Chapter 111: Going with the Flow
On that day, Joseph delivered a public address, condemning the Southern rebels' declaration of independence as a grave violation of the constitution.
To protect the core interests of the American people and uphold the authority of the constitution, he officially declared war on the rebels, and the Second Civil War erupted.
The news spread, and the world was shocked.
As for this shocking news, the quickest and most drastic reaction came from none other than the American stock market.
The stock exchange, only recently rebuilt from its ruins, once again faced a devastating impact. This time, however, the impact wasn't from a natural disaster, but from a man-made one.
One wave had barely settled when another rose; already influenced by panic over the civil war, a large-scale withdrawal of funds from the stock market ultimately led to an avalanche.
Aside from war-related military industry stocks and the highly favored spirit energy technology stock sector, which remained stable, all other sectors were mercilessly hit. On the very day the civil war broke out, the total market value of American stocks evaporated by seventeen percent.
"Sell! Sell! Sell!"
"If we don't sell now, it'll all turn into worthless paper!"
The continuously falling stock market was like the first breach in a dam, allowing the crisis of confidence to gradually spread to all industries.
Before the warring parties had even engaged in their first formal battle, tens of thousands of people were instantly ruined, becoming utterly destitute.
People still immersed in the grief of the previous disaster immediately fell into an abyss named despair.
Hundreds of desperate bankrupt individuals, like their predecessors, jumped from the top floor of the new exchange, ending their lives.
Nuclear strikes, tsunamis, civil war, stock market collapse... a chain of disasters allowed pessimism to permeate every layer, from the material to the spiritual.
America had to take action to restore public confidence.
"Our great nation will not fear challenges from any force... The only thing we have to fear is fear itself!"
To allow the market to regain confidence, twelve hours after declaring war, Joseph broadcast live to the world, delivering a wartime speech.
Using his infectious language and the influence of his own abilities, he delivered a speech with unprecedented impact.
But at the same time.
"I have a dream..."
As if deliberately staging a counter-performance, high-ranking Southern army officials and several prominent leaders of the national movement also delivered targeted speeches.
The impact of the disaster was still far from fully settled, and people in such a melancholic environment were much easier to incite than usual.
The lingering aftermath of sorrow and hatred ultimately allowed the Southern army, who seized the opportunity to act, to successfully instigate the civil war with no-holds-barred support from external forces.
At Bai Mo's home.
"American Civil War?" He closed the thick document, habitually turned on his computer, and then saw an overwhelming flood of related news.
Such a world-renowned major event undoubtedly topped the headlines of all news websites immediately.
A superpower that hadn't experienced war on its home soil for over a hundred years, after suffering the dual blow of a tsunami disaster and rebellion, whether it could maintain its transcendent status was a question many people were concerned about.
Especially Huaxia, whose international ranking was only below America, was most concerned about this question.
The dream of "all nations coming to pay tribute" to a Celestial Empire always held a vast market.
"After America's Decline," "Black and White Distinctions," "Who's Next"... a flood of trendy articles filled major social media platforms, cheering for the forces supporting the arguments.
Bai Mo casually clicked on an article and scrolled directly to the comments section at the bottom.
"Director's causality weapon, America is doomed."
"Disasters plus civil war, adding insult to injury, America is doomed."
"There is only one Huaxia in the world! We will liberate the American Province!"
"Pro-American shills, quickly come to the rescue, my Great America is doomed!"
...
The articles and news comment sections, as always, became a carnival for meme lords, with endless new memes and insults flying back and forth.
Especially since those involved were not "our people," even casual sarcasm and ridicule wouldn't draw moral condemnation, further lowering the integrity threshold of comments and fostering the birth of "god-tier" comments.
"Hello everyone, I'm Joseph. Due to the Southern rebellion, America is in chaos. I urgently need military funds. My wartime account is XXXX-XXXX. Once I defeat the rebels and become Emperor of the American Kingdom, I will definitely repay you 20-fold, send you a green card, and even make you the Mayor of New York."
"I, Joseph, send money."
"There's nothing to fear anymore."
...
"Seems a bit familiar." While browsing through the complex and varied news photos, Bai Mo suddenly spotted someone, a young man he seemed to have met once before.
In the photo, he stood on a tank, his slender body draped in a purplish-black cape, his head tilted slightly upwards, his left hand lightly obscuring his left eye, yet unable to conceal the ambiguously enchanting allure between his brows.
Bai Mo also noticed that the person's left eye seemed to have a very faint red mark...
"Southern Army Provisional Leader — Li Zheyī (Zero)." When he saw the caption below the photo, he paused in surprise.
A child in his teens suddenly became the leader of the rebels opposing the world's most powerful nation. It seemed incredibly unscientific no matter how you looked at it.
"The maiden will eventually become king!" Someone, after seeing Li Zheyī's delicate face on the news, even left such a chuunibyou-esque reply.
Whether it was scientific or not, in this era where "looks are justice," Li Zheyī, full of Eastern neutral beauty, unreservedly and quickly attracted a large number of domestic fans.
Especially since he represented resistance against American hegemony, it naturally earned bonus points of goodwill from Huaxians, who generally viewed America as an imaginary enemy.
High attractiveness, incredibly domineering actions, and after his background was doxxed, he was discovered to be wealthy—Li Zheyī instantly became a figure comparable to a novel's protagonist.
Novels like "Overbearing CEO Li Zheyī" had already seen authors chasing trends begin to write on the very day he appeared in public view.
Of course, with such high popularity, what he himself actually thought was hard to say.
As a puppet pushed forward by the rebels' behind-the-scenes supporters to attract attention, his main role was to act as a mascot and to win over the enormous number of Chinese immigrants in America.
High attractiveness undoubtedly could attract more sympathy. At the same time, his Chinese heritage could more easily persuade Chinese immigrants in America, who usually kept to themselves and stayed out of trouble, to join the ranks of rebel supporters.
The Huaxians' obsession with "their own people" was exploited to its fullest by the puppet masters behind the scenes at this moment.
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