A week later.
Jiang Ye, looking exhausted, arrived at the conference room.
The officers flanking the conference table collectively stood up. Jiang Ye nodded slightly, and they all sat down with a rumble.
"Let's start clockwise," Jiang Ye said listlessly.
The officers spoke rapidly, standing up one by one to report the situation.
"The expansion of the burrowing bomb production has been successful. Yesterday, we produced twenty thousand burrowing bombs, and today's capacity can reach thirty thousand. Half are small burrowing bombs, capable of penetrating two hundred meters of ground, mainly used against the Gunt army's tunnels. The other half are large burrowing bombs, used to destroy the Gunt army's underground fortifications."
"The 74th Division has completed the cutting mission, capturing twelve thousand prisoners last night. We are currently unable to distinguish between military personnel and civilians among the prisoners. All have been scanned, and 25 enemy agents carrying intestinal bombs were shot. The rest are scheduled to be transported to the rear today via Line 18, with most of them handed over to the Valker unit."
"The 43rd Division discovered Gunt army underground fortifications in the Kanka region. They are massive, estimated to house five divisions. We plan to deploy probes today. Logistics has allocated us five thousand burrowing bombs, which should be sufficient."
"The Valker unit and the Rao Cheng Zhou unit have begun an engineering race, extensively building prisons and new cities to accommodate more Gunt people. Rao Cheng Zhou has stated his intention to receive fifty million Gunt people. Some minor warlords are seeking extraterrestrial loans to construct prisons and new cities. We have advised them against high-interest loans and recommended several alien banks."
"Sir, I would like to request leave."
Jiang Ye blinked, looking at the speaker, Division Commander Liu.
"Why do you request leave?" Jiang Ye asked.
"My wife's due date is the day after tomorrow. I'd like to go back and be with her," Division Commander Liu said with a smile. "Deputy Division Commander Chang can temporarily take over my duties; he is familiar with the unit's situation. Moreover, our unit's work for this period is basically completed. We captured five thousand prisoners yesterday and sent them to the rear overnight. There are no Gunt army armed forces or towns near our unit's stationed area, only some small ranches and villages."
"Leave granted. Go back for a month to be with your wife and child, Secretary Su." Jiang Ye looked at Su Yueming beside him. "After the meeting, prepare a red envelope for Division Commander Liu, from my account."
"Understood," Su Yueming nodded.
"Thank you, sir!" Division Commander Liu was overjoyed.
"Continue," Jiang Ye said.
"Multiple agents have transmitted messages, locating the Gunt army's underground bio-locust factories. Their production is enormous; the inventory within the factories alone contains approximately forty million locusts. There is evidence that the Gunt army is also accelerating the construction of new self-detonating dog factories, though their locations are not yet confirmed. We expect to carry out precision strikes on the confirmed factory locations this afternoon."
"Gunt army spies have been apprehended in multiple locations. We detained 312 yesterday, and 40 committed suicide during their capture, using methods such as poison fangs and internal bombs. Through interrogation, it has been revealed that the primary work of these spies is to investigate troop deployments and military facilities in various areas, attempt to bribe some local small units, and prepare to plan terrorist attacks."
"The space blockade of Wheeler Star has been completed. We have detected some alien ships with rather peculiar flight paths. Their initial trajectories were heading towards Wheeler Star, but upon detecting the military blockade, they quickly turned and fled. We infer these might be some interstellar smugglers."
"The first batch of 221 near-tropical military bases has been completed. 880,000 locally recruited troops and 100,000 of our reserve forces will be stationed there over the next two days. The reserve forces have begun assembling from the exile stars and Birong Star, and are expected to be fully assembled tonight. The first batch of 12 large star stations is under construction and is expected to be preliminarily completed in five days, put into use next week. The first batch of 5 mechanical soldier factories is being surveyed for sites. New planetary ring lines are being surveyed and are expected to commence construction within approximately two weeks."
The reports continued, with officers rising one by one to present their findings.
Jiang Ye listened with a blank expression; no one knew what he was thinking. Since the war began, Jiang Ye had seemed like a different person – taciturn, his emotions unreadable, completely lacking his usual warmth. The officers speculated that either Jiang Ye was overworked to the point of facial paralysis, or he was dissatisfied with the current progress of the war, or perhaps both.
In meetings a few days prior, the officers had been trembling, as the situation in many regions was not ideal, and Jiang Ye could erupt at any moment.
But in the last two days, the officers had relaxed. The objectives of the first phase of military operations had been achieved, and the situation on Wheeler Star was developing in a positive direction.
Some foreign war analysis magazines had published lengthy articles asserting that Jiang Ye's forces had effectively controlled Wheeler Star, likening the Gunt army's resistance to the death throes of a fish pulled from water and thrown ashore – its demise merely a matter of time.
The meeting concluded quickly. Jiang Ye did not issue any new orders today, merely instructing the various units to proceed according to plan.
Jiang Ye left the conference room. After walking a few steps in the corridor, Su Yueming hurried after him with a patter.
"How much is the red envelope for Division Commander Liu?" Su Yueming asked.
"Six hundred and sixty-six thousand, six hundred and sixty-six yuan and sixty-six cents," Jiang Ye said. "Find two red leather suitcases, put the cash inside, and deliver them to Division Commander Liu."
"That much?" Su Yueming was surprised.
"I plan to establish a new army group on Wheeler Star, and I will promote Division Commander Liu to army commander in a few days," Jiang Ye said. "So this red envelope isn't that much. If he's smart, he'll soon guess he's about to be promoted."
"You publicly scolded him last week, making him unable to sleep at night," Su Yueming muttered softly.
"Scolding him was because his unit was undertaking an important mission, and he was undertaking an important mission because he is capable. That's the logic," Jiang Ye smiled. "It's like 'disliking the goods is a sign of wanting to buy them.' In ancient times, when apprenticing, if a master constantly scolded and hit you, it meant he hoped you would succeed. If a master ignored you, it meant he thought you were unpromising. Among so many officers, why don't I scold others?"
Su Yueming suddenly understood.
Jiang Ye returned to his office.
Cen Yemeng, wearing a casual white gauze long dress, sat barefoot behind the desk working. The light illuminated her profile, making her skin appear as tender as jade, a truly pleasing sight.
"Cen Zi will arrive in about half an hour," Cen Yemeng looked up. "When she arrives, husband, don't say too much. I'll handle her."
"Alright, I'm feeling quite tired these past two days anyway," Jiang Ye sat on the sofa, yawning. "How do you plan to handle her?"
"We'll reminisce about the past, no business talk," Cen Yemeng said. "We'll see when she gets here, play it by ear. I hope she's perceptive, and we can keep it civil, without falling out."
Jiang Ye scratched his head, feeling a bit dazed, not quite understanding why his wife harbored such animosity towards her younger sister.