Naturally, the matter that Black Snake was worried about would not happen. Although the incident at the Battle of Yunnan was his responsibility, he was already punished.
Ouyang Shuo looked at Black Snake once more, "After dealing with the handover, bring the nine other core members to Lion City, Friendship City, and Jidian City to set up a global intel network."
The Shanhai Guards would take charge of intel in China while the Black Snake Guards would be in charge of international intel. After this, these two intel organizations would overlap no more.
As for the Shanhai Guards being unable to monitor and control the Black Snake Guards, Ouyang Shuo was not too worried.
First, since the establishment of the Black Snake Guards, Black Snake had already proven his loyalty. Secondly, the headquarters of the Black Snake Guards was still in the Ash Courtyard, so he would have to return after he gets everything settled.
Hence, the Shanhai Guards could still conduct some limited monitoring of the Black Snake Guards.
Ouyang Shuo continued, "With Lion City as the center to form the Asia Intel Division; with Friendship City as its center to form the Africa Intel Division; with Jidian City as its center to form the Europe Intel Division. In the future, we can still make the North America and South America Intel Divisions to cover the entire world. How's that, are you confident?"
Black Snake's worry turned to joy, his mood soaring and dropping quickly. He nodded, "No problem!"
The Black Snake Guards going out to sea did not mean that they were starting from scratch. Long ago, when the three cities were taken down, Ouyang Shuo had already told them to start their work there.
Now, Black Snake needed to build on this foundation.
"Similarly, Shanhai Guard's overseas unit will be handed over. From now on, you two are different organizations, one focusing internally, one externally." Ouyang Shuo said.
"Understood!"
Both Shen Buhai and Black Snake nodded.
Ouyang Shuo said, "Black Snake, you need to follow up at Somalia. Based on the reaction of City Magistrate Gu Xiuwen, those fellows are being more and more unfriendly. We need to find a time to teach them a lesson."
"Do not worry Monarch. I'll definitely do a good job."
Ouyang Shuo nodded, and his expression suddenly turned solemn, "What I am about to say next is only to the both of you; you cannot reveal it to anyone."
Shen Buhai exchanged glances with Black Snake and the shock and surprise in the others' eyes. The reason behind the Monarch's sudden changes was probably due to what he was about to say next.
Ouyang Shuo revealed the relevant information regarding Silver Hand.
The more they heard, the more astonished they grew.
The Yanhuang Alliance was already so amazing, and they did not expect these people to have such a terrifying organization on a global scale.
Ouyang Shuo said, "It's obvious that they are our greatest enemy and our biggest obstacle since we have started to expand overseas. Without knowing clearly who our enemy is and what they have, we have no chance of winning."
"Monarch I understand." A fire burned in his eyes, and they finally understood why the Lord was so anxious to form a global intel network.
Even if Black Snake was a famous Mercenary Group leader in real life, he knew nothing about Silver Hand. Thinking about the incoming collision with this massive monster, Black Snake could feel his blood boil.
"Your blood can boil, but you cannot lose your head. Toward this opponent, we pretty much know nothing about them. Even the strong academic faction cannot deal with them, so they are not something we can touch easily at our stage. If we are not careful, we might fall into their trap."
Black Snake calmed himself down; he was not a reckless person after all. "Do not worry Monarch, we will focus on expanding our overseas intel network in these two to three months and will not disturb them."
"That's good." Ouyang Shuo nodded, "I'll give the Black Snake Guards 150 thousand more gold to expand the overseas intel network. In the next period of time, you'll have to depend on yourselves."
"Thank you Monarch." Black Snake was touched as he was clear about how much gold would be used on the five million player recruitment. To take out 500 thousand at such a stage was really difficult.
Ouyang Shuo waved them off, "Go prepare!"
"We will take our leave!"
Shen Buhai and Black Snake left. In the following period of time, there were more than enough matters for them to be busy with.
Ouyang Shuo sat alone in the reading room, looking at the sky outside the window, only to see a dark cloud float above the blue portion like it was going to swallow the entire blue sky.
"The rain is about to arrive!"
The part that worried Ouyang Shuo the most worried was still the situation in the Mediterranean. He could not predict who were members of Silver Hand but William, Henry, and the like were definitely part of it.
What changes would occur in the Mediterranean because of this?
Ouyang Shuo had no way to find out.
He made up his mind to immediately attack Morocco after establishing the country. As for the plan to attack Annan, that could be postponed to a later date.
"Time does not wait for anyone!"
Jidian City was an important strategic location and was the only stop for the Mediterranean Squadron. However, it was not self-sufficient, so it was in a dangerous spot.
Only by taking down Morocco could they advance and retreat without worry.
Thinking about this, Ouyang Shuo wrote a letter to Kalia to ask her to take care of Jidian City. If there were changes, he hoped that Atlantis could interfere and protect Jidian City.
Although such a course of action was rascal-like, Ouyang Shuo had no choice.
As for William and Henry, Ouyang Shuo was not in a hurry to write a letter to find out their attitudes on the matter. Before the situation became clear, both of them definitely would not choose sides.
Even if they did, they would not openly stand on Shanhai City's side. The interest chain of both sides was not so secure, and Ouyang Shuo did not want to seek humiliation.
In the huge reading room, all that remained was Ouyang Shuo's soft and slow breathing.
The bustling Lantern Festival arrived in the blink of an eye.
This also meant that the Chinese New Year period had come to an end. The prosperity and celebratory instinct slowly faded, slowly replaced by the killing intent and coldness of the wilderness.
Since establishing the country was imminent, Shanhai City held the biggest Lantern Festival in its history. The vast and endless city was filled with various kinds of lanterns.
On the hundreds of squares in the territory, there were massive, building-sized lanterns that attracted many people over.
Merchants and sellers saw the business opportunity and naturally would not let it go. There were people selling candied haws, selling sweets, selling cakes, some cutting paper, and various trades.
Troupes and various artists used the chance to walk onto the squares and start their performances, earning them a lot of cheers. Naturally, they earned great profits.
Since it was the Lantern Festival, regardless of adults or kids, they were all really generous.
It was also beneath the imperial city where the people lived a really rich life, so their spending power was naturally the strongest.
Mingling amidst the masses were not only merchants from Southeast Asia, but there were also western merchants or religious teachers who were here to admire and enjoy the eastern culture.
Some western merchants did not forget to take the chance to sell the western items that they had brought. There were some microscopes, various beautiful stones, and also many funny things of unknown purposes.
It was truly a bustling sight.
Some people said that many items that one could not buy in the system imperial city could be basically found in Shanhai City. Thanks to the prosperous ocean trading, merchants from tens of thousands of countries were gathering to make this city exquisitely charming and unique.
Apart from the squares, there were many other places that were similarly exciting.
On the expanded Friendship River, there were many flower ships. The trees on the two sides of the river shore were hung with countless lanterns and tens of thousands of civilians made their wishes.
Some wished for health, some for fame, and others for riches….
Mazu Temple, Drum Tower, and other significant buildings were the focus of redecorations; especially the newly built temples in the city. They all made use of this final day to hold many different kinds of temple fairs.
The current Shanhai City was a location where hundreds of flowers bloomed.
Various religions were able to lay their roots down on the ground, and even western religions were accepted.
The wilderness had not reached the Wei Pu Period where Buddhism was spread in the wilderness. The main religion was still Taoism, with no less than 15 to 16 Taoist temples in the city.
The Dragon King Temple, God of Fortune Temple, and the like were found everywhere.
Of course, the one that people paid the most attention to was the North City Tower in the imperial city, where the most exquisite and noblest crafted lanterns were gathered.
Even the fireworks were released throughout the night.
Amongst all the fireworks were many Kongming lanterns, bringing with them the wishes and the blessings of many people. They slowly disappeared into the night sky and floated into the distance.
Shanhai City had transformed into a city with no night, and the endless prosperity spread along the streets. Who would have imagined three years ago that an unassuming little village would end up becoming such a megacity?
Amongst all the bustle and hustle, the Shanhai City Law and Order Division's 1st firefighting squad roamed the alleys to extinguish the flames and ensure the safety and happiness of the occasion.
The ruling system of Shanhai City was becoming more and more modern.
Imperial City, North City Tower.
Ouyang Shuo brought Song Jia, Bing'er, and the others to sit on the tower, eating delicious dishes while spending the holiday.
On the two sides of Ouyang Shuo sat Jiang Shang, Xiao He, and other prominent ministers. They were using the lanterns as topics to match poems and lines.
The lines in the poems were describing the prosperous scenes in front of his eyes.
Ouyang Shuo smiled as he listened; his heart was extremely calm.
Who knew how many hidden currents moved in such a prosperous place?