Celestial Trade fired warning shots and the Joint Fleet evaded. The fighters on both sides all took off and dueled it out in the air. In the end, both parties returned with no gains or losses…
Of course, people who followed the situation still saw that Celestial Trade gained the upper hand.
As for the game behind its appearance, no one dug deeper. In particular, both the UA and Xin tacitly remained silent regarding the duel between the leaders in front of the media.
After all, the nuclear buttons were placed on the table. Jiang Chen didn’t want to be labeled as a butcher by controversy, and the UA didn’t want to lose the deterrent known as the president’s “suitcase”. The number of other countries who gained information about this through their intelligence networks was unpredictable.
In any case, making the boss of the world change course was something worthy of pride.
Celestial Trade Navy not only defended the sovereignty of Xin but it also the national honor and glory of the country. In the next week, the people of Xin walked in the streets with their heads held up high, almost to the point where they looked at people with their noses. Many immigrants from all over the world, from this very moment onward, truly regarded this new country as a nation.
As for the UA, public opinion showed polarization.
The leftists praised Hill for her rationality. After all, the Social Justice Warriors never agreed with the military exercise from the start. Xin’s Phantom Helmets and high-tech products were so much fun; why are they bullying her?
In contrast, the right-wingers launched an attack on the weakness of the Capitol on social media, criticizing the government for bringing shame to the country. Even the commander of the Joint Fleet, Admiral Hogg, was targeted by this social media onslaught.
Admiral Hogg was probably the most innocent individual in this whole fiasco. The Department of Defence gave him the mandate to take a tough stance, but the Department of Defense also made him retreat. He executed every order, yet now, he must take the blame with the bureaucrats. Dear heaven, how is this outcome related to him? Did he not sail his ship with a strong enough stance?
The anger of the right-wingers not only filled the Internet—it even flooded into the streets. With slogans held up high, they demonstrated in front of the Xin Embassy.
While these angry young people didn’t smash every single new energy vehicle from Xin, they spontaneously joined to boycott “Xin Goods” with the exception of two things: Phantom Helmet and Medical Drone.
They could live without phones and robots, but without those two items, what would be the point of living…
The economy was an extension of politics.
The showdown in the Western Pacific Ocean already determined the situation today.
However, although the “anti-Xin” sentiment in North America was growing, Future Group didn’t seem too concerned. The Global Power Grid along with the electricity evolution was starting to see its effect, and Future Group was now focusing on opening up the East Asian market.
Take Wanghai as an example—almost every parking lot was equipped with a wireless charging station. Charging could be completed by scanning a QR code with the phone without even needing to step out of the vehicle. The Logistics Drones replaced couriers, and robot mail was common in everyone’s homes.
Many electrical appliances that previously weren’t practical due to high power consumption also become a reality. The Maglev Highway was the best example, although it was only popularized in Xin.
Coro City already entered the 22nd century ahead of schedule.
And Asia was advancing toward the 22nd world under the leadership of Xin.
Regardless of everything else, a very intuitive phenomenon demonstrated the rapid changes in Asia. At night, overlooking the Earth from the geosynchronous orbit, it was easy to tell that the Asian region was much brighter than Europe and the Americas.
In short, although UA hostility toward Xin created a certain impact on Future Group’s market share in North America, the losses were quite limited, so Jiang Chen didn’t consider it an area of concern. His foundation was the virtual reality network, and now, he had the addition of the Global Power Grid. As long as these two initiatives remained untouched, Future Group would be unshakable.
…
“I have money, I’m rich. I’m very rich!”
“So? I don’t care how much money the Wall Street will give me!”
“I assure you that if you vote for me, at least your vote won’t show up in the pockets of Wall Street. Only I can represent your interests; only I can represent the UA dream. Yes, only me!”
In a park in Nevada.
People shouted frantically as they cheered and screamed. Countless arms were raised up, slogans of their support were held, flags were waving in the air as supporters repeatedly shouted the same name.
The eyes of the man on stage were half-narrowed, and his bright orange face had an arrogant and undisguised smile.
He opened his arms and accepted the cheers of the voters with his chin, but he gained a respect that other candidates couldn’t receive from bending down.
He knew what they needed the most.
And what they needed was exactly what he could give!
Choosing the right time to raise his hand and signal everyone to listen, the man fixed the microphone and waved his index finger while speaking with the greatest strength of his life.
“We shouldn’t send Kerry, someone who has no idea how to negotiate at all. He will sign a laughable and irritating agreement with them. Watch them use our money to make weapons and act aggressively on the negotiating table.”
“You know who I’m talking about? That’s right! It’s him! The person who can match him can only be a man manlier than him, not an old woman without a proper menstrual cycle!”
“Tell me—will you vote for that old lady?”
The expressions of many female voters suddenly changed and they immediately lost interest. They not only smashed the signs they held, but they also raised their middle fingers and booed. But the cheers under the stage grew even louder, drowning out their booing amidst the tide of cheers.
They were fed up with being politically correct and fed up with politicians who only made empty promises. Now, someone finally stood up. Even if he might not necessarily be smart enough, considering what he just said, he shared the same perspective as many who stood there!
“The UA dream has been shattered! I will reshape the UA dream, make it bigger, better, stronger, and allow it to return to greatness. Thank you.”
The man bowed down and stepped down from the podium amidst thunderous cheers.
No one noticed this impassioned election speech, and no one even noticed this insignificant candidate.
Hill was still busy dealing with the aftermath of the event as she desperately tried to reunite the allies that started to pull apart. Accompanied by Daniel Morgan, Kerry collected evidence of scandal of a particular person and frequently contacted members of the party. He quietly prepared for the election in the coming year and prepared to strike his “big boss” at the perfect time.
