"Minister, three merchant ships that were supposed to arrive today have arrived, and we are unable to contact them by telegraph. Trade on the island has come to a complete standstill. If this continues, Hope Island's economy will be in chaos."
Listening to his secretary's report, Leonardo, the administrative minister of Hope Island, frowned tightly. He was certainly not thinking about the economic chaos, he was thinking about bigger things.
"Hmm..." Leonardo stood up and walked slowly to the window. As he pushed the window open, Leonardo saw the coastline in the distance. It should have been pitch black, but now it was bright white.
This situation is not just a trade issue. I'm afraid the entire Earth Sea will be in big trouble.
"We still can't contact other islands?" Leonardo asked sideways.
The secretary flipped through the text in his hand and shook his head regretfully. "We have tried every possible telegram, but there is no response. The entire Earthsea telegraph system seems to be paralyzed. The sudden sunlight that day is probably..."
"How was the fleet's exploration to Tianshui Island? What did they discover?"
"The navy did send us intelligence. The entire Tianshui Island is empty. All the people on it are gone. There is not a single warship of the God of Light stationed at the dock."
Hearing this, Leonardo frowned and thought about various possibilities. A living island that can produce both fresh water and high-quality fuel was actually abandoned so easily by the Church of Light. This was very wrong.
He paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, calculating various things in his mind. He waited until night fell on Hope Island. His eyes gradually became firm and he walked towards the door.
The secretary quickly followed and asked carefully, "Mr. Minister, where are we going?"
"Go find our Chief James."
The car started moving, and Leonardo, who was sitting in the back seat, crossed his arms and tapped his fingers on his shoulders.
He had bet everything on Hope Island when it was first discovered, and he had won that time, so he wanted to try again this time.
When Leonardo opened his eyes again, he could already see the black-walled police station from the car window. He waited for the driver to bend down respectfully and open the door, then he stepped out.
No one dared to stop Leonardo because of his identity, and soon he arrived in front of James' office.
The door was half open and not closed tightly, so he pushed it open and rushed in.
As soon as he entered, he saw a white-haired old woman holding James' hand in grief and begging for something.
It sounds like her son is a crew member on the Governor's ship. Now that he hasn't come back for such a long time, she is unwilling to give up and wants to ask James to send a ship to look for him.
After James patiently comforted the old woman for a while, he finally asked her to leave.
When James returned to the office, he saw Leonardo drinking his coffee.
"If you have something to say, please tell me quickly. I have a lot of things to do here. A lot of people are unemployed, and many of them don't want to take the right path anymore." James came to his seat and sat down.
Leonardo waved his hand gently, and the secretary beside him nodded, walked out and closed the door from the outside.
"What exactly do you want to say?" James stared at him closely and said in a low voice.
"Although on paper one of us is the Minister of Administration and the other is the Chief of Police, we both know that when the Governor of Hope Island is away, it is the two of us who are in charge. I am in charge of the entire administrative system, and you are in charge of the Voluntary Research Institute and the Navy."
"You want to betray the captain?" There was a hint of chill in James' voice.
"I know you're loyal, but now that he's dead, what's the point of your loyalty? Haven't you seen the changes outside? We can't contact any of the other islands. With such a huge change, it wouldn't be surprising if Governor Charles died."
"Think about it. If he really can't come back and doesn't leave any offspring, then it's reasonable for the entire Hope Island to belong to the two of us. This kind of thing should be done quickly, otherwise it will take too long and cause problems."
"As for the future issues, I have also thought about it. Your daughter is about the same age as my son. Our two families will get married, and there will be no problem with the succession of Hope Island in the future."
"Hope the island belongs to me?" James thought about this for a moment and immediately thought of the arm that the captain lost while trying to save him.
"Please go back, Captain, nothing will happen to you. As long as I stay in this position, Hope Island will belong only to Charles Reid!"
Hearing James's powerful words, Leonardo stood up with a hint of annoyance on his face. "You can wait if you want, but please think carefully. I'm not doing this for myself either. Hope Island needs someone to take charge! If the governor dies, it won't be you or me, but someone else will take over! I won't just wait to die!"
Hearing the footsteps outside the corridor gradually becoming smaller, James sighed and took out the faded photo from his wallet.
Looking at the photo of Charles standing in front of the Mouse with his hand on his shoulder, James murmured, "Captain, where are you..."
As time passed, the economy stagnated, the governor disappeared, and coupled with the great changes outside, people on Hope Island began to feel uneasy and prices fluctuated.
This change was not only in the upper class, but also in the lower class. Rumors of the end of the world spread everywhere, the crime rate increased rapidly, and finally James had no choice but to send out the navy to suppress it directly.
Although this could stabilize the situation, it could not stop people from gossiping. The whole atmosphere on the island became increasingly tense, and everyone was feeling suffocated by the pressure.
Just when the pressure was about to explode, a strange ship slowly approached the dock of Hope Island.
The ship looks strange, and the bow looks very ugly, like an iron cover spliced together with some mechanical shells.
But the familiar chimney and tower and the familiar whistle, the lookout on the dock knew that the Governor had returned.
The news spread across the entire island in an instant, and the oppressive atmosphere that had been lingering over Hope Island suddenly dissipated. Everyone put aside their plans and rushed to the dock.
When the battered Narwhal docked, the dock was instantly crowded with people. Everyone looked at the ship with curiosity and speculation in their eyes.
Sometimes, it makes no difference whether there is a governor or not, but sometimes the identity of a governor can play a very important role.
(End of this chapter)