Lu Yin was delighted when he heard her words. "Actually, I was just about to look for Madam and ask for your advice."
"I wouldn't dare, but I'm all ears." Madam Nalan and Lu Yin both sat down elegantly and smiled at him.
Lu Yin coughed and organized his thoughts. "The Great Yu Empire has already taken over Frostwave Weave, but there's a lack of manpower and no one to manage it. Does Madam have any ideas on how to alleviate the situation?"
Madam Nalan's eyes lit up. "Just Frostwave Weave shouldn't be a problem for Your Highness."
Lu Yin smiled. "That includes Grandtop Weave."
She was shocked. "Has Your Highness already completely taken over Grandtop Weave?"
Although Lu Yin had killed Lei Long, that did not mean that he had taken over Grandtop Weave. Even if he had conquered the Nine Stacks Sect, that did not mean that he had conquered Grandtop Weave. It could only be said that he had met the requirements to do so, but it was not something that could be done in a day or two. After all, a weave was too vast.
The reason that Frostwave Weave had been unified so quickly was mainly due to Undying Yushan's many years of planning. Furthermore, the Great Yu Empire was still a local power in Frostwave Weave, so there would not be much resistance. Now, it was too difficult to cross weaves and conquer. Even if Grandtop Weave did not have any experts who could resist the Great Yu Empire, the stubborn factions might not be able to conquer it in a year or two.
"Not really, but Grandtop Weave cannot escape. The current successor of the Nine Stacks Sect is one of my people." Lu Yin did not try to hide anything. The Nalan family dominated the Outerverse, and to put it bluntly, if not for the changes in the universe, the Nalan family would not have asked for help from the Great Yu Empire. After all, the Nalan family could afford to raise an Enlighter.
Madam Nalan understood and looked at Lu Yin with admiration. "So Your Highness already has plans. I'm impressed. Your current predicament makes sense. Now that you've suddenly gained a new weave, whether it's management or conquest, you'll need talents."
She paused for a moment before continuing, "Although the universe is vast, there's only one way to manage it. Has Your Highness heard of the Spider Web Theory?"
Lu Yin was puzzled. "The Spider Web Theory?"
"That's right. The so-called Spider Web Theory refers to arranging the management of an organization according to a spider's web, which ultimately converges at the center. The spider's web is innumerable and seems complicated, but it's actually quite simple. Not a single point can escape, and it can be used to capture prey. To a spider, no matter how large its web is, it's still a part of its body. The Great Yu Empire is the same, Your Highness …"
In King Zishan's palace, Lu Yin and Madam Nalan chatted for a full three hours. They only stopped when Madam Nalan's mouth was dry.
She licked her red lips and smiled at him. "Have you thought it through, Your Highness?"
Lu Yin nodded and thanked her gratefully, "Thank you, Madam. I didn't have a clue before, but after hearing your words, my mind is much clearer."
Madam Nalan smiled. "Actually, these are just theories. Governing a country is different from governing a business. If Your Highness wants to learn how to govern a country, you should read more books and ask the professionals. These are just my experiences, and they aren't very helpful."
Lu Yin solemnly replied, "You're wrong, Madam. For the current Great Yu Empire, there's no need for any strategy to govern a country. A single word is enough, because in this universe, the strong are respected. If I don't have the strength to kill an Enlighter, then there will be countless people in the Great Yu Empire who won't respect me."
Madam Nalan smiled. "Perhaps, but blindly relying on power isn't a long-term solution."
Lu Yin agreed with this point. Governing a country during war was different from governing a country during peacetime, and he didn't understand these things at all. Now that they were at war, he could use his ideas without any qualms. This was because they were united during war, but once the war ended, many problems would arise, and they couldn't be solved through strength alone.
The most obvious problem was how to restore the economy, determine military expenditures, education, transportation, research, and so on. Many, many problems would arise, and he needed to find someone to manage the country before the war ended. Otherwise, the war wouldn't end.
His conversation with Madam Nalan had given Lu Yin a rudimentary idea of how to manage a country. He didn't know if it was suitable, but he had to give it a try. Undying Yushan's political legacy was about to be destroyed.
Madam Nalan's mouth was dry from all the talking, and she took a sip of tea.
Lu Yin suddenly remembered that Madam Nalan had taken the initiative to look for him, so she definitely had something to discuss. He hurriedly said, "Madam, you've been talking about me for a while now. What do you want from me today?"
Madam Nalan put down her teacup. "It's nothing important. I just want to recommend someone to Your Highness who might be able to help you."
Lu Yin's eyes lit up. "Who is it?"
"Your Highness should have met Erudite Flowzone's warfront commander, Shui Chuanxiao." Madam Nalan looked at Lu Yin, as if trying to discern something from his eyes.
Lu Yin was shocked. "Shui Chuanxiao?
Of course I've met him. He's the most intelligent warfront commander in human history, and he was the one who confirmed my contributions. However, it's rumored that he committed a crime of betrayal and was imprisoned in Earth's Swamp for ten thousand years. "
"Does Your Highness believe that Shui Chuanxiao betrayed humanity?" Madam Nalan stared into Lu Yin's eyes.
Lu Yin thought about it. "It's hard to say. It's not my place to speak on such matters."
Madam Nalan's eyes flashed. "Then does Your Highness dislike Shui Chuanxiao?"
Lu Yin shook his head. "Of course not. Commander Shui is very charismatic, and he was the one who agreed with my conjecture about the Sheng Ao. He was also the one who made me a war drummer. To be honest, Commander Shui is very magnanimous."
Madam Nalan nodded. "Yes, he's very magnanimous. However, such a person was accused of betraying his own race. Sometimes, conspiracies can be very scary."
Lu Yin looked at her strangely. "Madam, the person you wanted to recommend couldn't be Commander Shui, right?"
Madam Nalan smiled. "Of course not. Commander Shui is imprisoned in Earth's Swamp, which is the most despairing prison for humans. No one can save him. You've met the person I recommended. Her name is En Ya, and she's outside King Zishan's palace."
Lu Yin hurriedly had Bronsen bring her in.
Not long after, Lu Yin saw En Ya, and he was shocked to see her.
When Lu Yin had been recognized for his contributions and received Honor Points, En Ya had brought him to Planet Cangyuan and introduced him to the situation there. Lu Yin had a deep impression of this beautiful blonde adjutant, as there weren't many women in the military.
En Ya immediately bowed when she saw Lu Yin, and her expression was solemn. "En Ya greets Your Highness."
Lu Yin hurriedly excused her and asked curiously, "I remember that you're Commander Shui's adjutant. Why aren't you at the Erudite Flowzone's border?"
En Ya indifferently replied, "The Human Domain and the Astral Beast Domain have reached an agreement, and the war has stopped. Commander Shui has been captured, and the rest of us have either been banished or dismissed. I'm one of the luckier ones, as I was sent to the Outerverse."
"En Ya accidentally saved me, which is why I recommended her to Your Highness. She's lived in the military since she was young, and now that she's been separated from the military, she has nowhere else to go."
Lu Yin nodded and sized up En Ya. She was an Explorer, and since she was able to follow Shui Chuanxiao, she had to be very capable as well. "I'm planning to establish the Lu Ministry of Defense to help me with military affairs. Are you willing to join?"
En Ya immediately agreed.
She immediately expressed her gratitude. Even though the Lu Ministry of Defense had yet to be established, since it served Lu Yin and was named "Lu," it meant that this department would only serve Lu Yin, and it would definitely have power in the future.
"Madam, I should be the one thanking you. The Great Yu Empire lacks talents, and you've sent me one." Lu Yin smiled.
Madam Nalan exchanged a few more pleasantries with Lu Yin before leaving. En Ya was arranged to stay in King Zishan's palace, and once the Lu Ministry of Defense was established, she would begin handling military affairs.
Regardless of whether it was the Lu Ministry of Staff or the Lu Ministry of Defense, Lu Yin planned to set them up near King Zishan's palace so that it would be easier for him to monitor them.
He did not believe in the saying "don't use people you suspect, but don't use people you trust." He did not believe that he had the charisma to make people submit with a single glance. He needed to observe them for a period of time before he could determine whether or not they were trustworthy. If they were not, then he would not use them no matter how strong they were.
His conversation with Madam Nalan had benefited Lu Yin greatly. Ten days later, during a court meeting, he directly announced a reform of the Great Yu Empire's power structure. He would formally establish the Lu Ministry of Staff and the Lu Ministry of Defense based on the current official system, and they would help him handle government and military affairs. Under these two departments would be the Lu Pavilion of Staff and the Lu Ministry of Defense.
Ten filaments and one pavilion. This was Lu Yin's initial plan. Every ten filaments would have a Lu Pavilion of Staff that would handle the ten filaments' government affairs. Important matters would be handled by the Lu Pavilion of Staff and the Imperial Cabinet, and in the end, only the most important matters would be handled by the Lu Ministry of Staff and the Imperial Cabinet.
The Lu Ministry of Defense was the same, with one pavilion per ten filaments that handled military affairs.
This was the spider web theory. Every Lu Pavilion of Staff and the Lu Ministry of Defense was a point of the spider web that was spread out layer by layer. There might be corruption or collusion between officials and bandits, but these were unavoidable. This method could at least temporarily ensure the stability of the Empire and was beneficial in nurturing talents.
During the court meeting, when Lu Yin announced the reform, he was immediately met with resistance from the Imperial Cabinet.
Although the Lu Ministry of Staff had already been established, it could only be considered Lu Yin's personal department, and it didn't even have the qualifications to participate in court meetings. But now that it was officially established, not only would the Imperial Cabinet's power be dispersed, but even the Imperial Cabinet's authority would be completely suppressed. This was something that the ministers of the Imperial Cabinet could not accept.
The Great Yu Empire had already unified Frostwave Weave and was about to merge with Grandtop Weave. This was the time for the Imperial Cabinet's authority to expand, but Lu Yin was actually trying to disperse their authority. No one could accept this.
However, this intense resistance was met with Lu Yin's merciless dismissal. He had not forgotten the faces of these ministers when Karthika had been on Zenyu Star, especially the two ministers from the Imperial Cabinet, who had caused him to lose face.
Back when Undying Yushan had been on the throne, the Great Yu Empire had its own system of governance. Furthermore, it wasn't during a time of war, so it wasn't that easy to dismiss a minister. At the very least, one would need to have a suitable reason and evidence. But now, Lu Yin was in charge, and there was no need to explain himself. This caused the other ministers to tremble in fear, and even the usually stubborn Garope didn't say anything.
Garope was very smart, and although he dared to speak out, he knew when to speak and when not to. Rebuking Lu Yin at this time was equivalent to going against him, and Garope would never do such a thing.