Chapter 152: The Price of Freedom
Prelude to Revolution—
Fili understood everything in an instant.
“Then you all—”
“We have secretly connected with the citizens and built up enough momentum,” Cheng Lei told him.
“However, most citizens neither have guns nor know how to use them. We need more people like you, to take off your uniforms and pick up your guns. What do you think?”
Fili barely took any time to consider.
“I’m with you!”
“Very good.”
Late at night, Cangyuan’s employees temporarily finished their instances and tasks, and all returned to the main camp.
Lu Yuan had the aboriginal workers temporarily set up a large screen and projected the upcoming combat plan onto it, so that as many people as possible could see it.
“Almost everyone is here,” Lao Yu told him.
“Good.”
At this moment, the valley of Devil Mountain was packed with people: players, Cangyuan interns, Lao Yu’s subordinates, rescued slaves, and militiamen recruited from Red Iron Town. The total number exceeded 500, all witnessing Cangyuan’s largest military operation ever.
“Fellow employees, and friends of Cangyuan.”
Lu Yuan walked briskly onto the podium, and a cheer immediately erupted below.
“You must know that in this planet and this star system, Apollo, this group of interstellar bandits, only has Oasis City left as their last stronghold.”
“You also know that within Oasis City, with the special cancer drug as the fuse, the situation of resistance against tyranny is rapidly brewing.”
“According to reliable news from Cangyuan’s Chief Investigator, bloodshed has already occurred in the city, and citizens have begun to take to the streets at the call of our allies.”
“By 8 PM today, Cheng Yun will organize all citizens to petition outside the palace gate. At that time, their situation will no longer be safe and will require protection from external forces.”
“Currently, it is conservatively estimated that over eighty percent of the security personnel and over forty percent of the guards within the city walls have lost their will to act. The remaining ones are scurrying around, struggling to maintain urban order, and are unable to form large armed forces.”
“The city guards who are still loyal to the City Lord are mostly deployed in the defensive works outside the city walls and in the River Valley Great Oilfield area. This means that once hostilities ignite, the City Lord’s possibility of using violent organs to harm citizens will be minimized.”
“We cannot delay any longer! The operation will commence in the early hours of today. We need to intervene fully in this situation before the fire consumes all the oxygen, and completely take down Oasis City!”
“Hooray!!!”
The crowd responded with a thunderous roar.
The slaves who had recently been liberated had tears in their eyes, unable to believe that the scene before them was real, as if they were dreaming.
Lu Yuan stepped down, and Lao Yu, in his power armor, walked onto the podium. The crowd cheered again.
“Warband Leader!”
“So cool!”
“Alright, everyone quiet down!” Lao Yu pressed his hands down. “Next, I will detail the specific tactics for this siege operation!”
“Within the entire Great Oasis City region, there are three high-value targets, all of which need to be securely occupied. The most important of these is the River Valley Great Oilfield, where heavy troops are stationed. The strike must be swift and precise, and igniting the oil wells must be avoided!”
“This is a field mission that requires close cooperation between all small teams. There will be air support at the time. Relevant combat personnel and commanders have been assigned; please confirm your respective attack routes and mission target areas on your pads in advance. All small teams, pay attention to coordination and make sure no mistakes are made.”
“The second target, the Oasis City Wall; capturing the city wall has symbolic significance, which can shake the enemy’s morale and accelerate the collapse of the city’s defenders.”
“The third target, the City Temple; this is a special operations objective. Mission personnel need to quickly confirm the location of the suspected kinetic shield device and protect it with all their might to prevent possible self-destruction by the church.”
“The final target, the City Palace, is where City Lord Cole and Minister Omar are hiding, and it likely connects directly to underground air defense facilities.”
“The mission objective is very clear: we must capture Cole alive! He must face trial; this is our promise to Cheng Yun and all citizens of Oasis City!”
“Understood? Any more questions?”
Victory Male God: “No problem, let’s charge!”
The second and third echelons of players departed first, riding ground vehicles alongside the mechanical servant army; they would be on the road for several hours.
The first echelon players, riding aerial vehicles, would depart later, still having time to rest.
Watching the mighty convoy depart, Jubian was somewhat lost in thought.
“What’s wrong, scared?” Black Smoke, who was organizing ammunition nearby, glanced at him.
“How could that be—” Jubian thought for a moment, then finally decided to speak his mind.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m not questioning our plan, but—just from the data, if we had only secretly distributed the medicine into the city without releasing those promotional videos, Oasis City would have taken many more days to realize what was happening, right?”
Black Smoke: “What exactly are you trying to say?”
Jubian: “I mean, wouldn’t it be better to start the propaganda after most of the sick people in the city have recovered? Would that reduce civilian casualties?”
Black Smoke: “No. You’ve missed the point. The two are completely different.”
Jubian: “Why?”
At this moment, Lao Yu walked over, carrying an ammunition box.
“Because in a siege, unless the defenders surrender from the very beginning, there will always be civilian casualties.”
“If we attacked directly, most citizens would attribute the loss of life and property to us, and might even see us as invaders, or at least foreign conquerors.”
“If a violent revolution first occurs in the city, and then we provide military aid at a critical moment, there will still be civilian casualties, but—”
Black Smoke continued: “But in this situation, the citizens will not blame us for the war losses; they will only see us as a beacon of human civilization, and as allies and liberators who provided help!”
Ah, this—
At these words, more than a dozen “old players” like Male God and Guo Li Cheng stopped organizing their equipment and turned around.
Black Smoke smiled.
“Hmph, do you think this is a bit despicable?”
“Somewhat,” Male God said bluntly.
“Hmm,” Black Smoke sighed. “Right and wrong in war are inherently difficult to clarify—but one thing, I can tell everyone with great certainty.”
Everyone’s appetite was whetted, and they eagerly waited for Black Smoke to continue.
“If we, out of goodwill, offer all good things, including freedom, equality, and economic aid, to Oasis City for free, then, on the surface, the other party might prostrate themselves and call you ‘Master.’
“But deep down, not only will they not be grateful to you, but they will instead feel that they are inherently noble and deserve to enjoy such heaven-sent privileges. And us? Inherently lowly, inherently destined to satisfy all their demands without compensation!”
Upon hearing this, some people nodded thoughtfully in agreement, while others exchanged bewildered glances.
“Uncle—isn’t your perspective a bit too dark?” Dan Ta felt that this statement was a bit uncomfortable.
“No, little girl, this isn’t a matter of perspective; this is human nature,” Black Smoke insisted on his view.
“I agree with Black Smoke!” Lao Yu said.
“If the citizens of Oasis City do not bleed, if they do not dare to point their guns at their masters, then they will never become the masters of the city, and they will never cherish everything they gain.”
“In fact, in just a few months, they will start to worship the extravagant City Lord and those nobles again; they will revere these people in their hearts, seeing them as the source of their own superiority and their spiritual totem!”
“That would be very troublesome, and very disgusting, especially considering there’s also a bunch of religious fanatics in the city,” Black Smoke continued Lao Yu’s words.
“The Executive Officer must have thought of this, which is why he deliberately guided the citizens to fall out with the City Lord, completely cutting off their retreat. This is actually a trial, directly determining whether the citizens will be qualified to become true citizens in the future, or only deserve to be controlled and enslaved.”
Jubian nodded silently.
“I understand. All futures are repetitions of history—”