Volume 3: Artifacts Chapter 65: Showdown
Golden Valley Prison.
The cell door where Tan was imprisoned was opened, and an elder of the Shining Gold Clan walked in.
The elder waved his hand to let the guards outside close the cell door, and then said to Tan: "Tan, the Elders' Council has a mission for you."
Tan stood up, the shackles clanged against each other, she saluted the elder, and then asked: "Elder Lie, what is the mission?"
Elder Lie replied: "Go to hell!"
Tan looked at the elder and asked in confusion: "We don't seem to have any intersection with hell, and those demons don't seem to have any interest in areas outside of hell. What happened in hell that was worth the elders' council sending me there?"
Elder Lie said seriously: "The fallen angels who disappeared for a thousand years appeared. Sky City sent the Holy Angels to hell to search for the traces of the fallen angels. Then the angels found something very strange in hell."
"What's up?"
"A large number of weapons and armor made of high-temperature resistant materials have appeared in Hell. You know that Hell cannot make such things. There must be people in the secular world who are secretly supplying arms to Hell. And there are not many places in the secular world that are capable of making weapons that can be used in the high-temperature environment of Hell."
Tan's grey eyes brightened up: "Elder Lie, do you suspect that the Golden Shield Empire is secretly supplying arms to Hell?"
Elder Lie nodded and said, "Yes! Hell is very rich in mineral resources. Those who sell arms to Hell must have set their sights on Hell's resources. The industrial scale of Nutao City now consumes a lot of resources, and according to statistics from the Nutao City branch, a large number of resources of unknown origin continue to be imported into Nutao City.
The Golden Shield Empire has already mastered the mining rights of Dragon Nation Fire Crystals. If it can also obtain mineral resources from Hell, our assessment of the Golden Shield Empire’s strength and potential may be seriously wrong.”
After listening to Elder Lie's words, Tan was silent for a while, then said, "I don't need to go to Hell to investigate whether the Golden Shield Empire has sold arms to Hell. The Council of Elders made this decision because they want me to leave Golden Valley and go to a place where I won't get in the way."
Since Tan understood the intention of the Council of Elders, Elder Lie said truthfully: "The negotiations between the World Bank and the Golden Shield Empire are progressing very slowly. Meteor Star asked us to hand over all the people who assassinated him. Of course, the Council of Elders will not hand you over to Meteor Star, but after Elder Chun was assassinated in Shenglun City, the Golden Shield Empire killed the assassin of the Shadow Clan and handed the body to us.
The third round of negotiations is about to begin. If Meteorite proposes conditions that are unfavorable to the World Bank in this incident, the elders will be in a difficult position. Therefore, the Council of Elders decided to let you leave Golden Valley. It just so happens that the Hell Unknown Arms Incident also needs a capable Golden Man to investigate. "
Tan said expressionlessly: "If this is the decision of the Council of Elders, as a member of the Golden Spirit, I will definitely obey. If it is confirmed that the arms flowing into Hell are indeed from the Golden Shield Empire, how should I deal with it?"
Elder Lie said: "Now the Council of Elders no longer has high expectations for properly handling the energy monetary policy of the Golden Shield Empire. Because no matter what the outcome of this negotiation is, curbing the development of the Golden Shield Empire will be the primary task of the World Bank for a long time.
The "International Alliance" led by the World Bank is being planned, and the Golden Shield Empire has also proposed a "free trade body" of a confrontational nature. Trade and military conflicts will gradually become the norm. It is your job to attack the Golden Shield Empire's foreign material supply and develop Hell as our material supply source. "
Tan understood the intention of the Council of Elders.
The Dragon Kingdom, which provided fire crystals to the Golden Shield Empire, was not a place that the Shining Gold people could easily get involved in. Although the Dragon Kingdom was a group of scattered dragons that acted independently, they were united to the outside world, while Hell was a real mess of internal strife.
If it weren't for the genocide wars like those in ancient times, the demons would not have been able to unite.
Therefore, there is much more room for operation in Hell than in Dragon Kingdom.
If the faction confrontation really begins, the supplies obtained by both factions from the outside world will drop sharply, and Hell, the source of raw minerals, will become particularly important.
Tan said, "I will set off to hell immediately."
Seeing that Tan was so considerate of the overall situation, Elder Lie nodded with satisfaction and said, "The angel's entry into Hell has alarmed the demons and demon descendants of Hell. In order to prevent Hell from having a stress response, you cannot reveal your identity as a shining gold man. The World Bank will give you a brand new identity and form a human trade team for you. Remember that you are an arms middleman, and do not casually participate in the internal struggles of Hell.
Do you understand? "
After the angels appeared in hell, the golden man appeared, which easily made the older demons think of ancient wars.
Therefore, the Golden Man must keep a low profile when entering Hell.
Tan nodded and said, "I understand. Give Hell weapons and let the demons and demon descendants kill each other. The more they kill, the greater the demand for arms. We are only middlemen and will never participate in the fights in Hell, nor will we expose the identity of the Shining Gold Man."
"Very good!" Elder Lie stepped forward and patted Tan on the shoulder: "You are the best of the next generation of Sparkling Gold, and Ying is responsible for the development of the Divine Art Differential Machine. You and Ying will become the cornerstones of the Sparkling Gold civilization.
Train yourself well and stabilize your character, there is a place for you in the Council of Elders."
"Thank you elders for your trust!"
"Come on, you don't belong in a cell. Go watch Shadow, then head to Hell immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
…
Since the time for the third round of talks between the Golden Shield Empire and the World Bank was set, the suffocating atmosphere in the Golden Valley has finally eased a lot. The propaganda and solicitation of the "free trade body" and "international alliance" by both sides have also lost their initial momentum.
The same place, the same arrangement, representatives from the Golden Shield Empire and the World Bank took their seats.
Without waiting for the Golden Shield Empire to find fault with them, the elders of the Shining Gold people took the lead in proposing a solution to the energy currency dispute.
The World Bank required that all energy transactions controlled by the Golden Shield Empire use gold certificates as the only universal currency. In exchange, the World Bank recognized the Golden Shield Empire's dominant position in the energy market and allowed the Imperial Mark to become the universal currency for international trade in some minerals and industrial products.
At the same time, the World Bank can indefinitely suspend the investment agreement signed earlier with At County Union , and then provide the Golden Shield Empire with an interest-free loan worth 20 billion Reichsmarks and a donation worth 1 billion Reichsmarks.
The World Bank is also willing to carry out seamless and comprehensive cooperation with the Golden Shield Empire in all industries and fields.
Elder Mu finally explained: "Meteor Prime Minister, you should have seen the panic caused in the Golden Valley these days. The World Bank has realized that the Golden Shield Empire is a powerful country that cannot be ignored. Please also recognize that the Shining Gold Civilization is a powerful ancient civilization.
The ancient wars that have broken out have clearly told us that there is no winner in the end of confrontation and fighting. Only by respecting and cooperating with each other can we move forward in peace.
The Shining Gold people are willing to regard the Golden Shield Empire as our equal friend, and we also hope that the Golden Shield Empire will not destroy the existing stable trade system and push the world step by step into disaster. "
Luke looked at the advice document given to him by the Golden Man.
Yesterday, Yin came to inform us that Tan was carrying out a very important mission and had left Golden Valley. Therefore, the investigation into the assassination had to be temporarily suspended. When Tan completed the mission and returned, the Elders Council would restart the investigation.
The notification was sent just when the third meeting was approaching, which meant that Shuojinren was determined not to disrupt the third meeting that had already been scheduled.
After all, the outside world has very high expectations for this meeting.
After reading the document, Luke quietly asked for the opinions of Yomington's staff.
Then he said to Elder Mu: "I can see from your suggestions that the World Bank is still very sincere, and the Golden Shield Empire has never thought of bringing the world into confrontation. It's just that using gold coupons as the universal currency for energy transactions is a huge burden on the empire's financial system.
Here is the import and export report of the Golden Shield Empire for the most recent quarter, as well as the analysis of the safety of the treasury's foreign currency reserves by the financial analysts of the Imperial Bank. "
Luke took the document that Yomington gave him, pushed it to Elder Mu, and continued, “I said that the formulation of the Golden Shield Empire’s energy monetary policy is not intended to challenge the World Bank’s position in international trade, but is really out of consideration for our country’s financial security.
It is useless for us to store excessive amounts of gold certificates, even if we exchange them all for gold. "
Elder Mu looked at the reports and analysis tables provided by the Golden Shield Empire.
The Golden Shield Empire has always had a trade surplus in international transactions, relying on its strong industrial capacity and leading innovation capabilities. In the past year, Raging Waves City has received an astonishing number of international orders from its shipbuilding industry alone, making a lot of money.
Moreover, the Golden Shield Empire had a vast territory, rich resources, and many overseas colonies, and its wealth was accumulated at an astonishing rate.
The imperial treasury already has a considerable amount of gold certificates stored in it. If the empire continues to obtain gold certificates from the energy market, it will not help but will be harmful to it.
After reading it, Elder Mu said lightly: "The Golden Shield Empire can use the excess gold certificates for overseas investment. If it is too troublesome, it can hand it over to the World Bank for management. Many countries do this and they all make a profit."
Luke smiled and said, “Elder Pastor, I am talking to you about financial sovereignty, but you are talking to me about profit. The World Bank has proved with its actions that you are not as neutral as you claim. When the World Bank feels challenged, you will not hesitate to use the financial hegemony it possesses.
Now you still want the Empire to hand over the gold certificates to you to operate. Do you really think we are all fools?
After returning to the Empire from the Golden Valley this time, I will order the Imperial Bank to reduce the amount of gold certificates in reserve. Finance is only safe when it is in our own hands, so the Empire's current energy monetary policy will not change.
The World Bank's suggestions are not feasible at all, so let's look at ours."
Luke throws out the solution given by the Empire.
The Golden Shield Empire transferred 10% of its energy to the World Bank , and the World Bank could operate it at will. As for the remaining energy, the Golden Shield Empire could sell it, and the World Bank had no right to ask.
The World Bank will immediately terminate any assistance to Art County United.
Repeal the new maritime antitrust trade bill and dissolve the "League of Nations".
The Golden Shield Empire suspended the establishment of the "Free Trade Body" and respected the status of gold certificates in international trade.
…
If the World Bank gets 10% of the energy transferred by the Golden Shield Empire at a low price, plus the energy it currently controls, it will still account for a very large share of the international energy market. However, the energy transactions controlled by the Golden Shield Empire can still rely on the chain effect to make the Imperial Mark a threat to the existence of the gold voucher.
The reason why hegemony is hegemony is that it will never allow the existence of challengers.
Gold certificates, a currency based on the value of gold, could not withstand the impact of a second currency.
Elder Mu threw away the suggestion in his hand and said, "The World Bank requires gold certificates to be the only universal currency in the energy market. There is no room for change or negotiation. I believe that the Golden Shield Empire can spend the gold certificates it earns if it wants to... If you can't think of a way, the World Bank will help you think of one.
It would be best if the Prime Minister could clearly understand the gap in strength between you and the Shining Gold Civilization. The Shining Gold people have experienced a total war, and we don’t want such a war to break out again, but we are not afraid of it breaking out again! "
Luke responded, “Elder Mu, the war you mentioned was also experienced by humans. Although they were not the protagonists, they felt it more deeply than the protagonists.
The rise and fall of a civilization cannot be pinned on the gifts of another civilization. After suffering the pain of war with five ancient civilizations, human civilization decided to forge its own path. After thousands of years of hard work and efforts, humans have finally created our own unique civilization and are about to usher in an unprecedented new era.
Elders, I am able to sit here to represent the recognition of the Shining Gold people for human civilization, and also your fear of this new civilization. You think blocking is the right thing to do, and we think moving forward is the right thing to do. Who will ultimately represent this era? Only after the battle can we know the answer. "
Luke had nothing to worry about as time dragged on until now. Even if the World Bank fully funded the At County Alliance, it would not be able to quickly transform into strength on the battlefield. He had already ordered the Fu Tao City Armored Assault Division stationed in Songta Harbor to move westward. The At County Alliance, which had fought for a whole winter, could not stop this new force. In order to prevent the retreat from being cut off, the main force of the At County Alliance could only withdraw from the Empire.
Therefore, Golden Valley no longer needs to continue acting and must prepare for a formal confrontation.
The Shining Gold people thought that by showing a strong attitude and demonstrating their strength, they would be able to force the Golden Shield Empire to make concessions in the negotiations again.
But I didn't expect that Meteorite would overturn the table!
The dispute between the Golden Shield Empire and the World Bank has also been elevated to a confrontation between civilizations.
Elder Mu said with an unpleasant expression: "Meteor Prime Minister, you are a person who can influence the world situation, don't speak nonsense. If you want to provoke a confrontation between civilizations, you will definitely be collectively condemned by both civilizations. The prosperous world will be destroyed because of you, and all your achievements will be destroyed by infamy."
Luke stood up and said, "I don't care what reputation I leave behind. I only know the responsibility I bear now. I will keep the dialogue channel with the Shining Gold People. No matter how bad our relationship becomes in the future, as long as you send a message to me, we can restart the unfinished negotiations at any time.
That’s it for my visit to the Golden Valley. I’ll leave this afternoon and return to the Empire.
goodbye!"
After saying that, Luke strode out of the venue. His staff and accompanying officials quickly packed up their belongings and left with him.
Only the Golden Swordsmen were left sitting in the conference room.
