OR1-EP1: Rainbow Nation (17)
According to the A.T.B. calendar, it is now the end of the 20th century, and humankind is about to enter the 21st century. Although these mammals have walked out of caves and jungles and became the masters of this planet in the past thousands of years, human nature seems to have never changed, and this nature is more evident in the Britannian Empire. While the EU citizens of South Africa were still talking about the murder of the poor lawyer Jorge Dias by the driver, the new emperor of the Britannian Empire finally raised his butcher knife. He aimed at the nobles who resisted the rule. With the armed forces and the emperor's absolute authority in hand that were sufficient to suppress the private soldiers of the nobles, he unexpectedly declared that some well-known opponents were traitors who had betrayed the empire, and ordered them to be cut down and all their property was confiscated. No matter what happened to the Britannian Empire, the EU on the other side of the ocean would not be surprised. In the eyes of EU's citizens, a country that grandly rejects Enlightenment and humanitarianism and retains medieval traditions is only worthy of being a joke for civilized people.
"He actually did this." McNeil only saw the report in the newspaper the next day. Although the Britannian Empire ruled the entire American continent, there were a large number of nobles who still owned their own territories on its territory. This was caused by a series of historical reasons. After Napoleon Bonaparte defeated the British Royal Navy in the Battle of Trafalgar and successfully landed on the British Isles, the British Tudor dynasty fled to the American continent. A few years later, Queen Elizabeth III died and the dynasty was severed. Duke Ricardo von Britannia established the empire, and the emperor was called Richard IV.
At that time, there were still large colonies of Spain and Portugal in the Americas, and these colonies became precarious because the suzerain country was swept by the frenzy of the French revolution. However, the Britannian Empire truly annexed the entire Americas, and it took nearly a century before and after, and did not use force to destroy the noble lords who were originally entrenched in the local area. These nobles, who had mastered the land and resources, often fought against the emperor, and this became the main reason why the Britannian Empire could not take a half-step out of the American continent.
"He's very smart, and he deserves to be an emperor." Colonel Karl Duttmann also learned of the news, "He is short of money... not only is he short of money, no emperor is not short of money. After these oppositions' faction is eliminated, he will have the opportunity to use the funds to recruit troops or to reassure the civilians, and take preemptive actions before the next group of opponents take action."
Although the truth about the murder of Lawyer Dias has been ascertained, Colonel Duttmann, who is eager to claim credit, still hopes to have a chance to make the Governor-general realize his importance. If it was not considered profitable, he would certainly not take such a big risk to intervene. Fortunately, the final result was in line with his expectations, so that he could swagger to visit as the Governor-general's benefactor. If it were not for Colonel Duttmann to support McNeil to conduct a secret investigation, perhaps Adalbert Herzog would have become the criminal who needs to be sentenced to death.
"The training will start in a few days. I want to explain the situation to you." McNeil said sincerely to Duttmann, "I can forgive you for lowering your standards due to time constraints. However, we all know that it is impossible to bring a group of hooligans to war. In the past few days, I think Major Herzog's method is very suitable to clean up these lazy guys. After he is released, I hope to invite him to guide us. He is an expert."
Colonel Duttmann squinted the scarred eye and looked bad. He was full of thoughts about expressing himself in front of the governor-general. Couldn't other questions be discussed later? However, the extermination of the natives is also part of his plan, and failure to do so will only cause him trouble. McNeil was right that someone must rectify these people who have not learned to obey discipline.
"This matter is easy to handle. Let's meet the Governor-general together today... I mean, the Governor is going to meet us. Then we will make this request to him." Colonel Duttmann said solemnly, "As long as the Governor-general speaks, no one in South Africa can raise an objection."
In fact, the colonel didn't want to take McNeil with him. He was afraid that this young man who emerged from nowhere would steal his spotlight. After he thought about it, he felt that the possibility of the Governor-general's detailed inquiry about the passage cannot be completely ruled out. In case he did not answer the question himself, it was tantamount to exposing the fact of taking credit on the spot. McNeil is an honest man. He knows that he is only doing dirty work for the army, and the colonel believes that he will not talk nonsense in front of the governor-general.
Gene Smilas arrived after hearing the news. He is as keen on fame as the colonel, and he will certainly not let this opportunity pass. The Colonel Karl Duttmann walked towards the car with McNeil. Smilas ran up to the colonel in disrespect, and asked rudely:
" Où vas-tu? "
The colonel glanced at the bearded officer, and replied proudly: " Bien sûr, nous allons rencontrer le gouverneur général. "
"Puis-je vous accompagner?"
The colonel glanced at the expectant Smilas weirdly, and said nothing. He wanted Smilas to retreat in the face of difficulties, and there could not be a third person to divide the fame in this matter. Colonel Duttmann is the planner and conductor, McNeil is the executor, and Smilas is a running errand microphone at best, and it is not his turn to perform in front of the Governor-general. Moreover, if you speak more, you will lose it. The more people present, the easier it is for flaws to appear.
" ... Avec votre comparution actuelle, je suis gêné de rencontrer le gouverneur général avec vous. " Seeing that Smilas was ignorant, the colonel was a little annoyed. "The Governor is not someone who can meet casually."
"Wait, we have his credit for finding out the truth." McNeil explained quickly, "Without the help of Major Smilas, I would never have the opportunity to leave South Africa and investigate other colonies. Let him go with us, I don't believe that the Governor is a shallow person who judges people by appearance."
Colonel Duttmann glared at McNeil and squeezed a word from his teeth:
" Gut."
A group of people rode on a car towards the Governor-general's Mansion. On the way, they encountered a massive parade, which turned out to be citizens who insisted on handling Nito Mariam in accordance with the law. Someone raised a loudspeaker and said loudly that Nito Mariam was guilty of his crimes and was unforgivable. He must be sentenced to death to comfort the murdered lawyer Jorge Dias. In the past, similar parades would always have confrontational teams that disagreed with them. However, due to the fact that Nito Mariam murdered the benefactor this time, even those on the indigenous side could not come forward to defend their opinions. Not to mention that attorney Dias was one of the leaders who advocated the protection of indigenous rights during his lifetime.
"Behold, this is public opinion. We must listen to the opinions of the citizens." The colonel said triumphantly. "If these savages still living in primitive society can be completely eliminated, this place will become a paradise for our children and grandchildren."
"That won't work." Smilas began to object, "There will be no place for us in the real peace age, sir. If the army will not even have the opportunity to fight the natives, I think, I'm afraid some people will try to start a world war."
"So what?" Colonel Duttmann disapproved. "Even if that happens, we will definitely be the winner."
They were not hindered this time because Governor-general Herzog had informed the guards that representatives of the army would visit him. Compared with the governor's splendid private residence, the governor's mansion seems to be elusive. This building was built at the beginning of the early colonial activities more than a hundred years ago, and it has survived ups and downs, and it has always stood up. The implication is that there is no opportunity for renovation and transformation. When the weather is mild on weekdays, the condition of the building is fairly good. In summer, the staff working in this old-fashioned building were afraid that they would die of heatstroke. Later, the relevant departments of the colony finally installed new circuits to install air-conditioning and other equipment.
Don't envy the governor-general. Take Governor-general Herzog for example, his daily life is entangled with various official duties, and he can only take a leisurely trip by taking advantage of the opportunity of going out to do errands. Jacob Herzog hopes to do what he can, and he treats these official duties as a pleasure. If other people are dealing with the same job, once they find that power and wealth are behind the high probability of death from overwork, they will retreat within a few days. McNeil speculated maliciously that Governor Herzog might have used this opportunity to meet them to find a way to get out of another meeting.
In a small conference room, they met the governor-general. The governor-general is still wearing a suit and a pair of black-rimmed glasses, and is reviewing official documents related to certain bills.
" Gouverneur général Herzog, voici Karl Duttmann. Le brigadier général aurait dû vous avertir." Colonel Duttmann said nervously. " Cette fois, nous prévoyons de lancer une opération militaire et la cible sont les tribus indigènes de la région du nord qui constituent une menace pour les citoyens. Nous avons besoin de votre soutien, pour être précis, nous espérons que le major Herzog sera notre conseiller."
Governor-general Jacob Herzog is still reviewing official documents. He didn't seem to notice the visitors in front of him, and just watched attentively at the dense lines of small print. He picked up the cap and buttoned it on the pen, and asked gruffly:
"You are Karl Duttmann, right? I remember you were the commander of the 5th Infantry Regiment of the Defense Forces."
"Yes!" The colonel beamed his brows. "I usually—"
"The army only needs to take care of the affairs of the army. The police or the Guardian Corp should be responsible for this kind of thing. If they can't complete their work, there is a security department to take care of it. Who made you nosy?" The governor suddenly became angry, "You are not doing business all day. When the indigenous people run into the city to kill people and set fires, you can't control it, but you just want to play credit games with the Guardian Corp. Even the homeless in Paris are better than you."
This reprimand caused Colonel Duttmann to panic. He never thought that the governor not only didn't smile, but instead cursed him for excuses. McNeil and Smilas stood by, looking at each other, not knowing what the governor was paying attention to. If it wasn't for the conflict between the Governor and Colonel Duttmann in the past, it would be that he originally had this style of managing everyone's internal affairs. The last time McNeil went to see Governor Herzog, he also refused for similar reasons.
" Votre Excellence, ce n'est pas du tout le cas." The colonel was sweating profusely, "Let me explain-"
"Explain what?" Governor Herzog sneered, "Don't think I don't know about your idea. Are you thinking that if I owe you a favor, one day I am lucky enough to return to Europe and continue to work in politics, I can think of a way to transfer you back to Europe?" He picked up the pen and slammed it directly on the colonel's face. The colonel tremblingly did not dare to answer, "Then if I am violently killed now, will you still follow me to the grave?"
Duttmann's eyes went dark, he knew that all his tactics were not only ineffective, but also counterproductive.
"The extermination of indigenous peoples should be jointly discussed with the Guardian Corp; issues related to criminal cases are the work of the police and the courts. I am just a governor-general, and my frequent intervention in these two matters undermines the basic principles of the EU. This is a colony, and the basic principles are the same." Governor-general Herzog concluded, "Of course, you achieved your goal very well, at least Adalbert is safe-however, you don't seem to understand how much trouble your caused for the new bill." He raised the file at hand and slapped the table heavily. "Well, everyone is shouting to kill the natives. How can I call them to exercise restraint?"
The colonel did not dare to look up at the governor-general, so he could only keep looking at the ground. He hesitantly asked:
"Then what do you mean?"
"So far, the garrison has not informed me of this inexplicable plan to eradicate the indigenous peoples. I will confirm it later." The governor-general regained his image as an old gentleman, as if the guy who had just cursed the colonel bloody was another person "If the headquarter thinks this is necessary, I certainly support Adalbert to help, provided that he is released. In addition, you and your chief can't think about getting anything from me. When it comes to the slightest benefit or promise, I can't protect myself, and I don't have time to write you a bad check." He stretched out his left finger and pointed out the door, meaning that the colonel would leave as soon as possible.
Major Smilas froze. He didn't know how to deal with this kind of scene. The chief had been speechless by the governor's interrogation. What role could he play?
"You are Gene Smilas, are you?" The governor-general said to Smilas with a smile. "The confidential department told me that you have contacts with some nobles in Britannia."
"Yes, but just a personal relationship."
"Okay, I will discuss this with you in detail." The governor motioned to Major Smilas to wait in another room. Finally, he saw Michael McNeill in a leather jacket.
"Good to see you, model citizen." Governor-general Herzog re-examined the young man in front of him. "I didn't think we would meet again in this form."
"I never make promises that cannot be fulfilled, Your Excellency." McNeill said modestly. "I said at the time that I could solve this problem. Now I can do it... although, to a large extent, relying on the two of them'."
"It's not shameful, no one can fight alone, and neither do I." The governor-general smiled and got up from his chair for the first time. "That fellow Duttmann reported your situation to us, and I am very impressed. Interest. It's still early, let's talk about it seriously."
TBC
Chapter Notes:
In fact, since the Governor-general himself is a Britannian, he also speaks English in private situations.
As in the literal sense, the Guardian Corp is a Corp whose commander is a lieutenant general.