Taxes are only within machine gun range!

Chapter 289 Get rid of Milton, and everything will be fine!

Guatemala City.

The news that a division of 5000 men had been wiped out in just two days had spread throughout the highest levels of the government.

The Arsu government did a good job of keeping the information secret; it was kept under wraps for a full 12 hours before it began to leak to the public, causing unprecedented panic.

Many people even actively sought out "Pan Madre Group TV" to see what was going on on the side that was in control of the war.

In a cheap restaurant with a color TV, and a large one at that, there were far more customers than usual. There were no seats left at the bar, and many people had to hold their glasses and find a place to stand, watching TV and drinking.

As the civil war escalated and the front lines drew ever closer, people, no matter how tired or busy, had to be aware of the spreading flames of war.

"Have you heard? Apparently, someone was fishing and pulled up a huge pile of corpses... I heard they were all government soldiers!"

“Someone has come over from Escuintla… My uncle works there, and I heard that even members of parliament have fled by plane. The situation on the front lines may be very bad.”

Why are there so many corpses in the ocean?

"Who knows?"

"Don't speak so loudly, we still want to watch TV!"

"Don't watch Arsu's crappy TV station, we need to watch the 'Pan Madre Group's' TV station—the news from there is trustworthy!"

"Change the channel!"

"..."

Despite the strong demands from most of the customers, the bartender didn't say anything. He first glanced around, closed and locked the restaurant door, and only after making sure no cops would suddenly burst in did he reach for the TV knob and tune it to "Pan Madre TV".

It seems that he is already very familiar with this action.

Unfortunately, this TV station emphasizes realism and excitement, and we often see scenes resembling real police chases and drug busts.

It was a very enjoyable watch for many viewers.

And news information from that side is often more trustworthy than that from the government.

"Zizi..."

"Next up is the weather forecast..."

"This week, the Drug Enforcement Administration conducted three large-scale operations, arresting more than 20 drug traffickers and, in conjunction with the government of Chiapas state in Mexico, dismantling two small drug trafficking gangs. The public trial will begin at 2 p.m. a week from now, and lawyers have been hired."

"..."

"The first phase of construction on the Pan-Maderley Railway has commenced smoothly, and the construction team is working very well. It is expected that in 10 months, everyone will be able to take the train to various major cities and travel to Mexico..."

"In the oil and gas field development project in western Chiapas, after a brief period of maintenance and upgrades, production facilities have fully resumed operation this month. With the support of modern equipment, the oil field's production capacity has increased to an average of [number] per day... The project is expected to directly provide 300 jobs and indirectly provide tens of thousands of jobs."

"Good news has also come from the concurrently advancing oil refinery construction projects. The main structure of the new oil refineries located in San Marcos and Vevetenango has been completed, 10% ahead of schedule, and is expected to be put into trial operation within 6 months. The oil refineries will be built in the safest mountainous area, with extremely high earthquake and blast resistance and extremely high safety."

"Job position..."

"The construction of transnational power grids has been fully launched, and an era of unlimited water and electricity is coming soon. A professor from the Pan Madre University predicts that people's cost of living will be greatly reduced."

"..."

Seeing this, many people present revealed deep envy in their eyes.

Everyone knows that Milton, in alliance with the current governor of Chiapas, has taken over all of the state's rich oil and gas fields and reservoir resources, keeping the profits within the state and establishing a strategic cooperative relationship with Milton.

Meanwhile, the Mexican federal government was embroiled in deep infighting. The incumbent government, unwilling to step down, and the incoming government were almost at the point of civil war, making it impossible for them to reclaim this large sum of resources.

Chiapas, with its enormous oil and gas reserves and reservoirs, is the poorest state in all of Mexico, which shows just how much profit Mexico City has amassed. However, they are now powerless to manage things here, and Milton has taken advantage of the situation to seize control of these profits.

They all knew that everything in the news was true.

It is said that in Milton's territory, even the poorest people had access to electricity and water 24 hours a day...

Many people, as they watched, began to have a slightly different feeling in their hearts.

Although the Arsu government has been exaggerating the terror and brutality of the "hellish tax collectors," portraying them as someone who, once they reach Milton's side, will be under the watchful eyes of countless people and will completely lose their freedom...

But many people have a question in their minds: are they really free under the rule of the Arsu government?

In particular, the news that the army was forcibly requisitioning civilian fishing boats and that many people were being arrested and sent to the front lines while walking on the streets caused many people to waver in their hearts.

Is this kind of oppression also freedom?

Where there is the opportunity to become an oil tycoon, to enjoy low-cost medical care, to have all kinds of entertainment, to have heating when it's cold, air conditioning when it's hot, and electric lights when it's dark, and opportunities are everywhere and everyone has the potential to become rich, then there is no freedom.

The Pan Madre Group has never prohibited ordinary citizens from entering or leaving the areas under its control; in fact, most people have long been aware of the situation there.

Many people, whether they are impoverished people looking for any job to make ends meet, or educated "elites" with a skill, have found that there are many opportunities and relatively high salaries at the Pan Madre Group.

Businessmen also saw the enormous investment value brought by oil, electricity and railways.

Even with strict regulations from the Arsu government, it couldn't stop the influx of people and capital into Milton's occupied territory, further accelerating the devaluation and exacerbating the Arsu government's already depleted foreign exchange reserves.

Seeing the good life of others, many people at the scene felt a little envious.

They're all in the same country... and the other side is clearly the rebels.

"Damn it... I must make sure my child gets into Pan Madre University. Once he graduates from there, I can live a middle-class life too."

"I want to move too... but I don't have any money. Sigh, I need to scrape together enough for the travel expenses and three months' rent and food before I can move, right?"

"I heard that anyone who isn't an idiot can pick up money there."

“Many people who get there don’t even go to the United States anymore. Just think about what that means.”

"..."

People were discussing it after seeing the news.

Suddenly, someone in the crowd spoke up: "I don't think we need to be so pessimistic... What if Milton attacks? If Milton takes over this place, won't we be able to live such good lives too?"

The moment those words were spoken, the entire restaurant went silent.

A terrifying thought arose spontaneously.

Yes, why must we go to Milton's place?
Why can't we just send Milton over?
Just then, the news anchor finished his daily broadcast, and his sweet voice came through again: "At noon today, the esteemed Mr. Milton returned to Quetzaltenango and delivered a speech in Parliament."

"Let's take a look at the situation at the time."

Delivering a speech in parliament?!

After occupying the city, Milton naturally purged the original council, and the newly elected council was the one that could truly relay public opinion to Milton's ears.

"..."

This was also Milton's first public speech in Parliament!
Countless people raised their eyes and looked expectantly at the television screen.

Bang, bang, bang.

On the television screen, Milton's figure appeared for the first time at the entrance to the parliament hall, emerging from the shadows into the light.

As he walked over, it was as if one could see mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

The council fell silent, and everyone paid the highest tribute to the warlord who had led them to wealth and victory.

Only those who have truly emerged from mountains of corpses and seas of blood, and whose will is absolutely unwavering, can possess such a spirit.

Milton walked onto the podium and briefly surveyed the audience.

Almost everyone stood up and applauded him, waiting for his speech. Milton glanced at the microphone, clenched his fist, and said, "Fellow members of parliament, and all members of the public watching this speech, I am Milton."

After saying this, Milton raised his hand, quieting down the members of parliament who were about to continue clapping.

"As is well known...we achieved a great and brilliant victory in the Battle of Escuintla."

"Even our enemies, the Arsu government and its reactionary coalition that colluded with foreign powers, had to acknowledge our victory."

One member of parliament raised his hand excitedly and asked, "The Arsu government forces have announced that a total of 2000 coalition soldiers have died in the fighting. This is a great victory! Is this true? What do you have to say about it?"

In fact, the Arsu government also condemned the Pan Madre Group's brutal act of throwing the bodies of fallen soldiers into the sea to feed the fish, but the noise of the defeated is completely meaningless.

The enemy's cries of agony only make victory taste sweeter.

Milton glanced at the congressman and said calmly, "That's not true."

There was a slight disappointment on the scene, but the atmosphere quickly recovered—even if 2000 enemy soldiers were not killed, more than 1000 must have been killed, and it was still a great victory, still a heavy blow to the allied forces.

Milton paused for a moment, then continued, "I want to clarify that we didn't sink 2000 enemy soldiers to the bottom of the sea, but 5000. We annihilated 5000 enemy soldiers, and they are all now at the bottom of the sea."

"..."

"???"

Five thousand?!
This level of loss is not enough to cripple either side; it would be an understatement to say that they would be half-buried after the battle!

The congressman, a fervent supporter of Milton, was immediately energized, almost jumping out of his chair, and made no attempt to conceal his stance, exclaiming, "A great victory!"

"'The Godfather,' your enemies have many criticisms of you and have condemned you in front of the public. Is there anything you would like to say to them?"

Milton waited until he finished speaking, leaving a full 10 seconds of silence in the council, before clenching his fist and speaking again.

“I have nothing to say to them, but I have something to say to his people, to the people who are watching this on television now and to the people who will see this speech in the future.”

Upon hearing this, everyone in Guatemala City, San Jose, and all those still under government control was stunned.

Is this terrifying "hellish tax collector" going to talk to them?!

Milton’s voice was steady, but his emotions were somewhat high: “This country has been through decades of civil war, with men, women and children hating their fellow countrymen they have never met and fighting them on the battlefield.”

"Businesses are on the verge of bankruptcy, currency is worthless, national finances are in turmoil, and they are shouting for freedom, yet they can't even afford a tortilla—people want the freedom to choose their food, the freedom to choose where they live, not the freedom to choose which sewer they should starve to death!"

"Same people, same territory, why is it that in my territory I can eat my fill and my efforts are rewarded?!"

"On this ship named Guatemala stands the captain of the Titanic, who ignores the iceberg and only tries to appease you with empty slogans!"

"The Ministry of Finance is squeezing the blood and sweat of its citizens, sending it to lobbying groups, overseas, and to foreign armies to slaughter their own people, while knowing nothing about the economy and turning the ghetta into worthless paper! Savings, pensions, everything is rapidly depreciating!"

Milton seemed to be watching everyone in front of the television, as if he were the only person left in the vast council.

"They abused the Constitution to protect vested interests, the Supreme Court arbitrarily restricted citizens' basic rights, and the Secretary of Defense clearly only knew how to treat military equipment as a vacation vehicle. He used an astronomical sum to build an army that I could annihilate with a single breath."

"The foreign minister only knows how to sell drugs to his own citizens and how to sign treaties that sell out the country. Because of this, he can't even see how cruel and terrifying the policies are to his own citizens!"

"Whatever the citizens of Guatemala think is none of my business—that's the motto of the current government."

"This is all you've experienced."

"Freedom, freedom... they always emphasize freedom when they raise questions."

"Freedom is born of slavery! Freedom is not a slogan; freedom is the opposite of oppression... Citizens, look carefully and see who is oppressing you! Think carefully and see who your enemies are!"

After saying this, Milton raised his gaze slightly upwards, seemingly looking at those he had insulted.

"Whether you like it or not, I have come."

"..."

……

"Whether you like it or not, I've come..."

In the coalition command post, everyone stared at the television screen with grim faces.

"Milton...that damn..."

"It's bad! The Monte family has called! They demand an explanation from the Allied Command for this total annihilation! Otherwise, they will withdraw from the Allied Forces!"

"The news of 5000 men being wiped out has reached the front lines, and the attacking force in Solora is wavering! Morale is low, and even mid-ranking officers dare not speak anymore."

"Urgent message from the Honduran mercenaries..."

"The Northern Group has requested that we provide a detailed and complete report on this battle."

"The 'Anti-Milton Alliance' is about to disintegrate!"

At this moment, the seal, which had been silent until now, suddenly spoke.

"No, we still have a chance."

The sound at the scene stopped abruptly, and everyone turned to look at him.

The elite SEAL Team Six member slowly asked, "Why can't we win?"

Such a simple question has so many answers.

"The enemy is too strong!"

"No, it's about finances. Why is Milton so rich?"

"Our disadvantage in the Air Force is irreparable."

"It's clearly an artillery disadvantage, and every time we fail, it's because of the artillery."

"I think it's propaganda... Look at Milton's speeches, how much he stirs up emotions! Milton's promise of a tattered loaf of bread is enough to make these selfish, self-serving commoners cheer and shout, who don't understand the government's difficulties and only care about their own interests!"

"Not only that, I think..."

The seal looked at them coldly and said, "The answer is actually quite simple, Milton."

The joint command center fell silent.

Yes, no matter how you look at it, the answer is actually quite simple: it's because the other party has Milton.

"If we take out Milton, won't the enemy collapse? No matter how tenacious Solora's defenses are, no matter how bad the situation is on the southern front, no matter how many complaints our allies have, once Milton is dead, all the problems will cease to be problems."

"Our allies will return, their armies will collapse, the Pan Madre Group will crumble instantly, and victory will still belong to us."

A major general gave a wry smile: "But how are we supposed to take out Milton? Once he leaves Quetzaltenango, we'll never know his location or where he's hiding."

“Look how smug Milton is!” The seal pointed to Milton standing in the shadows in the council chamber. “But he seems to have forgotten that he doesn’t have superpowers. If he gets hit by a bomb, he’ll die too.”

“He thought he was safe in Quetzaltenango and that we couldn’t do anything to him.”

"As for the location information...didn't he provide it himself?"

The major general's pupils contracted slightly: "You mean?!"

"Deploy Jaguars, equipped with precision-guided bombs."

"Blow Milton and his parliament into the sky... Victory will be ours."

(End of this chapter)