The battleship Ishtar, named after Qi Yan, was put into Long Xiyun's fleet.

At the conference table, Du Shang muttered: "Commander, although Ishtar is a mobile battleship, I often attack, and mobile battleships are also suitable for my fleet!"

Lu Fenghan sat back in his chair: "People who have four battleships in the fleet are not qualified to ask for new ships."

Immediately, the captains around the conference table were silent.

Only Mei Jielin, who was drinking a nutritional supplement, muttered quietly: "The ship is not as good as the new one, and the people are not as good as the old ones!"

Lu Fenghan sneered: "The ship is not as good as the new one? As if it were a change of clothes? Do you believe that if the finance official stood in front of you, he would perform a scene of vomiting blood and dying?"

Mei Jielin touched her nose guiltily, ready to be a clam, and kept silent.

After confirming that Lu Fenghan had no intention of changing his mind, several people had to leave with long sighs, with faces full of frustration of failure in their attempts to get money.

The door of the command room was closed, and Lu Fenghan sat in his original position, staring at Qi Yan's profile to change his mood.

The person nestled in the sofa sat in a relaxed posture, with a slender figure, her hair was a little long, and the tips of her ears were half hidden in her hair. The exquisite eyebrows and eyes were like those drawn inch by inch with a fine brush.

Seeing Qi Yan tapping the personal terminal, Lu Fenghan said, "Are you chatting?"

Although they were both facing the personal terminal, Lu Fenghan could tell Qi Yan's tiny micro-expressions at a glance.

"Ye Pei sent me a message, saying that she was curious about how much money Chagall's senior who took out two-thirds of the account balance to bet would lose, so she went to ask. Unexpectedly, Chagall replied that the senior only had a total of 3,000 star coins in his account. Ye Pei said it was hard to imagine that he would be so poor."

Lu Fenghan insisted on squeezing next to Qi Yan even though there was a chair available. Because the sofa was too narrow, he simply sat down himself, picked him up and held him on his lap.

"This is in line with the general economic level of the expeditionary army." Lu Fenghan held Qi Yan's waist with his hand, and his tone unconsciously relaxed. "The salary given by the Alliance is not low, but most people in the expeditionary army don't save money. Those with families will transfer money home every month, and those without families to take care of will spend most of it during their rest time. After all, on the front battlefield, people's lives are in danger and they don't worry about it every day. Once you die, you can't hold on to anything or take it away."

Qi Yan has seen several starship explosions. Every explosion will take away countless lives. He gradually understands what Lu Fenghan said more than before, "People's lives are in danger and they don't worry about it every day."

I think everyone on the front line has their own views on life and death. After

a few seconds of silence, Qi Yan asked again: "So the general didn't save money before?"

Lu Fenghan felt a slight toothache and took a deep breath with a soft "hiss".

His previous account balance - it's better not to mention it.

"I save money now." Although he only realized this in December last year.

At this time, there was a knock on the door. Lu Fenghan stood up and walked towards the chair while telling Po Jun: "You can open the door."

Po Jun: "Okay."

When Vincent entered the command room, he subconsciously glanced in the direction of the single sofa and saw Qi Yan was there. He nodded and greeted him from a distance.

Then, he walked a few steps to Lu Fenghan's desk: "Report to the commander, after we entered the range of the Phoenix Tail Snail Cluster, we discovered sporadic rebel reconnaissance ships along the way. However, those reconnaissance ships were like rabbits digging holes, they would run away immediately after wandering around for a while. It is not clear yet which side of the rebel First, Second, or Fourth Legion they were sent from. Of course, it is possible that they were sent from all three sides."

At the same time, the star map lit up under Pojun's operation, and it clearly showed the specific location of the enemy reconnaissance ships.

Seeing the blue light reflected in Lu Fenghan's eyes, like a layer of cold color, the introverted sharpness in it made people dare not look at it for too long, Vincent turned to the star map and said: "From my personal analysis, it should be that all three parties are trying to find out, because they can't determine who our target is for the time being."

Lu Fenghan shook his head: "Although the rebels are used to protecting themselves and turning over, you forgot the scale of our fleet that is now fully deployed."

Vincent was startled, knocked his head, and then realized that he used his previous habitual thinking.

With the tilt and huge investment of the alliance's resources, the continuous supply of military support, and the various starships produced by the military factory with extremely amazing efficiency, the combat power of the expeditionary force is no longer the same.

The 12th Army, which once rebelled, would still fight one-on-one. But now, if Donald really runs into them, he will definitely hide as far away as possible. He will not dare to face the enemy without bringing one or two other armies with him.

Similarly, neither the First Army nor the Fourth Army dared to rush into the battle circle of the Expeditionary Force alone.

"Tell the reconnaissance ship to ignore those 'rabbits'. Unless they attack from the opposite side, all ships will immediately issue a level one alert." Lu Fenghan turned his eyes and saw that Vincent seemed to be hesitant to speak. "If you have something to say, just say it."

Vincent thought to himself that he was about to start singing on the commander's scales.

He subconsciously quickened his speech: "Recently... recently there have been some bad comments circulating on the ship. As it concerns the Chief, I collected them."

Glancing at Lu Fenghan cautiously, Vincent quickly said, "The comments focus on two aspects. One is questioning the Chief's true level. They think that the Chief has received so much praise now, including Lorenz's recognition, mostly because of your command."

He lowered his voice, "For example, the central control system, the Chief does not understand it at all. In fact, it all depends on the system's automatic maintenance. After the repair, the Chief took the credit for it." Vincent

had a strong desire to survive, and immediately commented: "Of course, those people are fooled because they don't understand! And most of them are sober!"

Lu Fenghan tapped the table with his fingers and said in a deep voice: "Continue."

"The second point is to question Lorenz. I think the reason why he is so kind to the chief and shows his reliance on you is to curry favor with you."

Vincent couldn't help but complain, "To be honest, Lorenz looks sleepy and impatient when he sees everyone. Who would he curry favor with? The one who approved ten boxes of espresso for him from the logistics department?"

Lu Fenghan raised his finger: "Anything else?"

"Yes, yes, yes, and this one actually shows the intention of the person behind it." As a graduate of intelligence search, Vincent is most interested in collecting information, analyzing cause and effect, and deducing the true intention. "The last one is that the commander wants to support Qi Yan and take away the position of the director of the technical department of Lorenz!"

Qi Yan spoke first: "No, I refuse. I'm too busy and I can't wake up."

The coldness on Lu Fenghan's lips was diluted by Qi Yan's words.

Seeing that Lu Fenghan didn't get angry, Vincent began to summarize: "The purpose of those who spread rumors behind the scenes is nothing more than to slander Qi Yan and Lorenz, and by the way, they hope to use such means to stir up public opinion.

"According to public opinion, as the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force, you must prioritize the stability of the military morale at a critical moment in the war. Maybe you will sacrifice Qi Yan to save Lorenz, the technical department and the military morale."

Lu Fenghan continued, "Not only that, because of my relationship with Qi Yan, will I be angry with Lorenz?"

"That's right! That's the logic!" Vincent clicked his tongue twice, "The person who spread the rumor did put a lot of thought into the arrangement, but it's a pity that he doesn't understand the expeditionary force, the commander, the chief and Lorenz at all, and he relies entirely on his own conjecture. For example, Lorenz, if someone could really take over his job, he would definitely be happy to drink ten cups of espresso in a row!"

Qi Yan had been listening: "Does this guy want to anger Lorenz by transferring the general, and then take the opportunity to take over?"

Vincent nodded: "That should be the purpose, otherwise there is no need to spend so much effort to do such a thing."

Lu Fenghan commented lightly: "He has great ambitions, but he is too impatient and not smart enough." He then ordered, "Tell Lorenz and let him solve it himself."

Vincent's heels touched lightly, and he was about to act as a mouthpiece. He turned halfway and remembered: "By the way, I got a piece of news. Turan Academy secretly sent out a message saying that they would quietly learn what they should learn at night. That student, you and the chief should know him, is called Xia Zhiyang."

Upon hearing this name, Qi Yan's fingers holding the metal pen loosened.

What appeared in front of him was the scene when he returned to Leto, when Xia Zhiyang was wearing a bright green jacket, standing next to the big red suspension vehicle, waving at him with a bright smile.

Vincent asked the next sentence: "The intelligence department of the alliance is secretly communicating with him. If there is anything you want to tell him, we can convey it." Qi Yan

was silent for a few seconds and said softly: "Alive, please tell him that he must survive. "

Central Administrative District, Leto.

Xia Zhiyang came out of a party of the rich second generation, reeking of alcohol, from a drunken stupor.

The strong smell of alcohol on his body was blown away by the wind, and he felt much better.

Walking to the blind spot of surveillance, Xia Zhiyang secretly took out the note from the waiter from his pocket.

The star calendar has crossed two hundred years, and Xia Zhiyang, who has long been accustomed to the virtual information flow, did not expect that one day he would try to write again.

Special During that period, "notes" became safe carriers - they would not leave any traces in the data stream of the star network, so they were easy to transmit and destroy.

The note was densely covered with small characters, which stated what he was going to do next - to go to a certain port to collect the necessary information under the identity of Xia Jia Ji Chengran.

He had done this several times and was already very familiar with it. While thinking quickly in his mind whether there was anything useful in his interpersonal network, he turned to the back of the note.

There was only one line of words on it.

"You must survive. "

Xia Zhiyang's pupils trembled suddenly as his eyes moved downward.

The signature of this sentence was - Prayer.

Xia Zhiyang's mind was blank for two seconds.

Prayer.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath of the cool air of early autumn in Leto, and hid his trembling fingers in his pocket.

At this moment, suddenly there were a few words from an old friend, crossing thousands of miles of stars and the layers of strict guards of the rebels, and reaching his eyes, even making his eyes watery and having the urge to cry.

He had looked at the starry sky behind the clouds and the black fleet countless times, hoping that all his friends were well.

He had also felt on countless sleepless nights that as long as he died for a good cause, It's no big deal.

But I will try my best to survive.

Xia Zhiyang pressed his hat to block his red eyes.

On the founding day, I once said that you would be the best scientists in the alliance, and I would be the most profitable businessman, providing you with as much research funding as you want.

I won't break my promise.

Ever since the expeditionary fleet approached the center of the Phoenician Star Cluster, the atmosphere on the ship became tense. Everyone's steps became hurried, and countless documents were delivered to Lu Fenghan one after another.

Outside the porthole, one can often see the destroyer sequence conducting maneuverable leap simulation training, like a shadow in the universe.

"How confident are we that we can take the initiative to attack? "

In the video call, because the distance was too far, the signal was affected by the cosmic storm, causing Nie Huaiting's figure to be fragmented and accompanied by a "hissing" noise.

"There is no certainty, only opportunity. The Third and Sixth Regiments of the Rebel Army defend the Divine Court and protect the wise men. If you want to drive the starships in, you have to first remove the wall. The First, Second, and Fourth Regiments are the walls."

Lu Fenghan was wearing a military uniform, with none of the buttons in the right place. His open coat revealed the standard shirt underneath. In contrast, his expression was stern. "For the Expeditionary Force, now is a good time. The morale is there, the anger is there, and the support is complete. I have no reason not to knock on their door. "

Lu Fenghan's words could be called arrogant, but Nie Huai Ting didn't say anything: "If you make a decision, I support it."

Behind him was the flag of the Alliance Army's shield and sword. Nie Huai Ting had a deep "川" pattern on his brow, and his nasolabial folds made him look serious and unapproachable.

The tone he used when talking to Lu Fenghan was more like a casual chat, "Although the progress of the Central Administrative Region has had twists and turns, the results are all good, and we have lived up to the expectations of the citizens of the Alliance. Otherwise, we would have brought dust to the Diamond of the Sky, and death would be far from enough to atone for our sins."

"There's no need to talk about life and death. Even a major under my command who drives a destroyer understands what the Alliance is going to do? The Alliance is going to take back everything that was taken away by the enemy, that's all."

Lu Fenghan's eyes were cold, "We should have realized this when the rebels fired the first missile at Leto. "

Nie Huai Ting stared at Lu Fenghan, as if he saw the young Lu Jun, the young himself, and many young people.

For more than half a century, some people are still standing under the banner of shield and sword in military uniform, and some people have died in the sea of ​​stars.

Yes, whatever is taken away, they will take it back.

This is the sharpness of young people.

Unstoppable.

He thought that after this battle, the Alliance would no longer need him as the commander-in-chief, and he could resign.

Although the Alliance has been around for two hundred years, in the time scale of the human race, it has only taken a small tentative step towards the vast galaxy.

It needs to move towards the future with firm steps and without being tainted by old age.

After thinking for a long time, Nie Huai Ting asked Lu Fenghan: "Can you tell me, what makes you fight for the Alliance? What makes you wear the armor and defend the stars behind you? 'Just for the Alliance, go forward courageously', you have said this countless times, so, you are stationed on the front line, shooting rain and wind swords, and what has made you go forward courageously for the past ten years?" There

was a long silence.

In the low noise of the universe, Lu Fenghan replied:

"I defend the Human Interstellar Covenant and defend the freedom, equality and dignity of mankind." Lu Fenghan looked at Nie Huai Ting across hundreds of millions of stars, his expression stern, "For this, I will do my best and go forward courageously."