Courtyard Houses: From Bronze Compasses to Global Reach

Just as Lin Yan was consolidating his newly achieved Qi Refining Level 4 cultivation in the Qiankun Realm, the two armies he had dispatched had already quietly taken action.

The hundred-man puppet squad led by Lin Yi and Lin Er arrived silently at the shore of Shenzhen Bay. It would take an ordinary person an hour to swim across, but for this group of Foundation Establishment cultivators who could ride the wind, with invisibility talismans attached, it only took them five minutes to cross the bay and land in the Yuen Long area of ​​the northwestern New Territories of Hong Kong.

In the 50s, Yuen Long was still a peaceful rural area primarily based on agriculture. The vast plains stretched out with rice paddies, famous for its "Yuen Long Silky Rice," in addition to fishing and salt production. Residents lived at a slow pace, self-sufficiently. Although Lin Yi and his companions had Asian features, their aloof demeanor contrasted sharply with the local farmers. Fortunately, Hong Kong was a city of immigrants, with a diverse mix of people, so they didn't seem particularly out of place.

Lin Yi quickly assigned tasks: send out 50 people to inquire about routes to Central Hong Kong Island and banks such as HSBC, Standard Chartered, and Citibank.

Lin Er casually took out a gold bracelet weighing about 200 grams from his spatial storage, found a pawn shop in Yuen Long, and easily exchanged it for HK$8000. This was a considerable amount of start-up capital at the time.

Subsequently, the group of 100 people split into smaller groups of two or three, each group was given HK$400 for travel expenses, and they set off for Hong Kong Island in batches by various means of transportation such as buses and ferries.

Their destination was not a secluded corner, but the police stations in various districts.

This was a crucial step in Lin Yan's plan—utilizing Hong Kong's then-exclusive "barrier policy" (effective before 1974). This policy stipulated that if mainland illegal immigrants successfully evaded border patrols and entered the city, and then "surrendered" to the police and registered, they could obtain a "temporary identity card" after a criminal record check, thus gaining legal residency and even laying the foundation for future applications for permanent residency.

The group of "illegal immigrants" led by Lin Yi were disciplined, answered questions clearly, and had "clean" backgrounds. They quickly passed the inspection and obtained the coveted "street pass," becoming "legal" residents of Hong Kong.

After regrouping at Victoria Harbour, Lin Yi immediately ordered his men to split into three groups and head straight for the three major banks: HSBC, Standard Chartered, and Citibank.

Their strategy was simple and direct: show off some less conspicuous but valuable antiques, jade, and ordinary gemstones, express their intention to sell to banks, and tentatively suggest that they hope to purchase law firms, high-quality commercial buildings in Central, or even quiet villas or estates through the banks' channels.

In 50s Hong Kong, these major British banks were not only financial institutions but also hubs for high-end resources and information, possessing a vast amount of high-quality client information and undisclosed high-quality asset data. Organizing small-scale auctions or directly introducing premium assets was the most efficient and least suspicious method. The financial resources and purchasing desires displayed by Lin Yi and his associates immediately attracted the attention of bank managers. A fast track to establishing a foothold in Hong Kong, laundering funds, and laying the groundwork for the future was rapidly being built.

At the same time, the thousand-strong puppet army led by Lin San to Lin Shi had silently infiltrated the Chinese mainland, like water droplets merging into the ocean.

In 1958, after several adjustments, China's provincial-level administrative divisions numbered 22. Lin San quickly divided 1,000 people into 22 large groups. Considering the vast territory and complex environment of the three autonomous regions of Tibet, Xinjiang, and Inner Mongolia, 60 people were allocated to each region. The remaining 19 provinces, including Hebei, Shanxi, Liaoning, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Shaanxi, Gansu, Qinghai, Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Guangdong, Guangxi, Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yunnan, were each allocated 43 people to each group.

Each group elects a temporary leader.

Their primary task is to resolve their identity issues themselves. This is not difficult for those who possess Foundation Establishment puppets. They can exploit loopholes in local household registration systems, impersonate deceased or missing persons, or forge letters of introduction to quickly obtain legitimate ostensible identities.

The second step, and the core task, is to begin by recruiting and identifying well-behaved, impoverished veterans, starting in provincial capitals. These individuals are disciplined, capable in combat, and may be dissatisfied with the status quo, making them ideal candidates for controlling the local black market and maintaining order.

The third step: Using veterans as the backbone, quickly expand the network to prefecture-level cities, county-level cities, and even important towns, assess existing black market forces, and lay the foundation for subsequent large-scale material distribution and price control.

Through the spiritual imprint in the space, Lin Yan received reports from several regional leaders regarding the initial progress. He was very satisfied.

"Indeed, puppets are the most efficient and reliable subordinates. Absolutely loyal, with superb combat skills, tireless, and you don't have to worry about betrayal or leaks." Lin Yan couldn't help but sigh, "It's really a waste of their talents to just have them farm in the space."

Today, a sharp sword called "capital" is quietly being forged in Hong Kong, while a vast net called "food" is slowly being spread across the country. Meanwhile, he remains calm and collected, his cultivation breakthrough and spatial expansion underway, waiting only for the opportune moment to stir up trouble.