Taxes are only within machine gun range!

Chapter 300 "The Decisive Battle of Weapons"

"Let's go..."

After watching the grand military parade, the officials on the reviewing stand left first, and the crowd watching below also dispersed in an orderly manner.

Regardless, this military parade at least gave some people a little confidence.

However, just as someone was getting into their car to leave, an unfamiliar voice suddenly came over the loudspeaker – it wasn't President Arsú, who had just been giving a speech.

"Emergency situation... Everyone, please remain seated and do not move."

"Guatemala City is currently under temporary traffic control, with all roads under military management..."

"Estimated duration..."

"We ask for the cooperation of all citizens."

"..."

The couple, who were about to leave with their child, froze upon hearing this. The husband blurted out, "What's going on? Many soldiers have already gathered on the other side of the defense line, and the parade has already left. Why is there a sudden traffic control?"

The military doesn't need to use the city's transportation and highway systems.

What happened?
Before the man could figure it out, the child, who had already sat down, suddenly jumped up, pointed in the distance in the direction the parade formation had just left, and shouted, "Dad, Mom, look! The heroes are back!"

Before the man could even process the news of the city's sudden military control, he was overwhelmed by his son's words.

What does it mean that the heroes have returned?
Didn't the parade formations just leave?
The man subconsciously looked up in the direction the army had left, and his gaze froze instantly—the army, which had just barely managed to maintain its human form, had now turned around!

All the marching formations suddenly became incredibly chaotic. Some people tried to turn around while maintaining their formation, while others simply turned around on the spot and planned to march directly backward.

When faced with an emergency and without the command of professional officers, the parade formations immediately revealed their true colors, showing no trace of professionalism.

The army, which had been somewhat orderly just moments before, returned in a chaotic and crowded manner, only to be reviewed once more by the crowd.

Some of the soldiers even lowered their heads, not wanting to lose face!

Almost no one left the scene; just a short while ago, they were applauding, cheering, and placing high hopes on them…

And yet, only a few minutes later, they came running back in such a disheveled state.

"What does this mean?" The man finally started to panic. "Why are all the troops suddenly running backward? They can't possibly be fleeing, can they?"

Milton, whose attack had just been thwarted, suddenly unleashed a burst of energy, breaking through the defensive line and about to storm into the city.

That's impossible; if that were true, we would have heard about it long ago.

So why?
Various guesses flashed through the man's mind, but he really couldn't guess what the situation was like at the front line—it was true that he was a "sponsor" of the military parade, but he was not qualified to know a lot of military intelligence.

There was no other way; many capitalists sought refuge with Milton, paying taxes and fines to save their lives, and many of them had once been "good friends" of the Arsu government.

After anxiously waiting, making several useless phone calls, and dawdling for nearly four hours, just as the man was about to dial another number to inquire about the situation, a loud engine sound came from not far away once again.

Although he knew absolutely nothing about military matters, a man's memory is never a problem. He quickly realized that the engine sound was different from that of a regular family car; it sounded like an armored vehicle used in military parades.

He looked up and, like his wife, his gaze froze once again.

A large number of armored vehicles!

A large number of soldiers!
A large number of troop transports!

This troop strength, this direction... Has the Ministry of Defense recalled all the troops guarding the front line of Guatemala City, the main force prepared for the decisive battle with Milton?!

Those who still support Arsu's core supporters also showed surprise when they saw this scene.

Why are these soldiers moving in the opposite direction?

"The front lines have been breached?"

"Impossible! Milton has such firepower. If the front line had been breached, we would definitely be hearing all kinds of cannon fire by now. No matter how powerful Milton is, it is impossible for him to break through our defenses without using cannons!"

"Something must have happened."

"Maybe they're running away..."

"This doesn't look like an escape at all. There's no sign of a battle. It looks busy and chaotic, but there's not much of the disheveled look of someone who's been defeated... It's obviously a relocation."

"The enemy is in front of us, why are we moving to the rear...?"

"What terrifying conspiracy is the 'Hell Tax Collector' plotting now?"

"He wouldn't, he wouldn't be planning something like sacrificing the entire city of Guatemala, would he? He's Milton, after all."

"..."

Why move backward when the enemy is in front?

Men are also thinking about this problem, because it simply doesn't make sense.

After much contemplation, a guess suddenly popped into my head—what if the enemy was behind us? Would that make sense of such a relocation?

Milton's plan is to bypass the frontal defense and break through from the side or rear?
That's not right either. If that were the case, Milton would have already launched an attack; he wouldn't have missed the cannon fire...

"I understand!" The man stood up abruptly, slamming his fist into his palm. "Milton's target is our reinforcements! Damn it!"

"Okay, okay, I'll arrange a plane first, and take all the cash and other things I can bring from home..."

To be honest, the man didn't know Milton's plan to annihilate the enemy in the field, nor did he know how much of an advantage it would bring by luring the defenders out. But he did know one thing—the so-called "Battle of Moscow 2" that Arsu had been promoting simply did not exist!

Milton's main force was not in the front line, which is why the attack was thwarted, rather than because they were "at their last gasp".

He couldn't analyze the battle situation, but figuring out how to escape was no problem for him.

At the start of the war, he had prepared for the worst. Although running away now would mean losing even a tenth of his wealth, it was still better than becoming Milton's work of art.

Before the man could finish speaking and was about to get up, his cell phone suddenly rang.

"Hello? Who is it?"

The voice on the other end was somber: "Arsu."

The man's impatient tone vanished instantly. He opened his mouth and said, "Uh, Your Excellency the President? What can I do for you?" Upon hearing the word "President," a hint of nervousness flashed across his wife's face.

“Don’t be nervous,” Arsu said in a deep voice. “It’s just a small accident… and you can help us resolve it.”

The man's scalp tingled, but he still spoke softly, "You need a donation, right? No problem. Just give me a number, and I'll try to raise the money... It's just that I have a lot of assets that I can't liquidate immediately; they need some time to sell. If you can't wait, I can transfer the assets to you, and you can find a way to sell them..."

“It’s not about money,” Arsu interrupted after a moment. “Money can’t solve the problem now.”

The man was puzzled: "So, you want it?"

"You don't need to be so nervous... I won't rob you, I just need you to use your resources to do me a small favor. Don't worry, all kinds of aid are already in place, and a weapon that can completely turn the tide of the battlefield is about to arrive. As soon as this weapon appears, Milton will be doomed to defeat."

"There are big problems within the government right now. I can't tell you what the specific weapon is, lest Milton take any countermeasures, but you can rest assured that it is absolutely a devastating weapon."

The man was skeptical of this information, but still cooperated by asking, "How can I help?"

“As I said, due to internal government issues, I must be cautious… Therefore, this arms procurement is ostensibly for purchasing civilian equipment, which requires civilian transport aircraft,” Arsu said. “We need to transform an aircraft with no offensive capabilities into a weapon with immense destructive power.”

"Then, let this equipment suddenly appear on the battlefield and deliver a fatal blow to Milton."

"I need to borrow your fleet."

Borrowing the fleet...

Upon hearing this request, the man inevitably lost his composure.

The reason is simple: the fleet is the most important asset for men, and it is also the most easily liquidated asset... It can be said to be half the life of their company. If it is lent to Arsu for military operations, and it suffers a major loss, it would be a devastating blow.

Moreover, the man's escape plan was also closely related to this fleet of aircraft—the plan included at least one business jet and one medium-sized transport plane carrying various valuables out of Guatemala City.

According to Arsu, there was almost no room for negotiation; all these planes had to be lent to the military.

The man took a deep breath and forced a smile, saying, "Your Excellency, I can lend you the planes, but please leave us at least two, otherwise the company may not be able to operate normally."

“No, you only have five planes in total. Splitting two of them would easily arouse suspicion… Milton’s spies are ubiquitous and highly professional. I don’t know if this will cause any problems,” Arsu said calmly. “This battle will determine our life or death, so we must treat it with the utmost caution. During the period of borrowing the planes, you and your family will be protected around the clock. I hope you can understand.”

The man's face was deathly pale, and he couldn't utter a single word.

His wife covered his mouth and pinched his shoulders tightly to keep him from making a sound.

Seemingly sensing the other party's emotions, Arsu's voice softened slightly: "I've said it before, this isn't about robbing you... This operation will be quick, no more than seven days. I have no reason to lie to you at this time, nor do I have any reason to take action against my staunch allies."

"Lend me your fleet, and in a week you can wait for news of victory... You can then expand your business empire into Milton's territory and make even more money."

“Come on, let’s go to the rebuilt ‘Joint Command’.”

"Ignore military control. I have already instructed the Minister of Transport to grant your license plate special privileges."

The man gave a wry smile, and finally sighed, "I understand."

"..."

……

Solora, the frontline command post.

"How long has it been? The coalition forces have only just rebuilt the 'Joint Command'?" Milton looked at the intelligence report and couldn't help but complain. "I thought they could rebuild it in 10 hours at most."

Milton's many arrangements are based on the fundamental logic of the 10-hour workday.

At that time, the army had barely completed its resupply and had not rested at all. Soon after its emergency assembly, it would face the predicament of being attacked from two sides, making it an extremely arduous task.

After all, such a commotion would be too great and would be difficult to avoid being discovered by the armies of the northern warlord groups.

To my utter surprise, the enemy's reaction was so slow!
Milton's army searched almost every warehouse they could find in the intelligence, ensuring all equipment was in top condition; they fed and watered the soldiers, and even gave them a short rest; they filled all the supply wagons to the brim...

sentry post, reconnaissance team, artillery position...

Milton did everything right, and the "Joint Command" was finally rebuilt.

Flora chuckled: "Isn't this a good thing? The Northern Group coalition has now retreated to the other side of the Tagu River, saying they've only left us two directions of attack. But the river is narrow and shallow, not an ideal defensive position."

“We are about to launch a river crossing operation. If successful, the Northern Group will collapse completely; the Honduran military will also suffer a fatal blow—they were never supported by their own country, and there are huge conflicts between them and the civilian government. Once we annihilate them, Honduras will no longer be a threat to the outside world for a short period of time.”

Milton nodded: "What about the rear defense? The 'Joint Command' has been rebuilt, and Arsu will definitely send troops to attack our rear. The defense line must be solid and must be held until we successfully annihilate the Northern Group coalition forces."

Otherwise, Milton might very well have been the one to suffer a total annihilation...

“The defensive line has been built very well, and the enemy has given us plenty of time,” Flora chuckled. “Moreover, we have air superiority.”

Milton frowned and shook his head: "We may not have air superiority... Think about it, would the Honduran military just sit by and watch their forces be trapped by us? Would they stand by and watch so many of their own soldiers die? Don't forget they have a full 12 F-5s; they might intervene this time."

The Honduran military may not dare to gamble with its entire air force, but it is quite possible that they could allocate some fighter jets to prevent Milton's F-5 squadron from launching attacks with impunity.

Flora thought about it carefully and nodded, "That's possible..."

While the two were chatting, the intelligence officer delivered some important intelligence to Milton's desk as usual.

The intelligence on Riley, a high-ranking spy, was placed in a position that Milton could easily see.

Milton reached out, picked up the intelligence report, and examined it carefully.

After looking for five seconds, Milton couldn't help but squint – not because there was bad news, but because the Arsu government had finally made progress this time, finally knowing to keep things secret to some extent.

Flora blurted out, "What's wrong?"

Milton placed the intelligence report on the table and tapped it questioningly: "Arsu is working on a very mysterious 'decisive weapon'?"

Flora almost burst out laughing: "Placing the hope of victory on a piece of equipment? Ridiculous! Can he possibly develop an atomic bomb?"

“I know it’s absurd… but Riley said that Arsu seems to have high hopes for this equipment, and that it really is a powerful weapon that can change the course of the battle to some extent.”

"Strategically, we should despise the enemy; I don't believe a single piece of equipment can change the overall situation... But tactically, we still need to take it seriously and find out what Arsu is up to."

"What exactly is this piece of equipment?"

(End of this chapter)