Yes, Prime Minister of Japan

Everyone applauded.

However, during the celebration, Emmanuel also reminded Li Xinghe:

“There are a lot of people outside who are talking about how you want to establish a Pacific island alliance, a new era of Austro-Hungarian Empire.”

They are indeed very similar.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire was primarily a landlocked country, and even existed as a purely landlocked nation for a period. Li Xinghe's united island nations, on the other hand, are predominantly islands, almost entirely composed of islands. Aside from the peninsulas of Coloane (Vietnam) and Korea connecting to the mainland, their territories are almost entirely islands. Whether it's Japan, Okinawa, Hokkaido, Australia or New Zealand, American Samoa, or Papua, these are almost all isolated islands in the Pacific Ocean.

Li Xinghe shrugged, seemingly unconcerned about the public opinion from Europe and America.

"What? Are Europeans implying that I am the modern-day Hitler, and also that China is the Second German Reich, South Korea is Hungary, and I am Austria?"

To be honest, you can understand the sarcastic remarks of those European journalists after reading a few articles on Deutsche Welle. The Chinese-American journalists there are best at discussing national trauma, old-fashioned shills, constantly asking, "Is it worth spending money on military exercises?" Meanwhile, European journalists, because they really don't understand China, can only write articles that seem nonsensical to Chinese readers, constantly using terms like Hitler, Nazis, the National Society, the Gestapo, and Jews. It's as if they can't write sentences without these fabricated terms.

Mentioning Germany II and Austria-Hungary isn't because they were actually strong. Rather, it's because Germany II failed and Austria-Hungary disintegrated, using such political metaphors to try and disgust the East and satisfy one's own fantasies.

Maria joked:

"You know what, it actually makes a good connection. This is a joint empire of China, Japan, and Korea. Southeast Asia is like the Balkans, and Jakarta is like Sarajevo."

Ayako Aso hurriedly reminded her:

"Sarajevo is very unlucky."

After all, Li Xinghe's lineup seems to be somewhat similar to Archduke Ferdinand's.

"It's alright. East Asian societies are stable, and Xinghe won't be visiting Southeast Asia."

After making a series of jokes about the hidden evils of the government, Li Xinghe then satirized the impotent rage of the Western governments, especially the British, French, and German governments, behind this news:

"They criticize me for being part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, yet they also criticize my policy of national self-determination. Isn't that a contradiction? The Austro-Hungarian Empire collapsed precisely because of its policy of national self-determination, turning into a powder keg in the Balkans and igniting the world. And the starting point of World War II, Munich, was precisely triggered by this very principle."

Lu Yuchi and Hua Yingmei approached, raising their wine glasses, and jokingly commented on Li Xinghe's Southeast Asian policy:

"Isn't it because you are using the number of Chinese people to shape a new order in Southeast Asia? To awaken 50 million sleeping Chinese people and establish an arc-shaped defense circle from Burma and Thailand to Jakarta and Surabaya? I think our actions are more like Hitler's demand for the Sudetenland."

Of course, the ironic part is that the principle of national self-determination that ended World War I originated from Wilson's Fourteen Points, the method by which Britain, the United States, and France decided to dismantle the Austro-Hungarian Empire. However, the United States withdrew from the Treaty of Versailles because it did not gain any benefits.

What's even more ridiculous is that when Hitler rose to power in the 30s, he used the principle of national self-determination as an excuse to launch a series of foreign invasions, particularly on the issue of annexing the Sudetenland. Hitler used the politically correct stick of "national self-determination" to leave Britain and France speechless.

The area was indeed predominantly German-populated, and according to the British and French, they had the right to decide their own affiliation. Therefore, Hitler's invasion of Czechoslovakia was perfectly justified and reasonable. He used the British and French cards to slap them in the face.

As everyone knows in retrospect, Britain and France continuously shifted blame to each other, each trying to get the other to be the first to curb Germany's appeasement policy, which led to the collapse of the Entente Powers security system in Eastern Europe. When Czechoslovakia was occupied, Britain and France did nothing. The Soviet Union, realizing France was a liability, withdrew from the Entente Powers system that contained Germany, ending the Franco-Soviet alliance and the Czechoslovak-Soviet alliance, and instead signed a non-aggression pact with Germany.

Therefore, it cannot be said that the Soviet Union did not attempt to contain Germany. The Munich Agreement was simply a poorly drafted agreement; Britain and France themselves dismantled the Entente Powers, the Franco-Soviet alliance, and the Czechoslovak-Soviet alliance that encircled Germany, revealing their weakness and folly. The Soviet Union, not being incompetent, quickly withdrew from the German encirclement.

In fact, it was because Britain and France sold out Czechoslovakia at the Munich Agreement that not only the Soviet Union, but also the entire German encirclement of Eastern Europe and the Balkans collapsed. As a result, Hitler made rapid advances in the following years, unstoppable by anyone.

For this reason, Chamberlain and Daladier bear an undeniable and enormous responsibility for the outbreak of World War II.

Following this line of thought, Shui Jing Tian Ping and Jian Bing Xian Zi said:

"Perhaps a decade or two from now, Indonesia will try to convene its own 'Munich Agreement' in Jakarta or Bandung, bringing together several European and American countries, to force us to return the Javanese inhabitants of Kalimantan to them. It could lead to a new Sudetenland."

"Therefore, we must destroy their war potential..."

As they were talking, Takajo Satsuki hurriedly put down her wine glass and took out her phone:

"Stop laughing at Chamberlain. Vance has placed another order with you. He wants to trade you blood products, beef, soybeans, and wheat for a large quantity of army weapons. It's probably because the looting in Canada isn't enough to support his government's economy, so he's going to launch a ground invasion of Mexico."

Everyone looked at Li Xinghe and began to tease him humorously:

"That's it, now you really are Chamberlain."

Do you still want to support Vance's expansion plans in the new continent?

Just like Chamberlain supporting Hitler?

It's fair to say that Vance's offensive expansion was almost entirely reliant on ammunition supplies from Japanese and South Korean military factories under Li Xinghe's control. Otherwise, given the US military's shortage of troops and ammunition, it wouldn't be able to wage any war.

"Hmm... it's hard to say."

Li Xinghe shook his wine glass helplessly.

……

"That's not right. I'm already receiving a basic income every month, so why are they opposing me?"

Emperor Vance lay on his sickbed, gazing at the bright moon outside the window, utterly bewildered.

After the US military forcefully demanded $2 trillion in military spending to maintain its aircraft carrier construction, forcing Vance to comply, the printing presses became difficult to stop once they started. As a result, various cryptocurrencies and stablecoins flooded the market, and the Treasury bought its own US Treasury bonds, resulting in a proliferation of US dollars.

The inflation crisis in the United States is one wave after another. Even Wallace, a budget fast food chain known for its splatter-themed restaurants, has seen its prices inflate from $10 for three hamburgers when it launched in early 2024 to $100 for a hamburger this year.

Ordinary families have entered a very awkward cycle of shrinking assets. They received $5000 in wages this month, but looking back, a simple hamburger now costs as much as a fancy meal used to. In the end, they can only continue flocking to suburban supermarkets, buying huge amounts of rice and flour, and following the tutorials of Chinese bloggers on Xiaohongshu (a Chinese social media platform), to make some questionable dishes to fill their stomachs.

In this situation, Vance found that the residents' anger was not abating but rather increasing. The Chicago Workers' Union declared that it would form a local self-governing government to exclude Vance, this sabbey pig. Protests and struggles also began to erupt in several poor states downstream of the Mississippi River.

Finally, Vance realized that the white people under his rule were utterly useless and there was no sense of satisfaction in governing them.

So he launched the 'Universal Basic Income of $500' plan, distributing $1500 billion in basic income to the public each month to reduce their opposition.

But this would require an additional $1.8 trillion in spending each year and cause a dollar bubble. So what can be done?

Vance has set his sights on Mexico.

He proposed a new plan for international plunder:

"The US-Canada-Mexico Joint Initiative!"

In short, he wanted to bring Mexicans into Vance's American empire as second-class citizens who would support white people.

In this domestic division of labor, Canadians are responsible for handing over their assets, allowing white Americans to reap the benefits. Mexicans are responsible for continuing to work hard, remaining legally second-class citizens, and supporting their northern neighbors.

Not only was Vance shameless, he also handed the plan over to the Mexican government, hoping they would respond to him and become part of the old American empire.

But the Mexican government flatly rejected Vance:

"I refuse."

People are still being bombed by the US military, and anti-American voices are rising wave after wave. Even Mexican Americans are fleeing back to the US. Why should we treat you as a second-class citizen?

Vance was furious about this.

While he annexed Canada in the United States, Li Xinghe seized the opportunity to launch an encirclement campaign against Indonesia.

Li Xinghe's successful control of Papua Island and acquisition of the world's largest gold mine spurred Vance to embark on a military adventure to annex Mexico, which could support the United States.

So he decided to attack Mexico!

Chapter 902: Exploding European Gold Coins, Ratmen and Orcs, Obama Makes His Debut (4700 words)

"No matter how you look at it, the top priority right now, aside from controlling the origins of raw materials, precious metals, and key trade nodes, is to deplete Europe's gold coins."

In the banquet hall, Li Xinghe repeatedly emphasized his views.

"I agree." Shuijing Tianping raised his glass in approval.

Everyone agreed.

Even the not-so-bright new generation girls like Hye-na and Lee Ju-yeon felt that getting European gold coins first was the most beneficial option.

Before the two World Wars, Europe, this precious thing, fattened itself up by plundering its colonies, becoming utterly complacent and self-satisfied. After the World Wars, it even managed to persuade a somewhat dim-witted United States to make concessions, living a remarkably comfortable life by consuming American wealth, and even managing to cultivate a facade of freedom and democracy. After the collapse of the Cold War, this precious thing, the EU, was able to continue enjoying decades of prosperity by absorbing the legacy of the Soviet bloc.

Looking back at the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union, it turns out that the Europeans, these useless bunch, were the most adept at creating value through united front tactics. Their national living standards were better than those of the Soviet Union and the United States, their social welfare system surpassed that of the US and the Soviet Union, and they enjoyed a fairly good atmosphere of freedom. They nurtured heavyweight figures like West Malaysia, liberal leftist groups, and the third wave of feminism. They really enjoyed themselves.

Americans know perfectly well that the EU is constantly taking advantage of them, yet in the actual power struggles, the EU continues to take economic advantage of them. It's as if they were born inherently inferior to the EU.

It has been proven that the EU has no value in uniting the people.

We should act like Trump, hitting hard, slapping hard, and kicking hard, until Britain, France, and Germany are emptied of their gold coins and all the profits they have extracted from the world over the past decades are squeezed dry.

Li Xinghe analyzed:

"Now, we need to attract French and German technology companies to invest in Japan, Singapore, or anywhere within our alliance. We need to attract their funds to Australian mining and agricultural development. We need to attract their companies to set up branches in East Asia and integrate into our industrial chain."

To achieve all this, a catalyst is naturally needed.

Duchess Olympia whispered:

"So what we really need is a second Russo-Ukrainian war. Let the Russians invade Poland."

Li Xinghe shrugged.

This is difficult to assess, but at least for now, we can't let the Russian imperialists go crazy. Let's wait and see. Linlin, are you thinking about it? Linlin, are you still here...?

……

After the banquet, Li Xinghe pulled Lin Mulan aside and whispered his instructions:

“Since Vance is going to build his empire in the Americas, we should also seize the gold coins in Southeast Asia and the European Union. Go to New York and talk to Vance’s people secretly to gauge their opinion.”

Li Xinghe dispatched Lin Mulan, the most skilled female liaison officer in his Qingshan Command, back to New York to secretly organize negotiations with Vance.

Although she was already more voluptuous than when she first arrived in Tokyo, Lin Mulan quickly boarded the plane and flew back to New York as soon as possible.

My first impression of New York was that, besides the chaos and disorder, it was also filled with many Canadians.

The Canadians backed down.

The wall also displays the latest official promotional materials:

"His Majesty Vance awards the Earl Trudeau a medal."

Vance awarded medals to many Canadian socialites and business leaders, allowing them to retain more Canadian assets and buy off Canadian capitulationists. He encouraged them to disband various resistance organizations and, given the close economic ties, to further exploit Canadians in order to support America's neighbors.

The effect was quite immediate; the Canadian resistance weakened rapidly, and the resistance forces gradually retreated from open field fighting to underground operations.

The Canadian Command was established, and the First Army's Mad Dog, Salz, was its first regional commander.

Despite his various shortcomings, Vance's remarkable achievement of annexing Canada garnered him many supporters. People considered him more radical than Trump, who, after all, was all talk and no action.

In the next few rounds, Lin Mulan naturally saw her relatives waiting there.

Her cousin came to greet her on behalf of the whole family.

To be honest, looking at her cousin's dilapidated, seventh-hand Corolla, Lin Mulan felt that the economic climate in New York had changed drastically in recent years. At the very least, as an elite family, her home shouldn't be in such a state of disrepair. A seventh-hand Corolla—isn't that the kind of junk only illegal immigrants and urban slumpers would buy?

My cousin, who looked severely sleep-deprived, said with a hint of sarcasm:

"Oh? Enora, you're Chinese, how come you have time to fly back from China?"

This statement is mostly sarcastic.

However, Enora didn't retaliate much with the sisters. Instead, she looked at her sister's faded white shirt with a puzzled expression, which meant that she was no longer working in the army.

"Sister, aren't you at the logistics command headquarters?"

Once in the car, my cousin stammered as she spoke:

“I… used to be there.”

That means you were fired.

For the U.S. military, the problem is quite obvious.

Despite the increase in military spending, the U.S. military continues to cut personnel so that Commissioner Smith and his team can reap sufficient benefits.

As before, when the navy lacks funds, it cuts supply ships and transport ships first; when the army lacks funds, it cuts soldiers' pay first, making them eat shoddy food. Therefore, second-line support units such as the Strategic Transportation Command and the Logistics Command, as well as the Intelligence Command, have also been included in the list of units to be cut.

When Americans carry out massacres, they are incredibly ruthless, even targeting government employees—it's a brutal, uncompensated attack. And often, at such times, the unions of various government departments—civil servants, military personnel, police—struggle to withstand a united effort from higher-ups to dismantle their respective departments. Even a long-established elite like the Enola family, when wielding a machete in the military, at most receive a small severance package.

When Lin Mulan returned home, she was surprised to find the room in complete disarray, with all sorts of odds and ends and clothes scattered everywhere.

It seems they want to sell the house.

Finally unable to hide it any longer, my cousin stammered:

“I’ve been laid off. Now I don’t have full-time work eligibility, I don’t have company social security, I work 80 hours a week, 38 hours as a temporary accountant, 38 hours as a waiter at a fast food restaurant, and 4 hours as a weekend English tutor for Chinese children. I have to pay for my home insurance, car insurance, and personal health insurance myself. I also have mortgage payments, car loan payments, water bills, electricity bills, gas bills, and the cost of home repairs and lawn mowing.”

As she spoke, tears suddenly streamed down her face.

“A monthly income of $5000 is simply not enough to cover ever-increasing expenses. My mortgage is $2950 a month, it was originally only $1550, but because of damn inflation and free interest rates, the bank has almost doubled my mortgage... My car loan used to be $800 a month, now it's $1385. My personal insurance is... In fact, I'm bankrupt. My mortgage is due this month, my car loan is four months overdue, and now even a slice of bread costs $2, you know, a whole two dollars!”

Enola's sister lay on the chair, withered like a walking corpse.

Seeing her cousin's unfortunate situation, Lin Mulan smiled, revealing her white teeth:

"Hmm. If you want to go to Tokyo, I can help you get in touch. But don't get near my man, no way!"

By evening, when the family had gathered at her cousin's house, Lin Mulan keenly noticed that several relatives were down on their luck. It seemed their finances were truly dire.

At that moment, the latest 'Empire News' was playing on the television.

Vance probably realized that the root of the problem was still the economy. What Americans needed was the world's number one political and economic status and a high standard of living, not empty rhetoric like receiving rapidly depreciating greenbacks every month.