I was considering what to write that would be useful this morning (UK Time) which was when Beatrice posted her comment. I'd thought of a few things but now I kind of see its pointless after what's been said. I know for a fact their is Midaranye Discord, which has at least two of the supposed "Leadership" of TIO in. We then get told "The Order has one Discord, it is prescribed for by regional law, and the preservation of the Order's digital assets is a responsibility of the Chancellery." ......but we don't clearly. I suspect there are other sub-discords kicking around. This for me is one of our biggest issues that if you go on discord there seems to be two sets of rules. We had Beatrice the other day saying "I'll swap a province of Clysperis to get Rishiri" yet the RP rules clearly limit the province limit so that offer shouldn't even have been suggested. Then during the conversation about nukes rather than asking the RP Mod why other nations couldn't have nukes it was why one particular nation couldn't. Rightly or wrongly there is the feeling among a lot that we have in a sense multiple regions existing in one, we have a region of people who hang out on discord talking about their nations but actually not creating RP for anyone to get involved in, we've then what I'll call the "Cross Straits" group that just seem to do their own thing and if anyone IC criticises them it becomes a big issue, we've then a group who are rarely active on a regular basis but have fits of activity, then everyone else. The problem is that when a platform for people to share their concerns appears it descends into the same petty arguments Discord sees.

I share Altona's view that I was unaware that things like Grand Chancellor were anything other than just fancy titles for moderator.

Tao watched as a pair of men walked past carrying a crate. He motioned for them to stop and opened the lid. Inside was a collection of traditional Lijiang sweet treats covered in a powdered sugar. Tao lifted one out, "This pastry alone has a street value of around $1,000" he informed the man. "It will be vaccum sealed, to keep in the freshness of course, and then can be sent anywhere in the world. Mix one crate of these in with say ten crates of the real deal and it should get through customs. Now this is a method we would use for nations with perhaps a less advanced customs process." He replaced the treat and waved at the man to carry on. "A single box of these could bring in around $1million in street value, you then cut it and you have $2million and your end customers would never know the difference. For such a box we would charge you maybe $350,000. You could make a tidy profit. We have other methods though. We get drugs into Ui Cenneslaig via small drones, naturally less risky and less chance of being discovered. Some Cenneg gentleman arrive at their side of the border, fly a drone over, we attach the drugs and the men retrieve their drone. Now a more unique way we've been using is for cocaine. Currently in the richer nations selling for around $60 a gram. We find a young Lijiangian girl, we give her breast implants and she comes into the nation of your choice. There the implants are removed and replaced with real ones, she returns to Lijiang. You can get around 1,000 grams into a pair of implants, that means a cool $60,000 if you sold it pure but that's insanity, by the time you've cut it you can get make $180,000 easily, we'd sell you this for around $50,000. We could do a girl a week probably without it being suspicious, you'd be $1.5million better off with just one girl a month coming. So you see we have the methods, you just need to tell us what you want and where you want it."

OOC - Consider the following sent separately by courier to each of the organisers of the Winter Games

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We wish you the best of fortune in acquiring the right to host the Winter Games. At present we consider each of the bids to be equally worthy and believe both nations would put on an incredible experience for both participants and spectators. With that in mind we would be more inclined to cast our vote should the following accommodations be made.

1) The Dragon-Emperor is permitted to present medals for two events. We wish to promote sport across our nation and as such having the Dragon-Emperor taking a visible interest in the Games is likely to draw our people's attention to it.

2) As a way of helping promote sport within the Majestic Empire your nation will provide 100 sets of uniform for youth teams across the nation. This may be in any sport you wish and may also feature sponsorship from companies in your nation so far as the companies good and services comply with Lijiang law.

3) Queen Dandan be given a position of prominence during one female event final.

4) A delegation from the Games committee that hosts your games to visit Lijiang within six months to advise on our own intent to bid to host the Summer Games.

5) Upon the honour of your Head of State an agreement that when we do apply for the Summer Games they will give visible support in a manner befitting their status and role for our bid.

We look forward to your reponse

High Lord Li Ki
Leader of the Grand Council

The series of eight Academies that form the Shūyuàn system have been a central part of Lijiangs academic system for close to 2000 years. The system see's any male turning 11 years of age eligible to sit entrance exams and places being allocated at the elite residential schools based purely on the students scores. Each year an estimated 2,500 students across the nation join the Academies which offer a 10 year study programme. The vast majority of those working within the Imperial Government are graduates of the Shūyuàn system which rather than awarding a grade gives students a rank. Students sit a series of exams and are awarded a score out of 1400, students with tied scores are ranked by age with the younger student being placed higher. Generally speaking anyone finishing in the top 100 for their year is guaranteed a high status position working in either the military, civil service or directly for the Imperial Family. Currently Prince Chun is attending the Yansheng  Shūyuàn and was currently ranked 1072nd in the nation for his age group. While the schools are highly prestigious much of their infrastructure is now outdated and will be replaced.

While visiting the Yansheng Shūyuàn the Dragon-Emperor made the announcement stating, "The Shūyuàn are a centre-piece of our nations educational system. A true meritocracy that exacts academic rigor and scholarship. I am proud my son has earned a place within the system and like any father I would wish he placed higher but he still has time. The problem we have is that while the Shūyuàn system prepares our young men for a life of service it prepares them for a life of service within an Empire still in some ways stuck in 1922. Our leaders of tomorrow need 21st Century learning and the Shūyuàn system will reflect that. While I still want them to learn the traditional subjects of  History, Literature, Maths, Science, Philosophy, Law and Theology they must also learn more about Mundus and our global community. I want our future Ambassadors to come from within this system and them be comfortable to go to any part of the world and represent the Empire proudly."

The first new Shūyuàn will be in Mànyóum. It will be built within the extensive grounds of the current Shūyuàn complex with the older buildings either being converted for use in other ways or potentially being used to extend the Shūyuàn system to children from the age of 8. Each of the new complexes is to have sport facilities, computer labs, scientific labs and an extensive "global" library. The Dragon-Emperor has also hinted that at least one of the older Shūyuàn's will be converted to the first female Shūyuàn saying, "We have for the last year or so had an extensive number of Lijiangians return here from abroad. We have seen many Lijiangian women be successful overseas and sadly here at times we have neglected their education. In the Golden Enclave we have seen girls getting a much better education than previously and I believe that having an overall more educated population can help our Empire. Our people are our greatest resource and each must be utilised to the best of our ability."

---

The site of the nations first nuclear power station, known as Wenchangzhen 1, has been being investigated by the nations leading archaeolohists for nearly two months and the experts believe they have discovered a "Chariot School". A series of buildings have been discovered including what is thought to have been a stable complex "Large enough for 200 horses" Several burials of people and horses have also been discovered. One of the Professors on the site has explained what they believe they have found "The finds seem to be of a Chariot School of the former Imperial Military. Chariots formed a key part of ancient Lijiang warfare with men driving teams of horses while a comrade fired arrows, threw spears or used swords from the chariot. The training of such teams was very demanding and deaths in training, for both men and horses, was not uncommon. It became a tradition that men and horses were buried together as it was seen as the soldiers and animals become brothers-in-arms and therefore lived, fought, died and of course were buried together. In total we found six burials such as this some distance away from the building."

The Chariot School itself is not unique but it is the first time that such a large one has been found leading experts to believe that the site was a key part of military infastructure. The work on the power plant is now set to continue but further pauses for digging has not been ruled out. The parts of the site were the first phase of construction takes place has however now been extensively excavated and no other finds are anticipated there. While work progresses there archaeologists will continue examing other parts of the site.

Meanwhile it is confirmed a guest team from the MAEA has arrived to take a look at the construction. While Lijiang withdrew from the organisation in protest of their heavy handed treatment when first joining it is understood the Dragon-Emperor Tielin will allow the MAEA to observe the construction. A spokesman for the Dragon-Emperor stated, "The MAEA will be allowed to see that even without such a body people can build nuclear energy cleanly, safely and without posing a threat to the world. The MAEA have no power to halt any work and we look forward to the progress our teams and the Altonan designers make in the coming months."

---

Jiahao Hsu was a young man who had only been in Lijiang two years. His father was a minor bannerman of some shit-hole swamp in the hills of Hézhun, a Province translated as " The River Turn" clearly hundreds of years ago when the Dragon-Emperor had been giving out land his ancestor had clearly not been a great favourite as there territory struggled to grow anything tasty. When Jiahao had been born he had been sent away to the Kingdom of Lan Na and there been educated alongside various other Lijiangians who had sent their children away to avoid the carnage of the the "Mourning". It was during these crazy years that Jiahao's father Tao had established his "enterprise" and Jiahao now in his mid twenties was already helping diversify their efforts with his knowledge from his time abroad. The awful land the family held on behalf of the Dragon-Emperor and their remoteness were perfect. It meant no praying eyes and in fact it was Tao Hsu who was responsible for ensuring everything in the area was in order.

He had been given the job of ensuring this foreign "businessman" reached their home in good order.  When Jiahao arrived it was obvious who Darius was. Not many foreign visitors hung around at the airport. Most visitors were on organised tourist visits and had coaches waiting for them. Jiahao approached and checked the mans identity. It wouldn't be difficult to make things look legitimate after all many Lijiangian businesses were looking for contacts abroad. "If we were to drive to our establishment it would take us perhaps a few days and I'm sure we all have better things to do than sit in a car." Jiahao lead them back into the airport and to a desk where he showed his ID and a business card.

"Of course sir. Everything is waiting." A smartly dressed gentleman in a blue uniform came from behind the desk with a folder and lead them down a set of stairs and out behind the terminal. A series of small light propellor aircraft were parked "This is the one." the man removed some keys from a plastic wallet in the folder and unlocked the door. Over the next fifteen minutes or so the man and Jiahao checked the aircraft over and then Jiahao signed a document and the man walked away.

"Please climb aboard" Jiahao instructed as he took the pilots seat. He'd been flying for a few years now and rather enjoyed it. As he fired the aircraft up and did a few more checks he handed Darius a headset that would allow them to talk over the noise of the engines. Soon they were airborne and over the countryside of the Empire. "Now I understand you're searching for certain commodities. I am confident that whatever it is we can help with." About an hour later they were flying over Jiahao's home Province. "Below is our land." Compared to the land on the horizon it was nowhere near as lush and abundant in crops. "Sadly we're cursed with swamp that means very little grows. So we have turned to farming algae, we can utilise it as a fertiliser once processed and even as a biofuel." These were the official fronts of the family. "To the unaware eye these industries seem very harmless. They however do provide a nice cover for various other aspects of our business." The aircraft landed on a wide road close to a home nestling above some terraces cut for rice farming. With the aircraft shut down the youngster escorted their guest to meet his father.

"Good morning" Tao greeted his guest. "Welcome to our corner of Lijiang. I understand you're in search of some commodities we may have?"

To:- Queen  Jožica of the Glades

It is our intention to send to your celebration the Guangchu Theatre Groups all female acrobatics group. The Theatre group performs regularly in the Majestic Empire and are well regarded.

With regards the re-forestation conference if permissable we would like Prince Chun to attend as our representative and as his first formal diplomatic act as a member of the Imperial Council.

Best Regards

Dragon-Emperor Tielin of Lijiang.

At the western side of the Golden Enclave there was a a small waterway, it was odd as in the right light it appeared more green than blue and the sight of golden fish darting through its maze of underwater plants was a stark contrast. Next to this sight sat a squat stone block with a brightly painted wooden building on top. It had lied largely disused for the last few decades, its wooden beams gathering dust and its paint gently beginning to peel. Since becoming Dragon-Empress though the place had been a hive of activity first they had scrubbed the moss from the stone walls revealing the aging grey once more. Next they had sanded the whole of the building and begun the process of repainting it so that now it was once more looking as good as new. It had been Dragon Empress Jing's idea. The Golden Enclave was a magnificent place to live, "a city within the city" was how many described it but the gatehouse in the East of the Enclave was like a portal through time. Once you set foot through it then it was as though you had been transported back some 200 years or so. The way people dressed, the formality, the traditions, it was all a throw back to the Empires past. Jing was determined that this would be protected, treasured and preserved but she also had a dream that her children, and her subjects, would stride boldly through Mundus and for that little things would need to be modernised. A large crowd had gathered outside the old building to see today's proceedings, many of them clutching small golden coloured tickets in their hand all distributed through the school in the Enclave.

This was Jing's day but as always her husband and children were keen to support her. Black armoured men pushed a line through the crowd and the Imperial Family made their way towards the building. The two youngest children Princess Wenjun and Prince Daoming were at the front and seemed excited for the occasion. Their elder brother Prince Chun meanwhile walked in step with his father and seemed more reserved. Jing had been here since sunrise making sure all the preparations were in order and Queen Dandan had been helping her. A yellow ribbon stood as a barrier across the door and as the rest of the family approached she produced a large pair of scissors from behind her. "If the Dragon-Emperor would do us the honour." She handed the scissors towards Tielin who held a hand up to stop her.

"This was all your idea" he spoke loud enough for the crowd to hear. "The Golden Enclave has always been where the Dragon-Empress rules and everything here belongs to you. I am just a eager spectator." He stood to one side as Jing beamed proudly.

"Everyone!" she called over the crowd who hearing an Imperial address them fell silent. "For centuries the idea of theatre, entertainment and music in Lijiang has been brought to us by our skilled theatre performers. They will always have a special place in our nation and our hearts. We must though turn those skills they posses to a more global market and share with the world our proud cultural arts. That means modernisation, not of the dances, the songs, the plays, but of the medium. We shall embrace the cinema and as we know where the Imperial Family lead the nation follows. I am therefore honoured to welcome you all to the Enclave's Cinema." She cut the ribbon with her scissors and the crowd cheered. She walked up the steps arm and arm with her Sister-Wife Dandan once reaching the top of the stairs she turned. "Today we shall show four films, those who have a ticket for the first present yourself." An orderly line of fifty or so children accompanied by an adult began forming an orderly line as the Imperials made their way inside.

7 year old Prince Daoming gave a small squeal of delight as he walked inside. The wooden panel walls showed images of dragons from the nations folklore dancing and a giant video screen sat at one end. Rows of neatly spaced comfortable looking armchairs filled the room and upon each one was sat a box containing a drink and some strange snacks in a large paper bag. Daoming took up the seat his mother pointed him too and picked up one of the white bobbly lumps from the bag. "What is it" the Prince asked as her sniffed the strange food.

"Stop doing that your not a dog" his sister Wenjun chastised him as she knocked it from his hand but this earned a disapproving look from her mother who was annoyed that the nice new marble floor now had litter on it.

"It is called Popped Corn, I'm told that places like Ui Cenneslaig and East Moreland it is all the rage to eat it while you watch something at the cinema. It's quiet nice." She took a few pieces in her hand and popped them in her mouth. The family took their seats and noisely the cinema began to fill up, all but the chair next to him. Once the room was full save that seat a pair of figures appeared at the door and Jing rose to go and speak to them. Tielin recognised one as Shai, the Matron of the Lodge, the small Palace where the Dragon-Emperors concubines lived. In centuries gone by it was told hundreds had lived there now just one. Tielin did not recognise the girl next to her dressed in black but watched as Shai bowed to his wife and then left leaving the girl in the care of Jing. It was only as she came close that Tielin recognised her from pictures in the media.

"Husband this is Yijun. Yijun this is His Imperial Majesty the Dragon-Emperor." Immediately Tielin was impressed. She was a tall girl for a Lijingian easily standing above Jing and equal in height to himself. She was dressed in a long simple black gown and a red ribbon was tied in her long black hair which cascaded down her perfectly postured back. Her skin was pale and her facial features radiated elegance. With a well practiced motion Yijun went onto her knees before the Dragon Emperor before gracefully bending at the waist until her forehead touched the ground prostrate before her Emperor.

"I am honoured to be in His Imperial Majesties sight" the young girl said with a voice almost melodic.

"Yijun will be joining us for the day." Jing announced as Tielin helped the girl up. "Please be seated." Yijun was directed to the empty chair. The young girl was being examined constantly with sideways glances by Jing who sat the other side of her husband. Yijun had been one of the young girls whose families had sent them to the Enclave in hopes of impressing enough to become either a wife or concubine of the Dragon-Emperor. Out of the 18 girls who had arrived on Yijun had impressed Jing enough to be considered. The lights dimmed and the announcer told the audience of largely children what was about to be shown.

"While we in Lijiang respect and honour dragons the creature plays an important part in other cultures to. The Nords while not knowing true Dragons show reverence for them and they feature in many of their fictional tales." The beginning of "How To Train Your Dragon" began to play and for the vast majority in attendance it was a unique experience to see this kind of show. For the next two hours the audience laughed and giggled at the story but in the final moments when the hero seemed to be killed at the moment of victory several jumped in horror. Instinctively Yijun gripped the arm of Tielin and immediately pulled herself close before immediately realising what she had done. She expected some kind of rebuke but instead in the darkness she just saw Tielin smile at her and take a comforting hold of her hand telling her it was OK. Jing meanwhile had noticed too and ever mindful of the watchful eyes of their subjects whispered to Tielin to stop touching her. While it was likely the girl would end up in some way part of the Imperial family that had not yet been determined and until then she was just a minor noble. Tielin understood and slow released his grip of Yijun's hand but immediately missed the softness of it and wished to once more take hold of her.  It was strange to him, he had only ever experienced similar thoughts when he first meet Jing. He was a lucky man, at the opposite side of the Imperial Family sat Queen Dandan, a pretty young woman but who was submissive and meek. Tielin found her awkward and didn't think she was really ready to be a Queen yet alone the Mother of a Prince. Meanwhile back at the Lodge he had Lady Jihai, a concubine whom he had yet to actually lie with. Despite making regular visits for impression sake he had promised that he would not force her to sleep with him and so dutifully they both slept in her suite, Tielin on the couch and Jihai in her own bed but that was a lie that could only last so long as she would be expected to be with child soon. Yijun though was beautiful and seemed more confident than Dandan, perhaps if only he'd meet her before taking the young Queen in marriage. The future was now up to his wife Jing, she would determine the fate of Yijun but already Tielin was hoping for the best.

The Majestic Empire today saw celebrations across the land as the Azure Dragon Queen, Lady Dandan, turned 17 years of age. The Dragon-Emperors 2nd wife celebrated her birthday with a large feast in the Golden Enclave which saw ambassadors from across Mundus invited as well as a military parade lead by members of the Corvette MES Huangdi which is the naval ship entitled to carry her banner. The crew of the ship were permitted to approach the Queen and presented her with a 17th Century naval chart of the Krimeon Sea having heard that the Queen has taken an interest in studying Geography.

Following the parade and feast the Queen spoke briefly with the media outlining her hopes for the next 12 months. "It is my hope that in the next 12 months I will be permitted by my husband to complete studies in many subjects. I have been fortunate enough to be given an education far beyond my imagination and I now enjoy finding out more about Mundus everyday. It is my desire that I could perhaps gain a degree in Geography but that is further down the lines. I wish to travel across Mundus and visitt many new lands. If the Two Dragons permit it I would like to give my husband a healthy son but I am still young and have many years left to have many children for the Empire. I wish to thank the people for their kindness."

Dragon-Emperor Tielin confirmed that he will not stand in the way of the Queen continuing her education when he said "While the Empress and Queen have no direct role in the management of our country I seek advice and guidance from many different people. My first wife, the Dragon-Empress has been a constant source of knowledge and guidance for when I have had to make decisions on the role of women. I believe as she continues her learning and gains experiences Dandan will be just as valued a voice."

---

Dragon-Priestess  Xi Mengyao today announced that she has instructed her assistants to begin selection of potential fathers for a child. The Dragon-Priestess role is inherited through female lines of succession from the Dragon-Priestess and it is believed by the faithful that the bloodline goes all the way back to the Dragon Xiaotong. Traditionally the Dragon-Priestess has selected fathers for their children from the Imperial Family however with the current Imperials being small in number it is likely that more distant relatives will be potentially approached. There is no hard and fast rule however about who it must be and more noble families are likely to be considered on this occasion.

A spokesperson for the Dragon-Priestess stated that, "Now the Majestic Empire is the most stable it has been in over a century the Dragon-Priestess has a chance to focus on her more spiritual duties. This includes the need to secure the succession in the same way His Majestic Dragon-Emperor Tielin has the Dragon Throne. The honour of being the father of the Dragon-Priestess is second only to being related to the Dragon-Emperor." The father of Dragon Priestess Xi Mengyao is Imperial Knight Wang Geng who is currently a senior officer in the Air Force and a member of the Priestesses Guard.

"General it has been a pleasure." High Lord Huan Chang "Naturally you must, just as I do, follow your chain of command but I am confident both your monarch and mine will be pleased with what we have in place. I am in a fortunate position where my Province is home to a military academy so of course we can invite you as my guests regardless of the Dragon-Emperor's stance, unless he forbids it which I know he will not. I look forward to welcoming your men as soon as you can make the arrangements."

"All of that is acceptable to us. Having a chance to work with your military will be an excellent way of cementing the growing friendship between our two nations. In addition to what you suggest perhaps we could also host members of your military to train them in larger numbers here at the centre that you have seen today. Either way we can agree to the sale of the tanks."

The Dragon-Emperor was impressed with Queen Atalanta's response as it shared a sense of his own values. "There is nothing to stop us completing arrangements between ourselves. For my part I am keen to achieve two things. The first of those is to ensure my nation can trade as easily as possible. The second is to secure investments that will support our own growth.  To that end we tend to offer nations limited removal of tariffs. We have found so far that while we excel in primary industries our new trade partners tend to deal in secondary and tertiary sectors, as a result we can offer deals based around that. I hope that perhaps may be a similar arrangement that could work here."

Wenchangzhen was selected as a potential site for any Lijiang based nuclear power station in the weeks after the Dragon-Emperor came to the throne and today it was confirmed that an agreement with Altona will see the site break ground in the next few weeks. The Dragon-Emperor has been meeting with King Rutger of Altona in order to acquire access to their technology to construct the first of what are expected to be several nuclear power stations to "future-proof" the Empire's needs for power generation. Speaking upon his conclusion of the agreement His Imperial Majesty spoke excitedly of the deal. "We are in a process of trying to think far ahead of where we stand at the moment. We entered the period of mourning at a point when industry took huge steps forward and while, thanks to many of the High Lords, regions of Lijiang developed other regions were much slower. At the moment we can cover all our energy needs however we know maybe ten years from now that will not be the case. As such we can fast forward much of the development other nations have and build large, clean and safe energy production centres. We shall be making sure our nation is "future-proof". To that end we have secured now a source of fuel which with the help of Altona we shall prepare for nuclear energy. Altona have agreed to oversee the construction of the first power station, what will be the first of many. In addition they will provide the training which will allow us to employ thousands of Lijiangians in a high tech industry."

Under the agreement all parts of the system will be purchased from Altona and their nations largest energy provider,  Altonan Electrical Syndicate (AES), will provide technical oversight as workers from Lijiang carry out the construction. In return AES will take 15% ownership of Wenchangzhen 1 for ten years before their share reduces. The exact date of the plant going live is yet to be confirmed.

---

Following criticism of the relative small size of the Imperial Family the Dragon-Empress agreed that her husband must begin having more children to ensure the Imperial Family does not ever risk plunging the nation back into mourning. As such last month she gave a decree which stated that anyone who was "a Banner-Man or higher may present unmarried daughters of at least 16 years of age for potential selection as consorts of the Dragon-Emperor, be that through marriage or as a concubine." Over the last few days a total of 32 girls have been presented to the Dragon-Empress at the Golden Enclave. Over the course of the next week or so the Dragon-Empress and Queen Dandan will select those believed to be an asset to the Imperial Family and then according to the Dragon-Empress "determine whether by their status, bearing, wisdom and grace whether they are to be a Queen or a Concubine."

Such a process has happened many times through the history of the Majestic Empire with several Dragon-Emperors making such selections an annual event, a practice Dragon-Empress Chun has ruled out. "We today live in an age when mothers giving birth are almost always guaranteed to survive. That was not the case as we journey back in time. I can then imagine why a leader may need the hundreds of women stories speak of. I am sure that we can build a supportive and useful sisterhood of women around the Dragon-Emperor while at the same time ensuring the long term survival of this Dynasty." The exact number of girls to be selected has not been discussed.

One of those who has sent his daughter is land-owner Wu Yibing who has sent his 17 year old daughter. "Marriages are expensive if they are done in the normal way. This is a chance to have the most influential marriage possible while maintaining our families wealth. I asked my daughter if this was what she would like to do and for our family she said that she would go. I naturally pray she will be accepted as a wife but I understand the high bar that will be set. To be a Concubine would be an honour too. We have been told by the Dragon-Empress that girls not deemed worthy to be part of the Imperial Family will be helped to find good husbands and I trust her to do so as she is a woman who has done much to help women in the Majestic Empire."

The girls arrival was filmed by the first cameras to be permitted in the Golden Enclave which have been recording footage of seasonal festivals there.

Jin Odinsson had for some time been the highest elected official in Nya Aland, and before than a member of the cabinet in the Union of Nordic Peoples. While the Dragon-Emperor was the undoubted leader of the Empire, Jin had a rather unique insight into diplomacy. He saw through a lot of the rituals and traditions and saw events such as this as just a way of trying to show the nation of a host as one that you would want to do business with. He simply followed along and found himself amused that there was clearly some kind of disharmony among their hosts what with the King's reaction to what Jin assumed was some kind of adviser of his own.

Tielin meanwhile found the notion of such hospitality and custom prior to talks to be rather about face. Where he came from you did your business and then enjoyed meals together as a way of celebrating. Jin though had warned him that nations such as this would be ones that had more extreme customs. Jin had also warned him to be on his toes should he meet the Maori. The two from the Empire sampled the food, very different to that back home but not unpallatable before as advisered retiring for the evening.

Tielin left Rutger's hand hanging for a while. The Altonan was correct there was a huge skills gap that would need to be filled but he had no doubt that it would be achieved. "We have an agreement on one further condition. Our major University will be getting a Department of Nuclear Engineering to start in the new year. If you provide three tutors and fund them for three years I'll shake your hand."

Chang barked a few orders through the hatch of one of the tanks and within a few second a young uniformed man slid out through the hatch. "If you'd like to slide in General the men inside will help you get set up." The Lijiangians waited for the General to clamber in and as he slid down through the top hatch a young soldier smiled.

"If the general wants to take a seat there." He pointed to the now empty seat where the gunner would sit. As the General got settled a loose seat belt was put around him and then the tanks chief, a sergeant, handed him a helmet. "When we start driving it'll help you hear us as its a built in radio, more importantly it'll stop you smashing your head." The crew laughed and once everything was set up. Once the crew were satisfied they turned the engine one and the vibrations instantly began shaking them. Looking through the front hatch the driver set off across the exercise grounds allowing the tank to take in some of the lumps and bumps, head through a small river and then flat out across a few kilometers of flat land. They had made their way to the range where about 1km away a series of targets were set out.

"If you want to see us fire you can load up for us." A rack of shells sat next to the General and the crew talking him through the process of loading the gun and then moving it to line up a shot. When ready they pressed the button and the entire tank seemed to bounce as the shell spun away. "It was a miss, sorry, close though sir." The Sergeant informed the General before racing the tank back around the exercise area the way they'd come until they got back to Chang. The crew helped the General out.

"So what do you think?" Chang asked.