King Of War: Starting with Arms Dealer

Chapter 435 A Plea from the President

'Rhino' exhibited such brutality that it broke the spirits of Setaka's soldiers.

Their morale shattered and surrounded, the soldiers who once dominated the territory soon laid down their weapons and chose to surrender.

Joe Ga and Francois entered Nova City at 8 p.m. and then headed to a temporarily arranged meeting place together.

This so-called coup by Setaka lasted just over 60 hours, making it extremely short-lived.

Initially, according to Francois, it would have been best to capture Setaka and have him publicly stand trial to exhibit Central Africa's democracy.

However, now that Setaka was dead and died a gruesome death, that was no longer possible.

Handing over the administrative rights of Nova City to the Central African Government was a strategy Joe Ga had long decided on; the principles of P·B could not change.

Thus, pacifying the local populace became the president's problem, and as the future security contractor of Nova City, Joe Ga had to stand with Francois, showing his support for him at this moment.

While riding in a Milos Armored Vehicle to the venue, Joe Ga saw local protestors everywhere along the road.

Curious, Joe Ga rolled down the window to listen carefully and discovered a middle-aged man wearing glasses shouting in very standard English, "Please help us restore schools, please help us punish the murderers of our teachers!"

At first, Joe Ga thought that these protestors were trying to put pressure on Francois, but now he realized it wasn't so simple.

Setaka, who had ruled this place for nearly ten years, apparently wasn't as popular as Joe Ga had imagined.

Nova City barely made the MSL region, more than half of its population being MSL.

This theocratic structure theoretically has a significant impact locally; even if Setaka were foolish, ten years would have been enough to turn this into a stronghold.

What in the world did this guy do that even somewhat educated people hated him so intensely?

Francois saw the curious expression on Joe Ga's face, and smiling, said, "Don't be surprised, by standards of Africa ten years ago, Setaka wasn't that bad.

He managed to forge into Bangui and gained a lot of support for a reason.

Setaka was generous, becoming even more so after the blood diamond business made him a lot of money.

He bought houses for his followers, purchased medicines for them, and paid high salaries...

He fostered a group of very loyal followers, then these people fought fiercely in return for his trust.

But then they faced 'Ant Eater', the elderly troops under your command."

As he spoke, Francois seemed to remember something and awkwardly rubbed his cheek, continuing, "The UN intervention back then didn't make Setaka back down. His soldiers were extremely brutal; most people were scared of them because they seemed fearless, wherever they went, rivers of blood followed.

It was 'Rhino' leading what remained of the 'Anteater Legion' into Bangui...

When they brutally killed the 300th person of Setaka's, Setaka retreated.

He retreated to Nova City and then entrenched himself here, effectively becoming a warlord controlling nearly half of Central Africa's blood diamond business.

Setaka was actually an ambitious man, but his support team that helped him rise to power 'kidnapped' him.

Setaka wanted to hire professionals to establish institutional systems, but those who came were unable to survive long.

He wanted to establish a small government, but his only options were the people who had started with him.

These people united around him, pushed him into the position of the Northern King, then conservatively refused any change.

I know the man you saw earlier because he once sought help at the Blue Helmet Camp in Bangui.

I don't remember his name, but I know he is a teacher, or rather a principal, from Nova City.

When he was a teacher, for criticizing a child of one of Setaka's followers, he was publicly maimed and lost three fingers.

A teacher from their school, for giving zero marks to a child of one of Setaka's followers, was blown up with an RPG in the classroom.

Setaka wasn't always a madman, at least not in the early days, but he recruited the most brutal soldiers by the most brutal means, and then he himself was caught up in it, unable to break free.

This guy is actually very generous, but he lacked the means to balance and negotiate, so he ended up being a puppet of the diamond corporations.

Only because of external support could he comfortably sit on the 'King's' throne..."

After listening, Joe Ga didn't know how to judge this man he had never met face-to-face.

This man rose through banditry, using brutal methods to coerce the proletariat into his band of robbers.

That in itself wasn't so bad, but it seemed he suddenly had ideals, and he also failed to understand that the so-called warriors he coerced were not the ones to help realize those ideals.

Just like the outlaws of Liangshan in the story, no matter how they ate their fill of meat or distributed gold, no matter how they scammed and duped people into joining them or waved the banner of righteousness, a robber was still a robber.

They were not producers, but plunderers!

And as their internal ecosystem gradually solidified, they grew accustomed to their status.

Any desire for change came at a cost!

People say Song Jiang was a bastard, but Song Jiang was definitely a wise man.

If Setaka had even 20% of Song Jiang's intelligence, he probably wouldn't have come to this end.

Being a robber is one thing, but once you've made a name for yourself, you should voluntarily step into the sunlight.

In this world, all systems and the like are illusory; absolute power in Africa is a joke, but universal values are basically unified.

Only when others discover your 'altruism' can they truly recognize your authority.

Political systems, religions, factions, etc., are all illusory, and the democracy and freedom touted by the West are even more beautiful lies!

The common people have never wanted democracy and freedom, which in fact don't exist absolutely.

Americans always feel that China lacks democracy and freedom, but in reality, if you live in an American middle-class community, you might get in trouble if your lawn is not well-maintained, or someone might complain if you hang clothes on your balcony.

True freedom in America is never about individual freedom but about organizational freedom, which gives rise to various entities like 'truck unions,' 'director guilds,' 'police unions,' and all sorts of messy 'committees' and 'associations'. There's also religious freedom, birthing various strange religions, even allowing a dozen people to form a political party.

It is these organizations that deeply infiltrate all aspects of society and establish many rules.

These organizations naturally carry political attributes, serving as nodes to establish 'rules' that even laws can't set.

Freedom?

For ordinary people, it's definitely not about freedom, but politically, these organizations enjoy a great degree of freedom.

And these organizations just happen to represent various interest groups...

Without discussing the merits of this form, can such a structure really be transplanted?

Without the same capital soil and primitive accumulation, forced transplantation will only produce various monsters.

So, those waving the flags of democracy and freedom, trying to incite you to do something, are either fools themselves or representatives of some interest groups.

Without sufficient understanding, you can't even judge whether they want to recruit you or use you as cannon fodder.

'Rules,' 'Boundaries,' 'Protection'

These are the things people really need and what the common folk should firmly demand.

Joe Ga's divergent thinking made him think of many things...

Where is the future for P·B? What should it really do?

The potential in Central Africa is very limited; once the industries in Sangha Town are fully operational, the mineral resources there won't be enough to support development for 20 years.

What then?

Talent turnover? Industry upgrading?

It's not entirely hopeless, but it's not something a company like P·B can decide.

As the steel industry begins to decline, P·B's influence will continuously decrease.

The cost of maintaining that area will continue to rise, so Joe Ga must take advantage of P·B's most prosperous period to firmly and steadily spread the company's influence.

And how to gain influence?

Maintain 'boundaries' with the local government of Africa, and adhere to your own position.

On the basis of maintaining 'boundaries', exercise the contents of the contract and slightly establish P·B's 'rules'.

Finally, from the company's perspective, provide 'safety' to those involved in the 'contracts' as much as possible.

This is the foundation of P·B and the key element for Joe Ga to stand tall and speak loudly in any situation.

If he can do these things, even if Francois is no longer the president and the French support another person, Joe Ga could still respond with ease.

Interestingly, Joe Ga had never seriously considered influencing the political landscape of Central Africa, but he had already become a key external force there, even having advantages over the Supreme Emperor.

Francois, being relatively objective, recounted Setaka's life, not without purpose, but because he wanted to remind or plead with Joe Ga, to never become a warlord like Setaka.

Because Francois had realized that he, or Central Africa, had absolutely no power to contain P·B anymore.

Francois thought this way because of Joe Ga's past actions, which showed him a great hope.

If P·B were just a mercenary company, he could easily betray Central Africa's interests and collaborate with Joe Ga to make a fortune.

But Joe Ga was not such a person, and he had indeed prompted Francois onto another path; if Joe Ga's ship veered off course, then Francois's fate would be sealed.

Initially, Joe Ga hadn't grasped this implication, but as the armored car approached the venue and Francois's expression grew more serious, he suddenly realized something...

When the armored car stopped at the venue's entrance, Joe Ga got out first and walked around to open the door for Francois, then looking at the somewhat flattered Mr. President, he smiled and said, "Nova City is part of Central Africa, this is your stage.

Buddy, we might have nearly twenty good years ahead.

Work hard to be a good president, and you might just get your own statue!"

Francois nodded in surprise and emotion, too fearful of Joe Ga entering the venue and delivering a speech like the one in Sangha Town.

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Standing next to such a Joe Ga, Francois knew he and the Central African Government would become dim and overshadowed.

Now with Joe Ga's statement, he completely let go of his worries...

Why not cooperate with such a person instead of those companies that only recognize money?

Embracing Joe Ga firmly, the gray-haired Francois earnestly said, "Hu Lang, you are the one who deserves a statue!"