Chapter 1281: Chapter 1280: Soon...
Mr. Truman sat dazed in his chair after hanging up the phone for a long time, then couldn’t help but laugh.
He never expected that Lynch would do such a thing, that he would actually...
Inexplicably, Mr. Truman sensed a bizarre intent to kill. He knew that if he didn’t release this thought, it would attract certain terrifying presences, so he decisively and without reservation pushed forward with his previous train of thought.
Lynch wants to assassinate Emperor Gafura!
Yes, he wants to assassinate the leader of Gafura!
When Mr. Truman heard this, his mind couldn’t process it all at once.
He couldn’t understand why Lynch would have such an idea, but he quickly realized the benefits of assassinating Emperor Gafura at this time.
The conflict between the Imperial Family and the Noble Group had reached a boiling point. If the Emperor were assassinated at this time, who would be the direct beneficiary?
Without a doubt, it would be the nobles. After all, they would have gotten rid of a troublesome, dictatorial tyrant. The Crown Prince had been stripped of the throne, and the Second Prince still had a long way to go to inherit it.
The nobles, having lost their opponent, would naturally also achieve victory in this war.
But what about the facts?
Firstly, the Governor of the Amelia Province would start reconsidering his relationship with the homeland due to the assassination of His Majesty the Emperor. He couldn’t bow down; he didn’t know if he would be assassinated if he returned to the homeland. The best way would be to maintain a relative independence for both Amelia Province and himself.
This would weaken the ties between the Main Island and the Amelia Region. While this might not mean much to most Gafurans, it would cause significant changes in politics, diplomacy, and international status.
Besides the change in the Governor’s attitude, the Prime Minister, without knowing who exactly did these things, could only continue to suppress the nobility.
This would prolong the conflict between the new and old ruling classes; it wouldn’t be resolved just because the monarchy disappeared and the Emperor lost his power.
It would persist, but this time it would be a conflict between the nobles and the great nobles.
Both sides would suspect and undermine each other!
In the next three to five years, even if Gafura smoothly transitions its ruling system, it would be difficult to unify.
Unification might only come with the outbreak of the Second World War or even post-Second World War.
Emotionally, Mr. Truman felt this was a very dangerous thing to do, quite inappropriate.
Assassinating a country’s leader is a heinous act.
But rationally, sinking Gafura into long-term chaos and internal strife would be highly beneficial for the Federation’s future development.
The International Policy Research Office’s assessment for the next decade suggests the world will revolve around the Federation, Gafura, and Peng Jieao.
Among them, Gafura is highly likely to evolve into the enemy of the Federation, for the simple reason that there can only be one King of the World; there’s never been two kings, or two emperors ruling one country together.
The world is the same; if there must be a rule maker, there can only be one, not several!
Given the inevitable competitive situation in the future, striking the opponent first before the starting gun even fires... would only benefit the Federation, with no downsides.
And as for a failed assassination?
A dictator engulfed in fury over internal struggles might lead Gafura into a civil war?
After a long silence, Mr. Truman simply said two blessing words, hoping everything would go smoothly and wishing Lynch could return home soon.
Then he hung up and didn’t ask for any more details, as it wasn’t his place to know, nor should he proactively inquire, and even if Lynch wanted to tell him, he shouldn’t listen!
Next, he’d focus more attention on Gafura.
Meanwhile, the Major was adapting to his new role—an outside cleaning worker of the Imperial Palace.
Lynch originally wanted to place him as an Imperial Palace Guard, but later discovered that the position of an Imperial Palace Guard was inherited, not recruited through application.
Simply put, an Imperial Palace Guard could pass the job to his son. As long as they wished, their son could replace them and become an Imperial Palace Guard.
But this job could not be given to anyone else. If not passed to their son, once an Imperial Palace Guard retired, there would forever be one less Imperial Palace Guard.
Due to high welfare, excellent benefits, and the special nature and status of the job, very few would give it up.
Some people even had over ten daughters before finally having a son to inherit the position, unwilling to relinquish this honor.
The greatest advantage of this system is ensuring the Imperial Palace Guard always remains under control, with no loyalty issues.
Thus placing the Major among them would require approval from His Majesty the Emperor or the Crown Prince, which is precisely the least likely scenario.
Lynch isn’t even a Gafura native, who would trust his recommendation?
After searching everywhere, they finally arranged a job cleaning Imperial Palace Square for the Major.
This job only allows close proximity to the Emperor when he appears on the palace platform every week, and by "close," it’s at least around a hundred meters.
But this distance is already quite close. With a rifle, just one bullet is needed to hit the Emperor at this range.
Considering the possible assassination attempt, there are only low buildings around the palace, the tallest being less than two stories, making it difficult for a sniper to find an appropriate target.
Most of the time when the Emperor is present, he only exposes from the chest up, with protection from the Imperial Palace Guards around him.
They are very close to the Emperor, ready to knock him down or shield him at any moment, so there is only one chance to assassinate the Emperor.
If unsuccessful once, there won’t be a second chance.
During this time, he observed the Emperor’s appearances in videotapes while watching on-site, discovering that the Emperor always appeared at a fixed location.
This might be a habit, like someone instinctively walking to the balcony to smoke, or feeling an instinctual craving for alcohol when wanting to drink.
It’s a kind of instinct. Over the years, the Emperor has grown accustomed to the process of meeting the public, appearing at a fixed time, through a fixed route, standing in a fixed place, and waving his arms a fixed number of times.
He long lost interest in this decades-long affair and does not wish for it to become novel.
So, he still shows up at that location, appears, waves his arms a fixed number of times, leans forward to greet the people below, and then leaves.
The whole process lasts six minutes. During the Emperor’s arm waving and leaning forward, it’s his only chance, as this is when the Emperor’s body leaves the protection of the Imperial Palace Guard’s scope, even if just slightly.
The entire process seems long, but in reality, the opportunity provided for the assassination is less than twenty seconds in total, split into two instances.
Even just a brief, two-to-three-second hesitation could mean missing the assassination opportunity.
The Major has been dutifully cleaning the square, while searching for a suitable location.
Unfortunately, there aren’t any tall buildings around, ruling out the possibility of assassinating the Emperor from a high position; shooting from a low angle isn’t impossible, but stability is the issue.
Shooting from high to low only requires setting up the gun.
Adjusting the angle and such is easily doable.
But shooting from low to high...if the location is not well-chosen, even if buried in the ground, the angle could be unsuitable.
As the Major was selecting an assassination site, a large group of nobles stormed over angrily.
He hurriedly stepped aside.
The nobles cursed at the palace, and some even threw garbage and excrement onto the palace walls!
They tossed rocks, garbage, and all kinds of stuff into the palace, venting their dissatisfaction with the Emperor and the Imperial Family.
Recently, many nobles have been stripped of their titles due to serious criminal charges, thus increasing their anger, but the people think it’s rather good.
It’s rumored that the Emperor is drafting a special decree to abolish noble privileges. The Gafura Empire originally had its own legal code for nobles, the Noble Code.
To put a noble on trial, the charges must follow those listed in the Noble Code, which is why the Secretariat finds the Emperor’s stripping of titles unreasonable. Most nobles haven’t flouted the Noble Code’s provisions.
If noble privileges and even the Noble Code are abolished, nobles who commit crimes will have to face trial in civilian courts under the Empire’s legal code.
If it truly reaches this point, most nobles would be doomed, which is why they are staunchly opposed to the Emperor.
Currently, ministers’ attitudes have become very ambiguous, neither supporting the Noble Group nor the Emperor, as if...waiting for something.
The nobles came quickly and left quickly, leaving behind a mess of garbage and various items.
The Imperial Palace Guards responsible for maintaining order appeared at the gate, directing the Major to clean up the ground.
"...These nobles are getting more and more reckless. His Majesty is being too lenient with them. They really should all be arrested."
One of the Imperial Palace Guards whispered to his colleague. These "hereditary" palace guards inherently carry an arrogance; people from all over Gafura have various reasons for being arrogant.
Like "I’m from the Imperial Capital, so I’m arrogant," or "I serve the nobles, I’m arrogant," or "foreigners are paupers, so I’m arrogant," they always find ways to feel superior.
For the hereditary palace guards, protecting the palace is their reason for arrogance.
His colleague didn’t speak. He continued, "Who knows when this situation is going to end?"
His colleague finally spoke up, "Soon, after His Majesty signs the Emperor’s special decree abolishing noble privileges..."
