The Imperial Capital Star.
"We have… we've already obtained solid intelligence: all the interstellar warships of the Third Prince's fleet have been destroyed. All five T4-grade interstellar warships are fallen." Huang Zhixiong, a complex light in his eyes, looked at Qin Ming before him and at Consort Zhen, who'd only just come round.
Consort Zhen's body trembled, and from her mouth she muttered a few characters without cease.
"Hu'er… my Hu'er… Hu'er…"
Qin Ming clenched his fists, his two eyes filled through and through with fury and killing intent.
"Besides this, we've received, too, one message sent out at the very last from His Highness Qin Hu's flagship," Huang Zhixiong said.
"What message!" Qin Ming asked in haste.
Huang Zhixiong raised a hand, and a window hovered before Qin Ming; upon it was but a single line.
Brother, avenge me!
Qin Ming's eyes went bloodshot, his body trembling without cease.
"Zhao Chen! Zhao Chen!" He muttered this name from his mouth again and again.
At this point Consort Zhen, too, saw this line; she rushed before Qin Ming, seized her own son's hand, and said, for all the world like a madwoman, "Qin Ming! Revenge! You must, without fail, avenge your younger brother! I want to see that Zhao Chen dead with my own eyes! I want his Owl Dragon Star System reduced to ruins; I want their whole Zhao clan to go to the grave as attendants for my son!"
Qin Ming held his mother in his arms, and said, his look turning grave, "Mother, set your heart at ease. Your child gives you his promise: this vengeance for Ah Hu I will assuredly engrave upon my heart, and I will, without fail, make that Zhao Chen — and his territory, and his family — pay the price!"
"Revenge! Revenge! Revenge!" Consort Zhen muttered these two characters from her mouth without cease.
In the end, Consort Zhen's feelings surged and heaved too greatly once more, and, worn out in heart and spirit, she fainted away.
Having seen his mother settled, Qin Ming looked toward Huang Zhixiong, his gaze at this moment exceedingly overcast.
"Uncle, make ready to carry out our plan."
"You mean… that plan…" Huang Zhixiong took a fright.
"But to carry out that plan is far too great a risk; we ought to wait… wait a while longer…"
"It's not that I'm impatient; it's that we cannot wait. The loss of this interstellar campaign will surely bring about a whole chain of reactions. We must, before the worst situation appears, strike first and seize the upper hand!" Qin Ming looked at Huang Zhixiong.
"Do as I say. I'll go now and get in touch with those few. I believe those few will, too, approve of this course of mine."
Huang Zhixiong was silent a short moment; he looked toward this nephew of his, and said gravely, "Then all of those few must agree to it! Should even one among them fail to agree, then this plan, Your Highness, is one you must weigh three times over."
"I understand." Having said this, Qin Ming turned and left the palace hall.
He was off to contact those several pillars of the Prince Faction.
To carry out that plan of his, he had to obtain the agreement of these several supporters.
…
The news of the Third Prince fleet's utter annihilation, and of the Third Prince's being killed by Zhao Chen, spread out through the Starlight Empire in the shortest of times.
The various forces could, one and all, catch the reek of gunpowder now filling the Starlight Empire.
A storm was about to come — a storm that would sweep across the whole Starlight Empire.
The whole of the Starlight Empire might well become the battlefield of this storm.
The Chu River Star Region · the Chu family.
"I never imagined this fellow's nerve ran so bold — that he'd, of all things, dare kill the Third Prince Qin Hu outright." Though such were the words on Chu Xuan's lips, upon her face was, rather, an expression standing for joy.
This while past, on account of her grandfather's being detained by the Prince Faction, Chu Xuan's mood had all along been very poor.
Now that Zhao Chen had cut down the Prince Faction's Third Prince Qin Hu with his own hand, this too had let Chu Xuan vent a breath of her foul rage.
"But this has made the Starlight Empire's situation now exceedingly chaotic. The Owl Dragon Star System will become the very target of every arrow of the Prince Faction's!" the female adjutant said with worry at her side.
"And what of it? At worst it's a battle to be fought. This young miss has long since been unable to hold herself back," Chu Xuan said with firm resolve.
The female adjutant looked at Chu Xuan, and heaved a sigh.
This while past, since Chu Xuan had taken over the Chu family legion, she'd found her young miss's temper growing, little by little, ever more like Governor Chu's — so that, several times even, it was for all the world as though she were seeing the very shadow of Governor Chu.
"Still — we can't be the ones to stir up this clash of arms first, but neither can we make no preparation whatever. Relay my order: for the Chu family legion fleet, the leave of every crew member for the coming half year is canceled. Every interstellar warship must, without fail, be guaranteed to hold at all times a reserve of 80% or more of strategic resources. At the same time, all starports and star gates are to enter the highest grade of combat-readiness — above all the military starports and star gates; the checks upon those who use them must be strict, and no error whatever is to be permitted. And, besides, this matter of our procuring raw-material supplies from the outside through those few private channels — it's to be sped up! No matter if the procurement cost rises — spare no cost whatever; procure me more raw-material resources. And relay to those few ship factories producing the T3 Flame-Dragon-class Medium Interstellar Destroyer: work overtime, put in the extra hours, and produce me the T3 Flame-Dragon-class Medium Interstellar Destroyers. And if it be on account of their own doings that the output falls short — then have the ones in charge of them come and see me!" Chu Xuan's whole run of orders was filled with an air of the stillness before a storm.
The female adjutant noted down these matters entrusted to her, and set off to lay out the tasks.
Chu Xuan drew a deep breath, and looked toward a physical photo-frame set upon her desk, within which was a photograph of her and her grandfather.
The expression on Chu Changhe's face was one of a quite radiant smile — for all the world like some mischievous old scamp, so that one couldn't make out at all that this was a grand marshal decisive in slaughter and war.
And Chu Xuan, who looked to be but a girl of a dozen-odd years, wore a face of whole unwillingness.
"Grandpa, I wonder — these things I'm doing now, are you satisfied with them?" Chu Xuan murmured.
Only when she truly stood in this post did Chu Xuan feel the pressure her grandfather had borne upon his own shoulders all these years.
It was a thing the she of before could never have imagined at all.
…
The North Wind Star Region · the North Wind main star system.
"You brat — you've kicked up quite the great commotion this time. When did you go and make so many T3-grade interstellar warships? I never even knew of the matter." The North Wind Governor looked at Zhao Chen on the far side of the video window, and bantered.
Zhao Chen gave a faint smile; he did not answer the North Wind Governor's banter, but instead cut straight to the point.
"In this interstellar campaign, no small number of people within the North Wind Star Region made moves. I have a list here; I wonder whether, on your side, Governor…"
The North Wind Governor said, "I have a list here too. Why don't we set them side by side and compare?"
Zhao Chen nodded.
The two of them put out a list at the same time.
Upon these lists were recorded the names of as many as 23 lords and important families within the North Wind Star Region.
"How do you mean to deal with this pack of fellows?" Zhao Chen inquired.
"For the moment it's not quite convenient to deal with them out in the open; but I've already handed down the word — the instant there's a chance, I'll deal with these festering sores the first thing," the North Wind Governor said, cold and grim.
In the very first moment of obtaining this list, the North Wind Governor had handed down orders to several of his trusted lords; those trusted lords' fleets had all entered combat-readiness, and had, besides, drawn up a whole series of combat plans.
And what they targeted were, precisely, those interstellar lords and families upon the list.
"That's good, then. As for the Prince Faction's further doings, once they've made some move, we'll then lay our plans for the next step. I have still some matters to see to on my side. Let's leave the comm here for now," Zhao Chen said.
The North Wind Governor caught sight of a kneeling figure behind Zhao Chen; he nodded, and closed the comm channel.