Since someone wishes to play the game of the mantis stalking the cicada, Wang Zhuo doesn't mind occasionally being the mantis, letting those people realize who the true oriole is.

On the last day of the year, Wang Zhuo flew to Johannesburg once more, and together with the supplies he had secretly purchased, he quietly arrived at the border between South Africa and Eswatini, delivering the goods personally to Mann.

With this cache of munitions, General Mann finally became truly deserving of his title. Once his troops were fully armed, they would absolutely be the largest and strongest armed force in the country, truly becoming a warlord faction capable of "contemplating the state."

Utilizing this meeting with Wang Zhuo, Mann thoroughly showcased his strength and connections. Wang Zhuo, in turn, took the opportunity to display his personal charisma, earning the support and affection of Mann, his allies, and his subordinates. Although their relationship was purely based on mutual interest, it was clear that Mann and his faction would need Wang Zhuo for many things in the future. Furthermore, should their venture fail, they would face bloody suppression, making Wang Zhuo their greatest reliance.

In modern history, many nations have developed and gained independence with the support of another country, only to strike out on their own when their wings have hardened or friction arises. Consider the relationship between Israel and the United States, China and the Soviet Union, or the relationship between the US and the UK; such examples are innumerable.

The relationship between Wang Zhuo and Mann bears similarities to these cases, but this particular country was too underdeveloped, requiring too much dependence on Wang Zhuo. Therefore, Wang Zhuo was confident he could maintain this relationship after victory, and he had no intention of acting high-handedly over this nation, leaving Mann no reason to sever ties aggressively.

The next day was New Year’s Day, and the American troops departed as scheduled. This fully armed, modern Marine unit of three hundred men represented a force capable of overturning the regime in Eswatini. However, unfortunately for them, they encountered an unexpectedly formidable opponent during this seemingly simple mission.

The tanks rolled into the capital, Mbabane. The unit took only three days to recapture the Royal Palace and the capital city controlled by the Triumvirate. Over the next three days, they proceeded to seize control of the three major media outlets—the newspaper, television, and radio—held by the rebels.

But on the last day of this very first week, the radio station was wrestled back by a rebel force, inflicting half casualties on the occupying force!

This action was carried out by Mann and his men. Subsequently, on the radio broadcast from the station, he denounced the US Marine Corps as "invaders," and adopting the techniques taught to him by Yang Ru, he began relentlessly crafting his image as a "national hero."

History proves that for a regime to achieve lasting stability, the indoctrination of the populace through education is an essential task. At the inception of a regime, seizing the mouthpiece responsible for shaping one's image can make the entire endeavor twice as effective with half the effort.

The less developed the people, the more susceptible they are to various forms of deception and superstition. While the Triumvirate controlled the three major media outlets, they failed to implement any impactful measures. Yet, as soon as Mann reclaimed the radio station, he immediately transformed it into his most potent tool of warfare, a success largely attributable to Wang Zhuo's strategic guidance.

Given Eswatini’s severe underdevelopment, radio waves had always been the nation's primary medium of dissemination. Newspapers were incomprehensible to many, costly to produce, and suffered from poor distribution channels. Television was absent in many impoverished tribes and an unaffordable luxury for many poor families. But a radio receiver was inexpensive, making the radio station the most crucial channel of information.

After being struck by the US forces, the Triumvirate retreated to the countryside to wage guerrilla warfare. Meanwhile, Mann made his grand entrance, engaging in frequent skirmishes with the Americans and broadcasting the battle reports via radio. People soon noticed that Mann appeared remarkably affluent. He established relief stations in major cities across the country. Many hungry citizens, approaching with skepticism, discovered that people were indeed distributing food and medicine!

Initially, Mann merely called upon citizens to refrain from trading with the US forces—this was Wang Zhuo’s strategy of "strengthening internal defenses and clearing the exterior" (Jian Bi Qing Ye). But soon, his confidence swelled, and he began issuing declarations over the radio in a tone of command and coercion, proclaiming that any Eswatini citizen supplying food or provisions to the US military was a criminal against the nation, subject to severe judgment in the future!

The situation in Africa heated up, prompting repeated troop reinforcements from the United States. However, General Mann had secured deep popular support and even incorporated several factional warlord units, showing no fear of the world's most powerful nation. As he gradually grew in stature, his appetite expanded, and he repeatedly requested that Wang Zhuo provide increasingly advanced and powerful arms support.

Wang Zhuo provided only limited satisfaction to his demands, ensuring a delicate balance existed between him and the Americans—neither side could crush the other instantly. In this process, other warlord factions were slowly worn down and disbanded; some defected to Mann, while others became accomplices of the US military.

Destruction must precede construction. After this upheaval, the image of the Americans as "invaders" was further cemented. Mann was not foolish; he strictly adhered to Wang Zhuo’s strategy. Because he consistently controlled the radio station, under his manipulative propaganda, the entire nation believed that only when the Americans left the country sooner would peace and democracy arrive sooner.

Meanwhile, the mastermind Wang Zhuo leisurely traveled between countries around the world—Australia, Canada, Germany, Russia, and even India and Mexico. Although the Americans were only spending petty cash on the Eswatini battlefield, a seemingly guaranteed war was slowly being dragged into a quagmire, and the world's policeman was gradually losing its patience.

Wang Zhuo’s actions drew severe criticism from the operation's commander. At first, this individual merely grumbled, but later, realizing the situation was becoming endless and that his repeated troop deployments failed to yield decisive victory, he was branded the "Incompetent Commander." Finally, he could not restrain himself and submitted a motion to Congress calling for sanctions against Wang Zhuo.

The so-called sanctions primarily involved restricting imports of products from enterprises under Wang Zhuo’s umbrella or imposing punitive tariff increases on those products. The motion was indeed accepted. However, when the public heard the news, they became furious. Damn it, you warmongers, you're fighting in some irrelevant country just because you have nothing better to do, and now you want to make us pay more for purchasing Dynasty products? No way!

Since the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, the anti-war movement in the US had reached an unprecedented peak of strength, meaning this conflict was unpopular from the start. Wang Zhuo's stalling tactic had indeed succeeded in stirring up the anti-war factions. Consequently, after the sanctions motion was submitted, before it could even be voted upon, the populace took to the streets in protest!

Upon receiving this news, Qin Jingzhong was as happy as a child, while many major figures domestically found the situation both exasperating and amusing. This Wang Zhuo was truly capable of causing trouble; this move of pulling the rug out from under them was brilliant!

At this point, many people gradually stopped underestimating Wang Zhuo’s strategic capabilities. Only Wang Zhuo could pull off such a maneuver. If the authorities had done it, the Americans would never have experienced such internal discord; instead, they would have united against an external threat, using the situation to suppress China's rise and further its ambitions to control Africa. Now, almost everyone understood that what Wang Zhuo was playing was akin to Soros disrupting the international financial market—it was a game of individual heroism. National strategy, or anything similar, was merely an accessory in the eyes of a super-player like Wang Zhuo!

Wang Zhuo sat calmly watching the excitement unfold, and in the blink of an eye, the Lunar New Year passed, bringing them to February.

On this day, Wang Zhuo, clad in slippers and holding a toothbrush in his mouth, was watching Siyuan and An Qi chase each other around the airplane, each clutching a koala. Fat Dragon called.

"Boss, the black market price for the Man Enhancement Agent in the US has soared to one hundred and forty thousand dollars! Whoever earns this difference is earning it, right? Think about whether we should quietly release some stock?"

"It went up again?" Wang Zhuo was momentarily stunned, pulling the toothbrush from his mouth with a wry smile. "Didn't it just hit one hundred and twenty thousand last month? I even told you to lower the sales threshold, didn't you listen to me?"

"We did, how could we not have?" Fat Dragon cackled proudly. "It's just that the US government is trying to sanction you, and now someone is proposing that the enhancement services you provided on their soil are suspected of tax evasion, and they're applying for severe penalties. It seems our customers are afraid this proposal will pass, so they're rushing to get enhanced before we get sanctioned!"

"Oh, I see," Wang Zhuo suddenly realized, slapping his thigh. "Someone is taking advantage of this situation, hyping up the possibility of sanctions against me, and then shifting that cost onto the customers by raising the price. That’s why the price got inflated." "Exactly, exactly, you are so insightful!" Fat Dragon grinned wickedly. "With such a good opportunity, shouldn't we release a batch of goods? It's black market money anyway; it's a waste not to take it."

It was certainly a way to make money, but it was likely just pocket change. Wang Zhuo pondered it carefully, feeling that whether he earned this money or not was inconsequential. He casually asked, "Do you have the channels?"

"Huh, channels?" Fat Dragon paused, then burst into loud laughter. "Boss, don't you think I am the best channel myself? Have you forgotten? I was the first person to show this medicine to the world!"

"Uh, I completely forgot about that." Wang Zhuo scratched his head, saying with a wry smile, "Alright, I approve this matter. You handle it as you see fit. I’ll notify the domestic side later to arrange shipment for you."

"Got it!" Fat Dragon readily agreed.

Wang Zhuo didn't mention any sales commission. No matter how much the fat man made, whatever he returned would be considered extra profit. As for how much he kept for himself, that would just count as his reward.

Flap, flap, flap—a cockatoo flew over his head. The girls were yelling and chasing it behind him. Siyuan held the koala in one hand and a cage in the other.

"Don't let it drop bird droppings on my **!" Wang Zhuo shouted, then casually asked Fat Dragon, "How is Haozi doing over there?"

Fat Dragon snickered evilly. "Great! I found him three foreign girls as companions. He's long restored his happy sexual life!" Wait? The toothbrush Wang Zhuo was bringing toward his mouth almost jammed into his nostril. What kind of scheme were these two pulling? Sun Donghao was an HIV carrier; setting him up with foreign women—wasn't that setting him up to fail?