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Chapter 744: Manina's Counterattack
Chapter 744: Manina's Counterattack
"Where is Rambert?" Manina's face darkened as he watched Rambert's video, his voice echoing as if he were a demon from the depths of hell.
Two months ago, when he discovered Rambert had cuckolded him (though later investigations revealed it was actually the Empress Plante who made the first move, and Rambert, drunk and disoriented, had made a grave mistake), Manina's immediate thought was to kill him.
However, Rambert was Lance's biological brother.
Killing Rambert would be easy, but Manina had to consider Lance's feelings.
So, Manina had the "Flare Organization" beat Rambert nearly to death and sent him to the Blue Star frontlines, hoping the Blue Star forces would finish the job.
To Manina's surprise, Rambert returned from Blue Star alive and well.
Upon his return, Rambert cooperated with "Solar Chorus" propaganda, and with Manina preoccupied with other matters, he didn't pay much attention to Rambert.
But now, Rambert had suddenly stabbed him in the back, a vicious blow aimed right at his heart!
"Your Majesty." Seion steeled himself to answer, "Rambert's statements were premeditated. A week ago, he was secretly transferred to the Makaton Kingdom through the Makaton embassy, becoming a pawn in their political chess game."
"Makaton Kingdom again?" Manina frowned.
What was wrong with that small country? Always so obedient before, why had it suddenly become so active?
"Rambert must die!" Manina declared, each word crisp and clear.
"Understood, Your Majesty." Seion nodded.
But after a moment's thought, he asked, "Your Majesty, should we not consider Lord Lance's feelings?"
Manina waved a hand, "No need. Just assassinate him quietly, leave no traces, no evidence. I want results in two weeks."
"Understood."
"Also, regarding the recent online public opinion, inform the headquarters of all major social platforms to suppress the heat and create some major news to divert attention—like a big scandal in the entertainment industry, 'Actress Theresa's Infidelity' or 'Singer Andreas's Extramarital Affair'... We need to shift the public's focus elsewhere."
"Understood, Your Majesty."
...
For the next three days, the combined government and their opponents poured massive resources into a fierce online public opinion battle.
Sindy Doppeler and Master Zhu invested heavily in creating and maintaining public discourse and hype.
The combined government side offered no positive responses, countering questions with "fake news," and used every trick in the book to suppress the topic's heat and divert attention.
Manina had considered using the "account ban and mute" method to deal with these online troublemakers.
But the biggest issue was that the leaders of these troublemakers were Sindy Doppeler and Master Zhu.
Both Sindy Doppeler and Master Zhu were legitimate heads of state, and Beaker, being the third most powerful country in the world, made it impossible to ban their accounts.
So, Manina had no way to completely suppress this wave of frenzied public opinion.
...
The online battle raged for a full three days.
Three days later, in the Solar Empire's royal palace, in Manina's study, Manina summoned Seion, the intelligence minister, once again.
"Your Majesty." As soon as he entered, Seion knelt before Manina. "The online public opinion has suddenly taken a turn for the worse, and the discussion on that topic has risen again."
In the recent three-day online battle, the combined government had released two major entertainment scandals—world-renowned actress's infidelity and world-renowned singer's divorce.
These two major scandals in the entertainment industry indeed captured a significant portion of the public's attention, drawing away much of the heat generated by Senior Zhu and Cindy Doppler.
However, "internet buzz" can be sustained with continuous financial investment.
Senior Zhu and Cindy Doppler both increased their funding, causing the topic's popularity to rebound sharply three days later, once again becoming the focus of public discussion.
There was another reason for this resurgence.
Over the past three days, soldiers who had been held in the Blue Star prisoner-of-war camp began to speak up online—confirming that the conditions in the camp were excellent and that they were not mistreated by the Blue Star humans.
These soldiers came forward partly to repay the kindness shown to them by the Blue Star humans and partly because they believed in the principle of "safety in numbers."
With so many soldiers speaking the truth online, at least three to four thousand out of the 18,000 who had been in the camp voiced their experiences.
The joint government couldn't possibly arrest all three to four thousand of them, could they?
Thus, the calls to oppose the joint government surged once again in the digital realm.
...
Upon hearing Xion's words, Manina slowly walked to the window in his study.
He gazed out at the scenery outside, sighing deeply:
"Ah, the entertainment industry is, after all, a subculture.
While entertainment news can divert attention, the effect is limited. After all, most commoners aren't interested in the entertainment industry; only a small group of people follow it."
"Your Majesty is absolutely right!" Xion quickly flattered.
"Given this, we need a bigger news story to divert the public's attention," Manina slowly said, turning to look at Xion. "And we have the perfect card to play!"
"Your Majesty, what card do we have?... Oh, I see." Xion suddenly understood what the emperor was hinting at.
"You must have figured it out," Manina said with a half-smile. "It's the card of 'Princess Coco the White Dragon consorting with Blue Star humans.'
I've been too busy to deal with this matter, but now I think it's time to play this trump card!"
"I understand, I know what to do," Xion nodded.
...
That afternoon, the joint government's announcement set the internet ablaze.
The joint government held a press conference that afternoon.
People around the world speculated that the joint government might be apologizing for the fabrication of propaganda.
However, what no one expected was for the government spokesperson, Grace, to sternly state:
"One month ago, 12 sixth-tier powerhouses from Blue Star arrived on our Skrull planet through a spatial tunnel. I'm sure everyone is aware of this.
However, we have recently uncovered a fascinating development:
One of these Blue Star powerhouses secretly visited Dragon Island to meet with a dragon. I have ample evidence to prove that this dragon has consorted with the humans of Blue Star. I will now present the evidence..."
The spokesperson displayed the gathered evidence using a projector.
This evidence included comparisons of Zhong Feng's transformation into a black dragon with the black dragon from the Evolution game, Prince Morgan's testimony, and footage from the time of the visit to Dragon Island, among other things.
Upon hearing this, the journalists in the room immediately erupted with questions:
"The dragons of Dragon Island are consorting with Blue Star humans? This is huge news!"
"How did the Blue Star humans manage to consort with the dragon?"
"Can you reveal who this dragon is?"
(End of Chapter)
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