Slightly frowning, Lei Chenghu tried to hold back his physical disdain and disgust toward the three inspectors.
Of course, he knew the three notorious guys in the frontline.
The guy in the lead, who had a slender waist and a greasy face, was named "Dongfang Bai". He was a major general in the Bureau of Materials Statistics of the Recovered Space Zone.
The Bureau of Materials Statistics of the Recovered Space Zone seemed to be a data collection agency on the surface, but in fact, the agency that the officers in the frontline called "GUANGTONG" was an out-and-out spy agency of the worst kind. It was also a tool that the four Kurfürst families used to meddle with the internal affairs of the expedition army in the frontline and aimed at their own people but never got any intelligence about the Holy League.
The expedition army had subdued dozens of Sectors and hundreds of resource planets. Naturally, they had collected tremendous trophies and 'reverse products'. Many fleets that were short of supplies often kept part of the trophies in private to supplement the fleet.
While Lei Chenghu was heartless, he was not a stubborn man. As long as the trophies were not for personal gains but for the construction of the fleet and the defense of the battle area, he had always acquiesced to such things in the Third Battle Area that he was in charge of.
However, the "GUANGTONG" had grasped tremendous "evidence" with that as an excuse, which could be thrown to the soldiers in the frontline at any moment. As a matter of fact, it was only for the four Kurfürst families to control the fleets in the frontline.
The soldiers who fought bloody battles in the frontline had always despised and hated the organizations in the headquarters in the rear, such as the logistics department, the military supply department, and the 'Guangtong'. They regarded them as festering caecilians, which were not only useless but also a burden to the troops in the frontline and often even killed people.
However, however disgusted the soldiers in the frontline were, they could not shake the position of the "GUANGTONG" in the base of the expedition army, nor could they stop Dongfang Bai, the leader of the "GUANGTONG", from rising to power.
It was because his father was Dongfang Wang, the current leader of the Dongfang family, who had been the prime minister of the Imperium for twenty years!
Therefore, after the incident of the Blood Oath Alliance, it was only natural that Dongfang Bai, the head of the secret service, became the chairman of the special investigation committee and was personally responsible for the investigation of Lei Chenghu.
The two inspectors standing on Dongfang Bai's left and right were from the four Kurfürst families, too. They were in charge of the critical locations of the base of the expedition army. There was nothing to be said about them. They were just a bunch of scoundrels of the same tribe.
The three inspectors had carefully crafted smiles on their faces.
But under this extraordinarily humble and reverent smile, there was undisguised falsehood.
Looking at them, Lei Chenghu thought of the hyenas that lurked in the bushes, waiting for the giant beasts covered in wounds to die so that they could devour the corpses.
Then he thought of the buzzing flies that kept twisting their hands and feet.
At this moment, he couldn't have been more eager to return to his fleet, not because he wanted to regain the military power, but because he wanted to stay with the roughest men under his command, which was better than being in the same room with the three despicable, shameless, and sleazy guys.
Even though he was only faced with the remote projections of the inspectors, he could still smell the stink of hyenas and flies leaking out of the pores of the inspectors.
This smell was really nauseating!
"It's an honor to meet you, Marquis Liaohai!"
The three inspectors bowed to him pretentiously and addressed him with his latest title respectfully. Every detail was perfect, and there was not the slightest flaw.
Their behavior raised Lei Chenghu's disgust even more. He did not even return the greeting but simply said coldly, "Don't waste my time. If you want to investigate me, just get started. But this is not the capital. Something bad will happen if you do such a thing."
Dongfang Bai, the head of the secret service and the chairman of the special investigation committee, immediately pretended to be "shocked", "wronged", and "flustered" to defend himself. "Please don't misunderstand us, Marquis Liaohai. We were planning to escort you to the capital to meet the elders of the Council of Elders, but something unexpected happened on the way. For your safety, we have to send you to this place for protection. This is just a temporary measure. Please forgive us if we are rude. It doesn't matter how you punish us later. But right now, your safety and the big picture of the Imperium are more important."
"Something unexpected happened?"
Lei Chenghu smiled. Without looking at the three inspectors in the eyes, he said casually, "What kind of changes will affect my safety and require your protection? Are you worried that I will be assassinated like Elder Dongfang Tuo? "
"With Marquis Liaohai's prestige in the army, you are probably more loved by the soldiers in the frontline than Prime Minister Dongfang and His Majesty. Naturally, you will not be assassinated."
Dongfang Bai said with a smile, "However, you may be caught in a situation that is even more treacherous than being 'assassinated'. We have received unquestionable intelligence that dozens of radical organizations of young officers, led by the 'Blood Oath Alliance', are planning to connect in secret and turn the 'Blood Oath Alliance' into an enormous force that spans dozens of fleets and extends its tentacles to the entire expedition army and even the army of the Imperium in the rear. Also, they are planning to hijack Marquis Liaohai and force you to be the leader of the 'Blood Oath Alliance'!
"If those sordid and shameless traitors succeed, wouldn't you be forced into the desperation of disloyalty and injustice? It will be a hundred times more painful than being 'assassinated'.
"That's why we made such a bad decision to change our route and protect you in this secret place that nobody knows."
"Okay."
Lei Chenghu, who had been through a lot, did not even bat an eyelid. "Got it. You suspect that I am the leader of the 'Blood Oath Alliance' and planned the assassination of Elder Dongfang Tuo. So, you never intended to let me return to the capital in the first place but decided to isolate and investigate me a long time ago. Is that right?"
"No, no, no."
Dongfang Bai waved his hands quickly, as if he had been wronged wholeheartedly. "We dare not doubt Marquis Liaohai's loyalty to the Imperium and the Council of Elders. The so-called 'investigation meeting' is just a formality. In fact, we all admire Marquis Liaohai as much as the soldiers in the frontline do, and we are willing to vouch for you with our lives.
"However, there are indeed a lot of hot-headed young officers in the frontline who have embarked on the path of no return under the instigation of a handful of traitors. Those traitors may have instigated them under the name of Marquis Liaohai. That is not entirely impossible.
"Also, should Marquis Liaohai really fall into the hands of the Blood Oath Alliance, while we absolutely believe in Marquis Liaohai's loyalty and that you would rather die than surrender, with the advanced technologies of hypnosis, interrogation, and simulation, wouldn't your lofty image be tarnished blatantly if they could retrieve Marquis Liaohai's soul signature and forge your image?
"We also know that Marquis Liaohai might not believe it immediately because of the suddenness of the incident. This is the intelligence that we have just sorted out. The Blood Oath Alliance is a hundred times more powerful than we imagined at the beginning. Their tentacles have long penetrated into all the troops in the frontline, especially in Marquis Liaohai's Third Battle Area and the Thunder Fleet. The highly infectious' virus' has almost spread to you. It is truly appalling and makes me sweat for Marquis Liaohai!"
The spiritual puppet under Dongfang Bai's control presented an encrypted jade chip to Lei Chenghu respectfully with both hands. After decrypting it with his own soul signature, he helped Lei Chenghu insert it into the interface of the crystal processor that was fixed to the wall.
Immediately, a series of data spurted out like a torrential flood on the 3D light beam.
Lei Chenghu read the intelligence about the Blood Oath Alliance without blinking.
Observing his face without blinking, Dongfang Bai gradually put on a confident smile and said, "We absolutely believe in Marquis Liaohai's loyalty. You have absolutely nothing to do with the Blood Oath Alliance, but it is also a fact that so many captains, advisors, and commanders of the Crystal Suit Legions under your command are deeply connected to the Blood Oath Alliance.
"If you are still in the Astounding Thunder Fleet at this moment, and those officers launch a mutiny and elect you as the leader of the Blood Oath Alliance, wouldn't you and the Astounding Thunder Fleet that you built after a hundred years of hard work be pushed into an irrecoverable pit?"
"The intelligence is false. It's all nonsense."
Lei Chenghu was not moved at all. He finished reading all the intelligence emotionlessly and even reread it carefully for a second time. It was not until then that he reached a conclusion calmly. "What is the Blood Oath Alliance? How can they win over so many officers under my command? If my officers can't take it anymore and want to vent their fury on the rear, they will certainly establish an organization that is ten times larger and more cautious than the Blood Oath Alliance. They will also not do something as stupid as assassinating an elder of the Imperium in public in the Green Wind Planet.
"Even if they are really going to assassinate you —"
After saying that, Lei Chenghu paused for a moment and looked at Dongfang Bai's carotid artery for the first time. He smiled casually and said, "The first one to be assassinated should be a detestable guy like you, not Elder Dongfang Tuo, who has been doing his best."
Dongfang Bai's face immediately turned pale. His carotid artery that Lei Chenghu's sharp eyes was bouncing violently, and hissing sounds were echoing deep inside his throat.
"Marquis Liaohai!"
The greasy-faced guy's chin was even sharper than before as he shrieked, "I respect you very much personally, and I would never like to be investigated. However, we are here on behalf of the Council of Elders after all. Please respect the authority of the Council of Elders, and please consider carefully for the future of yourself and the Thunder Fleet!"
"Even without me, the Thunder Fleet will fight to the last soldier in the war to defend the Imperium."
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