Shadow Empire

Chapter 1059 New atmosphere

Within a few days, the anti-government forces in Zhuolan were completely wiped out.

On the streets, people often see anti-government militants being dragged out of shantytowns in slums, their faces showing despair and disbelief.

Many of them assumed that these people in the slums would shelter them, after all, these people had once brought freedom and romance to those who were once like them at the very bottom of society, even if only for a short time.

But it was precisely those anti-government militants who believed they should stand with them who ultimately denounced them.

People may not be grateful to those who bring chaos in the name of "the people's good," so it is reasonable to report them.

Except for a few anti-government leaders who survived into the later days, the ordinary ones were executed on the spot after being discovered and arrested.

Some international newspapers, including some federal newspapers, reported on part of the incident.

They called it a "brutal purge," saying that at least 20,000 to 30,000 people were found and then killed.

Various birds of prey constantly circle above Zhuolan. If you are not careful, they will swoop down, peck at your food, and then fly back into the sky when driven away by humans.

Lance did not attend the trial of Pedro and his ilk, nor would he serve as the presiding judge.

This time, they were tried by chiefs of some princely states and some ministers, in the same public trial, with the same apathetic crowd.

Pedro and his men occupied Zoran for too short a time. Although they always talked about freedom, fairness, justice, and democracy, people never truly enjoyed them, so they didn't have much affection for these people.

Standing on the dock, Pedro, in a daze, once again merged with Diego in his mind.

He admitted to all the charges brought by the prosecutor, and compared to some others who would try to argue and resist, he was probably the most straightforward.

Ultimately, everyone was sentenced to death, but considering issues of humanity and morality, the provisional government did not use the guillotine or axe; instead, they used a noose.

Some people think this is more dignified, as it avoids bloodshed and the head being blown off like in a shooting.

Hanging leaves no blood and preserves the body as intact as possible, making it a very dignified way to die.

When Pedro stood on the execution platform, and the executioner put the noose around his neck with heavy weights strapped to his feet, he was still somewhat nervous and fearful.

Because no one knows what happens after a person dies.

Nothing will actually happen.

People actually know this, but because of their fear of death and their resistance to death, they are unwilling to accept that everything will return to nothingness after death, so they imagine many things.

Reincarnation, heaven, hell—any notion of a place after death stems from the struggle between humanity and death.

Unfortunately, no matter how elaborately these stories are crafted, a lie is still a lie.

Pedro felt dizzy and his ears were ringing. Looking at the crowd of people gathered below the execution platform, and at the numb yet curious expressions on their faces, he felt a pang of regret.

And these feelings of regret are still growing. If they hadn't come to Zhuolan and hadn't attended the seminar hosted by Lance, would things have turned out differently?
He is probably still a middle school teacher, working diligently every day with his family and colleagues, earning a decent salary, bidding farewell to each night and welcoming each new morning.

Unfortunately, there are no "what ifs," and no regrets.

After the prosecutor confirmed his identity, the two executioners pushed the lever of the mechanism together, and the wooden planks under the feet of the six people on the execution platform instantly lost their support.

Pedro immediately felt a sense of weightlessness. The weights strapped to his legs pulled him down forcefully, and with a "crack" sound, his cervical spine dislocated. In an instant, he could no longer feel his body below the neck.

To others, he had lost control of his bladder, but to his own perception, everything seemed fine.

There was just a... indescribable feeling of drowsiness, and the sky seemed to be getting darker.

He tried, but his efforts yielded no results. Soon, his world stopped at that moment, forever plunged into darkness.

"Ugh……"

My whole life!

His final lament echoed from the depths of darkness; it was all over.

A group of reporters frantically pressed the shutter, capturing the images of these people dying. This is clearly a sign of progress in civilization!

From indiscriminate slaughter, leaving blood everywhere, to the civilized use of hanging, this is progress!

Looking at the six corpses hanging there, swaying precariously, and some others awaiting execution, they were on the verge of collapse.

After the entire execution process was over, they reported to Lance that nothing unexpected had happened. Lance only listened to a few words from them before telling them to go back and compile a report for their records.

He had an even more important task—to form a provisional government.

“Why temporary?” Lance asked, sitting in Diego’s chair. He wasn’t as fat as Diego, and the chair looked a little too wide for him; he couldn’t fill it completely with his body.

But that didn't stop him from exuding immense power just by sitting there, which was very impressive to these people.

"We are not forming a new government because we need a temporary government to transition to a situation that we all hope to see."

"Gentlemen, please remember this!"

"What we give you is truly yours."

“We won’t allow it. Even if it’s in your pocket right now, you’d better take it out of your pockets as soon as possible and put it on the table in front of me!”

The rebels were eliminated, and the country was restored to stable rule. However, some people's thoughts began to become somewhat inappropriate again.

This situation is actually quite normal, just like a group of people being hired to dig up a treasure.

Before actually finding the treasure, they are unlikely to want to keep it for themselves; they are more likely to actually dig it up and hand it over to their employer.

But when they find the treasure and actually dig it out, some people might have other ideas.

For example, possessing this treasure, even if it's not all of it, just a little bit, would be wonderful.

That's the situation now; they won't associate that power with themselves until they truly and regain control of everything.

But once they actually got these things under control and the power was in their hands, they began to covet and greedily pursue it.

Lance gave them a small warning, telling them not to mess around, because they couldn't afford the consequences.

Looking at the various expressions on the faces of the people in the room, he maintained an extreme calm. "I know that some of your thoughts may not be so dangerous, but I, the senator, and I are all afraid of trouble."

"It would be best if everything went according to our previous agreement. If anyone feels that this does not meet your demands for benefits, you are welcome to speak up."

"But if no one is going to stand up and tell me why I don't accept this arrangement, then you'd better not add to my workload."

He looked at the Foreign Minister sitting to the side and said, "You handle the rest."

"It's not appropriate for me to get involved in these matters."

"I have no other requirements for you, only one: follow the rules!"

All the ministers and chieftains of the princely states in the room dared not even breathe loudly in front of Lance.

Seeing their subservient demeanor, Lance nodded in satisfaction. "What's so greedy about the power of a poor, backward little country?"

"Even if you manage ten thousand ants, you're still not as good as someone who has a single sheep under their command." "Once you integrate into life in the Federation, you'll realize how right your decision was!"

The entire Alan was watching these changes in Lapa closely, and a "Provisional Government of Lapa" was jointly formed by chiefs and leaders of the princely states.

There was no interim president in the provisional government, only ministers of various departments; it seemed that the government was only missing a president.

The President of the Republic of Germany immediately called the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Rapa, who said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its Minister were the most powerful departments in the interim government.

The Foreign Minister was not surprised to receive a call from the Grand President of the Czech Republic.

The President had some understanding of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, having dealt with him before, since it was the "Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

"Why...why did you only form a provisional government instead of a new government?" The president's tone carried a hint of confusion and probing.

He asked his questions carefully, without much aggression, because he didn't want to provoke the Foreign Minister.

The Foreign Minister chuckled twice, "Because we haven't decided yet what the new government will be like."

"The recent rebellion has given us a lot to think about. Now we are extra cautious when we do these things, to avoid any situation we don't want to see, and we don't want to go back to the way things were in the past."

Hearing these words, the president's mood continued to sink. "Lapa is a member of the Asian Union. If you have any trouble or problems, you are welcome to contact us anytime, anywhere."

The Foreign Minister chuckled twice more. "Thank you for your kindness, Your Excellency President."

"Diego signed too many messy agreements and treaties before he died, you know, and that was part of the reason for the outbreak of the rebellion. So after discussion, we decided to temporarily suspend all diplomatic activities and focus on domestic affairs."

"This includes withdrawing from various agreements and organizations, as well as the Asian Union."

Upon hearing this answer, the President couldn't help but clench his fist. "Joining the Asian Union and forming a new government are not in conflict at all. In fact, the Asian Union can provide you with various forms of assistance."

"Economic, political, or other aspects, military or something."

The Foreign Minister repeatedly declined in a tactful and slightly regretful tone, saying, "I'm sorry, we don't have those ideas at the moment."

"Of course, if we decide to change our minds later, I will call you to let you know."

"In short, thank you for your concern for Lapa and for the goodwill you have shown, but we don't need it right now, thank you!"

“If you don’t have anything else, I have a lot of work to do…”

After a moment of silence, the president asked one last question, "Is it because of the Federation?"

The Foreign Minister did not answer immediately, but thought for a moment before saying, "This is our own decision."

"Okay, I respect your decision."

The president hung up the phone, his spirits sinking to rock bottom. Rapa's withdrawal from the alliance meant that more countries would soon follow suit.

What he had originally used as the strongest line of defense against federal soft intrusion has now been breached, and all defenses are crumbling.

A few days later, the interim government of Lapa, believing that in order to better build a new Lapa that conforms to international development, hired many people willing to help them build the country.
There are locals from Lapa, such as some prominent families, well-known or highly respected people.

Or some foreigners, such as Lance.

Lance was hired as a senior government affairs advisor to the interim government of Rapa. He was not particularly prominent among the list of names, but he was still noticed by some observant people.

After all, as the driving force behind the Zoran Treaty, he is always under the watchful eyes of many.

But... staring at him won't bring any change, because some things, once started, can never be stopped if not stopped in time.

In mid-to-late March, the interim government of Lapa, citing a "lack of mature government management experience," sent a delegation to the Federation on the advice of Lance to learn from the world's most advanced government structure and management experience.

Representatives of the Asian Union, primarily from the Republic of Jade, strongly protested against the Federation's infiltration and invasion of Lapa in various forms, but their opposition was ineffective.

Because Lapa has publicly announced its withdrawal from all international agreements and organizations, including the Asian Union.

This has caused some instability within the Asian Union, with several countries already considering joining the Federation.

After all, in the land of Alan, if they followed the Republic of Germany, they wouldn't actually gain any benefits.

On the contrary, following the Federation will definitely bring more benefits.

Furthermore, this visit by the interim government of Rapa will provide them with a more direct "experience".

The Czech Republic felt the inevitability of this situation, and instead of continuing to protest, they began to strengthen ties with other Asian Union countries, trying to get them firmly on their side.

He was gone for two months. After two months away, Lance returned to the Union. At Senator Cleveland’s estate, the senator held a “return ceremony” for him!
As he stepped out of the car, the people of the manor opened the closed gates for him, and the moment he entered the hall, ribbons began to flutter, and everyone in the room spontaneously turned to look at him and applauded enthusiastically!

Senator Cleveland stood at the front of the crowd, clapping along. When he saw Lance, he went over and hugged him, then took his arm. "Let's cheer for Lance's return!"

People made exaggerated sounds of surprise, and the whole scene was very exaggerated. However, Lance accepted it all gladly because he deserved it.

"Well done, Lance!"

"Well done, Lance!"

People always praised him; these ladies and gentlemen were representatives of the country's high society.

People with weaker mental fortitude might quickly fall into a state of uncontrollable joy under their flattery.

But Lance didn't. He simply smiled and nodded to people, waving to the ladies and gentlemen who called his name, which made people look at him with even greater respect.

Senator Cleveland was beaming. When Lance presented him with the plan a few years ago, his first reaction was that it was unlikely!
Because everything is too idealistic. How is it possible to conquer a country without war or other means?
Not only him, but others in Congress also did not believe that the plan would work.

However, one day Lance said something they agreed with: the Alan region was of vital importance to the Federation's interests.

Whether it's the abundant resources of this land, the countless people, or its advantageous position in the Eastern Ocean, if the Federation wants to fully rise to become the world's sole hegemon in the future, it will have to take over this place.

With the mindset that success would be great, but failure wouldn't matter, Congress approved Lance's plan and put him in charge.

As it turned out, the plan was incredibly successful!
This made Senator Cleveland, who had brought Lance's plan into Congress and established a close working relationship with Lance, very proud!
He was particularly pleased because his position in Congress had been further enhanced.

At his level, even taking just one more step forward would be a huge improvement!

Therefore, hosting a banquet for Lance was not a problem for him at all, and Lance also had a place in the subsequent series of collaborations.

For example, his concession; once the federal government takes full control of Lapa, this concession will become another kind of bargaining chip.

Federal citizens are able to maintain unity on foreign policy issues because their interests align.

However, internally, many issues are not handled harmoniously.

Lance, holding a wine glass, strolled through the banquet with the senator, constantly introducing himself and raising his glass to others. The entire room was filled with the strong scent of fame and fortune!
The banquet didn't end until after 9 p.m., and Lance didn't leave afterward because they had a small meeting to attend.

Actually, it would be more accurate to call it a chat. Besides the senator, there were other people who were all very concerned about the next steps of the invasion of Lapa and even the entire Alan region.

And Lance will be the absolute core of this small meeting, to unfold a larger picture for them!

(End of this chapter)