[Maplestone City]
Again by the Anya River, on the street outside the officers' quarters, there are two Allied soldiers, one in uniform and the other plain-clothed.
The moonlit river looked like a road paved with silver, and the two of them walked silently along the "Milky Way" for a while. Suddenly, Gessa spat into the river, sneering, and bluntly asked:
"Do you know what price Jansen Cornelius offered me?"
"You went to have a private talk with Major Lanco Boyle?" Winters frowned.
"Of course I went; who hasn't?" Gessa responded as if it was the most natural thing, provocatively retorting, "You didn't go?"
Winters answered calmly, "I really didn't go."
Gessa was momentarily at a loss for words. He snorted lightly and shook his head, "Shows you're still too green."
Winters smiled and nodded slightly.
Gessa ground his teeth for a while before speaking again.
"Do you trust their promises?" Winters asked.
"It's so damn ridiculous! So damn absurd! So damn ludicrous!" Gessa cursed thrice, his gaze wandering, "That's why it doesn't seem fake."
"If I were in Minister Cornelius' position, I would also prepare two plans," Winters mused, "'The Viper' Magnus has already become infamous and despised by all. Rather than maintaining his rule at high cost, why not find a new, popular collaborator?"
"Oh? You're even helping him analyze it?" Gessa chuckled, "Only saying good things?"
"Not just good things," Winters said unhurriedly. "Just putting the good things first.
"Political transitions, whether they bring stability after a short-term upheaval or quickly lead to another transition, is completely unknown.
"For instance, in the Old Empire Calendar year 185, a military coup occurred in South Coria, and Emperor Kennedy watched as his vassals were overthrown. From the results, he didn't choose wrong.
"But just two years later, in the Old Empire Calendar 187, Emperor Kennedy tacitly allowed Wirnan's corrupt rulers to be replaced by their own subordinates. This time, it led to an even worse situation for Wirnan.
"Of course, in hindsight, we can always find various 'foresights.' But for the people of that time, I'm afraid no one dared to assert where the future would lead."
Getting more absorbed in the topic, Winters couldn't help but add, "And in the same year as the coup in Wirnan, Emperor Kennedy was also assassinated... "
Gessa heard this, feeling both angry and amused, "You... where did you learn all this from?"
"Since coming back from The Styx, " Winters replied seriously, "I've been studying diligently."
"Get out of here!"
Winters shrugged, as if to say, believe it or not.
The two of them sat in silence on the low wall by the riverbank for a while longer.
"I'm not going to be bought by Jansen Cornelius," Gessa was the first to break the silence, saying wearily, "but since they can give me this price, they can offer the same or even more tempting offers to others."
"Indeed," Winters nodded in agreement.
"Have Skur McClennan and Magash Colvin come to find you?" Gessa asked in a low voice.
Winters understood what the colonel was asking, so he answered carefully, "Not yet."
"Neither have they come to me," Gessa said coldly.
Winters was taken aback for a moment and then suddenly laughed. He stood up, stretched his slightly stiff joints, and joked, "Why do I feel that even if we disagree on exchanging hostages, Lanco Boyle has already achieved his goal?"
Gessa said furiously, "Flies don't bite seamless eggs. At the root, isn't it because we have problems ourselves? So we must make a decision quickly, the longer we delay, the bigger the problem becomes! Moving forward will solve it!"
Thinking of the results of the voting earlier in the day, Gessa felt extremely annoyed, "Why didn't you support me today?"
"Don't rush, listen to me," Winters turned around, his previous carefree attitude completely gone. He looked directly at Gessa Adonis, spiritedly asking, "Since you've already heard the conditions from Jansen Cornelius, why not hear the price I'm offering you?"
Gessa was bewildered, frowning instinctively.
Winters extended one finger, "First, I need you to agree to establish the Newly Reclaimed Outlands, we can temporarily refrain from granting full citizenship to the Hurders there, but there must be a timeline for granting them full citizenship."
Gessa's brows knitted into a frown, but he did not speak, enduring as he listened further.
Winters extended another finger, "Second, I need you to support Lieutenant Bard as the Speaker of the National Assembly and support Kai Morland as the Deputy Speaker. Don't worry about the 'Separation Law,' Major Bard's retirement application has been submitted."
Gessa's expression had turned somewhat strange, but he still didn't speak.
Winters extended a third finger, "Third, I need you to agree to release Colonel Gaspar and his men and allow them to return to Jiangbei Province. The transportation can be my responsibility, you don't have to worry about it."
Ignoring Colonel Gessa's increasingly grim expression, Winters extended a fourth finger, "Fourth, I need you to agree to Major Magash Colvin's plan, allowing him to lead an independent army, use 'appropriate' forces, to 'conquer' the Northern Foothills Province and open a route connecting to Vineta."