Chapter 241: Chapter 169: You Can’t Bear to Leave Me, Can You?_2
And the head of Pei Desi was clearly unwilling. He lured the fool who Gu Hang used to be into the game, on the one hand, wanting to get something for nothing, drawing the Gu Clan to spend their money to help him solve the problem of Rage Owl Star; on the other hand, even if that failed, it would disrupt the process of Gu and Fa repairing their relationship, avoiding the possibility that one corner of his Tianma iron triangle might fall to the other side.
There are many twists and turns in this situation.
Combining some memories and information in his mind, he focused on a key point—put simply, over the years, the Gu Family’s business had been doing well, and its influence had been spreading to several surrounding Star Sectors, not just limited to the Tianma Star Sector. Their dependence on the leader Pei Desi had decreased, while the demand from the Fatches Family, a source of goods and key market, had increased.
This was a change in the overall situation, leading to an adjustment in the Gu Clan’s overall strategy.
Moreover, the situation would become more complicated with himself involved.
He was a member of the Gu Clan, but he had a poor relationship with his mother; the Gu Clan also opposed him being the Governor, and after he assumed office, they ignored him completely;
He was the one whom Pei Desi wanted to use an appointment letter to put into office, but essentially, Pei Desi wanted to drag the Gu Clan into the mess. However, due to the Gu Clan’s rapid disassociation from Gu Hang, the plot failed to materialize, even straining their relationship further. Now, it wasn’t clear what this leader’s attitude towards Gu Hang was.
Yelisia’s Fufana Family seemed to be on the same path as Pei Desi for the time being, so there was no need to treat them separately.
The Fatches Family were enemies of the Gu Clan in the past, and were now in the process of repairing their relationship. However, his actions as Governor in consolidating power on the planet would certainly affect their significant asset allocation. Regardless of the final relationship between them and the Gu Clan, their stance was certainly not going to be favorable to Gu Hang.
“That’s not right! After this analysis, why do I feel my current political environment is so terrible? Am I surrounded by enemies?”
He rubbed his head, feeling that his thinking shouldn’t be so inflexible.
Such a situation was definitely not right, and Gu Hang really needed to find a political ally, a backer. Otherwise, his earlier thoughts of using military achievements, threatening with the Green Skins, and forming Star Realm Armed Forces to offset taxes would turn out to be pure fantasy.
If it were up to him, where would he find a way to deliver a message to the Imperial Military Department?
He had to find a suitable partner to help him monetize the fruits of victory from this war into tangible benefits.
“There must be a way…”
He settled his mind again and carefully thought it through.
Of the three parties currently accessible, the Fatches Family was out of the question first.
Not acquainted, and with a major conflict of interest, almost irreconcilable. They wanted Rage Owl Star to be independent from the empire’s territory, or at the very least, they would settle for a Puppet Governor, facilitating tax evasion for the Blackbird Heavy Industries they invested in and even allowing leakage of taxes from their own three planets, unmonitored. Gu Hang couldn’t cooperate with them, even if their major industries were on Rage Owl Star, within his nominal rule.
This was an enemy.
Therefore, the enemy of his enemy might be the one to pursue, and that was the head of Pei Desi.
This was more hopeful than the Gu Family, after all, doing well on Rage Owl Star was Pei Desi’s core goal, which aligned with his own.
And there wasn’t a complete lack of possibility on the Gu Clan’s side; after all, there was his biological mother.
So continuing to guess blindly was pointless.
Gu Hang decided to talk to them separately.
Gu Hang’s core demand was to sort out the issue of offsetting taxes using the Star Realm Army, to save ten million in Tax Currency. Whoever could help him with this matter would be his good friend.
From this perspective, his goal was quite clear.
…
When Yelisia found out that Gu Hang was coming to visit, she had just finished contacting her family.
Although the relevant battle report had not yet been submitted, she certainly needed to discuss it with her family first. The Fufana had deep roots in the navy. They knew exactly how to polish the battle report, how to prepare in advance, how to curry favor clearly, build momentum, and pave the way; all that was missing were the official battle achievements.
In her mind, she still pictured her father’s face, flushed with suppressed joy, praising her for a job well done.
She herself was very happy.
How exhilarating!
Now who would dare say she was just there due to nepotism? She’d smear the solid battle achievements in their faces!
What did Gu Hang want by coming to see her now?
But at this moment, she was in a good mood, so anything would do.
In her captain’s quarters, she met with Gu Hang.
After some brief pleasantries, Gu Hang stated his purpose: he hoped to have a conversation with Chief Pei Desi.
Interstellar communication was not available on Rage Owl Star, and even on the Beautiful Lady, an armed merchant ship equivalent to a destroyer’s specifications, it was only possible to send messages, not to communicate in real time.
After a bit of thought, Yelisia roughly understood what Gu Hang wanted to see the chief about.
She smiled and said, “Luckily, the communication cabin on the ship wasn’t damaged during the battle. I have a direct line to the chief’s office, but I can’t guarantee that the chief will have time to see you.”
“It’s okay.”
Yelisia called someone to initiate the Spiritual Energy communication.
Soon, a message came through:
“Chief Pei Desi will have time for a call in twenty minutes, the appointment has been set.”
Yelisia turned to Gu Hang and said, “It seems we’re in luck.”
The next thing to do was wait.
During the wait, Gu Hang chatted briefly with Yelisia.
Mainly about his vision for the Star Realm Army.
There was nothing confidential about it; it wasn’t in conflict with the navy.
However, after hearing his ideas, Yelisia widened her eyes in surprise and exclaimed, “You really take the unconventional path, daring to think of such methods.”
“Then what’s your assessment? Is it feasible?”
“I think it’s feasible,” Yelisia said. “Anyway, even if the Star Realm Army is established and you’re transferred, you won’t lose anything.”
“Is there a possibility that I won’t be transferred? Or, if I am, it would just be temporary, like the Tianma Fleet?”
“I get what you mean,” Yelisia said. “If you could be like the Tianma Fleet, that would indeed be a big win, but that’s quite difficult.”
“That’s why I need to see our chief.”
“Good luck with that,” the female captain said, no longer interested in discussing the matter, as it wasn’t her concern, and she wouldn’t offer Gu Hang any advice or strategies.
Gu Hang also dropped the subject and brought up another matter: “After this, will you and your starship continue to be stationed in orbit around Rage Owl Star?”
“The Quintet won’t be stationed here anymore,” Yelisia said with some regret. “The starship actually suffered significant damage and needs to be taken for repairs as soon as possible. The nearest Foundry World is ‘Huo Zun Star’, a two-month journey away. To ensure the Quintet’s safety, the fleet headquarters may even dispatch a force to escort it there. This warship, optimistically speaking, will need two or three years of repairs before returning to full status. But you don’t need to worry; since there’s a two-year escort period, even if the Quintet is not here, another ship will be assigned to do the same job.”
“Oh,” Gu Hang nodded, then asked, “What about you? They won’t make you, a star of rank, accompany the Quintet for a few years of repairs, will they?”
“That won’t happen,” Yelisia said. “There are several possibilities. I might be transferred to another ship; if I’m of the same rank as the current captain, I’ll serve as an observer. If I’m of a higher rank, the captain will temporarily take commands from me. In any case, it’s just a transition, and I’ll carry out the ship’s original tasks. I might also be sent to a higher-level military academy for further studies or teaching, depending on what the higher-ups decide.”
“Then…” Gu Hang said, “is there a way for you to be transferred to the ship that will come to Rage Owl Star?”
Yelisia laughed heartily, her mirth subsiding only after a while. With a remaining smile, she said, “Why, are you going to miss me?”
Gu Hang nodded sincerely: “Yes, our previous cooperation was quite pleasant, and any occasional conflicts were just that, occasional, so I truly will miss you.”
“There’s nothing you can do about it then.”
“You’ll think of something,” Gu Hang continued earnestly. “After all, we still have battles left to fight.”
“Oh?” Yelisia was intrigued.
When Gu Hang talked about a ‘battle’, it was always an opportunity for meritorious achievements.
But at that moment, Gu Hang didn’t want to elaborate: “You’ll find out when the time comes. If you get a better opportunity, go for it. If not, you won’t be disappointed staying in orbit around Rage Owl Star.”
Yelisia pondered: “Well then, I’ll try to think of something.”