The Fourth Disaster Begins at the Dawn of the Millennium

However...Although Sierra Leone has abundant water resources and the light and heat conditions can meet the requirements of three crops a year, there is basically no water conservancy infrastructure and it is a rain-fed agriculture. During the dry season every year, most of the land is in a fallow state due to drought and little rain.

This is also the situation that this Chinese agricultural expert is worried about. Due to the serious lag in rural infrastructure, such as the lack of guaranteed rural electricity energy, insufficient seasonal water supply, difficulty in drinking water for people and livestock, poor road conditions, especially branch lines and roads in remote areas, and backward construction of grassroots farmers' markets, farmers face many difficulties in the storage, processing, transportation and sales of agricultural products.

On the way, experts noticed that due to inconvenient transportation, some ordinary farmers were unable to transport their surplus agricultural products to agricultural trade centers where the prices were higher. They either had to rely on middlemen to purchase the products at their homes or sell them cheaply on the roadside. This greatly affected the farmers' agricultural product trading and income-generating activities, which in turn further affected the farmers' production input in the next round of agricultural activities.

"This is indeed a big problem. If these most basic problems are not solved, even the best hybrid rice will not produce a high yield. However, recently, a company called the Sierra Leone Development Corporation is helping to solve this problem."

"Oh, that's great. Anyway, it's good to help farmers solve practical problems..."

Before leaving Beijing, the agricultural expert from China also heard about the story of Sierra Leone and "blood diamonds". He thought that in Sierra Leone, all businesses were focused on the profitable diamond business, and no one cared about the nearly two-thirds of the country's agricultural population. "Oh, I was overthinking it. Someone in Sierra Leone invited us to come, so there must be people in this country who care about agriculture and farmers..."

Chapter 210: Covered in the Skin of "Imperialism"

"We have repeatedly ignored Africa's attractive market potential and handed over the benefits to Europe's former colonial powers. After the end of the Cold War, the government did not introduce a trade policy for Africa to expand our economic interests in Africa. The United States' trade with Africa accounts for only 1% of its total foreign trade; the return on investment in Africa is 33%, much higher than other parts of the world, while the United States' direct investment in Africa accounts for only 8% of its total foreign investment. The government must reconsider its trade policy toward Africa and must change its attitude toward African trade. Only by expanding trade with Africa and increasing investment in Africa can we seize the historical opportunity for Africa's development."

The angry voices come from reports that a section of the American business community engaged in US-Africa trade is angry about Washington's inaction in Africa.

For a long time after the end of the Cold War, the United States did not pay attention to the African market. The trade volume between the United States and Africa, especially the trade in non-energy products, grew slowly. Compared with the trade between the United States and the North American Free Trade Area, the trade relationship between the United States and Africa is really insignificant. Even though there are constant calls for Washington to pay attention to US-Africa trade, Washington always responds: "Africa is not attractive to our investors. The continuous war has led to market fragmentation, and it is difficult for private bank investments to find a sense of security in the turbulent African market............"

Apart from economic interests, the United States does not think that Africa occupies a very important position in its geopolitical strategy. After the end of the Cold War, tribal conflicts, religious conflicts, and border disputes that were originally concealed in the context of the US-Soviet confrontation all came to the fore, but the United States believed that the unrest in African countries did not pose a threat to US national security, so it adopted a "marginalization" policy on African security affairs.

In 1993, the United States abolished a number of scientific research institutions studying African issues. In 1994, Congress merged the Africa Subcommittee into the Asia-Pacific Subcommittee. In April 1994, the Rwanda genocide broke out. The United States was one of the first countries to receive intelligence about the massacre, but it always took a wait-and-see attitude. The United States not only avoided sending troops, but also tried its best to avoid using the word "genocide" to avoid the responsibility of taking rescue actions stipulated in the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide adopted by the United Nations in 4.

Especially after the failure of its military intervention in the Somali civil war, the United States has avoided African security affairs. It is unwilling to be directly and excessively involved in regional conflicts in Africa, and instead emphasizes that African problems should be solved by Africans themselves.

"Washington doesn't care about Africa, but someone does!" The CEO of a company doing oil business in Africa complained because his business was screwed. At this time, the boss of Giant God comforted him: "Yes, my friend, it's all because of Washington's indifference to Africa. Otherwise, how could the oil exploration rights originally in your company's hands fall into the hands of the French? If Giant God was deployed locally, the situation would definitely not be so bad."

As the report says, the biggest challenge the United States faces in the African market comes from former colonial countries, from "Old Europe."

The special historical and geographical connection between Europe and Africa makes African countries prefer European, especially French goods and services. After the end of the Cold War, the European allies of the United States no longer have to worry about the Soviet Union's steel torrent, so there is no need to follow the footsteps of the United States. Especially the "filial son" France, which has launched a fierce competition with the United States in African trade, and France often has the upper hand.

For example, the CEO who just complained to the boss of Giant God was in charge of a project in a small African country. In the past, the pro-American president continued to increase taxes on French oil companies and gave some oil mining rights to American companies, which led to strong dissatisfaction in France. Therefore, France provided a large amount of military funding to the anti-government armed forces. After the opposition seized power, France regained the oil mining rights from American companies.

In addition to this shameful operation in private, France has also been pushing for an open power struggle.

France has always attached great importance to Africa, not only in terms of development aid to French-speaking Africa, but also in terms of expanding its sphere of influence beyond French-speaking Africa to the whole of Africa. By the 90s, France's aid to Africa had surpassed that of the United States. Moreover, many African countries were more willing to accept aid from France than from the United States.

Because compared with the United States, although France also proposed that its aid to Africa is aimed at promoting democratization in Africa, it did not make "democratization" a political condition for providing aid as strong as the United States. France requires African countries to work towards "democratization", but the stage and speed are determined by each African country. France believes that democracy in Africa cannot be rushed, and there must be a process of development. There is no "timetable" or "reference model". Therefore, France's attitude towards "democratization" in Africa is generally welcomed by African countries.

The United States' influence and control in Africa are being squeezed in all directions by external forces, not just from "Old Europe". There are also many other competitors on the African continent, such as emerging China.

During the Cold War, China provided a large amount of aid to Africa, sending a large number of technicians in various fields including agricultural technology, communication technology, and medical and health care to Africa to help African countries with economic and social construction. After the end of the Cold War, China continued to provide aid to Africa and support its development. China's aid principles of "non-interference in internal affairs" and "no conditions attached" are more attractive to African countries. Compared with China's aid policy of "no political conditions attached", the United States and the International Monetary Fund always attach political conditions when providing aid to African countries.

The US's "marginalization" policy towards Africa after the Cold War has been criticized more and more. Businessmen and politicians in the United States have criticized that "the US policy towards Africa is the same as the early slave trade, the hegemony tool during the Cold War, and the indifference to the genocide in Rwanda and Burundi in the early days after the Cold War." As time is about to enter the new millennium, old Europe, China and even Russia are entering the blank areas in Africa that the United States has voluntarily given up, which makes the United States feel uneasy and worried that the traditional advantages of the United States in Africa will be squeezed out. Therefore, under the dual pressure from both inside and outside, the US government finally began to re-evaluate its post-Cold War Africa policy.

Those companies and non-profit organizations that have business dealings in Africa and whose interests are closely related to Africa have finally seen a new dawn. They have taken advantage of the victory to come up with more lobbying funds, mobilize more connections, and create a greater momentum to exert influence on the White House and Congress, prompting the government to pay more attention to Africa. These companies, organizations and their connections have also temporarily become supporters of Giant God Company...

To do business in Africa, you can do without guns, but you cannot live without guns.

In the late 90s, China was perhaps the only late-competitor in the turbulent Africa that still underestimated the risks of doing business in Africa. The European and American view of the Chinese coming to Africa was: “How dare they come to do business without guns?”

Europe and the United States are both "old players" who have been deeply involved in Africa. They are the ones who destroyed the "ecology" of this place. They are also very aware that if they do business in this area without military support, they are likely to become fat sheep to be slaughtered. If your guns are not strong enough, or you are not quick enough to mobilize, then your business is likely to become someone else's wedding dress, just like the American brother who lost the oil exploration rights to the French.

In history, Americans marched westward with guns, and now, when they want to return to Africa, they will certainly not forget the tradition of carrying guns. But you can't expect the US military to protect your business all the time, that's unrealistic, so anyone who wants to expand their business in Africa will become a supporter of Giant God, which hopes to do more business in Africa.

After all, you don't want to be eating hot pot and singing in Africa, and suddenly your business falls into the hands of the French.

This time, Giant God did not need to take the lead. Someone helped to spread the word in the White House and Congress. When the wording was just right, a document called "African Contingency Operations Training Assistance Program" was submitted. The content was to help African countries establish effective reserve peacekeeping forces (from the incident of hostages of peacekeeping forces, the combat effectiveness of peacekeeping forces of many African countries, including Kenya, was too poor). The purpose was to incorporate these African countries into the global anti-terrorism system led by the United States and prevent terrorist organizations from taking root in turbulent African countries. For example, in Somalia, the sad place of the US military, "Al-Qaeda" can easily enter and exit Somalia and find a hiding place in Somalia. Somalia's long coastline provides a strong cover for the smuggling of personnel and arms by "Al-Qaeda".

Of course, this job is complicated and troublesome. The United States can completely outsource specific projects, but who can take it on? For this, we have to solemnly recommend Jushen Company, a "responsible patriotic enterprise" that "has a pleasant cooperation with the UN Security Council."

Unfortunately, at this time, the major political forces in Washington are not very interested in this proposal. Now, both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party are busy preparing for the new presidential election, and the African issue will not be of much help in winning votes.

Perhaps, it will take until a terrorist organization launches a serious bombing in the United States before the whole country realizes how damn correct the anti-terrorism proposal put forward by Giant God Corporation before was.

Chapter 211 Rain, Please Come to Africa (End of "West Africa" ​​Chapter)

"If the government is not prepared to deploy more military forces in Africa to defend US interests, then it should at least agree to allow responsible US military contractors to conduct more extensive business in Africa. If you don't fill the gaps, other forces will fill the gaps. There is evidence that Makarov, a figure who showed iron-fisted methods in the Chechen War, has established a military organization called Wagner, which is supported by the Kremlin. Wagner has quietly entered African countries that once had close ties with the Soviet Union, which poses a huge challenge to US interests in Africa!"

Neither the Democratic nor the Republican parties, who are preparing for the election, are very interested in supporting the "African Contingency Operations Training Assistance Program", so Colossus Company took a back seat and began to exaggerate the "Russian Danger Theory" to Washington, saying that "the Russian bear's claws have already extended into Africa"... However, this time, the players obviously forgot the background of the times. What is the current situation of Russia? How can it be compared with the Russia that "shows its might" in Georgia, Crimea and Syria?

For the White House, exaggerating the "Russian threat theory" is a means to unite NATO member states, but it is useless in winning votes domestically. Unless one has interests in Africa, no one has the motivation to interfere in African affairs.

However, since both the Democratic and Republican parties are unwilling to offend the American political and business circles engaged in African business, they will not prevent the companies under the OneWorld Group from conducting African business. After all, no one can say whether the United States will need the influence and control of the OneWorld Group in Africa to deal with old Europe, Russia and China in the future.

So whether you are a so-called xx national development company or a security company providing military services, whether you are engaged in local military services, commercial activities, mineral development, cross-border trade... In short, as long as you don't cause trouble for the US government to clean up, you can freely explore and develop wildly in Africa...

The rain poured down like a waterfall, hitting the iron roof violently, making a deafening sound. The entire sky was covered by heavy dark clouds, and occasionally lightning flashed across the sky, briefly illuminating the surrounding scene. Inside the house, a soldier from the United Nations peacekeeping force who entered Sierra Leone for the first time wrote on the paper with a pen in his hand, and his handwriting was occasionally interrupted by the sound of rain:

"This morning, in a relief station in Sierra Leone, I saw a man with both arms chopped off, a woman with only one hand chopped off, and several men with one arm chopped off. The parts of each person's body that were chopped off were different, whether it was the wrist, the arm, or the middle of the arm, it all depended on the rebels' mood at the time. One of the women's wrists was not completely chopped off, and a part of it was still connected, so she ran away holding her bloody wrist. It was not until three days later that the connecting tendon and bone part was rubbed off on a sharp stone...

I couldn't help but touch my wrists and arms, thankful that they were intact. The rebels also committed unimaginable crimes: betting on whether a pregnant woman was pregnant with a boy or a girl, and then actually cutting open the woman's belly and taking out the fetus to verify... There was also a woman who left her elderly mother behind and went to seek refuge alone. However, she still felt guilty, so she returned to the village, only to see her mother's head rolling on the ground... "

Those soldiers who set out from their relatively stable and peaceful homeland for the first time to join the peacekeeping force were all shocked by the scene in Sierra Leone. Out of the most simple emotions, they pitied the suffering people and hated the culprits who brought about the tragedy. However, the first batch of peacekeeping comrades who entered Sierra Leone did not get off to a good start. Not only did they fail to stop the atrocities of the RUF, but they were kidnapped by the RUF. Having written this, the peacekeeping soldier wrote in the letter about the foreign aid that the United Nations temporarily brought in:

"I never thought that I would become a comrade in the trenches with a group of mercenaries. There are rumors that they did not fully adhere to the principle of neutrality in peacekeeping operations and took active offensive military actions against the RUF. But from my personal point of view, since the RUF openly kidnapped the peacekeeping troops, they should be prepared to pay the price. I can only say that Giant God Company did a good job!

..........Now, I still don't know how long I will be in Sierra Leone for peacekeeping missions, nor how long the UN peacekeeping mission will last. I heard from my superiors that the UN will not withdraw until Sierra Leone can sustain itself as a normal country. I hope that day will come sooner. Speaking of this, I have to mention a company called the Sierra Leone National Development Corporation. Dear, can you believe it? This company actually tried to manage this country as a business.........."

A Chinese agricultural expert who was caught in the same rain as the peacekeeper was hiding under the eaves of a house. The heavy rain was pouring down like a water tank overturned by the heavens. Suddenly, a furry figure jumped out from the bushes. It turned out to be a giant African rat. It was wet all over, just like a towel just out of the washing machine.

It was the first time for the expert to see such a big rat. For some reason, the expert took out a banana from his pocket and carefully held it out. The giant rat stared with puzzled eyes, then suddenly pounced forward, grabbed the banana, peeled the banana in no time, and ate it with relish. After eating the banana, the giant rat licked its paws with satisfaction, and then cast an expectant look at the expert. The expert spread his hands helplessly: "Sorry, there is no more in my pocket."

The giant rat sighed in disappointment, turned around and slid back into the bushes. "Hey, are you trying to deepen the friendship between China and Africa here?"

The speaker is a member of Giant God Security, a player, and an instructor of the Sierra Leone government army (Giant God proposed in the "African Contingency Operations Training Assistance Program" to help African countries establish effective reserve peacekeeping forces, and it must first be piloted in some countries). However, compared with the usual cheerful appearance of this Chinese agricultural expert, the character in the game has a numb face since taking over the job of training the government army, and the players in front of the screen are even more numb.

The Giant God employee who can speak Chinese (most NPCs don't speak Chinese, but players can switch to different language channels and behave like they are proficient in multiple languages) is one of the few friends that the Chinese agricultural expert can chat with. The player also came under the eaves to take shelter from the rain and complained about the government troops he led: "When the RUF attacked before, these government troops enthusiastically accepted our training, whether it was weapons and equipment training or ideological and political education..."

"Wait a minute? Are you doing ideological and political education?"

"Oh, listen to me. They were quite enthusiastic at the beginning. Now, the RUF is gone, and it was gone too quickly. The United Nations has also come in. The Sierra Leone government feels that it is in good shape again. The attitude of the government army towards our training is not as good as before. Damn it, the enthusiasm before was all an act! They are only interested in our military equipment..."

Perhaps what the players taught was "common" to them, but it was too shocking to the government army, especially the officers. They said that the army should serve the people, and the army should not only strictly abide by discipline on the battlefield, but also in daily life, and abide by discipline with the people (in fact, it is not too much, just requiring the government army not to eat free meals, not to rape women, and not to take the "needle and thread" of the people, which is a basic requirement in some capitalist countries). But the officers of the government army obviously have their own views. They think that the army is the father of the people, the people should serve the army, the officers are the father of the people, and the mass discipline is to set discipline for the masses, and those who violate it will be punished.

"Damn it, it's strange that you bugs can beat the RUF! If the RUF is Zhang Xianzhong, you are Chiang Kai-shek... Well, maybe Giant God Company and Sierra Leone National Development Corporation should find an opportunity to carry out a major purge in Sierra Leone, and replace us with our own people. But we have to do it in a nice way, so as not to let the United Nations and other forces target us..."

Although the player did not tell the Chinese agricultural expert about the internal consensus of the Universal Group, he could tell from the players' complaints that the Sierra Leone government forces were in a hopeless situation. He thought about it and advised:

"Many years ago, my mentor also came to Africa to support them in agricultural construction. My mentor thought he had passed on all his skills, but after the farming team left the aided area, agricultural production soon came to a standstill, and even returned to the era of slash-and-burn farming. It was a situation of 'quick start, quick results, and quick decline'. The same is true for industry and education. Don't expect your African friends to learn what you teach quickly, and don't expect all Africans to be willing to learn, just like you can't teach the emperor to become a public servant. It's impossible for others to learn your way. Many times, it's just wishful thinking on our part..."

"Then... brother, why are you here again? Is the subsidy you get a lot?" "Because, the work our mentor's generation did in Africa was not completely lost. Although many projects failed, some were successful. Not everything is successful. It's nothing more than summing up experience, learning lessons, and trying again..."

Chapter 212 Will we have our own Yan'an? (Beginning of "India")

The streets of Freetown were dusty. Although the debris left by the war had not been completely cleared, there was no trace of war on the faces of Sierra Leoneans. Sierra Leoneans love music. Whenever they hear music, men, women, young and old will dance, whether on the street or at the beach. Even the thatched bars were packed with people, singing and dancing to the music. When the new millennium was about to arrive, high-decibel music was played on the streets, and the Sierra Leoneans who were slowly reading on the streets danced together. The scene was spectacular. Sierra Leoneans seemed to believe that as long as there was music, life would continue.

For the peacekeepers and the Giant God security guards stationed here, any reason to temporarily forget the pressure of peacekeeping is worth celebrating, not to mention the beginning of a new millennium. On the night before the new millennium, the peacekeepers who stayed in Freetown gathered in the canteen. Although the canteen building was not luxurious, but was built with simple iron sheets and wood, and the incandescent lamps hanging on the roof had no sense of existence during the day, at night, their light became the only bright spot in the darkness.

Peacekeepers from India, Kenya and other countries have arrived one after another. Although they are far away from home, they temporarily put down the burden on their shoulders on this special day, communicating with each other in different languages, occasionally bursting into hearty laughter. Not far away, soldiers from Giant God Company also arrived one after another. They also walked into the cafeteria in a relaxed manner, ready to join this cross-border celebration.

The interior of the canteen has been simply decorated, with ribbons and some hand-painted greeting cards hanging on the walls, and food from different countries on the tables. Indian soldiers brought spiced curry and naan, while Kenyan soldiers prepared traditional ugali. The members of the Giant God Company contributed canned food they could find and some fresh fruits purchased locally.

Soldiers found their seats in the canteen, sat at long tables, and shared food and stories with each other. The air was filled with the aroma of food and the sound of relaxed conversation. The commander of the peacekeeping force from India raised a drink and said in a thick Indian accent: "We are here, far away from home, but today, we are all one family."

At the dinner table, people all started talking about their hometowns, their relatives and interesting things in their hometowns, but they might also be talking about bad things. The Indian commander talked about his hometown. When his comrades were still at the dinner table, he could only talk about his wife and children and interesting things at home. But when everyone was drunk or left the table to play cards, facing an employee of Giant God Company and other outsiders, the commander talked about his troublesome brother and the troublesome things in his hometown:

"I am a Central Reserve Police Officer of India. I deal with riots and terrorism for my country and have been sent abroad to participate in peacekeeping missions. But my brother joined the guerrillas and pointed his gun at people like me. I have always felt that those Maoist guerrillas are much more difficult to deal with than the RUF in Sierra Leone."

India is a country of poor people, but it is not a poor country.

"In a country where one-fifth of the people live under the shadow of insurgency, this is a war more difficult than Kashmir. India's richest land, home to its poorest people, will become the country's main conflict zone. Maoist armed forces are rapidly expanding, covering more than 100 regions in India. Thousands of Maoist guerrillas are fighting bloody battles with government forces. There is not a day that India's land is not watered with blood by its sons and daughters. Since independence, India has made certain progress in all aspects, but in some aspects, most people have been abandoned by the times, and the gap between the rich and the poor is getting bigger. A quarter of the country's wealth is concentrated in the hands of 75 families. At the same time, 40% of the people earn less than cents a day."

Delhi is a city obsessed with power, where a handful of people decide the fate of billions of other people from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. In the morning, the air in Delhi is filled with the chill of the approaching winter, mixed with the noise and filth of the city. Before the sun has completely dispelled the night's gloom, the day has already begun in the Moraband extension area of ​​Badarpur. This place is more like a man-made jungle than a community, consisting of countless makeshift shacks, narrow alleys and sewage-filled roads.

As soon as the day dawned, the whole area began to boil. Thousands of people poured out of their simple homes. Most of them were migrant workers from rural areas who had to leave their hometowns to make a living and come to this strange and indifferent metropolis. They rode on worn-out bicycles and swarmed towards factories and construction sites like a swarm of locusts.

Rajesh is one of them. He comes from a small village in Uttar Pradesh. In order to raise money for his father's cataract surgery, he came to Delhi alone to work. At this moment, he rode the old bicycle that had accompanied him for many years, shuttling through the crowded streets. The bicycle seat had long been tattered, revealing the sponge inside, but Rajesh had no extra money to repair it. His eyes were full of fatigue and anxiety, because he had just received a call from home last night and learned that his father's condition had worsened.

Next to Rajesh is his roommate Anup, who works as an assembler in the same factory. Anup is a few years younger than Rajesh, but fine lines have appeared at the corners of his eyes, which are the marks left by long-term overtime and hard work. Anup has an unmarried sister at home, and the family expects him to save enough money to prepare a decent dowry for his sister.

On their way, they often encounter potholes and obstacles. Sometimes it is a pile of garbage that has not been cleared in time, and sometimes it is a stray cow crossing the road. They skillfully avoid these obstacles, as if this has become a part of their daily life. There is an unpleasant smell in the air, which is a mixture of garbage, sewage and people. But for the residents here, this smell has long been commonplace.

At the end of the road is a huge factory, which is noisy and hot inside. The roar of the machines constantly hits the workers' eardrums. Rajesh stands in front of his workbench, skillfully assembling parts. He moves quickly because he knows that speed means more income. But even so, his salary is still pitifully meager. Whenever he thinks of his father at home who is waiting for surgery, he feels sad.

During lunch break, workers gathered in an open space outside the factory. They took out simple lunches from worn lunch boxes, mostly dry flatbreads and curry. Rajesh sat in a corner, eating lunch while calculating his income and expenditure for the month. The prices of food and daily necessities were rising, but his salary remained the same. He frowned, not knowing how to strike a balance between sending money home and maintaining his own life.

The afternoon was even busier. The temperature in the factory continued to rise as time went by, and sweat soaked the workers' clothes. Rajesh felt his arms begin to ache, but he didn't dare to slow down. This kind of work didn't end until the evening. The workers walked out of the factory tiredly and rode their bicycles again. On the way home, the small vendors on both sides of the street began to get busy. The air was filled with the aroma of various foods, but most of the workers just hurried past and didn't have the energy to stop and buy.

Rajesh and Anup returned to their rented hut. It was a room of less than 10 square meters, with four beds and eight people living in it. There were some traces of mold in the corners. But for them, this was the best place they could afford. For dinner, Anup bought a few cheap curry packs from a nearby stall. They simply filled their stomachs with the leftover rice from yesterday.

After dinner, a group of workers sat in front of an old TV. Normally, the workers would watch some boring soap opera, but no one was really watching. Everyone was worried about their lives. But today, they were watching a news program. In the TV studio, a group of politicians, retired soldiers, paramilitary personnel and police, and civil rights activists discussed the "Maoist insurgency." "Is it a socio-economic problem or just a law and order problem? Can it be solved by military means? Are we ready to pay the price? How far are the Maoists from our city? Is economic development the only way to solve the Maoist problem? Or should military action and development go hand in hand?"

These politicians, ex-servicemen, paramilitary personnel and policemen sweat almost every day because there are incidents every day. Like a police team is ambushed, a police car is blown up by an IED, a politician is killed. Then, there are people who are accused of being Maoists and killed, women are raped by special police, most of whom are later proved to be innocent civilians.

Rajesh returned to his bed, took out a worn notebook, and began to calculate his income and expenses for the month. He carefully checked every expense, hoping to save more money to send home.

However, after he made the calculation, he became even more upset. His salary did not increase, but his working hours did increase. He still ate the same amount every day, but food prices did increase, which made his budget even tighter. If he wanted to raise money for his father's surgery, he would have to cut back further.

Chapter 213 Maoists

It was the beginning of another new day. After arriving at the factory, Rajesh found that the workload today was heavier than usual. Several workers were fired due to the last-in-first-out system, so the others had to take on more work. Rajesh silently accepted this arrangement because he knew that if the wages were calculated by piecework, doing more work meant earning more.

The working hours seemed to get longer. Rajesh's hands kept moving, assembling one part after another. His mind kept flashing back to his father's blurry eyes, his mother's hunched back, and his sister's eyes longing for school.

During lunch break, Rajesh noticed that Anup did not look well, so he asked Anup how he was doing.

Anup shook his head, "I feel a little feverish, but I dare not ask for leave. You know, if I work a few days less, this month's salary will not be enough to send home. If I take too many days off, I will be fired......"

Rajesh frowned. Getting sick is a luxury here. Without health insurance or paid sick leave, getting sick often means loss of income, or even the possibility of losing your job.

The afternoon work was even harder. The temperature in the factory seemed higher than usual, and the air was filled with the smell of oil and sweat. Anup next to him was in even worse condition. His face was pale, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. Rajesh looked at him worriedly, but there was nothing he could do except help him get a glass of water.

Another day's work ended in a trance. Rajesh helped the weak Anup back to their residence. The room was hot and stuffy. Other roommates came back one after another, and the room suddenly became crowded. When it was late at night, snoring sounded in the room. Rajesh lay on the bed, looking at the mottled ceiling. He remembered the nights in his hometown when he was a child, where there were bright stars. Now, he could only spend sleepless nights in this small and stuffy room, listening to the breathing of people around him.

"There is no other way. I have to work so hard to make more money and to make my family live a better life..." However, when Rajesh once again had this thought and wanted to convince himself to fall asleep with peace of mind, he thought about it and found that no matter how hard he struggled, he could not make more money. Compared to when he first came to the factory, he is now a skilled worker. The number of products he makes every day has doubled compared to when he first came, but has his salary doubled? No, it just increased a little bit.

Rajesh thought of an incident that happened in the factory today. A man who looked like a professor somehow bypassed the security guards and sneaked into the factory. Then, when everyone gathered together for lunch at noon, he got a loudspeaker and gave an impromptu speech in front of everyone:

"Brothers and sisters, listen to me! I know you work hard every day, but you can't even afford a decent Dal (a stew or soup made from various beans, lentils or peas, with spices). The factory owners lower the piece rate and want to fire us. They eat fat meat, but we only have bones to gnaw. But we are not powerless! Think about how Gandhi united our ancestors and drove away the British. If we unite, we can be as powerful as Lord Shiva! Stop working for the bosses! Don't be deceived by their sweet words! We poor people will have no chance of success unless we organize ourselves into a union! Organize a strike!"

Soon, the security guards who heard the news rushed over with sticks. What surprised Rajesh was that the man who looked gentle and like a professor was as agile as a monkey to avoid the security guards' pursuit and escape from the factory.

Like Rajesh, many workers did not listen to the words of this "professor", but his appearance still brought a little more change to the workers' numb assembly line life day after day. If there had not been this very short speech today, what would be the difference between today and every day at work in the past? Therefore, Rajesh and his fellow workers really want to see that man again. At least it makes life a little more interesting.

"Will he come again tomorrow?"

Time goes back to a few hours ago. The sky is a suffocating orange-red. The sun is like a huge fireball, slowly sinking into the horizon. In this noisy evening, an inconspicuous car is parked at the entrance of a remote alley. There are three people sitting in the car. The atmosphere is tense and dull. The deputy superintendent of the Special Intelligence Department is sitting in the driver's seat. His fingers are tapping the steering wheel nervously, and his eyes are constantly scanning back and forth between the rearview mirror and the car window.

In the back seat, sandwiched between two police officers, was a thin middle-aged man. If you didn't know his identity, who would have thought that such an ordinary man was once a dangerous Maoist? However, he has now "turned over a new leaf" and chosen to serve the government. The man's eyes kept scanning back and forth between the car window and his watch, his expression nervous and urgent. He was the only one who could recognize the person they were waiting for.

The air in the car was getting hotter and hotter, and sweat soaked the clothes of the three people. The deputy superintendent adjusted his collar and tried to let himself breathe. He turned his head, stared at the figure of the man in the rearview mirror, and asked: "Are you sure he will come?" The man nodded quickly, his Adam's apple rolled up and down, and his voice was a little hoarse: "Yes, sir. He will definitely come. This is their monthly secret meeting."

"You better not lie to us. If this operation fails, you know the consequences."

Time passed minute by minute, and the deputy superintendent felt his patience was wearing thin. He checked his watch again, and it was nearly two hours. Just as he was about to ask, the man in the back seat suddenly sat up straight, his eyes fixed on the entrance to the alley.

"Here he comes!" the man said in a low, hurried voice, "It's the man in the blue shirt!"

The deputy superintendent and his colleagues immediately became alert, their eyes locked on the entrance to the alley. Sure enough, a tall and thin man was slowly walking into the alley. He was wearing a faded blue shirt and an old baseball cap on his head. He kept looking around as he walked, appearing very cautious.

"Be prepared for action. Remember, we want to capture him alive. He is an important Maoist leader in this area."

The police in the car and the police lying in ambush nearby were ready to rush out at any time. They held their breath and waited for the target to approach.

But, as expected, something unexpected happened.

A car suddenly accelerated and rushed towards the man in the blue shirt, almost hitting him, but fortunately it didn't really hit him. The man in the blue shirt reacted quickly and almost ran away, but the people in the car reacted even faster, and they caught the man like a chicken and put him into the car, then closed the door and evacuated.

This made the deputy superintendent in the car feel numb. His first reaction was to pick up the intercom and ask: "Which bastard action team took the initiative?"

"No, not us..."

No, we didn’t move. “That doesn’t look like our guy!” “Damn it, he got intercepted! Chase him!”

Chapter 214: India Infiltrated by NGOs

The suburbs of Delhi were completely dark. In the darkness of the slums, only a few dim lights were trembling. The air was filled with damp and musty smells, mixed with the stench of garbage and sewage. Only by looking at the places where the rich live can you see the brilliant lights of the city. Although the distance between the two sides is not far, those places are still an unattainable dream for people in the slums.

While the police from the Special Intelligence Division were frantically searching everywhere, in a shabby hut, the Maoist Singh who had escaped under the police's noses was having a secret meeting with a representative of a foreign NGO. There was only a weak light from a kerosene lamp in the room, casting a swaying shadow on the wall. Singh was a thin but determined middle-aged man, his face full of wrinkles left by years and hardships. At this moment, he was introducing the current situation to these foreign friends.

“The government has recently launched a massive ‘clean-up’ operation to impress foreigners at the upcoming India International Trade Fair. They are going to demolish these slums, cover the area with huge billboards and drive the poor back to their hometowns,” Singh said. “The last two things Delhi wants are monkeys and poor people. Delhi once stuffed its monkeys into municipal vans and sent them to the wilderness in other states. Now, for the sake of Delhi’s respectability, thousands of people will be displaced and then Delhi will similarly send its poor to other states.”

The slums that the government wants to demolish are the homes of tens of thousands of poor workers. If the government really does this, it will inevitably cause huge social unrest. Singh paused and took a deep breath: "But our comrades think that this may be an opportunity. We can use this to develop our cause and inspire more young laborers and workers to transform their anger into meaningful actions."

By the second half of the 20s, India's Maoist armed forces had developed a mature way of fighting in its poor rural areas, because India's rural areas were similar to the rural areas of old China in many aspects.

For example, both India and old China have serious land inequality problems, and there are obvious class and caste contradictions in the social structure, similar to the class differentiation in rural areas of old China. Large landlords and rich peasants control a large amount of land, while most farmers have no land or little land. In old China, landlords and rich peasants exploit poor farmers and hired farmers through land leasing and high rents; while in India, the caste system often enables high-caste groups to control economic resources and thus exploit the labor of low-caste groups. This situation has led to widespread poverty and dissatisfaction, and social contradictions have provided the Maoists with a basis for mobilization and organization. Therefore, the Maoists have attracted the support of many poor farmers by advocating land reform and redistribution of land.