Middle Eastern tyrants

Chapter 143 Turbulent October (Part Two)

Several days had passed before Lu Lin learned what had happened in Beirut.

At first, everyone thought it was just another routine skirmish between the PLO and the Phoenician Maronite faction, but no one expected that this conflict would escalate so rapidly, with the fighting quickly spreading and engulfing the entire city of Beirut.

"Is the Phoenician civil war about to begin so soon?"

Lu Lin put down the intelligence document in his hand and thought to himself.

Beirut is known as the "Little Paris" of the Middle East. It should be the brightest pearl on the Mediterranean coast, with its wealthy people, picturesque scenery, and streets filled with the aroma of coffee and jasmine.

But all of this will be reduced to ashes by a brutal civil war that lasts for fifteen years.

What made Lu Lin even more uneasy was that the time when this catastrophe broke out was five or six years earlier than he remembered.

In fact, he had a feeling that since he transmigrated here, the timing of many major events had not only become more frequent, but the pace had also accelerated dramatically.

It was as if someone was constantly pushing him forward from behind, a silent sense of urgency always followed him.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

“Lieutenant General, His Majesty invites you to the palace,” Fahd’s voice came through: “He said, well, he has something new and interesting to share with you.”

Lu Lin was slightly taken aback. The United States had given him new equipment again?
"Let's go, let's go now."

When Lu Lin arrived at the palace, he found that the core members of the Sudri faction were already there, along with many unfamiliar faces. Several princes nodded in greeting when they saw him.

Hmm, this doesn't look like a new tank!
"Everyone is here!"

King Shams' voice was loud and cheerful. He opened his arms to welcome his invited guests, his face beaming with joy: "Tonight I will show you a magical item that will change the future of Shuangzhi!"

The king wore an exquisite white robe, with gold-embroidered patterns that shimmered under the lights.

Everyone chatted and laughed along the way, and Lu Lin was also curious about what this new gadget his uncle had mentioned was.

They were then led into a reception room, where a large box that Lu Lin was familiar with was prominently displayed in the center.

TV set?
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is television!"

King Shams proudly announced, as if displaying a rare treasure: "From this moment on, we also have our own TV tower, which can not only see what is happening in the distance, but also allow my voice and image to be heard in every corner of Shuangzhi!"

As a time traveler, Lu Lin was naturally familiar with televisions, especially this early model, which had been replaced countless times in his time.

But for now, King Shams was right; the advent of television was indeed a revolutionary product for Shuangzhi.

It is also one of the signs of Shuangzhi's move towards modernity.

The engineer stepped forward and explained the workings of television to the royal family members: "This device receives radio signals, converts the image into electronic signals, and then displays them through a picture tube, thus clearly showing the picture..."

Then the TV screen lit up, the sound gradually increased, and the flickering static gradually coalesced into a clear image.

On the screen, the Shuangzhi army stood in neat formation, and the victory flag fluttered in the wind—it was a report of the battle in which Lu Lin had recently led the troops to victory.

The scene then shifts to King Shams, who is addressing the nation: "...This is a victory bestowed upon us by God, and the beginning of the path to modernization. We will build more roads, ports, hospitals, and schools, making Shuangzhi a prosperous and powerful nation..."

A chorus of discussion and praise erupted from the crowd. Regardless of whether it was their first time seeing it, everyone displayed just the right amount of amazement, which greatly satisfied King Shams's vanity.

Prince Suleiman spoke first: "This is truly amazing, Your Highness! With this, your words can spread throughout the entire country!"

Prince Abdul added, "Moreover, we can also use it to educate the public, spread knowledge, and promptly deliver new government decrees."

Lu Lin watched from the sidelines. Needless to say, the promotion of television definitely needed the support of his uncles behind the scenes.

The Sudri faction represented the "progressives" of Shuangzhi, who hoped to use the enormous wealth gained from oil to propel Shuangzhi into the ranks of modern nations.

When the wartime oil embargo was implemented, the Shuangzhi royal family was prepared to tighten their belts and wage an "energy war" against the colonial empire. However, no one expected that the oil production cuts would instead drive up international oil prices, causing Shuangzhi's revenue to skyrocket, almost ten times that of the previous year!
Taking advantage of this momentum, the Sudri faction, led by King Shams, formulated an ambitious ten-year development plan, aiming to quickly transform Shuangzhi into the prototype of a modern nation.

Television is an important part of Shuangzhi's "modernization".

Just as everyone was enjoying the novelty of television, the screen suddenly started flickering violently, accompanied by piercing noise, and the picture became distorted and unclear.

The engineer rushed forward to adjust the equipment, anxiously checking the connection cables: "Strange, why did the signal suddenly drop?"

Before he could finish speaking, the television screen turned completely into static, emitting a continuous buzzing sound.

The reception room fell silent, and everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.

King Shams frowned. This was so disappointing! The project manager had assured him that there would be no problems!
The engineer (project manager) was sweating profusely as he listened to the whispers behind him and felt the king's tangible gaze.

After testing for so long, why did it have to go wrong at this crucial moment?

I just became the person in charge, don't mess with me!
After searching for a long time, he still couldn't find anything wrong.

"There might be a problem with the connection. I'll go out and check the wiring." The engineer nodded and bowed, and after receiving the king's permission, hurriedly ran out.

"Don't worry, everyone. New technologies always have a few minor issues," King Shams said with a smile, reassuring everyone present.

Since the king didn't say anything, everyone had no choice but to wait in the hall.

About five minutes later, a guard rushed into the reception room and whispered a report in the king's ear.

The smile on King Shams' face gradually disappeared, and he looked at his brothers: "Moody, Suleiman, you guys come with me."

Then his gaze fell on Lu Lin, and he hesitated for a moment: "Amir, you come too."

Lu Lin nodded and followed.

After they left, the palace attendants began to arrange for the other guests to depart. Everyone was curious about what had happened.

Several important Sudri faction figures gathered in a new reception room. King Shams sat somewhat wearily in a chair and gestured for his guards to explain the situation to the princes.

The guard reported, "Just now, Riyadh TV was attacked by armed men led by Prince Hari bin Shams bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. They claimed that television is a 'symbol of moral corruption' and were armed with guns, explosives, Molotov cocktails, and other dangerous weapons, resulting in a fierce firefight with the security forces guarding the TV station."

The reception room fell silent.

Was the TV station attacked?
Lu Lin's expression became quite interesting. How could anyone do such a thing?

Wait a minute, what do I think I heard? "Shams"?
“Harry was originally the son of Prince Turki. In his early years, Prince Turki had a very good relationship with His Majesty, but unfortunately, Turki died young, and his two sons were adopted by His Majesty to raise,” Prince Muhammad explained.

Due to the system of succession by brothers, even if one becomes the king's son, one cannot obtain the right of inheritance. In the dark environment of the Shuangzhi royal family, entrusting one's son to a trustworthy brother is better than having one's family property taken away and dying in political struggles.

Upon hearing this, Lu Lin suddenly realized why his uncle seemed to have suffered such a great blow.

Even if he is an adopted son, he is still a son with blood ties to her, and she has raised him for more than 20 years.

A few minutes later, a new guard officer came in and reported the latest situation: "Report, all the attackers have been killed and the unrest on the street has been quelled."

"Where is Harry?" King Shams looked up.

The guard said gravely, “Prince Harry was tragically killed by a gunshot during the conflict.”

King Shams' body seemed to sway almost imperceptibly.

"elder brother."

The youngest prince, Suleiman, was about to step forward to comfort King Shams when the latter stopped him with his hand.

"You all go out first, let me have some peace and quiet."

Prince Muhammad gave a signal, and the princes left one after another, leaving the room to King Shams.

Before leaving, Lu Lin felt that his uncle seemed to have aged ten years in an instant.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"There must be someone behind this, either those 'other brothers' factions or the church group."

Prince Suleiman shut his mouth. The palace was full of spies. He finally punched the wall and sighed, "It's true that Harry is a conservative Muslim, but how could he have thought of bombing the TV station?"

The other princes also nodded with grim expressions.

Reform is bound to be accompanied by resistance—this they had anticipated, but they never expected that the first real dagger to come would come from within the Sudri faction itself, from a child they had raised who would “betray” his father, the king.

“This must be a huge blow to Brother Shams,” Prince Abdul said in a somber tone. “He is a very sensitive person and easily influenced by others. This may shake his determination to push forward with the reforms.”

"This is not wavering, it's a declaration of war!" Prince Suleiman said bitterly. "Reform is imperative. We must drag out those cowardly enemies and crush them completely!"

But no one responded to these words.

The princes all knew that even if they knew their opponents were other brother factions, tribal factions, and even religions, the scope was still too vast.

Although the Sudri faction controlled the core of power, they were exposed in the open and unable to pinpoint the mastermind behind the scenes.

After a long silence, Prince Mehmed finally set the tone: "The reforms must be pushed forward, and even if some concessions are necessary, we must wait until after the struggle is won before discussing them."

Lu Lin nodded slightly after hearing this. This principle applies to both war and politics.

Prince Mohammed continued, "First of all, Prince Harry is not the traitor who attacked the television station."

As he said this, his gaze swept across the faces of his brothers: "He was a protector who rushed to the scene to bravely resist after learning that extremists were attempting to damage state property and subvert the achievements of modernization."

Remember, he tragically died protecting the television station while fighting against rioters.

The princes were slightly taken aback, then nodded.

That's right, this is the only way to prevent the internal rifts within the Sudri faction from being openly torn apart.

As rulers, the Sudri faction, though in the open, also possessed the power to define "truth," and they had to turn this betrayal into a tragic sacrifice.

If anyone dares to step forward and "tell the truth," then they will become a target for attack.

"Secondly, we need to investigate the source of the weapons and explosives used by the attackers."

Prince Muhammad's voice was calm, but it sent chills down people's spines: "How could a group of unarmed people get their hands on guns? We must follow the trail and purge anyone involved in this matter or who has long harbored resentment towards us, taking this opportunity to do so."

Prince Abdul praised, "This is the only thing Harry can still do for his father."

"We must retaliate swiftly and decisively before the situation escalates, to show everyone that His Majesty Shams still has firm control of the situation."

Finally, Prince Mohammed turned his gaze to Lu Lin, who had been listening in the background.

"This matter is none of your concern; your battlefield is not here. Your most important task is to manage your army."

Lu Lin met the old prince's gaze and immediately understood what he meant.

An invisible war has begun, centered around Shuangzhi's "modernization".

As long as the threat of Zion remains, and his formidable army is stationed in the north, it will be one of the Sudri faction's strongest backing.

Lu Lin nodded and replied simply, "Understood."

(End of this chapter)