159: Chapter 159 Vikram's Trial!

Vikram Singh was pushed off the plane. The heatwaves of Bir Tawil hit him, his legs went weak, and he could barely stand.

He had imagined coming to this land countless times, perhaps as a successful consultant bringing his family for a vacation, but never had he imagined it would be as a prisoner.

He was held by two heavily armed soldiers and dragged into the police headquarters, which had been converted from an Egyptian military camp. It had become a de facto military administration zone, and the atmosphere was grim.

Lin Zhou was looking at the summarized global public opinion report, his eyebrows knitted together. News of Vikram Singh's arrest had spread like wildfire, and major global media outlets were tracking the story.

"Leader," his secretary reported, "Many international media outlets, including Reuters, the BBC, and CNN, have sent interview requests. They want to interview us regarding the Vikram Singh case; they want to know how we will deal with him."

Lin Zhou's fingertips tapped silently on the desktop. His initial thought was to hold an internal military trial, quick and decisive, to minimize the impact. After all, a nascent regime just starting out really shouldn't stir up too many waves on the international stage.

But the heat of the discussion online had completely spiraled out of control, with all sorts of speculation running rampant. "Black jail trial," "private execution," "barbaric regime's revenge"—sensational headlines were emerging one after another.

He realized that suppressing this public opinion was almost impossible; any attempt to cover it up would be interpreted as guilt and cruelty.

Instead of being passively smeared, it was better to take the initiative.

Lin Zhou didn't hesitate anymore; he grabbed the communicator and connected to the Chief Justice, Zhang Zhe.

"Public opinion can't be suppressed," Lin Zhou said straight to the point. "Since the whole world wants to watch, let them watch enough."

He gave his final order: "As quickly as possible, according to our own laws, give him the fairest trial. Broadcast the entire process globally. I want this trial to be the first lesson we show the world regarding our judicial independence and national majesty, and to serve as a sufficient deterrent."

Zhang Zhe's efficiency was extremely high. Within twenty-four hours of Vikram Singh's arrival, a special investigation tribunal was established, with him serving as the Chief Judge and two newly naturalized legal personnel serving as jurors.

The trial location was chosen in a cleared-out warehouse inside the military camp, arranged simply and solemnly. A huge flag of the Cyber Freedom Republic hung behind Zhang Zhe, and cameras were aimed at every corner of the courtroom from different angles.

As soon as the news was announced, the relevant discussion sections on major global online platforms were flooded with new posts.

"Holy crap! It's starting already? This efficiency is too high!"

"A global broadcast trial for a traitor? This guy really understands traffic; he's worthy of being an internet-famous leader."

"Now there's a good show to watch. I want to see how this ragtag team handles a trial."

The moment the live stream signal connected, tens of millions of viewers flooded into the major video platforms.

In front of the camera, Vikram Singh wore a grey prison uniform and handcuffs, his face haggard; he had long since lost the elite demeanor he had in Beijing.

Zhang Zhe, with a stern face, struck the gavel.

"Now, the Special Military Tribunal of the Cyber Freedom Republic is officially in session for the case of Vikram Singh leaking state secrets!"

Without any extra nonsense, Zhang Zhe directly had the prosecutor, the Censor-in-Chief Gao Jian, read the indictment and present the evidence.

From the surveillance screenshots of Vikram Singh's meeting with the intelligence broker Rajeev in Beijing, to the abnormal capital flows in his bank accounts, and then to the file fragments recovered from his encrypted computer that were completely consistent with the leaked intelligence.

Piece after piece of evidence was presented, interlocking, giving the other party no room for rebuttal.

The bullet comments in the live stream room also turned into a large-scale legal education session.

"It's here, it's here. I bet fifty cents that it falls under Article 73 of the 'National Security Law,' the crime of illegally providing state secrets to foreign entities."

"To the person above, you're wrong! Look at the appendix of the 'Criminal Code' they just published; this is clearly a particularly serious case, and they can directly apply the maximum penalty!"

"By the way, isn't their law just copying the legal texts of the Permanent Five countries and changing the country name? This copying is way too obvious."

"So what if they copied? As long as it works! This is called standing on the shoulders of giants! It's better than messing around on their own, right?"

With all the evidence pointing at him, Vikram Singh's body went limp, and he completely gave up struggling.

He abandoned his defense, weeping bitterly in court, explaining that he was muddled for a moment only to raise money for his daughter's surgery, and hoped to receive forgiveness.

His tearful plea drew some sympathy online, but there were more rational voices.

"Can you betray your country just for family? What kind of bandit logic is this?"

"Why didn't he think about how much danger the leak of this gold mine intelligence would bring to this new country when he took the money? It could kill even more people!"

After listening to his statement, Zhang Zhe's face remained calm, and he struck the gavel again.

"The defendant's criminal motive may be worthy of some sympathy, but the dignity of the law cannot be challenged. No reason can be an excuse for betraying the country and endangering national security. After deliberation by this court, the verdict is as follows:"

He paused slightly, and the bullet comments flooding the global live stream screen stalled for a moment.

"Defendant Vikram Singh is guilty of endangering national security, with conclusive evidence. The charges are upheld. He is sentenced to seven years in prison, deprived of political rights for life, and all illegal gains are confiscated."

"It really is seven years!"

"Hahahaha, I told you, I'm familiar with this script!"

The verdict was completely consistent with the predictions of most netizens. This public trial not only showed the whole world that the judicial system of the Cyber Freedom Republic had begun to operate, but more importantly, it served as a warning to others.

It sent a clear signal to all those with ulterior motives: here, the price of betrayal is heavy.

However, new problems followed one after another.

That evening, Zhang Zhe found Lin Zhou, looking a bit troubled.

"Leader, the sentence has been passed. But... we don't have a prison."

Lin Zhou was stunned upon hearing this, and only then did he react. The country was undergoing large-scale infrastructure construction, with data centers and road networks; where would they find the time and spare money to build a modern prison?

"Lock him in the military camp's confinement room for now, and assign someone to guard him." Lin Zhou rubbed his temples. "When the finances are more abundant later, we'll consider building an 'Alcatraz' or something."

Just as the eyes of the whole world were focused on this slightly ridiculous yet incredibly serious trial, no one noticed that on the southern border of the Cyber Freedom Republic, a real threat was brewing.

He Jun walked quickly into Lin Zhou's office, without a word, and slapped a piece of intelligence directly onto the table.

"Leader, our neighbor to the south seems a bit restless." He pushed a satellite image analysis report in front of Lin Zhou. "In the border region of Sudan, there is a large number of tribal armed forces gathering, and the scale is very unusual."