In the command hall on the outskirts of the capital special district, dozens of senior generals with gold stars on their shoulders were either standing or sitting. They were staring at the circular light beam in front of them nervously. President Pabre, the National Security Advisor, the Director of the Military Committee of the Parliament, and other senior officials were standing next to the railing on the second floor.
The picture on the enormous circular light beam was intermittent. Because of the loss of long-distance transmission, it was very blurred. One could barely see that a ragged three-winged warship of a weird shape was moving at full speed in the strange space. Around the three-winged warship, hundreds of black and green warships of the Imperium could be vaguely seen.
The pursuit that took place in the distant space zone of the Imperium caught the attention of all the big shots in the leadership of the federation. When the optical capture systems of the two signal relay satellites that had been activated by luck failed, they could no longer see the picture from the external perspective. They could only see the deeper path of the universe through the equipment of the fugitive three-winged warship.
In the intermittent picture, except for the warships of the Imperium that occasionally showed up from above and below, no one could see the large group of warships of the Imperium that were chasing the three-winged warship closely. However, the green light spots that represented the warships of the Imperium on the radar system were increasing in number. They were as dense as vultures, making everyone extremely nervous and worried.
"Charge!"
"Accelerate!"
The high-ranking generals of the federation who were usually extremely solemn finally could not help but shout in a low voice. Noises rang out on the first floor of the command hall. The generals knew that their cheering from billions of kilometers away could not make the fleeing tri-winged warship fly faster, but they still subconsciously clenched their fists, frowned, and shouted loudly.
"Are the people of the Imperium crazy?"
The National Security Advisor of the Federation looked at the calculation result that he just received in shock. Looking at the count of the warships of the Imperium that were chasing the three-winged warship, he exclaimed in disbelief, "Three medium fleets have been mobilized just to chase one three-winged warship! Does their space zone not need to be defended? Such a crazy and undisciplined pursuit, if they run into the Federation Fleet, all they need is a crossbow formation to shoot at the same time, and one third of their warships will be destroyed easily! "
The generals in the command hall had long noticed this, but they were also puzzled. They couldn't understand why the Empire would take such a huge risk to chase after that fleeing three-wingers.
General Miles' thick eyebrows furrowed slightly as he mocked, "Could it be that Colonel Xu Le raped the princess?"
Laughter burst out from both the upper and lower floors of the hall. However, the laughter soon subsided because the intermittent images on the light beam had begun to show the shadows of the cannons of the Imperium. Those deadly lines brushed past the porthole of the three-winged warship and were extremely dangerous. No one knew if they would hit the three-winged warship in the next moment.
The head of the military committee who had hurried over from the parliament hill glanced at President Pabre who had been silent all this time with a complicated expression. He moved closer and said in a low voice, "The Federal Fleet has set off in a hurry. If we really start a war with the Imperium Fleet … both sides are not prepared. I'm worried that the losses will be too great."
The senator did not speak too clearly, but in fact, this was the innermost words of the big shots present, including the military. The frontline troops of the Federation being disrupted, the plan to attack the X3 system delayed, and the fleet setting off in a hurry … no one knew what price the Federation would pay for such a change, and all of this was just to save one person. Was it worth it?
Although the three-winged warship had sent back a piece of encrypted intelligence, and it was said that Xu Le had a second piece of very important intelligence in his hands, was it really worth it?
"Don't worry about the benefits of intelligence. Don't even consider that this is a first-order incident for now."
There was not the slightest expression on Pabre's dark face. He raised his arm and pointed at the dense dots of light that represented the Imperium Fleet on the holographic screen. "The Imperium is willing to pay any price to kill him. Do you think our Federation can't do the same? I've said it just now. We have to pay any price. Remember, pay any price! "
Right at this moment, the director of the presidential residence office, Brin, hung up the phone and walked behind President Pabre with a solemn expression. He said in a low voice, "Mr. President, CEO Nutshell called to ask about this matter. He is very concerned about the safety of Colonel Xu Le."
President Pabre frowned and looked at Brin in confusion.
Brin then continued in a low voice, "Many other parties have also called. They want to confirm the truth of this matter. For some reason, the news that Colonel Xu Le is still alive has been leaked online. The Federation TV station has asked if they can broadcast the official news. "
Out of consideration of political influence, the Federation would definitely not make a big deal out of this matter before it was certain that Xu Le could be safely brought back. However, for some reason, the situation that should have been strictly confidential had already started to spread on the civilian network in an extremely short amount of time.
"I'll arrange the network channel management right away," Director Brin said immediately after seeing that President Pabre had been silent this entire time.
"No need." President Pabre waved his hand. "I'll authorize the news channel to release the official news, but you must be very careful with the image selection."
"Yes."
…
…
Xu Le was still alive. He was flying towards the Federation on a broken three-winged battleship. Behind him were countless battleships from the Empire. This news that shocked the entire Federation society was naturally deliberately released by some big shots who had the means to get in touch with this matter.
There was no wind or rain in the back mountain today, but the air was a bit cold. Lady Tai was wearing a fur shawl with her arms around her elbows. She silently looked at the lake and mountains in front of her and thought to herself, If that little guy is really lucky enough to come back alive, will the political situation in the Federation change? Will he pursue the matter of the Ancient Bell Ship relentlessly?
Definitely, according to Xu Le's temperament, he will definitely do so.
Lady Tai's lips curled up into an inexplicable smile. She said to Secretary Shen beside her, "Every war will add a lot of bargaining chips to the military's power, especially those crazy young men. It's not a good thing to have too much power. I'm very curious. When Xu Le comes back in such a glorious manner, how are they going to deal with it?"
Secretary Shen was silent. His right hand that was hanging by his leg moved slightly. After a while, he said softly, "According to your instructions, the entire Federation knows about this matter. All we can do now is to hope that Colonel Xu Le can have this luck."
…
…
All the people of the Federation who were watching TV stopped what they were doing almost at the same time. Whether it was the update manuscripts that their superiors were desperately urging or the dishwashing towels that their wives were forcing into their hands, they were all put aside.
They looked at the news channel in shock, listened to the female anchor's excited and joyful voice, and listened to the name of the hero of the Federation that had gradually faded away. Some of them couldn't believe their eyes and ears.
In countless apartment buildings and university dormitories, loud cheers and excited screams rang out. Some people even excitedly threw beer bottles downstairs.
On the news channel, the tri-winged battleship that carried the hero's complex and dreams hidden in the depths of countless people's hearts was silently moving forward in the dark background of the universe. Countless densely packed battleships of the Empire chased after it. The picture was very blurry and intermittent, as if it was covered with countless layers of mosaics.
The excited and nervous people immediately turned their attention to the Internet, trying to find more information and more pictures of the tri-winged battleship.
…
…
A wedding was being held in the Wen Hua Hotel in Gangdu. There were many guests and expensive cars. The scene was very grand and extravagant. It attracted the attention of countless people. Putting aside the fact that both parties involved in the wedding were youths with extremely good backgrounds and prospects in the Federation, just by looking at the fact that the witness today was the president of the Nutshell Mobile Company, a giant corporation in the Federation, one could roughly imagine how grand this wedding would be.
"I'm just a distant relative of the Cao family. I'm not a member of the seven major families." The dull and honest young man was wearing an expensive suit today. He looked at the exceptionally beautiful bride and said honestly, "So I didn't mean to hide it from you."
"The legendary seven major families have nothing to do with our wedding."
Shang Qiu was wearing a red strapless dress today. Her tender breasts were particularly charming and proud. However, her face still maintained the calmness of an engineer. She didn't show the shyness or nervousness of a newlywed. When she heard the groom's words, she shrugged and said, "It doesn't matter if you hide it or not. I agreed to marry you because you're probably the only one who can agree to my unreasonable conditions. But then again, I still have an important technical meeting to attend tomorrow. In order to deal with your parents' S3 honeymoon trip, I'm afraid I have to end it early. "
The groom was a little disappointed. However, he noticed from the corner of his eyes that the most important guest of today's wedding, as well as the witness of their wedding, the president of the Nutshell Motor Company, seemed to have a strange expression.
The president of the Nutshell Motor Company hung up the phone and walked in front of the two with a complicated expression. After thinking for a long time, he said to the groom, "I'm sorry."
The groom and Shang Qiu looked at the president in surprise. They thought, even if you have something urgent to do, you don't have to say sorry so sincerely, right?
The president turned to Shang Qiu and said with a smile, "I think I have to tell you before you get married. Otherwise, I'm really worried that you'll choose to resign from the Nutshell Motor Company because you hate me for the rest of your life."
"Xu Le is still alive."
Hearing this, Shang Qiu, who was about to get married today, was stunned. She held the hem of her dress and froze. Then, without hesitation, she turned her head and looked at the groom who was also shocked. She bowed and apologized very sincerely, "I'm sorry."
Then, she turned and walked out of the Wen Hua Hotel. On the giant screen across the street, the female news anchor had begun to speak and was about to play a video.
"I finally understand why you said sorry just now." The young man with the surname Cao looked at the figure walking out of the hotel reluctantly. Surprisingly, he was not angry. Instead, he was unusually calm. He said to the president, "It turns out that Shang Qiu and Colonel Xu Le are old friends. It seems that my taste is really good."
Shang Qiu did not hear the man's very elegant words. At this moment, all her attention was on the huge screen across the street.
Her left hand gently pulled open the tube top that made it difficult for her to breathe. She took out the foldable glasses from her cleavage and put them on the bridge of her small nose. Shang Qiu began to watch silently and attentively with a smile. The late autumn wind blew on her tender white face, making it a little itchy.
…
…
Nan Xiangmei had just finished her holiday with the foundation. Under the persuasion of her mother, she was going to take another long holiday to tidy up her mood. At this time, she was packing with the help of the servant. After putting the books she liked into the suitcase, her eyes fell on the train ticket on the table.
The journey this time was like a high-speed rail. She was prepared to retrace the path of the past. It was just that she no longer had any contact with her best friend, and the man she had seen in the carriage for several years had long gone to a faraway place with no return.
Nan Xiangmei did not cry. A kind of peaceful, soft, and strong luster appeared on her beautiful cheeks. She picked up the train ticket and said softly to herself and the man who left, "I'm not reliving the journey of the past because I'm afraid of forgetting you. It's because I won't forget you. It's just that since you don't want to come back, I want to have a formal farewell with you. "
"The farewell is not to forget you, but to hide you at the bottom of my heart. In the future, when I'm old, I'll tell my granddaughter that I once liked a real man who was never afraid in the face of difficulties."
While the beautiful girl was feeling sentimental, a scream suddenly sounded from the living room next to her. She walked over in surprise and saw the nanny who had raised her since she was a child and knew all her secrets. She was pointing in a direction with a strange expression. Her mouth was wide open, but she was so shocked that she couldn't say anything.
Nan Xiangmei turned her head curiously and saw the scene on the TV screen. When she heard the voice-over commentary, she suddenly covered her mouth and her body trembled slightly. She decided that she would never cry for that man again. Tears began to roll down her cheeks.
…
…
Inside the old mansion in the Wei-Two District of the Sunset Region of the West Forest Region, Little Watermelon, who had just finished school, was eating an ice cream cone while watching a pirated CD she had brought back from the Wangdu apartment more than a year ago. It was very obvious that the fat Uncle Tian had a sense of failure when it came to family education.
Although this little princess liked to comfort herself with this kind of pornographic video and audio works, fantasizing about avenging her parents and Brother Xu Le, it was always a little boring to watch the purple-haired captain lead the Federal Army over and over again to defeat the Empire's invaders, so she subconsciously moved her fingers slightly and switched the channel back to the TV.
The ice cream cone in the little girl's hand that was in the middle of feeding her adorable mouth hit her sharp nose with a bang. She widened her bright eyes and only came back to her senses after a long time. She screamed and jumped up from the sofa, her short black hair spread out like a watermelon skin in the air.
…
…
In a detached villa in the West Mountain Compound, Zou Liuhuo, who had been spoiled by the Defense Minister's wife and countless idlers, was angry at this time.
The little boy, who had already learned to recite Schiller's poems, was unwilling to say a word to his grandmother and the nanny who were trying to persuade him. He screamed and kicked the glass coffee table in front of him. He grabbed everything around him and threw it at the TV screen in front of him.
It was because his favorite cartoon was suddenly gone, and a woman with heavy makeup that he hated appeared on the TV.
Minister Zou's wife had retired, and for the past few years, she had been taking care of this little ancestor at home. She spoiled him a lot, and none of the orderlies and logistics aunties in the minister's building dared to disobey his wishes. Also, he inherited some of his mother's bad temperament, so no one dared to talk to him. No one dared to teach him a lesson.
Pa! A crisp sound rang out!
Zou Yu, who was still wearing pink pajamas like an unmarried girl, hurried upstairs and slapped the little boy in the face.
"What are you doing?" Mrs. Zou screamed in shock and protected the little boy behind her.
Seeing that his mother, who loved him so much, had slapped him, the little boy covered his red face and cried loudly. His little arms and legs kicked even more fiercely. After a while, he saw that his mother was staring at the TV in a daze and didn't care about him at all. He angrily reached out his hand from his grandmother's side and tried to grab his grandfather's precious ashtray. He was about to smash it on the TV.
"If you dare to smash it, I'll kill you."
Zou Yu kept looking at the TV screen and didn't turn around. This simple sentence was full of coldness, but it stunned everyone in the living room.
Children were naughty animals who could sense real danger the most. Sensing the lethality of Zou Yu's words, he sniffled and put down the ashtray in his hand while crying.
He didn't understand. Last time, when he burned his grandfather's hair, his mother wasn't so angry. Why was she so serious today?
Of course, he didn't know that it was because the TV was broadcasting the return of his "father".
…
…
The same scene happened in many other places. Just as Schiller said, happy families were always similar. Then, they and their happiness and excitement were at least similar at this moment.
However, there were also many people who cared about Xu Le who didn't see this historic scene.
At that time, Tai Zhiyuan was personally applying for a financial sub-card for Bai Qi. He had a headache over these trivial procedures. Because Mochou's financial support to him was suspended, even Butler Jin and the staff were forced to leave the West Woods with tears streaming down their faces.
At this time, Shi Qinghai was like a gopher, walking through the underground sewer of the Federation's Investigation Bureau headquarters. The small blue device in his hand glowed faintly, illuminating the rusty nameplate in front of him, clearly showing the serial port of the database.
…
…
The news channel's breaking news report ended very quickly, and the screen returned to darkness. There were no problems with the specially selected video. Only the conspiracy theorists on the Internet who were used to scanning and analyzing frame by frame were still researching. Soon, they came to a conclusion that this video was real. The problem was that one second before the video ended, the left abdomen of the tri-winged spaceship that Colonel Xu Le was on seemed to have been hit by the cannons of the Empire's battleship …
Countless protest calls were made to the Federation's TV station, asking if the tri-winged spaceship had been sunk by the Empire and why there was no follow-up video.
"The Federal forces are locating it. The fleet has already begun the rescue operation. Let us pray for Colonel Xu Le," said the female news anchor sincerely.
Just like the atmosphere in the conference room on Planet Huang 'e, after the excitement and joy, there was endless worry. The entire Federation, from the distant East Woods to the West Woods, from the capital to the four states around S2, anxiously and nervously waited for the latest news.
…
…
The Bureau of Proclamation's tri-winged spaceship was one of the fastest spaceships in space. Although it had drifted in the Empire's territory for too long and had become a little strange and tattered, under the old man's policy of robbing supplies, it was still in good condition. This was especially true for its engine system, which was even more powerful than a year ago. However, because the repair parts were all smuggled spaceships or pirate spaceships, the tri-winged spaceship's assembly system was not stable. After a long period of high-intensity flight, there were already ominous signs.
The most important thing was the densely packed battleships of the Empire. Such a terrifying number of battleships was beyond Xu Le's imagination and the old man's calculation. Although the tri-winged spaceship still had the advantage in speed, the Empire's battleships had obviously been waiting outside the L9 system's smuggling tunnel and were already prepared for an ambush. Even though the tri-winged spaceship had almost crazily charged through two warp holes, it was still surrounded by the vast universe's fleet and was forced into a desperate situation.
"Huai Caoshi is crazy. This woman is crazy!" Xu Le looked at the decreasing value of the life-support system with a pale face and shouted angrily, "Hundreds of lions chasing a rabbit? How can there be something so crazy!"
At this time, he was already sure that the densely packed Empire's fleet was not preparing for some big military operation, but to prevent him from returning to the Federation. The moment he thought of this, he could not help but feel a chill in his heart. The tri-winged spaceship had been hit by the Empire's cannons three times in a row. Three terrifying melted holes appeared on the high-strength, tattered metal outer shell, and the spaceship's life-support system was on the verge of collapse.
A violent tremor hit again. Xu Le's body was bounced high up in the air and then fell heavily. Two streams of blood flowed out of his lips. He said angrily, "Why didn't I dodge again?"
"Rushing out to the streets in a storm to play romantic games. How can your clothes not get wet at all?" The old man's tone was obviously not very good. "I only let four drops of rain fall on you. What more do you want?"
This sentence was very powerful. The Empire's fleet did not care about the cost, and some of them even fired aimlessly from a long distance. It was like a basin of angry rain pouring down from the sky. No matter how hard he tried to dodge, it was impossible to dodge all of them.
In fact, under the control of the old man, the tri-winged spaceship made some unbelievable movements in space from time to time. The fact that it could survive until now under the intense bombardment had already shocked the commanders of the Empire's fleet and the generals of the distant Federation.
"Warning, the spaceship has suffered severe power loss. We must land immediately." The old man's voice returned to its mechanical and calm state.
"Where are we now? How far is the Federation's rescue fleet? "
"We have entered the periphery of the Gamma Galaxy, not far from X3. Three seconds ago, we successfully activated four Charter Signal Relay Satellites. The Federal Fleet is still … very far away."
"Miserable, so miserable." Looking at the collapsing metal pieces outside the porthole, Xu Le narrowed his eyes and sighed softly. "Old man, just find a planet where people can live and land."
The old man's mechanical voice jumped again. "This is not the escape after the catastrophe. No one has prepared a planet where people can live for you. Give up the hope. The closest planet to us now is a deserted mineral planet. It is absolutely not suitable for human beings to live on. You will die if you live on it."
"Why?"
"It has an atmosphere. Light wave analysis shows that it is not poisonous, but the oxygen level is too low. Even ants can't live there."
"You just mentioned the escape after the catastrophe? A planet where people can live … What do you mean? "
"Huh? Did I say that? "
What ended the conversation between the man and the machine in desperation was the cannon fire of the Empire's warship. Accompanied by a violent explosion, a cluster of gorgeous flames appeared at the tail of the tri-winged spaceship, and then quickly extinguished in the vacuum environment.
…
…
The last scene that the Federation's command hall saw was that the tri-winged spaceship was hit by the fierce cannon fire of the Empire's warship. The tri-winged spaceship was severely damaged, and it miserably fell toward a nearby mineral planet. After a long time, a small light appeared in the darkness.
A small light that was so far away could actually be a terrifying explosion. The four Charter Signal Relay Satellites that had just been activated were instantly destroyed by the Empire's fleet. The anxious technicians adjusted the image to the tri-winged spaceship's main view, but it was also dark.
The generals in the Advance Base of Planet Yellow Doom were silent. Du Shaoqing slowly stood up, holding the sunglasses that he had taken off. He leaned forward slightly and stared at the light screen in the sky, as if he was trying to find the figure of that guy in the darkness.
The people in the S1 command hall were silent. General Myers slapped his thigh angrily and stood up with his eyes wide open. President Pabre frowned deeply and was silent for a long time.
"The parameter analysis report that we just received." A staff officer looked down at the light screen on the workbench and reported in a deep voice, "According to the image before the tri-winged spaceship was hit, the main tank on the rear wing of the tri-winged spaceship was destroyed, and the life support system collapsed. Adding the impact of the fall, it should be completely destroyed. The oxygen content in the atmosphere of this mineral planet is 0.14%, which is not enough to support the respiratory system."
The staff officer raised his head with some difficulty and looked at the people with serious expressions. He said, "According to the analysis of the Charter Computer, Colonel Xu Le … should have been killed."
After a long silence, the National Security Advisor suddenly moved close to the President's ear and said, "Mr. President, should we … order the Federal Fleet to withdraw immediately?"
President Pabre's dark face showed no emotion. He stared at the dark circular light screen and suddenly slammed the table with force. He said loudly, "Order the Federal Fleet to continue to move faster and prepare for battle."
Then he said to Director Breen in a deep voice, "Let the news channel continue to broadcast this dark image live! I want to see a miracle happen! "
…
…
In the distant space, the Federal Fleet was also silent. Three-star General Hong Yuliang wiped the sweat off his forehead and closed his eyes to think. After a while, he ordered, "Continue to move forward. Order the Third Airborne Mecha Brigade to prepare for a strong landing."
After a long time, the distant Empire finally sent back news. The three crazy and cruel Federation fleets started to turn back and retreat when they were 14 astronomical units away from the Federal Fleet. For them, the tri-winged spaceship of the Federation was destroyed, and the person on the spaceship was dead. Their mission was complete. Naturally, they didn't want to engage in an unprepared space battle with the Federation's main fleet.
However, there was still no news from the mineral planet.
The news channel started to broadcast again, but the anxious Federation citizens could only see darkness. They roughly understood what had happened, so they started to pray silently.
In the command hall, the light screen in front of President Pabre was dark. In the Charter Square, the citizens put their hands under their chins and prayed, but the giant light screen was still dark. Countless TV screens in countless apartment buildings were dark. There was no change at all.
Time passed by slowly.
At the main entrance of the Wen Hua Hotel, Shang Qiu looked at the dark light screen across the street through the glass. She didn't know why, but she slowly put her hands behind her back. Her right hand held her left wrist in the autumn wind. Although silent, she was unusually firm.
In the office on Parliament Hill, Zhang Xiaomeng slowly took off her glasses and rubbed her forehead. She looked at the black TV screen and closed her eyes. She put her hands behind her back and gently clasped them together. Based on her beliefs, she never prayed to the Creator, but she prayed for that person to live.
In the courtyard of Xishan Mountain, Zou Yu frowned and looked at the dark TV screen. His hands were behind his back, and his knuckles were slightly white. There was a piercing coldness in his eyes. "Since you have inexplicably come back to life, how dare you let me watch you die inexplicably again?"
In this long and torturous wait, countless light screens were still dark and cold. No image appeared. However, just as everyone was about to lose hope, a hoarse voice filled with electrical noise sounded in countless places in the Federation at the same time.
"I'm Xu Le … I'm out of the cockpit now. I feel good."
…
…
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
