Chapter 58
After saying what had been on his mind, Shen Shiqian felt refreshed and didn't even need the gauze anymore. He walked around the starship with the bite mark on his face, like a different kind of public display of affection. So the pressure fell on Feng Ran again.
Because he would be doing his internship at the affiliated hospital in a few months, Feng Ran would take advantage of Xi Sen's presence to ask him to guide him through the entire process and precautions of practical surgery, starting with the most basic wound suturing. He practiced with a piece of pork belly with skin that he got from the kitchen.
Perhaps to mock the infinity bow that Xisen had been talking about by others in the hospital, Feng Ran immediately chose the most technically advanced continuous intradermal suture technique. The stitches were fine and the scars were small. Halfway through her suturing, Xisen mocked her, saying that at this rate, the patient's anesthesia would have worn off by now.
Zuo Ling pushed the door open and stumbled at the doorway. He was a little embarrassed. He walked over with his hands behind his back and put a bunch of odds and ends on their table.
Zuo Ling: "Miss Feng Ran, these are all gifts from everyone."
He looked at the pile of rags he had hastily scavenged from his person and explained with difficulty, "Well... after all, we're out on a mission, so we didn't have any good preparations. This is just a token gesture to express our good wishes."
Feng Ran picked up a string of walnuts that had been polished until they were shiny and translucent.
"It was given to me by Lieutenant Hunar; he heard you have good teeth..."
She then picked up a crumpled autographed photo of Platinum Feather.
"It was given to me by General Bailie. He heard that you were not in good health, and this is his talisman. He also said that you don't need to be polite, and he has more than a dozen at home."
Pick up a disk.
"It was given to you by Lieutenant Goode. He said it was... study material, and he thought it would be useful for you and the Marshal."
Pick up...
...
Feng Ran was utterly speechless. What kind of people were these? How did she end up being chased all over the galaxy by these creatures? She didn't feel any affection, but rather a personal humiliation.
She picked up the last crumpled piece of paper, and Zuo Ling quickly realized what was going on:
“Oh, this was given to me by General Lear. He said to give it as a greeting first, and the formal gift will be given when I return to Campion.”
The paper read: Peace and joy, may all your wishes come true.
The anger that had been building up inside him from dealing with those generals suddenly dissipated. Feng Ran held the piece of paper and looked at it for a long time, thinking, "Why don't I go to Shen Shiqian and ask for a definite answer, whether or not we can dig it up?"
Feng Ran decided to do something good for those eight words, which was rare for her. At lunchtime, she picked up the crispy pork belly that had been pricked with needles and put it into Shen Shiqian's bowl, seemingly casually.
"Do you want to take the Third Legion back from His Majesty Geno?"
Shen Shiqian frankly said, "It's difficult."
Once military power is taken away, no matter how great your achievements are, it's useless. It's never a bargaining chip for reward or appeasement, but a means of control and checks and balances. Unless a large-scale war breaks out suddenly, it's difficult for the Third and Fourth Army Corps to return to the military headquarters.
Feng Ran: "What's so difficult about that? Actually, I'd quite like to see it. Hmm, the Ministry of Security is now in the hands of the Council, right? Do you think if Bai Sha causes another ruckus in Qilia and then escapes, His Majesty might take away the Fourth Legion's command from the Council as well?"
Shen Shiqian: "This is too deliberate, and it's not a good thing to anger them. If the people in the council start to cause trouble, even His Majesty Jeno won't be able to do anything about it."
Feng Ran tapped the rim of his bowl with his chopsticks: "What a hassle. Why don't we just wipe them out in one fell swoop? Anyway, you've been working so hard and that uncle hasn't been nice to you. But I heard he's not in good health. Maybe he'll kick the bucket in a few years and you can really get a bargain out of him?"
Shen Shiqian: "But there is still Princess Shirley. She is different. She is excellent and very responsible."
"Yeah?"
Feng Ran didn't understand. In her impression, Shirley Carlos, as the sole heir to the empire, was bound by rules and regulations even more severely than she was. At least in all the banquets Feng Ran had attended since childhood, the number of times the princess came could be counted on one hand. She was either standing there waiting to exchange pleasantries with people, or dragging Afu around with her. Afu rarely mentioned her cousin to others, as if she was maintaining some kind of solemn and sacred mystery.
Shen Shiqian nodded, "Yes, she is very different from His Majesty Jeno."
After Geno Carlos died, Princess Sherry naturally succeeded to the throne as Empress. At that time, the Council wanted to suppress her and control her as an empty puppet, but she secretly built her own political team at some point and fought against the Council until Shen Shiqian sided with her.
Although everyone knew the truth about the Franklin Planet incident, they felt that the dead did not need to be exonerated, and that revealing it would affect the prestige of the Imperial government. Princess Sherry could barely accept it, but her desire to release Feng Ran from the Central Laboratory for burial was met with strong opposition from the Academy of Sciences. Those madmen seemed obsessed with the autopsy results, and they would go to the laboratory every now and then to check on him before they could feel at ease.
It wasn't until the Society of Light caused a new conflict on Korchara that the Empire finally arrested and imprisoned them all. However, after interrogation, it was discovered that they were the masterminds behind the space station bombing that everyone thought was heinous. The innocent suspect had already passed away without ever offering a rebuttal or explanation.
What is real and what is fake in Feng Ran's life? Why does she accept all of this? Why doesn't she explain or resist? Is all the trouble she has caused the empire just an awkward form of revenge?
It wasn't until the planet exploded that everyone realized that only death could bring true revenge.
Before the planet exploded, all those who could evacuate in Kiria managed to leave, but many still couldn't leave, unwilling to go. The foundation of the empire was here, and the consequences of its destruction were not as simple as just moving the main planet and starting over. Who would support such a large population and army after Kiria was dismantled and dispersed? Dividing the population among different planets, it was hard to say whether those sent there were refugees or aid. Because of the weakening of the existing lord system, the lords' autonomy was unprecedentedly independent after the weakening of the larger rule framework, and a chaotic war was imminent. Carlos was very familiar with this situation because they were one of the people who rose up to fight after the collapse of the Federal Republic.
At this critical moment, the Emperor's decision was crucial, and Princess Sherry did not choose to relocate. Instead, she chose to remain on Kiria and hold out until the very last moment of the planetary collision.
Feng Ran: "Did you cultivate a good relationship with her? Like, did she return military power to you after you succeeded to the throne?"
Shen Shiqian: "Before she officially took power, I had no contact with the princess because we are both very opinionated people, and it might be difficult for us to completely trust each other."
Feng Ran: "Shouldn't you start to wonder if there's something wrong with your personal charisma?"
Shen Shiqian: "Where would I get such great charm?"
Feng Ran: "Alright, I understand what you mean. I'll take over the council first."
Shen Shiqian: ...
He felt she didn't understand; the parliament was clearly the hardest to seize.
/
The patrol team arrived at the Red Coral District in the afternoon. The mining planets on the border were operating normally. Everyone regarded this patrol as a long-awaited break and a chance to check on the work of the mining team soldiers.
Of course, everyone in the military was eager to do these little things. They were all very kind-hearted and determined to make sure that Marshal Fengran and Miss Fengran had a romantic date at the border.
Most of them were meeting Miss Fengran for the first time. They had found it strange when they heard the Third Legion Commander, Salo, boast about her, wondering why the Marshal would like a Beta. But after meeting her, they realized that Miss Fengran was indeed different from other ordinary Alphas. She was brightly and flamboyantly beautiful, but she was also gentle and non-aggressive when they got along.
I was thinking that their marshal had really weird tastes, preferring Omega to weak Alphas, until today when I saw that bite mark that declared his dominance.
Goodness, not only are they involved in same-sex relationships, but their marshal is also the one being suppressed. The curiosity caused by the contrast has turned into a warm and enthusiastic feeling.
Marshal, we'll do the work for you, you just need to enjoy your sex life!
Meanwhile, Shen Shiqian, whose subordinates were preoccupied with his sexual happiness, was driving his personal mecha, Lingque, around the mining planet with Feng Ran. However, compared to the date they were concerned about, Feng Ran was clearly more interested in the humanoid mecha.
The cockpit was crouching behind Shen Shiqian's driver's seat. After examining the interior, Feng Ran boldly began to comment:
"It's the improved Rolinatis model, right? Didn't they say you like heavy-duty aircraft? Why not use the Bern Mountain? Is it because the system is incompatible?"
Shen Shiqian felt that Feng Ran's words were sometimes unbelievable. She didn't seem to be uninterested in mecha research at all. He even felt that if Feng Ran had to choose between him and Ling Que, she would choose the latter without hesitation.
Shen Shiqian: "System compatibility is one reason, but the main reason is that although the heavy-duty version is powerful, wear and tear at the joints of the metal fibers is unavoidable, making it more difficult to maintain than the light-duty version."
Fengran: "But don't heavy-duty joints usually have telescopic rods to limit the arm span? Logically, they should be more robust than light-duty ones."
Shen Shiqian said matter-of-factly, "Adding it will still cause wear and tear."
Feng Ran nearly had a heart attack: "Are you crazy? How much force do you have to pull the control stick? You had the Research Institute add an adapter chain to the Spirit Sparrow just to prevent wear and tear? You're insulting Lolinatis's sensitivity as a third-generation Void Spirit! Why didn't they blacklist you? You're the biggest villain hindering the development and progress of mecha!"
Feng Ran bent over and stood up, kicking his chair: "I'm not flying anymore, let's go, I want to get down. Giving you two crystal core thrusters will only make the legion-level aliens die in vain."
Shen Shiqian was somewhat annoyed by the wind and gas's anger and tried to defend himself: "But the Spirit Sparrow is not a traditional Lolinatis after all. Its weight is heavier than any light vehicle, and my driving does not require such high sensitivity."
Feng Ran: "Huh? Want to have a match?"
Shen Shiqian's competitive spirit was also ignited: "Alright, how do we want to compete?"
Feng Ran: "We'll go back to the starship and head straight to the training pod for a simulation match. You use your Sparrow, and I'll use the Lolinatis Z3."
Shen Shiqian: "Then let's go back to the starship now."
Feng Ran kicked him again: "I said wait a while. I didn't come out to play with you. Hurry up and drive off. I have important things to do."
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