Taxes are only within machine gun range!

Chapter 171 World Famous Paintings
Click, click! Reporters who had been positioned nearby quickly took photos, capturing this memorable moment.

Milton, who rose to power in a short period of time, finally had a moment of compromise.
It's not as bad as they make it out to be; they're still afraid of dying.

For many people who have never met Milton or witnessed him "doing things" in person, but have only heard rumors about him from various places, the name suddenly doesn't seem so terrifying.

"Hey, 'Hell Tax Collector,' weren't you supposed to be from hell? How come you agreed to this peace treaty so readily?"

"Isn't that obvious? Before, Milton was barely scraping by, his life was worthless, so of course he wasn't afraid of death. He could shout on TV, 'I'm going to fuck everyone!'... Now, he's the leader of the Pan Madre Group, with hundreds of men under his command, controlling a large area of ​​land on the border between Mexico and Weihai. Of course he's started to be afraid of death, hahaha!"

"Tch, I thought it was something special."

"..."

After Iker and the others finished celebrating, they followed Lopez and Grey into the villa's living room.

Seeing that no one else had come in, he took the opportunity to ask his concerns: "Mr. Lopez, I think we still need to guard against the possibility that Milton might tear up the agreement... He's a madman, and you can't understand him with normal thinking."

Ever since he was hit by several 152mm high-explosive shells at the dock, Iker had developed an extraordinary fear of Milton.

What is hell? That day, the dock was hell!

How could Milton be so wicked?
Lopez thought for a moment, then looked at Grey without saying anything.

As the team's strategist, Grey also considered this possibility carefully and slowly nodded, saying, "It's unlikely, but we can't completely rule out the possibility that Milton would do such a thing."

“I don’t think Milton would just go crazy and tear up the agreement without warning—this was arranged by CIA agents, and no normal person would have the guts to do that.”

"But if we find ourselves in trouble on the front lines, or if any obvious weaknesses emerge, he might think he can pounce and take a bite out of us. He'll find some excuses to try and invalidate the agreement, and then test us."

"If you were in that situation, wouldn't you have done the same?"

If Lopez now possessed the power to directly annihilate Milton, he wouldn't even blink an eye when he broke the agreement.

Lopez agreed with this statement, and nodded, asking, "So, what do you plan to do?"

The reason Lopez signed this peace treaty with Milton was to alleviate the pressure of fighting on two fronts and to transfer some of the personnel and forces that were monitoring Milton to the front lines.

Grey looked at Iker: "You'll have to ask your military expert about that. My opinion is that as long as our operations on the front lines go smoothly, Milton won't make any moves, but if things don't go well, we need to be careful."

Iker thought for a moment and said, "Actually, in my opinion, we don't need to defend Milton comprehensively. We just need to focus on a few key cities and defend them accordingly."

“We have laid many hidden minefields, anti-tank trenches and roadblocks on the defensive line. Milton cannot launch a surprise attack on us. It will take a lot of time for him to rush from his territory to ours.”

“If Milton really wants to attack, it will require a long march and siege, which will be enough time for our reinforcements to return and block Milton.”

"We control the Pan-American Highway, so our response time will be very fast."

"..."

Lopez nodded: "What I mean is, we can now consolidate our defenses and concentrate our forces within the city. On the original defensive line, we can use some cannon fodder and established fortifications to delay Milton. Relying on our transportation advantage, we can ensure that Milton cannot pose too much of a threat to us?"

Iker nodded: "That's right—it's called a focused defense strategy."

“Good, let’s proceed this way.” Lopez agreed wholeheartedly. “Draw the saved troops to the front lines. What kind of force do you think we should keep in the city for defense? First-line equipment or second-line equipment?”

The front-line equipment refers to the tanks that were just imported; they are Lopez's current trump card.

Second-line equipment consists of older armored vehicles and light tanks, which are clearly outdated.

Iker said without hesitation, "As the defenders, we have a great advantage. Second-tier equipment is enough. We don't expect them to defeat Milton. We just need to hold out until reinforcements arrive."

“Alright!” Lopez waved his hand. “Then you can get ready to make the arrangements. Remember, this battle can only be won, not lost.”

The congressional elections are about to begin, and López Obrador's approval rating is dropping bad news every day.

Only a victory can turn his fortunes around.

"Mr. Congressman, rest assured, we will absolutely not let you down! Victory will ultimately be ours!"

Lopez gritted his teeth: "The main problem is... those drug cartels in Mexico are just paper tigers. They brag all the time, but when it comes to actually fighting, they're useless! In just a few days, such a big city as Tapachula has been completely wiped out!"

"If I had waited for my other tanks to arrive, or for my newly purchased aircraft to arrive, would we be in such a passive position now, and would we still need to negotiate peace with one side?"

"I'll fight both the rebels and Milton!"

Iker smiled wryly, wanting to say something, but suddenly there was a knock on the door.

Lopez put down his glass, turned around, and saw that it was the doorman.

"what happened?"

"Mr. Congressman, someone is looking for you."

Lopez frowned and glanced around—all the people he had invited had arrived.

"Who is it? Did they state their purpose?"

The security guard nodded and said, "They are two Mexicans. They said they are from the Juarez Group and are here for friendship."

Lopez was taken aback at first, then overjoyed, and quickly said, "What are you waiting for? Let the others in!"

Wow, this is what you call providing timely help!
The checkpoints that Lopez originally controlled had already reached an agreement with the Van Conn gang, also known as the Sinaloa Cartel, and were about to get huge profits from drug trafficking.

As a result, Milton intervened and directly cut off this source of income.

Now the Juarez Group is here—they're taking the air route, and Milton can't stop them even if he wants to!

If the drug trafficking business can be restarted, Lopez's financial pressure will be greatly relieved!
Soon, two drug dealers walked in and nodded to Lopez, saying, "Hello, Mr. Lopez, a very tasteful room... I almost thought I had walked into a Spanish castle."

"Sit down, sit down!" Lopez waved his hand and beckoned. "Go find the chef and tell them to add two more pairs of cutlery and plates."

"You're too kind..."

The two drug dealers sat down on the sofa and sighed, "We've heard recently that some lunatic is causing trouble here, is that right?"

"Sigh!" Lopez sighed and sat down. "Don't talk about it anymore, this is what's been giving me a headache lately."

"You've probably heard about that news that's still being broadcast around the world—everyone is condemning the Juarez Group, saying we orchestrated the cruelest terrorist attack of the 20th century, that we're all terrorists."

Lopez's expression was a little strange—because his men had also been framed by Milton in the same way, such as during the mining accident.

"I can guess it myself, it must have been Milton who did it."

"He did it!" The two drug dealers from the Juarez Cartel couldn't contain their excitement as they spoke. "Why would we crash our own planes into buildings for no reason?!"

"He's a mentally ill person, a crazy lunatic with no logic—so many people have shown him kindness, yet he insists on hitting, killing, and offending everyone!"

"How much money can the new government in Tapachula give him? How much money can the rebels over there give him?"

"Why won't you cooperate with us?!"

The two drug dealers grew increasingly angry as they talked, and their tone even became somewhat aggrieved towards the end.

Without thinking, Iker blurted out, "Do you think he might want to do what Che Guevara did?"

The air seemed to freeze for a moment after those words were spoken.

Lopez, lost in thought, hesitated for a long time before finally asking, "You mean this guy who made the Boeing 727 fly through the building, the madman who provided the world with a hellish joke? Do you even believe it yourself?"

"Uh, okay, I don't believe it."

After venting their frustrations, the two drug dealers calmed themselves down and continued, "We can't let this madman continue like this. We have to find a way to stop Milton."

"'King of the Sky', we've heard that you've declared the Pan Madre Group a rebel group and are currently engaged in fierce military conflict with them, is that right?"

Lopez picked up the wine on the table, took a small sip, quietly hid the peace agreement, and said, "Yes."

“‘King of the Sky’ means that we might be able to establish a cooperative channel,” the drug dealer said with a hint of excitement. “Milton killed his brother, and the Juarez Group is sworn enemies with him! We are willing to establish a brand new air trade route with you, and we are willing to send you some weapons and equipment.”

"Trust us—Juarez is just across the river from Texas. We might not be able to get the big stuff, but we can get some of the smaller items."

"For example, mortars, sniper rifles, or any small weapons and equipment you need, we can sell them to you at cost price as long as you pay!"

"To show our sincerity, we brought some landmines and mortars with us this time!"

"..."

Lopez listened and took another sip of his drink—judging from the other party's "sincere" attitude, the people from the Juarez Group really hated Milton.

Having such an ally can indeed make up for some of the previous painful losses.

Those mines can be immediately deployed to the front lines to block Milton's potential land forces!
“Okay!” Lopez agreed without hesitation. “Then let’s sign a treaty.”

"That's exactly what the 'King of the Sky' intends to do!"

The two parties quickly reached an agreement, settled on the specific details of the cooperation, and then signed their respective names.

The drug dealer held the agreement, nodded with great satisfaction, and smiled, "Very good, very good! I believe Mr. Amado will be very happy to see this agreement."

“It’s just an agreement.” Lopez waved his hand with a smile. “If our cooperation can deepen and strengthen, I believe that one day we will still be standing here—and at that time, we will not be holding a few A4 sheets of paper, but Milton’s head.”

"I believe your 'King of the Sky' will love this gift."

The drug dealer, envisioning this scenario, nodded vigorously: "The first deal will probably take place the day after tomorrow! At that time, I can also replenish your funds."

"..."

The two sides, who deeply resented Milton, reached a consensus and an agreement in just a few tens of minutes.

"very good!"

Lopez watched the drug dealers disappear into the distance, and the pent-up frustration in his heart finally eased somewhat—everything was gradually returning to normal. Milton had chosen to back down; military equipment was about to arrive; the rebels were about to be crushed…

“Iker, call the driver, let’s go back to the city… Grey, have your team work overtime, I have a speech to give in the city the day after tomorrow.”

"It's time to boost public confidence and lift my approval rating."

“My political enemies are really getting out of hand right now…”

"If I weren't busy, or if I weren't afraid of a riot breaking out on my turf, I would have taken action long ago."

"..."

Lopez confidently walked out of his villa, boarded a helicopter with his confidant, and flew to Quetzaltenango, his favorite hotel.

In the presidential suite on the top floor of the hotel, he could overlook the city and feel that long-lost sense of dominance.

Soon after, he will give a speech in a nearby park to boost his approval rating.

Two days passed quickly.

Lopez straightened his clothes, took the elevator to the third floor of the hotel, and entered the conference room that had been booked in advance.

"Grey, Iker, it's time for your report."

Grey nodded: "Mr. Senator, the speech I sent you yesterday is the final version... I've done a lot of publicity on TV this time, so there should be a lot of people coming to see your speech."

“We have conducted an assessment, and after this speech, your approval rating has increased by at least 3%, and winning the election is no longer a question, but a foregone conclusion.”

"If you can successfully defeat the rebels and end the civil war, your approval rating will rise by at least 10%... In that case, your forces will be able to secure an absolute majority of seats in the local council."

Lopez was very satisfied and turned to Iker: "How about your side? How are the military deployments? Has Milton made any moves?"

Iker shook his head: "Milton hasn't done anything at all. Apart from sending more people to reinforce his defenses, I haven't seen any other actions."

“Our people in Tapachula say that trade between Tapachula and Milton has been very frequent lately, and his current focus should be on making money and consolidating his newly acquired territory.”

"Given the current troop deployment of the Pan Madre Group, even if Milton suddenly goes mad and tries to tear up the treaty without warning, it will take at least three days to assemble his army. Even if he attacks the nearest town, the various landmines and fortifications along the defensive line will hold him off for at least five days."

"Even if he can break through the defenses, it will still take him at least 5 days to capture a small town."

"This period of time is enough for us to return and reinforce... no, it may even be enough for us to completely wipe out the rebels and end the civil war."

"Moreover, Milton doesn't want to fight at all right now; he's already started looking for ways to make money."

Lopez finally laughed: "Not bad, not bad at all... How's the situation at the front? How long can the rebels hold out?"

"We've almost exhausted the rebels; they're out of ammunition and supplies. The general offensive can begin immediately—they can't stop us from crossing the river!"

“Mr. Congressman, complete and utter victory is about to be yours and ours.”

"With this achievement, you might be able to run for president!"

president!

Given López Obrador's position in the military and the power he wields, if he were to become president, he could absolutely extend his influence throughout the country.

Extracting wealth from across the country!
Lopez picked up his speech notes, stood up from his seat, and laughed loudly, "Let's go, let's give the speech!"

Grey stood up and said with a smile, "There's another piece of very good news—just last night, we received a new budget from USAID."

"Hahaha... Milton should have received the money by now, right? That country bumpkin has finally made it and seen how money is made."

"..."

The group chatted and laughed as they went downstairs. A row of heavily armed guards stood at the hotel entrance—ever since Lopez was shot by a reporter during an interview, Lopez's security measures had become much stronger.

To get close to him, you must first search him.

Those who refuse to be searched will be kept at a distance by countless guards, just like they are now.

Looking at the crowd outside the door, Iker smiled and flattered, "Your approval rating is still very high."

Before Lopez could say anything, the crowd outside suddenly spotted him.

They instantly became excited.

"Fuck you, Lopez! Where's my salary? You promised I'd get paid for fighting for you! Where's my money? I could have saved my hand, but because you, you son of a bitch, withheld my wages, I ended up having it amputated!"

"You owe me for my hand!"

"I swear on my life, my brother went to the battlefield and died there, but he didn't receive a single penny of compensation! Waaah..."

"Lopez is a fraud; he tricks people into going to the battlefield to die for him!"

"My son..."

"..."

Shouts and cries of pain rose and fell from the crowd, and some people even threw rotten eggs at each other.

Snapped!
It hit Lopez's annoying face.

Lopez's smile froze instantly.

These people weren't there to welcome him; they were there to demand their unpaid wages.

One of Lopez's political enemies was also in the crowd. He gave Lopez a cold look and shouted, "Lopez is a liar, a warmonger—the front lines are nothing like he says! Soldiers are treated worse than goats in a sheepfold!"

"He's deceiving you all for his own votes and interests!"

"Lopez resign!"

"Give us back our compensation!"

"..."

In the crowd, an elderly man in his fifties or sixties was pulling at a girl who had been shouting earlier, his voice urgent: "Stop shouting, stop shouting... Come with me! Don't mess with Lopez!"

The girl insisted on seeking justice for her brother: "No, I'm standing here today. Lopez either pays the compensation, or I'll show the whole world his ugly face! I'll pull out his lying tongue!"

"pension!"

"fraud!"

Snapped!
The next second, Lopez whispered some instructions, and the guards around him suddenly raised their weighted batons without warning and smashed them on the head of the disabled soldier!

His eyes were filled with shock as he fell straight down.

Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!
Other guards also raised their batons and smashed them down on the crowd, blood splattering everywhere, and many people in the front row fell down immediately.

"what--"

"what!!"

"No, no... Lopez, Lopez, he lost both arms because of you, how could you... Ah!!!"

"No, don't hit my daughter... No, she's still young, she doesn't understand! God, I told you to leave a long time ago! God, oh God!"

"..."

Upon seeing this, the opposing senator let out a strange cry, immediately turned and ran away, faster than anyone else.

The scene and the commotion were so huge that the reporters who were already waiting nearby couldn't possibly let such a sensational story pass them by, and they immediately picked up their cameras and started filming.

The situation is starting to get out of control.

But Lopez simply stood there, pointing to the families of the fallen soldiers who were lying on the ground being beaten, and to the wounded soldiers in front of all the reporters, and coldly said: "All the wounded and the dead have received their compensation—it's been reported on TV. Those people are now living in the city. You can go and ask them anytime. God can attest to their truth."

“These traitors before me are spies sent by the enemy, shouting and fabricating lies just to disrupt our morale. Their actions are vicious and their crimes are unforgivable!”

"Reporter, turn the camera over and look at that man who's running away—everyone knows him, he's my political enemy!"

"He did such a shameful thing for votes! He only cares about the party and the government, and can't see the overall interests of the country at all!"

After a few righteous words were uttered, many people who were unaware of the truth immediately chose to believe Lopez.

As for the dead soldiers and the old man who fled the scene carrying a dying girl, no one paid them any attention—the reporters didn't even bother to dedicate a corner of their cameras to them.

Lopez stood firm, his eyes resolute, his voice impassioned: "In that case, I will give my speech right here! Those who can still think, who still have reason, who still love this country, please quiet down and listen to me!"

He took out the peace treaty signed by Milton, waved it, and shouted: "In my hands is the enemy's 'surrender document,' the enemy's compromise, and the fruit of my and my soldiers' struggle on the front lines!"

Victory is about to be ours!

"I will lead..."

Just then, a core member of Lopez's team hurriedly got out of the car, his face filled with extreme fear.

Lopez frowned, clearly annoyed that someone had interrupted the emotions he had just gathered.

"What's wrong? Tell me, didn't you see I was giving a speech?"

The man's voice trembled as he spoke: "Mr. Lopez..."

"Chapelliko has fallen."

Making a heartwarming game that will move humanity to tears! Bringing a touch of madness and shock to another world!

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(End of this chapter)