text: [Themes: historical, war]
  
  Only one week has passed since you declared yourself Governor of this southern province. The majority of your subjects are ignorant of your ambitions and accomplishments. Outside your core group of devoted followers, precious few bother to differentiate between you and other warlords. To avoid death at the swords of your enemies, you will need to prioritize pressing concerns while juggling outspoken factions.
  
  After outfitting your militia, your Treasury is down to 200 yuan. If your Treasury ever reaches negative, you will be unable to pay your Workers or Army their wages. If that ever happens they will become infuriated and quit permanently and your campaign will come to a crashing halt. The peasants who make up the majority of your citizens are unfortunately very poor and thus your tax income is effectively zero. Your Treasury adviser suggests an idea to mass cultivate lychees, a small red fruit with juicy white flesh native to the South. Since lychees can only be grown in your Southern soil, exporting them to the North guarantees ample returns. It requires an investment of 75 yuan to plant the seeds, and patience to wait for the trees to mature. (If you make this choice, 75 yuan will be deducted from your current Treasury total. Two turns after that, 150 yuan will be added to your Treasury, then 300 yuan the turn immediately after that one, 600 yuan the turn immediately following, and so on.)
  
  Your Army is fierce, loyal, and small. Although there are no warlords with much larger forces in your immediate area, there are several nearby warlords rivaling you in power who each itch to add your territory to his realm. Your colonels report that a pay increase for your Army would raise conscription considerably, giving you a much stronger fighting force. (You begin with a Small army, which costs you 25 yuan in upkeep cost per turn. If you make this choice your Army will go from Small to Large, and cost you 75 yuan in upkeep cost per turn, effective immediately. No further upgrades are available for your army in this story.)
  
  Meanwhile, the professionals toiling for your government- masons, accountants, carpenters, iron workers, tailors, etc- are imploring for higher wages. Your advisers would like you to attract more capable skilled Workers to your domain as well, as peasantry does not exactly provide the best pool of candidates to help run a kingdom. (Your Workers begin with a rating of Low and costing you 25 yuan in wages per turn. If you make this choice your Workers rating will go from Low to High, and cost you 75 yuan in upkeep cost per turn, effective immediately. No further upgrades are available for your Workers.)
  
  The Buddhist temple has yet to endorse any warlord for emperor. While Buddhism has propagated throughout China, your province is somehow the lone exception. Seeing an opportunity to gain more followers, the leaders of the religion request your donations and conversion to Buddhism in exchange for their support. Improving your relations with the Temple will ensure a favorable reputation with citizens of other kingdoms throughout China. (Your rating with the Buddhists starts at Low. If you make this choice a one-time cost of 50 yuan will be deducted from your Treasury and your rating will become High for the duration of the story.)
  
  Finally, there are still millions of people in your region who are undecided about which warlord to back. A sympathetic populace hides your person from enemy assassins. Your advisers tell you about a recent torrential mudslide that devastated the countryside where farmers live and work and ruined much of their infrastructure. The leaders of the peasants are pleading for help in repairing the destroyed houses and equipment. Aiding the peasants will ensure that the Masses are loyal to you. (Your rating with the Masses starts at Low. If you make this choice a one-time cost of 25 yuan will be deducted from your Treasury and your rating will become High for the duration of the story.)
  
  What do you do first:
  
  (The numbers in parentheses ( ) next to a faction in the Status Box signifies its per-turn upkeep cost to be effected on your Treasury after this turn is complete and before the next turn begins. The numbers in braces { } in the Status Box signify the one-time cost to upgrade the status of that particular faction.)
  
  Treasury: 200 yuan {-75}
  Army: Small (-25)
  Masses: Low {-25}
  
  Workers: Low (-25)
  Buddhists: Low {-50}
  
  > gain the respect of foreign citizens by becoming a member of the Buddhist Temple (-50 yuan)
  Treasury: 100 yuan {-75}
  Army: Small (-25)
  Masses: Low {-25}
  
  Workers: Low (-25)
  Buddhists: High
  
  You donate a large chunk of funds to the temple. The high monks are overjoyed by your generosity and invite you to the nearest monastery for a lavish conversion ceremony. Facing a bronze idol of Buddha and lit red candles, you chant newly learned Buddhist hymns alongside monks in saffron colored robes. The monks compliment your devotion and spread word of your piousness far and wide.
  
  Back home however, your subjects deride you for throwing your precious yuan away currying favor with foreigners. The Masses, angry that you did not help them with their repairs, decide to give their support to other warlords. While it is nice to be liked by foreigners, you are not yet powerful enough to attract them to your kingdom, so they remain merely subjects of other warlords.
  
  Without the Masses' base of support, your realm remains susceptible to sabotage. One nearby warlord raids your grain silo and pilfers the winter's supply of rice. Another burns an armory of your troops' weapons.
  
  One night you are awakened by loud noises outside your sleeping tent. You open the door to see what is happening and see your personal bodyguards being cut down by a group of assassins. You recognize several peasants among them.
  
  "Your death will be quick. Commander Wan is a merciful man," the one closest to you says as he chops your head off as a trophy for their leader.