Chapter 712: Foreign forces

  Chapter 712 Foreign Forces
  Thales finished reading the letter from the Fuxing Palace, took a deep breath, and suppressed his indignation and depression.
But facing the scorching eyes of everyone present, the well-trained Duke of Xinghu had no choice but to stare at the blank space on the letter paper seriously, and pretended to read this extremely short "letter" for a full three minutes, pausing on the way Down to drink two sips of tea, sometimes frowning, sometimes nodding, not forgetting the words in his mouth, writing like a spring breeze, after reading, he concealed his letter and meditated, chewing on His Majesty's teachings for a long time, and finally put away the letter with great care, folded it and kept it , and released a confident smile to his subordinates.
   "Is everything going well in the capital?"
   "When will the relevant departments come to take over?"
   "Is Your Majesty satisfied with the Emerald City?"
   "Does the Fuxing Palace send officials to support it?"
   "When are we going home?"
   "Will a standing army be sent over?"
   "How to repay the debt of Emerald City?"
   "Does Your Majesty have a will on how to rule on the old case of Kevin Dill?"
Facing these hopeful and restless questions from the Xinghu Guards, Thales waved his hands confidently and answered them one by one, saying that the king's ingenious plan to secure the South Bank, lost the prince and lost money...cough cough, in short, His Majesty Kessel is wise and wise, court All the princes have exhausted their calculations, the Fuxing Palace has a sophisticated and far-reaching plan, and it controls the entire territory of the stars in a game of chess. The current situation of the Emerald City is fully anticipated, and the arrangements were made earlier, but the true meaning of this is the secret of the kingdom. public.
As for where the Emerald City will go in the future, how to handle specific affairs, and how to solve practical difficulties, well, His Majesty knows it well, you will naturally understand what you understand, and you will understand if you don’t understand it, and you won’t understand it even if you say it. It’s better to understand than to understand. When the time comes, we will see for ourselves.
So before that, you don't have to worry about it, you should do your best to secure your position. You have made a lot of contributions in this trip to stabilize the country and settle the country regardless of reputation. My skills will not be donated...
Such a roundabout and bureaucratic explanation, at least for the time being, calmed everyone's doubts and restlessness, and when everyone dispersed excitedly, suspiciously or thoughtfully, everyone returned to their posts. Only then did Erles slump down on the back of the chair, sighing numbly.
   I can figure it out?
   What can I do?
  What should I do?—
"I guess, the support that the Fuxing Palace can provide is always limited, and it will take time to prepare." Mallos didn't leave, he stayed and closed the door. Focusing on the overall situation of Emerald City, until they are ready to take over Kongming Palace, can they retire?"
  Thales hummed in an unclear mood, and said rebellious words:
   "Have you ever considered being king, Thor?"
  Mallos frowned, but he has been with Canxing for a long time and has rich experience in treason.
  
Yes—when I was five years old playing house, until I was slapped away by my uncle’s slap in the face.

   "Your uncle and grandpa are mistaken," Thales looked at the letter in his hand, and said sarcastically, "You know, at least you are more eloquent than our king."
"Maybe he got it wrong, but at least I don't have to go to the gallows for treason," Mallos fought back without changing his expression, "or worry about how to fill the hole in the 1,178,653 gold coins .

  The Duke of Xinghu trembled when he heard the words. After all, he was defeated by his opponent and collapsed on the table.
   "Your Highness?"
"It doesn't matter, Emerald City has a self-sustaining mechanism, at most it just can't squeeze out money," Thales pulled himself up from the table with difficulty, as if a drowning person was finally struggling, "at least it didn't make any big troubles — What are you doing?"
  Thales paused, stood up abruptly, and walked to the window.
   "Your Highness?" Mallos was about to ask in confusion when he was interrupted by a hasty knock on the door.
   "Your Highness! The local officials have come to report again!" D.D almost rushed into the study, "They said that there was trouble in the Emerald City, and it happened in—"
   "It's on Luhsan Street, right?" Thales didn't look back.
   Doyle was taken aback:
   "How do you know?"
  Thales turned around with a gloomy face, and pointed out the window:
  In the thriving Emerald City, a dense but solid black smoke column broke through the barriers of many buildings, and accompanied by the looming fire in the distance, it went straight to the sky.
  Mallos and D.D both change color.
A few minutes later, when Thales rushed out of the palace, relying on the guards and security officers to drive the crowd to squeeze through the passage, and came to Luhsan Street in the Glorious District, his face had never been so ugly .
This usually bustling and bustling market block is being strictly blocked by the Jade Legion and security officers at the moment. The cordon is pulled out to stop the crowd who want to step on the outside to watch the excitement. Thales and his party pass through the blockade for The sight in front of me was shocking:
I don’t know when, the bright and beautiful streets were burnt to black and it’s hard to tell the original appearance. Many stalls and shops were destroyed, countless goods and sundries were scattered all over the place, and no one picked them up. Bright red blood smeared everywhere. , mixed with the dirt and dust, it is indistinguishable, not to mention the stumps and broken arms, intestines and organs, and iron rod knives with broken blades all over the sight...
Countless people are lying, sitting or lying on the ground, embracing and trembling, struggling and moaning, or dumbfounded, or desperately calling for help. The medical officers and priests of the Sunset Temple and the church hurried in and out, trying to rescue them. The living and transporting the wounded were so busy that they were sweating profusely without taking a break, while the priests of the Temple of the Dark Night chanted the scriptures in a low voice, commanded the believers to tie up stretchers, and dragged them away amidst the screams of the family members to confirm the death dead, even black charred corpses...
The fire officers were all disheveled, and the last team was still pulling the water pipe, pumping water with the rocker, and extinguished the last few flames in the bursts of white smoke; Don't let go; the cavalry of the Emerald Legion is in groups of three, riding tall horses, patrolling from this street to that avenue, and guarding the surroundings; The people lined up, put their heads in their hands, stood against the wall, and then went forward for a body search. Their actions were extremely rough...
The air was filled with a disgusting smell of burnt and blood, groans, howls, wailing, scolding, roaring, accusations... Countless noises mixed together, coupled with the shocking scene full of devastation, Ruhsan Street seems to have become a on earth.
  Thales and his party walked through the wounded and blood all over the ground in disbelief, and came to the center of the street. The executives or representatives of the various official offices in Emerald City were waiting there early, quite uneasy and trembling at the presence of the prince.
   It happened at noon today. It is said that two groups of idlers had a friction in a nearby warehouse. At first it was a little quarrel, and then it turned into a fight.
It wasn't a big deal at first, but the anger between the two sides was not small, so they called their friends to help each other. In just one hour, the two groups of people gathered more and more, there were more than two hundred people, and the conflict quickly changed from confrontation to provocation It rose to a large-scale fighting, one of them had the upper hand due to the superior number of people, and the other had to retreat and flee. However, the bad thing was that they ran to the crowded place-Ruhsan Street.
The incident happened suddenly. I saw a group of desperadoes approaching menacingly. A large number of travelers, tourists, and merchants in the market were caught off guard. Someone accidentally knocked over the oil lamp, causing a fire and making the scene even more chaotic.
The fire spread. Amidst countless screams, rumors, flames, and thick smoke, the highly dense crowd surged unstoppably. They fled desperately in one direction in the narrow and long streets and alleys, which caused a more serious squeeze. And the stampede accident, more passers-by at the intersection were innocently affected, and eventually turned into a human tragedy with serious consequences and bad influence.
"After hearing the news, the Police Department and the Emerald Legion quickly deployed. Taking the protection of citizens' lives and property safety as the first principle, they arrived in time and acted immediately to stop the conflict and restore order, successfully avoiding further deterioration of the situation. The Fire Department They quickly assembled ten teams, and followed the usual drill procedures and the instructions of the leaders present..." the chief of the emerald city's security department said unnaturally.
   "Where are the casualties?" Thales interrupted him impatiently, not wanting to listen to official nonsense anymore.
"The Temple of the Dark Night is still counting, Your Highness, but there are more than 30 corpses carried away on the spot, and many of them are seriously injured..." Another younger political officer was sweating profusely, his body was covered in soot and blood. He didn't care about whitewashing, "The priests of the night called back all their hands, and they had to park the corpses in a cool place outside the temple for a while, because the temple was being renovated and there were not many funeral rooms available. That's enough, only the high-purity eternal oil for cremation is still waiting to be purchased, because it hasn't dealt with such a large-scale casualty since the Bloody Year..."
"There are countless injuries, ranging from the most serious burns, knife wounds, fractures, to blunt injuries, trample injuries, crush injuries, and bruises... We coordinated the Sunset Temple and the church, and the priests put the energy in the temple The medical officers and nuns were sent out, and the priests also opened up churches and monasteries to make room for wards. The Iris Academy even mobilized a large number of therapeutic apprentices, and even used the medicine reserves saved for the war... "
"All the merchants on Luhsan Street have suffered heavy losses. Your Highness, everyone is asking for compensation, but this is nothing." Another market official was worried. Confidence, now the citizens and tourists, especially those living near the Glorious District, are very scared. The Luhsan Street of the Emerald Festival should have been the busiest time, but now... and every house is closed, and businesses are also far away. , how will the business go on like this..."
  Thales felt more and more heavy the more he listened.
"Now there are still many family members gathered outside the temple and the security hall, crying and clamoring to find their missing family members...Of course, Your Highness, we will not dare to come to the gate of Kongming Palace to make troubles under the instigation of unknown forces. Be soft and appease, catch them and deal with them together..."
   "The security department reacted too slowly, and arrived too late. If there is a sign of the matter, it will intervene in time..."
   "What are you talking about? Isn't the market under your control? How exactly does the management of the market and the supervision of the guild do? They didn't receive any trouble beforehand, so they could prevent problems before they happen..."
   "We are only responsible for managing the market and trading order, not maintaining law and order! It is obvious that your arrangements are not effective, and the manpower is not enough! If the follow-up reinforcement police officers arrive in time..."
   "Then you can open a few fewer markets and earn less money and you won't die! Do you know how long my people have to work overtime every day during the celebration?"
   "Do you know where your salary comes from? We can open a few fewer markets, as long as you can obediently accept the salary cut and be quiet..."
"It's all those damned thugs, barbaric, despicable, and selfish. What conflicts and grievances can't be settled through negotiation? Is the legal system and civilization of Emerald City just a display? If you don't understand anything, go to the police and the police, and go to trial. Litigation with the court! You know how to cause trouble all day long..."
   "Among them there are quite a few sneaky criminals, despicable in nature, low in quality, and most of them are daring criminals who want to take advantage of the chaos and loot..."
"In my opinion, we should follow the example of the capital city and carry out a clean-up operation to remove many homeless people, beggars, foreigners, and courageous bandits hiding in the corners and gutters of the city, as well as these parasites lying on the emerald city and sucking blood. —

"enough!"
  The prince yelled violently, and silenced the officials present.
   Mallos coughed lightly:
   "Please show me, Your Highness?"
  The prince frowned, and then remembered his identity.
Looking at the timid and trembling officials in front of him, he had to heave a long sigh, put away his anger, imitate the calm and rational appearance of Zhan En in his memory, first comfort the officials, praise their response, and forgive their mistakes , so hypocritical and presumptuous, it was only when the officials were full of gratitude and praises that they changed the subject, and solemnly ordered:
The Emerald Legion and the Police Department worked overtime in an emergency, stepped up patrols in several bustling neighborhoods, and maintained order. We must ensure that such things do not happen again, so that people know that Emerald City is still safe; the Government Affairs Department posted notices in time to inform the truth and appease the public At the same time, try to treat the injured, bury the dead decently, and do a good job in the aftermath; market officials try to use various means to visit and comfort the damaged merchants and shops, compensate for losses, and restore reputation and confidence...
As for Thales himself, under the advice of several officials, he went to the Temple of the Sunset and the Night under heavy guards, visited and comforted the wounded, mourned the dead in the midst of crying and wailing, and at the same time expressed to the people present that the Emerald City official Measures have been taken to protect the safety of citizens and ensure that such incidents do not occur.
In the end, the officials patted their chests and assured Thales: They will do their best to deal with the aftermath, guide public opinion, and tell everyone that this tragedy is a natural disaster, accident, and accident, and has nothing to do with His Royal Highness Thales, who is newly in power, and must not let anyone Doubt the Duke of Xinghu's ability and level of governance...
Thales's face darkened as he listened, but due to various constraints, he couldn't get angry on the spot ("Why don't they just call me 'bad star' in person?"—His Royal Highness's complaint to the puppet bear), so he could only do it hastily back to the palace.
   "This is definitely not a coincidence." On the way back to the palace, Paul vowed.
   "Of course not," D.D rarely agreed with him, "This happened on the first day Your Highness took power, and it was a casualty of 'not since the year of blood', who would believe it?"
"Kevin Dill, he must be controlling all of this behind the scenes," Nexi was filled with righteous indignation, "Although he himself is imprisoned, there must be someone in the Kongming Palace who secretly communicated with him to arrange all this in order to destroy His Highness. rule, ruin our reputation..."
   "Fortunately, the Emerald City has money," Kong Mutuo said with lingering fear, "These things can be settled with money..."
   Thales, who was sitting in the carriage with a sullen face, frowned slightly when he heard this.
  Leader Mallos and Shi Tuo glanced at each other.
   "Ha," D.D smiled sarcastically, "Believe me, the only thing that can be settled with money is money itself."
   "Then what should we do?" Huai Ya was worried, "Before His Royal Highness came here, Duke Jayne was the supreme ruler of the Emerald City. In the entire Emerald City, there are probably only a few people who do not secretly communicate with him."
   "The first task is to maintain stability and stabilize the rule."
  Paul pondered for a moment:
"Block the relevant news at the scene, post a notice to the outside world, attribute the incident to foreigners who caused trouble, and arrest a few foreign criminals with criminal records, and tell the citizens that there are local traitors colluding with foreign forces to destroy Emerald City, such as Egypt. The barbarians of Kester or the pirates of Kasai, if it is not possible, it is a certain big country on the other side of the sea..."
   "Really? Foreign forces?" In the team, Morgan, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke with sarcasm.
  Paul was a little surprised, but still replied in a deep voice:
   "This matter was deliberately caused by someone. This is the truth. We just made a slight change in the statement, at least it can attract attention and calm the outside world's doubts about His Highness..."
"Before the Bloody Year," Morgan interrupted him with a sneer, "that gang of nobles who led the blades posted notices every day and preached that the rebels on the border were just a gang of gangsters, a small group of villains, and the The funding of foreigners who are hostile to the kingdom is incited and incited. There is no extortion by the vassals and lords, nor is there any tyranny from the nobles, and there is no dissatisfaction and complaints from the people. The hall is clear and bright, Xiaoxiao in the shadows has nothing to hide'..."
  Morgan looked at him with disdain:
   "Hmph, back and forth, how to teach what the superior says, and how to praise and coax the inferior, you tease me, so that even I believe it."
  Paul was speechless and closed his mouth.
"Until one day, the drunken big shots in the Blood Gate Palace looked back and found uprising villains everywhere in all directions, all of them were so hungry that their eyes were red, and they were holding pitchforks that were bleeding, wishing to peel and dismantle the nobles. bone."
   It was the first time that everyone in the team was surprised to see Morgan being so talkative.
"Foreign forces are such a stupid excuse, just use it a few times at critical moments." Morgan stared at the distant sky with hatred in his eyes, "If you use it too much, relying on it every time will be boring. "
   "Even if it is true, no one will believe it anymore."
   His voice fell, and the whole team fell silent.
  (end of this chapter)