"Ling Xiao!" The Third Marshal turned stern. He shouted, "Be mindful of your attitude!"
"What attitude do you want? Our soldiers have not given up hope and are fighting hard with the belief that their country will come and save them soon. However, we just sat here on our nice chairs and decided that it is not worth saving them?" Ling Xiao stood up suddenly and shouted angrily, "Marshal Yang, let me ask you, what attitude should I have when I talk to you?"
"Ling Xiao, do you think that I'm willing to abandon the lives of 280 million soldiers?" The Third Marshal slammed his table with his hands and stood up. "I'm the Third Marshal of the Huaxia Federation. I am responsible for not only for the lives of the 280 million soldiers on Planet Haijiao, but I'm also responsible for the lives of everyone in the Federation too."
The atmosphere of the conference turned tense. The viewing reporters couldn't help but hold their breaths.
The Third Marshal took the documents on the table and slammed them down. They landed on the floor with a loud thud. "Hundreds of spies sacrificed their lives in order to get into the intelligence bureau of Hailiya. They gave us the most accurate information they could on Planet Haijiao. They risked their lives to send out these pieces of intel. Why did they do it? They don't want any more soldiers to die needlessly on Planet Haijiao. Are you going to put millions of soldiers in danger just for your selfish desires?""My selfish desires? If it is up to my selfish desires, I would rather be fighting in wars instead of sitting in this high position. I'll rather be a passionate soldier with emotions rather than sit here and play with the soldiers' life as though they are chess pieces or just numbers. I'm not willing to be a cold-blooded politician!" Ling Xiao looked at the Third Marshal angrily and refuted, showing no signs of backing out. This was his true thoughts. Even if Ling Lan wasn't on Planet Haijiao, he still would not agree with this suggestion. There was no such thing as giving up in his dictionary.
When he said this, the young and hot-blooded reporters in the conference hall clapped enthusiastically in response to Ling Xiao's speech. If what the Third Marshal said was true, his decision would be saving the lives of millions of soldiers. But, deep down inside their hearts, they still had some hope. They knew that there were still soldiers fighting hard on Planet Haijiao now so they wished that a miracle would occur. If they gave up on the 280 million soldiers before everything was settled, it would be just too cold-blooded.
"Ling Xiao!" The Third Marshal pointed at Ling Xiao angrily. He almost fainted from his anger. Ling Xiao just wanted to save his son but he made it sound so righteous. He pretended to be a good man while picturing them as villains. How despicable of him.
"Marshal Yang, just like what was written on the document, 99% of the bases on Planet Haijiao had fallen. However, there are still 1% of the bases fighting. They are still waiting for reinforcements from the Federation. We mustn't give up on them even if there is only a little hope left. We can't betray those soldiers that are fighting hard for the Federation," Ling Xiao said.
"Ling Xiao, wake up!" The Third Marshal slammed his hands on the table and shouted in anger, "Do you think that those broken bases will be able to resist our Hailiya's attack for at least three months? If Hailiya took over the ownership of Planet Haijiao before our reinforcements arrive, our reinforcements will be regarded as invaders. Hailiya will then have the right to use their ultimate weapons like their god-class operators to literally massacre our reinforcements. You are a god-class operator, so you should know how powerful god-class operators are. Once such people appear on the opposite side of us, all our 100 fleets will be destroyed. Even if we send 50 times more manpower over, they will still be killed like chicken."
"My heart aches for the 280 million soldiers on Planet Haijiao too. However, we can't be emotional now. We need to analyze the situation logically. If we send in reinforcements when we know what the result will be a month later, that is not hot-blooded. That is just plain stupid!" The Third Marshal's expression turned cold as he said, "Ling Xiao, you must learn to get use to your position. You are not longer a mecha operator that fight in these battles. You are a general now. Your decisions will decide the lives of every single soldier in your division. Your decision doesn't just concern only you now, and acting rashly like this won't help with anything."
After he finished speaking, the Third Marshal disregarded Ling Xiao entirely and looked at the First Marshal. As long as the First Marshal accepted his suggestion, Ling Xiao's refusal wouldn't affect anything.The First Marshal noticed the gaze coming from the Third Marshal but he didn't say anything. Instead, he looked at Ling Xiao. He wanted to hear what Ling Xiao had to say. When the Third Marshal saw him staying silent, he cursed him silently in his head.
The Third Marshal's words dampen the spirit of all the reporters. They were just feeling excited after Ling Xiao's speech but the Third Marshal's reply was like pouring a bucket of iced water over them. Dreams are beautiful but the reality is cruel. There were only a few bases left on Planet Haijiao. Would they really be able to resist against an enemy that had an army that was ten or maybe a hundred times bigger than them? Plus, the bases also wouldn't have any constant supply of resources and weapons. How could they be able to resist attacks for three weeks? Based on their willpower? It seemed unreasonable.
After calming down, they all felt that the Third Marshal was right. His decision was a heartless and cruel one, but they had to be responsible for the lives of the other soldiers too. They couldn't let them die like this.
But… but… but… damn it! They still couldn't accept this! The reporters couldn't help but look at the stern-looking Ling Xiao. Even if the Third Marshal scolded Ling Xiao for being too rash and for him to not have the bearings of a general, they still hoped that General Ling Xiao would be able to persuade the marshals to send reinforcements to Planet Haijiao.
As expected, General Ling Xiao opened his mouth. "Emotional? Analyze the situation logically? Well then, can the Third Marshal analyze these battles for me?" Ling Xiao asked He Xuyang to pass the records he had prepared to the other generals and the three marshals.
"Star calendar year 179, the battle on Planet Aisuo. We had only two bases left on the planet but they still managed to resist for one month before the arrival of our reinforcements."
"Star calendar year 764, the Battle of Yamei. Our army forced themselves to resist against the attack of their opponents who had ten times the numbers than them for three weeks."
"Star calendar year 1016, the Battle of Rimoluo. Our army lasted for two months with only one base left."
"Star calendar year 1597, during the land clearing mission on Planet Haimo, we used one mecha clan to resist against the attack of a few million citizens on Planet Haimo."
As more and more past records of miraculous battles flashed on the screen, everyone saw the common factor between these battles were soldiers who didn't give up and they all managed to wait until reinforcements arrived.
The Third Marshal's face turned dark. Some people hated Ling Xiao for being so insistent. These battles were all unique and had some coincidence. The weapons during that era were not so powerful, so many miracles were created then. However, as technology improved, there were lesser and lesser miracles. No such cases had appeared for the past 1000 years. However, these examples wavered the hearts of those indecisive generals, including the Second Marshal who had decided to give up on his grandson.
"Data is just data. They have no emotions. Hence, there won't be any changes in them. However, our soldiers are not just data. They are humans with feelings. They are soldiers who can create miracles. Since history proved that miracles could be created, why can't we believe that our soldiers can create a miracle too?"
"Marshal Yang, how can you be sure that based on your data, the soldiers on Planet Haijiao are unable to resist for more than three weeks?" Ling Xiao questioned the Third Marshal, "In that case, I'll like to say my judgment on the matter too. I believe that the soldiers on Planet Haijiao will definitely be able to resist until our reinforcements arrive!"
"Ling Xiao, you are being ignorant!" The Third Marshal's face turned red in anger when he heard Ling Xiao's irresponsible speech.
"Ignorant? What a joke! I dare to make this judgment because I never treated the soldiers on Planet Haijiao as just numbers on a piece of paper. They are humans. They have a family too. They have desires to continue living. As long as they never give up, they can create miracles!" Ling Xiao said firmly.
"Miracles are just miracles. Looking back in history, not many people are able to create miracles on the battlefield. I will not risk the lives of millions of soldiers for a slim chance of a miracle!" The Third Marshal sprung up and shouted.
"Marshal Yang, why do you think that we shouldn't bet on it?" Ling Xiao stood up too and question the Third Marshal fiercely. With his status as one of the ten great generals and a god-class operator, Ling Xiao was not afraid of the Third Marshal at all.
None of them was willing to take a step back. The atmosphere of the conference turned tense. Just as Ling Xiao and the Third Marshal were about to kill each other with their gaze, the First Marshal coughed and started clearing up the situation. "We are all worried for our soldiers. No one is right or wrong. Ling Xiao, you are young and hot-tempered. How can you be so disrespectful towards Marshal Yang?" The First Marshal started reprimanding Ling Xiao. Many generals under the First Marshal laughed secretly. Ling Xiao was hot-tempered? This excuse was too insincere. Even some of the generals belonging to the Second Marshal's faction smiled. The Third Marshal's face turned green with anger. This sly old fox was outwardly helping Ling Xiao. Damn it.
"I'm sorry. I was too emotional just now. Please forgive me." Ling Xiao heard this and immediately saluted at the Third Marshal to show his 'respect'.
"Old Yang, Ling Xiao is still young so he acts rashly sometimes. Old people like us should forgive him and not be at the same level as him." The First Marshal spoke to the Third Marshal again. On the surface, he seemed to be reprimanding Ling Xiao for being insensible. However, he was hinting that the Third Marshal was not lenient enough and didn't have the bearing of a marshal. The Third Marshal's face turned hideous when he heard this.
Since Ling Xiao had already apologized, the Third Marshal had to reply to him. He said with frustration, "It's fine. He is making those mistakes because he is too concerned. Why would I be angry at him for that?"
The unhappy Third Marshal took this opportunity to blemish Ling Xiao's reputation again. He wanted everyone to know that he was just concerned about his son and not the other soldiers like what he had mentioned.
"I'm sure everyone has heard what Marshal Yang and Ling Xiao said. What is everyone's opinion on the matter?" The First Marshal scanned the generals on the screen and asked indifferently.
The Third Marshal looked at one of the generals in his faction. The general said, "What General Ling Xiao said is just a beautiful dream. However, reality is not a dream. To prevent more sacrifices, I agree with what Marshal Yang has said."
The other generals from the Third Marshal's faction agreed with this general. The Second Marshal closed his eyes and kept silent, so the other generals in his faction kept silent too.
The general of the 7th division looked at the other generals who didn't want to make a decision. He got furious. He said, "I admit that what Marshal Yang said is the most likely outcome. However, what General Ling Xiao said makes sense too. The most likely outcome is not 100% certain. As a general, I can't give up on my soldiers. I agree with sending reinforcements."
It was obvious that the General of the 7th division was supporting Ling Xiao. A few generals from the First Marshal's faction who had a good relationship with Ling Xiao supported Ling Xiao too. However, since the First Marshal didn't say anything yet, those generals that didn't have much interaction with Ling Xiao remained quiet. This caused the number of people who supported Ling Xiao to be lower than the number of people who supported the Third Marshal.
Qi Yaoyang wanted to say something in support of Ling Xiao but he saw Ling Xiao signalling him to remain silent, so he had no choice but to control himself.
The Second Marshal moved his finger and one of the generals under him finally opened his mouth, "I would like to ask General Ling Xiao a question."
Ling Xiao raised his eyebrows slightly. He nodded and said, "General Lu, please continue." He wondered what the Second Marshal's faction was trying to do. Ling Xiao was not so naive as to believe that the Second Marshal would side with him.
"You mentioned that you believe our soldiers can resist for more than three weeks until the arrival of our reinforcements. Can you provide any evidence to prove this point? A miracle… is not enough to make us believe in you." The general of the 8th division, General Lu, suddenly said.
The Third Marshal's eyes lit up. He was afraid that the Second Marshal would stand on Ling Xiao's side because of his grandson. But from the looks of it, that might not be the case.
