amaotonovel Chapter 1368 Respect the fate of others
Chapter 1368 Respect the fate of others
"My fate is inextricably linked with this city and with each and every one of you!"
"I could have retreated, but I didn't. Do you know why?"
Shahar spoke excitedly, but no one responded.
Shahar, his voice trembling with emotion, declared, “Because this is our country! And it is also your home! I am guarding our empire, but aren’t you also guarding your homeland? At this moment, how are we any different!”
"What else is there to say, that I should sacrifice you all!"
He pointed to the eastern horizon, the direction from which the East Asian Allied Forces were about to appear, his voice suddenly rising, filled with indignation at being slandered:
"Those flying pieces of paper! Those treacherous schemes of Xiao Ce and Han Da, those East Asians! They used the most despicable lies to try to sow discord among us! To undermine our will! They are afraid! Afraid of our united resistance! Afraid of our invincible divine legion!"
Shahar's voice trembled slightly, his acting was superb:
"They say I abandoned my soldiers? They say I'm a coward? Open your eyes and look at history! Look at how your Tsars acted!"
"At the Ustj Fortress! It was I, the last emperor, who left the burning walls! It was I, the emperor, who, under the cover of the divine messenger, covered the retreat of the warriors, and watched them fight to the last moment! If it weren't for preserving our strength, and for the day I could lead you to revenge, I would have preferred to live and die with Ustj!"
"At Don Fortress!"
He spoke in an even more sorrowful voice, his voice even cracking!
"It was I, the Emperor, who withdrew with the deepest sorrow after the three fearless divine messengers sacrificed themselves to cover the main force's retreat! My eldest son, Nikolaevich Ries, the valiant lion of the Slavs, was surrounded and captured while protecting his father and soldiers! His fate is now unknown! He is my flesh and blood! He is the future Tsar! My heart bleeds every moment!"
When the topic of his eldest son's capture came up, Shahar's eyes welled up with turbid tears. This half-real, half-fake performance was very infectious and made many people's doubts waver a little.
After all, news had indeed come back that Rhys's fate was unknown...
How could someone who would even let their own child lead by example harm him...?
As for the so-called Princess Eva that Xiao Ce mentioned...
Shahar's voice instantly turned into extreme contempt and anger, as if he were uttering a filthy word!
"She is no longer a noble Slavic princess! She is Xiao Ce's woman! She is the most shameful traitor of the Slavic Empire! She betrayed her bloodline, betrayed her father, and betrayed all Slavs! She is willing to grovel at the feet of the enemy, serving as their tool to dismantle and enslave us!"
"Do you want to believe in peace brought by a traitor? That would be a more humiliating shackle than death!"
He suddenly waved his hand, pointing to several "survivors" behind him who had been pre-arranged and were also dressed in ordinary soldier uniforms:
"You don't believe me? Then listen to what the warriors who have truly experienced blood and fire have to say! Listen to what your brothers have to say!"
One of the soldiers immediately stepped forward and shouted excitedly:
“Your Majesty’s words are true! I was evacuated from the Ust Fortress! I saw it with my own eyes! Your Majesty personally wielded his sword and fought on the city walls. During the retreat, it was Your Majesty who carried me, a wounded soldier, out of the pile of corpses! The blood on his body included that of the enemy and that of our brothers! He said, ‘Not one can be missing!’”
These soldiers were naturally placed under Shahar's command, which directly "corresponded" to the illustrations on the leaflets depicting Shahar enjoying himself in the palace.
Another soldier also said, with tears streaming down his face:
"Don Fortress! I am a garrison soldier of Don Fortress! The Divine Envoy fought to the death to protect us! When His Majesty retreated, he turned back every few steps, saluting in the direction of the fortress! He cursed the East Asians as devils! He swore to repay them a hundredfold! His Majesty never abandoned us! It was the East Asians who used their schemes and tricks to kill the Divine Envoy!"
This can be seen as a response to the leaflet's accusation that Shahar sacrificed soldiers in exchange for robot support.
The third soldier was even more indignant: "The pictures on those leaflets are utter bullshit! His Majesty treats us like brothers! He eats the same hard bread and drinks the same cold water as us!"
"He patrols the city's defenses every day and personally bandages the wounded soldiers! The East Asians are afraid! Afraid of our unity! Afraid of the power of the Divine Envoy! That's why they fabricate these vicious lies, trying to make us fight each other, trying to make us lay down our weapons and let them slaughter us! Brothers and sisters! Don't be fooled! Pick up your weapons! Follow His Majesty! Fight these devils!"
These carefully prepared testimonies, coupled with Shahar's image of sharing weal and woe at this moment, and his tragic loss of the fortress and the capture of his eldest son, created a powerful force of persuasion that attempted to counteract the influence of the leaflets.
The immense suspicion and fear that had been stirred up by the leaflets on and around the city walls began to be replaced by a new wave of sympathy for the Tsar's plight, disgust for the traitor Eva, anger at the Federation's conspiracy, and a sense of shared indignation fueled by the testimonies of his comrades.
It must be said that Shahar's smooth combo really played a significant role...
Shahar keenly observed the subtle changes in the emotions of the crowd.
He suddenly drew an ornately decorated sword from his waist, a stark contrast to his plain military uniform, and raised it high!
The sword was pointed directly at the direction of the Federal army, and with all his might, he let out a final, almost frenzied roar, trying to push this emotion to its peak:
"Look! Do you see that?! This is the fear of the devils of the Federation! They fear the unity of us Slavs! They fear our courage to fight for freedom! They fear even more our invincible legion of the divine messengers! They can only use lies and slander to cover up their fear! People! Warriors! Do not be deceived! Open your eyes wide! Grip your weapons tightly!"
"Let everyone in the Federation see! Let Xiao Ce, who's hiding behind a woman's skirt, see! Let that despicable Han Da see! The Slavic heart is still beating! The Slavic spirit will never yield! Where is the Divine Envoy Legion?!"
His final, high-pitched shout, filled with strong suggestion and command, seemed to be summoning the robot army he regarded as his last resort to appear and give the people a final, illusory boost of confidence. At the same time, it was also a signal.
However, just as he finished speaking, the crowd's fervor was forcibly reignited, about to erupt into a deafening roar of "Hurrah!"
A barely perceptible bead of cold sweat appeared on Shahar's forehead.
"Rest assured, everyone, I am with you! But if you choose to abandon your homes, I understand. You can lay down your weapons... There always has to be sacrifices, and I am willing to lead the charge!"
"I, Shahar, will stand until the very last moment..."
As soon as Shahar said this, the entire arena erupted in cheers...
"Your Majesty!!! No..."
An elderly voice, filled with tears and overflowing with sincerity and regret, suddenly burst forth from the crowd, drowning out all the noise.
An elderly man with white hair and beard, dressed in a worn-out scholar's robe, was clearly one of the key caretakers that Shahar had arranged in advance.
Supported by two excited young men, he struggled to reach a spot on the city wall near the foot of Shahar. He looked up, tears streaming down his face, his voice trembling yet unusually clear.
"Your Majesty! My Emperor! Listen to what you're saying!"
The old man beat his chest and stamped his feet, his voice choked with sobs: "You said you would live and die with the capital? You said you would stand on the front line? No! Absolutely not, Your Majesty!"
He pointed sharply to Shahar's old, gunpowder-stained uniform, his voice rising abruptly, filled with urgency:
"Fellow countrymen! Brothers and sisters! We've all been confused! We've been blinded by the tricks of those Federation people! We only see that His Majesty is willing to live and die with us, but we've forgotten the most important thing!"
He surveyed the bewildered crowd around him, their eyes drawn to him, and shouted in a highly inflammatory tone:
"Who is His Majesty Shahar? He is not merely our emperor! He is the symbol of the Slavic Empire! He is the last flame of hope for the Slavic people! He is the only leader who can lead us against the Federation demons and those extraterrestrial evils! His life is a thousand times more precious than all of us combined!"
He looked at Shahar again and cried out almost pleadingly:
"Your Majesty! Heaven and earth bear witness to your courage and determination! But you cannot risk your life yourself! Your presence here certainly inspires us, but what if..."
"What if the East Asians' shells are unpredictable, or those despicable assassins... Your Majesty! If anything happens to you, Slavs will truly be finished! We ordinary people, even if we die in battle today, will only be fulfilling our duty!"
"But you, Your Majesty! You must live! Only if you live will the Slavic backbone not break! Only then will our descendants have hope for revenge! Only then will they have the guiding light to rebuild their homeland!"
"You've already proven yourself with the Ust-Fortress and the Don River Fortress... We can't afford to lose you..."
These words were like a spark thrown into boiling oil, instantly igniting the emotions that had been built up in the crowd by Shahar's speech and the childcare testimony.
"Yes! His Majesty cannot die!"
"His Majesty is our hope! We must protect His Majesty and get him out of here!"
"We deserve to die! Your Majesty must live and lead the Slavs!"
"Protect His Majesty the Tsar!"
The thunderous shouts rang out again, this time with a clear objective, filled with a fervent zeal for self-sacrifice and boundless loyalty to Shahar personally.
Shahar's meticulously planned scheme of using childcare to ignite public sentiment and incite unrest achieved its intended effect at this moment.
He successfully portrayed himself as the nation's hope that needed to be protected, while pushing hundreds of thousands of civilians to the front lines where they were destined to become cannon fodder.
Shahar closed his eyes with emotion, took a deep breath, as if making an incredibly difficult decision.
When he opened his eyes again, only unwavering resolve and determination remained. He addressed the thousands of people below the city, his voice deep and heavy, as if carrying the weight of a thousand pounds:
"Good! Good! My people! Your loyalty, forged with your lives, I will remember it forever! I promise you, for the sake of Slavs, I will cherish this life!"
He suddenly raised his voice, which once again carried the force of a battle cry:
"However, I will never seek refuge in the rear! I will be with you from the command center in the palace! With this city! Remember, do not be misled by the enemy's rumors!"
The more they slander me, the more they prove their fear and incompetence! Grip your weapons tightly, have faith in your strength, have faith in the protection of the divine messengers! Let the Federation people succumb to the walls of our Slavic nation, before your indomitable will! Glory belongs to the Slavs!
"Ula!!!"
"Glory belongs to the Slavs! Glory belongs to His Majesty the Tsar!"
The deafening roar once again echoed through the sky, temporarily suppressing the fear and doubt.
Protected by his guards and watched by countless eyes filled with reverence and resolute determination, Shahar slowly descended the city wall, leaving behind a battlefield ignited by lies and incitement, poised to become a veritable grinder of flesh, for those he had personally pushed into hell...
next day
Inside the Federal Allied Forces' forward camp, Han Da's armored command vehicle was brightly lit.
He had just finished a round of tactical simulations, and his brows were furrowed with seriousness.
A bodyguard entered silently and handed over a small copper tube sealed with wax: "Marshal, urgent report from our spies in the city."
Han Da quickly took it, crushed the wax seal, and poured out the extremely thin strip of paper inside.
By the light, he quickly scanned the document, his expression growing increasingly grim, finally culminating in a cold snort filled with sarcasm and murderous intent.
"Hmph! What a fine show of being with everyone! What a hope for the nation! That old dog Shahar, he's put on a convincing act, even he's moved by his own performance!"
Han Da slammed the note down on the edge of the sand table and said to his adjutant standing to the side, "Go, immediately summon Captain Axe Bull!"
Soon, Axe Bull arrived: "Marshal Han, what is it?"
"Captain Axe Bull, please inform the Prince of this situation immediately!"
Handa spoke very quickly, clearly recounting the entire process described in the subplot: how Shah arranged for the tutelage to incite the people to see him as their only hope and that he had to protect him; how the people were incited again to vow to defend him to the death; and how Shah feigned refusal but ultimately had no choice but to accept and return to the palace to take charge.
"...Shahar, this scoundrel, has already bound the hearts of the entire city's soldiers and civilians to iron, intending to sacrifice the entire city's flesh and blood to buy time for his remaining forces retreating north. His heart is despicable, and his actions deserve to be annihilated!"
After finishing speaking, Axe Ox said to Han Da, "Understood, Marshal Han, please wait a moment, I will immediately forward it to the Prince."
The waiting time wasn't long, but it felt like an eternity to Han Da.
After Axe Bull contacted Xiao Ce, he immediately explained the situation...
After a moment of contemplation, Xiao Ce slowly said, "They were given a chance, but they chose to close their eyes and plug their ears, willingly becoming sacrificial offerings to Shahar on his chariot. Let it rain if it will, let a mother remarry if she wants to; let them be. Don't prioritize the fate of others, don't set aside your compassion for helping others..."