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墨書 Inktalez
"We cannot tolerate Hunger. Whoever gave us Hunger is our enemy." The uncle spoke through gritted teeth, revealing his deep-seated anger.
"Everything will be alright," Zhang Qiu comforted the uncle. He thought of the Late Qing Reforms, the Preparatory Constitutional Reform, and the Xinhai Revolution. The future is destined to be bright, but the road to brightness is filled with thorns.
"Yes, everything will be fine. This time, we support Your Highness." The uncle smiled sincerely, but Zhang Qiu was taken aback. Supporting the prince, could it mean...
"Why support the prince?" Zhang Qiu asked.
"Because the prince stands with us. Just recently, Your Highness personally took to the streets and assured us that he would persuade the king. We all believe in the prince; he is a wonderful young man."
Zhang Qiu recalled a news report he had seen—the scene of the prince standing on the street facing an angry crowd—and couldn't help but smile. Before coming here, Zhang Qiu had worried that Prince Banan, growing up in such an environment, would become a typical dictator. Now it seemed that his concerns were unfounded. Prince Banan was able to adapt to the larger environment; he truly deserved to be called the Jade Pendant Heir.
"That's how things are; everyone you see here is fighting for a better future."
Zhang Qiu nodded solemnly and said, "The future will be better."
"Thank you. Now I must return and fight alongside my friends."
Zhang Qiu watched as the uncle returned to the crowd of demonstrators, others surrounding him with questions. The uncle smiled at Zhang Qiu, and soon many people turned their gaze in this direction.
Zhang Qiu said to k, "Thank you."
"What are you thanking me for?"
"Thank you for your translation." Many words in his conversation with the uncle were difficult to understand, and it was thanks to k's assistance that he managed.
k replied, "If you really want to thank me, listen to me: go back to the hotel and don't meddle here."
"No way. You should understand that I'm not meddling; I'm here for serious business. Didn't you hear the uncle? Prince Banan is a reformist in this country."
"What does being a reformist have to do with us?"
"It has everything to do with us. I came all this way with Lucia specifically to find Prince Banan, and you know that."
"I am well aware, and I am even more aware that we cannot get involved in the political affairs of other countries, as it would bring negative consequences to our nation."
K and Zhang Qiu began to argue again. Lucia pushed her arms away and stood between Zhang Qiu and K, shouting, "Stop! No more arguing. Zhang Qiu is the captain; we will follow his lead."
"But..."
"There are no 'buts'!" Lucia interrupted K. "It is undeniable that Zhang Qiu is the captain. We agreed to let you come here, not to have you restrict us at every turn."
"K, you have the right not to participate in this operation; this is ultimately between me and Lucia. Right now, we need to get through the crowd of protesters to reach the palace. You should go back to the hotel and wait for us."
Zhang Qiu looked at Lucia and smiled, "Beautiful princess, are you ready for an adventure?"
"Of course," Lucia nodded with a smile.
Zhang Qiu and Lucia walked side by side into the crowd. As they passed by an older man, he stood up and asked, "Aren't you going back to your place?"
"I need to gather more materials, so we are going ahead to take a look."
The older man's expression tightened as he advised, "You really shouldn't go; there are military police and police up ahead. The army is about to surround this area."
"Prince Banan has already spoken with you; how could there still be..."
"The entire country belongs to the king. Without the king's orders, what can Your Highness do? That’s why we are demanding that the king relinquish his power. As long as the prince is in charge, the situation will greatly improve; everything will get better."
Demanding that the king relinquish power while it remains firmly in his hands creates a deadlock, doesn't it?
"Did you hear that? We should leave quickly." During a pause, K caught up after hearing the older man's words.
"No! The more difficult it is, the more necessary it becomes to act. Knowing there are tigers on the mountain yet choosing to go toward them—you may choose not to go, but you cannot stop us from going. I find it quite unbelievable that a soldier of the Special Forces would be so timid!" When mentioning the Special Forces, Zhang Qiu deliberately switched to Chinese.
Zhang Qiu and Lucia continued forward as the older man chuckled and said, "If you don't mind, I can be your guide. I'm familiar with the situation around here; I can take you wherever you want to go. If you encounter any locals who speak their dialects, I can translate for you."
"That's simply amazing," Zhang Qiu thought, grateful for the help from a local. "Sir, what should I call you?"
"My name is Agari, and I work as a loader at a nearby factory."
"Thank you, Uncle Agari."
"I should be thanking you. You must write about the stories that happen here; I believe they will be fascinating."
"Don't worry, Uncle Agari. I promise to write about the stories that take place here. If I have the chance, I will let the whole world know about what happens on this land."
Zhang Qiu, Lucia, and Uncle Agari walked side by side, while K followed silently behind them. Zhang Qiu didn't mind, but Lucia joked, "K, aren't you afraid of causing an international incident?"
"For your safety, I have no choice but to take the risk."
"Now that's more like a Chinese special forces soldier," Zhang Qiu said, switching to Mandarin. He understood K's intentions were merely to monitor his and Lucia's actions, which he accepted without addressing it directly.
The four of them, with different skin tones, entered the dense crowd. In every new place they visited, they attracted curious glances from people. Groups of three or five sat together in the open space, and few wore clothing similar to what Zhang Qiu had on. Most people were dressed in traditional attire, adorned with unique headpieces; some even had feathers stuck in their hair. The men were bare-chested, wearing large bone necklaces around their necks, and when they smiled, their bright white teeth shone.
Zhang Qiu thought that in a country like Tanzania, women probably wouldn't go out much; however, he was mistaken. About one-third of the people in the open area were women. The women sported extremely short hair or styled their hair into thin braids. To Zhang Qiu's surprise, a considerable number of women were also bare-chested like the men, their full dark breasts exposed to the air; however, this did not evoke any desire in him.
As they continued walking forward, colorful tents began to appear on the ground. Trash was strewn around the tents, and an unpleasant smell wafted through the crowd. Legs protruding from inside the tents reminded passersby that there were people inside. Uncle Agari pointed to the surrounding tents and explained, "Most of these are from the first group that came to protest at the palace. Some social organizations provided assistance with these tents; having them helps us shield from wind and rain and has been a great aid for us."
Zhang Qiu nodded and sighed, "This is what people's hearts are about."
"What?"
Zhang Qiu instinctively spoke in Chinese; Uncle Agari didn't understand. He then explained in English, and Uncle Agari smiled satisfactorily and said, "That's right; the people here are very united. To quote a slogan from our country: 'We are an unbreakable fortress.'"
"We are an unbreakable fortress." Zhang Qiu heard this slogan again; he had first seen it in an encyclopedia. Was there any connection between this unbreakable fortress and the mission of the Jade Pendant Heir?
"Heart." Lucia pulled Zhang Qiu's arm.
"What's wrong?" Zhang Qiu looked around, thinking something had happened. Lucia pointed to the ground and said, "You almost stepped on someone; there are a lot of people here, you need to be careful."
Zhang Qiu looked down and saw two legs sticking out from a tent just half a meter in front of him. If Lucia hadn't stopped him, he would have stepped right on them. Zhang Qiu stuck out his tongue at Lucia, smiled awkwardly, and made sure not to get distracted again.
Uncle Agari pointed to a loudspeaker set up not far away and proudly said, "This is a temporary command center. No one expected so many people to come to the palace to protest this time. It's no longer enough to rely on simple communication. Here, there is a committee made up of various political groups and factions responsible for issuing orders and leading everyone in coordinated action."
Zhang Qiu looked at the makeshift loudspeaker and asked, "Won't this be interfered with?"
"Of course it will," Uncle Agari shrugged but remained optimistic. "However, this doesn't have too much impact on us. Our resolve is very strong; for survival and to escape Hunger, we must make changes!" As he spoke, hope shone in Uncle Agari's eyes.
While listening to Uncle Agari's introduction, Zhang Qiu was distracted by a sound. That tune was... yes, it was Guns N' Roses' "Welcome to the Jungle," though it wasn't very clear. Rock music indeed suited this occasion. Zhang Qiu smiled as he looked toward the source of the sound and saw two long-haired youths performing with electric guitars not far away.
"So it's a live performance; no wonder," Zhang Qiu remarked. Seeing Zhang Qiu's interest, Uncle Agari said, "You can go listen; these kids came from their university classes to support us. They've been playing here for a while; they're really great."
"That's right; they're really great," Zhang Qiu agreed.
Lucia wasn't particularly interested in what was happening here; after all, such events occurred frequently in her country and had almost become a fixed festival. Zhang Qiu, however, was thoroughly engrossed, nodding in appreciation at times and frowning in deep thought at others, unable to help but say, "These youths are really something else."
Zhang Qiu glanced at K, who still wore an indifferent expression and seemed unconcerned about what was happening around them.
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