Counterfeit Hero-Chapter 697 - 83 The Price of Provocation
The Feiyang Republic remains a picture of tranquility.
In every city of this superpower, people follow the trajectory of life, living peacefully and comfortably.
In the ubiquitous forest parks of the city, elderly people stroll leisurely, breathing the fresh, cool air and admiring the picturesque scenes of red, yellow, and green intertwining patches. When tired, they sit on the benches or the smooth green grass.
On the freshly rain-washed streets of the neighborhoods, young mothers push baby strollers, with handles hanging with groceries just bought from the supermarket. When they meet acquaintances, they stop with a smile to greet and chat. Groups of students, three or five together, pass by them, joking and laughing, waving goodbye to each other.
On the streets, flying cars whiz past, some luxurious and some ordinary, carrying people of various identities as they shuttle back and forth. The shopping malls teem with people, with a dazzling array of just-released products. The giant virtual screen in the plaza garden plays the concert of the hottest band. Some tourists are busy taking photos at every meaningful place, smiling and freezing moments in time.
For the people of this country, war seems irrelevant. As citizens of the most powerful nation in the world, they have no worries at all. With Feiyang's strength and the cunning Hastings, what in this world could threaten their lives?
Apart from the formidable fleet standing off against the Binart Empire at the Karsdon Star River, the other wars around the world do not warrant attention.
The citizens of Feiyang are naturally proud. In human society, only the Binart people can catch their eye. Other countries have been the subjects of this nation's leadership for hundreds of years.
Whether to ally with or suppress them depends on Feiyang's mood. Throughout the universe, governments are supported by Feiyang. They are compliant and responsive to Feiyang's every request. A Feiyang passport allows one to travel anywhere and be met with absolute courtesy and attention. The Feiyang fleet, with its universal reach, along with a strong economy and national power, makes every citizen believe that this country is invincible. Whether in the past, present, or future, this nation will always be the leader of this world.
A vast convoy travels on the highways of the Feiyang Capital.
On both sides of this highway, two red lines extend, marking it as a special-use road, where no vehicle is permitted without special authorization.
Leading the convoy are twenty advanced flying motorcycles. Each motorcycle is nearly three meters long and one and a half meters high, with streamlined shells fitted with flat suspensors. Driven by twenty soldiers in upright Knight uniforms, all almost identical in height and build, they speed like the wind.
Behind the leading Knights are ten identical luxurious bulletproof flying cars. Surrounding them on all sides are dozens of armed Mecha escorts. Each flying car has two flags on its front: one is the Tri-color Republican Flag of the Feiyang Republic, and the other represents the Double-headed Griffin Flag of the Feiyang Military.
Hastings sits in the spacious cabin, looking at the towering Space City buildings fading into the distance behind the convoy, deep in thought and frowning.
Douglas sits opposite Hastings, keeping his eyes forward and maintaining the silence inside the car.
In his hand, he holds a document just transmitted from the in-vehicle encrypted communication device. This document contains detailed intelligence on the Leray situation from the Southeast First Expeditionary Army currently stationed in the Central Leray Star Domain. After reading this intelligence, Hastings has been silent for a long time.
After the conclusion of the Mezrich Battle, Douglas was re-assigned by the Military Department back to the Capital Hydefield and promoted to Vice Admiral. He now serves as Deputy Minister of the Army Staff Department at the Fei Alliance Joint Military Command. At under thirty years of age, swiftly rising to this level in the Feiyang of countless brilliant generals, he was indeed an anomaly.
Douglas knows that his promotion is largely due to the ultimate victory in the Mezrich Battle.
Despite Fiscella's fleet departure and the abandonment of six Feiyang Armored Divisions as decoys, he was able to defeat Stephen's Army, sweep through Jiacuo, recapture Tanville, and force the retreat of Reinhardt and the Desic Army. Such achievements are enough to silence any jealous detractors.
Fellow army officers, classmates from the Hydefield Military Academy, envious eyes, and celebration banquets replay in his mind like a movie. Douglas doesn't know how he got through those days. In others' eyes, he has already entered the ranks of Feiyang's great generals and is undoubtedly a leading figure among young generals. Yet, only he knows that without that Fatty, he would have faced a crushing defeat at Mezrich!
He was promoted to Vice Admiral, basking in glory. Meanwhile, that guy was demoted and disgraced, surprisingly ending up at Mars Free Port—news attached to the document just received.
As a passionate soldier determined to make his mark in this great era, Douglas truly cannot comprehend why people's fortunes can vary so greatly. While he has entered the Alliance Command Center, commanding troops with authority, that more talented Fatty remains caught in the chaos.
