Chapter 62 Kidnapping

  Julian laughed along with them. "Secondly, he's a famous big shot in high society. He has endless amounts of money, and countless people willing to help him, even risking their lives for him. Hearing all this, are you feeling a bit scared? But not all those people are truly his; those willing to risk their lives for him may not be so eager if they don't get enough in return."

  "So what else does he have besides money?"

  "This society teaches us that if a man only has money but doesn't have the strength to protect it himself, and can only rely on others' strength, he will certainly lose, and he'll lose miserably."

  "And here's the third point!"

  Julian's eyes gleamed as he looked at every young face. "He's too wealthy, possessing everything people desire, while we have nothing! Precisely because we have nothing, what should we be afraid of? Even if we lose, we either lose our worthless lives, or we leave this place that has nothing for us."

  "But he's different. He has too much, too many concerns. Each time he makes a choice, he has to think carefully about how it will affect the things he has.

  "I could walk right up to his villa at 93 Wheat Fragrance Gardens with a gun and pull the trigger, but would he dare do the same? No. He'd think it over, hesitate, and then pay someone to come find us. And even then, he'd have to watch out for others and for the people he hires—who might not even be willing to risk their lives!

  "We can afford to lose, once, twice, even more. We can afford to lose. But he cannot. If he loses just once, he will retreat into self preservation and lose everything.

  "So, as I stand here, I'm telling every one of you: we will win!"

  After the meeting, Dave pulled Julian aside, shielding him from the others as he whispered, "I heard that Wood has quite a few guns, at least several." His face showed a trace of worry. Guns held an overwhelming threat in gang wars, far beyond what numbers alone could resolve. If the other side had just three or five shooters willing to fire, they could easily crush the morale and fighting spirit Julian had built up today.

  Julian had actually considered this problem last night. He patted Dave on the shoulder, appreciating his sharp mind. It was rare, and extremely important, for someone to still be thinking in these critical moments. Julian glanced at the boys standing nearby and smiled, "I've thought it over already. We may not have guns, but we have bows!"

  In the Star Empire, except for some developed cities, the land was mostly rural. In such undisturbed natural environments, wildlife often became a serious problem. While some had proposed granting firearms to farmers and ranchers in the countryside, this idea was ultimately rejected. Instead, they distributed bows and arrows to replace guns.

  This was done to prevent conquered people from obtaining enough firearms and ammunition to potentially start an uprising. Some extreme organizations among the conquered had armed themselves, but no one had seen any uprisings or significant action.

  At the core, people only pursued two things: power and wealth.

  Of course, none of this had much to do with Julian at the moment. The widespread use of bows instead of guns meant that many farmers in rural areas had developed decent archery skills. Almost every household could shoot. In the cities, there were even archery clubs, although these were not open to ordinary farmers. To the elites, the farmers didn't practice archery—they practiced hunting, an unsophisticated use of the bow.

  Only they, using expensive, elaborate bows and shooting costly arrows, could call it archery.

  In actual combat, bows were far more useful than handguns. A handgun's range was only about twenty meters, while a bow's effective range exceeded fifty meters, with skilled hunters able to shoot targets from as far as eighty meters.

  In direct combat, using bows would be far more effective than using handguns—and even more surprising.

  Seeing that Julian had already considered the matter, Dave said no more. His strength lay in his bravery and ruthlessness, along with a certain level of intellect. But compared to Julian, he felt he was still a bit lacking. Plus, he was just a team leader, so he trusted that Julian could handle everything.

  The bar continued to supply alcohol, but more people were now assigned to escort the goods. For several days, nothing happened, which left some in Ternell City who were aware of the situation feeling puzzled.

  Shouldn't a fight have broken out by now? Why was there still no movement from either side?

  What they didn't know was that the two sides hadn't even seen each other yet, so how could they talk about fighting?

  This tense, oppressive atmosphere was finally broken on the ninth day.

  Graf stormed into Julian's office like a wounded bull. Julian, sitting calmly in his chair, looked at him without the slightest hint of emotion.

  Graf felt utterly uncomfortable. He instinctively waved his arms, paced back and forth a few steps, then punched the newly renovated wall of the office. The wooden panel shattered, costing him five dollars with that one punch. New wall panels, new wallpaper, and the labor to fix it—all together, it would cost a fortune for just that one spot.

  "If you need to burn off some excess energy, I suggest you head up to the third floor. I've hung several punching bags there, made of cowhide. If you manage to break one, I might be impressed."

  After breaking the wall, Graf's frustration eased a bit. He slumped into a chair, which creaked under his weight. His hands cradled his head as he looked completely helpless. "My mother and my brother have been taken."

  Julian knew that Graf had a mother, but it was the first time he learned he had a brother. A few years back, Graf had hidden in the wilderness to avoid being forcibly conscripted. He had mentioned this before, but he had never talked about having a brother. This left Julian feeling slightly displeased, though he hid it well. "Who took them, Wood?"

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