Chapter 200: Chapter 199: Justice Is Victory
Blue Flame’s study was also located inside this workshop’s command center.
The rooms in the workshop, naturally, were nothing to write home about—maybe a little brighter thanks to better lighting, but it was nighttime anyway.
The windows looked out on the dazzling lights of Tongling Town. Temporary army camps glowed with candlelight. Blue Flame picked up a kettle and poured a cup of water, handing it to Le Yuxin, "Here, this is a cup prepared especially for guests, it’s clean."
"Ah, thanks."
"Even though he was internally plotting how to steal Blue Flame’s high-level player account, Le Yuxin kept up all his outward courtesy."
"After all, you don’t pick a fight with someone smiling at you. No matter how many times Blue Flame had clashed with him in public or in private, when dealing with others, he never carried himself with the arrogance of an ’upper class.’ And since Le Yuxin had grown up well-mannered—so polite that even as a child he’d be mindful about the sound of his pee—he naturally found it hard to be rude in return."
"Besides, when dealing with Blue Flame, he also couldn’t help but substitute Qian Yuliu’s memories into the conversation. Even as a subordinate, his interactions with Statistical Department Director Blue Flame were always quite pleasant."
"He might not have come off as a ’bosom friend’ type, but he was like the class monitor in college, the big brother at work, the helpful old bird in a gaming guild, the hemorrhoid cream in a man’s nightstand, or the sanitary pads in a woman’s purse—he was just someone you could actually trust."
Experienced, passionate yet rational, refined and easygoing.
If you were to describe it using character stats, his charm value was through the roof, and came bundled with passive bonuses like ’Leadership,’ ’Morale Boost,’ and ’Initial Favorability Increase.’
"But Le Yuxin had no interest in becoming his accomplice, squeezing the people of Dongyang for profit."
"General Blue, let me say this up front," Le Yuxin said, "I’m not going to agree to any outrageous demands you make."
"And what exactly counts as ’outrageous’?" Blue Flame stood on the balcony, looking out at the military camps, "Would asking for money be considered outrageous?"
"Depends how much you’re asking for."
"I don’t really know how much I want, honestly. You, Young Lord Jing, are more familiar with the Silver Blood Association than I am—and you’re the actual operator." Blue Flame sat down and said, "I can just hand over the decision-making power to you."
"You trust me that much?" Le Yuxin was a bit baffled, "Just because you caught a good vibe the first time we met?"
"Come on, can my previous favorability as Qian Yuliu really still be effective on this Jing Zhengwei account?"
"Actually, Le Yuxin found this a little odd. While he and Qin Leyin had both turned in blank papers, his own attitude had been obvious—he made it clear he was pissed off at Blue Flame, and the blank paper was no bluff."
"After all, Le Yuxin had come here looking for a one-on-one face-off with Blue Flame; so he was going to be as brazen as he wanted."
"Yet Blue Flame had gone out of his way to interpret the meaning behind the blank paper for him."
He even went so far as to forcefully select him as the president.
"How to put it—this just felt weird."
"It’s a bit like the plain, innocent flower of a girl refusing to give face to a domineering CEO, but that just makes the CEO more interested—and then you get all those melodramatic teen romance cliches like ’Woman, you’re playing with fire’ and ’It’s always been you, Pikachu.’"
"No matter how optimistic Le Yuxin was, even he couldn’t help wondering whether Jing Zhengwei was just too damn handsome..."
"That is part of it." Blue Flame placed his hands on the desk, then suddenly asked, "Young Lord Jing, do you believe there is such a thing as reality in this world?"
"Huh?" Le Yuxin blinked.
"You want to talk philosophy with me?"
"There are barbarians threatening us outside, thieves and traitors within. The Imperial Court’s high officials scheme against each other. Governors plot rebellion. This is a nation yearning for light, yet every moment is shrouded in darkness." Blue Flame stared into his own palm, "Did we come to this world just to suffer?"
Le Yuxin said, "Are you really the one to talk about ’suffering’?"
Blue Flame laughed, "Do you think I practiced the ’Hidden Sword Technique’ just for personal entertainment? Even if it didn’t cost me lifespan—what about losing a kidney?"
"It’s not just me—even my current lord, Lv Zhong the governor, you think he has it any easier? Subordinates constantly fighting behind the scenes, armies full of cliques and factions, the people angry and dissatisfied—he probably doesn’t sleep any better at night than either of us."
Le Yuxin looked at him with open contempt, "But in the areas you rule, there are countless people worse off than you—more miserable, more wretched, living in hell."
"Exactly. And that’s the real root of our anxiety."
Blue Flame clasped his hands, speaking calmly, "Because there are people more miserable than us, we are afraid—constantly, all the time."
"It’s not poverty that terrifies us, but inequality itself."
"If the world were at peace, if everyone had a livelihood and a job, if they could go home at night to a warm bed and a loving family, fishing and playing cards and telling stories in their spare time—what would I have to be afraid of then?"
Le Yuxin squinted, gazing at Blue Flame and letting his thoughts run wild.
"You..."
"Honestly, no matter what you wrote on that blank page, I would’ve chosen you as president." Blue Flame said bluntly, "From the start, you were my only candidate."
"Here we go—domineering CEO, keep it coming..." Even though he was snarking internally, Le Yuxin’s face looked quite serious:
"The Youth Daily?"
"Exactly." Blue Flame pulled out a newspaper from the drawer, "That’s why I said, Young Lord Jing, you really surprised me."
"What are you getting at?" Le Yuxin’s mind threw up a wild guess, "Wait—are you with White Night?"
As soon as he said it, Le Yuxin realized how stupid that was—if Blue Flame were with White Night, then Star Engraving County would already be White Night’s first ship.
Blue Flame shot back, "Are you, Young Lord Jing?"
"Ha, of course not. What sane person would ever join White Night?"
"Right, no sane person would." Blue Flame nodded, "It’s an organization crammed full of idealists—groups like that always end in disaster."
"But you, Young Lord Jing, you’re on the right path."
Blue Flame tapped the newspaper, "Waking the commoners, overthrowing the Silver Blood nobility—your choices are the right ones. From the newspaper you founded, I see your deep sympathy for the people’s misery and anger at their hopelessness. I can also see that you’re eagerly anticipating the downfall of the Silver Blood nobility."
"Honestly, I only came to Dongyang this time to squeeze some military funds. Who the president of the Silver Blood Association is—it really didn’t matter to me. But by every measure, you are the best, the only, candidate."
"How so?"
Le Yuxin raised an eyebrow; seeing Blue Flame saw things so clearly, he decided to drop the act, cards on the table:
"Since you know I stand with the commoners, you know that as president I’ll favor the workers, push for political organizations to give them a voice, and I won’t give in to any outrageous demands. What you want to extort from Dongyang for military funds—I simply can’t provide."
"Why not?"
"Dongyang’s people have no money, period."
"But the Silver Blood nobility, aren’t they loaded?"
Seeing Blue Flame’s gentle, cultured smile, Le Yuxin instantly understood what he was proposing, "Wait, are you planning to support me..."
"I’ll support you in improving workers’ conditions, in creating political organizations for them, in doing whatever it is you want to do. And naturally, that also means..."
Blue Flame pressed his palms together and lowered his voice,
"Eliminating those officials and businessmen leeching off the people of Dongyang."
"There are way too many rich folks in Dongyang."
"Once they’re gone, the property they leave behind can just be handed over as military funds for the Linhai Army, can’t it?"
"And you, as the new president of the Silver Blood Association, get to inherit the entire ’legacy’ left behind by them. You’ll finally have room to show what you can do—reshape Dongyang into the ’future society’ you envisioned. I’ve read your novella, ’Future Echoes,’ too; its analysis of social systems is truly fascinating."
"Young Lord Jing, this is an even exchange. I put the Linhai Army on the table and will clear every obstacle for you, keeping the Heyang Army and Dongyang’s political circles in check; and you use the wealth of the Silver Blood Association’s officials and businessmen to buy yourself the chance to transform Dongyang, to remake the world."
"I believe this exchange will benefit both of us, and do no harm."
Le Yuxin was left staring blankly, stunned into silence. After a long pause, he couldn’t help but ask, "This path is a lot harder than just finding a puppet to squeeze Dongyang for cash. Not even I’m sure I’ll succeed—why do you want to support me?"
"Because elite politics is doomed to die out." Blue Flame said, "In recent years, advancements in production technology have skyrocketed. School enrollment rises every year. Railroads break down regional barriers. Firearms give the commoners destructive power... Sooner or later, those at the bottom will demand a status that matches their reality. The old world’s nobility is bound to decline, and a new class is already taking shape."
"Even if the Emperor’s death hadn’t happened, the working class was destined to step onto history’s stage in due time."
"You may or may not succeed, and my support could end up being a loss. But, Young Lord Jing, your cause is ’just’—and I believe supporting ’justice’ always pays off in the long run."
Heh.
Blue Flame raised an eyebrow, "Why are you laughing, Young Lord Jing?"
"It’s nothing," Le Yuxin suppressed a snicker, "I just suddenly remembered, General Blue, that you once brutally suppressed the Backlight Organization in Star Engraving County, and crushed White Night’s city-capturing plan..."
"So you find it funny for me to talk all high and mighty, huh?" Blue Flame didn’t mind at all, just laughed, "But honestly, every word of that was sincere."
"That White Night-style universal love always appeals to more people—it’s like the sun in the sky, even someone like Grandmaster Chuanyun can’t help walking into the light."
"But it’s not practical. It’s illusory. It’s foolish."
Blue Flame held up two fingers, "Twenty years. We only have twenty years to remake everything, or else wait around for the Emperor to draw the Holy Sword again and start another century of radiant repetition. I can’t put my faith in White Night or the Backlight Organization— it’s not that they’re wrong, it’s that their timeline is too long. Um."
"But you, Young Lord Jing, you’re different. You’ve got your own ideas, your own foundation; you have real empathy for those at the bottom."
"More importantly, you’re under no illusions about your own limitations."
"Do what you can, with what power you have."
"When you’re powerless, you run a newspaper and wake people up. When you have some influence, you fight for authority and pursue slow reform."
"I’m not into chasing the sun or daydreaming, but I’ll absolutely support down-to-earth ’justice.’"
Le Yuxin stayed quiet for a long time, "I always pegged you as a complete realist."
"You’re totally right about me." Blue Flame nodded, "Everything I do is driven by self-interest."
"I only ever stand with the winning side, with the side of greatest benefit."
"So."
"That’s why I’m willing to support you, Young Lord Jing—stand with ’justice.’"