Munitions Empire - Chapter 1291 - : 1208 refugee camp
Chapter 1291: 1208 Refugee Camp
South Island, a camp filled with tents, a crowd of Goblins squeezed next to a well, lining up to fetch water for use.
This well is the only one within dozens of miles, and these miles are packed with Goblins, or rather, Goblin refugees.
They left their homeland because of war and found themselves without land and homes, unable to return to their hometowns ever again.
The Great Tang Empire’s military occupied those places, demolished houses, flattened buildings, leaving behind a wasteland.
Soon afterward, Orc laborers and various large construction machinery emerged, towering concrete buildings sprang up, houses were constructed everywhere, roads were built, railways connected, and airstrip runways were laid out.
Nearby farmlands also became owned places, those humans came from far off in the Great Tang Empire, understandably becoming the new owners of this land.
What? Dissatisfied? Go and reason with the Tang Empire’s soldiers! Go ahead, as long as you can persuade their bayonets and bullets, persuade their tanks and planes, then this land will be yours!
The new landowners don’t need Goblins to stay to farm for them, because they have tractors, advanced farming machinery, and more obedient Orc slaves to use.
At least in terms of loyalty, Orcs are much higher than Goblins. Beside here lies Paradise Island, as long as these Orc slaves work harder, they can gain their freedom earlier and enjoy a more comfortable life on Ben Island.
Thus, the Orcs who came to South Island and New Island were filled with fervor for the Great Tang Empire. Compared to the defeated indigenous people, these fervent Orcs are obviously more favored by humans.
Order is maintained by Orc troops, these Orcs rotate back from Ben Island for rest, while also serving as police forces managing all the Goblins.
There have been various conflicts between Orcs and Goblins before, and naturally, the relationship between the two isn’t great.
Just as several Orc soldiers stood aside coldly watching the long queue of Goblin refugees fetching water, suddenly they heard some Goblins wailing in disorder.
Soon, some Goblins began to sob, and others started yelling. It turned out that someone had just delivered the news that Mirage Country had been defeated and surrendered.
These Goblins wouldn’t accept such a harsh truth, causing unrest. However, the Orc soldiers didn’t bother to care about the Goblins’ sorrow because the Goblins’ grief happened to be the Orcs’ joy.
Ben Island already belongs to the Orcs! These Orc soldiers knew the news beforehand. Compared to the Goblins in the refugee camp, the Orcs clearly have faster information channels.
After all, there’s no electricity in the refugee camp, so they can’t listen to broadcasts: Although the Great Tang Empire has produced radios that can be powered by batteries, it is evident that Mirage Country’s civilians can’t buy them.
Actually, outside the Great Tang Empire, the diffusion of various new devices isn’t rapid in other countries.
Nowadays, after years of promotion, television’s popularity rate is still not high, let alone the new color television technology from the Great Tang Empire.
In most regions, they just have electricity, a radio, and some entertainment activities.
Radio channels are not abundant, and most broadcasts are recorded Great Tang Empire programs: stories praising the Great Tang Empire military’s courageous combat, heroic evaluations within the Great Tang Empire military, odes, music, and advertisements…
Unfortunately, Mirage Country, busy building warships, has no way to quickly popularize these things, so the local Goblin civilians have difficulty accessing any advanced stuff.
Thus, the surrender notice yesterday, until today, the Goblins on South Island gradually heard the news, naturally entering a mode of mourning upon learning of the disastrous news.
Female Goblins in the POW Camp cried en masse, and male Goblins sat together sighing. They heard they would be sent to Northern Island, and also heard Mirage Country was renamed Northern Island.
Now they are no longer Mirage Country citizens, but Northern Island citizens… The issue is, how can Northern Island support so many people?
A truck equipped with loudspeakers arrived at the gate of the refugee camp, broadcasting the Shen Emperor’s voice announcing the news of surrender and ceasefire.
The leading human officer, accompanied by several soldiers, entered the refugee camp, summoned the supervising Orc officer, and gathered several managers in the camp.
“Let everyone pack up and prepare to board the ship.” The human officer took off his white gloves, tapped the side of his pants twice, and ordered: “We must depart within 2 hours, miss it and face punishment.”
“Sir… The time is a bit tight,” a Goblin manager nervously voiced the difficulty: “They are all civilians, it takes quite some time to get them moving.”
“It’s alright, you don’t have to leave. In two hours, let your men take action.” The human officer looked at the eager Orc officer beside him and ordered, “Those who volunteer to stay, clean them all up; that’s an order.”
“Yes! Sir! Clean them up in 2 hours!” The Orc officer stood at attention and saluted, his posture frighteningly precise.
“Sir! Sir!” Several Goblin overseers turned pale upon hearing the human officer’s order and hurriedly begged for mercy, “Please give us a little more time, we implore you.”
“The countdown starts now.” The human officer glanced at his watch and then returned to the vehicle at the front gate with several soldiers.
The remaining Orcs bore malicious smiles, leaving the Goblin overseers with no desire to delay. They immediately departed with the news, and the entire camp soon erupted into chaos.
Goblins who had just been weeping and lamenting suddenly scattered in panic. Some began packing their belongings, others searched for their children, and some started dismantling their tents.
“Forget the tents! You can’t take them even if you pack!” A Goblin overseer angrily shouted at several Goblin civilians.
Where on the ship is there space for Goblins to stack tents and such? The cabin is worth its weight in gold! There’s no room for Goblin civilians to bring their useless junk.
Though they thought of this, the Goblins hadn’t considered that it’s already late December, and the weather is terribly cold. On the journey to the Northern Island, with no supplies, how were they supposed to survive?
In reality, the Great Tang Empire had no intention of caring about the Goblins’ lives. Mirage Country, on the other hand, had no capacity to care for these civilians. The Great Tang Empire sought efficiency, while the Shen Emperor genuinely couldn’t sustain that many people.
They would soon realize that they’d be thrown directly into the ship’s hold, transported to the Northern Island, and left on the docks to endure nearly half of the winter with nothing.
Worse still, the Northern Island had already begun to snow, its white blanket enchanting yet cruel. Goblin civilians with almost no winter preparations or shelter had to survive in such conditions on the Northern Island.
“Hurry! Stop taking useless things! Keep an eye on my son!” Amidst the mess, a Goblin shouted at his wife.
In response to the shouting, several Orc soldiers with assault rifles strode past. They were ordered to clean up the entire refugee camp in over an hour; as warriors, they clearly understood the meaning of ‘clean up.’
On the nearby higher ground, Orc troops had already set up MG42 machine guns. If anything rustled or stirred, these machine guns would open fire.
It would be a massacre! Those who didn’t heed the Great Tang Empire’s master’s orders were only fit to bleed dry!
Some Goblins would undoubtedly escape; there were indeed thousands of Goblin refugees here. But these runaway Goblins would soon find that no matter how they fled, all they were doing was prolonging their boarding time.
On the docks, Great Tang Empire transport ships, ready to head to the Northern Island, would leave as soon as they filled with people, while clusters of Goblins on South Island would be escorted batch by batch to the port docks, waiting to board.
Eventually, those runaway Goblins would be caught, because theoretically, any undocumented Goblin found on South Island would draw significant vigilance.
Similarly, migration activities were happening on New Island too. The Great Tang Empire wasn’t a charity; the officers executing orders and local officials certainly wouldn’t delay immigration plans just because of the cold weather.
With every ship of humans arriving, at least three ships of Goblins must leave! That’s the rule, set by the immigration plan between South Island and New Island.
Those who don’t obey commands and don’t follow orders among the Goblins will surely be cleaned out! When they are found escaping, it’s often just a matter of shooting them on sight rather than capturing them.
The most conservative estimate predicts three million Goblins will die during this migration process, but the actual death toll approaches five million!
Read latest Chapters at WebNovel Only
It’s important to note that most of the Goblin population in Mirage Country is concentrated on the three Southern Islands, with the Northern Island having the least population. Now, tens of millions are being sent to the Northern Island; with casualties at one-fifth, it’s already considered a miracle.
Very soon, these Goblins will find themselves unable to cry: they discovered, Mirage Country’s demise was merely the start; innumerable hardships awaited them behind!
They have to find housing on the Northern Island, build houses, open new farmland, mine ores, construct roads… They must also build cities, expand ports, continue to feed a swarm of noble parasites, and endure exploitation and oppression by the Great Tang Empire.
Without supplies and in the absence of food, they will have to perform double and triple labor. They must work nonstop, only then can they have houses to live in and food to eat when the next winter arrives.
In comparison, the bitter cold seemed gentle.