Blackstone Code Chapter 725: James Lynch Bond

“I’ll have one too…”

After Mr. Truman added a cup, he and Lynch walked into his office. The State Departnt hadn’t been fully established yet—it would only beco fully functional after the president’s official victory.

There were many unwritten rules within the federal governnt. The current president wasn’t president because he won an election; he beca president by stepping in after the previous one resigned.

So, he didn’t yet have the power to reshape the federal governnt’s structure.

This wasn’t to say he was a fake president—just that this was the way things worked, an unspoken rule.

All the top federal officials ca from the previous president’s administration. They, or the forces behind them, had heavily invested during the last election, and now their power was their due reward.

Simply put, these political opportunists were enjoying the benefits of their gamble’s success. Until this dividend period ended, no one could easily interfere with their privileges.

Otherwise, it would an defying these rules.

Today the Progressive Party won, but the Conservative Party could win next ti. To avoid unnecessary infighting, everyone followed this rule: don’t ss with others’ cheese.

Even after stepping down, the forr president kept his cheese—his son was now a star diplomat.

If nothing unexpected happened, his son was likely to rise to an important position in the next four to eight years, poised for a major breakthrough.

That’s why the current president’s plan to have the State Departnt gradually replace the Foreign Ministry could pass Congress.

The forr president’s son worked in this area, so he would benefit from the State Departnt’s rise.

With support from the forr president and so conservatives, he might reach deputy minister level in eight years, and within sixteen to twenty-four years, aim for the presidency itself.

Politics was dirty because it was never clean. Every small change concealed countless compromises and interests.

Yet it was also clean—it helped many achieve their dreams and brought light to the world.

The sowhat cramped office didn’t show the grandeur of a future power center. Truman didn’t mind; he pulled over two chairs and sat with Lynch away from the window.

The presidential office had central temperature control, so it was cooler inside than outside, allowing officials to dress formally and comfortably.

Truman took out so docunts from his drawer and handed them to Lynch. “Don’t ask anything—just read it first.”

Lynch was puzzled but obeyed, flipping through the papers.

It was an introduction to new army and navy equipnt specs, mostly army-related, including so not reported in the news.

Lynch studied carefully, morizing important data before placing the file on the table. “You want to leak this?”

Truman looked surprised but didn’t deny it. “About what you ntioned—I discussed it with the president. Just awarding you a dal because you invented so military gear wouldn’t make sense.”

He sat down next to Lynch and handed him a cigarette. Lighting theirs together, Truman flicked the match and said, “If we gave dals just for inventions, we’d have to hand out dozens or hundreds every year.”

“You have to accomplish more.”

“You have no say in dostic policy.”

“Even less in the military, and with no wars now, there’s no chance to prove yourself.”

“It’s like that everywhere. No matter how well you do, the public thinks you’re still a bit short. So, I ca up with an idea.”

He stopped speaking as soone knocked on the door. After a reply, Katherine entered with a tray.

After both thanked her and watched her leave, Truman sipped his coffee. “Rember the joint military exercises when the Gephra submarines outpaced our expectations?”

Lynch nodded, recalling it well. Many said the federation lost morale because it was a project they least expected to lose.

Shepford Marine’s stock plumted that day. If they hadn’t quickly released second-generation submarine specs and the defense ministry hadn’t increased funding, the shareholders would’ve suffered badly.

That event was unforgettable.

“We, several security agencies including intelligence and strategic command, studied it. We think a previous unintentional plan played a key role.”

“We once leaked the federation’s submarine specs…” Lynch vaguely rembered being involved.

Truman put down his coffee. “The specs we leaked matched exactly the performance the Gephra subs showed.”

“Simply put, they trusted our fabricated specs as real and poured massive funds into catching up with those false numbers.”

“That explains their performance in the exercises—they paid a heavy price.”

“We ca to an interesting conclusion: since they believe our data, why not keep leaking so specs to them?”

A faint smile appeared on Truman’s face. “You know what I an!”

Lynch nodded again. “To instill fear.”

Truman looked montarily confused but then his scalp tingled slightly. He tapped Lynch’s shoulder. “You hit it exactly—more accurately than I imagined. Fear—that’s the right word…”

Yes, to instill fear. If all federation equipnt outperford Gephra’s, what would happen?

Fear.

The Gephra people, from the emperor to a holess man, would fear because their military power—their lifeline—would be completely outmatched by the federation that already punched them hard.

So people wield terrifying weapons but don’t inspire fear because they don’t dare start wars or use those weapons.

The stronger they appear, the weaker they really are.

But so dare to use their weapons and start wars. If they possess advanced weapons, that’s a nightmare.

The federation is such a people—they dare to act.

To reduce fear and gain security, the best way is to strengthen themselves and surpass Gephra in weapon performance.

“As for why I showed you so many new army weapons…”

They exchanged a glance and chuckled softly.

“I’ve heard it said that smart people have dirty minds,” Lynch said, crossing his legs and flicking ash from his cigarette.

Truman wasn’t offended; instead, he replied, “I think you’re talking about yourself. You’re one of the smartest people I’ve ever t!”

They laughed again.

Why focus on army equipnt instead of navy? It’s simple: during the joint military exercises, Gephra’s weakness was exposed—their army would collapse without reform.

Their navy wasn’t in bad shape. The deterrent effect of their submarines had revitalized their fleet. The only real problem was the army.

Both the army minister and defense minister had publicly stated the need to strengthen the army, at least to a respectable second-tier world level.

There are many ways to quickly improve an army. Besides intensive training and actual combat, the simplest and most effective is upgrading equipnt.

Gephra’s railway gun revealed their strategic thinking. But before others could catch up, its design flaws showed—without railways, it was useless.

This showed Gephra was investing in army equipnt developnt and would increase funding for it. So, if Lynch accidentally leaked so ambiguous or false data now, what would happen?

After discussion, several departnts concluded Gephra would likely trust these false federation paraters again and pour money into a bottomless pit.

This would worsen Gephra’s already weak economy and multiply their problems.

As for any real results from following those specs?

They wouldn’t be worth much. Army equipnt performance isn’t always better with bigger numbers.

In defensive war situations, large-caliber coastal guns deter many warships.

But on offense, higher specs an heavier logistics and slower advances—wasting opportunities.

Plus, Gephra’s outdated, incompetent officers and troops couldn’t form an effective fighting force. If training and combat experience alone made an army strong, Gephra’s would be invincible given their long war history.

But the truth was—they were useless.

“That’s your job: find a way to leak this information during the exercise. When you return and we achieve results in aircraft developnt, we’ll award you a dal!”