Chapter 378: War and Chaos (8)
At this point, the winner has been decided.
After the long cheers died down, Second Captain Huange stood up and addressed the crowd, "Everyone! The three matches in the ring have been decided, and the Allied faction has been decisively victorious. As agreed before the war, I, Huange, will stand firmly against the bill from this moment on."
"I also appeal to you all to carefully consider the future of the city-state and join me in petitioning to recast the bill!"
After saying this, Huan Ge simply walked off the stage, leaving the stage to the winner. Everyone recovered from their excitement and stared at the killer in the center of the ring in silence.
The tournament concluded, and everyone returned to the cold reality of reality, drawn back into the midst of debate and distress. With Huan Ge's statement, the Second Order's fate was sealed... However, people's hearts wouldn't change easily... Whether it was concepts accumulated over the years, or thoughts instilled by some force, nothing could be easily altered.
Is this the end? The soldiers asked themselves. Should they just follow the captain's decision? Would that be enough?
With hesitation and bewilderment, they looked towards the winner of the arena. Chu Hengkong's face appeared on the Second Pulse Sequence and throughout the Jingsha City-State as the broadcast progressed. The media professionals of Mansa Star Fortress were also plotting.
"Let's switch the broadcast to promote the bill..."
"Don't act on your own until the order is given."
"That Canxin's fake military order is already troublesome enough!"
"Let's keep the broadcast going for now. People have a natural aversion to outsiders, and that person doesn't seem eloquent. If we let him continue like this, the chances of it backfiring will only increase."
They agreed with the director's opinion: the man looked like he was standing out from the situation and didn't seem very approachable. People in the media knew this best: if they wanted to embarrass a warrior, all they had to do was give him the camera and the spotlight.
Chu Hengkong didn't show any emotion. He nodded slightly to Huan Ge and said, "Although I won, I have nothing to say to you. I have no position on, nor any interest in, your city-state's politics."
"Why--!"
Even the allied forces, who were expecting the winner to speak, were stunned. Chu Hengkong sheathed his sword and spear and walked off the stage without looking back. "I'm here to carry out a mission. The allied forces knew the city-state was in trouble, so they sent me and my comrades to help. Today's battle is nothing more than that."
"Let the soldiers of the city-state speak for themselves about the worries and future of this military camp!"
He stepped off the stage, and the image on the water screen suddenly changed, transforming into a politician's podium. However, sitting behind the wooden table wasn't one of those aging, incompetent legislators or entrepreneurs, but a tall, thin soldier in a white uniform, a household name in the barracks.
"Sir...!" "Sir Trek." "How dare that guy..." "It's Sir!"
That man was none other than Jas Trek, the former commander-in-chief, now demoted to third captain. Even the citizens of the third order barely recognized him; he was solemn and attired, with none of his usual slovenly demeanor.
The media professionals at Mansa Star Castle were completely stunned. The director screamed like crazy: "Cut! Cut it! This cannot be broadcasted to anyone!!"
"Can't...cut it off!" "The communication circuit has been hacked." "They've shut down all the city's communications..."
The director slammed his workbench in panic. "Quickly notify Speaker Parriman! Use your divine power!"
At this moment, the voices of the soldiers resounded throughout the city.
"I am Jas Trek, the commander-in-chief 20 years ago. As a veteran, I speak to the Second Order."
"I'm a veteran, so I can't say anything new. It's a rare opportunity to have such a great stage, but I can only tell you some old stories that you're all familiar with."
"This story is the 'first lesson' for us Jingsha soldiers."
Every soldier in Jingsha must listen to a story from his superiors on the day he enlists. This story happened long ago, and for various reasons has been forgotten by the current citizens, but the soldiers always remember it and never dare to forget it.
It tells the story of the origin of Desperate Front."
Cui Ke said calmly, "Shortly after the initial Jinghua Festival, the Jingsha Sacred Tree became Sephiroth 5, and the offensive of the outsiders became many times more powerful. At that time, the city-state had just survived a major war, and its manpower was already insufficient. The outsiders' offensive was relentless, and fighting was inevitable. The only way to survive was to flee."
"People are forced to face the cruelest choice: abandon their homes and allow the sacred tree to be devoured by outsiders, or persevere to the end and live and die with the city-state?"
"We cannot imagine the pain and struggle our ancestors endured at that time. But we know they ultimately didn't need to make this decision. The other Dust Islands learned of the dangers of the Thorns, and they spontaneously sent warriors, far from their homes, across the ocean, forming a selfless volunteer army.
These selfless warriors helped the city-state survive the most difficult 20 years. Only when the city's vitality was restored and its strength was sufficient to deal with the foreign army, they were finally able to leave the battlefield!
Cui Ke said in a deep voice, "This is the origin of the desperate front. Desperate, refers to the desperate situation of the Jingsha Sacred Tree, and the front, refers to the front line to protect the city-state!"
"For 20 out of every 30 years, the Allies help Jingsha defend the battlefield and protect the citizens from danger. It is because of this that the sacred tree can grow, and it is because of this that the city-state can grow stronger. It is because of this that the Jingsha city-state, which protects the front lines for all living beings, was established!"
Most of the warriors wore solemn expressions, though a few showed signs of shame. Trick spoke coldly, "In recent years, I've often heard the people's discussions. The city-state has shouldered too much for the people. There are heavy war taxes, free supplies, and the good things are always given to those rude mercenaries. Our citizens have been killed and wounded by outsiders."
I never get angry, I just laugh it off because those who say these things are civilians, they don't understand military affairs, they are not soldiers!
There would never be such nonsense in our army. Our soldiers are brave warriors who volunteered to go to the battlefield. Even 20 years ago, when the blood flowed like a river on the battlefield, not a single soldier said to me, "Captain Trick, I can't hold on any longer. I want to go home." They shouted to me, "I can still fight. Let me go!"
Trek glared, "They said I'd fight till the end!"
The barracks were utterly silent, with only the words of the former commander, reeking of iron and blood, echoing in the wind: "Those soldiers had no complaints. The foreign warriors who came to Jingsha's aid thousands of years ago also had no complaints. For they knew the meaning of their struggle. Our city-state, our world, survives to this day thanks to the sacrifice and dedication of generations!"
"But now, there's actually a dispute in the military camp. The loudest voice is actually from those who want to escape.
"I completely understand Captain Huan Ge's choice, because this dispute is too absurd, so absurd that it leaves him at a loss! It's so absurd that it requires even more bizarre measures like 'a fight between the two sides' to barely put an end to it!"
He stared sternly at the audience, like an extremely strict boss: "I know that the demands of the independence faction are reasonable. The offensive of the outsiders is becoming increasingly fierce, and the pressure on the city-state is indeed increasing day by day. Being dragged down by the war has become a real possibility.
I also know how politicians promote the bill. They say that after the city-state becomes independent, it loses its strategic value, and the foreigners won't bother to take our Jingsha city-state; they say that others will become Jingsha's shield, and the allies will voluntarily protect us from the foreigners.
These words sound so tempting, they deceived our ignorant people, deceived our simple farmers. But any citizen in the world can believe these words, only you can't! Only the second order can't! "
Trick growled, "Because you are soldiers, warriors. Because you've been on the front lines and witnessed the true nature of the heretics. Heretics are irrational! They don't consider the pros and cons! They will eat you, they will kill you, even if it means thousands of times more casualties to eliminate a single target. Even if you flee to the ends of the earth, they will not let go of their attacks and invasions, because heretics are the malice of this world!"
"The world of Shendong we live in is a gigantic hell, and the Outer Path is the cruelest layer of this hell! Our ancestors never considered abandoning the battle and fleeing, because they knew that we could never escape the world we live in. They knew that if we wanted a future, we had to fight to the end!"
Trek's roar was so heavy that his voice cracked. Those gazes—dazed, regretful, angry, and hateful—hundreds of millions converged on him through the water curtain. He stood majestically, accepting all the gazes, regardless of friend or foe.
"Don't you understand this truth?"
"The so-called 'hundred years of peace' after independence rests entirely on the illusion that the outsiders will spare the city-state. This is as ridiculous as begging the enemy on the battlefield to spare your life. Don't you officers see this obvious truth?"
He spoke calmly, suppressing his previous emotion. "I'm not questioning you as a former commander. I simply want to raise a contradiction that you're all ignoring. With such clear pros and cons before you, why are you soldiers still willing to side with the independence faction?"
"Is your resolve truly so resolute? Then, as Captain Huang Ge said earlier, why is it that news of the arrival of an allied force and three duels with clear victories are enough to cause the audience to waver, change, and even experience a sudden rethink?"
"—Is it your own thinking that makes you make decisions, or is it the manipulation of others with ulterior motives?!"
——!!!!!!!!!!!!
As if awakened from a long dream, those hesitant soldiers and officers, those who were still determined to start a civil war a few days ago, were now touching their faces soaked with cold sweat.
It should be understandable.
Guilt for the dead, a sense of responsibility towards family, and fear of the suffering of war are of course important.
However, the reality that I witnessed with my own eyes——
Memories soaked in pain and scars—
Why do we subconsciously place these heavier "rationalities" below our emotions?
Why, until just now, did I feel that such an ambiguous choice was natural?
(End of this chapter)
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