Chapter 187, how do you say loyalty?
Crocker Plantation is almost the largest plantation in the northern part of Green Valley. The surname Crocker has been passed down here for four generations.
They continued to be the owners of the plantation and gradually grew to the point where they now hold an important position in the northern part of the Green Valley region.
A few months ago, the old master died of illness, and now it is little Crocker who is in charge.
Young people are just more ambitious than their predecessors.
Regardless of whether this ambition is reasonable or not, at least Crocker feels that he is a person with great ambitions.
He was not satisfied with just being a rich man from the Qinggu area. Like his ancestors for generations, he relied on one-third of an acre to eat - even though others were doing the work, he only ate.
But he felt that the Crocker family could go one step further.
The disaster in the Qinggu area and the mutual aid association established with the support of the alliance are the perfect opportunities that he values.
He actively responded to the establishment of the Mutual Aid Association and used his appeal to persuade and influence many plantations to join.
It's not difficult.
First of all, the mutual aid association is inherently beneficial and everyone gets what they need; secondly, Crocker Manor, as the largest plantation, has indeed played a leading role in its positive response to the mutual aid association.
And his goal is actually not complicated: he wants to be the controller of the Mutual Aid Association and truly transform the Mutual Aid Association from a mutual aid organization formed with the assistance of the alliance into a political entity spanning the Qinggu area.
All people sent by the alliance were excluded from the Mutual Aid Committee and were only given the status of observers. The power structures were under the control of plantation owners and militia leaders. And as long as he firmly sits in the position of chairman and serves as the leader, that will be fine. What follows is the gradual improvement of various government mechanisms so that power can truly be implemented downwards.
Of course, he was not so fanciful that after transforming the mutual aid association into a political entity, he would be able to challenge the alliance and the Governor. It's just that... the so-called alliance is not a centralized government. We have been a member of the alliance since the first generation of governors established the alliance, and we have never left the alliance.
It is still under the alliance system, but it is a regional government with strong autonomy and maintains a good cooperative and win-win relationship with the alliance center. Isn't this good?
Of course he knew that with things like the Qinggu area, it would be impossible to fight the alliance headquarters. What he wants to fight for is only political interests. In his opinion, the Qinggu area has a population and important food output, which is the basis for negotiations with the alliance headquarters.
Even in the future, it is inevitable that he will be completely swallowed up by the Alliance, but at that time, he must give Crocker a decent explanation. It is not impossible to transform into a high-ranking official in the alliance.
But he didn't expect that the alliance would not give him any time.
Little Crocker was a little frightened.
Could it be that my little thoughts have been seen through? Is the alliance targeting me?
He held a meeting of the committee members of the mutual aid society.
The meeting place is at Croke Manor, which itself is the headquarters of the mutual aid association.
A circular hall, low in the middle and gradually rising on all sides. There are wooden tables and wooden chairs on the surrounding steps as seats for the committee members. The circular platform in the center is the speaking platform.
In the venue, little Crocker stirred up the thoughts of other planters.
Standing in the center of the conference hall, Little Crocker was making impassioned speeches.
"I believe many people have received the news that the Central Army Group led by Commander Yan Fangxu is moving south. According to the latest order from the alliance, we need to provide supplies for this army."
"Not only food supplies, but also the militia regiments we have worked so hard to build over the past few months must be brought under the command of Commander Yan Fangxu."
"Look at what happened in the so-called Central Province two months ago. A large number of settlements were abolished; a large number of survivors were captured by the Alliance; those who had tried their best to maintain the existence of the settlements and protect them The men of their people were guillotined and found guilty."
"The Alliance is planning to take away everything from us, just like they did to the people in the central province two months ago."
His words really touched the minds of many people.
Army Group Center suddenly moved south, which indeed caused panic.
Planters were worried that their properties would be confiscated. Under Union policy, it seemed that completely independent, private industry did not exist.
However, even if those thoughts were aroused, people were basically silent at the moment.
Worry is worry, but... should we fight against the alliance because of this?
If nothing else, just look at the attitude of the militia leaders.
Now, the military strength of the mutual aid association is entirely composed of militia groups.
Among the militia leaders, those elected by the manor owners can say that their positions are still consistent with those of the manor owners who elected them.
But those whitewashed plunderers who were recruited were completely different.
Being assigned to the command of Army Group Center... doesn't seem to be a bad thing for them.
The plunderers who can be recruited and whitewashed originally did this because they had no choice but to survive. The manor owners showed no kindness to them, and they had no fixed property in the Beiqing Valley area.
After all, they were just making a living, and they were included in the alliance army. Could they still be hungry?
Maybe there will be a chance to become a regular in the future. Being a regular member of the alliance would be very prestigious.
If you want to have a military confrontation with the alliance, do you expect militia groups with a similar mentality to go up and fight for their lives?
Don't be ridiculous then.
Moreover, let alone a direct military confrontation, even if there is no war and the alliance does not come to force, the mutual aid association cannot stand just a hostile relationship.
With a militia group of over 100,000 people, who does it rely on for arms?
With food alone, can the current population of four million people in Beiqinggu survive? A large number of industrial products and daily necessities also rely on transportation from the Twin Cities, the most important of which is medical assistance.
Without the assistance of the alliance, the mutual aid association itself will collapse.
To put it bluntly, there is no possibility of a head-on confrontation between the two sides.
Just now, Little Crocker himself mentioned the central bank province, right?
At least the central province was able to mobilize an army of 100,000 people without any assistance from the governor. Can a mutual aid association work? If there is hostility, the order that the Mutual Aid Association has established in the Beiqinggu area over the past two months will collapse.
What's more, even if an army is drawn out, so what?
Can he still defeat the alliance's army? How long did the Central Bank of China hold out its 100,000-strong army?
It is true that everyone has resentment towards the Alliance military's sudden move south, but if Little Crocker thinks that he can encourage everyone to follow him and go head-to-head with the Alliance, then just dream.
No one will follow him into this madness. Of course, Little Crocker did not feel crazy that he could encourage people in the mutual aid association to do this. Even if he could do it, he wouldn't do it.
However, after looking at everyone's expressions and guessing their mentality, Little Crocker was still a little disappointed.
But he quickly readjusted his attitude.
He continued: "I know you are all scared in your hearts, thinking, 'Ah, is this little Crocker crazy, how dare he say such a thing?' But I want to tell you, now is indeed the moment of our life and death. No one wants to give away the assets accumulated over generations for no reason.”
"Of course, we are not going to fight against the Alliance or the Governor. I have no such intention. The Mutual Aid Association was established with the assistance of the Alliance. The Governor has helped us a lot. We Qinggu people will never retaliate for kindness. We are We have always been, are, and will always be members of the Alliance; our allegiance to the Emperor and to the Governor will never change."
When he got to this point, people finally became interested.
Earlier, he said that the Alliance was going to take away everything from us, and he seemed to be encouraging everyone to fight. However, in the following paragraph, he completely changed the tone, saying that we must be loyal to the Governor and loyal to the Alliance.
What kind of refined statement is this?
What on earth do you want, kid?
But even though his words were very confusing, when he mentioned that he didn't really mean to rebel against his mother, everyone's wariness and vigilance dropped a lot.
People began to look forward to whether this little Crocker really had any good ideas that could save everyone's industry without directly confronting the alliance.
"We are loyal to the Governor and the Alliance, but loyalty does not mean stupidity. We must consider the way we are loyal."
"We will express our will to the Governor-General in the form of non-violent non-cooperation. We will refuse to provide supplies to the alliance's troops, and we will refuse to hand over the command and organization of the militia to Army Group Center. If there is any direct Threats of violence, I allow you to temporarily agree and agree to cooperate; but after the threats of violence end, we propose that we will continue to carry out protest actions..."
At this point, Crocker's speaking speed suddenly increased and became heavier:
"Commissioners, this is the way we fight. We will never engage in any direct confrontation with the alliance's troops. Strikes, protests, and food supply cessation will not continue indefinitely. We just need to act in a civilized manner. way to express our demands in a bloodless way and ultimately achieve the goal of resolving the problem through negotiation. ”
His words shocked people.
Good guy, after doing this for a long time, it’s just ‘non-violent non-cooperation’, right?
But looking back, it’s not impossible.
Strikes, demonstrations, failure to provide supplies... If the gun is pointed at you, there is nothing you can do about it; but as long as the gun is not pointed at you, nothing will happen.
How many men are there in the Union army?
Are you here to be the overseers of various places?
The two sides are fighting each other, let's keep going. The Qinggu area has always been in such a bad state anyway, how can it continue to be bad?
But the alliance is different.
Can the grand undertaking of the Governor-General withstand such a delay?
Put yourself in a position of united front value, and then strive for as many benefits as possible at the negotiation table...
This idea seems to be really okay.
But some people have raised questions: "This is a good approach, but if the alliance carries out bloody suppression, arrests or even shoots the leaders of the protests, that is, we are the people, then how should you respond?"
Little Crocker took a deep breath: "This is the risk we have to face: First, will the alliance do this? Aren't they afraid of provoking greater resistance? Second, we must also protect ourselves. Qinggu The area is very large, or the whole world is very large. We must hide in the wilderness and among the people. We must also find ways to ensure that we can still provide support to mutual aid societies, food rations, and labor under such circumstances. Has enough influence..."
Just as Little Crocker was talking about his thoughts and becoming more and more serious, there was a "squeak" and the door of the circular parliament hall was opened.
Little Crocker stopped talking and turned away angrily.
The door of the conference hall is behind the podium where he delivered his impassioned speech.
Today is not a secret meeting, but it is important enough. He had already given instructions not to allow any interruption during the meeting. Someone should be guarding the door of the conference hall. How could anyone dare to interrupt the meeting at this time?
But after seeing the person coming, he suppressed the curse on his lips.
The visitor's name is Jason Morgan. He is a middle-aged man with an unremarkable appearance. He is slightly fat and not tall. He always has a kind smile on his face. There is nothing too strange about him.
However, he still gave little Crocker, who was planning how to do things, wanted to make a fortune, and felt full of experience, a chill down his back.
That's certainly not the magic of Jason Morgan himself.
That's because behind Jason Morgan, he symbolizes an invincible force that can only be dealt with secretly.
But now, An Zunao's plan is exposed under the sun.
Little Crocker tried hard to think of a solution quickly, no matter what, but now his mind was just blank, as if some physiological mechanism had been triggered, causing his brain to freeze.
Jason Morgan still had that kind smile on his face. He took a few steps forward, stood in front of Little Crocker, and said: "Mutual Aid Committee meeting, it is against the rules of the committee to have no observers present. ”
Little Crocker reluctantly showed a smile.
He wanted to say harsh words, and even thought about calling someone over to arrest Jason Morgan who broke in, or even kill him on the spot.
However, after hesitating for a moment, he just said: "I haven't had time to inform you yet...Mr. Morgan, aren't you inspecting the disease prevention and control work in the park next door? If I knew you were there, I would definitely have invited you over..."< br>
Morgan waved his hand: "So that's it, but it doesn't matter. Now is the time. On the way here, I saw a lot of armed militiamen. I thought I was going to run into a lot of trouble on the way in, but it turned out No one stopped me, and many militia comrades followed me.”
Having said this, he waved behind him.
A group of militiamen walked in with guns drawn.
Morgan turned his head again, faced Little Crocker, and said: "I seemed to have heard something about 'non-violent non-cooperation' and 'we must consider ways of loyalty' outside just now..."
At this point, Morgan's kind smile seemed quite sinister to Little Crocker.
"It's a coincidence. Although I don't know what 'non-violent non-cooperation' means, I graduated from the advanced training class of Xifeng Zhongsi College and received direct teachings from the Governor. I think I am the most qualified to talk here. What is loyalty?”
"In my opinion, the issue of loyalty does not need to be discussed. Even the militia comrades behind me who don't even know a few words also understand this truth deeply:"
"The best way to be loyal is to remain absolutely loyal. If loyalty is not absolute, it is absolutely disloyal."
Jason Morgan held up the red hat on his head, completely suppressed all smiles, and looked at everyone present with a stern face: "I want to know how many people want to be more loyal. What was discussed?”
(End of chapter)