"Marquis Liaohai, you misunderstood us again. I don't think that you should have such a preconceived idea that we must be malicious toward you and the Thunder Fleet. Getting to the bottom of it, we share the same goal, which is the stability and strength of the Imperium."
Taking a deep breath, Dongfang Bai hid his real feelings again, but he said gloomily, "This is a big issue. We will not do anything without solid evidence. So, we do not need more intelligence from Marquis Liaohai. We are here mainly to ask Marquis Liaohai to make a public statement."
Lei Chenghu raised his eyebrow. "What kind of statement?"
"In the name of the highest commander of the Thunder Fleet, the commander of the Third Battle Area of the expedition army, the general of the Imperium, and Marquis Liaohai, you will make a public statement to support all the decisions made by the Council of Elders in cracking down on the treason forces in the military such as the Blood Oath Alliance. You will also criticize the serious treason of the radical organizations in the military such as the Blood Oath Alliance. We hope that the soldiers in the middle and bottom-level level who have been deceived can realize their mistakes and truly pledge loyalty to the Imperium, the Council of Elders, and His Majesty."
Rolling his eyes, Dongfang Bai said, "The specific wording can be drafted by Marquis Liaohai in person. We guarantee that not a single word will be deleted. It will be fine as long as the above three meanings are expressed."
Lei Chenghu narrowed his eyes. "So, you are asking me to pledge my absolute loyalty to the Council of Elders?"
Dongfang Bai slightly raised his voice. "The Council of Elders represents the supreme glory of the Imperium and His Majesty. Does it not deserve absolute loyalty?"
Lei Chenghu's voice gradually became rigid. "Of course, the Council of Elders deserves the absolute loyalty of every soldier of the Imperium, but it is not necessarily the case when it comes to a certain elder!"
"Marquis Liaohai, you don't seem to have a clear understanding of the situation right now!"
Gritting his teeth like a hyena, Dongfang Bai's voice was even more gloomy. "We all believe in your loyalty and want to resolve the aftermath of the incident of the Blood Oath Alliance properly without letting the aftermath spread to all the troops in the frontline and escalate into an unmanageable mess!
"It's the simplest and most effective way for you to make a public statement!
"As long as you make such a statement, both we and the Council of Elders will absolutely trust you and end the so-called 'investigation' immediately.
"If you can go one step further and cooperate with us to investigate the radicals hiding in the Third Battle Area and the Thunder Fleet so that they can all disarm and surrender, we can even spare most of them. After a period of isolation and investigation, they will still have a chance to return to the fleet!
"Isn't this the best choice for each other?"
Lei Chenghu was deep in thought. His small and round eyes were completely hidden behind the wrinkles and scars.
As for whether or not he was considering Dongfang Bai's suggestion, it was unknown.
Half a minute later, Lei Chenghu asked calmly, "If, after I return to the Thunder Fleet and stabilize the situation in the frontline, I issue a public statement that I absolutely support the Council of Elders and cooperate with all the operations of the special investigation committee. Is such an approach acceptable?"
"Well …"
Dongfang Bai smiled again like a sharp-mouthed beast. "We don't think that it is necessary for you to return to the Thunder Fleet in such a hurry. Out of respect for you, I can give you a piece of 'unquestionable' gossip in private.
"In order to commend your distinguished contributions in the Imperium's counterattack in the past ten years, the Council of Elders has been discussing to grant you the title of 'marshal of the Imperium'. Tsk, tsk, tsk. You should know that it has been a hundred years since a new marshal of the Imperium appeared. That is truly an unparalleled honor.
"Once you are granted the title of marshal of the Imperium, it will be too unfair for Marquis Liaohai to be the commander of the Third Battle Area of the expedition army.
"The Council of Elders is considering establishing a new 'Headquarters of the Coalition Command'. We hope that you can return to the capital and work as the 'Minister of the Coalition Command' so that you can continue making great contributions to the Imperium, the Council of Elders, and His Majesty in your new post."
"Headquarters of the Coalition Command?"
Lei Chenghu chewed on the brand-new post carefully. Nobody could tell the surging feelings in his heart from his face or his wrinkles. He said peacefully, "What is this? We have the Department of National Defense, the Department of Military Orders, and the Department of General Staff, which are all bloated and constraining each other. Are they not enough to accommodate so many useless descendants of the noble families? Why do we need to create a new muscle that looks like a cecum?"
Dongfang Bai's eyelids twitched quickly. Ignoring the sarcasm in the old general's words, he continued with a smile, "Marquis Liaohai is quite right. It is exactly because the government and the army of the Imperium right now overlap and even conspire against each other, resulting in a lot of problems. That's why the 'Headquarters of the Coalition Command' is needed to lead and balance the conflicts among the various departments.
"In the meantime, the Imperium's counterattack that has been going on for more than ten years has basically achieved the strategic goal. The next phase will focus on consolidating the defense areas and actively restoring the productivity of the recovered worlds. In such a new situation, the existence of the 'expedition army' is no longer appropriate.
"Right now, the Council of Elders is planning to reorganize the headquarters of the expedition army and the troops in the frontline. Part of the expedition army will be reorganized into border guards and stationed in the frontline. Another part of the troops that have come from afar will return to their hometowns and be reestablished as local troops. Part of the expedition army will be dispersed to the newly-recovered worlds as the first force to build the new worlds.
"All kinds of interests are involved. It is truly complicated. A prestigious and selfless leader must be in charge of everything. Who else in the entire Imperium is qualified to take on such a great responsibility except for Marquis Liaohai?"
Hearing how "righteous" the guy was, Lei Chenghu was amused. He stared at Dongfang Bai for a long time until the head of the "Guangtong" felt creeped out. Then, he finally said, "Got it. You want me to leave my fleet and negotiate with the Department of Defense, the Department of Military Orders, the General Staff, and the innumerable nobles. Is that all?"
"Of — of course not."
Even though his real body was far away in space, Dongfang Bai still sweated hard under Lei Chenghu's scorching stare. He smiled even more obsequiously. "If Marquis Liaohai is willing to return to the capital to lead the 'Joint Command Headquarters', the Council of Elders promises to establish the 'Excellent Lake Sector' in the recovered worlds as Marquis Liaohai's hereditary fief. As long as the Imperium exists, the Excellent Lake Sector will always belong to the Lei family!"
"The Excellent Lake Sector is the most prosperous of the dozens of newly-recovered Sectors. Tsk, tsk, tsk. The Council of Elders is truly generous. I'm beginning to believe your 'hundred and twenty percent sincerity'."
Lei Chenghu smiled brilliantly. "Anything else?"
"Yes."
Staring at every wrinkle on Lei Chenghu's face, Dongfang Bai threw out his trump card. "Since you are the first new general of the Imperium in a hundred years and the head of the Joint Command Headquarters, it is only natural that you enter the Council of Elders and become the supreme 'elder of the Imperium', right?"
"General of the Imperium, elder of the Imperium, master of the Excellent Lake Sector, head of the Joint Command Headquarters …"
Lei Chenghu seemed to be considering carefully. "Are these your terms of the deal? All I need to do is to make a public statement and leave the Thunder Fleet forever?"
"As for how to deal with the Thunder Fleet, we can discuss it slowly. Marquis Liaohai will definitely be satisfied with the result."
His eyes glittering, Dongfang Bai said, "I'm willing to tell Marquis Liaohai frankly that the Thunder Fleet has indeed made great contributions to the Imperium in the past hundred years as an iron wall that resisted the Holy League. But right now, the situation of the war has been reversed, and the Holy League has been crushed without being able to fight back at all. It is unnecessary and incapable of maintaining so many permanent troops in the frontline.
"The brothers of the Thunder Fleet have been soaked in the hellish hell for a hundred years. How can we bear to watch them being tortured in the frontline? Shouldn't we find a way to make them live a few days of comfort?
"There are so many resourceful worlds in the newly-recovered world. The Council of Elders is even willing to find some peaceful and prosperous planets in the rear to settle the soldiers who have made great contributions. The Imperium will not mistreat any hero.
"Besides, the incident of the Blood Oath Alliance involves all aspects of the troops in the frontline. At such a delicate moment, we are not targeting the Thunder Fleet on purpose, but it is not good for any Deep Sky Fleet in the frontline to maintain such a large scale and such strong independence, right?"
Lei Chenghu chuckled in a low voice, baring his teeth that had been dyed gray by the gunfire and smoke. "It sounds very reasonable, but what if I still refuse?"
"The Council of Elders believes in Marquis Liaohai's loyalty and wisdom. We know that you will certainly consider the future of the Thunder Fleet and the Imperium even if you do not consider the future of yourself and your family."
Dongfang Bai bent his back and peeped at Lei Chenghu from below. "If you are truly thinking for the Thunder Fleet and the Imperium and do not want a superstorm that sweeps across the sea of stars and affects a lot of people in the Thunder Fleet, you will certainly not refuse."
"No, I refuse."
Lei Chenghu replied casually without any hesitation for half a second.
The smile on Dongfang Bai's face was completely frozen.
It was as awkward as a hyena dashing out of a bush and running toward the body of a behemoth excitedly, only to discover that the behemoth was suddenly woken up and staring at it with its brown eyes wide open when it was about to have a feast.
"W-Why?"
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