Blackstone Code-Chapter 628: A Misplaced Beat

Do we have to acknowledge a group of people just because they disrupted the existing regime?

One has to admit—the federal government still lacked a bit of shamelessness. Fortunately, Lynch corrected that error in time.

That said, the emergence of the National Congress Party did help the federal government solve many problems. The biggest of these was that the old king, under their pressure, took his own life—whether it was a genuine suicide or they somehow forced it. Either way, the most troublesome figure was now dead.

When the old king was alive, whether or not he was respected by everyone, he was still the king—recognized as the legitimate ruler. If he had voiced opposition to restructuring the nation’s governance, that alone could have caused serious trouble.

People first recognized that the old king was being oppressed by foreigners. Plus, the anti-foreign sentiment stoked earlier by the Nagaryll Youth Party hadn’t fully dissipated. That could easily trigger another wave of xenophobic backlash.

In the heat of rising nationalism, even capitalists become powerless. The people wouldn’t just drive foreigners out—they’d destroy foreign investments and seize assets to erase foreign influence.

This would severely impact Lynch’s and the Joint Development Company’s interests in Nagaryll. But the good news was—the old king and queen were taken out by the National Congress Party.

That resolved the most difficult issue. It could be considered their greatest contribution.

“What’s your suggestion next?” Mr. Truman asked while summoning his staff and taking notes seriously.

For the current Federation, foreign policy was still in its exploratory phase. The previous president and earlier administrations had led a relatively isolated society. Due to technology and other reasons, international interaction had been minimal, and in terms of foreign policy, they lagged behind even Gephra.

Lynch’s ideas perfectly filled this gap. From his concept of financial warfare to his understanding of Nagaryll’s current situation, his suggestions were both forward-thinking and constructive.

Even though the President privately told Truman about plans to dissolve the Foreign Ministry—turning it into a multi-functional agency with Truman as the first High Commissioner to leverage his strengths in foreign policy—Truman had not forgotten Lynch’s contributions.

Many of the foundational theories were based on Lynch’s ideas, so Truman valued his perspective—especially in foreign policy.

“I heard the old king’s eldest son has been studying abroad and hasn’t returned?” Lynch suddenly mentioned a key figure—the eldest son.

This wasn’t a secret. The old king had always claimed that after sending his eldest son abroad, the boy refused to return, enamored with foreign luxuries.

This made the eldest son unpopular in certain circles. After all, someone who wouldn’t even come back to his own country, endlessly lingering in foreign lands, couldn’t be seen as a qualified ruler.

As a result, the public gradually forgot him, and the second son had more or less replaced him politically.

This wasn’t classified—many people knew it. Truman nodded, “That’s right.”

“We can use this guy,” Lynch tapped his fingers on the armrest, crossed his legs, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and lit one. “This is why I proposed a joint parliamentary system. Most provincial governors are on our side. Add the royal puppet to that…”

He smiled with a look of benevolence. “We can fully control parliamentary resolutions. More importantly, the members of parliament are regional rulers. We don’t touch the existing power structures.”

“But a multi-party election system won’t work,” he added. “Too many governors—divide them into three parties—who becomes the leader? Who runs? Who wins? That would hurt their interests and jeopardize our control.”

“But with a joint parliamentary system, it’s different. Whether it’s about preserving their own interests or seeking more benefits, they have every reason—and duty—to uphold the system we install.”

“They’ll help us steer society, suppress any force that could shake their rule.”

“If our interests are hurt, so are theirs. That’s critical.”

Truman scribbled quickly. After ten seconds, he paused, about to ask a question when someone knocked on the door.

“Come in,” he said. A few people entered. Truman stood up and introduced them to Lynch.

They were his trusted aides. After the introductions, they quietly sat against the wall, not interrupting the key conversation.

“Back to what we were discussing—I have a question,” Truman said, glancing at his notes. “If we adopt the joint parliamentary system for Nagaryll’s governance, what if the local rulers band together?”

“Is it possible they might unite against our control, ignoring other differences? I think it’s possible.”

Indeed, the joint parliamentary system addressed certain structural issues and reduced the monarchy’s domestic power—but it dramatically increased the governors’ authority.

Even if it seemed a small shift—merely legitimizing their de facto rule—this formal recognition could create new challenges.

Truman had a valid concern. But Lynch saw things differently.

“This is why I oppose multi-party democracy,” he said. “It requires a party that represents the underclass to relieve social pressure. But that party would be uncontrollable, dangerous in its ideology, and threaten the established order.”

“With a joint parliamentary system, we hold public opinion in our hands. Don’t forget—the workers’ union is in the works.”

Lynch had earlier proposed introducing workers’ unions and feminist groups in Nagaryll to both mobilize more labor and create an efficient management structure.

He flicked his ash. “We’ll control public sentiment through the workers’ union. In a backward and primitive society, anything can happen. Some unknown group just killed the king.”

“If they did it once, they could do it again—and again.”

Lynch didn’t need to say more. Everyone understood. The National Congress Party had come out of nowhere and stormed the palace to assassinate the king.

Yes, from this point forward, the king was now seen as having been assassinated in a planned conspiracy—something unthinkable in a modern, developed nation. But it could happen in a place as backward as Nagaryll.

The people were ignorant. They didn’t know how to express their demands peacefully. Violence was their language. If they could kill a king, they could kill a governor—or a future parliamentarian.

In the past, public opinion was held by a small group of people. Now, it was controlled by the Federals.

Safer. More reliable. More efficient.

“We need further discussion,” Truman concluded. This wasn’t something a few people could decide with a few words.

He had to consider the international community’s reaction to Nagaryll’s changes, and also the presidential cabinet’s baseline tolerance for it. After all… cough… the Federation never interferes in other countries’ internal affairs.

“But there’s one thing we can start now.”

He put down his pen and looked at his aides. “Find the eldest prince. If we’re going to restructure Nagaryll’s political system under a joint parliamentary model, we need our first parliamentary speaker.”

That confirmed it—Truman was convinced. He agreed it was a smart idea: weaken the parliament’s power while holding the public voice. Nagaryll’s society would become stable and orderly.

“Find him. Talk to him. Make sure he understands the benefits. Doesn’t he love living abroad?”

“Tell him we’ll grant him Federation citizenship and provide more benefits. There’s only one requirement: serve as the first speaker!”

Someone asked, “Mr. Truman, what if he doesn’t agree to our plan?”

Before Mr. Truman could respond, Lynch interjected, “There will always be someone willing to cooperate with us, won’t there?”

Mr. Truman smiled and nodded. “Yes, there will always be someone willing to cooperate.”

At that moment, neither the crown prince nor the late king could have imagined things would unfold so strangely. Every one of their plans had, by sheer misfortune, completely missed the timing of the Federation’s plans.

From the very beginning, when they brought the Nagaryll Youth Party into the open, hoping to attract the Federation’s attention and be employed by them…

To now, when they rebranded themselves and attacked the royal palace, attempting to appear as heroes who overthrew a brutal regime…

They had perfectly misaligned with the Federation’s strategies each time. If they had acted differently, there might have been a chance—if the crown prince had genuinely been abroad studying, for example.

But now it was too late.

On the third morning after Lynch returned to the Federation, the federal government publicly denied the National Congress Party’s control over the Nagaryll capital. It declared that the National Congress Party had conspired to overthrow the Nagaryll government and assassinated the king and queen—calling it a shameful and despicable act.

Such heinous actions should not be forgiven. This was not a war of justice. After final discussions in Congress and by presidential order, the Federation announced it would launch military action against the National Congress Party…

When the crown prince received the news and saw the headlines, his jaw dropped—how did it come to this?