Chapter 370: A New Storm (Part 2)
Southwest District.
Supreme Command Headquarters.
All the forces under the Qin Group, the Ming Gang, the Tianhe Society, the Yue Gang, the three governors, and all the trusted generals gathered together.
Qin Gang threw the copy of the telegram from the Supreme Council on the table.
Everyone was silent.
The atmosphere in the conference room was as still as a cemetery.
"Zijun, you speak."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief after hearing the commander's words. This time, the group had suffered a major setback, and the victory they had finally achieved against the Council some time ago was not enough to make up for it.
The Qin Group is a complex military group, the foundation of which is the Qin family’s supreme commander of the southwest region and the governor of Xinyang Prefecture.
Xuzhou and Zhengzhou later joined and became the other two pillars of the Qin family through marriage.
The interests of any group are multifaceted, and this is especially true for a large group like the Qin Group that owns its own industries. Just to maintain its own stability and existence, it is involved in so many conflicts of interest that it makes people dizzy.
Most people here don't have the ability to clarify it. There are conflicts of interest. "One move affects the whole body" is the most vivid metaphor.
But there is one person who is definitely an exception, and that is Chief of Staff Wang Zijun.
"Commander." Prince Jun bowed slightly to Qin Gang, then said, "This is a warning from the Supreme Council."
Xuzhou Governor Xu Zongheng shouted, "Why? The Supreme Council is too biased. We have worked hard to defend the southwest region for the Empire. Without us, those Gru people would not be so obedient."
Prince Jun sneered, "If the empire wasn't concerned with internal checks and balances, do you think these clowns outside would be able to run wild like this? At least half of the Central Army's strength is focused on guarding against us."
Xu Zongheng lowered his voice and muttered softly, "We are loyal..."
Prince Jun ignored him and continued, "It's not just a warning to us, but a warning to all speculators and comprador groups who are trying to make a fortune by taking advantage of the imperial war."
"There are 30 million tons of grain related to the Shizhou Governor, and another 50 million tons that have nothing to do with him. If the Shizhou Governor is captured, these 30 million tons of grain will definitely not escape."
"With 30 million tons missing, the impact of 50 million tons will be greatly reduced. This morning, grain prices have already begun to plummet. If they fall below the 4,000 warning line, it will break through the psychological defenses of speculators. Once they start selling, grain prices will inevitably plummet. There will be no point in our hoarding. We will just have to follow suit."
"If a sell-off develops, grain prices are likely to break through the bottom line and fall below the regular price. Hoarders will have to sell at a lower price, otherwise they will not get a penny back."
With a bang, Prince Jun threw the copy of the telegram on the table.
"By then, all speculative groups attempting to manipulate food prices will face huge losses."
The atmosphere in the conference room suddenly became tense.
Cao Daman, the commander of the army and leader of the Ming Clan, asked hurriedly, "Brother, what should we do? This is all the hard-earned money of our brothers. I've worked hard for six months and sold over 60,000 slaves to earn it. We've been waiting to make a fortune now, so we can't lose it."
As soon as the words fell, the conference room suddenly became noisy. Tianhehui, Yuebang, three governors, and a large number of military leaders all contributed a lot of money.
I didn’t expect that my dream of getting rich would be shattered before it was only half realized.
"Quiet."
Qin Gang knocked on the table. The sound was not loud, but the meeting room suddenly became quiet.
Prince Jun continued, "The Supreme Council took advantage of the devastating defeat in Shizhou and, with a single complaint filed by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, suspended the governor of the state. There was virtually no backlash or unrest; everything went smoothly and according to the law. This move was truly astonishing, a classic example of balancing the two."
Cao Daman said anxiously: "Brother, please tell us what we should do."
Prince Jun said coldly: "Shut up."
Cao Damang is a typical rough and impatient person with little sophistication, rough and reckless, but he is a top-notch military commander and gang leader.
The Ming Gang he led specialized in human trafficking. Their business was spread all over the country and abroad, bringing in a lot of income for the Qin Group.
Therefore, within the group, Cao Damao only listened to Wang Zijun's words to a certain extent, apart from Qin Gang.
Cao Daman shut up, and Lei Xiangwen, the third-in-command of the Qin Group, asked, "Zijun, are you saying that the guy from Changshan County is also a pawn of the Supreme Council? He's been deliberately provoking and angering us this whole time?"
Prince Jun thought for a moment and said, "I'm not sure. I sent someone to investigate. He seems to have a close connection with the imperial faction. He's a supporter of the young prince, but he also seems to be a follower of the first princess. There are also rumors that he is the princess's secret lover or husband..."
"Impossible!" "Fake." "Rumor."
Cao Damang said angrily, "If I knew who the bastard was who spread this kind of news, I would chop him into a stick and sell him to the circus."
The princes all sighed. The Princess Faction was really a very troublesome existence. Due to the existence of the First Princess herself, it was difficult to define how powerful this faction was.
But to say that they would betray for the princess is obviously impossible.
"In short, I can't see his true nature. He's experienced so many fantastical and incredible things along the way... The Supreme Council might be taking advantage of the situation and using him. Otherwise, given the habits of the Great Elder, he wouldn't take such a risky move."
Lei Xiangwen said, "So, this is that guy's own behavior. He wanted to find a way to advance himself, and he took a risky approach? And he was hiding behind the scenes, taking advantage of the situation and adding fuel to the fire, which led to the current situation?"
There was some confusion in Wang Zijun's eyes.
This is extremely rare. As the chief of staff of the Qin Group, he holds a very high position within the group.
He is extremely intelligent and capable, and he has a very clear understanding of the top figures in various forces, or at least can infer what they are thinking.
There was only this kid from Changshan County, whom he couldn't understand.
At first, he had the same idea as Lei Xiangwen, thinking that he was a gambler who was desperate and wanted to gamble his entire fortune.
However, no gambler can win all the time.
The more we study him, the more vague his image becomes, and the more mysteries he confers.
At the end of the research, Wang Zijun was confused. He didn't know why he dared to do it, why he was able to do it, and why he always succeeded.
It would be fine if this guy who rose to prominence on a rocket was just a complete idiot or a lunatic who knew nothing.
Although such people are rare, they do exist, and usually their end is very miserable.
But although this guy seems to be shaky, he always stands firm.
This can't be explained by luck.
Throughout the period since he took office, he has killed people and robbed them of their money, purged opponents, suppressed riots, openly massacred bureaucrats, led troops to attack neighboring cities, openly confronted the Council of Advocates at joint meetings, recruited laborers on a large scale, cut off Shizhou's financial resources, resisted paying taxes, and accepted a large number of refugees.
Then they invaded Shizhou to rob food and fought a secret war with Shizhou. Every thing they did was earth-shattering, every thing went against common sense, and they turned the situation around from despair.
He has come to where he is today step by step.
Before this series of actions happened, if someone said he dared to do it and succeed, he would definitely be regarded as a madman.
But now, he has not only succeeded, but also achieved great success. The Great Elder used his power to punish and warn the speculative group, and he also used the power of the elder to survive the storm.
This is definitely not a fool or madman without any schemes. He must have extremely deep calculations and plans. Every step must be carefully designed and linked to each other to achieve such success.
However, Wang Zijun could not figure out what his purpose was. He only vaguely felt that this might be a very large conspiracy beyond imagination.
Be sure to be careful and vigilant.
Cao Damang didn't care about any conspiracy and shouted, "Then why don't we just knock that guy down? Wouldn't that save my hard-earned money?"
Lei Xiangwen angrily said, "Just shut up. You're the one making all the noise every time I speak."
Cao Daman stiffened his neck and said, "That's just how I am. If you have the guts, chop me to death."
Wang Zijun interrupted them: "Things aren't that bad yet. The Supreme Council is simply warning us not to go too far. If we stop now, we'll still make a lot of money..."
Cao Daman said anxiously, "How much money can we make if we stop now? It's less than three times the profit, not even enough for me to survive. The price of grain must rise to at least 10,000."
This sentence obviously represents the voice of many people, and they all expressed their agreement.
Prince Jun glanced at them coldly and said, "Eating too much will kill you."
"It's hard to say whether this guy helped the Supreme Council. The Supreme Council had a big plan, but unfortunately, before they could close the net, they were hit by a hole in it by that guy. I advise you to be careful. In the eyes of the Great Elder, you are not even a bug crawling on the ground."
"Governor Shizhou is a lesson for us."
The atmosphere in the venue suddenly became cold.
No one is not afraid of the Supreme Council. The fact that the Qin Group is still living in the southwest area is proof of this.
Lei Xiangwen worriedly asked, "Then Shizhou Governor Gu Xuanli must have fallen? Has all our investment been wasted?"
Prince Jun said coldly, "I'm afraid it's more than that."
"What should we do then?" someone asked.
Prince Jun closed his eyes for a moment and replied, "Sell the grain at around 5,500 and recover the funds as quickly as possible. When Shizhou reshuffles, we will get involved and make arrangements as soon as possible. We will try to contact the governor of Changshan County and see if we can develop an alliance."
But his opinion was met with indifference and no one responded.
It was a long time before people in the meeting expressed their opposition.
Qin Gang said, "Zijun, please sit down. I understand your opinion."
Prince Jun sighed lightly and sat down.
Qin Gang knocked on the table and the door of the conference hall opened.
Envoys from the Cheng Group, Baoan Group, Conservative Party, Aristocratic Party, and all the major power groups that suffered losses in this incident came in one after another.
Together they gave a bottom line that had already been agreed upon.
The price of grain is 8,500, which means it will increase by 2,800 on the existing basis.
In order to achieve this goal, the 18 million tons of grain in Changshan County are very important.
They will send a joint envoy to negotiate with Changshan County at the Seokju Conference.
At the same time, they will also influence Zhang Shuangcheng, the temporary acting governor of Shizhou, to ask him to take back the grain distributed by Changshan County.
In this way, their losses will be minimized.
Before the meeting ended, Cao Daman asked, "What if that guy from Changshan County doesn't agree?"
The envoys sneered, "Only a fool would disagree. Hasn't he worked so hard until now just for this situation? It's just a matter of how much profit he has to give up."
After hearing this, Lei Xiangwen and the others suddenly realized: "So that's how it is. This kid is young, but he actually has such a plan. He's really well hidden."
Cao Damu was even more jealous: "He is lucky, he won the bet, now he can make a fortune, and have as many beauties as he wants."
There was a lot of sourness in the venue, and many people thought that they could also replace him, but they were just unlucky.
The prince ignored them and walked quickly to the balcony outside the venue.
Commander Qin is indeed here.
Prince Jun approached and whispered, "Commander-in-Chief, by doing this, we are challenging the Supreme Council's nerves. The consequences are unpredictable."
Qin Gang said calmly, "Zijun, you've seen this too. This isn't just my opinion; it's everyone's. The Qin Group is in a very delicate situation right now, and we can't offend so many people at once."
Prince Jun knew that this was impossible and sighed softly, "I heard that the Papal States wants to negotiate with us."
"Negotiations are bound to fail. The Papal State wants to occupy the moral high ground so they can brainwash the domestic animals into coming up to die."
Prince Jun was silent for a moment, then asked, "What about our troops in Shizhou?"
"Stay where you are. This is the official request from the former Governor of Shizhou. We are only assisting them in suppressing the riot. Zijun, when Shizhou is reshuffled, you must make full use of this force to gain greater say for us."
The princes nodded silently.
"Go ahead. There are still many things to do, countless things to deal with, and each one of them is our destiny."
"I see."
The princes all turned and left.
Qin Gang stood alone on the balcony. Below the mountain were large military camps and training grounds, where countless soldiers were training.
"Changshan County."
He murmured softly.
"Xiaoxiao, isn't that boy your puppet? This doesn't seem like something you would do..."
"Is he your new ally, or..."
He looked into the distance. Hidden in the invisible mountains was their largest and most secret military factory.
New weapons are about to be manufactured.
The Qin Group is also about to reach a new peak.
But the gloomy imperial political situation always made him feel uneasy.
And in the Qin Group, apart from Wang Zijun, there is no one else who can assist him.
"If you were..."
I'm stuck, the third update might be at 11:59...
(End of this chapter)
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