He was the most eloquent when he was a lawyer, and his speeches were the most moving after entering politics. President Pabble, who was still able to talk calmly, clearly and eloquently at such a moment tonight, finally calmed down for the first time after Xu Le asked this question. Between Chi's thick brows, in those stern eyes, which were so clear and firm, he didn't know when there was such a faint trace of sadness. It was probably because he would occasionally think of the fireworks in the Night Scorpion Nebula on a quiet night. , feel guilty
Noticing the president's expression, Xu Le's lips moved slightly, and he wanted to say something, but in the end he just spread his hands helplessly and sadly.
He once heard the president mention the dinner at the official residence. At the dinner table, the president and Zhong Shouhu had a fierce dispute. Regarding the attack on the empire, the two people had very different views on many things. Zhong Shouhu was wary of the federal government's weakening of Xilin. The attempt of the local military force did not agree that the Fourth Military Region should serve as the main force for attacking the mainland of the Empire under the circumstances.
Probably after this debate, President Pabble finally made up his mind and officially put the conspiracy plan that had been launched and only waiting for approval on the stage with the background of space.
It turned out to be the last supper.
Xu Le stood alone on the transparent wall, and spread his hands beside his body weakly. When he killed Medellin and was imprisoned in the Qingcheng Military Prison, the old man was still fishing in Philadelphia and had never seen each other. The entire federation was silent. The politicians headed by everyone hoped that he would die immediately, only the president and the tiger of Xilin clearly showed their attitude of protection, and as a result...
"Mr. President, do you remember the speech at the Nebula Awards that year? I came to see it afterwards." Xu Le raised his head, looked at President Pabble behind the wall, and said softly, "At that time, about Madd's As for Lin, you once said something like this: death is not as good as turning off the lamp, the lamp has light, and the place where it cannot be seen is darkness. If you do something wrong, you must pay the price."
"Then you say: Maybe I'm not a full-fledged politician, but I'm a stubborn adherent of federal law... If I die, you can dig up my grave and see what color is inside. Some dead people, I have the same attitude."
The room was quiet, Xu Le paused for a moment and then asked: "You are not dead yet, but it seems that we can ask in advance: When you decide to sell the lives of Commander Zhong and the soldiers on the Ancient Bell to the Imperial Fleet, what will you do? Where is the honored federal law placed? What color will your grave be in the future? Should you pay the price if you do something wrong?"
President Pabble pursed his thick lips, and his jaw showed a few deep depressions. After a long silence, he replied: "I admit that I have done some things beyond the scale, but for this federation, I will pay the price. It must be served later, and I have already prepared myself mentally to be judged by history.”
Xu Le looked at him and said sarcastically: "If history is to be judged, the Imperial Expeditionary Force can say the same, we don't need to resist. Medellin can also say the same, we don't need to pay attention to it. Commander Zhong has more reason to say this. "
"Mr. President, don't you think this kind of rhetoric is shameless and hypocritical? If only history is qualified to judge you, how can you be qualified to judge others?"
President Pabble's brows gradually appeared heavy. At this point in the conversation, Xu Le's words finally succeeded in angering him. He slowly stood up from his chair and walked to the transparent wall. Zuo Tian's Xu Le said word by word, "Shameless? Hypocrisy? Colonel Xu Le, please don't forget that you were tried with your own pen that stuck in your throat without being convicted in court. Medellin!"
Across the transparent and cold wall, Xu Le and President Pabble stood face to face, opening their eyes unblinkingly, staring at each other's persistent eyes with persistent eyes.
President Pabble pointed to Xu Le's face and said with a sullen face: "Your experience should make you clearer than most of the people that federal law cannot perfectly protect the weak, and most of the time, it can only protect the powerful to escape. Due punishment, so the Medellin case was terminated, the Ministry of Justice was devastated, so...you will play the role of the judge yourself!"
"The federal government is a government elected by the people, facing the danger of imperial invasion, but it must always be vigilant against the warlords in Xilin. Are there less cases of the Zhong family and those families breaking the law? But which local prosecutor's office can successfully bring them down? Sent to prison? The federation has the brilliance of the charter, but in front of these dignitaries who have countless scapegoats, and are even used to carrying scapegoats with them, what is the law in the face of the charter position?”
Xu Le looked at the president's angry accusation, his eyes narrowed, because of the words scapegoating and charter brilliance, he remembered the knife light on Hushan Road and the district prosecutor's office full of spring peach blossoms many years ago, and he silently admitted that he said: of these are facts.
"When you killed Medellin, you didn't need the law to prepare a book for you. What qualifications do you have to request the government?" President Pabble looked at him with a solemn expression and said, "The reason I admire you and Shi Qinghai, It's your attitude towards doing things, and that's exactly the attitude I've held all my life."
"Evil must pay a price. In order to practice the ultimate fairness and justice, good people should spare no expense, because morality is a fragile thing that needs to be carefully cared for by power."
"When I was expelled from the law firm because of the public interest lawsuit, and my wife and I were kicked out of the residence by those people laughing, I was wandering on the snowy streets with tattered boxes, looking for a small black house to rent, I confirmed these , even if I am buried in a grave in the future, I will have a clear conscience."
President Pabble's anger gradually calmed down because of these words. He put his generous palm on the transparent wall, looked at Xu Le and said calmly: "We are not the Knights of Worrying about the country written by Schiller, and we are not radical, we are I don't intend to use the military to swept everything madly, but when the federal reform encounters the dying struggle of those families who are insane, the military will be the most powerful guarantee for the federal government."
"We have a long-term detailed plan. This government has already pushed Parliament to pass the Financial Consolidation Act. In the next five years, my colleagues and I will take advantage of the current war situation to push for the passage of more bills."
"In planning, the government and I will introduce affirmative action to improve access to higher education and employment opportunities for civilian students, the Double Ring Medicare Act, the Income Tax Collection Amendment Act, and then the government will work to get the Fund Equity Swap Act passed."
President Pabble tilted his chin slightly, his eyes firm and far-reaching: "The successive governments have not been able to figure out how much resources those seven families have through those foundations that are as numerous as sea fish, and what matters can they control without the government's monitoring? The federal security industry has a lethal impact, and my term must accomplish these things."
"George Carlin said that information asymmetry is the root cause of injustice in the federal society. What we want to do is to open up this information and conduct the most effective and direct supervision by ordinary citizens of the federal government."
"Xu Le, don't worry that the federal government will become a military government, we will usher in a brand new truly elected government."
Pabul retracted his gaze, calmly looked at Xu Le who was speechless, and said, "You have contributed to the Federation, I don't want to give you any unfair treatment, I just hope you can calm down and stand at the highest level, Consider the vital interests of the Commonwealth."
"I know, it sounds like an ideal country that exists only in people's fantasies, but ... the ideal has never been so close to reality as it is today."
"This is the best chance for the Commonwealth."
"We are idealists? Liberals? Pragmatists? No, we are all people who fight to the end to insist on being right." President Pabble looked at Xu Le and said in a deep voice, "We are all the same in our bones. Yes, we are a stinky and hard rock from Donglin."
The president raised his right arm and pointed at Li Zaidao and Du Shaoqing beside him, his calm and infectious gaze penetrated the invisible wall and landed on Xu Le's face.
"Join us, Xu Le."
That day has come, no, will there really be that day? Xu Le listened in silence, thought subconsciously, and did not express his doubts. He suddenly felt that his brain was a little out of control. It turned out that the one who killed Medellin and the people he hated were all the same person in their bones. ? But how can Medellin and that tiger be equated
"On your road, there are many innocent people who died." He frowned and said in a hoarse voice, "This is not right."
"There has never been perfect justice in the world." President Pabble said silently: "For a long-term goal, someone always needs to sacrifice for it."
Xu Le silently recalled Professor Shen's words in his heart that there was never any truth in the universe, so he asked, "Then why didn't you or I sacrifice?"
President Pabble was silent for a moment, and then said: "Schiller once wrote a legendary novel in his early years, which told about a war around Xiangcheng, and in his later years, he once wrote a story of a soldier, telling the story of a small soldier. During the war, the innocent deceased who was brought by the hero as a shield, Xiaobing's death saved the hero of Xiangcheng and indirectly saved hundreds of thousands of people, but for him, it was so sad."
"I think this story can answer your earlier question."
"I've read the story, and it seems to me that the soldier's death was not a sacrifice, because no one asked him for his opinion, and that's where the grief comes from."
Xu Le narrowed his eyes and said, "Similarly, you have not asked the waitress at the Linhaizhou Gymnasium, the Xilin soldier on the ancient bell, if he is willing to die for your grand plan."
"So, it's not sacrifice, it's always murder."
"Should the Secret Service agents who died under the guns of you and Shi Qinghai in the Foundation building be considered sacrifices, or were they murdered by you?"
President Pabble's eyes suddenly became extremely sharp, staring at Xu Le's eyes with a sense of oppression, and asked in a deep voice: "If those innocent Secret Service agents can be sacrificed in your eyes, why can't people like Zhong Shouhu be sacrificed? Sacrifice for the Federation?"
This is a very sharp and direct interrogation. Xu Le's eyes narrowed and his pupils suddenly shrank. After being silent for a long time, he pursed his lips tightly and raised his head, and said, "A few years ago on the iron tower, I once Said to a girl that justice that requires the sacrifice of innocents is not justice."
"Then what's the difference between us and you? The difference is that Shi Qinghai and I have never had any subjective malice to harm innocent people, including those Secret Service agents in the Foundation building."
"Maybe this sounds like a quibble to you, because whether there is subjective malice or not, the result is the same death, but as I thought at Charter Square after the snow, I always insist... The motive is more important than the result. "
"Maybe a little naive, but allow me to hold on."