"You want to say that the cause of the peasant uprising and riots was because of me, that the scene of today's bloodshed was because of me, that I was the one who pushed the peasants into desperate situations, and that I was the root cause of all this. Right?"
Sitting on the throne of power in the main hall, Rhodes asked without changing his expression.
For a moment, Vladimir only felt a little surprised. He had indeed come to question the great lord, but he did not expect that Rhodes would admit it so happily. Moreover, there was no concealment, no guilt or self-blame.
This was completely different from the benevolent King of the North he had seen before. What happened to this world? Rhodes, have you also been corrupted by Chaos? Vladimir couldn't help but ask in his heart.
"Don't you feel guilty at all? Those farmers, I saw, were shivering in the cold wind and had no combat experience, but they still took the risk and embarked on the path of rebellion. Why, why did you do this?
This year, apart from the booming industrial areas, what other places are developing in Kislev? Are those junks really that important to you? "
Vladimir asked loudly.
He is not afraid of offending this man who is at the top of his power. If he is afraid, he will not come. If he is afraid, he can complete the mission, receive generous rewards, and continue to be his military minister. However, the sense of justice in his heart prevents him from doing this.
Then he fell silent. When he first stood up to support Rhodes in overthrowing the Vampire Tsar and establishing a new dynasty, he was looking forward to the arrival of a prosperous age, a renaissance era that truly belonged to Kislev. But now it seems that he just overthrew the vampire tsar and established a new dynasty.
The old tyrant only supports the new tyrant.
"Important! Of course it is important!"
Rhodes said, his voice was calm and clear, and his words revealed unquestionable majesty. Now that you have chosen a goal, go on firmly! What is not understood by others will eventually be seen clearly in the future. Rhodes is firm in himself
s Choice--
"If you fall behind, you will be beaten. Development is the last word."
Rhodes said——
"For a long time, the reason why Kislev has been living in the cracks is not only because of geographical factors, but also because the country is barren and backward! Even the empire mocked us as a barbarian country. Why? Because we don't have
Heavy industry! No firearms!”
"You and I have both seen that terrible greenskin invasion. Grim Ironhide almost destroyed Kislev. The army of Kislev was defeated time and time again in front of the orc army. My brother
, my friend, recognize this reality. In this world where monsters and monsters are everywhere, human beings without firearms are like lambs waiting to be slaughtered. Only with the development of heavy industry can we be qualified and have the strength to survive in this world.
Even the green-skin invasion cannot be stopped. From now on, why should we resist the chaos invasion that is a hundred times more terrifying than the green-skin invasion? If the entire civilized order disappears, do you think it makes sense to care about the food and clothing of a group of farmers?"
Rhodes' rhetorical question left Vladimir speechless for a moment. Although he had not witnessed the so-called Chaos invasion, the Greenskin invasion a few years ago did indeed exist and he had seen it with his own eyes. Orcs
Wherever they passed, villages were plundered and burned, and countless civilians were slaughtered. As Rhodes said, Kislev's army collapsed in front of the greenskin army led by the black orc Ironhide. Even the most powerful main coalition army in the north at the time
, not even daring to confront the green-skinned army led by Ironhide.
This is what Rhodes calls backwardness.
"Those are machines, sophisticated machines piled up with knowledge and money. They are national machines that will bring endless power to Kislev in the future! They are not scrap metal. Without them, Kislev will not be able to survive for another five years."
Ten years from now, another hundred years from now, we will still be the same, still a backward agricultural country. This land is cold and barren. What can we get from relying on the land? Except for a few medicinal crops that can only be produced in cold areas, we have almost no crops.
Advantageous resources. The entire kingdom can only be revitalized by developing industry. Development requires funds. With Kislev’s current national strength, it is obviously unrealistic to plunder the empire next door. Developing overseas colonies? It is even less realistic. We can’t even build an ocean-going ship.
There are no ships! The coastal sea routes are almost monopolized by the Empire and Bretonnia, and further south is the territory of the Tyrells and Arabis. We have no possibility of gaining advantage in maritime trade. Funds, where do the funds come from?
It can only come from within. The sacrifices of Kislev farmers today are for the rejuvenation of the entire kingdom in the future. Only a powerful state machine can protect this country from the ravages of the iron hoofs of chaos. Today, what you see is just a group of
Civilians who can't stand the exploitation and rebel. However, if you don't do this, you will see a destroyed kingdom in the near future, a kingdom that does not even exist in ruins. Without the state machine, the people of Kislev will
They will be slaughtered to death in the near future."
Vladimir was stunned for a while, and suddenly felt a sense of embarrassment that he couldn't hold back his words. After a long time, he squeezed out a sentence from between his teeth——
"The Chaos Invasion is just a legend, no one has seen it with their own eyes."
"Everyone who experienced that war is dead. Of course, there is no living person who can give you a witness. But you can ask those elves how they spent those dark years. If it doesn't work, you can
You can go to Prague and see. That city still retains the marks left by the Chaos Invasion. Under the destroyed city walls, there are tentacle-like traces left by countless Chaos monsters. That city was in ruins during the Chaos Invasion.
, it fell overnight.”
"Brother, everything we are doing now is to protect this kingdom and protect the last civilization of the human world. Sacrificing the interests of some people now can save countless lives in the future. Just like we sacrificed ourselves for this kingdom.
.”
After Rhodes finished speaking, Vladimir frowned deeply. Apparently, he was shaken after what he said. Was he wrong, or was Rhodes wrong? For a moment, Vladimir himself
He couldn't tell. However, the next second, the pitiful and desolate appearance of those farmers appeared in his mind.
"Even though what you said is right, you don't necessarily have to exploit the peasants. Those nobles..."
"Successive years of civil war have emptied the national treasury, and the slightly richer nobles have either had their homes confiscated or fled abroad. How many nobles do you think there are in Kislev now that can be called real nobles? What's more, how dare you forcefully extract property from them?
Guarantee that the third civil war will not break out? It will take a long time for farmers to organize an effective resistance force, but the noble lords are different."
"I will adjust commodity prices and appropriately increase the price of food purchases to avoid the next uprising and riot..."
Rhodes stood up from the throne, walked down, and patted Grand Duke Vladimir on the shoulder——
"My brother, my comrade, the reason why I asked you to carry out this mission is to clear up the doubts in your heart. It is sad to lose our humanity, but we will have nothing if we lose our animality."