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Chapter 689: The Elder Zhu's Past (Part 2)
Chapter 689: The Elder Zhu's Past (Part 2)
The great purge in the Makaton Kingdom began.
Elder Zhu first used his exceptional oratory skills and a few promises to keep three Seventh-Rank nobles and their factions at bay. Then, he launched a ruthless purge against any forces within the kingdom that posed a threat to him. The first to face his wrath were the four dukes.
Elder Zhu had concrete evidence of their plots to assassinate him and turn him into a puppet. With irrefutable proof in hand, he personally led the Royal Guard to the residences of the four dukes, and the heads began to roll.
The power of the four dukes crumbled under the iron hooves of the Royal Guard.
With the four dukes eliminated, Elder Zhu seized a vast amount of wealth, land deeds, and control over various financial conglomerates and large enterprises. This influx of resources revitalized the nearly depleted national treasury.
He then pushed forward with his momentum, actively targeting the kingdom's major capitalists and large landowners. Using the resources gained from these purges, he bolstered the national treasury even further.
Elder Zhu was clear in his mind that to successfully carry out the great purge, he needed the support of the common people.
Leveraging the rich resources he had seized, he actively pushed for reforms within the kingdom.
He introduced an eight-hour workday, two days of rest per week, significantly increased the minimum wage for workers, abolished agricultural taxes, and raised the minimum purchase price for grains, ensuring all grain was bought by the government.
He also encouraged personal entrepreneurship with low-interest loans and advanced infrastructure development.
His series of policies won the people's hearts, completely revitalizing the kingdom's stagnant economy. In just three short months, the kingdom's GDP grew by 6%, a historic achievement!
...
These policies were decidedly left-wing, starkly contrasting with the right-wing conservatism prevalent in the neighboring kingdoms.
In the past, the international right-wing conservative forces, led by the Sun Empire, would have intervened immediately.
However, coincidentally, Elder Zhu's policies began at the same time as the Thirteenth Manina's "Gravity Funnel" and "Green Crown Bird" plans.
After the "Green Crown Bird" plan concluded, Elder Cao returned to Blue Star, drawing the Sun Empire's full attention away from the left-wing reforms in the small kingdom of Makaton.
...
As the "Third Prince" grew increasingly powerful, the Sun Empire showed no concern, and there were no international economic sanctions. The three Seventh-Rank nobles gradually grew restless.
At first, Elder Zhu deliberately avoided their interests, focusing on hostile noble families. They could turn a blind eye to this.
However, as Elder Zhu's influence grew, he began to nationalize more large enterprises, directly threatening their interests.
The three powerhouses gathered to discuss whether they should overthrow the tyrannical Third Prince of Makaton and restore the kingdom's glory.
But fate smiled upon Elder Zhu once again.
Recently, the Thirteenth Manina could no longer defend all the giant springs on Blue Star and sent out invitations to all God-Rank and Seventh-Rank strongers for assistance.
Makaton, as a small kingdom heavily dependent on the Sun Empire economically, could not refuse its overlord's call.
Reluctantly, the three Seventh-Rank nobles had to lead their core teams to Blue Star.
And at this moment, Elder Zhu successfully restored his Seventh-Rank Fusion Stage, his former peak strength!
With the balance of power shifting in his favor, his influence in the kingdom became unrivaled. Now, he began to consider how to fully integrate the entire country, purge all opposition, and make the kingdom even stronger.
……
At this moment, Senior Zhu received the news that "Thousand Cups Unfazed" had been captured, along with the Red Warrant issued by Emperor Sol.
This news came as a shock to him.
He hadn't expected that Earth would send 12 people this time, considering that the previous two missions combined only involved four people.
Moreover, these 12 people were all players, and their strength was abysmal.
Most of them had been hastily leveled up using refinement materials, without proper equipment or a complete set of skills, making their combat abilities extremely weak.
To put it bluntly, the weakest among them could only match a peak Fifth-Rank opponent and were no match for a regular Sixth-Rank.
Given this, Senior Zhu knew he had to protect his clan.
He increased his funding to the intelligence agency, ordering them to monitor every move across the nation. Any abnormal situation had to be reported immediately.
At the same time, he took stock of the resources in the national treasury. If he encountered Earth players, he intended to make them carry some precious resources back to Earth.
Now that the spatial tunnel had reopened, he could theoretically return to Earth.
However, he definitely wouldn't go back now!
He was thriving in the Makaton Kingdom and intended to continue on this path, aiming to strike a deadly blow to the Skrull Expeditionary Force once the war began!
……
……
With that, we'll pause Senior Zhu's story for now.
The scene shifts to the 12 players who arrived on Skrul.
The news of "Thousand Cups Unfazed" being captured spread like wildfire across the internet.
Given the advanced information network on Skrul, the news became common knowledge by the afternoon, known even to the most remote corners.
The remaining 11 Earth players either hadn't entered the Skrull settlements yet or had already heard the news.
Those who knew the news mourned for Thousand Cups Unfazed while becoming even more cautious.
With Emperor Sol's Red Warrant hanging over their heads, there were countless people eager to kill or capture them.
They had to be extremely careful not to arouse suspicion among the Skrulls, blending in with the general populace and carefully concealing their whereabouts, much like spies behind enemy lines.
Some players went to extreme lengths.
Two players from Earth's overseas server had already reached the outskirts of the Wildlands. Upon learning about the Red Warrant, they decided to stay in the Wildlands indefinitely!
Since they had been equipped with spatial rings containing ample supplies of psychic energy, food, and water, they continued to hunt monsters in the Wildlands without any interaction with the Skrulls.
No interaction meant no danger, and they could simply wait for the spatial tunnel to reopen, then return to Earth with their loot.
Of course, not all players could avoid contact with the Skrulls. For example, Xiaotian, Ice Black Tea, Snow Leopard, and Cloud Shepherd, who had missions that required them to interact with the Skrulls.
That afternoon, Xiaotian arrived at a small town on the edge of the Wildlands.
She used the Sol Coins given to her by Su Yu to buy a phone and learned about Thousand Cups Unfazed's capture and the warrant.
"We need to speed things up!" Xiaotian sighed softly.
Staying on Skrull territory was becoming increasingly dangerous, even in the Bek country.
She needed to complete the task Su Yu had given her as quickly as possible and then head to the Wildlands, where she would be truly safe.
(End of Chapter)
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