Chapter 192 Dimensional Attack He has to thank us
Savar asked curiously, “Then why are the farmers protesting?”
"It's for agricultural subsidies. In fact, the Federation makes a fuss every two years. I don't know why, but this year it's particularly big. They drove agricultural mechas from various planets and blocked the main roads in the capital for half a month." The girl replied.
Half a month?
Bai Ling and Sava looked at each other and saw the surprise in each other's eyes.
You know, a country's capital is often the place with the strictest security. Whenever there is any disturbance, the military and police will be there immediately. It is impossible to allow a group of people to block traffic for a long time and affect production and life.
The fact that this group of farmers could stay here for half a month, on the one hand, shows that their leader is quite organized. On the other hand, it also reflects that the federal top brass is now in a state of panic and knows they are in the wrong. Under pressure from the public, they dare not drive them away.
This is why the two sides are in a stalemate with neither side giving in.
Sava: "It's such a big fuss, but we hadn't heard about it before we got here."
E Yu shook his head. "Family disgrace should not be made public. How can we allow the media to report these things? They will definitely not spread to the empire on a large scale."
After all, the fact that Commander Bai had robbed the Federation of three planets was enough to make them lose face. If the farmers' protests are added to the mix, then wouldn't it let the whole world know that the federation is now overwhelmed by internal and external troubles?
The SkyTrain slowly stagnates during the evening rush hour, as crowded and complicated as a blood vessel with clogged arteries.
Bai Ling looked out the porthole, but was thinking about something else. He vaguely remembered that in his previous life, there was a very influential Labor Party leader in the Federation, who seemed to be from a mechanical farmer family.
At that time, the empire was surging with resistance against the tyrant. As the Federation was adjacent to the Empire, it was inevitably influenced by some ideas and some ideological shifts occurred - for example, the establishment of the New Labour Party.
Bai Ling remembered that when they hit the empire's capital star, they received a remote message of congratulations from the other side. On the one hand, it showed that the other side wanted to make friends with them, and on the other hand, it also showed that the other side wanted to make friends with them.
But later the situation took a turn for the worse, and the matter was left unresolved and forgotten by him.
Bai Ling thought for a moment and asked, "Do you know the name of the person who led the protest?"
"It seems to be called something...Niu Ma..." E Yu recalled with difficulty.
"Niumang, the mammoth?"
"Yes, yes, yes! It's him." E Yu patted his thigh and said suddenly.
At this moment, some aircraft outside the porthole that could not wait any longer pulled over and stopped on the elevated bridges on both sides of the skyrail. Some people came down to get some fresh air, while others walked along the covered bridge to see what was going on.
Bai Ling raised his hand and pressed the command key, giving the onboard AI an order to dock as well.
At the same time, he turned to the remaining two and said, "Let's go down and take a look."
·
With such a commotion outside, it is impossible for the presidential residence to be unaware of it.
But compared to the bustling scene outside, the atmosphere here seems particularly comfortable and peaceful.
In the evening, the setting sun is slightly intoxicating, and the air in the semi-open manor is flowing smoothly, allowing you to breathe the freshest and most refreshing oxygen on the entire planet.
The vegetation here is lush, and the lawns and branches grow neatly and regularly, giving the impression of being carefully trimmed. Under the pure white pastoral-style ceiling, a pretty caddy trotted over, wiped the ball she had picked up, and handed it over with both hands in exchange for a tip of 200 star coins.
The caddy took the two bills, lowered his head and stepped aside, glanced outside casually, and then quietly stood forward.
He is afraid of heights.
This manor looks lush and full of energy, but in fact it is built a hundred meters in the air. It is a veritable Babylonian Sky Garden. In the Federation, the more sunshine one enjoys, the more distinguished one’s status is. Of course, only that person can enjoy the top floor as big as the Vatican City.
The golf ball drew a perfect arc and hit the hole amid applause. "Beautiful, Mr. President, your skills are simply superb."
"It's just a pity." The Foreign Minister shook his head and sighed.
"Oh? Tell me about it." The president put down the pole.
The Foreign Minister lamented: "You have deprived the Interstellar Olympics of a world champion."
"Haha, how can you have the best of both worlds?" The president laughed heartily and asked him to sit down quickly. "What would you like to drink? Whiskey, brandy or martini?"
"I will be attending the dinner later, so I would like to thank you for your kindness." The Foreign Minister sat down and started talking modestly:
"I came here this time mainly to report one thing to you. The leaders of various countries invited to attend the funeral have all arrived. The one from the Great Empire is Heinz, and the one from the Small Empire is Sava II."
In order to distinguish the two coexisting "empires", the Federation divided them into "big empire" and "small empire" according to their land area.
"Heinz?"
Hearing the name, the president sneered, "I was just looking for him. If he hadn't tricked me, those farmers wouldn't have made such a fuss."
The Minister of Foreign Affairs is primarily responsible for foreign affairs, not domestic affairs. But he did know some inside information about the cause of this incident.
This matter sounds complicated, but it is actually simple.
On the surface, what does the federal farmers' protest have to do with the empire represented by Heinz? It seems like they have nothing to do with each other.
But in reality, the federal farmers depend on the imperial population for their livelihood. At this time of year, they would hand over their grain and by-products to the federal government, which would purchase them and then sell them to the empire through bulk international agricultural product trade.
In exchange for one year's compensation, they can start the next year's production.
However, this year, perhaps because the economic environment of the empire has further deteriorated, the purchase price offered by the empire is lower than in the same period last year. It wouldn't be a problem if the price was a little lower originally, the federal government could just subsidize its own farmers for the difference.
This has been done in previous years.
But this year the price is not just a little bit lower, it has dropped by 5%. This number may not sound like much, but when multiplied by the weight of tens of billions of tons, it becomes an astronomical figure.
The federal government is already in deficit, and it is now impossible to fill such a huge hole. The final result can only be that the lower classes will have to bear their own profits and losses.
Distribute the losses among each family so that the state does not have to bear a penny of responsibility.
The president’s team has a good plan, but the people are not stupid either.
Previously, purchase contracts were signed door to door with good promises, such as "subsidies will be in place", "farmers will never be let suffer losses", and "the federal government will provide a guarantee if the sky falls."
Why are you so blind now and refuse to admit it?
Looking at the proposal put forward by the federal government, they are responsible for their own profits and losses. With such a low purchase price, they will definitely go bankrupt.
Who will pay for my child’s schooling next year? Who buys the energy bars for mechanical farm machinery? How to pay the medical expenses incurred from overwork? Come on, let’s just not eat and sit on the ground together waiting to die.
Of course, it is impossible to die.
They are not poor, weak and powerless individual farmers.
In fact, the federal "farmer" should be translated more like rancher. Most of them work as family units, own large amounts of land, and need a qualification certificate from a specialized agricultural technical college before they can legally take up the job.
That is to say, in the federal government, "farmer" is not an identity, but a professional profession that requires advanced certification, just like lawyers, doctors, and soldiers.
They are quite respected by the lower classes.
After all, farming in the interstellar age, the process from sowing to harvesting is much more complicated. For example, although the Federation has 12 planets with flat land suitable for planting, the gravity, atmospheric environment, and cosmic ray concentration of each planet are different.
Ancient geoscientists back then would have to spend dozens or even hundreds of years studying the lunar soil for farming.
These farmers are like little scientists of their own alien soil. Although they already have the experience of their predecessors and mature breeding, the environment on alien planets is not as stable as that on Earth. Sometimes, due to the influence of geocentric radiation or stellar activity, it is possible to grow a field of cabbages as tall as elephants.
In addition, like the Empire, the Federation's population tends to concentrate in cities. Therefore, the closer you get to the border planets, the sparser the population becomes.
The planting planets where the farmers live are mostly sparsely populated. This requires them to master the skills of driving and repairing agricultural mechas.
Every household has several multifunctional mechas, which are used for spreading pesticides, reclaiming land and so on.
It can be said that because the Empire has many ocean planets and relies on air transportation, the largest group of pilots are mercenaries, which is equivalent to the "transport engineering team." The people who drive the most mechas in the Federation are these farmers.
So farmers are not scary. What is scary is that there are super farmers who are wealthy, have superb skills, and each of them has several "Transformers".
The federal government dares to give up on them.
They dared to drive mechas and use their "flying tractors" to surround the capital. When to pay them and when to withdraw.
"But I think that even if they are organized and have a plan, they can't cause any trouble," commented the Foreign Minister.
The president laughed and said, "They make trouble every year. I just keep dragging them out without giving them a response. After waiting for ten days or half a month, they can't stand it and go back in disgrace."
As he said this, he hit another beautiful shot, and the Foreign Minister applauded and said, "Your Excellency the President is wise."
When coming out, the Foreign Minister boarded a special aircraft. He took a special route that he had applied for, so he didn't have to squeeze on the same track with the public.
He looked at the congested track below and sneered, "You are overestimating your own abilities."
The secretary asked, "Do you think they will let it go this time?"
"Of course." The Foreign Minister yawned lazily, his words full of contempt, "They are a pile of loose sand, without even a core figure, and they will never amount to anything."
·
There is a general belief among federal leaders that the protesting farmers are a group of disunited individuals.
In fact, they have a leader.
In order to help each other in the fields of planting and breeding, they have an agricultural machinery association that specifically recruits newcomers and provides regular free training.
This time, the protest was led by the vice president of the "Agricultural Machinery" Association.
As for why it is not the president - because the president is an old man who holds a public office in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture. He only serves as a figurehead and does not usually appear in public.
The person who actually does the work is the vice president, the "cow horse".
Niu Ma felt that his name lived up to his character. Apart from anything else, he had done a really great job this time. Not only did no one thank him for his hard work, but in the end, they even blamed him for leading everyone into a ditch.
Now a group of people are divided and arguing with each other.
"We have been blocking it for more than half a month, but there is no effect at all."
"The higher-ups just won't give in, and there's nothing we can do."
"Then wouldn't it be a waste of time? If I don't get the subsidy, then all my car fare, energy fee, and accommodation fee would be wasted."
"Don't say discouraging words here. You're making everyone feel bad. If you don't want to come, then go back. The capital star hasn't been built yet. Can they stop you from leaving?"
"you--!"
"Alright, alright, everyone, stop arguing and listen to the vice president's arrangements."
On the walkway next to the skytrain, a group of people almost got into a fight. Fortunately, the remaining people quickly stopped them, otherwise if it got out, people would say that they were a group of disunited people.
Niu Ma sighed secretly, alas, in fact, it is no different from a pile of loose sand.
This group of people were temporarily gathered from all over the place. They had only chatted online before and were not very familiar with each other. They also had different ages and classes.
At the beginning, everyone worked together towards a common goal and was able to unite as one.
But over time, friction is inevitable, and when there is too much friction, everyone will go their own way.
He is now helpless and in a dilemma, not knowing how to proceed. We would definitely be unwilling to retreat, but there seems to be no other way out if we stay here.
What a headache.
They clearly came here with great determination, so why can't they get anything done once they get there?
"Vice President, can you please say something?" the person next to him urged anxiously.
What could Niu Ma say? He could only comfort his followers: "Everyone, please be patient. I will discuss this with the president first and then notify everyone later."
After saying that, he walked aside and prepared to contact the president.
The president had been unwilling to get involved in this matter in the first place, and now he directly accused Niu Ma: "Xiao Niu, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but you didn't handle this matter properly. Is the federal government someone you can afford to offend? You're still seeking my advice, what advice can I give you?"
"But... President, you also nodded in approval before."
"Before was before, and now is now. You've had enough of the trouble, and it's time to go back to your homes." The president's words defined their fate.
Noisy.
What should be done to fight for one's own interests has been reduced to a mere disturbance. Both sides tried to coax them away by murmuring in their mouths like they were coaxing children.
Hang up the communication. Now, Niu Ma's position suddenly became isolated and helpless.
He looked at the policemen on the other side who were on high alert, then looked at his accomplices who were quarreling on his side, and felt even more depressed. How can he support this loose group of people by himself?
It would be nice if there was a precedent to follow.
In fact, there is a precedent, but it is the imperial version. Although he usually watched the news and secretly followed a certain commander, he had no idea how the commander operated specifically.
Sighing, Niu Ma leaned on the railing and prepared to light a cigarette.
At this moment, a strong wind blew in from the gap in the sky track, and he couldn't light a cigarette. This broken wind actually bullies people.
Holding a cigarette in his mouth, he put his lighter in his pocket in a depressed mood, when suddenly a voice came from beside him:
"I have fire."
Niu Ma was stunned for a moment, then looked up and saw three people. Two adults with a little girl.
Both men have black eyes and black hair, and have ordinary looks, the kind that you can't even find among a crowd of passers-by. She's not ugly, but she's not memorable at all.
But if you look closely, the one in the lead is thinner, while the other one is tall and strong, and his body fat percentage is obviously very low.
"Are you also farmers? Why haven't I seen you before?" Niu Ma asked suspiciously.
"We are not from the Federation." Bai Ling had disguised himself before coming out, and his voice became deeper. "As for farmers, they did grow vegetables."
"I grew tomatoes," he smiled, then pointed at Savoy. "He grew potatoes."
Tomatoes and potatoes... Niu Ma blurted out: "Are you from Yexing?"
Looking more closely at the hands of these two men, one can see that their finger bones are covered with thin calluses, which are indeed the hands of those who often operate mechas and do heavy work.
Bai Ling nodded, as a sign of agreement.
When Niu Ma first heard them say they were foreigners, he was a little wary, but when he learned that they were farmers from Yexing, he felt more favorable towards them.
It was common knowledge that Commander Bai had rebelled against the empire and set up his own regime.
As a federal citizen, Niu Ma has been paying attention to this matter. At first he just watched it for fun after dinner, but after watching it for a long time he couldn't help but feel that this Commander Bai was quite capable! The first thing the country did after its founding was to develop agriculture. It was not a show-off, but a sincere desire to get down to business.
Niu Ma had ambitions in his heart, but was unable to realize them due to limited conditions. Therefore, he actually secretly admired and respected Bai Ling, the young revolutionary who was far away.
In line with the principle of loving the house and loving the dog, he smiled and passed out cigarettes, "Brother, are you new to the Federation? Are you here to have fun? I'm so sorry, we blocked the road and caused you a lot of trouble in your travel."
Bai Ling took the cigarette and held it between his long fingers but didn't smoke:
"I'm here to do business. There are troubles, but it's inevitable that you'll encounter troubles in life. Rather than being troubled, I'd rather know how the troubles came about. Don't you agree?"
His tone was neither hurried nor slow, with a hint of teasing in it, but somehow it sounded friendly and comfortable. There aren't so many twists and turns, it's just like chatting about family matters.
Niu Ma subconsciously felt that this person should not be simple... maybe he was a military salesperson or something like that.
Out of politeness, he asked, "What's your name, brother?"
Bai Ling said without hesitation: "White."
Niu Ma asked tentatively: "Brother White, judging from the way you walk... have you ever been a soldier?"
Bai Ling did not hide it and admitted: "I have served in the military and held the rank of captain."
Then, Niu Ma turned his gaze to Sava.
Savoy thought for a moment and said, "Then I am Lieutenant Gu...Gu."
Niu Ma: “The ancient one?” It sounds very stylish.
Sava puffed out his chest proudly and said in full voice: "Gu De Mao Ning's Gu."
Niu Ma: “…”
With great force.
As expected of a wild star, the name is so hardcore.
At this moment, someone nearby shouted, "Get out of the way! The police are going to throw smoke bombs at us!"
Niu Ma put out his cigarette, piled the three people together, and stuffed them into the mecha. The giant agricultural mecha looked like an eight-legged spider. It nimbly climbed up to the transparent ceiling of the skyrail, hung its body upside down, and slid away.
Savoyard was amazed at the mecha's transformation skills: "This thing is exciting."
Niu Ma's psychological quality is also quite strong. He played a chase with the police and even had time to turn around and ask, "Do you have any wild stars?"
Sava answered honestly: "No."
They are all military aircraft. Although they can plow the land, they don't need to be equipped with eight claws, which is so outrageous, and of course they don't have such cool skills.
Niu Ma slapped the control console proudly and said, "You guys can't do that. Your technology is going backwards. Mine is from the Empire, an old model... that thing, that thing, made in Gorgon."
Bai Ling: "?! He has also produced this thing?"
How come Gorgon sells everything, including flying tractors?
Niu Ma sighed: "Yes, it was passed down to me by my father. The quality is very durable. Unfortunately, it is out of production now and I can't buy it even if I want to. Otherwise, I would like to buy two more as heirlooms."
As soon as he finished speaking, someone from behind suddenly caught up with him.
Bai Ling turned his head and saw that the police mechas were all heavy machines with super strong defense. Their firepower was slightly inferior to that of military aircraft, but using them to suppress agricultural machinery could definitely be called a dimensionality reduction attack.
The farm machinery that was running away with them dodged left and right, and was hit by bullets from time to time, leaving it in a mess.
However, that bullet was a water wave bullet, it would not cause an explosion, nor would it really take anyone's life. After all, they are speeding on the sky track now. If they really fight with real guns, everyone on the sky track will be buried with them.
The police plane approached with a fierce look in its eyes, relying on its horsepower to suppress the enemy, almost hitting him in the face.
Niu Ma slammed the joystick hard, "Too slow!"
At this time, Bai Ling suddenly said: "How about letting me try?"
Time is urgent and there is no time to think. Niu Ma thought that the other party had served in the army after all, although he was just a small captain with a very low rank. But at this time he could only try his luck and take a gamble.
Otherwise, if he was really caught, he would probably have to spend the night in jail.
Niu Ma gave up the driver's seat, and Captain White sat on it. Without blinking, he switched directly from automatic driving to advanced manual mode. The gear shifting action was smooth, followed by a 43-degree angle turn, instantly taking advantage of the wind to increase the sailing speed by 20%.
Niu Ma was stunned: "Why didn't the onboard AI give any prompts just now?"
Bai Ling casually said: "Agricultural machine AI will not calculate this."
Niu Ma still didn't understand: "Then how did you know?"
Bai Ling: "I calculated it."
Looking at the complicated and densely packed data on the manual transmission interface, I did the mental calculations based on my experience.
Niu Ma couldn't help but exclaim: "You are awesome!"
Bai Ling said: "Yes, I know."
Niu Ma: “…”
Expert, this is the confidence that only experts have!
At this time, Sava, who was staring at the rear view screen, turned around and shouted, "Stinky bird, they are charging the laser cannon and will fire soon!"
It actually happened for real.
Bai Ling made a prompt decision: "Immediately launch an intercepting missile to intercept."
Niu Ma looked dazed: "My model doesn't have arresting missiles."
At the critical moment, Bai Ling shouted: "Sava, go!"
“Bang!”
The hatch was opened upside down, and the strong wind blew up Daguang's forehead. Sava was carrying a large agricultural water gun on board and wearing windproof goggles. He was so handsome that he was unmatched in the world. He kicked the switch and fired the booming water cannon directly:
"I'll show you what an optical interceptor round is like!"
“Fuck!”
The pilot of the police plane that was shot was so angry that he yelled, "What a dirty trick! My gun is soaked!"
His colleagues were furious: "He dared to spray water at us, he is a rebel, step on the gas and kill him!"
A colleague who had military experience in the communication channel shouted in fear: "Don't step on it! The mecha is not afraid of water, but the throttle will overload the furnace at this time, idiot——"
Before he finished speaking, the onboard AI began to count down: "Overload warning, overload warning, one minute before crash, please eject from the cockpit immediately! 60, 59, 58..."
“Ahhhhh, run away!” The sound of panicked escape filled the channel.
Two police officers popped out of the mecha and were immediately protected by a safety inflatable cabin. The mecha fell to the ground and did not explode, but it was temporarily shut down.
The two looked at each other, and both were frightened.
They didn't understand how the farmers, who had been toyed with by them like chasing rats for a whole half month, suddenly became so terrifying - they were skilled in various unpopular attack methods and had mastered the use of agricultural mechas to the fullest.
Their scalps felt numb, as if they were being pressed to the ground and rubbed for an instant.
Dimensionality reduction attack.
“Whoosh, whoosh—”
The police planes behind chased after them one after another.
The people in the Skyrail roared with excitement and raised their terminals frantically to record this live version of Fast and Furious.
Niu Ma in the mecha tied himself to the safety seat, roaring with inner collapse: Damn it, this is an agricultural mecha! What do you mean by driving a 86 up Akina Mountain? What year is it now? You two tank drivers are driving a farm tractor at full speed on Central Avenue! Mom, I'm going to be on CCTV News!
…
Tonight has become the most shameful night for the Federal Capital Police Department.
The traffic police squad they were so proud of, which was considered the most elite in the entire federation, was left far behind by an outdated grandma-class tractor, and they couldn't even touch the cigarette on the other side's butt.
The director was so angry that he took off his shoes and slammed them on the table:
"What a bunch of idiots! How can we keep our police station's reputation? Go and catch them. None of you will be able to sleep if you don't catch them tonight!"
On the other side, Bai Ling drove a farm machine to the assembly point.
After jumping off the mecha, a group of people could not wait to surround him and patted Niu Ma on the shoulder: "Vice President, I didn't expect you to have such a hidden trick!"
"It's amazing. I haven't seen anything as exciting as this in a movie. The flip and the dodge are simply amazing!"
Niu Ma's shoulders were almost swollen from being slapped, and he quickly called a halt, "Actually, I'm not the one driving the mecha this time. These two brothers are."
Everyone then noticed the two black-haired men standing next to them, and suddenly realized: "So that's how it is. These two must be the helpers called by the vice president."
Niu Ma was alerted, "That's right, this one and this one, they are our foreign aid!"
Sava retorted: "Hey, we haven't said we're going to help you yet."
Niu Ma stopped pretending. He could see that these two men were capable, so he decided to keep them on the way. At this moment, he tied her up forcefully and said:
"Captain White, Lieutenant Gu, since you all helped us get rid of the military and police, you are directly involved."
Bai Ling pretended to be annoyed and said, "That won't do. We are just here to do business and don't want to get involved too much. If there is nothing else, we will leave first."
After saying that, he pulled E Yu away, as if he couldn't avoid her.
How could Niu Ma and his group let him go? Anyone with a discerning eye could see that the situation had been at a stalemate for half a month and they were about to give up. It was the appearance of "Captain White" that gave them a glimmer of hope.
They had to keep the powerful "Captain White" and "Lieutenant Goo", otherwise, they would really have to go back home and wait for bankruptcy.
Niu Ma chased after him, pulled Bai Ling aside, handed him a cigarette and spoke in a gentle voice:
"Look, Brother White, you and I are both farmers. If you can help us this time, I will be very grateful if I can repay you in the future."
Bai Ling refused to take his cigarette and said in a troubled tone, "It's not that I don't want to help you, it's just that... I'm an outsider and I'm not familiar with you. If I tell you some plans, I'm afraid you won't agree."
Hearing this, Niu Ma instantly understood his concerns.
He immediately patted his chest and promised: "Please rest assured about this. Brother White can tell me directly if you have any instructions. I will distribute them and will never let you take any responsibility. Even if I am caught, I will never reveal the name White."
Bai Ling then "reluctantly" agreed: "Okay... I do have some ideas about your affairs, and I hope you can try your best to follow my instructions."
Not far behind, Sava clicked his tongue and said, "Stinky bird, this big liar."
E Yu hid with him, and the little girl thought about it and said, "I have learned this lesson before."
Sava: "What class?"
E Yu: "Establish a command post behind enemy lines! He will have to thank us."
As soon as he finished speaking, he heard Niu Ma holding Bai Ling's hand and smiling with satisfaction and gratitude:
"Thank you."
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