After graduation, Ji He, holding a recommendation letter from the president of the Dawn Academy, joined Star City's Resource Allocation Department.
This department handled a variety of tasks.
It was responsible for processing the resources sent from the front lines to Star City, tallying them up, and then distributing them to various research institutes, academies, and other organizations within Star City.
In essence, the Resource Allocation Department had no real power.
After all, the resource allocation plans were already decided by the Supreme Council each month, and the department had no authority to alter the distribution ratios of resources to the various institutions in Star City.
Their main job was to handle statistics.
They categorized and recorded the amount of each type of resource, and so on.
For Ji He, this was a stepping stone to reach higher positions. During his work, he was incredibly diligent. He even volunteered to work overtime, pouring all his energy into his tasks.
To better fulfill his responsibilities in resource allocation, he even proposed an upgrade to the system used for the task.
Once his proposal was approved, he eagerly joined the research team and traveled to the front lines, as well as various Star City institutions, to inquire about the coordination issues they faced with resource allocation.
In his third year in the department, Ji He was awarded a commendation for his exceptional performance.
These three years added a new accomplishment to his resume.
At last, the groundwork paid off.
As anticipated, Ji He received a notification from his superiors, informing him of his promotion to a managerial position in the Resource Allocation Department.
The management system in Star City was different from the pre-Cataclysm days.
The highest council in Star City was primarily made up of two parts:
First, there were the decision-makers in Star City's power institutions, such as the Star City Military Department and the Tiger Soul Research Institute, among others.
Secondly, there was the highest level of urban management in Star City.
This included resource allocation, city transportation, agriculture, and so on.
These institutions made up part of the urban management system, and the highest management level was responsible for overseeing them.
They also had a say in the highest council of Star City.
This was the path Ji He chose.
At the same time, Star City's promotion system was also different from before the Cataclysm.
Before the Cataclysm, management positions were selected through a formal process, with promotions, appointments, and transfers carried out by the personnel department of the higher-level institutions. The selection of middle management in each unit could be decided by the unit itself, but required registration with the personnel department of the superior organization.
In the post-Cataclysm world, Star City had an enormous demand for talent.
Promotions were mainly based on the performance of the positions held, with every action being evaluated as a deduction, addition, or neutral, based on performance.
There was also a recommendation mechanism.
However, the final decision on promotions was not solely in the hands of the upper-level department. It required evaluation from other departments and discussions to determine whether it should be implemented.
Ji He's performance was undoubtedly excellent.
With no suspense, he was promoted to the management level of the Resource Allocation Department, gaining an additional position.
In the years that followed, Ji He's performance was rated as "top-tier" every year.
During this period, he carried out sweeping reforms in the Resource Allocation Department through departmental meetings.
Using his power, his first strike was aimed at the department's personnel.
In two years, he dismissed 32 people.
In Star City, no job was secure, including those in public service. However, it was still a society based on relationships, and some things, no matter what, were unavoidable.
Ji He was very clear about the consequences of his actions.
Since it was a society of relationships, he knew that as a disruptor, he would inevitably be resented by some people.
But Ji He understood something even more important: his actions were not for these people. His target was at the highest level, and what he was doing now was paving the way for his future.
Once the impact was absorbed, his current actions would add color to his resume.
What mattered to him was how the people of Star City viewed him, and how the highest level of Star City viewed him.
In the meantime, to further optimize the efficiency of resource allocation, Ji He also worked with the transportation and other departments to develop a brand-new resource allocation route.
In the fifth year after graduation.
Due to his outstanding performance, his name was brought up in the discussion group of the highest council.
When reviewing Ji He's resume, the decision-makers at the highest level were surprised.
In this era, excellence meant breaking the norm to rise up. There was no need to wait for the passing of time or climb through years of experience.
Therefore, Ji He was granted the qualification to serve on Star City's highest council.
This was the height his teacher had spent his whole life trying to achieve.
But the nature of the work changed from then on.
Previously, Ji He had been a decision-maker in the Resource Allocation Department, but after joining Star City's highest council, he shifted from being a decision-maker to becoming an executor of tasks.
His work now consisted of carrying out every decision made by Star City's highest council—whether it was delivering messages, overseeing the implementation of decisions, or similar tasks.
For example, when the highest council passed a resolution to develop a piece of land or build a new facility, Ji He would be tasked with overseeing the project's progress, coordinating between departments, and ensuring that the council's decisions were properly implemented.
At only 28, Ji He knew he was one step closer to his goal.
What he had to do was firmly implement every decision made by the highest council.
Even if he didn't agree with the decision himself.
His teacher had been a warning—without the ability to influence decisions, any bold ideas might prevent him from continuing his journey.
...
At the age of 32.
The funeral.
The sky was overcast, with a light drizzle falling.
Dressed in black, Ji He let the raindrops strike his cheeks.
He gazed at the wooden coffin being lifted in the distance. There was a glint in his eyes, and his heart felt no sorrow, only a strong, intense emotion surging within.
He knew that an opportunity to rise was now right before him.
The elderly person who was about to be buried was one of the decision-makers in Star City's urban management.
Due to excessive work stress, the person suddenly passed away at the age of 73 from an unexpected event.
Now, their position was vacant.
Next, candidates to fill the position would be selected, and the highest council would vote on who should take the vacant seat.
For Ji He, this was a rare opportunity.
After the funeral, the highest council of Star City decided on eight substitute candidates, with Ji He being the youngest, at 32, while the others were all 41 years old or older.
However, age was never an advantage in this era. Capability was what mattered.
The years of groundwork Ji He had laid now played a crucial role.
Looking at his growth journey, there were no stains on his record. Even though he had offended many colleagues during his time at the Resource Allocation Department, his original intention had always been to focus on Star City's development.
Such a resume was flawless.
A loyal follower of Feng Qi, an unafraid executor of power, a task implementer... Ji He carried many labels, each one representing a foundation he had built in the past.
More importantly, Ji He was still young.
With frontline experience and a rise from the grassroots, Ji He's growth story perfectly aligned with what the highest level needed.
But selecting a decision-maker for Star City's highest council was not a trivial matter.
Before the vote began, Ji He and the other candidates had to face a practical test from the highest council of Star City.
In the coming days, the eight candidates would be given some of the powers of the highest council, and they would need to use their authority and skills to handle various affairs of Star City.
This would determine whether they could stand out from the rest.
The first task assigned by the highest council was to coordinate with the Silver Moon Clan, managing the distribution of benefits between the two clans.
For Ji He, this was his first step as a semi-decision-maker.
But the power he held was temporary and could not support his efforts to push for reforms in Star City.
Ji He did not become complacent with his current position. He continued to work diligently and learn. He carefully studied the history of the alliance between the human race and the Silver Moon Clan.
It began with the love story of Lin Ran and Yin Ling, followed by the revision of the alliance code, all the way to the arrival of the Silver Moon Clan...
After spending half a month going through all the materials, Ji He began to contemplate one question.
Why had the highest council assigned them the task of coordinating with the Silver Moon Clan?
The relationship between Star City and the Silver Moon Clan had been stable for years. The coordination process had been refined over hundreds of years, and there were no issues whether they took over or not—it shouldn't affect the existing procedures.
But since the highest council had given them this task, they clearly wanted to see how they performed.
Following this line of thought, Ji He fell into deep contemplation.
Since childhood, his teacher had taught him to view every problem from a macro perspective and from the point of view of the one posing the question.
As he thought, ideas began to form in his mind.
The selection process was for a decision-maker of Star City's highest council, and clearly, they were not focused on their ability to execute tasks but rather their ability to identify and solve problems.
This task of coordinating with the Silver Moon Clan would clearly require them to uncover and address any issues in the cooperation between the two clans.
To verify his guess, Ji He reread the history of the cooperation between the two clans. After finishing the material again, he suddenly understood what the highest council was trying to achieve.
History was changing, and the cooperation model between the human race and the Silver Moon Clan had reached a point where it needed to evolve.
In the past, Star City stood in an absolutely advantageous position, providing support to the Silver Moon Clan and exchanging benefits using the point system set up by Feng Qi.
The process was as follows: the Silver Moon Clan assisted Star City's development with technology and manpower in exchange for points, which they could use to obtain various resources from Star City's material list.
This cooperation model had lasted until today.
But Ji He realized that the situation had changed drastically.
The Silver Moon Clan was developing rapidly. They had completed their initial accumulation by having their people work to earn points and were now establishing a new frontline supply zone to the east of Star City.
This was a supply zone exclusively controlled by the Silver Moon Clan.
According to the information in the database, this supply zone was now capable of steadily producing spiritual resources.
While repeatedly reviewing the information about the Silver Moon Clan, Ji He continued to piece together the details in his mind. He now knew what this unwritten task was.
From the perspective of a Star City decision-maker, he first considered what benefits the Silver Moon Clan's changes could bring to the human race.
Following this line of thought, the answer became clear.
The Silver Moon Clan was no longer the weak clan they once were. They had gained the ability to produce resources, and the resources generated in their domain to the east were ones that Star City did not have.
Therefore, the core issue of this task was how Star City could trade with the Silver Moon Clan to enrich its resource reserves.
That night, Ji He stayed awake all night.
The problem was clear, but he had no idea how to solve it.
To find a solution, he began researching the Silver Moon Clan's historical demands on Star City, looking for leverage that Star City could use in exchange with the Silver Moon Clan.
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
Ji He's plan gradually became clearer in his mind.
However, he didn't present his idea directly to Star City's highest council. Instead, using his position as a candidate, he approached the relevant departments and began designing a brand-new trading system.
Another half-month passed.
One day, Ji He was in his office, reviewing the Silver Moon Clan's related documents.
The door to his office was knocked.
"Come in."
A young man wearing glasses and with a scholarly look entered. He stood in front of Ji He and respectfully handed him a tablet.
"This is the trading system you requested. Please review it."
Ji He nodded and took the tablet from him.
After scanning a few apps on the screen, he opened the app labeled "Alliance Trading."
A brand-new trading panel appeared in Ji He's view.
This trading system reorganized the points, with three categories listed: Human Race, Silver Moon Clan, and Mist Clan.
After clicking on the Human Race section, a mall list appeared, detailing the items the Human Race could provide. Each item had a 3D virtual display, and when clicked, there were detailed material descriptions and the points required for purchase.
After carefully reviewing, Ji He couldn't help but nod in approval.
After exiting the Human Race Mall, he clicked on the Silver Moon Clan section in the directory.
Another entirely new mall panel popped up. This one was completely different from the Human Race's mall, and the icon showing the trade points had also changed.
However, there were no items listed yet in this new mall.
This was the new trading system Ji He had envisioned.
From now on, the points trading system would be independent. Star City would provide services to the Silver Moon Clan in exchange for Silver Moon Clan points, which could be used to purchase resources provided by the Silver Moon Clan. Similarly, the points earned by the Silver Moon Clan through their work could be used to purchase resources from the Human Race.
Initially, Ji He had thought of integrating the points.
Using a single set of points for both races.
But after analyzing the pros and cons, he realized that this approach would be very disadvantageous for the Human Race.
The points earned by the Silver Moon Clan from trading would always be higher than those of the Human Race. If they used a shared points system, the Human Race would always be in a trade deficit, and the points could be offset by those of the Silver Moon Clan.
After weighing the pros and cons, Ji He concluded that dividing the points was the best solution.
This way, the Human Race could also use points to exchange for resources the Silver Moon Clan held, enriching their resource reserves.
Considering that there was also the distant ally, the Mist Clan, Ji He decided to include them in the new trading system as well.
A good trading model could promote the relationship between allies.
In comparison, the trading model between the Mist Clan and the Human Race was too vague. From a long-term perspective, both clans would analyze the pros and cons of resource exchange, which was detrimental to the stability of the alliance.
Ji He even planned that after this trading system passed the highest council's review, he would personally coordinate with the Silver Moon Clan, delegating the trading system's authority to the relevant Silver Moon Clan personnel to upload their product lists.
From now on, the alliance's trading would be more convenient.
The listing and removal of products could all be done using a tablet. At that time, Star City's resource allocation department would receive a monthly trade list, and the necessary resources would be retrieved from the warehouse and shipped after deducting the points.
Satisfied with the new trading system, Ji He carefully reviewed all the functions of the system.
He then suggested several areas for improvement.
For example, in terms of interface design, the Silver Moon Clan's mall interface would be better with a silver theme, as silver was the Silver Moon Clan's favorite color.
Though seemingly trivial, this design would make the Silver Moon Clan feel that the Human Race valued them.
Other considerations included how the items were arranged in the mall.
These designs were all made with the clan's cultural habits in mind.
The information Ji He had reviewed on the Silver Moon Clan proved to be invaluable at this moment.
...
Ten days later.
Ji He submitted the improved trading system to the highest council of Star City.
When the highest council members reviewed Ji He's proposal, they were all greatly surprised.
This time, they didn't provide any specific tasks. The purpose was to see how the eight candidates would proactively identify problems.
As decision-makers of Star City, there would be no more tasks issued from superiors. Their positions had already reached the highest levels of Star City. What was needed were eyes that could spot problems and the ability to devise solutions.
Ji He's performance could no longer be described as excellent.
In just a month and a half, he identified the changes in the cooperation between Star City and the Silver Moon Clan, realizing that Star City needed to find ways to obtain resources from the Silver Moon Clan.
Once the problem was identified, Ji He swiftly created a brand-new trading system that aligned with the new cooperative model.
Perhaps the other candidates also identified the issue.
But no one completed this test task as efficiently as Ji He.
By splitting the trade points and developing a new trading system, Ji He's answers alone were enough to earn him a perfect score.
After the highest council reviewed the trading system Ji He designed in detail, they did not announce it to the public but merely informed Ji He that the negotiation with the Silver Moon Clan would be fully handled by him.
This response already proved that Ji He's plan had passed the highest council's review.
The next step was implementation.
Faced with success, Ji He didn't let it get to his head. He knew he was still far from his ideal goal.
Next, he began negotiating with the Silver Moon Clan on behalf of Star City, proposing a new point-based resource exchange system.
During the talks, Ji He was honest and directly mentioned that Star City also needed the Silver Moon Clan's resources.
This represented his sincerity toward the Silver Moon Clan.
He even said this during the negotiations:
"Esteemed Elders of the Silver Moon Clan, I know that the Eastern Supply Zone of the Silver Moon Clan is now able to steadily produce resources. As allies, we need not just a one-sided transaction; we also need to facilitate the free exchange of resources. This will ensure that both our races can progress toward a better future. I hope the elders here will agree with my proposal and take our cooperation to the next level."
Upon hearing Ji He's statement, the Silver Moon Clan's council reviewed the new trading system and, without hesitation, agreed to the new cooperative direction.
After a month of preparation, the new trading system was fully stocked with the spiritual resources produced by the Silver Moon Clan's Eastern Supply Zone.
Ji He had delivered a satisfactory answer to the highest council of Star City with his actions.
From now on, even if Star City faced a trade deficit, it could still use points to obtain resources from the Silver Moon Clan.
Three months later.
The highest council of Star City convened.
On that day, Ji He and the other eight candidates arrived at the highest council chamber, seated themselves, and the voting began.
The council chamber was divided into two parts. One-third of the seats were occupied by the city management of Star City, while the remaining two-thirds belonged to Star City's power institutions, such as the Tiger Soul Research Institute and the Military Department.
The voting took about an hour.
After the vote, it only took five minutes to count the results.
Ji He won by an overwhelming margin, receiving the highest number of votes. The total votes of the other seven candidates didn't even match his.
In truth, the other seven candidates had also identified the problem.
They each came up with different solutions, but while they were still formulating their proposals, Ji He had already executed his. The moment the new trading system went live, everything was already settled.
When Ji He walked onto the central stage of the highest council, the applause was deafening.
His eyes scanned the representatives of Star City's highest powers present, and he politely bowed forward.
Being promoted to the highest decision-making body of Star City, a level his teacher had never reached, Ji He felt no arrogance or impatience in his heart.
At the end of the meeting, a figure with blue hair and an imposing presence entered the room.
It was Zhang Daowen.
He walked onto the stage and personally awarded Ji He the honorary medal representing membership in the highest council of Star City.
The medal was entirely gold. On the front was the Dawn Sword and the Dawn Book intertwined. Flowers adorned the edges of the medal, and the back displayed the portrait of Feng Qi, with golden ribbons wrapped around it.
Zhang Daowen personally placed the medal on Ji He's chest and then patted his shoulder:
"Do well, the future belongs to you."
Standing before him was Zhang Daowen, a legendary figure who rose from the front lines. Ji He felt, for the first time, the aura of a higher-up, a sense that felt like standing before an insurmountable mountain.
Coming back to his senses, Ji He looked directly into Zhang Daowen's ice-blue eyes and nodded solemnly:
"I will heed your advice, Senior."
The applause thundered throughout the room. As Zhang Daowen descended the stage, Ji He stood alone, his gaze sweeping across the crowd. A brilliant smile spread across his face.
A new height, a new journey… he was one step closer to his goal.