Yes, Madam Prime Minister

Page 110

Ronan said.

It is not enough to simply distribute land to the lower classes; they need to be given greater opportunities for upward mobility.

"What about the original lower-ranking warriors?" the Lup brothers asked.

“Those who surrender, do not move; those who do not surrender, kill,” Ronan replied.

After all, many indigenous people had already been killed by the colonizers and infectious diseases over the past few decades, so the samurai, who were considered small landowners, could not be treated the same way.

If we really cut it off completely, then there will be no one left.

This is not the Western Continent, whose population has surged in the past few decades and is on the verge of exploding, nor is it the already overcrowded Seris.

Moreover, Ronan wanted a comprador regime for the indigenous people, not a genuine revolution.

“But the chief and the high command must die,” Ronan added.

“We five alone can’t manage it all,” O said with difficulty. Even the colonists’ estates required a dozen or so managers like his father to oversee them. How could such a large tribe be managed without a hundred or so high-ranking officials?

“You’ll meet them soon. Besides, if you succeed, you can bring your classmates over, right?” Ronan replied.

After training, the laborers in the colonists' factories became officers. Once they seized power, they naturally became high-ranking officers, and those who fought on the river had to be above everyone else.

Ronan sighed softly, "However, that alone is not enough."

The five people were somewhat surprised. Wasn't that enough?

Ronan waved his hand, "Sweetness alone isn't enough. Have you bought anything?"

O and Chip nodded, while the other three shook their heads. O and Chip had money and had bought things before, while the other three didn't have money and hadn't bought anything.

"Have you ever seen a limited-time sale?" Ronan asked. Limited-time sales are actually a very old promotional tactic, especially since the origins of Western Continent civilization are maritime civilizations, based on pirates and merchants; this tactic has been used to death long ago.

O shook his head, but Chip nodded, because he was richer. A few days ago, he bought a limited-time promotional gadget and regretted it as soon as he bought it.

“Therefore, we must implement a caste system.” Ronan finally revealed his true intentions.

Caste? The five men didn't understand.

"It's very simple. Just tell them that this revolution is their chance to turn their lives around. Everything will be fixed in the future. The tribe is roughly divided into five classes. The lowest class is slaves, then commoners. Commoners can farm and herd livestock but cannot do business, let alone join the army or become officials. Then the third class can do business and join the army, which is a class of lower-ranking officials."

"The fourth caste is the class that can become high-ranking military officers and high-ranking officials."

"The highest caste, of course, is you, the ones who make the laws and are responsible for adjudicating them. However, strictly speaking, you no longer rely on caste, because you must have received civilized education and pass the exams set by civilized people to gain power; otherwise, you can only enjoy preferential treatment."

A comprador regime is nothing if its leaders are not brainwashed by foreign influences and are not inherently aligned with the people they govern.

Ronan continued, "This caste system shouldn't be too strict."

“If the previous three generations were slaves, the fourth generation can apply to change their surname and join the commoner caste. Of course, the previous three generations must have been slaves well and without any wrongdoing, and they must have the master’s recommendation. Moreover, this is limited to the person, his wife, and his children.”

"The commoners of the second caste can be eligible to move up to the next caste after two generations, but they need three third-caste people to vouch for them and then pass an exam to advance."

"The third level can be accessed by donating money to enter the second level."

"Of course, there are promotions and demotions. As long as it is a serious crime, one must be demoted. This is something you can decide."

"The second level cannot be promoted to the highest level because the highest level requires people to have received civilized education. However, like the highest level, they have certain exemptions from demotion."

"And you, the highest class, will always be the highest class."

At this point, Ronan had explained the entire framework to them.

As for why there should be promotions and demotions, it wasn't because he was soft-hearted, but because this new continent was too big. If you don't give them any hope, can't they just run away? A comprador regime can't be too inactive; if it's too inactive, it won't be able to stand for long. Ronan, this "Frenchman," was hoping that they would cause more trouble for the "British" in the future.

In short, if the native slaves and commoners followed them, they would have a chance to rise up and become masters; if they adopted a wait-and-see attitude, it would be difficult to change their fate later.

"Alright, that's it for the second lesson. There's another week of classes. After that, you'll have to go for military training."

Ronan said.

As an entrepreneurial generation, you can't get by if you don't know how to fight.

Ronan believed they could quickly grasp some basic military knowledge, after all, their level of education was higher than that of the laborers, who could only speak a little basic French and know a few words used in the factory, but they were different.

Over the next week, Ronan will provide a more detailed explanation, showing them how to simplify their ideas into slogans.

Next, it will be up to Faith. Why? Because the caste system must be paired with religion. Without religion, it is not conducive to its spread. More importantly, without religion, someone will eventually ask, "Why?" Ronan will not allow any native to ask the question "Why?"

Chapter 248 Religion Provides Justice, Time Waits for No One, Innovation is Needed

When the natives occupied this land in the past, they not only failed to develop civilization, but also engaged in barbaric sacrifices. They were born ignorant and barbaric, and were inferior to white people.

What? You're saying white people are also ignorant, burning living people alive? Bullshit! People from the Western Continent are the bosses, smart and civilized. What, you disagree? If you disagree, I'll shoot you and scatter your ashes.

In short, only by converting to the religion and undergoing baptism for several generations can the indigenous people cleanse themselves of their sins and start anew.

Only within the caste system can one go to heaven.

Those who do not follow the caste system are considered sinful savages.

Savage, evil, guilty, deserve to die!

This statement will become the source of the revolution's legitimacy. After five students and more than two hundred laborers conquer a tribe, why should they continue to expand and attack other tribes? Because the other tribes are savages, and savages deserve to die. The ones who deserve to die the most are the chief, the demon leader, and his demon subordinates. As for the others, they can be lambs deceived by the demons, or they can not. It all depends on whether you are willing to join the caste system, convert to the religion, and become a fellow believer.

Of course, this religion cannot be a proper Seven Saints Religion; it must be adapted to local conditions and customs, and must be a Seven Saints Religion with indigenous characteristics.

Ronan isn't a professional at charlatanry; you need someone like Faith who's a pro.

"What are you plotting?" Faith asked after hearing the main theme Ronan had outlined.

"Don't worry about what I'm up to, just tell me if you can or can't. If you can't, I'll find someone else," Ronan said bluntly.

“Yes,” Faith replied.

Although their Holy Maiden Cult mainly focuses on scientific research, otherwise they wouldn't be able to confront the Purple-Clad Organization, they also know how to use the charlatan's methods. These days, how can you convince people to join without some religious stuff? Although she herself wasn't a charlatan, and she had previously addressed Dinia as Holy Maiden without actually showing any reverence, she had minored in the charlatan's ways.

"Then I'll leave it to you." Ronan handed the matter over to Faith and left.

Over the next week, Ronan taught them how to chant slogans to incite the lower classes, and how to use violence and benefits to win over and divide the middle class—things he was very familiar with.

On the other hand, in just one week, Faith came up with a solution and then prepared to start spreading it to Ronan's five students.

She's a professional at taking church scriptures out of context and then distorting their interpretations.

Subsequently, the five students joined Old Man Raven's military training camp. Of course, they were also learning about the local Seven Saints doctrines at the same time, and while learning, they also taught the workers in the training camp.

Everything is proceeding according to plan.

A month and a half later, Ronan received news that surprised him: the Twin Bears tribe was in turmoil. In fact, this had happened half a month earlier, as communication was very underdeveloped in the New World at that time.

The incident began when Chief Ankara wanted to move west, but his three sons disagreed. They gathered a group of people for breakfast, and were subsequently killed.

Chief Ankara also acted decisively, after all, he had more than three sons, but only these three were adults.

The Twin Bears began their westward migration. Although they had not completely moved away, their eastern territory was already empty. This turned the entire central North America into a chaotic mess. Dozens of small tribes either planned to seize the space left by the Twin Bears or to take the initiative to defend themselves in this turmoil.

“The timing isn’t right yet, but time waits for no one, so we have no choice but to go ahead,” Ronan said to the old man Raven. To be honest, he hoped that the five students and more than two hundred laborers could train for a few more months.

Old man Raven smiled slightly, "In your words, learn in battle and fight in learning. Don't worry, with me and others directing from behind, and dozens of mage musketeers holding the line in front, and those two brats named O and Chip are not weak either, taking down a small tribe will be a piece of cake."

"We must not give up on spreading the caste system and the new religion," Ronan instructed. He wasn't worried about fighting; he was worried about the propaganda work.

Old man Raven sneered, "Didn't your subordinates Noah and Miss Faith already organize a missionary group?"

"Ha." Ronan's smile froze.

Ronan gets a headache just thinking about this missionary group.

Things started a month ago.

First, Chip, a Raga boy, came to Ronan and said that he had mastered a method that combined totem enhancement and magic, and he told Ronan about it.

Totem enhancement is similar to directly entering a state where the summoned creature and the person are combined in a summoning spell, but the upper limit is very low, at most reaching the combat power of a first-tier rank.

Although totem enhancement only requires some resources and doesn't require talent like magic, it's only usable by Rag people. Like the Haidi people, Rag people are also a kind of "artificial human." Therefore, his method of combining totem enhancement and magic is only of some significance to Rag people with magical talent, and such people are extremely rare, so it has no value for widespread adoption.

Following that, O found Ronan, took out his golden mask that housed the old wizard's soul, and told Ronan the secret inside: the remnant soul of the old wizard inside could allow people to quickly master witchcraft.

But Ronan wasn't interested.

Evil magic, or sorcery, is similar to divine magic in the Oath of Heaven. It has various strange abilities, but its upper limit is also very low. Although sorcery does not rely on talent like magic, it comes at a price: self-sacrifice. Moreover, the restrictions on using sorcery are greater than those on the Oath of Heaven. One wrong move and you'll kill yourself.

Ultimately, if totem enhancement and witchcraft were truly valuable, wouldn't colonists have tried to acquire them? Never underestimate the heart of a robber.

But these two "useless" things met Noah and Faith.

The two men bought a group of young, sick, and abandoned girls for a very small amount of money. Some of them were Laghians, and some were indigenous people.

First, they replaced the natives' internal organs and bones with those of the Rag people. Then, they made the outer layer of their bodies into puppets and forcibly focused on the totem's enhancement power. After that, they kept the totem-enhanced outer shell, replaced the inside with the natives', and then used the golden mask, along with Chip's method of avoiding totem enhancement conflicts, to let them master the power of witchcraft.

The golden mask was thus ruined through misuse.

In the end, seven of the forty-six people survived. The seven young girls all gained the power of totem enhancement and witchcraft. With their totem-enhanced bodies, they didn't have to be so careful when using witchcraft. These seven became the members of the missionary group.

"Unfortunately, this power is still not as good as magic."

"Moreover, that golden mask can no longer be used, and we will no longer be able to mass-produce these modified humans in the future."

"Ha, the key is not the results, but what we accumulate and discover in the process."

"That's right, this time it involves the soul level. One day someone will find a way to make magic accessible to everyone."

"You two, try not to do this kind of human experimentation again," Ronan said.

“Of course not, there’s no point in doing something like that again,” Noah said.

“Indeed,” Faith replied, adding, “We need something more original.”

This happened a month ago.

Chapter 249 Victory, Establishment of the Nation, Encirclement and Suppression Arrive

The brothers Au and Lupp set off on horseback, leading more than two hundred musketeers trained by laborers.

Following them were five hundred Rag slaves, led by Chip and with the chubby Hatch as his deputy. These five hundred men were mainly responsible for logistics.

It's unavoidable that Chip, who has the best overall qualities, is in charge of logistics, because no one else has that ability.

Old Raven and his corps of officers, along with dozens of musketeers, followed at the rear. They did not participate in the battle, nor did they help with command.

Since the target of the first battle was only a small tribe of less than two thousand people, and the enemy's total strength was less than two hundred people, if they still couldn't win, then Ronan would personally send these five good-for-nothings to meet their heavenly father with a single sword stroke.

Two weeks later, news of the victory came back.

This victory actually happened a week ago.

The brothers, O and Lupu, led their laborers and musketeers and crushed the small tribe in half a day, killing all the tribe's leaders and becoming the tribe's chief.

However, the old man Raven's evaluation of this battle was only two words: "bullshit."

Because three of them died and five others were injured in the stampede, they started to panic after defeating their opponents, and their formation collapsed instantly. If the other side were to launch a counterattack, they could be completely overwhelmed.

The only saving grace was that the five young men were not blinded by their easy victory. Instead of immediately starting a new war with the tribe, they stopped, began to reorganize the tribe, and started preaching.

Two weeks later, they captured a small neighboring tribe with a population of over four thousand. In this battle, several members of the tribe who had joined the army earlier had distinguished themselves and received benefits.

After the victory, they continued to reorganize and spread their faith.

This reorganization lasted for a month. As a result, the number of people eager to join the army suddenly increased, so it was necessary to intensify training and missionary work to turn these newcomers into qualified soldiers. Of course, this "qualified" was relative to the natives of other tribes.

Fortunately, the initial two hundred or so laborers were trained as junior officers. They were spread out, with one officer leading several, and things went relatively smoothly.

Secondly, more people require more weapons, and the captured weapons are not enough; they must be purchased from abroad. Fortunately, Ronan had already established channels with Villa. As long as O. Chip and his men are willing to sign high-interest loan contracts, there will be enough weapons.

After a month of reorganization, O, Chip and his men set off again. This time, their target was the Buffalo Tribe, a large tribe second only to the Twin Bear Tribe. Originally, the tribe had a population of nearly 20,000. However, after the Twin Bear Tribe migrated westward, the Buffalo Tribe had absorbed two smaller tribes, and its population had exceeded 30,000.

The Buffalo Tribe also has a cavalry force of two hundred men, and this time the Buffalo Tribe is not just its own, but has also gathered two other large tribes with populations of over ten thousand.

Its total strength exceeded three thousand, while O and Chip's army totaled only one thousand men, and they were all infantry, including six hundred spearmen and four hundred musketeers.

The outcome remains a foregone conclusion.

O and Chip's thousand men won, but not because of tactics. The enemy also had phalanxes and more musketeer cavalry. The natives were backward, not stupid. After being beaten by colonists for decades, surely they hadn't learned anything? It had nothing to do with combat strength either. In fact, the enemy soldiers and officers had far more combat experience than O and Chip's men.

However, the morale of the two sides was on completely different levels. The soldiers who had been brainwashed by missionaries and lured by the future were far more capable of holding the line than the soldiers of those tribes.

Before the advent of true firearms, battles were a contest of who was less afraid of death.

Ronan's five students won again, and after winning, they began the long process of wrapping things up.

After eliminating three tribes, led by the Buffalo tribe, the five officially declared the establishment of the city-state of Lava and brought the local small tribes under their rule.

Lava means nomads. Before the arrival of colonists, the northern part of the New World was more backward than the central and southern parts. At least the central and southern parts had developed civilizations and established city-states, while the north was only nomadic.

The five-person makeshift team consisted of O’Brien as chief executive officer, Hatch as head of agriculture and commerce, Chip as head of domestic affairs and finance, the elder of the Lupp brothers as military commander, and the younger as religious missionary.

Next came the formal announcement of the city-state's core system and core ideology, namely the caste system of promotion and demotion that Ronan had instilled in them, and the Lava Seven Holy Church that Faith had haphazardly concocted.