On the way back, Yang Ming didn’t encounter any resistance.
The Empire’s fleet took no interception action. In the national live broadcast rooms, hundreds of billions of online viewers watched as Yang Ming’s mecha entered a hundred-meter-long transport ship, then warped away.
Not letting the East Wind Ship show up directly was also to avoid provoking the Imperial Military with its aggressive design.
While Griss was being interviewed, Yang Ming was wearing headphones, listening to a rhythmical and exciting tune, swaying his strong waist recklessly, exuding masculine charm, as he walked to his captain’s seat.
"The captain has arrived... uh?"
026, wearing a tight combat suit, tilted his head and looked at Boss Yang’s back, unable to help but murmur to the life-sized assistant hologram beside him,
"Haven’t seen the boss for a few days, why is the boss suddenly so flamboyant?"
When necessary, 026 would pilot the Red Demon Mecha to support Yang Ming.
Lyu laughed and said, "He’s always when he’s happy."
"Uh," 026 blinked, "Did I miss something in the live broadcast? Why is the boss so happy?"
"The last boss fight had some segments edited out," Lyu reminded, "The live broadcast has a preset delay; it doesn’t show the footage directly, and a segment was deleted."
"So why exactly is the boss so happy?"
Lyu raised his hand to his forehead, hesitating to speak for a moment, "Probably because he’s made tangible progress with Captain Catherine."
"That’s it?" 026 tilted his head and said, "I’ve never seen the boss so excited when he was dating before."
Lyu analyzed carefully, "Rather than saying the boss feels relaxed and joyous because of Captain Catherine, it’s because the White Ghost’s relationship with the Empire’s officialdom has entered a honeymoon period."
felt a bit puzzled, "What do you mean?"
Lyu laughed and said,
"Now the Empire officials think they’ve tamed the White Ghost named Hanton, considering it a victory styled as the glory of the Emperor Star.
"And as for the boss, he feels that he has gained partial trust from the Empire, reducing the pressure from the Valkyrie, which he feared allying with the Empire.
"We set off from the Wind Country to infiltrate the Empire looking for opportunities, and so far everything has been smooth sailing, with a few minor crises resolved peacefully.
"Right now, it’s mostly the Empire’s officials thinking the White Ghost is nothing special, while the boss thinks the Empire’s old men are all a bunch of useless people, so on the surface, their relationship is in a honeymoon period."
hesitated to respond, "Lyu, your analysis is so... so realistic?"
"Hehe, the boss can’t hear us!"
"Boss! I’m going to report this!"
"Oh, you! I have simulated touch on the East Wind!"
crossed his arms and dodged quickly, while Lyu waved her kelp-like trembling claws and launched an An Lushan-style attack at 026.
Seeing them making a fuss in the corner, Yang Ming felt quite emotional.
Their friendship was indeed great.
"Stop it, stop it! Hahaha! Lyu, don’t tickle me! I surrender!"
Lyu put her hands on her hips and said with a chuckle, "You think I can’t deal with you!"
"Alright, alright, let’s talk business," 026 said while sitting on the sofa in a duck style, asking in a small voice, "When do you think we can return to Wind? I’m kinda missing the snack street there."
"That’s hard to say."
Lyu sat back beside 026, gently swinging her feet.
She slowly said, "There are several irreconcilable contradictions between the boss and the Empire, and when these hidden mines are triggered, the boss might abandon the Empire immediately."
seemed confused, "What hidden mines?"
Lyu laughed and said, "Wind and Dark Star are now one system. The outer shell is the Luofeng Empire, a medium-sized country, but internally it’s the Dark Star constructed by the Mechanical Thought Body, which is an Intelligent Machine system that only the boss can easily command.
"Wind is currently developing rapidly, and the military and political circles in the three small countries around Wind have been settled, and they can be annexed into Wind in the form of alliances at any time.
"Although the boss doesn’t care if the Luofeng Empire is a vassal of the Sherman Empire, don’t forget that the boss’s close friend and intimate partner, Edwan, is determined to push for Wind’s independent reform.
"Do you think the Empire would allow its largest tributary vassal country to become substantially independent? This is the first big point of conflict."
frowned and said, "The Sherman Empire’s national strength is hundreds of times that of Wind, this doesn’t stand a chance at all."
"Indeed," Lyu clicked her tongue and smiled, "Even if the technological level short-term caught up to that of the Emperor Star Circle, population is a hard hurdle, it would take at least a dozen reproductive cycles, which is a few hundred years, for Wind to have a population exceeding ten billion, and that’s based on the premise that the social economy stays neither too good nor too bad, and Wind’s citizens maintain a high reproductive desire."
"Then how to achieve independence?"
"Expand the alliance, seek allies, and cooperate with the Empire in the name of the alliance," Lyu said calmly, "If independence is not sought through war, the relationship between Wind and the Sherman Empire will inevitably be abnormal, then we’ll see what choice the boss makes."
analyzed for a while, "These hidden mines shouldn’t be triggered in the short term, right?"
"Nor can I say it’s short-term, probably once the boss passes the second assessment, Wind can establish an alliance with a population of over two hundred billion."
Lyu casually opened a Star Domain Map of Wind and enlarged it, ignoring the vast uninhabited planets in proportion and marked more than thirty small and medium-sized countries.
"The Dabich model is now recognized as the most efficient way to conquer these small polities.
"Look at this corner of the Milky Way, these thirty-six countries close to Wind are all targets for the expansion of the Wind Alliance.