Chapter 50 – Strategic Planning

Chapter 50 – Strategic Planning

Before proceeding with the class changes, Cheng Yang summoned the four team leaders, including Yu Kai, to discuss the future layout of Luofeng Village.

Soon, Yu Kai and the others arrived at the only level 2 civilian house in Luofeng Village. They each found a stool and sat down.

Cheng Yang began, “Our territory’s class statues have just been upgraded to level 3. Each statue can now accommodate 200 people for class changes. This means your teams will soon experience another surge in numbers. However, this also brings up a management challenge. Do any of you have suggestions on how to handle this?”

The team leaders exchanged glances, none of them particularly experienced in this area.

Li Wanshan spoke up, “Lord, I think we should establish a hierarchical structure for the combatants. This would make management much easier. Even with our current team size of forty, managing with just a captain and vice-captain is challenging. It will only get harder as our numbers grow.”

Cheng Yang nodded, “That’s a valid point. Should we adopt the modern military company/platoon system or the ancient military formation system?”

Yu Kai suggested, “Yang, why stick to old systems? Why not create our own? I propose ten people per squad, four squads per company, and three to five companies per battalion. This would be simple and clear.”

Cheng Yang considered this, “That could work, but what about beyond the battalion level? Your system would max out at about 200 people per battalion, which is fine for now but insufficient for future growth.”

Liu Hao chimed in, “How about using ‘regiment’ above battalion? The leader could be called a commander. Above that, we could use ‘division,’ like in ancient military systems. The division leader could be called a general.”

Niu Bing countered, “Hao, wouldn’t calling someone who manages just a few thousand people a general be excessive? What if we eventually have tens or hundreds of thousands? Would we call them marshals or grand marshals?”

Liu Hao chuckled awkwardly, unable to refute Niu Bing’s blunt observation.

Cheng Yang interjected, “Let’s not worry about titles for now. In ancient times, some generals held relatively low ranks. As for levels above division, it’s too early to consider. It will likely take us at least half a year to reach that scale. Does anyone else have suggestions? Speak freely – any ideas that benefit our territory’s development will be considered.”

Li Wanshan hesitated before speaking, “Lord, I don’t think you should serve as a battalion captain. As the lord, it’s inappropriate. It’s like an ancient emperor giving himself a general’s title – it seems unnecessary.”

Cheng Yang pondered this, then nodded, “That’s a good point. I haven’t been very active in my captain role recently. I’ll announce that Zhao Chuan will take over as captain. He’s been managing the team well these past few days.”

Li Wanshan agreed, and the matter was settled.

Liu Hao suggested, “Should we give each team a name? It would make communication easier.”

Yu Kai countered, “Let’s wait. Naming every battalion now would be a headache. Let’s just number them one through five for now. We can name them when they reach regiment level.”

Cheng Yang agreed, “Yu Kai’s right. Names aren’t important now. When our territory reaches level 3, we’ll have barracks for formal military units and a mercenary guild for civilian organizations. You can choose impressive names then.”

The team leaders nodded, all looking forward to the barracks’ establishment. As for mercenary groups, their fates were already tied to Luofeng Village.

Li Wanshan spoke again, “Lord, I have another suggestion, though I’m not sure if I should mention it.”

Cheng Yang smiled, “Go ahead, Old Li. Though we’ve only known each other a few days, I trust your judgment.”

Li Wanshan continued, “As our village’s leader, you should establish your authority. While it’s fine for you and the captains to be informal in private, in public we should address you properly. This will help with territory management.”

Cheng Yang hesitated, “Is that really necessary? We…”

Yu Kai interrupted, “Yang, I think Li’s right. I’ve actually thought about this before but didn’t want to bring it up for fear of affecting our friendship. Since Li mentioned it, let’s do this. It’s just a formality in public – we’re still brothers in private.”

After some thought, Cheng Yang agreed, “Alright. Any other suggestions?”

Li Wanshan added, “Lord, when I said you shouldn’t be a captain, I had more to say. I think you should form a personal guard of elite combatants – not too many, but each should be exceptionally strong. They could be crucial in critical situations.”

Cheng Yang understood this was for his safety and didn’t refuse. However, forming such a unit would take time. He planned to select only those with A-grade talents, many of whom were already core members of Luofeng Village’s main forces.

After settling these matters, Cheng Yang remembered something, “I forgot to mention earlier – with the class statue upgrade, each statue now has an additional skill. However, you’ll need to reach high-level apprentice rank to learn it, so keep working hard on your cultivation.”

Liu Hao laughed wryly, “We’re already working hard! I’m at 42% progress and should reach mid-level apprentice in five or six days. But high-level apprentice is still far off. You’re just teasing us with this!”

Cheng Yang smiled, “It’s not teasing – it’s motivation. Check the statue for skill details. I’m sure you’ll be pleased.”

Even with quadruple cultivation speed, reaching high-level apprentice would take over twenty days, explaining Liu Hao’s complaint.

After the banter, Li Wanshan brought up another issue, “Lord, we don’t have enough carpenters for woodcutting. In two days, we’ve only gathered about 500 cubic meters, plus 100 from Huimin Town. We’re still far from what we need for essential buildings, especially the wall expansion. With over 12,000 people in one square kilometer, excluding building space, those sleeping outside are getting crowded.”

Cheng Yang nodded, “I know. I have 3,400 spirit energy points left. I’ll lend 2,000 to some carpenters to speed up woodcutting. We should have the wall up by tomorrow.”

After discussing other details, the group left the house.

Cheng Yang then gathered all combatants to announce the decisions, focusing on the new organizational structure.

First, he announced his resignation as captain, with Zhao Chuan taking over. This excited Zhao Chuan, though he had anticipated it as the team’s only vice-captain.

Next, he established the new hierarchy: Yu Kai’s team as 1st Battalion, Liu Hao’s as 2nd, Niu Bing’s as 3rd, Li Wanshan’s as 4th, and Zhao Chuan’s as 5th. Each battalion would have one commander and three vice-commanders, with four companies per battalion, each having one captain and two vice-captains. Companies would consist of ten-person squads, each with a squad leader.

Cheng Yang emphasized balanced class distribution in squads for independent operations. Due to limited numbers, priests would be allocated at the battalion level.

Appointments would follow a clear chain: battalion commanders by Cheng Yang, company captains by battalion commanders with Cheng Yang’s approval, and squad leaders by company captains with battalion commander approval. This system aimed to balance delegation of authority with preventing nepotism.

Of course, the most obvious case of nepotism was Cheng Yang himself, with three of the five battalions led by his closest friends. However, no one objected – the territory was Cheng Yang’s after all, and everyone recognized Liu Hao and the others’ talents and future potential.

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