The woman officer walked straight past this Old Chen, came before Zhao Chen, drew the white glove from her right hand, and put out a slender, jade-fine hand. "We meet again."
Zhao Chen looked with some surprise at this imperial-navy woman commander named Chu Xuan — why would she turn up here?
Out of courtesy, Zhao Chen shook her hand, but let go very quickly.
In truth he had no great wish to deal with the imperial navy's people; the imperial navy stood for the Starlight Empire, and to let the empire's people learn too much of his affairs was to court trouble.
This bounty mission he'd taken partly because the System had triggered it, and partly for the shortfall of resources for the Quarterly Mission's shipbuilding.
This fellow doesn't fancy men, does he? Chu Xuan thought inwardly, watching Zhao Chen release her hand so quickly.
Still, here was a fine chance to do him a favor.
"If this gentleman spoke truly just now, then your interstellar-transport fleet was charged with carrying out this asteroid-P331 evacuation mission, was it not?" Chu Xuan turned and looked at the man — his face now ashen, his forehead beaded with sweat.
"Might I ask… you… you… are?" Old Chen asked gingerly, his gaze flicking again and again to the golden "Chu" crest Chu Xuan wore.
"Our com—… our commander is asking you a question; what are you looking at!" The female adjutant stepped forward and slapped Old Chen full across the face.
Old Chen hurriedly moved his eyes away and rushed to explain, "I'm… I'm the commander of the interstellar-transport fleet charged with the asteroid-P331 evacuation, but… but we completed the evacuation smoothly…"
"So you mean this gentleman's claim — that you deliberately dragged your feet, unwilling to go to asteroid P331 to evacuate the people — is a lie?" Chu Xuan asked back.
"Yes… of course it is! He and I have a grudge; he's framing me on purpose — and what's more… what's more he shelled my ship outright with his cannons. I was about to haul him before the military tribunal myself!" Old Chen said, steeling himself. All he could do now was deny it to the death, or the price he'd pay would be a heavy one.
"Xiao Song." Chu Xuan suddenly called out a name.
From among the guard of soldiers, a male soldier stepped out and stood before Chu Xuan.
At the sight of this seemingly personal-guard soldier, Old Chen and the rest were dumbfounded.
For this male soldier wore a general officer's uniform, and on his insignia was, plainly, a single star.
This "personal-guard" soldier was, of all things, an imperial one-star brigadier!
That a woman could so easily make a one-star brigadier her personal guard — put together with that golden-character crest, her identity all but leapt to the eye.
"Your servant is here."
"This gentleman says he's been wronged. Go and look into it for me — look into it thoroughly. We mustn't wrong a good man, nor let a bad one slip," Chu Xuan said coldly, a chill in her tone.
"Understood." Xiao Song first turned a look of deep respect upon Zhao Chen and saluted him.
In that earlier battle against the hive-race, this Xiao Song had been present too, captain of one of the other ships.
And so he held this man before him in the highest regard.
When Xiao Song's gaze moved onto Old Chen, in that instant Old Chen felt himself pitched into an icy pit.
"Rest easy — we'll wrong no one. Wait here for me to return. 10 minutes will be enough," His piece said, Xiao Song set off at once with several guards to look into the matter.
Old Chen gulped, sweat pouring off him like rain.
He was frantically running back over whether he'd handled every last thing: everyone in the fleet he'd charged to keep silent — sworn-to-secrecy was too much to say, but their word couldn't count as direct evidence, and he could always dismiss it as slander. As for the ship's nav logs, he'd deleted every one, wiped out anything that might leave a trace. And that fellow's ship, when it warned him, might have recorded some imagery — but he could simply explain that his ship truly had been damaged, and that, as ill luck would have it, this fellow had chanced upon him while he was making repairs.
Good… good… everything… all of it, no problem…
Nothing would go wrong.
"Hello — let's get properly acquainted. My name is Chu Xuan, commander of a small imperial-navy fleet." Chu Xuan greeted Zhao Chen with a smile.
Zhao Chen rolled his eyes inwardly.
Your rank is colonel.
Yet you have a one-star brigadier under you?
Who'd believe you're only the commander of a small imperial-navy fleet.
"Mm." Zhao Chen made a noncommittal sound.
Chu Xuan gazed into the ship workshop, and saw the Blizzard Zero under repair, and the other carrier starship.
"This one's called Blizzard Zero; and the other carrier starship — what's it called?" Chu Xuan asked warmly.
"The Queen Bee-class Heavy Carrier Starship," Zhao Chen answered.
"Queen Bee? A name I've never heard. These two ships of yours — I searched the whole ship database and couldn't find either one." Chu Xuan blinked, asking in her curiosity.
Zhao Chen said, "I wouldn't know."
You wouldn't know?
You don't know your own ships?
This fellow's manner toward her truly was cold as anything.
Tramp, tramp, tramp, tramp.
Just then, a dense clatter of footsteps came.
People in clothing marked with a black-fox design came turning in from a corridor in the distance — a full 300 or 400 of them, each with some manner of weapon in hand, even laser rifles among them!
But the next second, they were dumbfounded.
For a squad of imperial-navy soldiers, under 30 in number, had already settled into stance, the muzzles of their laser rifles trained upon them.
In that instant, the very air seemed to fall still.
"This… what's going on here?" The Black Fox Society's lead small-boss was dumbfounded.
How were there imperial-navy soldiers here?
"What's this about?" Chu Xuan, seeing these people, read that they'd come for Zhao Chen.
"Troublemakers," said Zhao Chen.
"These would be the Black Fox Society; you've crossed them?" Chu Xuan asked, curious.
Zhao Chen swept a cold glance at the Black Fox people in the distance. "It's that they mean to snatch my soldiers."
The Black Fox people in the distance were, at this moment, beginning to withdraw, gingerly.
"Hey — you there in front, come here." Chu Xuan suddenly pointed at a plainly higher-ranking small-boss among the Black Fox crowd.
The small-boss's face went white; he'd seen Chu Xuan too, and seen that golden-character crest of hers.
He didn't dare leave now.
He could only steel himself and walk over — and caught sight, too, of his underling Wang Qiang standing there in a daze.
What was going on with that fellow? He'd plainly reported that here was the one who'd carried off the succubi — so why were there imperial-navy soldiers here as well!
Wang Qiang, for his part, felt himself much wronged. After the imperial navy appeared, he'd meant to send a message telling the Black Fox people not to come — but that officer called Xiao Song had turned his gaze straight onto him. One sweep of it, and he'd given up that little scheme.
"Speak — why are you here?" Chu Xuan asked, arms folded.
The small-boss lowered his head, at a loss for a moment what to say.
"You won't tell me? Then I'll simply go ask your Black Fox Society's boss." Chu Xuan narrowed her eyes.
"Might I ask, officer… you are?" the small-boss ventured.
"My name is Chu Xuan; this is my friend. Bully my friend, and you bully me." Chu Xuan pointed grandly at Zhao Chen behind her.
Zhao Chen's mouth twitched. Since when had he become this venerable lady's friend?
Chu Xuan?
The golden-character crest?
Chu?
The Chu family!
Chu Xuan!
Something struck the small-boss all at once; his whole body gave a shudder, his eyes as though they'd beheld some flood-borne leviathan.
"You're of the Chu fam—" The small-boss, on reflex, was about to speak the woman officer's name — but the look in her eyes rendered him speechless.