Zhou Yan reviewed the information of each of these individuals. There were six in total, the Six Ministers, who oversaw the affairs of the entire country.
Zhou Yan began to question them about the matters of the nation.
Each country had only ten cities, which was not a large number. The key lay in how to utilize the resources within these ten cities to develop and become powerful.
After conversing with them, Zhou Yan had a general understanding of the relevant information.
The situation was not good.
From their accounts, Zhou Yan learned that the Great Zhou Kingdom originally belonged to the Dragon Dynasty, but it later fragmented into forty countries. These forty countries were now where the forty students were located.
Their task was to achieve unification, to consolidate the fragmented countries into a single new nation to win.
The geographical location of the Great Zhou Kingdom was rather disadvantageous, being surrounded by enemies on all sides.
The Ministry of Revenue had already provided Zhou Yan with a map. Upon seeing his own geographical position, Zhou Yan was taken aback, not expecting his luck to be so poor.
Out of ten cities, six bordered hostile empires, seemingly making his country vulnerable to attack from any direction. Zhou Yan found himself in a very passive predicament.
Outside the simulation.
Since the entry of the forty students, they had all seen the map locations of their respective positions.
There was much discussion among them. Some praised a student's good fortune, while others lamented another's bad luck. They even noticed that several students from the same academy had been assigned to the same region.
They could even anticipate that these students would soon be forced into conflict with each other, without even knowing each other's identities.
This was unavoidable. Once inside, they had no friends and would not know each other's identities.
Inside, everyone other than themselves was an enemy.
Upon seeing Zhou Yan's map position, Leng Yue frowned and remarked, "Zhou Yan's luck isn't great. Being in such a central location, if attacked by surrounding countries simultaneously, it would be quite dire."
"Everyone's teleportation location is random. Among the forty students, Zhou Yan is not the only one with a poor geographical position. Many other students are also in unfavorable locations."
"Regardless of the geographical location to which they are teleported, the key still depends on their individual development and adaptability. The first step is to understand their own country's situation and resources to make reasonable utilization."
"Zhou Yan has already done very well. He immediately began to understand his country's resources, population, and geographical location. The rest depends on how he handles it."
"The greater the adversity, the more a person's strength can be revealed. I am very curious how Zhou Yan will turn his disadvantages into advantages."
Han Li glanced at the locations of the ten students from the Ziwei Academy. Some had good positions, while others did not. Regardless of the environment, they could only rely on themselves.
"Although the geographical location isn't ideal, the resource distribution in Zhou Yan's area is quite good. I believe Zhou Yan will definitely utilize this to quickly forge equipment."
"If it were me, I would focus on defense, as his current position is not good, and attacking others would likely be beyond his immediate capability," Leng Yue stated.
"That is natural. In the early stages, everyone will lack equipment. Development of weaponry and armor will be the priority. Once development is sufficient, they will begin to deal with those around them," Han Li agreed, nodding.
"Among our academy's ten students, Zhuge Kaiming has the best geographical location. He is surrounded by mountains on two sides, only needing to defend two exits to effectively block attacks from others." Leng Yue observed the student distribution and then spoke again.
"For areas with good geographical locations, resources are scarcer. It will be difficult for Zhuge Kaiming to develop with the limited resources he has. He has only two paths: either actively attack others to acquire more resources, or simply defend. It remains to be seen which he will choose." Han Li offered his opinion.
The situation within was thus: areas with abundant resources had poor geographical environments, while areas with good geographical environments had limited resources. This forced them to attack others.
...
Upon seeing his geographical environment, Zhou Yan also understood his national situation. The population was approximately one hundred thousand, with about ten thousand people per city. This was not a large number, but not too small either.
Zhou Yan felt that the situation for other students was likely similar.
Furthermore, the country Zhou Yan was in did indeed have good resources, especially iron ore, which was the most crucial resource for crafting equipment.
In addition to resources, there were also good timber resources, as well as grain resources.
What would soldiers eat without grain?
This was not a territorial war where supplies could be drawn from a domain. This highlighted the importance of grain.
As the saying goes, "With the army's advance, provisions come first." Any battle hinges on money and food.
Zhou Yan carefully examined the map and suddenly had a bold idea.
However, whether it could be implemented was still uncertain.
Checking the time, Zhou Yan felt it was about time. After the ten-minute summoning period passed, he immediately summoned Xiao He from his domain.
"My Lord!" Xiao He looked around.
"The situation is more troublesome than anticipated. All matters within the palace are now your responsibility. While I am away, you have the authority to handle all affairs."
With that, Zhou Yan handed Xiao He a token inscribed with the words "As If I Were the Emperor."
"Yes!" Xiao He accepted the token and then said, "My Lord, I will need a few capable helpers."
Even the most skilled cook cannot prepare a meal without ingredients. It would be difficult for Xiao He to accomplish much alone.
"Who do you need? I will summon them for you," Zhou Yan asked.
Xiao He named five individuals. Zhou Yan nodded and summoned those five. He then addressed the Six Ministers of the Great Zhou Kingdom, "I now declare Xiao He as the Prime Minister of the Great Zhou Kingdom. You are to fully cooperate with Xiao He. Do you understand?"
"Yes!"
Subsequently, Zhou Yan summoned one hundred soldiers for Xiao He. To quickly get the entire national machinery running, no single person would suffice.
Although these soldiers had no equipment, they were strong and robust, possessing significant strength even without any gear.
After discussing with Zhou Yan for a while, Xiao He immediately began to understand the country's situation and started making arrangements one by one.
Xiao He was a top-tier talent in internal affairs, having handled all matters within the domain at his original territory. Facing this domain of only ten cities, he felt no pressure.
At this stage, their competition was based on speed of development. Whoever developed faster would have a greater advantage.
With all that done, Zhou Yan began to attempt summoning his mount.
When the Blood-Sweat Horse appeared, Zhou Yan realized that mounts and pets could be summoned!
Mounts and pets were not equipment; they were bound to the soldiers themselves. This would significantly enhance Zhou Yan's advantage.
"Hehehe!!!"