Scum

"Outside the long pavilion... by the ancient road..." Ch'en remained with her back to Wei Yenwu, her posture ramrod straight. "... the fragrant grass stretches to the horizon..."

As the wind howled, torrential rain pounded on the balcony at the top of the building, hitting Ch'en's toes.

Wei Yenwu chuckled softly, and was about to say goodbye when he heard faint footsteps outside the door.

Knock knock.

"Commander Wei!"

Chapter 211 Dissipation

Inside the reception room, the air conditioner hummed softly, and the doors and windows were tightly closed to block out the sounds of wind and rain from the outside.

Beneath the coffered ceiling, illuminated by fluorescent lights, Earthspirit, still dressed as a messenger, sat on either side of the coffee table with Wei Yenwu.

Lin Qingyan's stubbornness caused Wei Yenwu a lot of trouble.

Sacrificing oneself to save the country when no one knows is one thing, but neglecting one's duties when three temporary supervisors from the Dali Temple and the Supervisory Court explicitly oppose it is quite another.

The latter would undoubtedly greatly damage the "legacy" that Wei Yenwu was trying to pass on to Ch'en and Talulah. He spent a lot of energy and time dealing with Tai He and Jie Zhen, getting them to help him circumvent the clauses and persuade Lin Qingyan.

Ultimately, by establishing Ch'en as the "Acting Military Governor of Lungmen," this problem was circumvented procedurally...

We've arrived at this point.

Wei Yenwu didn't even have time to check exactly how far Rhodes Island had come.

When he received Rhodes Island's request for a conversation, Wei Yenwu thought that Rhodes Island's plan to lure Black Snake had begun and that they needed further support.

But the result left him even more disheartened...

"You're saying he's dead!?" Wei Yenwu couldn't maintain his ambiguous smile for a moment.

The Black Snake is dead.

More accurately, the Black Snake that possessed Talulah is dead.

"As Rhodes Island's representative in Lungmen, I haven't received any further intelligence yet, and I apologize for not being able to disclose any specific details." The Earthspirit began reciting the script expressionlessly. "The task of luring the Black Snake is beyond our imagination; we have no choice but to give it our all."

"Furthermore, based on compatibility factors, Rhodes Island was able to bypass Miss Talulah and directly kill Black Snake."

Earthspirit paused—because she was also finding it hard to keep up with what was about to come.

"We are deeply sorry for violating the contract and killing the Black Snake."

"..."

Amidst the relief, Wei Yenwu also felt a sense of emptiness—why wasn't it him?

It's like practicing martial arts for years to seek revenge, only to find that your enemy has already died of old age.

For many years, Edward's death had been a thorn in his side.

Now, an opportunity has presented itself before him to resolve his inner turmoil, avenge his enemies, make amends for his mistakes, and uphold the greater good of his country...

And that was it.

Black Snake died at the hands of someone else.

This time, it wasn't even Talulah's doing, but a group of doctors who were just passing by and had nothing to do with these grudges and feuds!

If this is a work of art, then it is definitely not a martial arts story from Yan.

"What about Talulah!?" Wei Yenwu was somewhat flustered.

"Her Originium Infection condition is not very optimistic; she is undergoing surgery." Earthspirit hesitated for a moment, but still held back.

What exactly is the relationship between the leader of the Reunion Movement and this Governor Wei before us?

Although the key details weren't written down to the Earthspirit, she still remembered all the messages from Rhodes Island.

It can only be said that, thanks to Oute's ingenious use of the Earthspirit, its ability as a messenger is being further developed...

"That's... good." Soon, Wei Yenwu's dragon blood once again took over his mind.

With the core of the conspiracy network severed, the subsequent developments in the Chernobog incident will be extremely limited. There are few individuals who could possibly be connected to a politically dead conspirator like Koschei...

In addition, there was the situation at the Saint Petersburg council earlier...

The involvement of the Third Army Group and Fourth Army Group Armies in the Koschei plot is almost an open secret.

In this situation... there will definitely be covert agents involved in the operation, to ensure that Black Snake doesn't cause any unforeseen complications, and to steer the plan in a direction where only a few can benefit.

A glint flashed in Wei Yenwu's eyes, and he shamelessly accepted the line that Oute had deliberately given him. "However, since Rhodes Island failed to fulfill the contract, I cannot unconditionally help Rhodes Island obtain the relics."

"What do you mean?" Earthspirit, somewhat puzzled.

Not to mention that the agreement between Wei Yenwu and Rhodes Island regarding the Black Snake was merely a verbal one. Even if we take a step back, Oute's act of personally eliminating the Black Snake also resolved another of his demands regarding Rhodes Island...

As a result, he's now holding onto the payment that should have been given to Rhodes Island?

Creating cards out of thin air!

However... so far, everything has actually been within the scope of the contingency plan given by Oute, and hasn't even deviated from Plan B!

"Lungmen needs an unofficial mobile force to deal with some of Ursus's spies."

And you expect Rhodes Island to do a job for free with this salary?

Earthspirit continued reciting, "Impossible!"

"We will no longer be involved in the conflict between Ursus and Yan!"

With Talulah herself siding with Rhodes Island and Oute, the more Wei Yenwu manipulates power in this situation, the more he will lose in the subsequent events...

"Miss Earthspirit, Rhodes Island has become deeply involved in this conflict."

There is no longer any room for neutrality.

"Besides, it seems that most of the Chernobog refugees you've been settling in these past few days are at Number Fourteen Facility?"

Wei Yenwu leisurely tapped the tea table, which shone like a mirror, while ripples in the cup reflected the twisted face of the evil dragon.

He was waiting for Rhodes Island to negotiate.

As he said, according to general logic, Rhodes Island is indeed deeply intertwined with Lungmen. The only way to break free seems to be to completely abandon the infected in the slums and the refugees in Number Fourteen Facility.

The path to escaping the war seems to be emerging, and it may not necessarily require infection suppression technology to serve as a base. Despite changes in the business environment, as long as the Yan stands, Lungmen can maintain its status as a major trading hub.

Thus, Rhodes Island is now deeply intertwined with Lungmen, but its future value has diminished... Of course, he will try to control Rhodes Island to prevent it from slipping out of his control in the future.

Um...

After all, the idea that "deeply binding all countries at the same time equals complete freedom" is indeed absurd and defies common sense, so Wei Yenwu can't be blamed for it.

"Impossible! Unless..."

They've arrived.

Rhodes Island's ability to navigate between countries for so long demonstrates its considerable skill; it cannot be dismissed as a complete novice. Therefore, some of its actions warrant further examination...

"Unless?"

"Besides helping us obtain the relics, Rhodes Island also wants some technology transfer."

The Earthspirit eagerly handed over a document.

Rhodes Island does have some tactics, but only some.

Wei Yenwu glanced sideways as he opened the document.

Heating, hydroponics, mobile site maintenance...

Are they trying to restart Number Fourteen Facility?

No, that's not right.

Wei Yenwu's dragon eyes widened in surprise.

These idiots!

They went to such great lengths just to resettle those Chernobog refugees?!

A faint sense of shame stirred within the dragon.

Rhodes Island main ship, Oute's office.

"... That concludes, Doctor." Nearl, who had just returned in her spaceship, finished her report with her hands behind her back.

"Okay, let's take a break."

Oute removed the heraldic ring from his left hand and pressed it onto the inkpad.

"That..."

"Um?"

"Heral rings are usually sealed with sealing wax." Nearl asked, "Doctor, what kind of ring is yours...?"

At the end of the document, a bright red seal was engraved. Above it, an arc resembling Iron Crown or a halo of sunlight encircled a triangle; within the triangle was a fortress, a castle; below the castle, there was another line of small print. "Rhodes Island? Doctor Otter".

Rhodes Island Company, Doctor. Oute.

Slightly upwards, near the palm of Oute's hand, one can find even more valuable fields.

"Urban-rural conflict," "Kazimierz rural areas," "agricultural technology," "recruitment," and "offices."

Oute glanced at the red paint around the ring, and he now understood why Nearl had reminded him.

However, this was a ring that had been printed out not long ago—he didn't yet have the ability to turn the jewelry into a physical object.

Oute pulled out a tissue, wiped the ring, and replied, "There was a pattern in my dream that wouldn't go away, and it just happened to match the Rhodes Island emblem, so I had the Engineering Department make one for me."

Nearl nodded.

Unlike the original members of Babel, Nearl joined Rhodes Island relatively late. Although Shining is also Sarkaz, she doesn't have the habit of speaking carelessly.

Recently, Miss Kuranta has been working as a proud water dispenser attendant in Lungmen, keeping records in case of unforeseen circumstances. As a result, she is not very familiar with some of the strange rumors circulating.