Arknights' Lock of Heaven

Hearing this, Xia Yu looked around and found that it wasn't just him; although the other villagers were busy with their own things, they would glance over every few seconds, and those who were close by even perked up their ears.

It seems it wasn't him, or not just him; the entire village has doubts about this matter.

It wasn't that I was reluctant to leave or didn't want to go, but rather that I was afraid of not being able to take them with me.

What a blunder! Xia Yu smiled self-deprecatingly upon seeing this. Last night, she had Shuangxing come back to do ideological work with everyone because she was afraid that some people would not want to leave and would want to stay. If she made a scene here and then left, some people might take their anger out on them.

Moreover, five thousand people were killed by him right outside the valley, and Ursus will come looking for them one day.

They didn't hide this from anyone, and they were also worried about what would happen if they left and Cheprini's men came looking for them.

Xia Yu had learned about this village; the inhabitants were pitiful people who huddled together for warmth in this long-abandoned village.

This place is barren and dilapidated, but they have nowhere else to go.

If someone comes looking for them, where should they go?

But in reality, who would want to live this kind of life?

They were just a group of homeless infected people. It's funny and even a little sad. As workers who were driven out of the mobile city, very few of them knew how to farm at first. No wonder they were so dependent on Victor, their teacher.

Because they don't know how to farm, they often go hungry. Although they are trying to learn, it will take time. Among this group, only Victor has some connections and can occasionally get some food.

Will these people ever miss this impoverished village?

No, right? There have never been many good memories here.

Thinking of this, Xia Yu prepared to speak to comfort them, but the moment she opened her mouth, she realized that pale words were the least effective.

The people here don't need promises; a few words can hardly soothe their anxious hearts.

Then he paused for a moment, then turned to look at Froststar.

"What was the name of the guy who came back with Victor again?"

"His name is Anton, and he was one of the first people to follow the old stubborn man."

“I’ve watched you grow up,” Shuangxing had just finished speaking when she was interrupted by a voice from the crowd. Xia Yu looked over and saw a tall, strong figure walk out from the crowd. “But you won’t even call me uncle.”

“Uncle Anton,” Froststar said helplessly upon hearing this, “It’s not that I’m unwilling, it’s just…”

“But our Yelena is a grown woman now, right?” Anton stepped forward, smiling as he ruffled Frostnova’s hair, then looked at Xia Yu, “This… doctor, is there something you need from me?”

Despite many questions, such as the fact that, according to the scholars, the captain of the Orville accompanied Yelena out of the city, which seems to be the 'doctor' in front of us, and how they managed to kill those five thousand people outside.

Five thousand people is no small number.

But Anton kept everything to himself, wanting to observe this 'captain' first.

"You and Victor came back from outside, so you should have seen where those people's camp and supplies were stored, right?"

"Yes, I know, it's just over a hundred meters outside the valley, very conspicuous."

"That's good," Xia Yu nodded upon hearing his reply, then looked at the anxious Matic, "There isn't much food left in the village, is there?"

“Yes, we are running low on food,” Matic replied, head bowed.

"Now take all the able-bodied men in the village with you. I will have their guerrillas protect you. Go outside and move as much useful supplies as you can from their camp. Even if you don't take much, the supplies for five thousand men will be enough for you for a long time."

Then he looked at Frostnova, "Is everything alright?"

“Of course, no problem,” the latter nodded upon hearing this, turned and walked out of the village, saying as he went, “I’ll go find them now.”

“Okay,” Xia Yu replied to Shuangxing, then turned to the villagers. “Remember to take as much food as possible. You can take some warm clothing, but don’t take anything else for now. The temperature dropped very quickly last night. Although I don’t know what their military rations are like, they shouldn’t spoil.”

As she spoke, she pulled over a little boy, wanting to pinch his cheek, but found the child to be skin and bones. "Bring more meat. Look how thin the child is. He's at the age where he needs to grow. How can he not eat meat?"

"Okay, okay!" Matic said excitedly, "I'll go get someone right now! Doctor, thank you so much!"

After saying that, Xia Yu instructed him to organize the people.

The villagers who had been watching the area for some time were also overjoyed and searched everywhere for tools.

“Mr. Anton,” Xia Yu called out to Anton, who was about to join them, “You came back with Chief Victor, so you must be tired. You don’t need to go with them. Take a rest. I happen to have something I want to ask you.”

368 warships? Can they withstand natural disasters?

"Can I ask a question?"

Anton followed Xia Yu to a room that had been cleared out for them to stay in. He casually found something to sit down and said, "Why did you make them move the supplies?"

“I saw it outside before, there’s a lot of this stuff. If they, who are used to being poor, see it, even if you tell them to bring back as much food and warm clothing as possible, do you believe me?”

"But aren't you going to take them with you? Won't you find it troublesome? They'll definitely be reluctant to part with these things, and then you'll have to move them out again, since land-based ships can't come aboard here."

“Oh, that is a problem,” Xia Yu nodded, stroking her chin as she said, “Then I’ll have to trouble you guerrillas to keep a close eye on them and make sure they don’t take anything that’s not useful.”

"As for why I let them take those supplies, well, have you ever heard the saying 'With food in hand, one is not afraid'?"

At this point, Xia Yu looked at the impoverished and dilapidated village. "Their situation was already as bad as it could get, and because of me, it has only gotten worse. If I hadn't taken them away, their fate would have been sealed."

“I will naturally keep my promise, but for them, there is never any kindness in this world for those infected without a reason. It is perfectly normal to be afraid of being abandoned and deceived.”

"As for me, no matter how many promises I make now, they are all empty words to them. Only tangible things in their hands can put their minds at ease."

"With those things, at least they can get through these few days in peace until the Orville arrives."

“Indeed, it’s all meaningless to say anything at this time,” Anton nodded upon hearing this. “As long as we have food in our hands, people’s hearts will not be in turmoil.”

At this point, he stared intently at Xia Yu, "But Doctor, the villagers here have readily available food to appease them, while the Captain's camp is already stretched thin."

“I can roughly deduce that,” Xia Yu nodded upon hearing this, then asked, “What are the specifics?”

“In the months before I left, we could only barely feed the critically ill and the elderly and infirm every day. When I left, even they began to suffer from hunger.”

"Within three months, we have conquered all the noble manors and castles in the vicinity where we could find food. Just a month ago, we had to risk attacking a major town where a large army was deployed, and suffered heavy casualties there."

"Even though we knew that the important town that stood out on the front line was a trap, we had to fight for it because it was the only place with enough food."

Anton's face was full of bitterness as he said this, "Doctor, you know, if the Ursus army comes to attack the camp directly, we simply cannot protect so many people. They only need to send the warships that are positioned near the front line to crush the infected people's fragile shelters."

"But they didn't. Instead, they used various survival supplies to create traps and constantly wore down the guerrillas' fighting strength."

“No matter how strong the captain is, he can’t possibly face so many warships alone. As for the Shield Guards,” Anton closed his eyes in anguish, “we’re a guerrilla force…”

"Guerrilla warfare, in the past, we survived by constantly maneuvering against them in the midst of movement."

"On the main battlefield, there isn't even enough logistics, and we have to face an enemy force that is more than ten times larger... How can we possibly win?"

"We can't choose to continue the guerrilla warfare of the past. Hundreds of thousands of infected compatriots are behind us. If we leave, how will they survive on this cruel snowfield?"

"I've been thinking, was it a mistake to take all those infected people away to the snowfields and have them struggle to survive with us in order to make up for the mistakes we made during the Reunion Movement?"

"Although reason tells me that this is all our responsibility, the responsibility is getting heavier and heavier. Everyone in the guerrilla team, even the captain, is almost crushed by it."

“Doctor,” he said, looking up at Xia Yu with a pleading look in his eyes, “you are our last hope.”

“Hmm,” Xia Yu nodded upon hearing this, then sighed, “Just as I expected.”

The reason Black Serpent caused trouble in Chernobog was because various internal conflicts in Ursus had begun to escalate.

The rising new nobility and the old aristocracy, the Emperor of Ursus and the various dukes, the merchants and officials who have emerged with the development of technology and crave more power, and the awakening of public consciousness brought about by the popularization of education by several generations of emperors...

Too many contradictions made Ursus, the once mighty empire, increasingly difficult.

Although the Black Serpent is wicked, its love for Ursus is undeniable.

Faced with their beloved country gradually becoming what it is today, and looking at the international arena, Yan, though it has always kept a low profile, is much more stable domestically than Ursus, a powder keg. Although Letania has lost its Witch King, who dares to underestimate the two twin queens who rose to power by stepping on the once-renowned Witch King? Despite Casimir's seemingly faded glory, its thriving economy is no joke. Although Victoria is still in decline, Colombia has emerged as a dark horse and remains one of the most dazzling players in the international community in recent years.

And what about Ursus, which he loves so dearly?

The emperor has been jokingly referred to as the mayor of St. Jun's Castle for quite some time now. The legacy left by previous emperors has been waning with development, various domestic conflicts have been ongoing, and the country's strength has been declining. However, the danger on the northern border remains a constant thorn in the side. It's unthinkable what Ursus will become if things continue like this.

That's why the Black Serpent caused all those troubles in Chernobog, trying to use war to cover up internal conflicts.

This has always been Ursus's path dependency. How did the first emperor of Ursus manage to gain a foothold in the struggle?

Because he disregarded domestic opposition and brazenly joined Letania's war against the Gallic invasion, he dismembered the Gallic Empire in the war known as the War of the Four Emperors, seizing precious southern territories for Ursus. In subsequent wars, he continuously weakened various domestic forces and maintained a balance among them, thus ushering in a valuable period of development for Ursus.

During this period, all the contradictions were masked by his superb political skills. He expanded the pie through war, and also reduced the number of people sharing the pie.

Even now, when people mention the late emperor, even those former nobles who were suppressed, they can't help but admire his abilities despite their resentment.

How did Ursus become like this?

Because he died.

The late emperor merely used his skillful tactics to cover up those contradictions under the guise of prosperity, without actually resolving them.

He also cannot completely solve it.

His son, the current emperor, although ambitious under his father's influence, has not inherited much from his father beyond bloodline.

He wanted to follow in his father's footsteps and continue to maintain this old empire, but he lacked the ability to do so.

Therefore, the more you do, the more mistakes you make.

When Ursus came to his senses, it was already in this state.

The black serpent had no choice; it wanted to save Ursus, and the path dependency created by the late emperor's deeds was something it could never escape.

Its planned wars of conquest have been destroyed by Rhodes Island.

However, at this moment, Patriot returned to the snowfield with a group of infected, and for some reason, their combat power seemed unaffected by Oripathy, defeating a duke who came to rack up battle points and causing him to flee in disarray.

Then, some people got the wrong idea.