Like the leader, Luo Chen's understanding of the leader had reached a new level; this guy was practically the Li Dabenshi of a mercenary group.

Smooth-talking, glib, and irrelevant.

These words perfectly describe him.

"You, a mercenary group leader, can't find a woman?" Luo Chen was somewhat incredulous.

Although he may not be the most handsome, he is at least somewhat capable.

"Look at what you're saying! I'm making money, making money!" The leader grinned mischievously, his ulterior motives practically written all over his face.

"They're here, they're here."

"Stop talking, be quiet, be quiet."

At this moment, the main character finally appeared, with Jiang Tao leading eight mercenary group leaders into the meeting room.

The group leader also changed from his previous frivolous manner to a serious one.

"Goodness, faster than flipping through a book." Luo Chen was already used to the captain's ability to control his expressions.

Above, eight regimental commanders sat at the very front, with Jiang Tao looking down with a smile.

When he saw Luo Chen's direction, his eyes paused for a moment, but he quickly looked away.

But what was going on in Luo Chen's eyes?

"Gentlemen, it's a pleasure to have you all here again. Thank you for taking the time." Jiang Tao began slowly.

[With the town basically closed to outsiders, how can there not be time?]

"As we've discussed before, I believe everyone has some thoughts on the alliance issue. But before that, I want to address a very serious matter." Jiang Tao emphasized the word "serious," clearly wanting everyone to realize the gravity of the problem.

Naturally, everyone could hear the underlying meaning.

Wow, you really know how to keep people in suspense. You can make something that's only a few words long seem so amusing, but you've managed to whet your appetite completely. Did you perhaps receive training on variety shows?

Luo Chen strongly resisted this, as he had watched a lot of variety shows in real life, and there was always an advertisement before the crucial moment.

"What's the serious matter? Judging from Mayor Jiang's tone, has something gone wrong over there?"

"Think about it, the whole town is under lockdown, there must be a big problem."

"It seems this situation is not something we can resolve immediately."

Below, voices of discussion rose up, and Jiang Tao was happy to see this scene.

Before getting down to business, we need to create the right atmosphere, right?

"Xiao, that's just his personality. He'll make a big deal out of even the smallest things," the battalion commander said, leaning back in his seat and looking up at Jiang Tao with a sneer.

Luo Chen said it was hard to disagree, but, do you know Jiang Tao?

Seeing Luo Chen's puzzled look, the regimental commander shook his head and smiled contemptuously: "Back then, I was in the same trench as him, going through thick and thin together."

Luo Chen looked incredulous, but the leader got impatient first, rolled up his sleeves, and prepared to speak.

"Okay, okay, I believe it, I definitely believe it." Luo Chen quickly stopped the leader.

I believe it, how could I not believe it?

"But look at the difference between these two. They were brothers in the same trench back then, now they're worlds apart. Tsk tsk tsk." Luo Chen thought to himself.

Seeing that the atmosphere was right, Jiang Tao coughed a few times, indicating that he was going to speak.

"As you all know, our two countries are at war, and there were bombs planted here before. Now we have received news from the authorities that they want us to fully accept their recruitment, and they have even sent an envoy here." Jiang Tao finished speaking slowly and calmly, and then looked down.

This is going to be quite a show; who would have thought that the authorities would actually engage in a forced sale?

Previously, there was room for negotiation regarding the conscription, but now that an envoy has arrived, it means there is no room for negotiation.

Isn't this forcing us into a corner, pushing us, who live and die every day, to the brink of despair?

"Fuck them, you bunch of stupid dogs, why should we listen to them?"

This statement was extremely sensitive, and Luo Chen almost didn't recognize the regimental commander who had stood up to speak.

Is this really the usually docile battalion commander?

"Exactly, they want to recruit us. So what if they send an envoy? Do they want to wipe us out in one fell swoop?"

"Screw them! If they come, I'll kill them."

"Brothers, these guys just want us to die, we definitely can't agree to that."

The entire meeting room had turned into a shouting match, with one group leader after another standing up and cursing.

After all, these regimental commanders have all worked their way up, and they're no pushovers. Who would be afraid of a little trouble?

The mercenary leaders at the front remained silent, waiting for everyone to finish speaking.

Jiang Tao looked at everyone with a calm face, just as he had expected.

"Alright, I understand everyone's feelings, and naturally we won't agree. But we also know that if we don't agree, the authorities will send out the Yongle and Dark Night mercenary groups." Jiang Tao put down his hands and said calmly.

As soon as the words were spoken, the room fell into a stunned silence, and everyone's face showed surprise.

Even the leaders of the eight mercenary groups sitting at the very front were like this.

Luo Chen looked puzzled, not understanding why these people had such expressions after hearing those words.

"Damn it, they're really pushing people to their deaths, leaving them no way out," the regimental commander's voice rang out from the side.

"Commander, what do Yongle and Dark Night mean?" Luo Chen had only been in this world for a short time, so naturally he didn't know about this information.

The leader sighed and said calmly, "If the eight major mercenary groups are the most powerful mercenary groups in this region, then Yongle and Dark Night are the two most powerful mercenary groups in this country. Yongle can't really be called a mercenary group; it's considered a formal army of the country. Moreover, it was established by the former King of Mercenaries, so it has some connection with that old guy." The leader pointed to the old man at the front.

Luo Chen remembered; it was the old man who had helped him out of that predicament that day. It was said that he was once a subordinate of the King of Mercenaries. He was indeed no ordinary person.

"That's amazing?"

The guild leader snorted coldly: "Then what are you talking about? As for Dark Night, they are completely supported by the state. These two teams alone have more Grandmasters than all of us combined. If they come, we may only have the Alliance as our way out."

"Mayor Jiang, is what you're saying true?" Sangge stood up and asked Jiang Tao in surprise.

Jiang Tao nodded and said, "Yongle is currently fighting on the front lines, but Dark Night might come. Although Dark Night is not as good as Yongle, you should all know that even Dark Night is not someone we can deal with alone."

“Of course, there’s only one way out right now: the alliance. That’s the only way we have a chance. Since the authorities are already so impatient, what reason do we have to delay any longer?” Jiang Tao was telling the truth. If they delayed any longer, everyone would be left with nothing.

Luo Chen was also in a bad mood. He felt like his mission would never end. Heavens above, system!