Rise of a Lonely City: From Exiled Prince to Ruler of the Nine Provinces

The dogfighting drama in the capital is escalating, with the Crown Prince and Prince Yong locked in a fierce battle, leaving them no time to attend to anything else.

However, the cold wind from the northern grasslands did not stop in the slightest due to the chaos within the Great Xia Dynasty; instead, it carried even more biting malice and greed.

Northern Yan, a powerful steppe state that had suffered repeated setbacks in military affairs, horse racing, business warfare, and even diplomatic banquets, had not truly given up.

After repeatedly failing in direct confrontations, they turned their attention to the core secret behind Han Yuan's rise—technology.

Especially that magical mortar called cement. It can solidify when it comes into contact with water, becoming as hard as stone, and is effective in building cities, roads, and dams.

The rapidly rising fortresses along the border of Hanyuan, the smooth roads, and the magnificent water conservancy project like Dingbo Weir all depend on this thing.

In the eyes of the Northern Yan rulers and ministers, this item was more valuable than 100,000 elite soldiers.

Thus, a covert espionage war targeting cement formulas quietly began in the shadows.

On the outskirts of Montenegro's Iron City, there is a relatively independent workshop area that specializes in the production of cement clinker.

The artisans here are well-paid, but they are also subject to the strictest controls.

Craftsman Wang Laosan was one of the ingredient preparers.

He's a good cook, but he has one flaw—he's a gambler and a heavy drinker.

On this day, Wang Laosan got drunk at a newly opened Huji Tavern in Zhenbei Town. He was also having a bad day and had incurred a gambling debt of ten taels of silver.

Just as he was cornered by the gambling den's thugs and cried out in vain, a fat merchant named Hu Dafu, dressed in a brocade robe and speaking with a Northeastern accent, appeared.

"Why resort to violence for a mere ten taels?"

Hu Dafu smiled and paid off Wang Laosan's debt, then invited him to a private room for a feast.

"Manager Hu... Manager Hu, you are truly my second parents!" Old Wang said, tears streaming down his face.

"It's nothing."

Hu Dafu waved his hand and lowered his voice, "Brother Wang works at the cement factory?"

Wang Laosan sobered up halfway and looked at the other person warily.

"Don't misunderstand," Hu Dafu laughed. "I'm just a businessman who wants to do some building materials business with Han Yuan. I've heard that his cement is miraculous, and I want to find out more about it... how it's made. I'd like to have a better understanding of it and see if there's any profit to be made."

"This...this is confidential and cannot be disclosed." Wang Laosan shook his head.

"confidential?"

Hu Dafu smiled, took out a silver note from his pocket, and gently pushed it over. "This is one hundred taels. I'll buy you a rough estimate."

Wang Laosan's eyes widened, and his throat went dry. One hundred taels! He couldn't earn that much even after a year of hard work!

"It's just... limestone, clay, iron slag... ground up in a specific ratio, and then fired in a kiln..."

Wang Laosan stammered as he spoke about the most basic, common-sense information.

Hu Dafu's smile remained unchanged, but a barely perceptible hint of disappointment flashed in his eyes.

He calmly pushed another silver note towards him: "Two hundred taels. Use it to buy the real formula and process details. After it's done, there will be another five hundred taels. Enough for you to go back to your hometown, buy land, and become a wealthy man."

Five hundred taels?!

Wang Laosan was breathing rapidly, his face flushed red. Greed instantly overwhelmed reason and fear.

"I...I need to get the detailed recipe...that will take time..."

"No rush."

Hu Dafu smiled broadly, "Three days from now, still here. This is the deposit."

He then pushed over a small bag of melon seeds.

Wang Laosan, carrying gold melon seeds and silver notes, returned to the workshop in a daze, his heart pounding like a rabbit.

He knew it was a serious crime of treason, but the lure of a huge sum of money made him decide to take the risk.

Unbeknownst to him, the moment he stepped into the tavern, he was already under the close surveillance of Night Owl.

He had no idea that Hu Dafu was actually Urhan, a high-ranking spy sent by the Northern Yan Shadow Guard.

"Your Highness, the fish has taken the bait."

Night Owl's secret report was delivered to Xiao Chen's desk immediately, along with a detailed record of Wang Laosan's contact with Urhan, including the content of their conversation.

"They've arrived as expected."

Xiao Chen put down the secret report, a cold glint in his eyes. "Want the cement formula? I'll give it to you. I'm just afraid you... can't digest it."

"Summon the head of the Department of Chemical Pharmacy at the Institute of Physics, and... call that 'bookworm' Li Mo here." Xiao Chen's lips curled into a playful smile.

Li Mo, a renowned eccentric genius at the Institute of Physics, is obsessed with chemical changes and is particularly adept at designing various failed formulas and dangerous experiments. He is a key protected individual at the Institute of Physics and the culprit behind several small-scale explosions in Black Mountain Iron City.

However, his understanding of material reactions is often unique.

"Li Mo," Xiao Chen said to the young man with bright eyes and messy hair, "I need you to design a 'cement' formula."

"Your Highness, don't we have the real recipe?" Li Mo asked, puzzled.

"No," Xiao Chen shook his head, "it looks very similar, and the process is very complicated, but the final product—either won't solidify, or after solidifying..."

He paused, "A formula that will break down on its own under certain conditions, such as when exposed to water or subjected to pressure."

"what!"

Li Mo's eyes lit up even more. "Is Your Highness... trying to trick us?"

"It's a test."

Xiao Chen remained unfazed. "To test the enemy's ability to replicate our formula and its resistance to being cracked."

"Understood!"

Li Mo rubbed his hands together excitedly, "This is something I'm good at!"

Three days later, a cement recipe, written on specially made parchment with neat handwriting, precise proportions down to the "coin," and a complex process, was delivered to Urhan through Wang Laosan.

In the formula, the amount of gypsum added was significantly increased, and a small amount of highly hygroscopic saltpeter powder was added, as well as several mineral powders that did not participate in the reaction but made the mixture look more mysterious.

To increase credibility, Xiao Chen deliberately had Night Owl arrange an accident—a drunken low-ranking clerk from the Institute of Natural Sciences accidentally left behind a discarded manuscript containing fragments of a similar formula in a place where Urhan might pass by.

Upon verifying the two, Urhan was overjoyed and confirmed that this was indeed the genuine prescription!

Urhan was overjoyed to receive the formula and secretly fled from the Cold Abyss overnight to present it to the Khan of Northern Yan.

The Khan of Northern Yan immediately summoned the best artisans in the country and set up a top-secret workshop in a secluded valley near the border. Following the formula, they mined, crushed, mixed, and calcined the materials...

The process was extremely complicated and costly, but the Northern Yan rulers and their ministers were filled with fervor as they looked at the grayish-white powder that had been fired.

They seemed to see that the walls built with this material were as solid as a cold abyss, and the roads paved with it were as smooth as a cold abyss.

In order to verify the effect as soon as possible and to report the achievement to the Khan, the Vice Minister of Works of Northern Yan, who was in charge of the matter, decided to use new cement to urgently reinforce a section of the city wall that had been in disrepair for many years at Langshan Pass, a key border town.

Hundreds of craftsmen and laborers worked day and night to mix cement and gravel and pour it onto the outside of the city wall.

The cement seemed to set quickly, felt hard to the touch, and looked no different from the walls of the Cold Abyss.

"Heaven bless Great Yan! This divine object is complete!" The Vice Minister of Works of Northern Yan stroked his beard and laughed heartily.

However, before his smile could fully bloom, a sudden change occurred!

That night, a light rain fell on the grassland. The rainwater seeped into the newly poured cement layer.

The next morning, "Boom—!"

A deafening roar startled the entire Wolf Pass!

The newly built city wall, which was sturdy just yesterday, is now showing countless spiderweb-like cracks at a speed visible to the naked eye!

The cracking sounds were incessant!

"Oh no! The city wall is about to collapse! Run!" the defenders shouted in terror.

But it was too late.

"boom!"

With an even louder bang, the section of the city wall, which was more than ten feet long and reinforced with cement, along with the rammed earth core behind it, completely collapsed!

The gravel mixed with the not-yet-hardened mud poured down like a mudslide, burying the barracks, outposts, and dozens of Northern Yan soldiers and craftsmen who had no time to escape!

The scene was a complete mess, with heavy casualties and deafening cries!

"Sorcery! This is Han Yuan's sorcery!"

The Northern Yan Minister of Works, who had narrowly escaped death, collapsed to the ground, his face ashen, upon witnessing the horrific scene before him.

He knew he was finished. Not only had his mission failed, but he had also suffered heavy losses, wasted manpower and resources, and utterly disgraced Northern Yan!

News of the Langshan Pass massacre reached Zhenbei City even faster than the Northern Yan court's official report, thanks to Night Owl's connections.

"Your Highness, the city wall of Langshan Pass in Northern Yan has collapsed. It is reported that 37 people have died, more than 100 have been injured, and countless barracks and equipment have been destroyed. The Emperor of Northern Yan is furious and has imprisoned the Vice Minister of Works who was in charge of the matter."

Zhao Tielin reported, his tone carrying a barely perceptible hint of satisfaction.

"Only thirty-odd people died?"

Xiao Chen seemed somewhat dissatisfied, "It seems that kid Li Mo is still too soft-hearted and didn't administer the medicine strongly enough."

"Your Highness, what about Urhan and Wang Laosan...?"

"Close the net."

Xiao Chen said calmly, "A traitor and a spy, are they still worth keeping around?"

"yes!"

That night, the Hu Ji Tavern was surrounded by a large force. Urhan was burning documents in a secret room, preparing to evacuate, when he was captured on the spot by the Night Owl elites who broke in. A large amount of intelligence and secret letters between him and the Northern Yan were found in his hidden compartment.

Wang Laosan was dreaming sweet dreams under his own kang (heated brick bed) while hugging some still-warm melon seeds, when he was caught red-handed by a night owl that fell from the sky.

Three days later, at the north gate of Zhenbei City.

Two tall flagpoles stood erect. At the top of each flagpole hung a grotesque head, preserved in lime.

One is Urhan, and the other is Wang Laosan.

Beneath the flagpole, a huge notice was posted, detailing the crimes of the two: "Urhan, a spy from Northern Yan, using the alias Hu Dafu, bribed Wang Laosan, a craftsman from Hanyuan, with a large sum of money to steal military and state secrets... The evidence is conclusive. In accordance with the Hanyuan Law, he is to be beheaded immediately, and his head will be displayed to the public as a warning to others!"

Beside the notice was an explanation: "Recently, spies from an enemy country attempted to steal our cement formula. Our Institute of Geology and Night Owl devised a plan to lure the enemy with a fake formula. Northern Yan, unaware of the deception, followed the formula and fired the cement, causing the collapse of their Langshan Pass city wall and heavy casualties. This was their own fault! All soldiers and civilians of Hanyuan should be vigilant, strictly guard secrets, and those who perform meritorious service will be richly rewarded; those who colluded with the enemy will face this fate!"

The news sent shockwaves through the city, followed by deafening cheers!

"Your Highness is wise! Night Owl is mighty!"

"Serves them right! They tried to steal a chicken but ended up losing everything!"

"Let's see who dares to mess with our Hanyuan now!"

The morale and cohesion of the Hanyuan army and civilians reached a new height at this moment.

On the other hand, the morale of the Northern Yan people was low and they lost face. For a short period of time, they dared not think of stealing technology again.

"Having witnessed this event," Xiao Chen summoned the core members of the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Bureau of Industrial Engineering, and Night Owl at the Prince's Palace, "the importance of the core technology of my Cold Abyss is beyond doubt. From today onwards, a Technology Secrecy Bureau will be established, jointly managed by the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Bureau of Industrial Engineering, and Night Owl."

"A 'Technology Secrecy Order' was formulated, classifying key technologies such as cement, steelmaking, crossbows, gunpowder, salt production, and wool spinning into three levels: top secret, confidential, and secret."

"Improve the system that combines patents with confidentiality, encourage innovation internally, and strictly block external access."

"In key workshops and research institutes, we will promote assembly line division of labor and blind operation, so that individual craftsmen only know the part and not the whole."

"The Night Owl Technology Security Division is dedicated to preventing and investigating acts of technological espionage and has the authority to act first and report later."

"The reason why Han Yuan can stand tall in the world and achieve its current strength is largely due to its technology."

Xiao Chen's gaze swept over the crowd. "This barrier must be as solid as an impregnable fortress!"

"Yes!" The crowd solemnly replied.

Technological barriers are not only a protective wall, but also an invisible sharp blade.

This fake formula incident not only dealt a heavy blow to Northern Yan, but also demonstrated to the world Han Yuan's absolute technological advantage and determination to defend itself.

This barrier will ensure that no one can replicate or stop the rise of the Cold Abyss.