Chapter 276
Chapter 276
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Chinese Protests (1)
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With the West and the East both ablaze from the '67 Revolution, the Third World wasn't spared either.
Protests against authoritarian governments were breaking out left and right in Third World countries like India and Thailand.
"Protests? Have they lost their minds? This isn't the First World. This is the Third World."
Third World nations pulled out all the stops with the various protest suppression tactics they'd learned from the birthplace of Korean-style democracy.
"The basics of protest suppression are divide and conquer. Make them distrust each other, and you're done."
Third World countries planted informants among college students.
They also stationed undercover cops in the midst of the protesters, sowing suspicion and mistrust among the crowds.
And that was it?
Of course not.
The protest response strategies developed by Korea went beyond just dividing the opposition.
"The protesters are resorting to violence? What a bunch of scumbags."
Third World governments slapped a violence label on the protests and hammered them through the media with sophisticated tactics.
"They're not protesters—they're rioters. Rioters."
These regimes' Korean-style protest response strategies proved effective.
The protests were sizable enough to ignore, but they never posed an existential threat to any regime.
Third World countries expressed satisfaction with the protest response strategies provided by Korea.
"It's all thanks to Pyongyang's support."
"You must keep our involvement under wraps."
Thanks to our discreet support, the flames in the Third World were easily extinguished.
I thought this wrapped up our bloc's problems, but things didn't go my way.
"What? Massive protests have broken out in the Republic of China?"
"Yes, Your Excellency."
The Republic of China wasn't Third World, but it was practically Korea's economic colony.
Trouble there hit Korea's interests directly.
'If a new regime backed by the people rises instead of the crippled Chiang Kai-shek without limbs, there's a risk of Chinese reunification.'
That could lead to a real headache.
I ordered an increase in intelligence agents in Chongqing to assess the risk of regime change in the Republic of China.
It wasn't long before reports came in from the NIS and Intelligence Command.
"Your Excellency, the protests in China are extremely serious. The crowds in Chongqing alone number a million."
A million in the heart of the capital?
That was the kind of figure you saw when the people had turned against the regime.
'Come to think of it, Chiang Kai-shek gave the Chinese plenty of reasons to turn on him.'
Hyperinflation and currency reform alone were enough to make it weird if they didn't hate him.
The Chiang regime had held on because the spark for public discontent hadn't ignited.
The '67 Revolution was more than enough spark.
"I need to meet the Republic of China ambassador today."
"We'll prepare the meeting."
I summoned Republic of China Ambassador Wei Tao-ming to his residence and got straight to the point.
"Ambassador, our government is concerned about the political unrest in our neighbor, China."
"If it's about the recent protests, there's no need to worry. We have it under control."
"Can I really believe that?"
"Your Excellency, Pyongyang has no reason to concern itself with our internal affairs."
"You're wrong about that. Every time there's unrest over there, refugees flood in. How can we not care?"
The Chinese ambassador couldn't rebut that.
"That's why I'm saying—how about accepting Pyongyang's support to resolve the situation?"
Both Korea and China want this wrapped up quickly, don't we?
That's the angle I pitched.
But the Chinese ambassador didn't jump at my offer.
"Your Excellency, please don't forget that the Republic of China is a sovereign nation not subject to Pyongyang's interference."
This was a pure, no-strings goodwill offer.
"Still, Chairman Chiang might think differently, so pass it along."
"Understood."
I tossed the bait to Chiang and planned to watch how it played out.
Then, an unexpected player stepped up on the other side.
"The U.S. ambassador showed up near the protesters? What the hell is that?"
The U.S. ambassador wouldn't just wander around protesters for fun.
I suspected America was intervening in the crisis.
The NIS came to a similar conclusion.
"They claim it's just to observe, but it looks like a show of support for the protests."
America intervening directly.
It was absurd seeing them reach into Asia when they could barely handle their own mess from the '67 Revolution.
'No, from Washington's perspective, it's par for the course.'
The Lyndon Johnson administration had always been looking for ways to check us.
'But extending a hand to the protesters for that? Unexpected.'
It didn't fit their image—turns out America wasn't big on risks after all.
Washington's default stance was always siding with winners.
So why take this position?
After some thought, I figured my influence played a part in their shift.
'I took down the overwhelmingly powerful military in Argentina through a PR war.'
If America saw a path to victory the same way?
If it worked, grabbing the protesters' hand over Chiang's was far more advantageous.
They could install a government capable of unifying all of China, not a half-paralyzed central regime unable to control the warlords.
'I absolutely can't allow that scenario.'
America's shady moves solidified my resolve.
"Chongqing's refusal doesn't matter. Start the protest response strategy."
I ordered the PR war to begin.
First, we mobilized media outlets under our influence to pin violence and extremism on the protesters.
The protesters didn't take it lying down.
"Who's spreading this crap!"
When protesters trashed media offices, we broadcast those scenes nonstop across China.
I figured that dumped a load of filth on the protesters.
But the effect fell way short of expectations.
"Chiang's filthy dogs. Think we'll buy your agitation?"
Chiang's popularity was even lower than imagined—our agitation backfired spectacularly.
The Chinese grew even more disgusted by Chiang's "dirty PR tricks."
'Damn.'
Even the NIS, on a winning streak, couldn't hide their dismay.
Amid this, weird rumors started spreading.
"Korea's intervening to prop up Chiang."
We hadn't shown our hand at all—crazy that this was circulating.
"Find out who's behind this."
Bug sweeps centered on the U.S. embassy turned up a prime suspect.
"Looks like the CIA's pulling strings behind the scenes."
Manipulating the PR war from the shadows without showing their tail?
A familiar tactic.
'They've learned a lot.'
Langley was using the techniques we'd beaten them with against us.
If things played out this way, America had a solid shot at winning.
As I pondered this, Republic of China Ambassador Wei Tao-ming visited the residence.
"Your Excellency, I'd like to confirm if your previous offer still stands."
Unlike before when he'd brushed it off, the Chinese ambassador came begging with a very humble attitude.
"Of course it does."
I could guess why Chongqing had flipped.
They must've realized America was backing the protesters—what else?
Wei Tao-ming cautiously inquired about our support options.
"What kind of support can Korea provide for protest suppression?"
"We'll fund your covert operations."
Use that money to buy off the protest leaders.
Drop their moral standing, and you'd sap the protests' momentum.
Wei bowed at my proposal.
"The Chairman would accept that kind of support without hesitation."
Yeah, he would.
Chiang wouldn't turn down discreet aid.
I arranged operational funds for Chiang, but I wasn't confident Chongqing could win.
'Doubt they'll even spend our money properly.'
Still, no alternatives.
Starting from a PR deficit, all we had left was sowing division among the protesters.
And no one could do that better than the Chinese government.
We watched developments, hoping Chiang handled it well.
But Chiang's response lacked sharpness.
He dented the protest leadership but failed to land a decisive blow.
Meanwhile, the protests ballooned horrifically.
"The protesters have surpassed two million."
Small compared to China's population, but massive for one city like Chongqing.
Schools and workplaces declaring allied strikes and walkouts multiplied.
The snowballing crowds showed no signs of shrinking.
"Two and a half million in Chongqing, over fifteen million across China."
This explosion in just a week.
China's military and police were powerless against the surging protests.
'This is bad.'
I sensed Chiang's defeat.
As the protests grew, the military and bureaucrats would waver too.
Like Li Zongren, the Chiang regime's collapse was just a matter of time.
I felt the need for safeguards against the worst case.
"Dig up dirt on the warlords' top cronies in North China too."
If Chinese nationalism surged and forced the warlords to submit,
We'd tighten the noose so they couldn't surrender to the center.
Economically with the won and loans, politically with intel on key figures.
"Your Excellency, why not hit the Yangtze warlords while we're at it?"
The prime real estate in southern Republic of China—Guangxi and Guangdong—were worth touching.
But they were second-tier forces far from the Korean mainland.
North China control came first.
"No spare resources for that. Solidify North China first."
"Yes."
If we're doing it, do it thoroughly.
That was my mindset.
"Redirect NIS and Intelligence Command resources to China too."
I'd keep eyes on China until the dust settled.