Thanks to that cringeworthy little interlude, the tension on the field grew heavier, and the audience became more excited, which objectively increased the difficulty of Yu Lian’s work.
Fortunately, the enterprise computer he got from his brother Yahata was quite useful. His self-developed analysis software also ran smoothly, and the work of matching vocal prints was still proceeding in an orderly manner.
Finally, when the first half of the game had been going on for half an hour, and the hummingbird drone had already run more than half a lap around the stadium, a vocal print match alert appeared.
Yu Lian’s heart sank, and he pointed the camera at the stands, then manipulated the drone to ascend and retreat. The view in the video was expanding step by step, and more and more spectators came into his sight. Some were angry, some passionate, some nervous, some mocking. Yu Lian’s gaze swept quickly through the crowd, and soon, he finally locked onto a secluded spot at the edge of the stands.
He smiled, continuing to make the drone ascend until it reached a place where no one would notice it, then began to adjust the lens, slowly zooming in on that corner.
The quality of military reconnaissance probes was truly impressive; even after so long, the drone could still capture the target clearly.
There were three people wearing ordinary overcoats and Arsenal team scarves. One was an old man, and two were young people.
They had already returned to their original appearances at this time. This was understandable, as the spiritual energy user treasure that could alter appearance perception required a cooldown period. Besides, it wasn't necessary in this setting.
The old man, in fact, was not yet sixty years old. Perhaps due to immense psychological pressure, his hair was already gray, and his face showed a hint of tired puffiness. However, he was in a state of high excitement at this moment.
This “old man” was precisely the enemy Yu Lian referred to as “must die,” Lieutenant General Minqi Vincent.
The other two young people, according to intelligence obtained from the Sharers Foundation, were Lieutenant General Vincent’s Present private assistant, Tie Nogo, and his bodyguard, Chad Mir. The former was a mixed-blood of Empire and Earthling, who had worked at a business consulting firm in the Celestial Domain before returning to Earth with Lieutenant General Vincent; the latter was a Vinoh Highlander, a sub-human very similar in appearance to humans, who had worked for a well-known security company.
Furthermore, they were all spiritual energy users. Of course, they were both first-ring; one Sentinel was responsible for vigilance, and one Guardian was responsible for blocking bullets.
…Hey, that really brings back memories.
Perhaps, even the big financier behind Lieutenant General Vincent only intended to use him as a minor chess piece; sending two spiritual energy users as bodyguards and monitors was already quite generous.
Who would have thought this guy could cause such a big stir?
Yu Lian glanced around and found that the two bodyguards were not actually sitting on either side of Lieutenant General Vincent, but rather two seats away. The people sitting in between were, naturally, Vincent, and another older man.
Yu Lian didn't immediately recognize him, but recalling the insider information he'd heard last night, and comparing faces, he quickly identified him: “Senator Franz Appwood, the whip of the current largest opposition party, the Liberal Progressive Party, who previously held important positions such as Presidential Palace Security Director and Capital Neo-Heavenly City Police Chief.”
…Oh, so it was this guy! Yu Lian nodded. This guy wasn't a military man, and his presence in this major incident wasn't too strong, so he hadn't thought of him immediately, but he was definitely a very important figure.
At this moment, Senator Appwood and Lieutenant General Vincent were talking in low voices. Amidst such a crowd, Yu Lian naturally couldn't hear them, but couldn't he zoom in the camera and read their lips?
A hero who had roamed the stars for decades, whom the Empire and Alliance had jointly sought for more than ten years without success, having such a skill, wasn't it quite reasonable?
“Several high-ranking military officials have already agreed to join. When we officially launch, they will cooperate fully,” Vincent said.
Oh? The first sentence is insider information? A roster, quickly, a roster! Yu Lian thought.
“Don’t tell me their names. It’s best if you keep that list to yourself,” the Senator mused, then asked, “What about Dawn Schwartz? What’s his attitude?”
“Don’t count on him too much. He’s actually a politician disguised as a hard-nosed soldier; he never dares to take risks. Of course, we don’t need his participation either.”
“Heh, he sounds a lot like me,” the Senator seemed oblivious to the implied insult, appearing proud of it.
“However, Schwartz is indeed very good at acting, but ultimately he’s just a mediocrity who wants to climb higher. That will inevitably leave him vulnerable. I will cooperate closely with him until he hands his leash over to me! He himself doesn’t matter, but his reputation is very good, and he has good relationships with many influential figures… For example, the famous Brigadier General Morey, who shares your name.”
“Oh, that famous super-vulture!” The Senator sneered, “I didn’t expect him to…”
“Also, what about Marshal Norm Paris? Is he attending your reception tonight?”
“He just called me, saying the timing isn’t right, and he wants to see our actual actions and subsequent progress before committing.”
“He hasn’t discovered anything, has he?”
“Impossible. He’s just overly protective of his reputation, worried that we’re using their names to scam money.”
“Heh heh… Minqi, why don’t you just tell him the truth. That old man is also very dissatisfied with the Present situation, isn’t he? Although he became a Marshal, it was merely a promotion in name, a demotion in reality, and many of his former subordinates who died in the Battle of West Tail haven’t received the treatment they deserve.”
“He is dissatisfied, but whether he will become our comrade still requires further observation. That old man is a pure warrior, resolute, loyal, and brave. He dislikes politicians, but he is also loyal to the country. He was right about one thing: the current timing is not ripe. He needs to observe us, and why shouldn't we observe him?”
“Then, let’s proceed with the original plan. I will initiate an inquiry in the parliament, asking the government to authorize your foundation access to the household registration information of retired and disabled soldiers. However, this depends on how much influence your foundation can generate in the initial stages. So, it all depends on the situation at tonight’s reception.”
“I understand…”
“You need to raise at least 10 billion, so I can speak in parliament.”
“No problem. We already had 4 billion last night, and the people attending tonight are even more powerful!”
Yu Lian rolled his eyes watching their lip movements, thinking that the Black Moon hero, who had cultivated his reputation in the martial world for hundreds of years, could only earn a few hundred million in price differences even by sacrificing his old face. Brother Yahata, after exhausting all his efforts and connections in both the underworld and legitimate businesses, could only manage a fake medicine business worth a billion or so!
The fastest way to make money in this world, besides finance, was indeed charity, wasn't it?
“However, I won’t be attending tonight’s reception. Since we are doing such a thing, we cannot allow anyone to have the slightest doubt about our relationship.”
“I understand, which is why we’re meeting here! From now on, let’s use this method for our meetings. It’s foolproof.”
These two were indeed overly cautious, but it wasn't without reason. If I hadn't seen the correct answer in the downstream of history, who would have suspected them? Yu Lian thought.
At this moment, a thunderous roar erupted from the stands again. Looking closer, it turned out that an Arsenal team player had broken into the penalty area and was caught by several Red Monkeys… no, Red Knights. After some pushing and shoving, he was actually pushed to the ground by a group of opponents who were not as heavy or strong as him.
The unlucky guy’s glider was still working, and he ended up rolling several times on the grass, a rather comical sight, immediately drawing a burst of laughter.
However, soon, fans from neither side could laugh anymore…
According to the rules of Heavenly Ball, the Red Knights should have been penalized for fouling. Even for the sake of game flow and entertainment, ruling that the Arsenal team failed in a physical confrontation was understandable. However, the Buckwheat Birdmen referee unhesitatingly pointed at the Arsenal team player who had just finished rolling and was still a bit dazed, calling a dive and issuing a yellow card.
This time, the fans, already furious at this guy’s double standards, almost exploded, wondering if they were even in their home stadium. Boos, curses, and angry roars almost brought the stadium down. Many of the more aggressive home fans had already rushed towards the adjacent away team section, fortunately being stopped by the alert robots who were already prepared.
Fans from both sides, separated by a group of iron tower-like robots, gestured with their fists and even made death threats to each other.
Even the Buckwheat Birdmen referee was a bit stunned by the scene and hastily ended the first half.
Yu Lian really wanted to move the camera to see what the SSR Miss whose future self would “come like thunder in a rage, and depart like a river and sea congealing into clear light” was reacting like now, but there was no room for that at the moment. He still had to continue observing, not allowing even a second of slack.
Because of the halftime break, many fans either went to relieve themselves or to get some beer and snacks. As a result, many people cleared out around Lieutenant General Vincent and Senator Appwood. The two overly cautious individuals immediately stopped talking, but after a half-minute pause, they started talking again.
This time, they were actually talking about the game.
“…This game is up in the air!” the Senator sighed.
“We’re at home, and we’re leading!” Vincent objected.
“That referee is clearly problematic, and Arsenal team is too young after all; both the players and the team are very young. In this situation, it’s very difficult for them to stay calm, and the same goes for our fans.”
“Bastard birdman!” Lieutenant General Vincent cursed like an ordinary fan.
“Birdman bastard!” Senator Appwood agreed.
Yu Lian regretted a little; he should have put a bug on Vincent earlier. However, this guy was overly cautious, and if he had been discovered, it would have alerted him instead.
But he couldn't take his eyes off them; he could only keep watching, afraid that they would start talking about serious matters after chatting for a while.
Fortunately, after more than ten minutes, the game was about to start again, and most of the fans had entered the stadium. The stadium stands once again erupted in a clamor. Lieutenant General Vincent was about to speak but looked at his assistant Nogo, who was the Sentinel.
“No peeking,” the Sentinel said.
Right, if you, a mere first-ring spiritual energy user, could sense a drone several hundred meters away, and then sense the malice of my person a kilometer away from you, then I’d bow down to you right now.
“You’re still overly cautious,” the Senator sneered.
“It’s good to be steady. After all, we are planning something like this…”
“Regretting it?”
“At this point, there’s no turning back. I’m already a Waste , but with one last surge of effort, to bring my homeland back to its rightful path, that would complete my integrity as a soldier,” Lieutenant General Vincent said.
The mockery on the Senator’s face was fully apparent: “You’d better save those words for tonight. Our cooperation is based solely on shared interests. If you back out now, I’ll have a real headache!”
Seeing Lieutenant General Vincent still pondering, the Senator suddenly smiled again: “I heard that when you were in the Empire, you were already an Arsenal team fan?”
Lieutenant General Vincent smiled and nodded: “During my most difficult times, watching this team grow step by step was what kept me going. A new team founded just ten years ago, jumping seven levels within ten years, and now it’s already a galaxy powerhouse.”
So this guy is a real fan? Yu Lian, as a true Arsenal team fan (though decades later), felt greatly offended.
“That’s excellent then. I’m also their fan, and even one of their shareholders,” the Senator sighed. “Well then, let’s watch the rest of the game carefully. Only by seeing it clearly can you make up your mind!”