Warlords: Rising from the Northwest Border and Sweeping Across the Powers

Chapter 1134 Conditions

Su Zhengyang took a new cigarette from the cigarette box and lit it gracefully. His fingers tapped the tabletop lightly, making a rhythmic sound, like some kind of ominous signal.

"Your idea is great," he said slowly, smoke swirling around him. "It's crazy, and it suits my taste."

A glimmer of hope rekindled in Sukarno's eyes.

"But..." Su Zhengyang's fingers suddenly stopped, his eyes turned cold, "You made a mistake."

He stood up and walked to the window: "China does not need any neighbors or support."

Turning around, his eyes were as sharp as a knife: "What I want is absolute submission."

The words were so powerful that they echoed in the reception room, and Sukarno felt his heart almost stop beating.

Su Zhengyang walked slowly in front of him and looked down at this ambitious South Asian politician. His eyes were full of admiration and a hint of danger, as if he was looking at an interesting toy that could be discarded at any time.

Sukarno's brain was working rapidly, carefully pondering the meaning of Su Zhengyang's words.

Absolute submission? What does this mean? Does it mean that Sukarno will become a puppet of China? Will he give up his ambitions and be a pawn of others?

No, this is not what he wants. What he wants is an equal alliance and mutually beneficial cooperation. What he wants is to unify South Asia and become a real strong country, rather than becoming a vassal of others.

but......

He secretly glanced at Su Zhengyang's frighteningly calm face. Without China's support, how could he unify South Asia? Relying on those old equipment? Relying on those poor resources? Relying on those industries that have not yet recovered?

Although England and the United States are mainly in Europe, they may turn around and intervene in South Asia at any time. And China, the giant that just demonstrated its terrifying power in the Far East, is close at hand.

Surrender, or persist?

Sukarno was caught in an unprecedented contradiction. His ambition was clamoring for rejection, but his reason was reminding him to judge the situation. Those weapons that were beyond the times, those terrifying military strengths, and the "madman"-like strongman in front of him...

Cold sweat broke out on his palms and his heart was wavering between the two extremes.

"I like smart people with ambition," Su Zhengyang said meaningfully, "but..." He blew out a smoke ring, "when ambition and strength don't match, it's not ambition, it's stupidity."

These words were like a heavy hammer, hitting Sukarno's heart hard.

Yes, if ambition and strength do not match, then it is a road to self-destruction. But...

After a long silence and intense inner struggle, Sukarno finally raised his head, his eyes flashing with an unusually determined light:

"I can share power in South Asia with China," he said word by word, his voice was not loud but powerful, "I am willing to give you half of the power in my hands. But..."

He looked straight into Su Zhengyang's eyes. Even though the other's gaze was as sharp as a knife, he still did not back down: "I must not be a puppet. This is my bottom line."

Su Zhengyang narrowed his eyes slightly, and he saw a desperate determination in Sukarno's eyes. That was not bluffing, but the last dignity and persistence of a politician.

This ambitious man from South Asia finally showed his true colors.

Zhang Luanyu was secretly surprised. It was the first time he saw someone dare to negotiate so toughly in front of Su Zhengyang.

The two men's eyes met in the air. Sukarno knew how dangerous his situation was at the moment.

The "Crazy Su" in front of him was a ruthless character who would even beat Fuso if he said so. If he got angry, I might not even be able to see the sun today. But since it has come to this, I might as well take a gamble.

Either become a true overlord, or... become a cold corpse.

After a long while, Su Zhengyang finally broke the silence: "Okay, I don't need your absolute submission."

Sukarno's heart skipped a beat.

"But," Su Zhengyang's voice turned cold, "I have five conditions."

He put out the cigarette in his hand and said word by word:

"First, all military deployments in South Asia must be approved by China."

&34;Second, the control of the Strait of Malacca must be handed over to China. &34;

&34;Third, all heavy industrial development in South Asia must be based on Chinese technology and must not introduce technology from other countries. &34;

&34;Fourth, after the unification of South Asia, China must be unconditionally supported in recovering all lost territory. &34;

When talking about the fifth condition, Su Zhengyang's eyes became particularly sharp: "The fifth, and most important point..."

Please continue describing the last condition and subsequent dialogue.

"Fifth," Su Zhengyang's voice was unquestionable, "China has full rights to station troops and military autonomy in South Asia."

This sentence was like a bucket of ice water, which instantly sobered Sukarno up. He knew exactly what it meant.

China's troops can freely enter any place in South Asia, mobilize troops without his consent, and even... launch military operations against him at any time.

How can this be called sharing power? This is clearly putting their fate completely in the hands of China. As long as any of their decisions do not satisfy China, they will immediately turn against them and take over the entire South Asia by force.

"This..." Sukarno suppressed his inner resentment and said, "President Su, this is too..."

"This is my bottom line," Su Zhengyang interrupted him directly, his voice cold, "There is no room for negotiation."

&34;But if that's the case, wouldn't I be...&34;

"You still have a choice," Su Zhengyang said coldly, "either accept these five conditions and become a limited ruler; or..." He paused meaningfully, "what do you think?"

Sukarno clenched his fists. He knew this was the final ultimatum.

The so-called sharing of power is nothing but a beautiful lie. But isn't this better than becoming a cold corpse? At least, he can still realize some of his ambitions in a limited space.

"I agree," Sukarno finally said these three words with difficulty, as if all his strength had been exhausted.

"A wise choice," Su Zhengyang smiled again, and his temperament instantly changed from cold to gentle, "Come, have some tea."

He stood up himself and poured two cups of hot tea from the purple clay teapot beside the coffee table. The fragrance of tea instantly filled the entire reception room.

"This is Da Hong Pao from Wuyi Mountain," Su Zhengyang said softly, handing one of the cups to Sukarno, "It is said to be the best batch from last year."

Sukarno took the teacup and felt the warmth coming from it. The tense situation a few minutes ago seemed to have never happened. Su Zhengyang in front of him turned back into the gentle host.

"Now that we have reached a consensus," Su Zhengyang sat down again and took a sip of tea, "then we can discuss the specific details of the cooperation."

Zhang Luanyu watched this scene from the side. He was murderous one moment and chatty and cheerful the next. This ability to change instantly was the most frightening.

Although Sukarno appeared calm on the surface, his hand holding the teacup was shaking slightly. He knew that from this moment on, his fate was closely tied to that of this powerful country.

As for whether this cup of tea is a blessing or a curse, I'm afraid only time can give the answer.