt loyal to and proud of, those with talent would willingly contribute their strength to the empire.
A truly powerful empire was one that was strong from top to bottom, in every aspect of life.
Lin Qian now held nothing but disdain for the Qin Dynasty, a thousand-year-old dynasty that ruled through force and oppression. It didn’t deserve to have such vast lands or so many subjects.
These lands should belong to a better empire—the Huaxia Empire!
While adhering to his own principles, Lin Qian didn’t suppress his desire for more territory. The rapid development of Initial State and Linhai State in just two short years had already shown him that they wouldn’t be enough in the future.
Even with the addition of Feng State, Lianshan State, and Sifang State, it still wouldn’t be enough.
Lin Qian needed more land!
"The Qin Dynasty is no longer fit to exist on this land," Lin Qian thought silently. Meanwhile, Old Qi looked at the young man before him with a face full of hope.
For some reason, Old Qi believed Lin Qian. He was convinced that the citizens of this young man’s empire must lead happy lives.
"If only I could live in this young man’s empire. That would be wonderful!" Old Qi thought to himself, unconsciously muttering the words aloud.
"Old man, I believe that day isn’t far off," Lin Qian's voice suddenly broke into Old Qi’s thoughts.
Old Qi shook his head in disbelief. "I doubt I'll live to see it in my lifetime."
"Why?" Lin Qian asked, puzzled by Old Qi's pessimism.
Old Qi shook his head and explained, "Young man, I may be just an ordinary citizen, but I know a few things. Wars between large powers like this usually last for decades."
"I know you’re allied with the three forces attacking the Qin Dynasty, and eventually, you’ll probably annex some of their territory. By then, people might finally be able to enjoy the life you describe."
"But that’s likely to be decades from now. Yan'er might live to see it, but I won’t."
Lin Qian had indeed heard that wars could last for decades.
The Qin Dynasty's territory was vast, and conquering it meant capturing one city after another.
With defensive formations in place, both sides would likely be bogged down in slow, drawn-out battles.
And given the vastness of the Qin Dynasty’s lands, who knew how long it would take to conquer all those cities?
The closer the two sides’ strengths were, the longer the war would drag on. Even Old Qi, a mere commoner, understood this.
The key factor that would prolong the war was the stalemate over defensive formations.
But that would be the case only in a conventional war between the Qin Dynasty and the three other forces. With the Huaxia Empire joining the fray, the situation would change drastically.
"Old man, once my empire joins the war, we’ll annihilate the Qin Dynasty within three years and claim most of their territory," Lin Qian said confidently, smiling at Old Qi’s disbelieving expression. "Within three years, you’ll experience what it’s like to be a citizen of the Huaxia Empire."
Old Qi chuckled and shook his head. "Young man, you sure like to boast. The Qin Dynasty may be rotten, but it's still powerful. How could it fall in just three years? That’s impossible!"
To Old Qi, who had lived his whole life under the oppressive regime, the idea of the mighty Qin Dynasty falling so quickly was simply unimaginable.
Lin Qian didn’t try to convince him further. He simply smiled.
Decades?
For the Huaxia Empire, that was far too long. Three years would be enough.
"The Sifang World is ultimately too small. The Qin Dynasty..." Lin Qian thought as he looked at Old Qi, who still didn’t believe him. "To you, the Huaxia Empire may seem like a tiny nation, but to me, the Qin Dynasty is no different!"
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