CHAPTER 313: CHAPTER 213: LOOPHOLES ARE MEANT TO BE EXPLOITED

As long as Sif returns in defeat, the expeditionary army from the homeland will immediately set out to reclaim the Three Provinces.

This is also why the Jin Yuan and Vladimir Empires prefer not to act directly, instead inciting that fool Sven the Seventh to make a move.

The failure of the Oden Kingdom made Roland realize one thing: do not attempt to exceed one’s capabilities.

Before gaining control of the Empire’s power, do not engage Vladimir Empire head-on, or he will become another Sven the Seventh.

Apart from the strategic aspect, Roland must also review battlefield command.

Of course, he is not looking to trouble Christine; her on-the-spot command was almost perfect, except for the somewhat cold-blooded idea of abandoning Helentz Castle, but there are no other flaws.

Roland is summarizing experience and learning from it.

Christine, after all, is not his subordinate. This time, she cooperated out of indebtedness; next time won’t be so easy.

Even if Christine helps again for the sake of cooperation, a third time would be unlikely.

He must learn quickly.

The Three Overseas Provinces do not lack excellent generals; Dailong, Bridges, and Jes all excel, and new talents like Jacobs who emerged during this war are also outstanding, but he lacks someone like Christine who can serve as a corps-level military commander.

As Roland pondered, a knock sounded at the door.

Roland frowned slightly but still went to open the door. Only a few people would disturb him at such a time, meaning there was surely something important.

Seeing Alina standing outside the door, Roland was somewhat surprised.

"Miss Fuchou, what brings you here?"

Alina silently entered Roland’s room and handed him a report.

"Roland, among the captured enemies this time, at least eleven thousand are Jin Yuan Kingdom volunteers. I recently conducted a blitz interrogation of key figures among them and obtained some crucial information."

Roland unfolded the intelligence, looking closely, the corners of his lips lifting slightly.

"It’s not surprising; they were always from different groups. They could barely unite before seizing power, but naturally, after seizing power, they started scheming against each other."

The intelligence Alina provided was extremely valuable.

According to the captives’ confessions, the Jin Yuan Republic is now divided into three factions, with the struggle between them growing increasingly bloody.

These three factions are the Yayue Faction, representing capital and merchants; the Thermidorian Faction, representing urban civilians; and the Flower Moon Faction, representing military and old nobility interests.

The Prime Minister who attended the Continental Conference, Edward, was a representative of the Thermidorian Faction. Although he and Alina’s father Carlo had different political views, they still respected each other.

Carlo was purged, but Edward believed that policies should persist beyond individuals and continued to uphold the original policies, thus becoming a common enemy of the other two factions.

Not long ago, this Prime Minister died in a street brawl.

Although the investigation concluded it was an accidental incident, and the thug who accidentally killed the Prime Minister confessed to the crime, the Thermidorian Faction was not satisfied with the result.

They were also brewing a revenge plan, but before they could act, the Yayue Faction struck first.

Thousands of Thermidorian Faction core members were labeled as remnants of the Carlo Faction and purged.

At the most extreme point of the purge, anyone who had ever met Mr. Carlo, or even those who had once disagreed with him politically, were branded as remnants of the Carlo Faction and executed.

The leader of the Yayue Faction, Marco, implemented the harshest purge law, convicting all suspects as guilty. If they could not prove their innocence, they were sentenced and executed.

The bloody and cruel purge caused the political scene in the Jin Yuan Republic to become lifeless, but it did effectively strike down the opponents, achieving a temporary consensus within Jin Yuan.

Reaching consensus is not easy, but achieving consensus by force is not difficult.

Marco’s ruthlessly suppressed dissenting opinions came with great hidden dangers but had good effects.

Give him a few years to reorganize the social order and restore national vitality, and not many will remember the brutal days when blood flowed in the square.

As long as the common people have food, they don’t care how many politicians die in their power struggles.

The families of the deceased had great opinions, so Marco thoughtfully arrested them too, sentencing them to hard labor in the harshest overseas colonies.

Another group, suspect yet unexecuted, was sent to the Oden Kingdom as cannon fodder. These people’s will to fight was very weak, with over eleven thousand captured.

Roland meticulously reviewed the intelligence Alina brought, tapping his fingers rhythmically on the table.

Seeing Roland remain silent, Alina sighed lightly, "Marco is too ruthless. If Jin Yuan still had three factions fighting, we might have had a chance. Now..."

"An opportunity will present itself soon!"

Roland cut off Alina’s sigh, speaking deeply: "Marco’s bloody suppression of all open opponents is indeed ruthless, but his enemies are not all dead; they are waiting for the right moment."

"He already holds absolute power; the government, military, and law enforcement agencies are all his. Even if people oppose him, there’s no opportunity."

Roland smiled and shook his head, "Marco needs at least three to five, even ten years, to restore order and eliminate the impact, but he doesn’t have that much time."

"Why?"

"Because of the Day of Return."

Roland calmly explained, "According to Master Anthony, the Day of Return arrives three years from now. Hidden forces in the darkness won’t stupidly wait until the last moment; they are the unpredictable factors."

Alina’s eyes lit up, understanding Roland’s point.

The several Tier Seven Transcendent within the Jin Yuan Republic are all from old noble backgrounds; they will not accept Marco, a lawyer, ruling the country.

In these old nobles’ eyes, Marco is a textbook rebellious traitor.

Seeing Alina’s anxious yet slightly hopeful gaze, Roland calmly reminded her, "What we need to do now is to build up our power."

"I will help you with your revenge, but currently, we lack the necessary power. You need to find a way to handle these over eleven thousand Jin Yuan prisoners."

Alina looked at Roland in surprise, biting her lip and shaking her head, "Roland, I know the contents of the Hosenburg Treaty. According to the treaty, after the Oden Kingdom cedes territory and compensates, we must release all prisoners."

More than ten thousand is not a small number.

Breaching the treaty and not handing over the prisoners is a severe default action.

If the Oden Kingdom seizes this issue, it will severely damage the reputation of Roland and Sif.

Seeing Alina’s cautious demeanor, Roland recalled the scene of their first meeting at the docks, remembering the day in the library searching for legal loopholes but got angered by pocket-filling accusations, his frown gradually relaxed.

"No need to be so restrained; there is a loophole in the treaty content. The contracting parties are our country and the Oden Kingdom; these people are not Oden People, so they are not covered by the treaty."

"Mercenaries are not protected by any treaty and can be disposed of at will; they are all yours to handle."

Although Roland’s explanation was somewhat of a legal twist, it was strict to the wording. Alina, receiving this unexpected boon, felt her mood improve greatly, her lips curling slightly.

Seeing Alina’s long-missing genuine smile, Roland’s thoughts drifted back to a year ago.

At that moment, it was as if Roland saw that always composed and smiling Jin Yuan international student.

Perhaps, there truly is an opportunity?

When he initially took in Alina, Roland merely hoped she wouldn’t despair and commit suicide, painting her a big picture and using intangible hope to encourage her to live on.

He initially didn’t hold much hope for Alina to return to Jin Yuan and seize power.

The Jin Yuan Republic, in overall strength, is only slightly inferior to Sussex; attempting a coup is easier said than done.

In such a powerful nation, unless there’s internal chaos, it’s hard for external forces to subvert it.

Helping Alina establish a government-in-exile was the most Roland thought he could achieve.

However, unpredictable events of the world occurred; who could have foreseen the Jin Yuan Republic truly fell into internal turmoil.

Perhaps there’s a chance to visit the Romantic Capital St. Louis before returning to the Imperial Capital?

Roland’s lips curled slightly as he softly said, "Miss Fuchou, the focus of the next phase’s intelligence gathering will shift to the Jin Yuan Republic."

"Roland, your enemies are the Cabinet and Sofia, there’s no need to change targets for me."

Alina quickly shook her head, softly persuading him.

"I haven’t changed the target; I just don’t want to miss an opportunity. If major internal turmoil erupts within Jin Yuan, our opportunity will come."