Genshin Impact: I, the Winter Prince, reign supreme.

Five hundred years ago, the former Ice Queen was brutally murdered by the maintainers of Heaven's justice. The current Ice Queen raised the banner of rebellion, directly resulting in the people of Winterfall never again obtaining a single Eye of God from Sky Island. According to historical records, the last person in Winterfall to obtain an Eye of God was a prisoner sentenced to death who unexpectedly awakened his Eye of God as he was being led to the guillotine. Her Majesty the Queen considered this an insult to Sky Island, personally executed the prisoner, and sealed the Eye of God away.

[Doctor] Dottore joined the Winter Kingdom, and Her Majesty the Queen gave him the Eye of God to study. He successfully developed his most prized creation: the Evil Eye.

The biggest difference between the people of Winter's End and the people of the other six kingdoms is that they do not believe in the gods in the heavens, but only in the Ice Queen. This has fostered a resilient and strong character in the entire nation. His Highness said that it is precisely this unique temperament and spirit that makes the people of Winter's End steadfast in their beliefs and pure in their souls. With just a little training, they can forge a powerful military spirit.

Therefore, His Highness's reforms to enhance combat effectiveness primarily focus on the spiritual level. Specific strategies include erecting monuments to inspire future generations; holding large-scale speech contests to praise the deeds of heroes and promote their spirit of self-sacrifice; and finally, clearly informing the people that the goal of the Winter Kingdom is not to annex the other six kingdoms, but to overthrow the laws of nature and establish a better new world.

From the day she publicly declared her intention to defy the laws of nature, she found that the people responded enthusiastically.

The tragic death of the former Ice Queen had been circulating among the common people for a long time, but the lower classes dared not speak out in anger. Now that His Highness the Prince has taken the lead in bringing it up, everyone is in support.

Even those who never understood why they had to overthrow the natural order eventually joined without hesitation. After the abolition of serfdom, His Highness the Prince was the person they trusted most!

……

P.S.: Happy 520!!!

Chapter 205 Economics

After reforming the military, His Highness the Prince vigorously developed agriculture and the commodity economy, continuously strengthening the country's economic power.

Previously, the economy of the Winter Kingdom was extremely poor, with a predominantly serf-based economy. The country's income mainly relied on mineral resources, fishery resources, forest resources, and livestock. In short, it exported low-grade agricultural products and imported high-grade goods from the other six countries.

About twenty years ago, a particularly severe snowstorm occurred, freezing many people to death. Not only that, crops in the fields were also severely damaged, and by the end of the year, a serious famine had occurred, starving many more people to death. It was then that people realized that the Kingdom of Winter exported a large amount of grain to the other six countries every year to support its army, and that its own grain reserves were actually insufficient; the grain in the national granaries was not even enough to feed the refugees.

Her Majesty the Empress was in a terrible predicament. Despite possessing divine power, she couldn't conjure up large quantities of food out of thin air—that was beyond the capabilities of a god. It is said that gods are omnipotent, but even the stars have their limits, and divine power ultimately has its limits. Faced with a large number of refugees in the capital of Winterfall, Her Majesty the Empress had no choice but to sell all the treasures she had accumulated over the years abroad to obtain a large amount of food, thus weathering the crisis.

Later, some people questioned what kind of treasure it was that could bring so much grain to the Kingdom of Zhidong. There were also rumors that it was just a way to glorify Her Majesty the Empress, and that the national treasures of Zhidong were being sold, which was not worthwhile at all.

Only the eleven executives knew what Her Majesty the Queen was selling: not only expensive pearls and gems accumulated over thousands of years, but also divine essence containing Her Majesty's divine power. The importance of divine essence to a deity is self-evident; it is not only the foundation for achieving divine status but also the source of power.

Humans restore their physical strength and energy through sleep and food, while gods restore their divine power through divine essence. However, Her Majesty the Queen has allocated a quarter of her divine essence to the black market, directly causing the restoration of divine power to become abnormally slow.

Her Majesty the Queen had made a pact with the "temperamental old aunt" water goddess of Fontaine to explore the abyss in the core area of ​​the ancient kingdom of Kanria. During their journey, several earth-shattering and fierce battles erupted. After returning from the core area, the water goddess recovered half of her depleted divine power in just six months, while Her Majesty the Queen only recovered ten percent.

Her Majesty the Empress, who has lost a quarter of her divine power, has been greatly affected. She and the executive officers all felt it was a great pity, but Her Majesty the Empress said it was worth it.

Now, after His Highness the Prince's reforms, the economy of Zhidong Kingdom has achieved leapfrog progress and development in just three months. As His Highness stated, abolishing serfdom is a reform that liberates productive forces and will greatly promote economic progress. After being bound by serfdom for over a thousand years, Zhidong Kingdom has unleashed unprecedented vitality.

Recently, the minister in charge of agriculture reported to Her Majesty the Queen during court that the amount of farmland being cultivated and planted in various regions has tripled.

The sudden increase in farmland meant a bumper harvest at the end of the year, and Her Majesty inquired about the reason. The ministers said that the serfs were not only actively planting grain on their allocated land, but also voluntarily developing large amounts of idle land.

This would have been impossible in the past; serfs would have preferred to do as little work as possible and would never have bothered to help large landowners reclaim wasteland. Now, however, it's the complete opposite. Having their own land, everyone is full of enthusiasm.

Her Majesty the Queen said "good" three times and asked the Prince what reward he wanted.

His Highness, who had clearly planned ahead, immediately replied, "Please go to the market, Your Majesty."

Her Majesty the Queen was taken aback, having never heard such a strange request before. But since it was His Highness the Prince who had spoken, she readily agreed. This greatly alarmed the officials of etiquette, who said that Her Majesty was the most noble monarch and absolutely could not be with ordinary people. Her Majesty the Queen gave a perfunctory "I know," then turned and led her and Sandone out of the Winter Palace with His Highness the Prince.

The Imperial Guard temporarily mobilized over a thousand guards, completely surrounding the city's largest market. Guards were stationed every ten steps and sentries every five, creating an extremely tense atmosphere. Many shopkeepers on the street, thinking something terrible had happened, hurriedly tried to close their doors. However, upon seeing that the visitors were Her Majesty the Empress and His Highness the Prince, they immediately felt relieved and knelt in unison on both sides of the street.

Anyone could potentially harm the interests of merchants and serfs, but these two in front of me would not.

His Highness ordered the guards to withdraw, leaving only a symbolic number to maintain order. He then led his entourage to the most bustling alleyway, where a magnificent display stand had been set up.

The staff at the booth all came from the Prince's Mansion, including gardeners, carpenters, and maids. A large number of goods were also displayed on both sides of the booth.

His Highness gestured for the Empress and the executives to sit in the VIP seats at the booth, and smiled at the sea of ​​people present, saying, "The Kingdom of Zhidong is vast and rich in resources, but many of its products are little known, and most are sold off cheaply to foreign merchants by middlemen, leaving farmers with only meager profits. Therefore, today Her Majesty the Empress and I will personally promote these products."

"This winter snow lotus is over a hundred years old and has extremely high medicinal value. When soaked in baijiu (Chinese white liquor), it can be made into a medicinal wine, which can strengthen the body, prolong life, and is a rare health-preserving medicinal material! It's on sale today at a discounted price. Anyone interested in buying?"

After all, this was the most bustling street in the Kingdom of Winter, and it already had a large number of local and foreign wholesale merchants. Those with quick minds immediately saw the business opportunity. With His Highness the Prince personally "selling the goods," how could they not sell? After the first merchant placed an order, other merchants followed suit.

She had only exchanged a few words with Her Majesty the Queen when merchants snapped up all the winter snow lotus, and orders were already booked until next year. The farmers below the stage were moved to tears; something they had shouted themselves hoarse for but no one wanted, had found a market with just a few words from His Highness the Prince.

Next, His Highness the Prince began promoting a second type of agricultural product.

As more and more businesspeople flocked to the booth, it became increasingly lively.

She and Her Majesty the Queen finally understood the Prince's intention: to use his fame to advertise and promote the agricultural products of Zhidong Kingdom! Word spread quickly, and within a month, Zhidong Kingdom would receive a large number of foreign orders.

At this moment, His Highness the Prince turned around and said with a smile, "This tactic is called 'live-streaming sales,' would Your Majesty like to give it a try?"

Chapter 206 It's fine as it is now.

In short, after a series of reforms, the economy of Zhidong Kingdom took off in less than three years.

During this period, His Highness the Prince also made many inventions, the most exciting of which was the modification of gunpowder, which produced more powerful guns and cannons, thus establishing the Winter Kingdom's position as the number one military power.

Her relationship with the prince grew closer, but she hesitated because of her status as a criminal and her long-held plan to live a solitary life. She did not want the prince's sudden intrusion into her life to negate all the efforts she had made in the first half of her life.

Furthermore, men often don't cherish women who are easily obtained, so she took this opportunity to test the prince's sincerity.

His Highness the Prince is also quite the troublemaker, for example, his repeated ambiguous relationships with Her Majesty the Queen, and his rumored affairs with Sandoni, Arecino, and Rosalind. He also insisted that Her Majesty the Queen arrange marriages for him in six kingdoms.

She knew that these were all Prince's tactics of feigning retreat to advance, seemingly clever but actually so foolish. So she never really took these rumors to heart, but she couldn't help feeling a little worried that Prince might really succumb to the temptations of those beautiful women.

In addition, she paid special attention to a statistic: since His Highness the Prince became famous, the marriage rate in the Winter Kingdom has shown a sharp downward trend.

When she told the prince this data, he teased her, "You'd better work hard to get me out of being single as soon as possible, otherwise it will continue to affect the marriage rate." She could only reply, "It's fine as it is now."

It's fine as it is now.

It wasn't just a response to His Highness the Prince, but also a consolation to herself. Although she hadn't explicitly accepted His Highness's declaration of love, they were practically together, weren't they? Almost every night, after finishing his work, His Highness would come to listen to her sing ballads, enjoy tea, or read, keeping her company. She would prepare tea and books in advance, and even without any conversation between them, they could feel each other's deep affection.

She wasn't sure how long this relationship could last, but there was no better way to handle it at the moment. This was all she could give His Highness: confusion, worry, joy, and happiness that both captivated and saddened her.

One evening, after listening to her sing a ballad, His Highness the Prince took her hand and strolled in the snow. He turned to her and asked, "After overthrowing the laws of nature, what are your plans?"

She thought for a moment and said, “Stay at the ‘House of Hearths’ with Arecino and raise those children to adulthood. Your Highness, you know that those children have regarded us as teachers and parents since they were little. And what about you?”

His Highness casually said, "If you'd like, I'd like to take you back to my hometown with me."

His Highness has mentioned the world called "Earth" many times. He came from that planet and has deep feelings for his homeland.

She lowered her head and smiled bitterly, "Teyvat is my home, and I probably won't leave here. But please rest assured, Your Highness, when that day comes, I will give you a farewell party, and perhaps I will even dance for you."

At this moment, His Highness the Prince gripped her hand even tighter and said, "I'm not going back. I'll stay here with you."

At that moment, she felt her heart clench violently, and could no longer suppress her intense emotions. She grabbed the man's neck and cried out about the "sins" and judgment she had once carried.

After listening to her story, His Highness wiped away her tears and smiled, saying, "It's alright if you have a hurdle in your heart that you can't overcome. I will wait until you figure it out."

That night, a magnificent aurora suddenly appeared on the horizon, a unique sight in Teyvat, unseen in any other country. And even within Teyvat, this spectacle isn't a daily occurrence; sometimes the aurora won't appear for over a decade.

The two stood in the snow, their shadows stretched long by the moonlight. The tie of her executive coat and the hem of her prince's cloak whistled in the cold wind.

She linked arms with the prince, resting her head gently on his shoulder, enjoying an indescribable warmth and comfort.

……

Another year passed, and His Highness the Prince was sent out on a mission to collect the six Hearts of God. During the more than one month that His Highness was away, Columbia was constantly distracted, and every day felt like torture.

Lost in thought, he came to the church of the House of Hearths, lingering in the snow-covered world created by the Ice Elemental Dragon King, recalling everything about His Highness the Prince over the past three years.

It was time to leave. She said to the abyss, "Old Dragon King, I'll bring Xiaoqing to see you next time."

Ahead, shrouded in frost and white mist, came the faint, deep roar of a dragon. Suddenly, a crystal-clear shard of ice appeared before them. This thin, unassuming shard of ice emanated a chilling aura of ice element. Only after holding it in her hands did Columbia confirm that it was a dragon scale—

A dragon scale from the Primordial Ice Elemental Dragon King, containing its immense power.

Columbia accepted the dragon scales, nodded, and then left the strange space, returning to the real world.

The house by the fireplace was brightly lit, and the light shining from the windows of each classroom illuminated the snow-covered ground.

She sighed and carefully recalled many things that had happened in the past three years in that space. She thought it would take a long time, but in the real world, only half a day had passed.

After leaving the fireplace house, she went straight to the Prince's mansion.

The guards responsible for guarding the gate were very familiar with Columbia. They saw her six-winged headdress from afar and opened the gate in advance. When the executor came over, he said warmly, "[Young lady], there is still no letter from His Highness the Prince today."

During His Highness's visit to the six kingdoms, he wrote back two letters, one to Her Majesty the Queen and the other to Lady [the Young Lady]. Afterwards, Lady [the Young Lady] would inquire every two or three days if there were any new letters.

Columbia said, "I understand. Call your captain over," and the guard quickly did so.

The captain of the Prince's Palace Guard didn't dare to delay for a moment. He ran out carrying a silver suit of armor, dressed in civilian clothes and long leather boots. "[Young lady], is there an urgent mission so late?"

Columbia said, "His Highness the Prince isn't here, so you're all going to bed early."

The captain of the guards, who had quickly donned his armor, turned pale and explained, “I’m sorry, sir. A group of serfs—oh, I should call them peasants now—came to visit during the day. They came from a very far village, a journey that took them two months. Each of them carried a jar of fine wine, insisting on presenting it to His Highness the Prince, saying they were grateful that His Highness had abolished serfdom and saved their lives. His Highness wasn’t here, so I took the liberty of receiving them, and then they insisted on having me drink with them. I can’t hold my liquor, so I got drunk and slept until just now…”

Columbia smiled slightly and said, "Hide the wine so that His Highness won't be tempted when he returns."

The captain of the guards breathed a sigh of relief and replied, "Yes! Is there anything else you need, sir?"

Stepping into the Prince's mansion was like returning home for Columbia, who acted like the lady of the house, saying, "Lead the way to the back garden to see Xiaoqing."

Chapter 207 You Don't Deserve to Know

Columbia herself never expected that the psychic Xiaoqing would hint to her that an ominous disaster might occur today, and that it was very certain to happen within the city.

After leaving behind the Ice Elemental Dragon King's reverse scale, Columbia instructed the head guard to immediately strengthen security at the Prince's mansion and not allow anyone to enter, not even the serfs who wanted to thank His Highness the Prince.

The captain of the guards dared not be negligent in the slightest. After obeying the order, he immediately assembled all the soldiers in the mansion.

The entire Prince's mansion was engulfed in flames. Passersby were unaware of what had happened, but they all sensed the uneasy atmosphere and quickened their pace to return home.

After assigning the tasks, the captain of the guards went to the study to report back, but the room was empty; the executor had already left.

His Highness's desk, however, was spotless, clearly wiped clean by the executor, who immediately grinned.

During the Prince's absence, the young lady was always sullen whenever she visited, as she hadn't received any letters. Sometimes, her words even carried a hint of resentment. However, judging from her actions of personally wiping the table, it was clear that she still cared deeply for the Prince. This put the guards at ease, because in their eyes, among all the eligible women in the entire Winter Kingdom, only the young lady was the most suitable match for the Prince.

In such a large Prince's mansion, there will eventually be a princess consort to take over. If that person is a young lady, they will all be genuinely happy for His Highness the Prince.

……

Late at night, Taipei was unusually quiet.

Following the attack on Winter City by the Abyss Emperor, and thanks to extensive propaganda, although every citizen knows that the two valiant executors, the "Girl" and the "Servant," successfully killed the invading enemy, a curfew has been imposed on Winter City for the next week to prevent retaliation from the Abyss forces. No one from the Abyss is allowed to go out on the streets, and violators will be severely punished.

A blizzard raged through the empty streets, and a chill enveloped the entire city.

A fully armed patrol, trudging through the thick snow along their predetermined route, suddenly discovered something unusual. The well-trained members immediately took formation, their bows, crossbows, and swords pointed at a woman standing in a dark corner.

The woman had disheveled hair, downcast eyes, and was dressed simply, with a worn-out apron tied around her waist, just like the peasant women you usually see on the street.

The patrol team shouldn't have made such a fuss. According to normal procedure, they should have stepped forward to question her and given her a verbal reprimand as long as it wasn't a deliberate violation of the curfew policy. But the woman in front of them was holding a glittering object in her hands, which was none other than an Eye of God of Ice!

For centuries, the Eye of God had not appeared in the Kingdom of Winter. The gaze of the gods of Sky Island seemed to have abandoned this frigid land, no longer responding to the people's fervent desires. This woman's sudden acquisition of the Eye of God was certainly not a good thing; it might be a treacherous plot by the enemy!