Early on the second day, the sun shone brightly, and Deherim's daytime remained peaceful.
Birds chirped, and people bustled about in a noisy commotion.
It looked as if this was a very normal medieval town.
Of course, if one looked closely, one would see that the most prevalent people on the streets and alleys of this medieval town were not medieval people dressed in simple, ragged clothes.
Instead, they were East Asians with black hair, black eyes, and yellow skin, dressed in casual wear or sportswear.
They were completely different from the Westerners with blonde hair and blue eyes or red hair and green eyes, who wore leather or iron armor, cloaks, and carried longswords, spears, long guns, bows, and crossbows, on the city walls or in the castle.
It looked extremely strange.
However, for the current Blue Star World, this is the relationship, and they have become accustomed to it.
No one felt that anything was wrong.
Neither the Lingjie Human Race soldiers who were Westerners, nor the Blue Star Humans with black hair, black eyes, and yellow skin.
They all felt it was correct.
After all, if they did not cooperate, they would not be able to resist the terrifying death spirit rules and Undead Monster.
They would be swallowed by these terrifying death spirit rules and killed by those terrifying Undead Monster.
They could only cooperate.
And it was because of this cooperation that they maintained their current relationship.
Only then could they survive until now.
However, even with cooperation, they were actually two distinct forces: Blue Star Humans and Lingjie Human Race.
While they would cooperate and help each other when facing death spirit rules and Undead Monster,
Once there was no need to fight against the death spirit rules and Undead Monster, they actually lived completely separate lives, each with their own things to do and without excessive interference.
Just like now in Swadia, those Westerners were patrolling, standing guard, protecting the city walls and castle, and reclaiming the surrounding barren farmlands.
As for those East Asian Blue Star Humans,
They were instead going around connecting with each other.
Each of them was agitatedly discussing some special matters; if one listened carefully, someone would be shouting about the remnants of the Diesel Company, who was a remnant of the Diesel Company, who was a traitor, and who should be punished.
And those Blue Star Humans were also shouting loudly in agreement, or rather, angrily accusing the other side.
Intensifying conflicts and clashes were emerging, and becoming more and more severe.
However, for the patrolling Lingjie Human Race, there was no room for them to intervene, or rather, they did not want to intervene, as they were only maintaining public order and the safety of the patrolling areas.
Ensuring no major chaos occurred was enough.
These Blue Star Humans, in their eyes, were just accusing and discussing something with each other; they hadn't actually started fighting, and they weren't gathering in one place for a long time, so these patrolling soldiers didn't take it seriously at all.
Of course, the most crucial thing was that these Blue Star Humans who were accusing each other had not reached the most core locations, which were the Noble Residence and the Governor's Mansion in the Town Area; otherwise, these patrolling soldiers would have already gone over to reprimand them and tell them to leave immediately.
After all, it would affect Shen Mu, the adult in the Noble Residence, and the various generals in the Governor's Mansion.
These patrol personnel would be reprimanded.
Moreover, when those Blue Star Humans saw them on their patrol route, they would immediately disperse and not continue to entangle, because everyone knew that these patrolling soldiers would only maintain the smooth flow of traffic and would not allow them to crowd together here; otherwise, they would immediately raise their whips or call for more people to separate them.
If they did not separate, it would not just be a matter of whips; they might even directly use weapons to punish them.
Previously, some people had been severely whipped several times by these patrolling soldiers with sheathed longswords.
Their merciless and direct actions also left a deep impression on them.
Therefore, at this time, they did not dare to offend these patrolling soldiers too much.
After all, no matter how you put it, these patrolling soldiers were Lingjie Human Race, and they were fundamentally different from these Blue Star Humans; they had essential differences.
If they were to strike hard, these Blue Star Humans would not be surprised at all if these Lingjie Human Race severely punished them.
Just like these Blue Star Humans, if they were to have any conflict with the Lingjie Human Race, they would not hold back at critical moments.
It was the same for everyone.
Moreover, when they caused trouble, they were well aware that although they were shouting about the remnants of the Diesel Company, they had no way to determine who among them were truly the remnants of the Diesel Company, nor did they have any evidence to prove that they were the remnants of the Diesel Company.
Since there was no way to prove it, if these Lingjie Human Race were to truly intervene in their conflict, it might affect their plans.
That's right, they all had ulterior motives.
The senior managers among the Blue Star Humans were coldly watching the traitors among the middle-level managers besiege those middle-level managers loyal to themselves.
And when those middle-level managers who considered themselves loyalists besieged those middle-level managers who were suspicious, they were also secretly watching those senior managers manipulating from behind, itching with hatred.
Both sides were already at loggerheads, and both sides had already confirmed their hatred for each other.
Therefore, they all knew that it was no longer a matter of negotiation and discussion, but a life-and-death struggle, and they had already determined during the outbreak of conflicts and provocations that they would decide the victor today.
Especially, they could not let Shen Mu intervene, that is, they could not let these Lingjie Human Race intervene; they absolutely could not provide any opportunity for intervention, otherwise they would not be able to strike hard at these targets of attack whom they deeply resented.
If Shen Mu were to intervene, these Lingjie Human Race soldiers would certainly separate them, and then after being separated, they would continue to live peacefully as before, with no difference, which would make no one willing to accept it.
Like a volcano that could erupt at any moment, they could no longer suppress the hatred and anger in their hearts.
"You damned guys, you had such a good relationship with the Diesel Company back then, you damned guys must have some connection with the Diesel Company."
"That's right, you guys were highly valued by the Diesel Company back then; many of you were temporary workers in the temporary fleet, so it's hard to guarantee that you don't still have connections with the remnants of the Diesel Company."
"You definitely have big problems; you are damned. Otherwise, why are you here to trouble us? We haven't even troubled you yet!"
"There must be remnants of the Diesel Company among you, yet you slander us by saying there are remnants of the Diesel Company among us. You yourselves should be the ones searched and inspected, and we even suspect that your senior managers are also involved in something shady."
"That's right, we suspect that there's something fishy among your senior managers too, maybe there are even Diesel Company infiltrators among your senior managers, otherwise how could you have so easily obtained our information?!"
These middle-level managers who considered themselves loyalists united and started arguing with those suspicious middle-level managers who came to provoke them in the morning.
And the arguments grew more and more intense, but while arguing, they consciously avoided critical areas, especially the entrances of the Noble Residence and the Governor's Mansion, without taking a single step that would affect those areas.
They all wanted to decide the victor and settle the score today.
So.
They couldn't give Shen Mu time to intervene, and they were also deliberately leading the arguments to more secluded areas.
And those suspicious middle-level managers who were arguing with the loyalist middle-level managers all sneered, not bothering to argue, but directly pulled out their respective lists and pointed at them, demanding a confrontation on the spot.
These were the small leaders among the middle-level managers who had offended them and were not under their management at the time.
Moreover, they were all influential small leaders among these loyalist managers, some who had the opportunity and ability to threaten those senior managers.
Therefore, during the argument, they became even more arrogant, accusing these middle-level managers of disregarding the overall situation and treating the remnants of the Diesel Company as their trusted leaders, directly slandering them without any distinction.
After all, they understood that arguing with them at this point was pointless, because their goal was to expand the scope of implication, to eliminate their greatest threats, and to eradicate dissent.
There was no need to explain such things at all.
Once all the small leaders on the list came out, they would directly arrest them, and then the arrests would escalate into bloody conflicts; by then, after killing these small leaders among the middle-level managers, the matter would be much easier to resolve.
After all, even their own leaders had been dealt with, and the remaining ones would be headless flies, at which point they would be at their mercy; although their numbers were not large, their unity and cohesion were much stronger than those of these middle-level managers.
Although it seemed that there was a risk of internal strife within them, what they were protecting was their own power, and their cohesion was stronger than that of the loyalist faction formed by these middle-level managers who challenged their power.
After all, even if the loyalist faction among these middle-level managers challenged their power and sidelined them, they themselves would need to share the spoils; otherwise, how could these powers fall into their hands?
Therefore, these loyalists truly relied on those small leaders to achieve cohesion, and those small leaders would also become future senior managers.
Their trusted aides would also become middle-level managers.
Power was all predetermined.
Compared to the existing interest group formed by those senior managers and their trusted middle-level managers, which had a top-down management system, the cohesion was naturally weaker.
After all, the current senior managers and their relatives already occupied the ecological niche of 'eating meat'; they had already become an interest group.
This interest group had already formed, so when provoked, they would spontaneously unite to resist the impact of outsiders on them.
As for these so-called loyalist provocateurs, they would, of course, unite to eliminate these small leaders first, and then, in the ensuing bloody conflict, they would begin to hide their strength and deliberately wear down others.
That's right, these suspicious middle-level managers had actually already received hints from their senior managers, telling them to first eliminate those small leaders in the upcoming conflict, and then, when the remaining angry middle-level managers engaged in bloody conflict, they should hide their strength.
Lest their own people suffer too many losses, which would not be good then.
"You damned small leaders, come out according to the names on this list! Are you men or not? As long as you come out, we can prove that you are remnants of the Diesel Company."
"You, so-and-so, come out first. Don't think I don't know you're a remnant of the Diesel Company. Many times you secretly reported to the Diesel Company. Come out quickly, did you do it or not?"
"That's right, you're shouting and yelling here because you have a guilty conscience! Come out, come out, come out!"
"You must have a guilty conscience, you guys are definitely remnants of the Diesel Company."
"You are the traitors, you are the traitors on this list, don't think we don't know, come out first."
These middle-level managers, instructed by the senior managers, also roared, demanding that the people on the list come out; in reality, this was a provocation, intending to provoke all the small leaders on the list to come out.
In fact, they succeeded; indeed, some of the small leaders on the list had already been provoked to come out by the taunts.
Each of them, red-faced with anger, furiously cursed at the suspicious middle-level managers, while also defending themselves, claiming they had no involvement with the Diesel Company whatsoever at the time, and that these were baseless accusations and slanders.
But these were indeed baseless accusations and slanders.
Watching seven or eight people on the list already come out, but another seven or eight still hiding among the middle-level managers, these suspicious middle-level managers showed a hidden smile on their faces, but continued to curse loudly, as if these people had truly done many unspeakable things.
Meanwhile, among the loyalist middle-level managers, the remaining small leaders frowned, gathering together and discussing in low voices.
After all, they also realized that something was amiss. (End of this chapter)
