readbooksol Chapter 101 Countdown
Chapter 101 Countdown
Beijing time, 9:50 a.m.
In Studio One of the Dragon Kingdom's National Television, all the cameras were pointed at the tall, imposing figure in the center of the studio.
Lin Zhe was dressed in his general's uniform, the three gold stars on his shoulders reflecting a cold, hard light under the bright studio lights. He didn't sit, but stood behind the stage, his hands resting on the table, his eyes fixed directly on the camera lens.
On the large screen behind him was a giant countdown timer:
00:09:47
00:09:46
00:09:45
Every tick of the second hand affects the hearts of hundreds of millions of people.
"Dear viewers across the country, this is Lin Zhe, advisor to the Central Military Commission of the Dragon Kingdom." His voice was transmitted through the television signal to every corner of the country. "There are now only ten minutes left until the 24-hour ultimatum issued at 10:00 a.m. yesterday."
The studio was so quiet you could hear the faint hum of the equipment. All the staff held their breath, and the director's palms were sweaty.
"In the past 23 hours and 50 minutes," Lin Zhe continued, "R country's warships continued close-in reconnaissance in the East China Sea, coming as close as five nautical miles to our territorial waters. J country not only failed to release our detained ships and crew members, but also increased its coast guard presence. Seven more violent incidents targeting Chinese citizens occurred in X country, resulting in five people being seriously injured and hospitalized. As for Somali pirates—last night our special forces successfully rescued the kidnapped crew members and wiped out the pirate gang."
He paused, his eyes sharp as knives:
"Now, on behalf of the Military Commission of the Dragon Nation, I reiterate our demands for the last time: Country R must immediately cease its provocations and apologize and provide compensation; Country J must immediately release the ships and their occupants; Country X must immediately stop the violence and punish the perpetrators."
The numbers on the countdown timer kept ticking relentlessly:
00:08:15
00:08:14
Lin Zhe raised his wrist and glanced at his military watch. This action was captured in a close-up shot and transmitted to television screens in millions of households.
"The last eight minutes," he said. "If these demands are not met in eight minutes, our country will take all necessary measures to defend national sovereignty and the rights of its citizens."
"Don't say you weren't warned."
At the same time, across the entire country.
Jinghua City, an internet company.
The morning was supposed to be the weekly meeting time, but today the large screen in the conference room wasn't showing a PowerPoint presentation; instead, it was broadcasting live from the national television station. More than a hundred employees were crammed into the conference room, no one speaking, everyone staring at the countdown on the screen.
"Seven and a half minutes left..." a young programmer whispered.
The female designer next to him clenched her fists: "Is the government really serious this time?"
"Definitely!" the operations manager in the back row exclaimed excitedly. "The live stream countdown has already started; if we don't act now, where will the country's reputation be?"
"But the other side consists of four countries..." someone worried.
"So what if there are four countries?" A retired programmer stood up. "Ten years ago, we won the border war against three of them, didn't we? Now we have aircraft carriers and stealth fighters, why should we be afraid of them?"
A chorus of approval rose in the conference room.
The Bund, Shanghai.
The giant outdoor GG screen, which was originally playing commercials, has now switched entirely to live news broadcasts. The countdown numbers at the bottom of the screen are particularly eye-catching.
Pedestrians on the street stopped and looked up at the screen. Passengers in buses and taxis also stared at the onboard televisions. Along the entire Bund, tens of thousands of people were watching the same image simultaneously.
An elderly man sat in a wheelchair, pushed by his granddaughter. He looked at Lin Zhe on the screen, tears welling in his cloudy eyes: "So much like him…so much like him…"
"Grandpa, what does it look like?" the granddaughter asked.
"Just like your great-grandfather." The old man's voice trembled. "During the War of Resistance, your great-grandfather used the same tone when he spoke on the radio!"
The granddaughter held her grandfather's hand: "Grandpa, we can win this time too, right?"
"Yes! We definitely can!" The old man nodded vigorously. "We now have airplanes and artillery, aircraft carriers and missiles. We're no longer the weak and vulnerable nation we used to be!"
A small town on the southwestern border, opposite Country X.
A large screen was set up in the town's central square, and almost everyone in the town, young and old, came. Many people were also carrying sticks and hoes—this was the town government's militia, ready to deal with any possible border conflicts.
"Six minutes left!" the town mayor shouted through a megaphone. "Fellow villagers, our loved ones are being bullied right across the street! The nation is about to stand up for us!"
"Fight! Rescue our people!" A roar erupted from the crowd.
A middle-aged woman cried out, "My brother runs a supermarket across the street, and his leg was broken yesterday! The government must stand up for us!"
"Take charge! We'll definitely take charge!" People around them comforted them.
On the other side of the ocean, in the war room of Country M.
The president watched the live stream from China and scoffed, "Just putting on an act. Five more minutes, and I don't believe they'll actually dare to make a move."
Defense Secretary James frowned. "Mr. President," he said, "our satellites have detected that the scale of China's military movements far exceeds expectations. They have three aircraft carriers, and their missile units are ready to launch. This doesn't seem like a bluff..."
"So what?" the president interrupted him. "They have aircraft carriers, and so do we. They have missiles, and so do we. And we have allies; with four countries putting pressure on us together, if China dares to make a move, it will be making an enemy of the entire world!"
The Secretary of State hesitated, "But in Somalia... our people were captured, and they even filmed it..."
"So what?" the president said dismissively. "He was just a major; he's dead, so what. The important thing is that through this test, we've figured out China's bottom line—at most, they'll send special forces to launch surprise attacks; they won't dare to actually start a war."
He turned to the communications officer and said, "Notify R, J, and X countries to hold on. Five minutes later, if China doesn't dare to act, we'll issue a joint statement condemning China's military threats and demanding an apology and compensation!"
"yes!"
Country R, the official residence of the Prime Minister.
The Defense Minister stared at the dwindling countdown on the screen, cold sweat beading on his forehead: "Prime Minister, four minutes left... the Dragon Kingdom's aircraft carrier has already surrounded our ships..."
"What are you afraid of?" the Prime Minister asked, trying to appear calm. "Country M said that China wouldn't dare to make a move. They're just putting on an act for their own people."
"But our warships..."
"Have them withdraw," the Prime Minister finally relented. "Observe from a distance. In case... in case the Dragon Kingdom really goes mad, we can't afford to lose a few ships for nothing."
"yes!"
J country, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The officials were as anxious as ants on a hot pan.
"Three minutes left! Should we release the boat?"
"We can't let go! Letting go is admitting defeat!"
"But the Dragon Kingdom's fleet has already sealed off the port! If they really open fire..."
"They wouldn't dare! The US said they wouldn't dare!"
Presidential Palace, Country X.
The president's legs went weak as he watched the images coming from the border—the Chinese tanks and armored vehicles densely packed together.
"Quickly...quickly notify the border troops to stop all operations against Chinese people! Release those who have been arrested! Compensation! We are willing to compensate!"
"Mr. President, they said from Country M..."
"To hell with America!" the president roared. "China's cannons are practically pointed at our heads! Are you going to take the hits or am I going to?!"
Countdown:
00:02:00
00:01:59
Across the country, hundreds of millions of people held their breath at the same time.
Factories shut down, schools closed, and shopping malls shut down. Everyone was glued to their TVs, computers, and phones, staring at the fluctuating numbers.
On a military forum in Beijing, a post was pinned to the top:
"Brothers, I'm a retired artilleryman. See those missile launchers standing up? Those are 'Dragon-41s,' with a range of 14,000 kilometers, capable of hitting any corner of the world. They locked onto their targets ten minutes ago."
"What I want to say is—this generation of soldiers has not disgraced their predecessors. This generation of weapons has not failed the people's expectations."
"The final two minutes. Whatever the outcome, tonight we are all witnesses to history."
The number of replies instantly exceeded 10,000.
"salute!"
"pay tribute!"
Countdown:
00:00:30
00:00:29
Lin Zhe was in the studio, looking at the camera, and slowly raised his right hand.
This action was magnified in close-up and broadcast nationwide.
He was looking at his watch.
00:00:10
00:00:09
Across the country, countless people joined the countdown:
"eight!"
"seven!"
"six!"
In the factory workshop, the workers counted down in unison.
In the university classroom, the students counted down in unison.
In the residential area, a countdown could be heard coming from the windows of every household.
00:00:03
00:00:02
00:00:01
00:00:00
Time's up.
Lin Zhe said only one sentence to the camera:
"Command, execute."