The representatives from the Northern Alliance Area were also brought over, and the negotiations lasted for an entire afternoon. The “NAC-NAA Free Trade Agreement” that made countless businessmen on Sixth Street ecstatic was finally introduced.
However, while it was free trade, there were still restrictions.
First, “strategic materials” like iron, aluminum, titanium, tungsten, molybdenum, and rare earth materials were all restricted. Businessmen who were caught would be immediately treated as smugglers. At this point, Jiang Chen didn’t make any concessions, no matter how the Northern Alliance Area representative protested.
Iron, aluminum, and titanium were the keys to the production of advanced weapons ranging from the optical components of laser guns to the accelerometers of Type-50 Electromagnetic Pulse Cannons, all of which depended on these strategic resources. As for tungsten and molybdenum, one was raw material for smelting C-type steel, and the other was used to produce neural connection devices.
In addition to the ban on the sale of strategic materials, Jiang Chen also imposed an additional 15% tariff on luxury goods. They must pay the tariff if their products entered the Sixth Street market. For the modern world, a 15% tariff didn’t seem to be high, but in the apocalypse which had limited resources, it was very high.
Objections? Useless.
The products of the Northern Alliance Area weren’t the only option available to the NAC. NAC’s extensive trade routes went south to Yizhou and west to India, all of which could substitute as trading partners.
However, the Northern Alliance Area didn’t have much choice. Although they could find large survivor hubs in the south, the mutants and zombies along the way made them miserable. The extreme cold weather in the north wasn’t suitable for the cultivation of mutated fruit trees. The production of nutrient supply couldn’t just be supported by hunting unless they wasted their already-limited ammunition on mutants. Not just nutrient supply, but many things piled up in Wanghai’s warehouses were in short supply in the north.
Opening up the trade route down the river was their only choice unless they could access a large reserve of helium to build airships, but that was obviously impossible. In the 22nd century, helium was a scarce resource and only Jiang Chen could lavishly use it to fill “balloons”.
Of course, Jiang Chen didn’t make a one-sided agreement. Light weapon bullets, laser gun batteries, and other supplies could be purchased by merchants of the NAC. But in order to prevent them from hoarding ammunition, the amounts of each purchase were strictly limited.
With the signing of the trade agreement, the two sides finally lowered the guns pointed at each other. A peace that had appeared to have an expiry date had finally arrived on the land ruled by the NAC.
So far, Jiang Chen was finally able to deal with all the matters on this temporary return. And at this time, another new piece of information arrived from the modern world.
Although she was very disappointed, Sun Jiao finally let go of Jiang Chen, who was “squeezed out”. She left a kiss on his lips and watched him disappear from the room.
News came from Europe.
Since the militants fired the first shot at the “7th Institute Campaign”, they declared war on Peter’s government.
In the few days that Jiang Chen was gone, the fire of revolution had already ignited throughout Frankberg.
The state of Bava which had the most intense conflict was under martial law, and Ber once again welcomed a curfew after a year and a half. Following the principle of running away if they couldn’t win, the rebel militants used civilian vehicles and light weapons to fight mobile warfare against special forces and regular troops in the city. When they were under siege, they fled into the mountain ranges on the border and used the treacherous terrain to engage in guerrilla warfare.
The reason why these protesters could cause such a massive upheaval was mainly due to the integration of the EU.
After several years of continuous “efforts,” according to data released after further disarmament in 2012, the entire Frankberg Army had only retained three divisions. The main battle tanks were reduced from more than 2,500 tanks to 230 tanks and 470 vehicles. Other than a strong air force, the size of the entire force was smaller than an army group for most countries.
Although Peter made adjustments to the defense budget after he took office, it was impossible for a reserve of more than 100,000 to fight a war against the militants at a moment’s notice. Frankberg used a recruiting system and soldiers were volunteers with salaries. With Peter’s current approval rate, even if he still maintained support from the right-wing, the votes in the EU integration meant he would only receive boos from the people of Frankberg.
At present, NATO had yet to send troops. At the time of the contract, no member countries determined there was a need to send troops to maintain stability in member countries.
After all, the country wasn’t a private enterprise, and sending troops wasn’t a simple matter. However, it also fitted Carmen’s intentions. Arrow took a strong stance and intervened in the drastic changes happening in Frankberg caused by the revolution.
After Peter signed a decree that read: “If encountering resistance, soldiers can shoot rebel militants on the spot,” the protests and crackdowns were heightened to the extreme. Bloody conflicts occurred in every corner of the city. Walls were smeared with the black marks left by explosives. The bullet holes were like scars, contradictions that couldn’t be erased.
It was hard to imagine that this could happen in a developed country. Although this predicament had been previewed countless times in games and films, no one truly believed this.
Perhaps it was a cultural war brought by the refugees.
In the early morning of May 21st, Coro City Airport welcomed a special guest. Under the escort of four bodyguards, the old man with a hooked nose smiled and greeted Jiang Chen with a hug.
“I had a hunch when I left last time that we would meet again. I didn’t expect this day to come so quickly.”
“It’s not that quick. When I saw you last time, you were forty.” Looking at the two side-burns on the old man, Jiang Chen smiled, “Welcome, future Prime Minister.”
“It’s still too early for that. I’m just a poor man who’s living under other people’s rooves.” Although the tone was modest, Jiang Chen could clearly sense the sense of relief from his bright smile.
Bloody conflicts weren’t something to be happy about, but the Frankberg finally picked up weapons against the tyrants they selected. It was a big step forward. More and more people joined the Frankberg People’s Liberation Front, went overseas to receive military training, and returned to their home country to advance their progress.
Evelyn had reasons to believe his days of exile would end soon.
For this reason, he was able to represent “New Federal Frankberg” to visit Coro City to discuss the future of the country with Jiang Chen…
