Chapter 1053: Mirror

Luo Si also ran over wearing pajamas, somewhat disheveled.

They were currently temporarily living in the Presidential Palace. Except for Diego's office, which was still considered the "forbidden area" for everyone at present, other rooms had been properly arranged.

Pedro's office was next to the Presidential Office. If the Presidential Office wasn't counted, then his office was the largest and most beautiful among all the offices.

Besides these offices, there were many bedrooms in the Presidential Palace. This was less like an office building for the Lapa government and more like a castle for the Lavila family to show off the family's power.

There were hundreds of rooms here, so huge that it didn't look like a Presidential Palace at all.

Quite a few people were currently living in the Presidential Palace, waiting for the establishment of the new government.

Including some active progressive individuals who came from various places. After they arrived in Zhuolan, they were also arranged in the Presidential Palace, which was convenient for communicating with these insurgent leaders and various types of progressive individuals at any time.

Pedro believed that if they wanted to form an enlightened and equal people's government, then a certain degree of openness and use of the Presidential Palace would become valuable and meaningful.

Regarding this, although Luo Si opposed it, everyone else supported Pedro, so he could only shut his mouth.

The room Luo Si lived in was only twenty meters away from the room Pedro lived in. His face also carried unease and anxiety. "We've been tricked!"

Pedro looked at Luo Si and walked toward the office with big strides. Luo Si followed closely behind, saying while following him, "They jumped out as soon as Diego died. They used us as executioners to deal with Diego, and now they are coming to deal with us!"

"We should go find Lanse as soon as possible, let them support us with another batch of weapons and ammunition. By the way... and Jiede side, didn't you have a call with their President?"

"Didn't they say they were going to support us with a batch of supplies?"

"Let them send these supplies over as soon as possible!"

Before the "Zhuolan Decisive Battle," the Federation people had already completely stopped material support for these anti-government armed forces. To put it bluntly, their current ammunition, medicines, gasoline, shells, and the like were seriously insufficient and simply couldn't support them to continue fighting a large-scale battle.

This time, almost all the remaining tribal states stood out and strongly opposed them. Luo Si was also woken up by his adjutant. When he saw those manifestos, which accused them of being reactionary elements, being thieves who truly endangered national security, and being disasters that destroyed Lapa's stability.

He panicked somewhat.

Ten-something, twenty-something tribal states—even if each tribal state could only get two or three thousand people, it was enough to drown them. And whether there was Lanse or Federation people remotely controlling this matter behind the scenes, they didn't know either.

If there was, this was the worst result! At this very moment, Luo Si had a kind of... illusion that he had turned himself into Diego. When he just heard this news, his mind uncontrollably floated up a kind of other thought.

When Diego knew that their insurgent army had arrived outside Zhuolan, was he also this anxious, uneasy, panicked, and even had an urge to pee and want to flee? Pedro suddenly stopped his footsteps, which made Luo Si fail to "brake" in time and bump into him. "You are too nervous, Luo Si."

Facing this Pedro, whom Luo Si himself regarded as his greatest opponent, Luo Si's gaze gradually calmed down under Pedro's gaze. "Yes, I am too nervous!"

He wiped his face. "I'll go change a set of clothes, and then I'll come to your office to find you."

Pedro nodded. He watched Luo Si leave. He said Luo Si was too nervous, but he forgot that he himself didn't even wear shoes.

But now he couldn't care about these anymore.

After he arrived at the office, he immediately called Lanse. Lanse was also awake at this time, and he was reading the newspaper.

The newspaper reported on the political high pressure in the country of Dantela. Most members of the second-largest party were involved in selling out national interests and assassinating the President, and their President was conducting a political purge.

Every day, people would be arrested and then secretly executed. The situation on the main battlefield suddenly underwent a shocking change!

What was even more unexpected was that the coalition of Slader and the Federation didn't take this good opportunity to launch an attack, but maintained the same restraint, as if these few groups of people had all negotiated something, waiting quietly for the development and changes of the matter.

Lanse flipped through a few pages of the newspaper and interpreted many useful pieces of knowledge from it.

Many years ago, when he was trapped in prison, he had nothing to do, so he began to learn to read newspapers and watch the news with those people—

It felt like a leisurely life, but in reality, this was also a daily routine inside.

Reading books, reading newspapers, watching the news—this was a learning process they had to experience every day.

At first, he couldn't understand it either, but with the help of some friends, he gradually began to interpret some things that these newspapers wanted to express between the lines.

Some things hidden behind those ordinary words.

Just like the news he just read, there was no doubt that the Federation and Slader had already negotiated certain things with the President of Dantela and exchanged interests.

If they were just "waiting," then they wouldn't condone the President raising the butcher knife high to start killing the opposition forces in the country. This was not a correct way to wait for a price.

Wait until he had gotten rid of those opposition factions, and no one would be able to afford the price, and the President's price would also decrease, so they must have negotiated some things in places people couldn't notice.

The war was already over.

This was what this news really wanted to express. Although it looked like it was gloating about the explosion of political problems in Dantela, in reality, what it wanted to truly reveal to some people was that this war had already moved toward the end.

He was eating food while looking at Roger and others on the other side of the dining table. "The factory side didn't have any problems, right?"

"Can our goods enter and leave the port normally?"

Roger nodded and answered, "No problem at all. Those insurgent armies didn't detain or search our trucks, just let them pass all the way."

"The port side also didn't have any restrictions. We loaded the ships and left directly. No one checked or did other things."

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Lanse nodded. If Pedro hadn't lost his mind, he couldn't mess around.

Lanse created him, and naturally, he could also destroy him.

Roger answered Lanse's question and was somewhat hesitant, then asked softly, "Chairman, in the morning I heard that the tribal states were going to declare war on these insurgent armies..."

Lanse put a piece of bread that had been spread with all kinds of strange ingredients and slightly roasted into his mouth and took a bite. The sauce on it, plus the slightly crispy bread texture—no wonder Federation people liked to roast bread before eating it—

Besides letting it have a better texture, it was also to let it become softer.

Many breads would become hard after cooling down. Only by heating them slightly would they become soft again.

Butter base, plus salty cheese and some chopped and dried vegetable and spice fragments stirred together, and a little lemon and a small amount of tuna meat were added inside, as well as some local vegetable shreds. The taste was very strange, but it was also very delicious.

"Don't worry about these. No matter how the situation in this country changes, it won't affect us in the end."

"However, during this period of time, if it's not necessary, it's best not to leave the Concession."

"Wait until everything stabilizes before considering going out."

Roger accepted Lanse's advice entirely. He was still planning to say something about work when the butler walked over from the side, walked to Lanse's side, bent down slightly, and said in Lanse's ear, "You have a phone call."

The butler here was the son of the butler of Lanse's Federation manor. Their father-son relationship—it sounded like it was a bit of nonsense, but it wasn't entirely nonsense.

The butler in the Federation manor was a refugee who escaped from the Empire. He once worked for the nobles of the Empire, but because the nobles were killed after the end of the royal family's victory escape, in order to avoid being cleaned up together,

He took his family and fled to the Federation overnight. Under the introduction of some reliable Federation people, he became Lanse's butler, responsible for some things in the manor, but not responsible for things outside the manor.

Regarding this, the old butler was already grateful. Being able to get a stable job as soon as he came, besides being grateful, he had no other thoughts.

Butlers of nobles are often considered half masters. At the same time, in order for themselves and their families, and even their families, to continuously obtain the trust of the nobles, they are often all serving the nobles.

His son, who is also a butler, will eventually replace him, including his grandson, who will also be trained as Ace's follower from a young age.

After Ace grows up, he will become Ace's butler, and it will go on like this for generations.

The benefit of doing this is that they can more easily obtain the trust of the master, because all their own interests are entrusted to the master.

If the master develops well, they can obtain more benefits, interests, and even power.

If the master doesn't develop well, they won't live so comfortably, and they might even be implicated.

Lanse still trusts them quite a bit.

Hearing the butler say this, Lanse put down the bread slice in his hand. He wiped his hands and cleaned up the food and sauce residue remaining at the corners of his mouth. He pressed his hands on the armrests of the chair.

The moment he stood up, the butler supported the back of the chair so that it didn't make any sound and was pulled out from under Lanse.

Everything was so smooth, and there was even a pleasing feeling.

"Excuse me." After Lanse finished speaking, he turned and left here. He answered Pedro's call in a lounge not far away.

From the time the call was connected to the time he picked up the receiver, two or three minutes had already passed.

"Now is breakfast time, Pedro. At this time, you should enjoy the most beautiful food and time of your day, instead of harassing others."

His tone carried a kind of light, even joking component, which reflected that he was in a good mood at this time.

After these people like Pedro were gotten rid of, these tribal state leaders and chieftains would gather together to form a provisional government.

And he, Lanse White, would serve as the... Prime Minister of the provisional government in the capacity of a foreigner, or some other position, but he would certainly be the top leader.

With such status and position, the things to be done next would be a matter of course. Two years of work were about to be completed. Lanse had no reason not to be happy.

He would break a shackle and enter a higher social level, completely saying goodbye to his lower-class self.

Anyone who encounters happy things will be like this—light tone, joking, full of humor.

Lanse's happiness at this time formed a clear contrast with Pedro's anxiety at this time. The happiness that could be revealed in Lanse's tone sounded exceptionally harsh in Pedro's ears.

"This is all your ghost!" Pedro's tone was somewhat low. If he still held any illusions by this time, then the person who gave Lanse a call today wouldn't be him, but another person—a person who wasn't so naive.

Lanse crossed his legs and lit a cigarette. After eating some things, his smoking addiction came up a bit. "Don't say it so ugly, Pedro."

"What is called my ghost?"

Pedro's tone was somewhat anxious. "You let them pretend to be neutral in front, and now they suddenly announce they want to attack us. Isn't this what you did?"

After Lanse finished listening, he couldn't help but laugh twice. "Do you know?"

"How many years has the Lapa government headed by the Lavila family ruled this country?"

"Do you know how many years these tribal state chieftains have ruled their territory?"

"You are the destroyer of order. They eliminate you, eliminate you unstable destroyers of order—what is the problem?"

"I just think there is no problem!"

"I listened to the public trial these few days, the live broadcast, and heard how you tried Diego."

"Using some things he didn't do, some rumors used to uglify or smear him, as his crimes to weave charges for him."

"Diego didn't resist much because he knew this was the privilege of the victor."

"Privilege, understand?"

Lanse took a puff of the cigarette, exhaled slowly, and his ankles moved. In a place Pedro couldn't see, there was a cold and compassionate expression on his face.

"The victor decides everything, and the failed people can only accept. This is the privilege of the victor and the bitter fruit that the loser needs to bear."

"People like Diego made me have some respect for him in the final moment of his life. Pedro, I hope you don't destroy my impression of you."

"You shouldn't be a person who only knows how to complain and blame others. You should be the hero of you and the people around you."

"The stage for the final act has been set up for you. Perform it well, don't let people down!"

Pedro gritted his teeth. "I am not a loser yet!"

His tone was full of unwillingness, and some resentment. Lanse could hear it.

Having experienced so much, clearly only one step away from that final goal, but it was just such a step away, for him now, it was like an uncrossable chasm!

Facing that chasm, he only had deep despair.

He wasn't Luo Si, wasn't other people who hadn't received higher education. He had normal, even slightly more excellent thinking ability than normal people.

During the period he was the insurgent leader, after exercise, his thinking logic and his ability were closer to a qualified politician, not a middle school teacher.

So he was very clear that he had now walked into the same predicament as Diego.

Diego could still struggle a bit. Lanse, in order to consume the unstable groups and young, impulsive, and thoughtful young people in Lapa to the greatest extent,

So he gave Diego a lot of material aid, as well as capital, so that Diego could constantly form new armies to fight them.

But now, Lanse didn't need so many people to consume anymore. What should be consumed had been consumed almost enough. He wouldn't give Pedro any aid.

With the materials they currently possessed, they simply couldn't win! This was despair, deep despair! You hold a small dagger, while your enemies carry rifles and push cannons. This simply isn't an equal battle; this is a one-sided massacre.

Lanse didn't respond to his answer of "I am not a loser." He himself seemed to have fallen into silence.

After a long while, he used a somewhat hoarse voice to say, "I will let you understand, I am not a wife, nor a loser."

Lanse laughed twice. "I will look forward to your performance, Pedro."

"I heard that you previously regarded yourself as my student, so as my most excellent student, I hope you can make me have respect for you."

The call ended at this moment. Lanse hung up the phone, and then he dialed the Minister of Foreign Affairs. "Let them start."

On the other side, after Pedro put down the phone, he immediately dialed the phone number of the "Coalition" command and made a military deployment.

A large number of troops with materials left Zhuolan and went to the vicinity of Jiaoma Bridge again.

At the beginning, the government army built an encirclement and defense circle on the inside of Jiaoma Bridge and fiercely wiped out quite a few people of the insurgent army.

Now, it was their turn to do this.

The more he did this, the more Pedro had a feeling of being manipulated by fate, because he felt that he was becoming more and more like Diego. He was encountering everything Diego had encountered, even worse than what Diego had encountered!

Soon Luo Si came into his office. He looked a bit calmer than just now, but only a bit.

He pushed the door open and walked in, then walked directly to the opposite side of the desk and sat down. "What did Lanse say?"

Pedro looked at him, his gaze somewhat stiff and straight. "Lanse said, looking forward to our performance next."

Luo Si fiercely pounded the table. "I'll take people to catch Lanse. If he were in our hands, we wouldn't be so passive!"

Pedro was silent for a while. If it were any other time, he would refuse, but now they indeed had no better way.

As anti-government armed elements who started from "non-orthodox," they didn't have much awe for "rules."

Pedro nodded. "Pay attention to safety."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 1054 =====