Admiral Banning. The Eighth Group Fleet of the Zonglai Empire, the forward fleet of our forward fleet, was attacked by the stealth fleet of the bandit army on the fifth leg of Binart. Fifty-five battleships of various types were lost, including fifteen battleships, namely, Momiji, Northland, Snow, Boston, ... At present, the 33rd fleet of the Federation of Naga has been headed by Admiral Goode to repent"

Looking down from the high command platform, in the hexagonal flagship command hall, an operations staff officer was reporting the latest information to Banning, the combat officer on duty in charge of the forward fleet.

The staff officer spoke quickly, Banning frowned slightly, and beside the two of them, hundreds of high-spirited staff officers were busy working in front of their respective Skynet terminals. Hundreds of screens, ringing and roaring telephones enveloped the command center in an unusually tense and exuberant atmosphere.

On the broad command platform, the generals of the Western Covenant were in groups of three or five. Or gather in front of the electronic sand table to discuss loudly, or leisurely stand by the clear floor-to-ceiling porthole and talk in a low voice.

In these ethnic and hierarchical empires of the Western Covenant, most of the high-ranking generals were from prestigious families. All of them have an elegant temperament and an extraordinary appearance. Coupled with the crisp general's uniforms, shiny leather shoes and dazzling generals on their shoulders, the gait of the beautiful staff officers who passed by them with their folders and their eyelashes lowered in a reserved manner made their gait even more graceful.

If in the early stage of going south, no general would pay attention to these careful thoughts of women.

For these high-ranking and powerful aristocratic men, women were nothing more than ornaments in life. It's like a warm piece of ancient jade, a delicate huā bottle, and you can play with it when you have time and interest. As long as you're in a good mood, you can do anything. Spending a lot of money on a little means, and even occasionally following their little temperament, it doesn't matter if they withdraw their petty temper. On the contrary, it is a kind of fun.

However, embellishment is always embellishment, and playthings are playthings after all.

When you're in a bad mood, "no matter how bright the huā bottle is, it's just a pile of debris that falls into the corner of the wall!"

Before the Battle of Twin Star Horns, every Western general was trembling and walking on thin ice. The Fijian Allied God Hastings was like a mountain, hovering above them. No one knows when it will fall with a thud and crush itself into a pulp. Once defeated, the glory, power, and wealth of the century-old family will be reduced to ashes.

In such a situation, who is in the mood to drag huā and provoke grass?

For these Western nobles, women are not even farts compared to their lives! Don't say a little ambiguous eyes, "Even if you strip naked and walk in front of you, I'm afraid I can't hook that thought."

If you encounter the days when the Banning forward troops have just been wiped out, "maybe it's a big ear scraping over!"

A slender female confidential secretary walked briskly past several Western generals. The woman's skin is very white, her light brown hair is tied in a loose bun, and a wooden hairpin is inserted at will, which is quite moving. By the porthole, the young lieutenant general in his thirties looked at the woman who was half-bowing his head with a smile and a smile, but his eyes were quietly looking at the woman who was walking on high heels, shaking the round and beautiful buttocks wrapped in the skirt and walking away, giving his adjutant a look. The Adjutant Heart Leader nodded, turned and walked briskly in the direction of the hallway where the woman had left.

"It's good to be young" is full of energy, and there is always a romantic interest. ”

Next to the lieutenant general, a general in his fifties looked around at his companion with a smile and said: "I have heard that Mike is the love saint among our young generals in the Western Covenant, and a pair of eyes can charm any woman who passes in front of him. The one just now, in terms of quality, is also the best choice. I've been here since then, and I've never left Mike. ”

"Hahahaha." There was a burst of laughter.

"It's a day to celebrate, isn't it?" Young Lieutenant General Mike shrugged his shoulders and said with a smile: "If I can see a woman with a fragrant bath and a bottle of champagne when I go back to my room, I will feel a greater sense of accomplishment!" ”

The words of the young lieutenant general once again sparked a burst of laughter, and the atmosphere was relaxed and pleasant.

"It's really worth celebrating," a slightly chubby general with a pair of rimless glasses next to him said with a smile: "I really never dreamed that a generation of military gods Hastings would be defeated under the hands of General Sober like this." It seems that it is difficult to live up to the fame, and the legend is somewhat exaggerated. For thirty years, Hastings' name has been infinitely exaggerated and has become a talisman of the Filipino League. To this day, this talisman is no longer working! ”

General Glasses' words hit the itch in the hearts of the Western generals. For a while, everyone agreed.

"In terms of record, Hastings is the one who won the battle thirty years ago! Even if he was a veritable No. 1 general that day, to this day, he is still an old man. The Yangtze River pushes wave after wave, who can be undefeated forever? McDow.

"If he is still as clumsy as he was at the beginning of the war, he may be able to complete his reputation before and after his death! It's a pity that after being touted for 30 years, no matter how calm a person is, he will inevitably have a hot brain, and he really thinks that he is the best in the world! Going south to face the battle was the biggest mistake of his life! The admiral, who was in his fifties, shook his head, and his tone could not tell whether it was regret or the pity of the victor.

"To be fair, in the battle phase, Hastings' command is still worthy of his ranking. However, not to mention that General Sober's command in the stalemate stage was unique in the world, and there was almost no resistance. Hastings couldn't survive the physical strength alone. Retreating in time is the wisest choice. Once they hold each other for more than ten hours, I'm afraid he will immediately die in the command seat! ”

While everyone was talking, the adjutant who had just chased the woman away hurried back to Mike's side and whispered a few words in his ear.

As soon as they saw the adjutant's face, everyone understood that they were afraid that Mike was deflated this time.

Sure enough, after listening to the adjutant's whisper, Mike's face suddenly turned pale: "I don't know how to lift!" ”

General "Mike" looked at the officer and asked, "What's going on?" ”

"The woman is Moore's confidential secretary, and Sober has just been transferred to him from the Secretariat." Mike was annoyed by the woman's rejection, and said hatefully: "What kind of person to learn from!" I haven't been with Moore for two days, and I haven't learned anything, but I have learned his stinky and high virtues! If I knew she was that guy's confidential secretary, I would have taken a fancy to her?! ”

"A woman of this status is just a plaything for you to be a night, and it's worth it for you to worry about her?" There is a person next to it.

"I can't get used to that guy named Moore!" Mike snorted coldly and said: "I used to be just a small school officer in the Alien Empire, and I was valued by General Sober" Immediately I didn't know that the sky was high and the earth was thick. As a staff officer in the third staff group, he dared to collide with his boss face to face. Now that he has become the leader of the third group, he is even more open-faced, looking at everyone with his eyes turned to the sky and ignoring him. Arrogant! ”

"I heard that this person was not liked in the original army. Personality is stubborn and withdrawn. The admiral in his fifties said lightly: "General Sober uses him, but he has a different perspective." The battle commander and Ji Ge Xiaoji, when will it be his turn? Don't look at him being valued now, after this battle, "With his character, I'm afraid he will still come and go!" ”

"He won't be able to jump for a few days." Mike said coldly: "Hastings Twin Star Horns lost in one battle" is equivalent to being unskinned. Now, the Feimeng donkey skills are poor, but the morale of our coalition army is like a rainbow. If we can beat Hastings, we can beat anyone! From here to the Leray Federation, who in the entire southeast can stop us? When we take the Lelei Central Star Domain as an advance base, Chen Bing Bermuda, with a single order, we can let Salga lead his troops to surrender."

"At that time, what is the role of this Colonel Moore, who was promoted by guessing the tactics of the bandits? The staff of the base camp pulled someone out casually, and it was no worse than him..."Mike's voice jumped out coldly from between his teeth, and he said sarcastically: "Is it possible, he still wants to be promoted to general?" ”

It seemed that one of the funniest jokes had been heard, and everyone laughed.

Under the strict racial hierarchy of the Western Covenant, officers of the lower races could do as many as captains. If the credit is particularly great, the royal family will give a pension to the position of honorary major.

Moore is not one of the races at the bottom of the pyramid, "but his origins are not very decent. Being able to be promoted to colonel is already the result of Sober's exceptional promotion. Well, to be promoted, you have to not only test your own ability and quality, but also value your family background and aristocratic status as a general, and he has no chance in this life!

Under the indifferent gaze of the generals by the porthole, "Moore stood quietly beside the commanding seat.

He didn't know that at this moment, there was a group of noble generals who were talking about themselves. Even if he knew, he didn't care. This unfriendly gaze "He has seen many sons. Although he still feels angry at times, "he learns to ignore it more often."

In his eyes, there was only Sober!

Thor was half-leaning on the armrest of the command seat, his right hand supporting his chin, and Yan Ran looked in the direction where Banning was, but as long as he looked closely, he could see that at this moment, his mind was obviously not here.

He sat quietly in his chair, his eyes level, not knowing what he was thinking. The whole person looked as quiet as the statue that had been erected for thousands of years on the royal field of the Binarte Empire.

No joy, no celebration. Not even a little excited.

If it weren't for the Twin Star Horns during the First World War, they would have stood by his side and witnessed everything with their own eyes. Moore couldn't believe that this was Sober, who had just defeated Hastings, the top military strategist of mankind, and reached the pinnacle of his military career!

After defeating the Filipino fleet in the Twin Horns, Sauber relinquished command and handed over command of the fleet to Banning and other combat officers.

In this coalition force, there are a total of six combat officers. Everyone is a contemporary celebrity. In addition to Banning, there are also Grinnes, Imperial Generals, Edenkadel, Binart, Walter Carnegie, and Night Commander, Claudius, and others.

In terms of fame, although these people are not as good as Banning and Mikami Yuto, their status in the Western Covenant is no lower than that of Banning and Mikami Yuto. Each of them was a mainstay of the Western military and was trusted by Sauber.

In addition to another important minister of the Binarte military, known as the famous general second only to Sober, the deputy commander-in-chief of the navy, land and air forces, Byrne Reinbod, at this moment in Treflan outside, the southeast star field, concentrated almost all the famous generals of the Western Covenant, and the lineup was unprecedentedly strong.

At this moment, the fleet is under the command of these combat officers, pursuing the Filipino Allied fleet. And Sober, who had ceased to command, sat quietly all the time. Whether it was the pursuit of the Filipino League or the proposed battle plan for the Lelei Central Star Domain, he didn't care about it, as if he was wandering out of the world.

"General!" Alessandro stepped forward and called softly.

Sober has been sitting like this for a long time. Didn't eat and didn't sleep. This anomaly worries Alessandro, who has followed him for many years.

Alessandro knows that "for many years, Sauber has made defeating Hastings his biggest goal in life".

For this day, he endured for 30 years and struggled for 30 years!

When he stepped step by step from a junior officer to the first person in the military, people only saw the trust of the royal family in him, only saw his genius halo and supreme glory, but few people knew that thirty years ago, when the old Sober defeated the Carlston galaxy and "buried the national fortune of the Binarte Empire for decades, the entire Sober family became the sinners of the empire. Sober is no exception!

Although in the eyes of ordinary people, "he is still the enviable son of the nobility." However, in the aristocratic circles, he had no friends, and even many relatives avoided him. In addition to indifference and white eyes, all he had was the flame of revenge that had always burned in his heart and the battle situation map of old Sober's defeat at the hands of Hastings that hung in the center of the hall of Sauber's manor.

For thirty years, he gritted his teeth every day and persevered, just to be able to stand in front of Hastings one day, avenge his father with his own hands, and take back the glory that belonged to the Sauber family!

And now "he won over Hastings!"

Not so long ago. It's in the Twin Horn corridor! The invincible Hastings fled in front of him!

The news has spread throughout the universe.

The people of the Fijian League were in shock, like mourning, "panic all day long."

And the people of the Western Covenant were ecstatic and cheered. A grand victory parade broke out in every member state. Men and women, young and old, took to the streets to celebrate this great victory.

Yes, "Sobo defeated Hastings!"

This battle, which lasted only a few hours and the total number of ships lost on both sides was only a few fleets, and the significance to the entire human world was by no means as simple as the surface data seemed!

The magnitude of this victory made the emperors of many countries declare a three-day national celebration. They allowed even the lower ethnic groups who lived in remote settlements to enter the bustling city" and "celebrate with the superior people!"

This was unthinkable before!

However, no one would have imagined that "while the whole of Western Covenant was frantically celebrating in surprise, the only protagonist of this victory" would sit quietly in his commanding seat, without the joy of victory.

Compared to thirty years of unforgettable hatred and expectation, everything seems to come too fast and too simple!

Not to mention Sober, even Alessandro standing next to him had a feeling of being washed up. It's as if I've had a long dream, and when I wake up, all the joys and sorrows in the dream are just a joke.

I don't know how long it took for Sober to sit up straight.

"Alessandro, Moore, do you think he might be pretending to be sick to design the next trap for me?" Sober asked himself as he looked at the starry sky outside the porthole.

Moore shook his head and fell silent.

"No, General!" Alessandro looked at Sobo worriedly: "With Hastings' identity and character, it is impossible to do such a thing. You have won, General. You defeated him! ”

"He didn't lose to me, he lost to time!" Sober shook his head and said, "No one knows his conducting style better than I do. From the battle, I could clearly feel that his energy could not keep up from the beginning of the stalemate phase. After finally completing a left-wing closing tactic and swallowing up our two C-class fleets, he did not take any further command of the battle.

Sober held his head in his hands, stared at the starry sky, and said slowly: "Originally, I thought that this was a means of his. It's trying to make me lose my vigilance. Or, he's just tired and wants to take a break. So, in the later battles, I was more careful. Even when the Fiji Allied fleet put on a retreating posture, it pursued it with all its might after repeated tests to determine that there was no danger. ”

As he spoke, Sober seemed to fall into silence for a long time before he continued.

"As you say, he is indeed not a commander who fights by such a petty trick as feigning illness. Although he is an enemy, I have more respect for this enemy than those so-called friends. His military acumen and command art fascinate people. Even if it was only the first and only brief encounter, I can now be sure that it was the pinnacle of my life. ”

He turned his head, looked at Alessandro and Moore, and said seriously: "You who can inspire you" are not only friends, but also enemies. Only by playing against such opponents can you mobilize the potential of your whole body and give it your all. ”

It seems that he will remember that he has come to this point for thirty years because of his obsession with defeating Hastings. After admonishing the two officers, Sober fell silent again. After a long time, he slowly spoke, and his voice seemed to be far away in the sky.

"He was already in his seventies, and his physical condition prevented him from continuing to complete the battle. That Hastings back then, in this way, became history. What a pity...... Sober stood up and stepped down from the command seat. Walk towards the living quarters. "He waved his hand and stopped Moore and Alessandro from following. Leaving behind a gloomy back and a sigh of extreme loss.

"Thirty years of waiting" is not what I want in the dark ward. Only the light of the medical equipment is like a bean, and people can faintly see the surrounding furnishings.

Margaret sat quietly on the edge of the hospital bed like a statue in the dark, staring at the silent sleeping Hastings on the bed with teary eyes.

The fleet, retreating towards the Leray Federation. Silent warships, like schools of whales traveling far away, sail under the stars. It was already twenty hours since Hastings stepped out of the command seat and fell unconscious.

After more than ten hours of intense treatment, the old man finally passed the dangerous period and his condition gradually stabilized. However, "according to the experts of the medical team, this is only temporary." His condition has reached the stage of recovering from surgery. Anytime it could be-

Grief cut Margaret's heart like a knife.

Looking at the emaciated old man, the days when he was a child drilling under his desk seemed like it was just yesterday. At that time, my grandfather's health was still healthy, and he was full of energy, and he was busy with his work in the office every day, and it seemed that he could never stop.

At that time, Feiyang was in the heyday of the post-war period. The country's strength is unprecedentedly strong, and the people live and work in peace and contentment. Countless people who have gone abroad "are proud of their nationality. Countless majestic Feiyang warships are scattered throughout the interstellar waterways, fighting pirates and escorting the merchant ships of the Fijian Alliance.

The old man dedicated his life to this country.

He is the anchor of the Filipino League, "No matter how much the Western Covenant and the Fijian Alliance quarrel in the Supreme Council of Mankind, those Western Covenant people will not dare to use force." Occasionally, regional conflicts intensified, and "the flames of war rose, and as soon as the Feiyang fleet arrived, it would also be whirling and extinguishing."

And now, the old man who is in the Megatron universe is allowed to twist his face and pull his beard, like a helpless child, lying on a hospital bed.

Ticking, a large tear had just welled up in her eyes, and Margaret suddenly noticed that Hastings's eyelids seemed to move. She hurriedly wiped away her tears with her backhand, grabbed the old man's hand, and called softly: "Grandpa's eyelids trembled, and finally opened."

Margaret, who was surprised by the surprise of the "doctor", shouted and was about to press the pager, but her hand was tightly grasped by the old man.

"It's rare to come out of those disgusting dirty waters, and you can't bear to see me being turned over and over again?" Hastings' voice was weak, but his eyes were as bright as stars.

"Grandpa!" Margaret snorted, reluctantly giving up her plan to call the doctor. It's all at this time, and he can do whatever he wants. Even the first-generation military god Hastings, like most men, always has a childish temper.

"Where are we now?"

"It's time to enter the Lelei Central Star Field."

Hastings nodded and asked slowly, "Have you gotten rid of the Western fleet?" ”

"Not yet," Margaret said softly, "but don't worry, he's staring ahead." Fujii Tsuyoshi and his gang are now quite obedient to him. ”

"Hey" Hastings said lightly, "If I concentrate all the thorns on the flagship and he can't be even, then what else can I do with Hastings's successor and grandson-in-law?" ”

"Grandpa!" Margaret snorted with tears in her eyes: "Next time you say this kind of thing again, please put your grandson-in-law in front!" Is the successor more important than the grandson-in-law? ”

"Haha. Good! Hastings laughed, his voice faint but cheerful.

After laughing for a while, Hastings stopped and asked, "By the way, now the next battle plan of the fleet" How did the fat man design it? ”

"The meaning of the base camp is to guard the jump point of the central galaxy of Lelei. Try to procrastinate as much as possible. As long as it can be dragged on, maybe the tide of the battle will change. Margaret said, "However, he did not agree to hold on." Prepare to give up Purple Burr into Leray. ”

"Hmm" Hastings pondered for a moment, and said slowly in a low voice, "Stick to the jump point, it's just a war of attrition." Although they had a slight advantage in the terrain, the coalition forces could not hold on for long. Hold on and let Sober in, that's right! Leray immigration should be done by now, right? Others don't know" he knows, so he knows it in his heart. ”

Hastings seemed a little tired, took a breath, and then continued: "Leray is his territory, and the central star field connects the Ziyou galaxy, the Bermuda galaxy and the Newton galaxy, and the shipping channel is complicated, which is more conducive to the play of the bandit army. If I'm not mistaken, he wants to use Leray's capital star to drag Sober! He knew that he couldn't fight with Sober with the fleet alone. So, he wants to make a fuss about land battles. ”

Margaret looked at her grandfather with admiration. He had just woken up, "and after only listening to two or three sentences, he analyzed the fat man's strategy." It's not easy.

Indeed, in a purely confrontation between fleets, the Allies were at a complete disadvantage compared to each other. Whether it's a jump point or an interstellar passage, it's a contest between fleets and fleets. In the case of a disadvantage in troops, "no matter how confident the fat man is, it is impossible to fight with the bayonet of the famous general Sober." Therefore, he must use something else to attract Sober's attention and distract his forces!

In this airspace, "this thing can obviously only be a capital star that has no civilians except for the army!"

As one of the leading members of the Leray Migration, Margaret is well aware that all the supplies on the current capital star have either been transported to the newly discovered immigrant planet "or are concentrated in the hands of the garrison army." Even if Sauber took the capital of Leray, he would not be able to get supplies on the spot. But this is something that Sober did not know. The long supply lines behind him and Desik's battered forward base "will keep all his attention focused on Lere's capital planet." Taking this place will not only serve as a base for its advance and radiate the entire southeast to strategic significance, but also have the symbolic significance of declaring a phased victory and the political significance of deterring, threatening or dividing the members of the Philippine League. However, landing in the capital of Lere is obviously not an easy task.

Not to mention the vast space and staggered waterways of the Central Star Field, which are beneficial to the bandit army that has accumulated good guerrillas and sneak attacks. Speaking of the slow-moving giant transport ship of the Western Covenant Army, if it wants to land safely, "Celestial must do a lot of preliminary preparations.

In addition to the necessary preparations for the landing of the army, these preparations must first defeat the main force of the coalition fleet of the Filipino Alliance, master the outer space of the planet and the surrounding shipping lanes, and establish a solid defense line to prevent the bandit army from using short-range jumps or stealth technology to interfere with the landing. At the same time, the fleet must break into the atmosphere with space fighters and start an air battle with the ground defenders to open the landing channel!

These tasks are indispensable for the security of giant transport ships.

After all, a giant transport ship is loaded with at least four armored divisions, or even six to eight armored divisions of army officers and soldiers, mechs, and combat materials. It may be able to bear the loss of one or two ships, but if it is a loss of ten or twenty ships, even if Sober has a lot of money, he cannot afford it.

Without an army, Sober's fleet is rootless duckweed in the southeast. If he hadn't accommodated the giant transport ships and ensured the safety of these land forces, his pace of going south would have been at least twice as fast!

"I still underestimate this fat man" Hastings turned his head to look out the window and smiled: "He's smarter than I thought!" If I'm not mistaken, he should be able to split up some of his forces and go to the Garileo system after entering the Lelei Central Star Field. ”

"How do you know?" Margaret's eyes widened in surprise. Even the closest person next to the fat man, she had just learned that the fat man was preparing to divide the army.

And this plan is small, not only does no one else know about it, but even she herself has not asked a reason from her mouth.

"His plans are not mysterious, you will know when the time comes." Hastings laughed: "War is the same as playing chess, an idle man may decide the success or failure of a battle." ”

"When you first knew him, you also treated him as an idler, right?" Margaret asked with a smile.

"Yes, I didn't expect that this big dragon would come to him as he walked." Hastings nodded, with some emotion.

"Do you have anything useful to your grandson-in-law, grandfather?" Margaret's bright eyes sparkled and asked.

Hastings laughed: "I can't talk about it, but my illness did him a favor in the end?" ”

"Does being sick count as a help?" Margaret was completely confused.

"Of course!" Hastings smiled and said, "If you were Sober, for thirty years, you would have been thinking about it day and night, just to be able to fight with your opponent heartily, avenge your father with your own hands, and regain the glory of the family." And when the day finally comes, you find that everything is different from what you imagined. Do you feel confused, empty, and lost, as if you have concentrated all your strength, but swung a fist in the air? ”

"Yes," Margaret pouted playfully, giving Hastings a blank look, "However, this is not much of a help, it just makes Sober depressed." ”

"Maggie, you're wrong. I'm doing more than helping him defeat Sober. Hastings said lightly: "A person's obsession can last for thirty years, and the power accumulated in it is so great that ordinary people can't imagine it." This is especially true of a strong-willed and talented genius like Sober! If I help the fat man win the Battle of the Double Star Horn, it may reduce the gap between the enemy and us a little, but it will make Sober more willing, more aggressive, and more desperate to defeat me. ”

Margaret listened dumbfounded, as if she was a little dumbfounded.

Hastings looked up at the heavenly board and smiled, "And now, the power that Sobo has accumulated for thirty years has been unloaded. Just like a mountaineer, before reaching the top, the obsession of conquering the mountain and the immediate goal are the source of his strength. And when he stands on the highest place, all this will fade silently. He would not feel anything other than exhaustion. ”

As he spoke, Hastings turned his head.

"The Sauber of today is not the Sauber of yesterday."

Margaret looked at Hastings intently.

Grandpa's eyes are always so bright!