In the face of incessant protests from the assembled crowd, Vice Admiral Tommy remained silent. He was waiting for his rivals, those who were indignant about his recruitment of Meng Hao into the United States, to voice their objections so he could dismantle them one by one.
The debate, which had raged for a solid half hour, finally began to quiet down. Vice Admiral Tommy, appearing entirely confident of victory, waited until everyone had spoken before calmly opening his mouth.
"I understand that many of you are unhappy about my recruitment of Meng Hao to the United States, feeling that I have stolen your credit. In truth, it has been nearly two years from when Meng Hao first rose to prominence until I lured him away. If you are so displeased, why have you not managed to secure Meng Hao during this entire period?"
His words silenced the room, which had been filled with hushed murmurs. Vice Admiral Tommy, it turned out, was no easy opponent. He could be discreet when necessary, but when he chose to be assertive, his words could command the attention of the entire assembly.
However, Vice Admiral Tommy was well aware that simply suppressing people's greed and resentment would not suffice. To truly win them over, they needed to become stakeholders in a common cause. Observing the silent, yet visibly defiant faces in the room, Vice Admiral Tommy continued at a measured pace.
"Based on my assessment, the Great Xia Kingdom has likely abandoned their demands for Meng Hao, or at least, they have little hope of getting him back."
"But why, then, is this fleet, equipped with two aircraft carriers and representing the pinnacle of the Great Xia Kingdom's naval power, lingering near Australia? Have none of you considered the deeper reasons?"
Deeper reasons?
Suddenly, everyone's curiosity was piqued by Vice Admiral Tommy's words. Their criticism of him was temporarily suspended. The high-ranking US officials began to offer their various opinions, their arguments largely centering on Meng Hao. They believed that the Great Xia Kingdom had not given up on finding Meng Hao, and that Australia was not a match for them. If the situation escalated, they reasoned, the Great Xia Kingdom would likely send troops, openly or covertly, to Australia to seize Meng Hao.
Previously, the Great Xia Kingdom lacked certainty about Meng Hao's precise location. Australia's vast coastline made it impossible for their fleet to search every inch. However, the recent establishment of a military research center on the Australian coast had given the Great Xia Kingdom a more than eighty to ninety percent confidence that if Meng Hao had been detained rather than defecting willingly, he would be held within this research base. It was highly probable, therefore, that the Great Xia Kingdom would launch a surprise attack on Australia.
This was a plausible scenario. If the United States could risk its national reputation to abduct Meng Hao, then the Great Xia Kingdom might not hesitate to raid the location where he was believed to be held. Both were major powers, and it was unreasonable for only the United States to be allowed to take such actions.
"Very well," Vice Admiral Tommy said. "Your discussions are all valid. However, I have my own perspective."
Vice Admiral Tommy, a master of understanding human nature, followed his previous display of dominance with a shift to a more humble tone, even offering a subtle compliment.
"Finding Meng Hao's whereabouts is only one of the Great Xia Kingdom's objectives. Another objective is that they may see this as an opportunity to break through the blockade imposed on them by our Western allies. After all, this provides an excellent justification – the search for a key scientific researcher of the Great Xia Kingdom!"
The US officials attending this high-level meeting were not fools. They had simply fallen into a cognitive bias, their thinking clouded by the issue of Meng Hao. Now, with Vice Admiral Tommy's reminder, they quickly came to their senses.
It was widely known that over a hundred years ago, the Great Xia Kingdom was impoverished and weak. While the Western powers were expanding their maritime territories and establishing their spheres of influence, the Great Xia Kingdom had not yet fully emerged. As the Great Xia Kingdom grew stronger, its desire for maritime influence became increasingly fervent. However, in the current, outwardly peaceful world, without sufficient justification, the Great Xia Kingdom had no way to breach the maritime blockade imposed by the Western powers—a blockade disguised with euphemistic terms such as respecting international maritime rights and jurisdictions.
This time, the United States' actions had thoroughly provoked the Great Xia Kingdom. They could seize this opportunity to challenge the Western powers' maritime blockade, transforming China from a regional land power into a global maritime power.
Since the United States had unjustly abducted Meng Hao and had no legitimate grounds to accuse the Great Xia Kingdom of "overstepping," if the gentle approach failed, a hardline approach would be necessary.
"Gentlemen, we are in the wrong this time! The leaders of all major countries are not fools. They know that we, the United States, abducted Meng Hao. It's just that either they lack evidence, or they are siding with us, so they won't expose us. Of course, the primary reason is the lack of direct evidence. However, even speculation is enough for the Great Xia Kingdom to use this as a pretext to break through our blockade. We currently have only two options: either return Meng Hao and appease the Great Xia Kingdom's anger, or conduct a joint military exercise with multiple countries to show our strength, and tell the Great Xia Kingdom that although the Western powers' strength has diminished over the years, we are still not a challenge they can overcome."
After Vice Admiral Tommy finished speaking, a profound silence fell over the room. The choice was stark: return Meng Hao, or expend significant resources on a joint military exercise. If they chose the former, it would not only suggest to the Great Xia Kingdom that the Western powers were weakening and afraid, but it would also utterly destroy the United States' credibility. If they chose the latter, refusing to hand over Meng Hao and merely conducting a show of force through military exercises would still be costly. Furthermore, even a military exercise would only temporarily slow the Great Xia Kingdom's pursuit of maritime interests. The abduction of Meng Hao had thoroughly angered them. It was likely that the Great Xia Kingdom would no longer choose to lie low, but would instead directly confront the Western powers.
"Gentlemen," Vice Admiral Tommy continued. "It is true that I invested considerable effort in recruiting Meng Hao. However, if you choose to abandon Meng Hao and seek forgiveness from the Great Xia Kingdom, I will comply with the majority decision."