Chapter 1505: We Should Proactively Show Weakness

Lanuosi Planet, Kusilei residence, main hall.

Kusilei was clutching a Data Pad in his hand; on the screen was a copy of the Tiezhua Fleet's final communication receipt.

It was sent approximately two standard hours ago, stating they had arrived at the Intercept position, were currently deploying formation, and were waiting for the target to enter engagement range.

Since then, the Tiezhua Fleet had not returned a single signal here.

Several staff officers were rapidly verifying the records of various communication relay stations, but all results were the same.

After the Tiezhua Fleet arrived at the scheduled Intercept position, all signal sources vanished simultaneously.

The indicator lights for the encrypted lines on the side of the communication console lit up at once; Kusilei turned around and saw the access request icon flashing on the holographic projection screen in the main hall.

After pressing the connect button, five translucent blue human silhouettes rose on the screen simultaneously.

Tuermeng spoke as soon as the communication was connected.

What exactly is going on with the Tiezhua Fleet? I haven't been able to contact them for two hours now. What is the meaning of the message you just sent? Lost contact? How could one hundred and forty warships lose contact without leaving a single trace?

Talian spoke next.

We just transferred the second installment of the payment; the moment the money arrived, their communication cut off. Kusilei, could it be that they took the money and ran? Although Tiezhua had a decent reputation in the past, they are mercenaries after all, and integrity is the least valuable quality.

Walan's brows were tightly furrowed.

The money from my side was just transferred; if Tiezhua has run off, my military industrial orders and shipbuilding progress are all finished. You must give us a clear explanation—where exactly did Tiezhua go?

Herman said in a hoarse voice.

"Although the money I put in isn't much, it's not a small sum for a small territory like ours. If Tiezhua really has run off, you must have a contingency plan."

Leien stood at the far right of the projection and spoke.

Kusilei, you guaranteed their reliability when you recommended Tiezhua to us. Now that the fleet has gone missing and communication is cut off, we need to know what exactly happened at the shipping lane junction on the edge of the Southern Border.

Seeing the five holographic images putting all the pressure on him, Kusilei said impatiently.

Tiezhua's communication has indeed been cut off, and there is still no response at this moment. The information I have now is the same as yours: two standard hours ago, they sent their final confirmation of arrival, and after that, no further signals were emitted.

Talian raised his voice.

So you're saying you don't know anything either? One hundred and forty ships just vanished, and you don't even have a guess?

Kusilei said.

The scale and quality of the Tiezhua fleet are plain to see; even if they encountered reinforcements from the Central Army, they should at least have been able to send a distress signal or a battlefield report.

Furthermore, Tiezhua has an old fox like Fafeili leading the team; it is unlikely he would gamble his reputation, built over decades, just to run away. A fleet of one hundred and forty ships is not a small-scale formation; to cross the border and enter other regions, they must pass through at least three transit nodes, and every node has records that can be checked. If they really had run off, we would know."

Talian said impatiently.

"Then what exactly happened to them? You say they didn't run, then how did they lose contact?"

Kusilei said.

"I have already arranged for a second scout ship to carry passive sensors to the outskirts of the shipping lane junction for long-range scanning; if a large-scale engagement occurred there, there will always be residual energy traces left behind."

"Engagement?"

Walan's voice rose by half a tone.

"You're saying Tiezhua might have gotten into a fight with someone? We wanted them to intercept the Central Army; if Tiezhua was wiped out by the Central Army, then hasn't the Central Army's fleet already passed through the shipping lane junction and pushed into the hinterland of the Southern Border?"

Tuermeng interrupted Walan.

"If the Central Army had already passed through the junction, we would have received an alert from the border outposts. There hasn't been one yet, which means the situation at the junction is not yet clear; regardless of whether Tiezhua was wiped out or lost contact, at the very least, they delayed the Central Army's schedule there."

Kusilei nodded.

"That's right. No matter what state Tiezhua is in now, the Central Army fleet has not appeared within the sensor range of the Southern Border hinterland as of today, which shows that the threat from the direction of the junction has not yet been lifted."

As he finished this sentence, a burst of hurried footsteps came from the entrance of the main hall.

It was the Intelligence Officer responsible for intercepting intelligence from the direction of the Imperial City; he was clutching a notice document that had just been printed.

"My Lord... His Majesty Kesi has just issued a public notice to the entire Imperium. The content of the notice... is about a battle at the shipping lane junction on the edge of the Southern Border."

Kusilei's brows twitched, and he reached out to take the notice document.

Kusilei's gaze swept rapidly from the first two lines to the main text.

Kesi claimed that the Imperial Central Army and the fleet of the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance conducted a joint operation at the shipping lane junction on the edge of the Southern Border, successfully annihilating a mercenary armed force that had attempted an interception.

The notice did not mention the name of the Tiezhua Fleet, nor did it mention any details about the Central Army's vanguard fleet being besieged.

It only used a few lines of standard official war language to describe this battle as a successful encirclement operation, leaving a paragraph at the end.

The Imperial military and the allied forces of the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance have completed the first round of clearing out the rebel forces in the Southern Border; the remaining holdouts will face the same treatment, with absolutely no room for negotiation.

Kusilei slowly placed the notice document on the table and said.

"Kesi and the fleet of the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance are already at the edge of the Southern Border. Tiezhua was eaten up by them working together; the 'remaining holdouts' mentioned in the notice refers to us."

Talian became panicked.

"The Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance fleet is here?! Kesi joined forces with the people of the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance to take out Tiezhua?! Then what do we do now?"

Walan followed up immediately.

"Our entire Intercept plan was built on the premise that Tiezhua could hold off the Central Army for three days. Now Tiezhua is gone in just over two standard hours, and our ships haven't even finished assembling!"

Herman said in a low tone.

"The Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance fleet arrived too quickly. Nearly five days faster than expected. We didn't cover the shipping lane they took with our intelligence network, which means our preparation time has been cut by nearly half."

Kusilei looked at the holographic images on the table, calculating rapidly in his mind.

Tiezhua is gone, five billion has gone down the drain, the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance fleet has arrived, and the ships of the various nobles in the Southern Border are still in the middle of refitting and assembling; no single house has any chance of winning against the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance fleet alone.

The only cards he has left to play now are the total forces of each territory that have not yet been exposed, but these forces need time to concentrate, and time is no longer on his side.

He opened his mouth, just about to speak, when Tuermeng in the holographic image spoke.

"The Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance fleet has already arrived at the edge of the Southern Border. We only have two choices left: either take a step back and proactively show weakness before the Xiuluo Holy Star Alliance enters the Southern Border hinterland to buy time.

Or pull out all the fleets from the various territories that haven't finished assembling, have a decisive battle with them at the border, and gamble that our total troop numbers and home-field advantage can overwhelm them."

Talian retorted.

"Show weakness? Tuermeng, are you saying we should admit defeat? The notice from Kesi says 'absolutely no room for negotiation'; do you think he will let you go if you take a step back?"

Walan chimed in.

"If we engage in a head-on battle, our warships haven't finished retrofitting yet, and our ammunition reserves aren't enough to sustain a prolonged conflict."

Herman coughed twice.

"Both choices carry risks. Showing weakness might lead to us being picked off one by one, while fighting head-on doesn't offer much chance of winning."

Kusilei listened to the four of them arguing, then spoke up.

"We should take the initiative to show weakness, and use this time to rapidly assemble our forces."

Tuermeng nodded and said.

"Fine, I will start making arrangements on my end."

Talian said in a gruff voice.

"Then we will do as you say."

The others all agreed, then the communication cut off, and they began their respective acts of showing weakness and begging for mercy to stall for time.