Chapter 583 - 272: Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania

"Leo, you’ve taught me many things, and the most important one is that chaos is a ladder."

"The ladder is in place now, and the fire is burning brightly."

"Wouldn’t it be a shame to put the fire out now?"

The other end of the line fell deathly silent.

Leo seemed to realize something.

"Aston, what are you trying to do?"

"I want to let the fire burn a little longer."

Monroe’s voice turned cold and sinister.

"You see, public opinion is currently attacking Washington and the insurance companies. That’s great."

"But this fire hasn’t reached where it needs to burn yet."

"And where is that?"

"Your place."

Monroe abruptly hung up the phone.

He stared at the now-dark receiver, the smile on his face slowly twisting into a snarl.

Of course, he wasn’t going to pardon Luigi.

At least, not now.

He had spoken with Washington.

Raymond Walker’s tone on the phone had been friendlier than ever before.

They had reached a new consensus.

The Democratic National Committee needed to reclaim control of Pennsylvania.

They couldn’t tolerate Leo Wallace continuing to build a personal fiefdom in Pittsburgh. They couldn’t tolerate the Industrial Revival Alliance continuing to grow. And they certainly couldn’t tolerate the continued operation of a promissory note system that bypassed the US Dollar.

That was undermining the very foundation of Washington.

Therefore, they needed a justifiable pretext to intervene in Pittsburgh and take over everything.

Peace couldn’t provide that pretext.

Only chaos could.

Only total, uncontrolled, destructive chaos could give the State Government and the Federal Government an excuse to intervene.

Monroe stood up and walked to the map.

His gaze locked onto Pittsburgh.

"Leo, you think you’ve won."

Monroe muttered to himself.

"You think you can hold me hostage just because you held Campbell hostage with public opinion?"

"You’re wrong."

Monroe picked up another phone on his desk and dialed his chief of staff, Turner.

"Paul."

"Get the word out."

"The pardon committee’s meeting is postponed indefinitely. The reason is a procedural compliance review."

"Also, contact our people in Pittsburgh. The old Union leaders suppressed by Leo, the radicals dissatisfied with the status quo."

"Tell them that Leo Wallace is making a deal with Washington."

"Leo is planning to sell out Luigi in exchange for his own political future."

"Muddle the waters."

"I want those protesting workers to turn their anger from the insurance companies to City Hall."

"I want Pittsburgh to descend into chaos."

"Real chaos."

...

Pittsburgh, Mayor’s Office.

Leo listened to the dial tone in the receiver before slowly putting the phone down.

"He double-crossed me."

Ethan, standing nearby, felt his heart sink as he watched Leo’s expression.

"Monroe is refusing the pardon?"

"It’s more than a refusal."

Leo stood up and walked to the window.

Crowds were still gathering on the streets outside.

But the atmosphere had changed.

If before it was a sorrowful rage born from a shared hatred, now, with the passing of time, that emotion was fermenting into a restless brutality.

"He’s stalling."

Leo stared down at the crowd below.

"He’s waiting for the situation to spiral out of control."

’Mr. President,’ Leo asked in his mind, ’what is he trying to do? If Pittsburgh descends into chaos, what good does that do him as the newly appointed Governor?’

"This is the logic of a robber."

Roosevelt’s voice rang out in his mind.

"Leo, you’ve underestimated Monroe’s greed, and you’ve underestimated Washington’s resolve."

"They don’t just want to suppress you."

"They want to devour you."

Roosevelt began to break down the calculations behind Monroe’s scheme.

"Think about it. What is the most valuable asset you hold right now?"

"It’s the Industrial Revival Alliance."

"It’s that vast network connecting multiple cities in the Rust Belt, with its own logistics and its own independent settlement system."

"That Alliance controls billions of US Dollars in liquid assets and holds the economic lifeblood of this land."

"To the Democratic National Committee, which wants to control the Rust Belt’s votes, this is a fat, juicy prize."

"But as long as you’re still in your position, as long as Pittsburgh maintains a semblance of order, they can’t make their move."

"They need an excuse."

"An excuse that will allow them to bypass legal procedures and take over everything through executive action."

Leo’s pupils contracted sharply.

"A state of emergency."

Leo spat out the words.

"Exactly," Roosevelt said approvingly.

"The Governor’s Emergency Powers Act."

"If large-scale riots break out in Pittsburgh."

"If the workers start looting, vandalizing, and committing arson, if municipal services collapse, if the city falls into a state of anarchy..."

"Then, as Governor, Monroe has the authority to declare Pittsburgh in a dual state of financial and public order emergency."

"Once that state is declared..."

"He can legitimately take control of Pittsburgh’s finances."

"He can appoint an emergency management committee to completely take over control of the Industrial Revival Alliance."

"At that point..."

Roosevelt let out a cold laugh.

"Everything you’ve built with the Industrial Revival Alliance will become assets of the State Government."

"He’s pulling chestnuts from the fire."

"He’s using the fire you lit to walk away with the whole pot."

Leo said indifferently, "He thinks he’s won."

"He thinks he can sit in that position and give orders like Campbell."

"But he forgot."

Leo turned around. There was no panic on his face. Instead, there was a smile that sent a chill down Ethan’s spine.

"I’m the one who put him in that position."

"And since I could put him up there, I can just as easily drag him back down."