88: Chapter 88 One Man's Upheaval! The Whole World is Laughing Like Crazy!

The aftermath of the border incident spread rapidly across the globe.

The live stream featuring Gao Jian and Sato Takuya became a global carnival for netizens.

The footage was edited into countless versions, set to all sorts of catchy BGM and hilarious subtitles, and spread across YouTube, Douyin, and Twitter.

In particular, the clips of Sato Takuya being thrown across the border line by the police over and over again became classics.

Netizens let their imaginations run wild, turning it into countless dynamic GIFs that swept across global chat applications.

[Me when the boss makes me work overtime.gif]

[Me trying to reason with my girlfriend.gif]

[Life throwing me out of my comfort zone.gif]

These GIFs, paired with the look on Sato's face that was uglier than crying, were simply the best comedy material.

The police uniform of the Cyber Freedom Republic also became unexpectedly popular.

Originally, it was just a costume Lin Zhou had Wang Dong hastily modify at a random cosplay prop factory, but now it had become the new darling of the fashion world.

Countless influencers and trendsetters vied to buy the same style, showing it off on social media, to the point where the owner of that prop factory added three hundred production lines overnight, yet it was still in short supply.

It even led to a surge in sales for the old game, future police》.

Even more interesting was that global netizens gave this incident a code name—"The One-Man Subversion Operation."

This entry dominated the top of the trending lists on major social platforms for three whole days, with extremely high engagement.

"Laughing to death. The most aggrieved 'invader' in history, thrown back before even touching the border line."

"What is an international dispute? Learn from the Cyber Freedom Republic; this is called parabolic diplomacy, a diplomatic invention of the twenty-first century!"

"The Cyber Freedom Republic proved with action: Don't mess with me; if you mess with me again, I'll throw you out again!"

"Chief Prosecutor Gao's legal education live stream was top-tier! High energy from start to finish! That line, 'Do you think the comrades behind me look like they are joking with you?' was so cool! I'm a fan! I'm a fan!"

Public opinion was almost completely one-sided.

People didn't think there was anything wrong with the law enforcement methods of this nascent country; on the contrary, they found it both satisfying and fun.

A small country had easily resolved a crisis with a very internet-savvy maneuver, while also gaining global fame and public goodwill.

This PR move was immediately taken by many public relations experts as a case study.

At this moment, Lin Zhou, far away in Beijing, was quietly scrolling through these comments on his phone.

Everything was within his script.

From beginning to end, Lin Zhou had never taken that clown Sato Takuya seriously.

Who he really needed to deal with were the opportunists and skeptics hiding behind Sato who had designs on the territory of the Cyber Freedom Republic.

Through handling this crisis, he successfully sent several clear signals to the whole world:

The Cyber Freedom Republic has the determination and the strength to defend its sovereignty; no one can do anything about it.

Furthermore, this country is not to be trifled with; any form of provocation will be met with the simplest and most direct counterattack.

More importantly, he has the ability to turn a crisis in others' eyes into his own stage, into a global carnival.

Want to fight with me? Weigh yourself first.

"Head of State! We've really made a name for ourselves this time!"

Wang Dong rushed into the office, his face flushed, so excited he didn't know where to put his hands.

"You haven't seen our official store! That commemorative police uniform T-shirt, just in one day! Sold thirty thousand pieces! The pure profit is enough to pay the police department's salaries for half a year!"

"And there's more, several film companies have blown up our phones, fighting to adapt this incident into a movie! They specifically named Chief Prosecutor Gao to play the lead role!"

Lin Zhou looked at his pathetic appearance, smiled, and put down his phone.

"Alright, stop joking around. Gao Jian is the Chief Prosecutor, not a movie star."

"Hehe, just kidding, just trying to liven up the atmosphere." Wang Dong rubbed his hands, the excitement on his face fading, becoming serious.

"Head of State, I'm here to report on serious business."

He paused and lowered his voice.

"From Vatican City, Minister Qin sent an encrypted email."

Upon hearing the words "Vatican City," the smile on Lin Zhou's face disappeared.

This was the real issue.

"What did she say?"

Wang Dong immediately opened his tablet and projected the content of the email onto the desk screen in front of Lin Zhou.

"Minister Qin said that the loan agreement with the Vatican Bank has basically been negotiated. The first batch, a one-billion-dollar low-interest loan, can be officially signed next week. However..."

Wang Dong's voice faltered here, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

"However what?" Lin Zhou asked.

"The Vatican side has raised an additional condition." Wang Dong's tone carried a sense of gravity.

"Speak."

"They... they hope to send a joint inspection team to Bir Tawil before the official disbursement."

Wang Dong swallowed hard and continued to add: "The members of this inspection team include top bankers from the Vatican Bank, authoritative agricultural experts from Europe, and even several famous theologians..."

"Inspect what?"

"An on-site inspection of... the preliminary preparations for the Oasis One Settlement project."

As the words fell, the office fell silent.

Lin Zhou said nothing, his slender fingers tapping unconsciously on the smooth tabletop, one by one.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

Every sound made Wang Dong's heart race.

An inspection?

What is there to inspect in Bir Tawil?

Currently, in Bir Tawil, besides sand, there is only more sand!

The vast sea of yellow sand and the simple gravel road that Zhao Li and his men had just finished building were all the assets they had there!

The so-called "Oasis One" settlement project was currently just an announcement hanging on a global bidding website.

Let alone construction, even the design blueprints hadn't been selected yet!

The people from the Vatican Bank were indeed very cautious.

They were willing to pay, but the premise was that they had to see with their own eyes that the money would be invested in a real, feasible project, not a blank check.

This request was reasonable and fair, and one couldn't find any fault with it.

But it was precisely this request that pushed Lin Zhou and the entire Cyber Freedom Republic into a very dangerous situation.

The huge sum of one billion dollars was right in front of them, yet they couldn't get their hands on it.

"When will they arrive?" Lin Zhou's voice was calm, with no detectable emotion.

"Minister Qin said in the email that the other party hopes to set off within a month."

One month.

Lin Zhou closed his eyes.

He quickly calculated all the information, plans, and possibilities in his mind.

One month's time.

In the middle of a godforsaken desert.

To create from scratch, out of thin air, signs of preliminary preparations for a Future City.

And it also had to fool a group of the shrewdest bankers and experts in the world.

This sounded like a myth, a task that was simply impossible to complete.

Wang Dong stood to the side, watching Lin Zhou's tightly furrowed brows, and even held his breath.

He knew this might be the biggest crisis the Cyber Freedom Republic had encountered since its founding.

One wrong step, and it could all be over.

Time ticked away, second by second.

The atmosphere in the office was oppressive.

Finally, Lin Zhou opened his eyes.

His eyes revealed calm and unquestionable determination.

He looked at Wang Dong, enunciating every word clearly.

"Wang Dong, immediately connect me to the head of the overseas project department of China State Construction Engineering Corporation."

Wang Dong was stunned, not having reacted yet.

He only heard Lin Zhou continue to issue his second order in an emotionless tone.

"Just say that I have a project worth ten billion that I want to discuss with them."