234: Chapter 234 Treating national destiny like a variety show? Americans, you'll regret it!
Two months later.
New York, the United Nations Headquarters General Assembly Hall.
The special live broadcast from the CCTV News Channel was playing on the phone, and the General Assembly Hall on the screen was packed.
Representatives from 193 member states were gathered together, discussing a draft resolution with a formal name forty-seven characters long.
Li Li processed this pile of bureaucratic jargon in his mind and translated it into a simple phrase: Play games, share oil.
The Strait of Hormuz had been blocked for two full months.
Global oil prices had risen so high that even the Saudis were cursing on the streets, while news of shipping standstills, factory shutdowns, and airline bankruptcies bombarded the headlines every day.
The Western nations were the first to lose their patience.
The American representative was the first to stand at the podium, opening a proposal that was thirty pages long.
The core idea was bizarre: since the oil couldn't get out and no one wanted to fight World War III, they should just find another way to decide the shares.
Use a competition.
Broadcast globally, with each country sending celebrity representatives to compete in elimination rounds.
The top five countries would gain absolute decision-making power over the Middle East's oil export shares for the next decade, in a 4:2:2:1:1 ratio.
Sitting in the third-floor office of the welfare institute, Li Li heard the CCTV host articulately read out this content, and he nearly spat out the tea he had just taken a sip of onto the screen.
Treating national destiny like a variety show.
The way these politicians' brains worked was even more ridiculous than the foreman he had encountered back when he was laying bricks at construction sites.
However, considering that the blonde gentleman from the leading superpower was also known for his various reality show antics, it was normal for the American side to propose such an idea.
In the General Assembly Hall, the representative from the East was the first to raise a hand in opposition.
"This is a blasphemy against international order. Energy security is a core issue concerning the survival of all humanity, not a wager for a reality show."
The American representative spread his hands on the stage.
"The Chinese representative speaks well, but may I ask if you have a better plan?"
The representative from the East was silent.
"Continue negotiations."
The American representative turned to face the entire hall.
"Delegates, the Strait of Hormuz has been blocked for ninety-three days. We have been talking for ninety-three days, and what is the result? Oil prices have risen from seventy dollars to three hundred and twenty dollars; six European countries have entered a state of energy emergency, and twelve African countries are facing fuel shortages."
He tapped on the podium.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have no more time."
Li Li leaned back in his chair.
This move by the Americans was vicious.
Oppose? Bring an alternative plan. Can't bring one? Shut up.
For the next three hours, the General Assembly Hall turned into a massive wet market.
The African delegation's stance was clear: What does this have to do with us? But if there's a show to watch, we must support it.
The South American delegation was even more direct: We don't have oil, but we have plenty of influencers.
The Southeast Asian delegation whispered among themselves: We support it, but can the competition venue be set in Bali?
The European delegation's attitude was ambiguous: In principle, we oppose it, but if it can bring down oil prices, it's not entirely out of the question.
Li Li rubbed his temples.
Out of the 193 countries in the world, at most twenty actually cared about oil distribution; the rest were just bystanders looking for entertainment.
But the affirmative votes held by these bystanders were real.
In contrast, those true oil-exporting countries were calmer than anyone else.
The representative from the United Arab Emirates maintained a polite smile throughout and said nothing. The Saudi representative was even sitting with his legs crossed, drinking coffee.
Their logic was simple: The oil is buried under our ground; no matter how you scramble for decision-making power, the master valve is in our hands.
Play however you want.
The final voting stage.
In favor: 141 votes.
Against: 27 votes.
Abstentions: 25 votes.
The representative from the East pressed the abstention button.
The CCTV feed cut back to the studio, and the host began connecting with experts to interpret the voting results.
Li Li turned off his phone screen.
Abstention.
Neither in favor nor against. This meant that the higher-ups were still playing a game, but they were already powerless to stop this trend.
Two hours later, the encrypted satellite phone on the table rang.
General Jiang Zhan.
Li Li picked up.
"Uncle."
"Did you see it?"
"I did."
"The situation is set; the competition officially begins in three months." General Jiang Zhan's voice was very low. "But the real battlefield is not in that General Assembly Hall at all."
"Where is it?"
"Behind closed doors."
General Jiang Zhan paused for a moment.
"Today's public vote was just a formality. In the closed-door meeting, representatives from China, the US, Israel, and the United Arab Emirates argued for a full seven hours about your eligibility to participate."
Li Li raised an eyebrow.
"Me?"
"The four key players spent three hours discussing the global oil share distribution plan, and four hours discussing whether a Chinese variety show star named Li Li could participate in the competition."
General Jiang Zhan sneered.
"Tell me, isn't that ridiculous?"
Li Li sat up straight.
"What were the positions of the US and Israel?"
"They were firmly opposed at first. The Israeli representative's exact words: 'Letting Li Li participate is like letting an active-duty military unit sneak into a local league.'"
"The Americans were more direct: 'This person stole two of our fighter jets; we have sufficient reason to believe he has a military background, which seriously violates the second rule of the competition.'"
Li Li touched his nose.
"The first one was out of necessity, and the second one... well, the second one was indeed intentional."
General Jiang Zhan ignored his muttering.
"Our rebuttal was simple: Li Li has no military record. The August 1st Medal is awarded to civilians who have made outstanding contributions to national defense, not necessarily active-duty personnel. As for stealing the planes, the official report has already determined it was done by Zhang Nan, and it has nothing to do with Li Li."
"The American representative slammed the table on the spot."
Li Li could imagine the exasperated expressions of those foreigners.
"And then?"
"After a three-hour stalemate, the United Arab Emirates representative mediated. In the end, the US and Israel made concessions."
General Jiang Zhan's tone deepened.
"But the conditions were extremely harsh."
"First, you can participate, but you must be paired with Mumu as the same team. This was something we had anticipated."
Li Li tapped his finger on the table.
"Second, from today until the competition begins in three months, other contestants can undergo systematic physical training. But you cannot. All your daily activities must be broadcast globally 24 hours a day to ensure you are not receiving any training."
"Third, during the broadcast, you are not allowed to wear masks, face covers, hats, or any items that obscure your face."
Li Li leaned back in his chair.
Putting these three together, translated into plain language, it meant:
They would let you participate, but they would tie your greatest weakness tightly to you.
Then they would strip you bare and pin you down in front of the world's cameras to watch.
Not being able to train was no problem; the system upgrade would finish in exactly three months, so why not get stronger while lying down?
"There is one more condition," General Jiang Zhan added.
"In the competition rules, there is a clause stating that contestants cannot beat or harm other contestants, but the competition will provide tranquilizer pistols at certain stages."
"In other words, you can't throw punches, but others can use tranquilizer guns to ambush you. If you get shot and fall into a coma for one to three hours, Jiang Rumu will have to face all the challenges alone."
Li Li stood up and walked to the window.
Outside the window, Jiang Rumu was running laps on the hill behind the facility.
Carrying a twenty-kilogram tactical backpack, sweat dripped from her hair onto the yellow earth. She was on her third lap, and her steps were already clearly staggering.
Li Li stared at that stubborn figure.
"Uncle, this is not a concession."
"It's a trap."
"I know," General Jiang Zhan replied. "That's why I had you train her two months in advance."
"But two months is far from enough."
Li Li didn't respond.
"The original text of the competition rules will be sent to you via an encrypted channel tomorrow. Study them carefully."
The phone call ended.
Li Li tossed the satellite phone back onto the table.
Jiang Rumu had just finished her third lap, hands on her knees, gasping for air. She looked up, saw Li Li in the third-floor window, and unceremoniously gave him the middle finger.
Li Li gave a short laugh.
Dinner time, at the welfare institute canteen.
Li Li picked up a piece of braised pork rib and put it into Jiang Rumu's bowl.
"I have something to tell you."
Jiang Rumu was burying her head in dealing with the ribs and didn't even look up.
"Hmm."
"The UN vote passed. In three months, there will be a global live-streamed obstacle competition, and the top five countries will get decision-making power over oil shares."
Jiang Rumu stopped chewing.
"You're representing the East to participate?"
"Yes."
"And then?"
Li Li put down his chopsticks.
"The condition for the US and Israel to agree to my participation is—you must be on the same team as me."
Jiang Rumu looked up.
"Also, starting today, I cannot participate in any training for three months. It will be a 24-hour live stream, and I cannot wear any masks or face covers throughout."
Jiang Rumu rested her chopsticks on the rim of her bowl.
The two looked at each other across the dining table.
"Does my dad know?"
"He just told me."
In the canteen, there were only the sounds of a few children playing in the distance.
Jiang Rumu placed her hands on the table.
Her fingertips were trembling slightly.
It wasn't fear.
It was a raging fire surging from deep within her bones.
After graduating from college, she had entered the entertainment industry, been put on ice, suppressed, and used as a tool by capital.
She had finally found a man who was a good fit and was having a normal relationship.
Yet, politicians from all over the world had joined forces to forcibly tie her to this man, using her as a bargaining chip to restrain him.
She stared at Li Li.
"Fine."
Li Li looked at her.
"Tomorrow, increase the weighted load to thirty kilograms."
Jiang Rumu picked up her chopsticks, lifted the plate of braised pork ribs, and scraped all the remaining meat into her own bowl.
"Eat more meat to build strength."
She glanced at Li Li.
"You can't train for the next three months, but I can."
"Who said I was your burden?"
Li Li looked at the empty plate.
Fine then.
The ribs were gone.
The weight of national destiny was on his shoulders.
He picked up his bowl and shoveled a large mouthful of white rice into his mouth.
The phone in his pocket suddenly vibrated.
An encrypted text message from Fahd.
There was only one line of text.
"My brother, the male contestant for the United Arab Emirates' third team is me."
Li Li held up his phone, the rice in his mouth nearly spraying out.
Jiang Rumu leaned over to look.
"Who is it?"
Li Li flipped the phone face down on the table.
"No one, just a rich lunatic from the Middle East."