Yes, Prime Minister of Japan

In addition to promoting products, Major Matteo of the Han Kuang Volunteer Army was interviewed by CNN.

Major Matteo stated righteously and eloquently:

“No peaceful life is a given or a natural right. Since the Vietnamese chose to invade our islands in the 70s, they should have realized that this would happen. We have taken back our islands without having to consult with Vietnam.”

In reality, these islands aren't very valuable. But the problem lies in the oil and gas fields beneath them, which are extremely precious resources, especially for resource-poor Vietnam, making them interests they cannot afford to relinquish.

But Matteo went even further, openly demanding a ransom:

"Randomization: 50 RMB for a Filipino soldier, 100 RMB for a Vietnamese soldier. 5 RMB for a Filipino fisherman, 10 RMB for a Vietnamese fisherman. Half price for the elderly and children. No bargaining!"

In order to prove his work achievements to the people of the whole country, Han Kuang-jun went to great lengths, taking turns hanging more than a thousand prisoners from both countries outside the ship and filming them.

If they don't pay the ransom, we'll let them die in the sun.

The Han Quang Volunteer Army hung the Filipinos on the left side of the ship and the Vietnamese on the right, exposing them directly to the scorching sun near the equator, a very balanced arrangement.

The waves crashed in, soaking their bodies. The sun beat down, causing skin to peel and dehydrate. The brain fogged up, sweat mingled with seawater, creating a chaotic electrolyte imbalance that led to rapid collapse. Within hours, many of those hanging there were suffering from heatstroke, shock, and near-death experiences.

"Shameless!"

Vietnamese and Filipino netizens were furious, but there was nothing they could do.

Seeing the situation was not good, the local tycoons and wealthy businessmen in the Philippines, not wanting to be the target of this grand military exercise, hurriedly gathered people and raised money to rescue these hundreds of unfortunate people. It didn't cost much money, and it also boosted their reputation among the Philippine people.

Vietnam fared much worse. Due to the exorbitant price and the large number of people involved, the Vietnamese government was unwilling to pay for it, and there was a lack of wealthy individuals to organize the effort. These Vietnamese people were left hanging until nightfall, and two of them nearly died.

The prisoners were hung out to be exposed to the scorching sun during the day and almost died on the ship; they also had no peace at night.

The water tank where the prisoners were held was kicked open, and several burly men rushed in, turned on their flashlights, and forced them to line up.

"Say it after me!"

Vietnamese prisoners of war were pitifully forced to read aloud:

"Mom and Dad, I am XXX. I was sent by the Vietnamese Navy to invade and occupy Chinese islands. Now I have been captured by the Chinese. The Vietnamese People's Army will not pay us a ransom and wants us to die out there. Mom and Dad, I don't want to die. Please, everyone, save me! The Vietnamese People's Army has no intention of saving us!"

"Mom and Dad, it's me, XXX. Please, please raise money to save me! The high command of the Vietnamese People's Army wants us to die secretly overseas and prevent us from returning home!"

"Down with Liang Qiang! Down with Su Lin! Down with the incompetent Vietnamese government!"

Such a video is truly devastating.

Although Han Quang Army's superiors are in China, the actual leadership is in Tokyo. So after these videos were submitted to both China and Japan, through internal communication, various social media platforms immediately gave them high bitrates and strong pushes, ensuring that everyone with a Vietnamese IP address could enjoy these psychological warfare videos that "shattered people's values".

A war of wills!

This is a classic psychological warfare tactic!

This isn't much different from being a hostage caught in a telecom fraud ring; you're beaten day and night and forced to demand money from your family. The only difference is that this time the target is the Vietnamese People's Army.

Winning hearts and minds from Vietnam is a powerful tool that can severely undermine the confidence of its people.

Not only did Han Kuang-jun fabricate videos, he also filmed videos himself:

"The Vietnamese army is truly despicable; do they not even want their own soldiers anymore?"

"Are you saying they're just using them as cannon fodder, like sending out hundreds of thousands of soldiers as cannon fodder in a war?"

"Didn't the Vietnamese army do the same thing during the fighting between the two mountains?"

The Han Quang Volunteer Army was even more despicable than the Vietnamese army, and they tortured prisoners relentlessly.

Han Guangjun had various explanations for his shameless behavior:

"Others have high moral standards, while we have low moral character. So they squat in the back eating sand, while we rush to the front to eat meat."

The Chinese have high moral standards, while Americans lack morality. So, isn't it reasonable to assign such morally reprehensible combat missions to the Han Kuang Volunteer Army? Isn't this a perfect complement?

After the American journalist finished his interview, he returned to find them abusing prisoners and questioned them:

"You're not the Chinese army?"

"But we are a Chinese maritime defense organization composed of Americans. We are born this way, and God will forgive us."

The former U.S. Marine Corps 3rd Expeditionary Force soldiers, who had fought against the Okinawa and Chinese guerrillas, felt no pressure to reveal their identities. After all, earning money and living here was much easier.

They are shameless enough.

They took turns hanging these people outside the boat to sunbathe and drink seawater.

If I dare to let these people die on the ship, do you Vietnam dare not pay the ransom?

Under the pressure of public opinion, the Vietnamese government was suddenly condemned by the masses.

The Vietnamese People's Army couldn't afford such backstabbing and had no choice but to send troops to pay the ransom. However, the ransom demanded by the Han Quang Army was still too high. For over 700 captured soldiers, they demanded over 700 million RMB. Including the captured fishermen's families, teachers, and doctors, it cost a total of 1 billion RMB to get everyone back. Vietnam's nominal annual military expenditure is only 3 billion USD, but its actual annual military expenditure, including income from military-run businesses, is approximately 8 billion USD. The Han Quang Army demanded 2% of their total military expenditure, severely damaging the Vietnamese army.

……

Canberra.

Regarding the recent military operations against Vietnam, the magnanimous and wise Duchess Olympia asked Li Xinghe:

Why Vietnam?

"Yes, why Vietnam?"

Li Xinghe smiled.

This is a very interesting question.

After several days of confusion, Duchess Olympia seemed to have realized the peculiar order in which Li Xinghe used Singapore to establish his authority, but then attacked Vietnam first.

Li Xinghe explained his strategy as follows:

"Singapore is proud and arrogant, but it does have relatively advanced weaponry and a complete conscription system. If they insist on fighting a scorched-earth war with us on Singapore Island, it will greatly damage our prestige if the situation drags on. On the other hand, Vietnam's army has remained at the level of the 70s. As a country lacking strategic depth and geographically cramped, the issue of its offshore islands is not crucial. Instead, they will be forced to compromise. This allows Vietnam to intimidate Southeast Asia and force Singapore to back down."

A wise ruler knows when to end a war. Our aim is to quickly resolve the insubordination problem in Southeast Asia, implement the CPTPP clearing system, and then intervene in the subsequent internal turmoil in the United States.

Yes, the situation in the United States is already on the verge of collapse. Li Xinghe's goal is to forcefully push forward the CPTPP's RMB and Japanese Yen clearing system and force Singapore to bow down.

Therefore, the most brutal, but also the fastest, means must be used to force Singapore to surrender.

This means cutting off water and electricity, shelling reservoirs, forcing millions of Singaporeans to go without food and water, and making them realize that they have to compromise.

Although Singapore is a small city, its military budget is the highest in Southeast Asia, and it possesses ample and relatively advanced military equipment. A protracted urban warfare conflict would only futilely damage Li Xinghe's reputation as a local tyrant.

Vietnam, after all, is a traditional, Confucian-style country that once organized regional empires. They possess a certain political wisdom and know when to compromise. The South China Sea island sovereignty issue is a non-core issue within a core issue for Vietnam, and it is precisely an obstacle to Vietnam's economic cooperation with China. Li Xinghe's entry into the issue at this point is both a painful experience and a possibility for reform for Vietnam.

If Vietnam quickly backs down, it will force Singapore to back down, thus indirectly completing the establishment of the CPTPP clearing bank.

But Duchess Olympia pulled out the negotiation minutes in her hand:

"It seems you're mistaken. The first round of negotiations between Han Quang Khun and Vietnam did not go well."

Taking advantage of the disastrous first round of negotiations that began with the ransom of prisoners, the Vietnamese negotiators appeared determined not to concede an inch.

Li Xinghe frowned slightly, surprised that even with so many large fleets from China and the Allied forces involved, Vietnam showed no intention of withdrawing.

"Interesting. They shouldn't be so tough. Could there be other political factors interfering? Investigate."

In terms of intelligence, Japan and the CIA have practically infiltrated Southeast Asia like a sieve.

Japan is extremely unethical when it comes to espionage. They recruit local or Japanese scholars under the guise of various cooperative institutions to conduct frivolous research. Often, the individuals involved are unaware of what they are doing. So, after they are arrested, the Japanese government will hypocritically shed crocodile tears and claim that it was persecution.

Of course, most of the time, the Japanese government is unaware of the situation. Because the Japanese foreign intelligence service won't tell the officials that they forged the cooperation invitation, leading to the arrest of citizens for espionage. These people just stay hidden in the shadows.

Therefore, intelligence gathering is very rapid.

Nan Hao gave the intelligence to Takajo Satsuki, who then wrote down an analysis and sent it to Li Xinghe:

"Theoretically speaking, after the political changes in Vietnam in 2026, another batch of high-ranking officials will probably retire next year. The next two years will also determine the political character of Vietnam's next leadership. At that time, will the powerful Vietnamese public security system continue to maintain power, or will the political work system of the Vietnam People's Army win the last year of competition and take the lead? I think this is the key question."

Vietnam's system of retiring high-ranking officials is almost a carbon copy of China's. Upon reaching a certain age, officials either rise or retire. Currently, the top ranks of the Vietnamese Politburo remain a mixed bag. However, the traditional perception of a weak but still numerous Southern faction, and a strong but besieged Northern faction, is largely a thing of the past, coinciding with the previous generation's "Nguyen-Nguyen rivalry."

Currently, the pro-American faction in Vietnam is in a period of dormancy and weakness. The actual power lies with the public security front, represented by To Lam, Luong Sam Quang, and Nguyen Duy Ngoc, who control the state's administrative power; the other group is the military political work front, represented by Luong Cuong and Nguyen Trong Nghia, who control political work and party propaganda.

In other words, both sides are on edge. Therefore, neither side is willing to be the first to express a willingness to negotiate with Li Xinghe and return the Chinese islands that Vietnam has occupied since the 70s; otherwise, they risk being labeled weak and traitorous, and ousted from politics in the next leadership transition.

Li Xinghe understood in an instant.

It's because Chinese people are familiar with Vietnamese people; they understand this kind of subtle shrewdness all too well.

He then laughed and said:

“Let’s help them make a decision. The Han Quang Volunteer Army will launch a surprise attack on the Vietnamese mainland, cutting off their north-south connection from the middle of the map. On the southern front, two air battleships and a naval assault brigade will surround Ho Chi Minh City. We will launch a propaganda campaign, comparing Ho Chi Minh City to the new Singapore, creating a propaganda offensive that Vietnam is still attached to the United States and that the country is doomed.”

Li Xinghe wasn't familiar with the Vietnamese political work system, but it seemed like the Vietnamese army and public security were at odds. He decided to give the Vietnamese army a warning. By damaging the reputation of the Vietnamese People's Army's political work system, which was opposing Su Lin, and by eliminating Su Lin's rivals, they would naturally acquiesce to peace talks.

"how about you?"

"Me? I'm gone. I don't know anything."

Duchess Olympia watched as the most shameless thugs of the Pacific rose, proudly straightening her collar:

"My sister is about to give birth. My sister's daughter is still my daughter."

"Forehead……"

Even though Duchess Olympia was prepared, she still felt that Li Xinghe was a truly evil and wicked villain.

……

But the duchess still realized that she had overestimated Li Xinghe's moral character.

She accompanied Queen Charlotte on the plane, and when she landed in Tokyo with Li Xinghe, Li Xinghe's family members came to greet them.

When Olympia saw Ai Azuma holding a baby, she couldn't hold back her emotions.

She overestimated Li Xinghe's character. Not only was his sister's daughter his own daughter, but even his daughter's daughter was his own daughter.

Wow...there are so many people at his house...

Queen Charlotte was quite nervous at this point.

She even vomited from nervousness in front of everyone.

Did you throw up?

Mikasa, Misato, and Chiyo first glanced at the 15-year-old queen, then a murderous look settled on Li Xinghe's face. Immediately, the expressions of the entire family of dozens of people became rather strange.

There's something wrong with that.

Could it be that she's pregnant?

Queen Charlotte was immediately taken to the hospital, where tests confirmed that she was indeed pregnant.

One shot, and it's dead.

Duchess Olympia's blood pressure surged, and she pinched Li Xinghe's waist while uttering a British curse:

"Wow, Fuckyou, you're the worst person in the world."

"Forehead……"

Li Xinghe couldn't help but rub his forehead.

That's it.

I forgot about contraception.

Damn it, now there's no way to explain his character issues.

Chapter 858: Monkey King Competition Zone, Goodnight, Vietnam! (5200 words)

"I hope I didn't interfere with your work."

In the delivery room of the Royal Hospital, Fuji Rie, dressed in a pure white maternity gown, murmured to herself while holding Li Xinghe's arm with a holy expression.

"of course not."

Li Xinghe gave a gentle reply.

"No, because he kept me up all night." Queen Charlotte lay beside him undergoing preliminary examinations. The 15-year-old girl's mind was in turmoil, but her thoughts of revenge were still running high.

Rie Fujii was speechless when she saw the underage pregnant woman. She could only gently bite her brother's wrist as punishment.

Li Xinghe sighed as he came out of the delivery room.

They lost all of their already limited good reputation.

Lu Yuchi Hua Yingmei crossed her arms, her stunning beauty blending seamlessly with her capable demeanor. She held up the documents in her hand.

"Vietnam and Singapore are in a race to see who can hold out the longest."

Now it's time to see who can be the most persistent.