Don’t raise unruly people in extreme cold weather

Chapter 803

Perfectcot's series of actions were like lighting a flame of hope in the cold winter, allowing the city of Langton, which was on the verge of collapse, to gradually restore some vitality and vigor.

However, whether the faint light of this flame can truly dispel the frost that shrouds the empire remains an unknown.

Although Langton's recovery brought a brief respite, it also quietly ignited another more serious crisis.

The exploitation of offshore oil fields is progressing smoothly, and black crude oil is continuously transported to the newly built refinery at the port terminal through laid pipelines.

This refinery is one of the industrial facilities planned by Perfect. Crude oil is converted into a series of fuel products such as gasoline and diesel through precise distillation and smelting here, injecting new energy into this frozen city.

However, the arrival of petroleum fuel, while alleviating Langdon’s energy crisis, also triggered panic and hostility in other cities of the empire.

Diesel fuel freezes easily in low temperatures, so most of it was allocated to shelters to maintain indoor heating systems.

The temperature inside the shelter is always kept above zero degrees, and diesel can burn steadily here to provide warmth for the residents.

Outdoors, the temperature can easily drop to dozens of degrees below zero, so gasoline, which has a lower freezing point, becomes the main choice.

Nevertheless, the promotion of petroleum fuels has not been smooth sailing.

For the residents of Langton, this new energy source is still a strange thing, not to mention that a large number of stoves in the city are still old-fashioned coal stoves and cannot directly use gasoline or diesel as fuel.

As a result, gasoline was used more frequently as a combustion aid for coal.

Residents poured gasoline on the coals, using its flammable properties to increase combustion efficiency.

Diesel is also used in a similar way, mixed with coal to conserve precious fuel reserves.

Although this mixed combustion method is not efficient enough, it is a helpless move when resources are extremely scarce.

After all, there are nearly one million people in the city of Langton, and the daily fuel consumption is extremely large.

Before the advent of petroleum fuels, Longton relied almost entirely on trade with surrounding cities for its coal, and this fragile supply chain kept the city on the brink of collapse for a long time.

The arrival of petroleum fuel greatly alleviated Longton's fuel shortage problem.

Although the transformation of coal stoves takes time, the Longton City Council has launched a trade-in program to recycle old coal stoves from residents and transform them into stoves that can adapt to new fuels.

Although this move is progressing slowly, it lays the foundation for the city's energy transformation.

Perfect's gaze did not stop there.

Natural gas was also considered as a potential energy option in her planning.

However, the technology for extracting and using natural gas is not yet mature, especially in extremely cold environments, where its storage and transportation face difficult-to-overcome technical challenges.

Therefore, natural gas can only be used as a technical reserve for the time being and will be promoted when conditions are ripe in the future.

Nevertheless, the introduction of petroleum fuels has brought significant changes to Langton.

The streets were cleared of snow more promptly, the temperatures in the shelters were more stable, and even the factory chimneys were emitting smoke again.

All this is silently proclaiming that Langton is waking up from the long winter. Although the road ahead is still difficult, there is finally hope for Langton again.

However, Langton's recovery has not made everyone happy.

As the energy crisis eases and urban functions gradually recover, an undercurrent is surging in other cities across the empire.

The signs of separatism are quietly growing in the competition for resources, and the resurgence of Langdon has made the surrounding cities feel unprecedented fear.

Some cities with coal resources began to take a wary attitude towards Langton. They were worried that Langton, with its advantage in oil fuel, would gradually erode their share of resources and even re-establish its dominance as the core of the empire. This uneasiness was particularly evident in cities that mainly produced coal resources, where officials and businessmen began to privately discuss the possibility of breaking away from the empire and establishing their own business.

They secretly hoarded resources, refused to provide coal and other necessities to Longton, and even tried to cut off trade routes with Longton.

At the same time, the evil cult also took the opportunity to fan the flames.

They spread rumors in the dark, claiming that Langdon's recovery came at the expense of other cities and that Perfectoc's energy plan was nothing more than a conspiracy by the Empire to regain local control.

These remarks spread quickly in resource-poor cities, stirring up public discontent and panic.

There were even protests on the streets of some cities, demanding that any resources be stopped from being sent to Longton.

Faced with this situation, Perfect did not panic.

She knows that the root cause of separatism lies in the uneven distribution of resources and uncertainty about the future.

To ease tensions, she ordered some oil fuel to be provided to surrounding cities at preferential prices and sent technical teams to help them transform their heating systems to reduce their dependence on coal.

At the same time, she also made a public speech to all cities in the empire through the floating city's communication network, emphasizing the importance of unity.

"Langton's recovery is not an isolated incident," her voice spread across every street through the radio, "This is our common victory! Only by working together can we survive this cold winter and rebuild the glory of the empire."

However, not everyone was willing to accept her proposal.

Some city leaders saw this as an attempt by Langdon to regain control over them, and they banded together in an attempt to form a coalition independent of the Empire.

The member cities of this alliance began to secretly exchange resources, with plans to sever all ties with Langton if necessary.

Perfecto realized that goodwill and compromise alone would not quell the crisis.

She ordered the floating city to strengthen its surveillance of surrounding cities and sent special envoys to those wavering cities in an attempt to resolve conflicts through diplomatic means.

At the same time, she was prepared for the worst - if separatist forces continued to expand, she would not rule out the use of force to maintain the unity of the empire.

In this undercurrent game, every move of Langton affects the fate of the empire.

Perfect stood on the high tower of the refinery, looking at the city skyline shrouded in wind and snow in the distance.

She knew that the real test had just begun. The energy crisis might have eased, but the cracks in people's hearts were far more difficult to heal than the cold winter.

And she must find a path to unity and survival in this frozen land.

However, time was not on her side.

As separatist forces continue to grow, Langdon's energy supply faces new threats.

Extremists in some cities have begun sabotaging oil pipelines to Longton in an attempt to cut off the city's lifeline.

At the same time, the power of the evil cult is also infiltrating secretly, and their followers are spreading panic in the streets and alleys of Langton, trying to undermine the will of the city from within.

Perfect knew that if the crisis was not resolved quickly, Longton's recovery would be short-lived.

She must find a way in this storm to maintain the unity of the empire and ensure the survival of Langdon.

And this road is destined to be full of blood and sacrifice.

(End of this chapter)