My wife is an immortal black snake.

Page 108

“We are willing to provide you with long-term economic and commercial investments, but our requirement is that at least three companies from the Duchy of Kosiché must be operating normally in the United City. Of course, you don’t need to give them discounts, but I want to see them have a place in the business world of the United City.”

"...That's acceptable. But we hope that your company cannot control our economic core."

“A consumer goods company, a research and development company, and a chamber of commerce.”

"agree."

Poor Mr. Caesar failed to notice Yang Hao's foreshadowing. He deemed the request acceptable and readily agreed. His limited understanding as a mortal of this era made it impossible for him to imagine the kind of growth these three companies, representing different directions, would bring to his city.

So let Yang Hao explain it here.

Among the three major corporations, the consumer goods company, with the support of the Duchy of Kosiché, will dump its products on surrounding residents at prices lower than those of the corporations in the United City. Even if private companies in the United City also lower their prices to compete, the corporations supported by the Duchy of Kosiché will still maintain an absolute cost advantage due to the Duchy of Kosiché's continued support for the United City's commerce and economy.

With basic consumer goods gradually monopolized by prices, if the United Cities do nothing, they will be gradually infiltrated over the next decade or so. If they do something, the Duchy of Koschche will have a reason to cut off other support and supplies, making them beg for an even more outrageous contract next time.

Meanwhile, research enterprises would use even higher prices than those in the United City to win over researchers, and then send these researchers, who had become employees of companies in the Duchy of Koschei, to the United City at a lower cost. This seems contradictory, but once the fact that "researchers in the United City are all employees of companies supported by the Duchy of Koschei" was achieved, the Duchy of Koschei, in a sense, monopolized the scientific research development of the United City.

This will take decades to develop, but once it's completed, the United Cities will no longer have the final say on what they want to research.

Finally, there's the issue of the Chamber of Commerce... The Chamber of Commerce can be seen as a kind of compensation for the monopolies of the two aforementioned enterprises—while it wields considerable power within a normal enterprise, it cannot become the sole dominant force. However, with the support of the monopolistic enterprises, the Chamber of Commerce, in a sense, completely controls commercial exchanges throughout the entire United City, making it arguably the final straw.

At this point, some people might ask: Mr. Yang Hao, what exactly do you intend to use to guarantee that these three companies located in the United City will remain under your permanent control? Aren't you worried about something going wrong along the way?

Mr. Yang Hao's answer was quite simple: I have a puppet stage.

As companies established by Yang Hao, all three are, without exception, under the control of the Puppet Stage. Given the current state of the Puppet Stage's control... it's more plausible to say that Yang Hao might one day collapse from exhaustion in his bed than to suggest that these three companies will ever escape his control.

...

If both parties have accepted the first request, then it's time for the second one.

"Regarding the guarantee of military independence... how can we guarantee your independence if we don't establish a [military base] in your United City to house our soldiers? How about this: you plan a district, we send a small group of soldiers there, and then rotate them regularly—that way, other countries will know that you are an independent city guaranteed by Ursus. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

"Military base...?"

"Don't worry. A military camp that can hold five hundred soldiers is too few compared to your total number of soldiers. Moreover, there are no heavy weapons stored up there; it's just for show."

“If you can sign an absolutely indefinite contract and provide a guarantee from a third-party country, I am willing to accept it.”

"Then what about Wei... no, Yan Kingdom?"

"I agree."

The second requirement was that although Mr. Caesar had made corresponding preparations and protections, he was still too naive and failed to foresee what would happen more than a decade later.

Imagine a city where scientific research, people's livelihood, and commerce are all controlled by Ursus Corporation, and there are Ursus military bases and troops stationed there. To the cities and countries that come into contact with it, isn't this United City just one of Ursus's vassals?

Furthermore, with soldiers stationed there, the United City can't freely cross borders with certain countries. After all, those are Ursus soldiers. You claim to be independent, but how do you explain those soldiers?

Therefore, the future activity range of the United City will either be the wasteland between countries or within the territory of Ursus. No matter where it is, it is something Yang Hao is happy to see.

Besides, considering that Mr. Caesar was just a mortal, he might die of illness in a few years, and he was also limited by the cultural environment of this era. He was not a ruler who had received a full education but a soldier... so it was understandable that he could not have foreseen such a thing.

Mr. Caesar readily accepted these demands for temporary independence, and Yang Hao can also readily control the entire United City decades later. It's a win-win situation for both of us—you win once, I win twice. Isn't that great?

So their deal was already in the works, and the last request for a large amount of resources in one go was simply skipped.

......

After probing with three requests, the two sides are now only one thing away from signing a contract. However, they still need to discuss many details before signing.

As for the details, Yang Hao left them to his wife. Watching his wife and Mr. Caesar locked in a fierce debate, Yang Hao fell into deep thought. He felt that although he could control United City in a decade or so, its development speed was still too slow without his direct intervention!

This is like—well... let's use eating as an analogy.

The food that Yang Hao personally fed to the Duchy of Kosiché was freshly made, nutritious, and piping hot; it would be converted into nutrients as soon as it entered the ducal household.

The meals he delivered to the United Cities were still the same meals, but after delivering them, he had to video call them step by step to teach them how to heat them up and how to eat them—that sounded very troublesome. And if Yang Hao truly intended to build a vassal state without an official vassal relationship, then he really wouldn't be able to go over and personally feed them...

what can we do about it?

Can we get Mr. Caesar to Elysium as soon as possible, and then replace him with a leader who is closer to Ursus?

He frowned, thinking that this seemed feasible—when his wife died at the hands of a Colombian spy, the same accident would happen in the United City at the same time... In this way, no matter what, the people of the United City would definitely begin to lean towards Ursus.

Hmm... okay, let's talk to Kočić tonight.

He nodded easily, and at the same time, Kosiché finished discussing all the details with Mr. Caesar. Now, all that was left was for Monica, who was listening in, to print out three copies of the contract. Then, the two parties would sign the treaty to exchange resources and goods, and after a while, they would go to the Yan people to witness it.

During this time, Mr. Caesar apologetically explained that the "intelligence and evidence" was somewhat troublesome to handle and required ample "medical care" to survive. However, the Koschei couple already knew what was going on, so they simply laughed it off.

They decided to bring the goods over in the afternoon to sign the contract, so Yang Hao and Kosiché's work for the morning was finished. During the break, while preparing for lunch and a good nap, Yang Hao told Kosiché that if nothing unexpected happened, he estimated that in a couple of days they would go to Saint-Germain Castle to burn down the Imperial Council, preparing for His Majesty the Emperor's dictatorship.

"I remember there's supposed to be a commercial landship docking here, right? Hmm, I'll take that landship there with the Deepsea Hunters and some of my personal guard... Where are Mr. Napoleon and the others? Sigh..."

"It seems they've already found quite a few Gauls, and even integrated a group of Gallic soldiers who had become outlaws. If they come back, they probably won't make it in time."

"That's settled then... Oh, right—Monica! Monica?!"

"Yes, sir."

"Could you go to Duke Nikolai's residence this afternoon? Please tell the pony and Paul that they should prepare for the upcoming operation."

"Yes."

Even if he could use the [Puppet Stage] to force the ponies to act, Yang Hao wanted them to be mentally prepared as soon as possible. So, after much consideration, he decided to send Monica over—after all, Monica could teleport there instantly, so relaying orders wouldn't be a big deal...

But then again, I didn't expect it to have come to the point where we have to burn down the council chamber. What should we do then?

Yang Hao pondered thoughtfully. He hadn't actually seen it, so he wasn't sure what was inside the Imperial Council... But first, he could give the fire department and police station a day off, then fill the basement of the Imperial Council building with combustible fuel, and finally have trusted soldiers block all the entrances and exits of the Imperial Council, sealing off all the ventilation windows... That should be about it, right?

Smoldering for 24 hours would kill even a Vayvan in the Imperial Council! Even if they didn't burn to death, they'd suffocate. How would the Ursus Empire's history books record this impending event?

Um...

Because a fire caused by a temporary worker killed the vast majority of the members of the Imperial Diet? That sounds very suspicious. Maybe I should slightly modify the details in my basic education history textbooks and change it to something like, "The great Imperial Diet members freely set fires in the Imperial Diet and enjoyed themselves with the people."

This sounds even more outrageous than "shooting yourself in the back seven times to commit suicide"... But it sounds like a lot of fun, maybe I should give it a try?

"Honey...the expression on your face is strange?"

Seeing Yang Hao lost in thought, Kosicie smiled helplessly, reached out her hand to him, pinched his cheek, then leaned on her husband's shoulder, closed her eyes, and seemed to be planning to rest for a while while waiting for lunch to be served.

Chapter 234

That afternoon, the United City dispatched a convoy to transfer a prisoner, along with his life support equipment, to the Duchy of Koschche. Even though he had some prior knowledge, Yang Hao still felt that this unfortunate "witness" was truly pitiful when he actually saw him.

His entire body was covered in various IV tubes. One was a machine that was constantly running, probably for kidney dialysis, and another was a battery that was probably used to power the pacemaker in his heart, which was attached to his chest.

Even during the transfer, he had to wear a breathing mask to supply oxygen.

"Mr. Baden's health is very poor—he is the witness, and the evidence is inside his body," Captain Glamorgan, who brought Mr. Baden over, explained, holding a sealed classified intelligence document in his hand: "and the important intelligence about Colombia's impending invasion of Casimir is here."

“That will do. Monica, take them to receive the first batch of resources, and have the entrepreneurs bring their employees, and have the soldiers move into the United City—as for the witness and the evidence in his body, we'll figure that out.”

Captain Glamorgan left the witnesses and intelligence in the audience hall. Yang Hao and Koschche first arranged a safe and hygienic room for the poor Mr. Baden to keep him alive, before squeezing onto the same throne to read the intelligence in the envelope.

Lately, Kosichrie seems to be increasingly indifferent to other people's opinions. She even planned to dismantle her throne so she could sit directly on Yang Hao's lap to work—but Yang Hao stopped her, because if she did, he wouldn't be able to explain why he had a good relationship with another Duke Kosichrie so soon after his wife's death.

But that's beside the point.

"...In short, is this the first time in Colombia's history that it has launched a full-scale attack on a neighboring country? Even when dealing with Bolivar, it was mostly just border skirmishes."

"No, darling, look here... They're not launching a full-scale offensive; it's just an escalation of the border skirmishes—of course, if this skirmish really cripples Casimir, I don't think Colombia would mind launching a full-scale offensive."

"Anyway, I hope they launch a full-scale offensive, so we can gain more benefits when we go to aid Kazimir... Oh, and about the civil war..."

"Our duchy is still making preparations. Alas, at least we are fine defensively—it's just that the main force for offense may have to rely on His Majesty the Emperor's Imperial Army. As for those immortals, we'll have to deal with Monica."

"Yes, and those immortals that require Ascended beings to kill... Although I doubt whether there are anything like that in the Duchy of Nikolai, Monica? It should be fine to leave it to her, right?"

Yang Hao has already made plans for the upcoming war between Colombia and Casimir, but there is no need to pay attention to it in the near future.

As for the civil war within the Ursus Empire, Yang Hao needed to make plans immediately. He knew that once the Emperor's main forces were mobilized, the annihilation of the supporters of the Sherlock Holmes nightclub would be just around the corner—the question was, among the Duke of Nikolai and his supporters, were there any immortals or similar beings?

To be precise, they are "Ascended Ones," just like the previous deformed nobles... Ascended Ones who can only be killed by another Ascended One.

But if Monica handles these things, there shouldn't be any problem, right? After all, Monica is the most powerful assassin right now, you know? Really? If Yang Hao could find someone else he needed her to assassinate, perhaps...

what?

Should she be sent to assassinate Duke Nikolai directly?

Yang Hao pondered for a moment, then quickly gave up: After all, who knows if Duke Nikolai, as a councilor of the Sherlock Holmes nightclub, had also become an Ascended and could pose a threat to Monica?

If he had to exchange soldiers for Monica, he would rather sacrifice tens of thousands of soldiers than sacrifice Monica. After all, everyone has selfish motives, and Yang Hao was just that biased.

...

After discussing a few more details, Yang Hao and Kosiché roughly finalized their next plan. They then went to a secluded meeting room to finalize some details. Yang Hao, holding his wife, then texted His Majesty the Emperor to confirm he was ready to go.

"Sigh... But Koschei, when do you plan to let your body 'die'?"

"Let's wait until your plan is ready. After all, you must have been thinking about what to do with this opportunity," my wife said, as understanding as ever. "But you have to tell me what you plan to do."

"that is..."

While sending messages, Yang Hao explained his plan to Kosichrie. After learning that Yang Hao intended to take advantage of her being killed by the "Colombian spy" to have Caesar of the United City also "murdered by the Colombian spy," she nodded in satisfaction, indicating that the plan was feasible.

They can't be sure that the person who takes the stage will be someone close to Ursus—although they will definitely hate Colombia, what if the person who takes the stage is hated by both Colombia and Ursus?

Should we secretly support a portion of the group?

"No need. We just need to select a target and then kill any potential obstacles."

"That's true."

Yang Hao nodded, thinking to himself that experience really does pay off. After sending a text message to His Majesty the Emperor, Yang Hao pondered that they still needed the Yan Kingdom's people to witness them signing the contract with United City... so why not just use his phone to talk to Princess Wei Qing?

After exiting the chat interface with His Majesty the Emperor, his finger slid down, and Koschke watched as his finger slid down until it finally stopped...

The image of the [Princess of Yan] stopped.

Her face immediately fell. She watched as Yang Hao opened the Yan Kingdom princess's chat interface, and then...

"Ouch!"

"..."

"Kosich! It's not what you think. I just wanted to inform the princess and ask if she could send someone to be a witness..."

Yang Hao stared at his right index finger, which Kosiché had just bitten without his notice, with a bitter expression. He really hadn't expected his wife to be getting more and more jealous lately...

Why weren't you jealous when Monica was riding on top of me? He felt annoyed and bit her ear in retaliation.

Chapter 235

6 month 29 day.

Yang Hao and Koschei were unable to find a suitable person within the duchy to conduct a thorough medical examination of poor Mr. Baden, not even the ducal medical team directly under the ducal household. The old doctor who had previously examined both Duke Koschei and his husband simply glanced at him and stated, "I am powerless to help."

“This guy will die as soon as he leaves the life support device, and what’s worse, my Originium Arts will severely interfere with other people’s use of Originium Arts... If you want to take the evidence directly from the box inside his body, I think you should find someone else.”

Simply put, it was a troublesome case that would give even an experienced doctor a heart attack. If Yang Hao and Koschke didn't have much of a concept of it at first, now they do.

However, since they already had the people and the life support equipment was functioning normally, they had plenty of time to call in more doctors. And just as they were waiting for more capable people to arrive, the arrival of a commercial landship on the 29th brought a slight change to their otherwise dreary wait.

9:20 am.

"So, you are..."

“My name is Kelsey. I have come here at the invitation of your Duke.”

A doctor named Kal'tsit, with white hair and green eyes, resembling a Felin, hitched a ride on a commercial landship and arrived in the Duchy of Kosichä. At this moment, she was having her invitation checked by the duchy's customs officials.

When the customs inspectors examined the invitation in Ms. Kelsey's hand, they frowned: the invitation did look genuine, but was this woman really a teacher?

The invitation seems to specify "teachers" or "researchers," right? But the school and research institute that the workers are building hasn't even been completed yet...

...Never mind. Anyway, it's a genuine invitation, and the person in front of me does match the photo on the invitation.

With that thought in mind, the customs officer returned the invitation to Ms. Kelsey, wished her a pleasant journey, and then moved on to dealing with the next businessman about to pass through customs...

...

Once she had actually entered the city with her luggage, Ms. Kelsey didn't rush to take a taxi to the Duke's mansion. She chose to walk, not for any other reason than to see this city, which she had heard was beginning to recover its economy, and to see what it was really like.

She saw many things. Women chatting and laughing, using what appeared to be Duke's Coins to buy consumer goods; shirtless, sweaty construction workers returning from the site; and police officers patrolling the streets tirelessly, responding to emergencies with lightning speed. At first, Ms. Kelsey thought this was simply a place that seemed much better than other Ursus cities before the economic crisis, but she quickly realized that she didn't sense even the slightest hint of an economic crisis here.

“Compared to other territories where people are suffering and even starving to death, this place has actually returned to peace? How is this possible?” Lady Kelsey surveyed the buildings under construction in the distance. “And what they’re building is… a residential area? A school? Even a clinic and new luxury buildings. Is this some kind of noble residential area?”

She glanced back at the road sign she had just passed, puzzled—this was the western residential area. She'd heard that the Duchy of Kosiché was a giant city comprised of four merged cities; could it be that the area she'd been passing through just happened to be one of the more prosperous parts of that city?

...She decided to go and ask directly. Luckily, there was a policeman ahead who seemed to be guiding her...