Chapter 286 Arrakis! Emperor! Submission!

At this moment, Duke Leto frowned and kept tapping the table with his fingers. His anxiety became more and more serious.

He found that the Atreides family seemed to have stepped into a dead end. No matter how he chose this answer, the final outcome would lead to death.

Relying solely on the strength of the Atreides family, there is no way to break the deadlock. They still need a stronger external force.

And the Universal Corporation is the only variable!

After a long while, Leto looked at Hawat and asked in a deep voice: "This so-called Universal Corporation said that it has integrated several universes. Do you think this is credible?"

To be honest, Leto didn't dare to believe it at all. Suddenly one day, a force that integrated multiple universes appeared and said that it could help the Atreides family out of danger.

This is simply a fantasy!

From the beginning to the end, Leto suspected that this was a deliberate trick by the royal family and the Harkonnen family to deceive him.

But facing this dazzling information network, Duke Leto really couldn't figure it out, so he could only ask Hawat what he thought of it.

"The size and style of the warships of the Universal Corporation are very different from ours, and even the equipment and power armor of the troops are very distinctive."

"Perhaps they are really a powerful civilization from other universes. At present, we have almost no information about the Universal Corporation, and I can't give a correct answer."

Hawat combined the currently known information. Although the appearance of the Universal Corporation is hard to believe, everything the other party said is likely to be true!

Unless there is more intelligence information to prove the true identity of the giant, Hawat can only believe the other party temporarily.

The scale and volume of the expeditionary fleet of the Universal Corporation are quite large. If a family spends a huge amount of money to build such a fleet.

As the boss of the Lansgard Committee, the Atreides family will receive some news and know the existence of this fleet.

But they did not receive relevant information, which is enough to show that the origin of this fleet cannot be built by a certain family.

The only force that can build such a fleet quietly is the Corino royal family, even the Harkonnen family is not very good!

But if the Universal Corporation is the power of the Corino royal family, there is no need to go to such lengths to remind the Atreides family.

Because even if they follow the original plan, they can still besiege the Atreides family to death on the planet Arrakis.

"If everything the Universal Corporation said is true, then it doesn't mean...!"

Hawat hesitated, he looked up at Duke Leto, and Leto knew exactly what the other party wanted to say.

If Andrew's words are all true, then the Universal Corporation is the only hope of the Atreides family and the only force that can help the family escape the end of destruction!

"Don't alert the enemy for now. Everything remains normal for the royal family and the Harkonnen family."

"As for the Universal Corporation in low-Earth orbit, we only need to monitor them and provide them with necessary supplies every day to stabilize them first."

"I want to see if Saddam will really send an envoy to transfer us to Arrakis!"

Leto's deployment is very in place.

If Emperor Saddam really named the Atreides family to go to Arrakis and take over the spice business, then he will have to consider cooperating with Universal Corporation.

"Yes, Duke, your decision is extremely wise!"

Hawat also admired Leto's arrangement. Judging from the current situation, this is already the best way to deal with it. Who is right and who is wrong can only be verified by time.

While waiting for Emperor Saddam's transfer order, all departments of Universal Corporation are making active preparations for war. Once the Atreides family refuses to cooperate with the corporation, they can only act in secret.

When the royal family and the Harkonnen family joined forces to attack Atreides, he suddenly appeared to save Duke Leto.

There was no other way. If the Universal Corporation wanted to integrate the Dune universe as quickly as possible and complete the mission in the most efficient way, it would need the cooperation of the Atreides family.

However, the one who was anxious now was not the Universal Corporation, but Leto.

Because just one month later, Leto Atreides really received an order from Emperor Shaddam, and the content was just as Andrew expected!

Bang!

In his personal study, Leto slammed the table heavily, his rapid breathing fluctuated, and his face had turned livid.

Just now, Emperor Shaddam's ministers congratulated the Atreides family through the communication device on their upcoming entry into Arrakis and becoming the new masters of Dune, enjoying endless glory and wealth from then on.

The Universal Corporation's prophecy came true!

Now, the messenger sent by Emperor Shaddam is on his way to Caladan. It won't be long before the messenger reads out the transfer of the Atreides to Arrakis to take over the Dunes.

By then, regardless of whether Leto accepts the emperor's order, the Atreides will be in the countdown to their demise.

In fact, even without the reminder from the Universal Corporation, Duke Leto will quickly realize that there is no such thing as a free lunch.

The Harkonnen family, which has occupied the planet Arrakis for many years, will definitely sabotage in secret when faced with such a transfer order to prevent the Atreides from taking over Arrakis smoothly.

But facing the Harkonnen family, Leto was still very confident that he could stabilize the situation.

After all, he had been fighting with the Harkonnen family for most of his life, and he still knew how much the other party was worth.

Leto was still able to hold his own against the Harkonnen family.

But if you add the powerful Colino royal family, it will be troublesome. Leto doesn't think he will be the opponent of the two big families.

Ten Sardoka legions, plus the guards of the Harkonnen family, are definitely not something that the Atreides family can reach.

As early as a month ago, Leto and Hawat conducted a military sandbox exercise. The final result was that Atreides' troops were 100% engulfed!

"No, we must not accept this transfer order. Arrakis must not go."

Leto's firm voice resounded in the study, and the senior members of the Atreides family all over the room also had solemn and pensive expressions on their faces.

Apparently, they were also debating whether to go to the planet Arrakis.

"We can't take over the dunes at the risk of annihilation. I'd rather not do this big single-spice business."

Duke Leto first expressed his attitude to everyone.

Without the reminder from the world's giants, Leto might have forced his way to Arrakis to take over the spice business there, with the mentality of seeking wealth through danger.

After all, the planet Arrakis is the only origin of spices and can be called the gold mine of the Galactic Empire.

As long as they can establish a foothold here, the Atreides family will be able to make a lot of money at will in the days to come.

Even if the Harkonnen family is dissatisfied with them, so what, their Atreides family guards are not vegetarians.

But if Emperor Shaddam's Sadoka Legion joins the battle, the situation will be different.

Once the Atreides family is gone, it will only end in destruction!

"The emperor's envoy is already on the way. If we resist the will, we will also be attacked by the two families."

At this time, Duke Leto's wife, Lady Jessica, spoke up to advise. As a senior member of the sisterhood, her political awareness and vision were quite high.

Disobeying the order and offending the royal family will also cause damage to the reputation of the Atreides family.

But how could Leto not know the truth behind it? He sighed and still refused to let go: "In short, no matter what the attitude of the royal family is, we must not go to Arrakis."

Leto had already made up his mind. When Emperor Shaddam's envoy arrived, he would politely refuse him by saying he was sick, and then recommend other families to him to take over Arrakis.

Anyway, if you can, let it go as much as possible.

"My Lord Duke, I think you are too worried about the emperor and the Harkonnen family. How could they suddenly come together and target our Atreides family?"

Lady Jessica, whose charm was still there, shook Leto's rough palm and said with a smile:

"Without our Atreides family, who can control the Harkonnen family?"

In fact, what Lady Jessica said is not completely unreasonable. For the Colino royal family, the best way to deal with these powerful families is to check and balance them one by one to stabilize the situation.

If the suppression of powerful families is too harsh, it will cause strong resistance from the families, but if the control is too lax, it will lead to the rapid development of a certain big family.

The big families below form cliques for personal gain and recruit small families to fight against the royal family. This is also a troublesome phenomenon.

Therefore, each family needs to have a force that confronts and antagonizes them. For example, the two families of Atreides and Harkonnen are typical examples.

As for the Atreides and Harkonnen families, no matter which one becomes stronger or is destroyed, the other will be advantaged in vain.

After all, who can guarantee that if the Atreides family is destroyed, the Harkonnen family will not continue to follow the old path of the Atreides family and continue to lead the members of the Lansgard Federation to fight against the royal family.

Therefore, from the perspective of Emperor Shadam, Madam Jessica saw that there was no need for the royal family to destroy their Atreides family. Doing so would only cause the balance to get out of control.

However, Duke Leto's attitude remained firm. He shook his head and said, "No, we cannot take this risk."

As the patriarch of the Atreides family, Leto must always be cautious and meticulous. Women and children can be careless, but men cannot!

The reason why the Atreides family has been able to last for thousands of years is not only due to the blessings of its ancestors, but also due to the caution and awe of the patriarchs of each generation.

As long as they stay in Caladan, even if Emperor Shaddam wants to punish them, they will still lose some money from the Chamber of Commerce and some guards.

The Atreides family can definitely survive this.

Leto had already made up his mind. When the emperor's envoy arrived, he would pretend to be sick and politely refuse him. At the same time, he would show weakness to the royal family and express that he had no ambitions.

The planet Caladan is the home planet of the Atreides family. Even if the entire Sadokar army comes out in force, they will not be able to defeat the Atreides forces for a while.

On the contrary, if Shadam dares to do this, it will cause the royal family to fall into a storm of public opinion and cause criticism from other families.

However, at this moment, Hawat, who had always been on Leto's side, suddenly put forward an opinion that was contrary to his.

"Your Excellency, I also think what Madam said makes sense. Arrakis may not be impossible to go to."

Hearing this, Leto looked at each other in surprise. They had been discussing in the study before, saying that they must not go to Arrakis.

Why did Hawat suddenly change his mind? Could it be that this guy was bribed?

Facing Leto's suspicious eyes, Hawat explained slowly: "I think it's time for us to communicate with the Universal Corporation for the next step."

"Since they know the actions of the Corino royal family, there must be a solution."

Hawat knew very well that since the Universal Corporation had specially sent a representative to leak the news to them.

This means that the other party must have the idea of ​​cooperation. In this case, why not go with the flow and choose to cooperate with the Universal Corporation.

By then, the Atreides family will be able to take over the spice business in Arrakis and safely survive this crisis under the protection of the giant company.

Isn't this better!

After listening to Hawat's perfect answer, Mrs. Jessica nodded repeatedly, very satisfied with his idea.

As a senior member of the sisterhood, it is really difficult for her to resist the temptation of spices. After all, that thing is an indispensable resource for the sisterhood.

Once the Atreides family takes over the spices on the dunes, the members of the sisterhood can easily get a large amount of spices with the help of Lady Jessica.

They can rely on spices to quickly expand the organizational strength of the guild and improve the quality of the guild members.

The Atreides family can also rely on the spice business to quickly become a wealthy family second only to the Corino royal family, and their strength and fame will be greatly developed!

So both publicly and privately, Lady Jessica will encourage Leto to take over the management rights of the planet Arrakis.

Seeing that his close ministers and beloved wife said so, Duke Leto had to reconsider the pros and cons again, and what Hawat said seemed to make sense.

"Since the Universal Corporation has stated that they are here to help us, it means that they have intentions. We might as well listen to their conditions and then make a decision."

Hawat knows the principle of conservation of interests. As long as the conditions proposed by the Universal Corporation are within the acceptable range of the Atreides family, it may not be impossible to agree to them.

At this moment, Duke Leto's heart has begun to waver.

The fact that the Universal Corporation could anticipate Emperor Shaddam's decree proves that they are well prepared. They should also come up with a plan to rescue the Atreides family in exchange for the benefits they want.

If the Universal Corporation is really a powerful civilization that integrates multiple parallel universes, it should be enough to help the Atreides family overcome this difficulty!

"Well, I'll go see them in person."

Duke Leto synthesized all the information, sorted out his thoughts, and decided to go to the low-Earth orbit first to talk to the Universal Corporation before making the final decision.

Immediately, Leto immediately had people prepare the flapping-wing aircraft, and personally selected several groups of personal guards to follow him to the Universal Corporation fleet in low-Earth orbit.

...

At this moment, Song Zhaomei, who had just completed a conversation with Leon in the dreadnought, was ready to receive Duke Leto.

Although Leon did not personally manage the affairs here, the strategic goals he set and the interests of the enterprise were still quite clear.

The core information of the conversation between Li Ang and Song Zhaomei this time is only three points.

First, the ownership of Arrakis must belong to the Universal Corporation.

The spice business is arranged by the Universal Corporation to the trade circle. As a unified arrangement, all the clan forces have a share. At that time, they will be asked to transport spices and make money in various universes.

Although the proportion they get is very small, the running fee and a little share alone are much more than what they earn now!

The purpose of Li Ang's request is very simple, that is, there is actually no other good place in the Dune universe except Arrakis.

The planets and colonies of the "Halo" universe alone have guaranteed the production area of ​​the Universal Corporation, and there is no shortage of various raw materials.

So for the "Dune" universe, the Universal Corporation only needs to pick out the most critical Arrakis and control the management of spices.

The territories and mother planets of other clan nobles are not important to the giant company at all, and they don't stare at the little melons and two dates of others to grab.

Of course, Leon will not only let himself eat meat, but also give these clan forces some broth, give them some running expenses and a very small proportion of the share, which is enough.

The second point is that Leon wants to be the God Emperor of the "Dune" universe!

This requires not only strong military force as support, but also a certain exchange of interests to achieve multi-party recognition.

In exchange, Leon can help the Atreides family overthrow the rule of Emperor Shaddam and redistribute all the power resources of the Corino royal family.

By then, each family will have more territory and power resources, which is definitely a situation that most clan forces are happy to see.

If anyone is not convinced and dares to challenge the Universal Corporation, then destroy that family together and distribute it to the clan forces again.

The Universal Corporation does not want territory or any other resources. It only wants the power of the God Emperor to control the clans and the control of the planet Arrakis.

The nobles who stand on the side of the giant enterprise of the universe only need to provide the garrison of the giant enterprise with material supplies and a military base, and good food, drink and hospitality.

And build a beautiful and shining "small halo" giant structure on the territory of each family.

These two insignificant requests are almost impossible to be rejected by the families of Dune.

After all, how much does it cost to support a garrison of a giant enterprise? Just think of it as spending money to buy a bodyguard, and it can also prevent attacks from other families.

As for repairing a broken halo, the Universal Giant Enterprise can repair it if it wants, just don't block the road.

As for the third point, all the clans in the Dune Universe must join the trade circle of the Universal Giant Enterprise and serve the business of the giant enterprise!

The purpose of this point is very simple, that is, to let these families run errands for the business of the giant enterprise under the control of the giant enterprise, and not let them stay at home every day to play infighting.

Pull them all out to run errands for the giant enterprise to do business and make money.

Doing so can also save the transportation resource expenses of the Universal Giant Enterprise, which is equivalent to taking advantage of the manpower of the major families for free.

And for this request, the major clans in the Dune Universe have no reason to refuse.

After all, this does not harm their interests. The giant enterprise is not unwilling to pay, and they can also follow the giant enterprise to "go to Guandong and Xikou" to make a fortune, so why not do it?

Here, Duke Leto has brought his personal guards, following the lead of the carrier-based aircraft of the giant enterprise, to the flagship where Song Zhaomei is.

The person in charge of the handover and negotiation with Leto this time is Song Zhaomei, a senior executive of the giant enterprise.

After a simple self-introduction, Song Zhaomei did not waste time with the other party and said straight to the point:

"Duke, it seems that your emperor's edict has been passed down. How about it, we should have predicted it correctly."

Hearing the slight teasing in Song Zhaomei's voice, Duke Leto felt a little embarrassed in his heart, but his expression was still quite calm.

He smiled and responded frankly:

"Director Song, we have neglected you for the past month. This is mainly because I have never heard of your name, the Universal Corporation, and I have always been suspicious of you, so I did not come to meet you in person."

"But not long ago, I received a transfer order from the royal family. We are about to go to Arrakis."

"Since you can predict the actions of the royal family, I would like to hear your opinions."

"Should our Atreides family go or not?"

After listening to Duke Leto's words, Song Zhaomei could sense from the other party's tone and demeanor that Leto was still a little worried and vigilant.

Since the Universal Corporation wants to cooperate with the Atreides family to complete the task of integrating the Dune universe as soon as possible, it is necessary to reassure this partner and make clear the needs of the giant company.

In order to avoid the trouble of wrangling or uneven distribution in the future cooperation between the two parties.

Anyway, the boss Li Ang's requirements are just three points, he wants spices, he wants to be the emperor, and he wants the whole family to be dogs for the giant company. The goal is clear.

"Duke, have you ever thought about changing the emperor?"

Song Zhaomei's shocking words made Duke Leto jump up from his seat subconsciously. This reaction was like Liu Bei hearing "The heroes of the world, the envoys and Cao".

Seeing Song Zhaomei's calm reaction, Leto was silent for two seconds, and then said to her coldly:

"I don't know what you mean by saying this."

Leto was a little confused about what Song Zhaomei's intention was. Was she sent by the Corino royal family to test him, or did she really want to play some tricks to support the emperor.

Although Leto was a little unpredictable, it was definitely right to play dumb at this time, and he must not let the other party get a handle on him verbally.