The patrol boat of the Public Security Service quickly transmitted a radio signal to the cruiser "Siegfried", and the commander, Superintendent Vasily Pavlovich Volkonsky, requested to speak with the captain of the imperial warship.

Although they belong to different departments and systems, at this critical moment, the superintendent of the landowner, must lead the ship to come. The acting captain of the "Siegfried", Lieutenant Joseph Dietrich, had no reason to refuse.

Superintendent Volkonsky in the stereoscopic image looks radiant in a black police hat with a silver trim trim on the brim and an ivory shirt.

The superintendent raised his scepter in his right hand and saluted the lieutenant of the Imperial Army, and said politely, "Hello, lieutenant." I have been ordered to dissuade you from taking inspection action against the Perseus Star Federation cargo ship Atlantis. ”

Dietrich lifted the safety buckle, stood up, raised his right hand and patted his chest, then threw it slightly upwards horizontally, and finally stretched his right arm downwards in the ancient Roman style of the New Roman Empire.

"Mr. Superintendent, the police of the Public Security Bureau have no right to interfere with the actions of the Imperial Army." Dietrich warned.

"Mr. Lieutenant, we have the authority of the Imperial Consul to have completely independent authority over the civilian ships of the Federation, including but not limited to conducting inspections in the jurisdiction on behalf of the Imperial Army." Volkonsky always maintained a polite tone.

Dietrich didn't care about what he said about his authority, and most Imperial officers were often overly arrogant or even unscrupulous in the face of local government departments.

"I have not been notified, Mr. Superintendent, please get out of the way as soon as possible." Dietrich's tone was already filled with anger and hostility.

But Volkonsky still said tepidly: "Mr. Lieutenant, you also know that the 'Tai Chi' Planetary Security Bureau and Police Department are under the orders of the Mayors Alliance, and of course they are also completely subject to the rule of the Imperial Archons and the Senate. How could we have acted like this without the express instructions of His Excellency the Consul? ”

Superintendent Volkonsky's words finally made Dietrich hesitate, and his words were so straightforward that even the most arrogant Imperial officers had to have some scruples.

At this time, Communications Non-Commissioned Officer Abhiji Kumanfur reported: "The captain has communication access. ”

"Mr. Superintendent, please wait a moment." After Dietrich finished speaking, he motioned for his men to switch the call with the captain.

Captain Jiang Ziyue, who had parachuted, had already boarded the "Bodhi Ye" aerospace plane that came to the rescue.

The captain's real-time footage showed that he was safe and sound, and Joseph Dietrich happily raised his hand and saluted, "Sir, it's so nice to see you." ”

"Joseph, Omar is dead!" Jiang Ziyue said angrily and hatefully.

"What, Omar sacrificed?!" Dietrich was shocked that Omar Azaj, the "Sanda King", had died in battle.

"That Felix Bridgeman is a traitor, he killed Omar." Jiang Ziyue could be heard trying his best to suppress his anger, "How is your situation above?" ”

"We found a suspicious Federal cargo ship. But a superintendent of the Sheriff's Department said he had the authority of the consul and asked us to stop taking action against the ship. ”

"Pick up the line."

As a result, Jiang Ziyue formed a three-way call with Volkonsky and Dietrich.

"Mr. Superintendent, I am Captain Jiang Ziyue, captain of the cruiser 'Siegfried' of the Imperial Border Fleet, and you said that your operation was authorized by the Archon?" Jiang Ziyue asked.

"Yes, Mr. Captain." Volkonsky replied, "Without the express instructions of the consuls, we, the police department of the Sheriff's Bureau, have no right to interfere in any actions of the Imperial Army. ”

"Then please send a copy of the authorization document to my warship. Once confirmed, you can do it at your own leisure. Jiang Ziyue looked a little helpless.

"But, sir, that ship may be the disguised merchant ship of the Federation, the ...... of Omar," exclaimed Joseph Dietrich excitedly.

"Carry out the order, Joseph." Jiang Ziyue said angrily, and then said to Volkonsky: "Please, Mr. Superintendent." ”

He didn't want to teach those Federation troops a hard lesson. But since the police of the Sheriff's office were authorized by the consuls, they were embodying the will of the Senate and the consuls, and he had to accept it, even if he now had a strong hatred for the federation that killed Omar Azai.

"Yes, sir." Dietrich saluted with suppressed anger and finished the correspondence.

Volkonsky was very happy to raise the superintendent's power to salute Jiang Ziyue and said, "Captain, thank you for your cooperation. ”

The rest was irrelevant, the authorization document was transmitted to the "Siegfried" and confirmed.

The federal cargo ship "Atlantis" was safely out of the sight of the Imperial Army under the watchful eye of the patrol boat of the "Taiji" Planetary Security Bureau police.

This incident, known as the "Void Temple Hijacking", basically ended here, and the Immortal Interstellar Federation not only failed to compete for the Kongyi Ju, who held the secret of "Antnest", but also lost a number of officers and soldiers.

But for Jiang Ziyue, the follow-up was beyond his imagination.

Due to the aftermath of the aftermath on the planet "Taiji", it was not until ten days later, on April 17, 2918, that the "Siegfried" returned to the planet "Iserlohn", where the headquarters of the Imperial Frontier Fleet was located.

It is a planet that bears a slight resemblance to Earth, the home of man, but it is in a binary star system.

However, due to the fact that the two stars in this binary star system, "Huitzilopochtli" (the god of war in Aztec mythology, called Huitzilopochtli in English) and "Shakti" (i.e., Indra, the Hindu god of war, are called Indra in English). In Chinese, it is marked as "Emperor Shitian", which is a translation of ancient Buddhist texts. ) belong to the Detachedbinaries, each of which has a gravitational pull greater than the gravitational range of the other, and has little influence on each other. The planet Iserlon, which belongs to the star Huizilopochtli, is largely unaffected by another star, the Ishkti.

Thus, the planet "Iserlon", which belongs to the star system of "Huizilopochtli", runs smoothly in an orbit with a small eccentricity. But the two suns in reality do not scorch the earth as they do in mythology and science fiction. Because the distant "Ishkti" is a reddwarf, its light and heat are less than one-ten-thousandth of that of the Sun-like "Huizilopochtli".

So, every other year, people on the planet can see the "Emperor" at night, like a shrunken red "full moon" in the night sky; The following year, the "Ishakti" was a red star visible in the daytime sun – for more than three months in the middle of the year, it was even obscured by the light of the "Huizilopochtli".

Although the planet Iserlohn is in the habitable zone of its star system "Heatzilopochtli", most of the planet's surface is covered with a scorching desert. After nearly 100 years of transformation, the surface of the planet "Iserlon" is now dotted with hundreds of large oases and dozens of small cities built in the oases.

The planet "Iserlon" was originally called the "New Sahara". Later, after the division of the New Roman Empire and the Perseus Federation, because the star "Huizilopochtli" was located near the midpoint of the 135th parallel, which was of great strategic significance, the New Roman Empire built the headquarters and main bases of the border fleet on the "New Sahara" and its surrounding airspace, turned it into a militarized planet, and renamed it "Iserlon".

The planet Iserlohn is an important cornerstone of the Empire's defenses and offensive confederations. Ships departing from here could patrol both ends along the 135th Parallel, monitoring and preventing the incursion of Union warships. From here, the Empire's fleet can also depart from here, cross the 135th parallel, and attack the territory of the Federation.

Jiang Ziyue commanded the cruiser Siegfried to dock on the Lord of the Rings, a large space station in the planetary synchronous orbit of Isellon.

Unless there are special circumstances, spaceships generally do not enter the atmosphere, because it costs a lot of fuel to leave subsequently. Therefore, for the sake of economy and convenience, inhabited planets generally have some large space stations built to dock starships, and the circulation of personnel and materials with planets mainly relies on a large number of aerospace aircraft.

Jiang Ziyue landed directly on the airfield in front of the headquarters of the border fleet of the new Roman Empire on the space plane "Bodhi Ye".

The rocket-shaped building seemed to be forever busy, with soldiers and clerks coming and going, making the wide corridors seem rather lively and crowded.

Although he still has the discomfort and fatigue caused by staying in space for too long, Jiang Ziyue, who is wearing the imperial military uniform, still looks radiant.

The black uniform is pinned with a silver Imperial double-headed eagle military insignia on the collar with silver trim, silver hard epaulettes with silver ribbons and tassels, a full set of hard medals and metal nameplates on his chest, and a slightly crooked black captain's soft cap, which makes him look quite powerful and handsome, attracting the attention of many people, especially female soldiers.

Captain Jiang Ziyue walked into the adjutant office of Admiral Blake Karios, commander of the Border Fleet, and was allowed to enter the admiral's office after a series of inspections and registrations.

The Commander's exaggerated desk sits in front of the floor-to-ceiling glass curtain wall opposite the door, and in front of the desk is a plush leather sofa and coffee table.

At this time, the two of them were sitting on the sofa and discussing something enthusiastically.

One of them wore a black double-breasted high-necked woolen uniform of the Imperial Army, with four gold half-wrapped five-pointed stars on the right shoulder and a fleet commander's emblem on the left shoulder, two gold Roman "bundle sticks" crossed on a silver galactic disk.

On his left chest, there are eight rows of medals and medals made of various precious metals, just like a veteran with outstanding military achievements. However, among these dazzling decorations, there is not even a golden medal of Caesar, which represents the highest honor of the new Roman army.

This man was Admiral Blake Carrios, commander of the Imperial Frontier Fleet.

The other was rather old, Oriental in appearance, wearing a gray tunic with a relaxed expression, and only a golden Caesar medal with an oak leaf and a sword hanging on his left chest, indicating that he had been awarded the Order of Caesar three times.

This person was one of the most powerful figures in the New Roman Empire, and Wang Zeren, who was also the first senator of the Senate and the consul of the empire. Due to the informal occasion, the Imperial Consul did not wear the ancient Roman robe of the senator, but only wore a gold ring of senators on the middle finger of his right hand.

Unlike other senators, whose rings were only engraved with the word "Senatus", Wang's ring was engraved with the long handwritten Latin words "Senatus Populusque Romanus" (meaning "Senate and the Roman people"), which was also the national motto of the ancient Roman Republic and the Empire. This is the ring held by the First Patriarch who was also the Archon of the Empire.

As soon as Jiang Ziyue entered the door, he stood upright, raised his right hand, pressed his heart with the palm of his hand, and then threw his arm out horizontally, raised his arm diagonally upward, and said loudly: "Report, Captain von Jiang Ziyue, the captain of the Imperial Border Fleet 'Siegfried', has come to meet you!" ”

The two immediately stopped talking.

Karios asked him to take a break, and Wang Zeren gestured lightly, "Please take a seat, Captain Jiang Ziyue." ”

Jiang Ziyue sat on the sofa opposite the two, and after the adjutant gave him green tea, he withdrew from the office and closed the door.

"We've read your report." Wang Zeren spoke in Mandarin Chinese, "The Senate and I are very satisfied with the performance of you and your subordinates in the 'Void Temple Hijacking' incident. ”

He then showed a rather heavy expression, and said with a slight sadness: "The Senate and I deeply regret the unfortunate death of your subordinates in the incident. Captain, on behalf of the Senate and me, I would like to extend our deep condolences and condolences to the family of the martyr Second Lieutenant Omar Azaei. Tell them that the Senate and the people of Rome will not treat any of her loyal people badly. ”

Hearing that the imperial consul could accurately say Azai's name and military rank, Jiang Ziyue was a little moved. So he respectfully responded to the consul's apparently sincere request: "Yes, sir. ”

It is unusual for a head of state who is high up and has a lot of opportunities to remember an ordinary soldier at the grassroots level who he has never met.

It is this unusual attitude and skill that has promoted Wang Zeren to rise to the top in his career. Whether it is receiving envoys from enemy countries or ordinary people, Wang Zeren's performance can always make the other party feel heartfelt moved and even grateful. This was rare among the previous and current senators of the Senate, and it was for this reason that he was pushed to the fore and concurrently served as the consul of the empire.

After all, unlike the senators, who were deep behind the scenes, the consuls had to have frequent contact with the people and diplomacy, and not having sufficient communication skills was obviously detrimental to the national system.

"This incident has been dealt with in accordance with the Supreme Confidentiality Regulations." "So you and your people must abide by the highest secrecy and keep your mouth shut about this matter," Karios said solemnly. ”

"Understood, sir."

"Captain von Jiang Ziyue, you are the loyal commander of the Empire. And we are both laureates of the Golden Order of Caesar, and I think it is necessary to tell you some truths. ”

After Wang Zeren finished speaking, he stood up with the teacup in his hand and walked to the floor-to-ceiling glass curtain wall. The strong sunlight outside the window shone in and reflected a strange light on his gray hair.

The imperial consul unhurriedly took a sip of the big red robe produced in the capital "New Byzantium" planet transplanted from Wuyi Mountain on Earth, looked at the blue sky of the sky planes shuttling outside the window, and said slowly:

"There are no more rumors about 'Antnest'. In fact, we have already found Kongyi Jushi last year, and we have launched a search based on the clues he provided. Unfortunately, there is nothing we are looking for in the cosmic space he is talking about. The star map coordinates provided by Kongyi Jushi were left by his grandfather, Liu Changchun. Before his death, Liu Changchun dictated the data of the coordinates to his father, but now it seems that either the coordinates are false or invalid. ”

Wang Zeren's tone was calm, but full of neutrality, like an old professor who told history, revealing the secrets of the empire.

"After investigation and analysis, the Senate unanimously believes that Kongyi Jushi did not lie, but that 'Antnest' has taken the initiative to avoid us humans since he was discovered by Liu Changchun and avoided getting involved in the disputes of our human world."

"So, 'Antnest' refers to an alien creature?" Jiang Ziyue couldn't help asking.

Wang Zeren turned around, shook his head gently, and said, "We don't know this yet. Liu Changchun did not tell all the secrets to his descendants, leaving only a coordinate. But there was nothing in the space marked by that coordinate. The so-called 'Antnest' may or may not be an alien creature as you say, or it may be something else. ”

"Whatever it is, though, the Perseus Commonwealth wants it." Wang Zeren emphasized.

"Just because legend says it's infinitely powerful?" Jiang Ziyue asked again.

Despite the impoliteness of this behavior, the young captain was not effective in suppressing his curiosity, and the archon did not seem to care about his repeated questions.

"That's going to ask the federal government." Wang Zeren teased, but his old face did not show the smile that should be ridiculed like ordinary people, but showed a serious and even somewhat heavy expression.

"Whatever it is, whatever we want, they want to grab it. So they sent a crappy agent to investigate and kidnap the Kongyi layman. ”

"In that case, we have foreseen the Bundeswehr and Bridgeman's plot to kidnap the Empty Settlers." Jiang Ziyue asked in surprise.

Suddenly, he felt that he and his brothers on the Siegfried were just pawns at the mercy of others.

The Imperial Archon bowed his head and said, "The Senate originally wanted to plan and let the Federation get the empty layman. That way, they will be able to know the coordinates of 'Antnest' and thus turn their attention to the search for 'Antnest' and create new opportunities for us to attack. ”

"New offensive opportunities?"

"Exactly." After Wang Zeren finished speaking, he sat back on the sofa next to Karios and continued to explain the grand plan of the Senate to his subordinates.

"Since Liu Changchun discovered that the space of 'Antnest' is far away from the Immortal Spiral Arm Interstellar, the Federation will inevitably send heavy troops to explore after learning about it, in case our side attacks halfway. Of course, as soon as they act, we will immediately assume a posture of being ready to fight, forcing them to transfer all the main forces of the fleet, creating an empty space in the country. ”

Jiang Ziyue finally understood why the "Tai Chi" Planetary Security Bureau was authorized by the consul to insist on letting go of the Federation's cargo ships. It turned out that this had been calculated by the Senate a long time ago.

At this time, Admiral Karios interjected: "Captain, you should understand the true meaning of the last sentence of my order. The phrase 'the Senate and the consuls authorize you to take force action against those who stand in your way, as the case may be' seems to have multiple meanings. ”

Jiang Ziyue was not allowed to respond to the commander's words, so Wang Zeren continued: "Of course, Captain Jiang Ziyue, you and your team successfully stopped the enemy's conspiracy, and the Kongyi Monk and the Xuejian Monk also committed suicide. The secret of 'Antnest' will probably never be obtained by the enemy. The great plan of the Senate could not be realized as a result. ”

Speaking of this, the Imperial Archon had a rare smile on the corner of his mouth. The curved lips shone proudly, and they "kissed" the teacup with ease.

Jiang Ziyue didn't know the meaning behind Wang Zeren's subtle smile.

Few people know about the Senate's decision-making process, let alone the power struggles and compromises between these elites at the pinnacle of power.

Admiral Karios, however, responded with a smile to the Imperial Archon.

Wang Zeren continued: "In this way, although the plan of the Senate has been destroyed, our victory will allow the federal government to devote more energy to 'Antnest'. After all, the more you can't get something, the more you want to get it. People are so greedy, and so are countries. ”

The consul's calm tone was mixed with a lot of spicy mockery. This taunt is directed not only at the enemy Perseus Federation, but also at its own New Roman Empire.

As one of the most powerful figures in the Empire, Wang Zeren was naturally very clear about the manpower and material resources invested by the Empire in the search for "Antnest".

Again and again, huge investments were made but nothing was obtained, which made the Senate feel disappointed. However, every time he was disappointed, he was unwilling and decided to relaunch the search work.

As the imperial consul Wang Zeren said, people are often like this, the more difficult it is to obtain things, the more they pursue them at any cost. According to the analysis of national psychology and behavior, the state composed of human beings naturally exhibits the same characteristics.

As one of the listeners and a participant in the "Void Temple Hijacking" incident, Jiang Ziyue, to be precise, was unfortunately involved, and of course had no interest in discussing the psychology and behavior of the state with the imperial archons who were looking down on all beings. He now knew very well that he and his men had been completely reduced to pawns in the Senate conspiracy in this incident.

Moreover, these little pawns inadvertently destroyed the conspiracy carefully planned by the Senate, I really don't know how the old men and women of the Senate will feel. However, it could be heard from the words of the consul, at least he was pleased with the unexpected situation.

So, Jiang Ziyue asked again: "Your Excellency, according to what you just said, didn't our actions destroy the arrangement of the Senate?" ”

"That's the way it is." Wang Zeren's tone was undoubted, but he immediately said: "But, captain, you don't have to take it to heart, the plan will never catch up with the changes. The Senate is not good at intrigues, but it is good at promoting the creation of conspiracy. So, Captain, work with peace of mind, at least I myself greatly appreciate the bravery of you and your men. ”

In the end, Wang Zeren said in a rather mysterious tone: "Moreover, we have made new discoveries about 'Antnest'. ”

With that, he nodded to Admiral Blake Karios, commander of the Frontier Fleet.

The admiral immediately got up and walked to the desk, picked up a paper document, returned to the sofa, and handed it to Jiang Ziyue.

"New top-secret plan 'Cleopatra', Captain." "You and your cruiser must be ready," Karios said. ”

Jiang Ziyue took the document and glanced at it. This is a plan of action, requiring him to lead a small fleet to search for "Antnest" beyond the Perseus Spiral Arm. But the plan does not specify a specific time frame for action.

So, he asked, "When will you go?" ”

He didn't really care much about what was written on the text of the plan, and now he was most concerned about whether the commander would be able to make good on his previous promises, pay bonuses and allow them to take vacations. But now it seems that at least there will be no vacation, and it is not easy to mention it in front of the imperial consuls.

"You just need to be ready to go, and there will be further orders and instructions when the time comes." Karios said.

At this time, the archon continued the admiral's words, "For the entire human world of the Immortal Spiral Arm Planet, this will be the most significant action in history. The Senate and the people of Rome want you and your people to do your best, even if it means giving your precious life for it. ”

"Yes, sir."

"I know that Admiral Karios promised you three times the bonus and double the leave. The bonus will be paid in full, but I can only apologize for the vacation. Wang Zeren said solemnly, "The situation is pressing, and the entire empire must go all out." Hope you understand. Of course, we will compensate you for the cancellation of the leave. ”

The Archon's expression and tone clearly hinted at a major challenge facing the Empire. At this time, he was given a new mission, and as a professional soldier who loves his career, Jiang Ziyue was somewhat excited.

"Understood, sir." Jiang Ziyue replied respectfully, "As soldiers of the empire, we can only unconditionally give everything for the interests of the empire. ”

"Very well, Captain." Wang Zeren stood up and stretched out his right hand.

Jiang Ziyue hurriedly stood up and shook hands with the other party. Then he put on his military hat, snapped upright, raised his right hand and pressed it to his chest, and then threw it diagonally out to salute the consul.

Wang Zeren also returned the gift in the same way.

When Jiang Ziyue's sturdy figure disappeared behind the door of the office, Karios cautiously asked the consul, "Do you really trust him in such an important matter?" ”

I only heard Wang Zeren say calmly: "Without a prominent family background, without proud qualifications, and with abilities that are different from ordinary people, Captain Jiang Ziyue is exactly what we need." ”