Becoming an Emperor Starting from the World of The Wandering Earth

After several seconds, Irving spoke first, "Okay, you've got guts, kid."

He stood up, picked up his glass, and said, "Now that you've put it this way, it would be impolite of us old folks to keep making excuses."

He looked at Sofia, Mia, and Thomas.

"How about it? Want to go crazy with this kid?"

"I'm fine on my end."

"Okay, let's do it this way."

……

The five wine glasses clinked gently in the air, producing a crisp sound.

The banquet lasted for nearly an hour before the crowd gradually dispersed.

Murphy stood at the entrance of the manor, watching several black cars disappear into the night before turning and getting into his own car.

It was almost 1 a.m. when I got back to the factory.

Most of the lights in the office building were off, except for those in the third-floor offices.

Murphy pushed open the door and went in; Garcia was indeed waiting for him.

The old housekeeper stood by the window and only turned around when he heard the door open, his expression somewhat complicated.

Murphy nodded, took off his coat and casually draped it over the back of the chair, then sat down and rubbed his temples.

"Garcia, still not resting so late?"

Garcia didn't respond to that, but instead walked over and stood opposite the desk.

"Sir, I have something to say."

Murphy looked up and glanced at him.

Garcia's expression was serious, even somewhat solemn.

"Speak."

Garcia paused for two seconds, seemingly organizing his thoughts.

"Sir, isn't what you're doing too dangerous?"

As Murphy's old butler, he didn't hide most things from Garcia.

Garcia knew exactly what Murphy was up to tonight.

Despite knowing this in his heart, Garcia was still worried.

As a white man, Garcia had worked for Murphy for over a decade and lived in this country for over sixty years, so he knew all too well the ugly face of white people.

On the surface, everyone is calling for equality and racial integration, but in reality, they've just changed their approach and hidden discrimination even deeper.

The sun is about to explode, UEG is implementing centralized supply, and society is in complete chaos.

That's why they need a partner like Murphy to stabilize the situation and reap the benefits.

But this is only temporary. Once the situation stabilizes, once they feel their position is secure, or once greater benefits are presented to them, they can turn on you at any time.

By then, they won't remember how many benefits Murphy gave them, or how many troubles he helped them resolve.

They will only remember that Murphy was an outcast with yellow skin, an outsider who shouldn't have climbed to their position.

"Garcia, I know what you want to say."

Garcia paused for a moment, "Sir, you..."

"I know who they are, and I know what they are thinking."

Murphy's voice was calm. "Owen and his gang of old foxes, they're all smiles on the surface, but they're shrewder than anyone else. They're helping me now because I can bring them benefits. The day I'm no longer useful, or become a stumbling block for them, they'll be the first to strike."

Garcia opened his mouth as if to say something, but Murphy didn't give him the chance.

"Garcia, you said they're unreliable, and you're right, they really are unreliable. So I'm just using them. I'm truly relying on you guys."

"What I'm doing now is taking advantage of the fact that they're still willing to cooperate with me to expand my influence as much as possible, accumulate resources as much as possible, and make myself as indispensable as possible."

"When they really decide to turn against us, it's hard to say who will crush whom then."

Garcia stood there, looking at Murphy in front of him, and suddenly felt that what he had just said was somewhat superfluous.

This child is more clear-headed and even more... ruthless than he thought.

"Sir, I understand."

Garcia bowed slightly. "I was overthinking it."

Murphy waved his hand.

"Garcia, I know you're doing this for my own good. This factory, this family, has survived to this day thanks largely to you. My father, in heaven, will thank you."

Garcia's eyes reddened slightly, but he quickly regained his calm, butler-like expression.

"Sir, I'll go and rest now. You should also get some sleep."

"Go."

Garcia turned and walked toward the door, but just as he reached the door, Murphy's voice came from behind him again.

"Oh, right, Garcia."

"gentlemen?"

Murphy looked at him, a slight smile playing on her lips.

"I need to keep saying these things in the future. I need someone to remind me to always remember who I am and who those people are."

Garcia paused for a moment, then nodded vigorously.

"Yes, sir."

The door closed gently.

After seeing Garcia off, Murphy shook his head, poured himself a glass of warm water, and took a sip.

As he felt the warmth slide down his throat, Murphy remained unusually clear-headed.

Garcia was right. He knew what those old guys were thinking; they simply wanted both.

They simply want to act as a front man, to make as much money as possible, or to handle some shady matters.

If everything goes well, they have shelters and mutual aid societies as a fallback plan; if problems arise...

At worst, I'll just take the blame upon myself.

In the United States, no matter how high other races rise, white people are ultimately in charge.

As for other ethnic groups, it's nothing more than a political show.

But Murphy didn't care, since he had the Faith Mall.

On the surface, if these peripheral sites were taken over, they could operate them and receive subsidies, as well as dismantle and sell the equipment.

But these are not the most important things.

Most importantly, these sites can serve as extension nodes of Skynet.

Skynet cannot connect to the internet, for fear of being discovered by MOSS.

But what if we controlled each of these sites individually, laid out independent communication lines, and established physically isolated regional networks?

At that time, all data, all movements, and all the slightest disturbances within a radius of several hundred square kilometers around Houston will be fed into Skynet's brain.

And he will be the only one who can see this data.

Of course, Irving and his friends had no idea about any of this.

Murphy finished drinking all the warm water in his hand before speaking softly.

"Skynet".

"Yes, Master."

"Did you hear what Garcia just said?"

"Yes, Master."

"Very good. Make a note of this. Starting today, all financial transactions with the mutual aid association and the business alliance must be analyzed in detail. Report any unusual activity to me immediately."

"Yes, Master. The monitoring protocol has been activated. Currently, none of the four core members of the mutual aid society have exhibited any abnormal behavior. We will continue to monitor them."

Murphy didn't say anything more, just stared at the dark, rainy night outside the window.

After a long while, he stood up and walked to the window.

In the distance, towards downtown Houston, a few faint lights could still be seen.

Murphy was never someone who lived off others.