Chapter 1284: Chapter 1283: Countermeasures from All Sides
Bang!
The hustle and bustle of the square were suppressed by the sound of this gunshot, and for a moment, not only did time seem to pause, but even sound vanished cleanly after the gunshot.
The next second, an Imperial Palace Guard rushed over and pressed the Emperor down, followed by a second.
The Emperor wanted to say "I’m fine" and jokingly tell them "I might be the first Emperor to be crushed to death," but for some reason, he couldn’t speak and coughed twice.
Something came out of his throat in a cough. That comfortable feeling didn’t last long; it seemed as if something was still stuck in his throat.
Time resumed, and the crowds in the square scattered and fled; even though the police and Imperial Palace Guards demanded they stop, they didn’t stop!
The nobles were surrounded by the Imperial Palace Guards with the potential for conflicts to erupt at any moment.
No one noticed, at the first moment of the chaos, a cleaner who appeared from behind the cafe, lowered his face, and fled towards the outskirts along with others.
Someone reported to the police that the cafe was where the gunshot was first heard and sounded the loudest. They found the gun, but... it didn’t have any significance anymore.
The Emperor was assassinated after announcing the abolition of noble privileges, the bullet hit his chest, and he was then sent back to the Imperial Palace for treatment.
Of course, sometimes some people think that if the Emperor is injured, he should go to the hospital... then let them keep thinking that way!
Ten minutes later, the Prime Minister, all the ministers, and the great nobles arrived at the Imperial Palace.
"How’s His Majesty’s condition?" The Prime Minister exuded a chilling aura; he was not present here in the morning. This was a conflict between the Noble Group and the Emperor, and coming here could force him to take a stance.
So he cleverly didn’t mention showing up at the scene, choosing to hide away early on.
Just as they thought the new era had arrived, the news of the Emperor being assassinated came.
This Prime Minister, who had been enduring for decades, finally erupted at this moment.
The overwhelming hatred and murderous intent surrounding him could be felt even from several meters away. He walked to the outside of the ward, glanced at the doctor, and the doctor who worked for the Imperial Family bowed his head.
"How is His Majesty’s condition?"
The doctor didn’t speak; the Prime Minister turned and walked into a nearby room. The doctor followed him in, and the door closed.
"The bullet is lodged in His Majesty’s lung lobe. His situation is extremely dangerous; we must make a decision quickly..." The doctor didn’t hold back and directly described the situation.
The Prime Minister frowned, "What decision?"
"Open chest!"
In this era, certain surgeries were quite advanced, but not completely involving organs, such as extracting a bullet from a lung lobe, repairing blood vessels, and then stitching it up...
Thinking about it, the success rate doesn’t seem that high!
The Prime Minister wasn’t clueless; he knew the risks of such surgery. "If we make a try, what’s the likelihood he’ll survive?"
The doctor provided a very low number, "No more than five percent chance."
Of course, he also advocated for medicine, "The Federation’s medical expertise is a bit more advanced than ours. If we could invite top Federation surgeons, His Majesty would have a much greater chance of survival."
This sentence gave the Prime Minister hope; he had many things to execute that needed the Emperor’s cooperation. They had fought each other all their lives, yet at this moment, they were somewhat of cooperative partners.
Without the Emperor, he would find it very challenging to continue with this act alone.
"You immediately go to invite someone; I will grant you the greatest authority..." He watched as the doctor’s unchanging dejection, then fell silent, "You won’t tell me that we have to go to the Federation and bring someone back, right?"
To and fro, one week’s time, His Majesty the Emperor simply wouldn’t last that long!
The doctor chuckled dryly twice; the Prime Minister took a deep breath, paced a few steps, "Go do it. If we do nothing, he has zero chance."
"If we do it, at least there’s a five percent chance, isn’t there?"
The doctor hesitated for a moment, and finally decided to abide by the Prime Minister’s request and began organizing the medical team for surgery on the Emperor.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister brought along the Chief of Police Headquarters, and with him came the rifle that sent the bullet into the Emperor’s chest.
"Gafura standard rifle, steel stamp wiped off, well-preserved, modified, no clip, only these were found..."
The Prime Minister looked at the Chief of Police Headquarters; if the kneeling salute hadn’t been abolished earlier, he thought he’d feel more comfortable speaking on his knees.
"So... you’re using this to deal with me?"
The Prime Minister’s words didn’t sound fiery, yet they landed in people’s ears like a heavy hammer on a drum skin.
The Chief of Police squeezed out a feeble smile, "We’ve already locked onto a square cleaner, following up on the leads..."
During the Chief’s report, a representative from the Military also arrived.
The Military, being both the Imperial Family’s greatest reliance and greatest concern, hadn’t been employed by the Imperial Family during this entire incident.
Externally, the Emperor’s stance was perhaps not to force the nobles into a civil war; actually the Prime Minister knew well, the Emperor didn’t fully trust the generals.
When the Prime Minister proposed some ideas, the Imperial Family immediately convened Military high-ranking officials and dispatched them for military tasks, possibly to avoid escalating sharp problems.
But this doesn’t necessarily mean there’s no precaution against the military.
All these prime ministers know this, he’s known for a long time.
"His Majesty’s condition is not very good..." The Prime Minister just started speaking when he was interrupted by the military representative.
"Prime Minister, now is not the time to discuss this. We’ve just received news that the Federation’s fleet is slowly advancing towards the Main Island!"
The Prime Minister was stunned, then shocked, "So soon?" He raised his wrist to glance at the watch; about twenty minutes had passed since the Emperor was assassinated, not half an hour.
If they sent a telegram, they should indeed know by now.
This doesn’t seem... premeditated?
The Prime Minister was unsure, but he knew now wasn’t the time to waste time, "Keep an eye on them and try to delay their speed. I will contact the Federation as soon as possible."
The military representative cautiously asked, "If we must..."
"Then open fire!"
The Prime Minister stared at the military representative, "We can lose, but not lose courage."
"If we lose, we still have a chance to win again, but if we lose courage, we’ll never have a chance."
After finishing speaking, he turned and walked outside while arranging tasks. The first thing he needed to do was summon the Federation’s diplomatic envoy.
Others also quickly got to work, ready to handle any unexpected situations.
Lynch didn’t attend today’s "gathering," nor did the Young Count and others. Many others didn’t go as well, but no one was surprised that Lynch’s group didn’t appear.
After all, they had been keeping a low profile for a long time, not just in the past few days, so it wasn’t unexpected.
The Young Count was dumbfounded when he heard the news.
Not just him, others felt the same.
Of course, Lynch also showed appropriate shock, as if unable to speak, and after a long time, he exhaled, expressing his awe of fate.
Just as everyone started discussing who might have done this, an unexpected call came through, which Lynch had predicted.
"Your Excellency Governor, I will turn on the speakerphone next, and we’re all together," Lynch said after identifying the caller, and then turned on the speaker.
He felt relieved to know they were all together.
"When are you coming back?" The Governor’s voice was calm; he didn’t even mention the Emperor’s assassination, directly asking when they would return to Amelia.
His attitude and words revealed a lot of information.
Lynch and the Young Count, part of the new noble generation, have already established themselves in the Amelia Region, with most industries there involving their investments or connections.
On the one hand, they’ve vigorously supported the development of local industries, while also embedding their influence into the grassroots.
Except for the Governor, it’s essentially these nobles.
The Young Count and others looked at Lynch; at this moment, they trusted Lynch’s judgment.
"They’ll soon return to the Amelie Province, while I have some issues to return to the country. Perhaps we’ll meet again later."
Lynch used the term "return to" rather than "go to," a subtle phrasing that made the Governor’s tone more relaxed.
"That’s great, do you have a specific date..."
When the Governor learned the Emperor had been assassinated, his immediate thought was that the Prime Minister and the major nobles had broken their word.
Such thoughts were brief; he roughly understood the Prime Minister and Emperor’s intentions, knowing his situation was delicate.
After this clarity, he quickly realized this was a rare opportunity.
If the Emperor doesn’t die, at most he can serve here for three to five years before having to step down and return.
He must resign before the next general election, so he doesn’t have much time.
But now... the assassination of his brother-in-law revealed a delicate opportunity to reject interaction with the Main Island citing "lack of trust."
Although ultimately, he will return, the time for that return can be significantly extended...
Meanwhile, halfway across the world, the Federation’s President was equally shocked by the news.
He looked at Mr. Truman, who came to inform him of the news, and inquired, "Should I call their Prime Minister to ask about their Emperor’s condition?"
"Or should I remain calm now and let you handle it and then respond?"
Similar situations arose globally, albeit with some differences. At least only Mr. Truman knew who was orchestrating all this.
Of course, he didn’t tell the President. Sometimes, as people age, they become timid and fearful, and letting him know wouldn’t benefit Lynch.
