Chapter 231: Chapter 133: The Seven Nations Bank

Yang Jing was in the Governor’s Mansion, where the Spiritual Qi was so dense it had condensed into a Spiritual Mist that dampened his hair and clothes.

The ethereal Spiritual Qi even took the form of Soaring Dragons, which chased each other playfully.

This was because a Nascent Soul Cultivator permanently resided here. Under the influence of his Cultivation Technique, the Spiritual Qi had developed a faint Spiritual Essence and spontaneously manifested these phenomena.

Once a Cultivator reached the Nascent Soul Stage, they gained the ability to subtly influence and alter the local environment.

As far as Yang Jing knew, the Northern Army Governor, Canyuan True Monarch, was a Cultivator from the Profound Pure Sect. He practiced the Beichen Yellow Dragon Scripture, had reached the Late Stage Nascent Soul in his Cultivation, and possessed profound skill and extraordinary combat prowess.

He had once fought two Nascent Soul Elders from a Demon Sect single-handedly, severely wounding them.

Yang Jing was led into a Quiet Chamber. This must be the place where Canyuan True Monarch normally cultivated. The room was simply furnished, containing only a few Meditation Cushions, a bookshelf, and a Pill Furnace.

The bookshelf was not filled with Jade Scrolls but with various kinds of books—some made of Golden Pages, some of Silver Pages, some of Beast Hide, and others of Stone Slabs. Clearly, none were ordinary items.

Several Golden Core Cultivators from the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion were present, seated cross-legged on Meditation Cushions around Canyuan True Monarch. A few of them were seeing Yang Jing for the first time and sized him up with curious, scrutinizing gazes as he entered.

Canyuan True Monarch was an old man with white hair but a youthful complexion. He wore a Dragon Pattern Daoist Robe, his long beard hung to his chest, and his features were remarkably handsome.

When ordinary Cultivators met a Nascent Soul True Monarch, they would only perceive his presence as a bottomless abyss. However, Yang Jing’s Spiritual Sense was far superior. Even without activating his Dharma Eye or using his Bright Qi Talent, he could faintly sense the vast, ocean-like Magical Power emanating from Canyuan True Monarch.

Facing a Nascent Soul Cultivator was like standing before a ceaselessly flowing Spirit Vein.

“Greetings, Canyuan True Monarch.”

Yang Jing felt Canyuan True Monarch’s gaze fall upon him, sharp as a sword.

After a moment, a clear, resonant voice spoke:

“Worthy indeed of being called the Qilin’Er of our Six Sects. Principled in your conduct, yet flexible in your methods. Your Five Elements radiate light, and your thunder is deeply concealed. Your brow shows a sign of brilliance, your blood flows freely and your organs are robust. Your bones are viridian, tendons crimson, and marrow like frost. Even your mastery of the Body Refining Skill is quite profound.”

Yang Jing was inwardly shocked. He had long since refined his True Yang Body to the realm of perfect simplicity, his Celestial True Gang contained deep within his Acupoints, not leaking out in the slightest.

To an ordinary Cultivator, his physical vitality would even seem slightly weaker than that of others at his Cultivation level.

Even the Outer Celestial Demons, who were most sensitive to True Yang, had been unable to detect his True Yang Body’s Cultivation before he unleashed his True Gang.

He never imagined Canyuan True Monarch would see through it with a single glance.

Canyuan True Monarch nodded in satisfaction.

“Your Merit Points are more than enough for you to be appointed as a Minister. However, the position of Seven Kingdoms Minister is of great importance; it cannot be managed well through the Power of Magical Combat alone. If you were to be appointed to this post, what would you do?”

At the side, Meng Sima grew tense.

Canyuan True Monarch had a point. Supervising the Seven Kingdoms couldn’t be done solely through brute force. If one used heavy-handed tactics against the Immortal Cultivation Clans—employing severe punishments and acting like a tyrant who didn’t fear the powerful—it could easily provoke these clans into rebellion.

Within the Seven Kingdoms, a few clans had incredibly deep backgrounds and direct connections to the upper echelons of the Six Sects. If a real conflict were to erupt, even someone of Yang Jing’s status might not be able to keep them in line.

As the Seven Kingdoms Minister, knowing how to deal with the Immortal Cultivation Clans was a profound art in itself.

What Meng Sima feared most was that Yang Jing, so accustomed to being decisive and ruthless with Demon Cultivators, would reflexively treat the Immortal Cultivation Clans of the Seven Kingdoms the same way.

Yang Jing knelt on the Meditation Cushion.

“I believe the first order of business after taking office should be to reassure the Cultivators within the Seven Kingdoms, restore order, and repair the damage the Demon Cultivators inflicted upon the kingdoms’ institutions and economy. After that, I will strengthen patrols, maintain security, and crack down on Tribulation Cultivators and Demon Cultivators.”

Demon Cultivators don’t produce anything; they only wreak havoc throughout the Northern Domain Seven Kingdoms, destroying countless Spirit Fields and Medicinal Gardens in their wake.

Many Immortal Cultivation Clans and Independent Cultivators have lost their primary source of income.

“Many Cultivators are farmers when their lands need tending and bandits when they are idle. Having lost their income, they will very likely choose to become Tribulation Cultivators to sustain their Cultivation. If we don’t crack down hard, the Northern Domain Seven Kingdoms will be plagued by unending banditry for years to come,” he said with confidence and eloquence.

Meng Sima relaxed. ’I really didn’t choose the wrong person,’ he thought with a sense of relief.

“However, simply cracking down on banditry only treats the symptom, not the root cause. I believe the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion can cooperate with the Seven Kingdoms Royal Families. We can provide loans to clans and Independent Cultivators who own property, allowing them to use their assets as collateral to borrow Spirit Stones and resume production.”

Yang Jing went on to eloquently outline several other strategies he had already formulated. The Golden Core Cultivators present nodded repeatedly as they listened.

’This young man has clearly never served as a Muddy Stream Affairs Officer, yet his thinking is so meticulous. The fact that he foresaw the impending bandit problem in the Seven Kingdoms is a major point in his favor.’

“During this demonic plague, many clans were suspected of simply watching from the sidelines to see who would prevail. Are we to let such opportunistic fence-sitters off lightly?”

Canyuan True Monarch stroked his long beard, continuing his examination.

If his words were to spread, they would likely frighten many a Foundation Establishment Clan to death.

Earning the enmity of a Nascent Soul Cultivator was no laughing matter.

“We must prioritize. Maintaining the stability of the Seven Kingdoms is the number one priority. We can discreetly interview the soldiers who went to the Seven Kingdoms to eliminate the demons and secretly record the names of the clans that refused to help or cooperated with the Demon Sect. We will place them under surveillance. Once the situation in the Seven Kingdoms has stabilized, we will strike swiftly. Depending on the severity of their crimes, we can either punish them and confiscate their assets, or execute their leaders and sentence the remaining disciples to hard labor. Their confiscated assets can then be auctioned off to serve as the principal for the loan program,” Yang Jing said, his tone neither servile nor overbearing.

“’Governing a great state is like cooking a small fish.’ You have already grasped its essence.”

Canyuan True Monarch nodded, growing more and more satisfied with Yang Jing the longer he looked at him.

Knowing when to advance and when to retreat, acting with neither haste nor impatience, adapting his methods to the situation, and waiting for the opportune moment to move—such qualities were especially precious in someone like Yang Jing, who had achieved fame at such a young age.

He took out an Imperial Decree and stamped it with the Governor’s Jade Token.

“Xiaomeng has already promised you a reward. It’s not a good thing for a young man to gain too much too quickly. How about this: if you encounter any difficulties in your Cultivation, you may come to me for guidance once at the end of each month.”

Canyuan True Monarch said with a warm smile:

“But if you come with nothing to ask and waste my time, I won’t hesitate to throw you right out.”

Yang Jing bowed respectfully and accepted the Imperial Decree.

Many of the surrounding Golden Core Cultivators looked on with envy. Even they couldn’t be certain of seeing the Governor every month, let alone receiving his personal guidance on their Cultivation.

With their business concluded, Meng Sima and Yang Jing left the Governor’s Mansion together.

“Yang Jing, Yang Jing, you kid, you really manage to surprise me every time. I have never seen the Governor place so much importance on a young man before.”

Yang Jing wiped the nervous sweat from his forehead.

Although he had appeared calm and composed on the surface, his nerves had been stretched to their absolute limit.

“If not for your support, Meng Sima, I would not have had such good fortune today,” he said humbly to Meng Sima.

Meng Sima stroked his beard.

“This matter of the loans is critically important. Without strict oversight, a benevolent policy can easily become a malevolent one. Yang Jing, do you have any thoughts on this?

Lending is not a simple matter at all. First, it’s easy for collusion between insiders and outsiders to lead to loan fraud. Second, powerful clans could monopolize the benefits, while the small clans and Independent Cultivators who desperately need Spirit Stones get nothing. Third, local magnates could force smaller clans to take loans, then arbitrarily raise interest rates and invent false fees to extort them.”

He directly pointed out the potential pitfalls he had considered.

Yang Jing knew Meng Sima was only speaking so frankly because he cared for him. He was laying out all the potential pitfalls to prevent him from inadvertently making a misstep.

“Meng Sima, I have considered this as well. In truth, these potential problems all stem from the same issue: the great clans are powerful, while the small clans and Independent Cultivators are weak and at their mercy. In this matter, our Northern Army Governor’s Mansion can design a system that leverages the wealth of the great clans while excluding them from the actual implementation.”

Meng Sima’s eyes narrowed.

“Elaborate.”

“We would cooperate with continent-spanning Great Trading Houses like the Celestial Treasure Tower and Taichang Trading Company to establish a new institution. We could call it the Northern Domain Bank or the Seven Nations Bank. It would accept Spirit Stones from the great clans and Royal Families of the Northern Domain as share capital, and then this bank would issue the loans. Dividends would be paid out every few years. This way, the profits from lending would be jointly supervised by our Northern Army Governor’s Mansion, the Celestial Treasure Tower, the Taichang Trading Company, the Seven Kingdoms Royal Families, and the Golden Core Clans. Furthermore, this bank could also replace the Spirit Stone Shops, offering services such as storing Spirit Stones and other Spiritual Objects.”

Yang Jing explained the strategy he had long since devised.

Meng Sima’s eyes lit up. The more he considered the plan, the more brilliant he found it to be.

If all the great clans became beneficiaries of the bank, many of the potential abuses in the lending process would naturally disappear.

The Celestial Treasure Tower and Taichang Trading Company already had branches in every Marketplace across the Northern Domain Seven Kingdoms. By leveraging their manpower and resources, this Seven Nations Bank could be established throughout the Northern Domain very quickly. This would minimize the number of Cultivators turning into Tribulation Cultivators.

“This plan concerns the entire Northern Domain. I am merely a Foundation Establishment Cultivator and could never bear the responsibility of spearheading such a project. I must ask you, Meng Gong, to champion this plan in my stead.”

Yang Jing was very self-aware. He knew that if this bank became operational, the amount of Spirit Stones flowing through it would be in the millions.

Wealth stirs the human heart. No matter how great his reputation, he was still only a Foundation Establishment Cultivator and could never hope to control such power. Since his arrival at the Northern Army Governor’s Mansion, Meng Sima had looked after him and supported him on multiple occasions. Now was the time to return the favor.

It was for this very reason that Yang Jing had not mentioned this particular plan when the Governor was questioning him.

There had been too many people present at the time. A prize of such astonishing value would have certainly tempted the other Golden Core Cultivators.

Meng Sima, of course, understood this. He knew what enormous benefits would come from being in charge of the bank. Even without engaging in any greed or corruption, the rewards he would reap would be staggering.

“Ah, Yang Jing, Yang Jing. The ancients said that great wisdom borders on the demonic; they must have been talking about geniuses like you. For a moment there, I felt that giving you the Celestial Thunder Technique was far too stingy a reward.”

He stared at Yang Jing for a long moment before speaking again. “The interests involved in this matter concern multiple parties and could even influence the entire situation in the Northern Domain. Let’s go back and discuss this in detail with the Governor. Only he can make the final decision.”

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