After seeing Si Zhao step down from the starship, Cang Zhuonian and the other four, just like the rest, pressed their left palms to their chests and bowed toward the hatch.
Before Si Zhao’s arrival, Wu Zhengming had warned the Federation troops on Planet T05 that on the frontier planets and insect planets, they were not to call her the Empress.
But the five men didn’t dare address the Empress by her name, either, so they simply kept their mouths shut.
Fortunately, Si Zhao didn’t care.
She descended from the starship with her five imperial husbands, while Yunyang followed behind with her six beast husbands.
Cang Zhuonian was still looking down and hadn’t seen Yunyang’s face. Then, all of a sudden, he caught a familiar scent—
An ancient orchid fragrance tinged with a faintly bitter citrus note.
It was very faint, but there was no way it could escape the nose of an SSS-level Esper.
Cang Zhuonian thought he must have imagined it because he missed his Mistress too much. Otherwise, how could he possibly smell his Mistress’s scent on a frontier planet?
The moment Yunyang stepped off the starship, she spotted her little Qilin.
Seeing that Cang Zhuonian had no intention of looking up, she curled her lips into a smile without saying a word.
Si Zhao had met Cang Zhuonian before, but the Empress handled countless affairs every day. A male she had only seen a few times was hardly memorable to her.
So she noticed nothing unusual and merely ordered the five Federation soldiers, “Take me to see your commander.”
“Yes.”
Only then did the five men straighten up.
Cang Zhuonian could still smell that familiar scent, so after standing upright, he quickly glanced toward its source.
That familiar face entered his line of sight, and Cang Zhuonian’s eyes instantly widened.
It really was his Mistress!
Why was his Mistress here?
Cang Zhuonian frantically signaled to his six romantic rivals, trying to ask what was going on.
However… not one of his six rivals even looked at him. They simply followed behind Yunyang as she walked forward.
With Si Zhao right there, Cang Zhuonian couldn’t go up and question her directly. Helpless, he could only suppress the confusion and shock in his heart.
Together with his four comrades, he led Si Zhao and Yunyang toward the central command tower.
Once they arrived, Cang Zhuonian thought he would finally have a chance to speak with his Mistress. He took a step forward—
But Yunyang entered the tower with Si Zhao, without even letting her gaze fall on him.
Cang Zhuonian felt as though the sky had collapsed.
It hadn’t even been half a month, and his Mistress had already forgotten him?
He must be the beast husband who had lost his Mistress’s favor the fastest in the entire Federation.
>ᯅก
The little Qilin listlessly stood guard outside the command tower, so distracted that he didn’t even notice when his comrades called out to him.
His four comrades were utterly baffled.
Hadn’t they heard that Zhuonian was Yunyang’s beast husband? After being stationed here for so many days, shouldn’t he have been delighted to suddenly see Yunyang?
What was wrong with him?
Though they were curious about what Cang Zhuonian was thinking, the four comrades knew that some matters were none of an outsider’s business. Without a word, they left the command tower.
Inside, Wu Zhengming had handed battlefield command over to two deputy officers and was waiting intently for Si Zhao.
He had arranged for robots in advance. As soon as Si Zhao and Yunyang entered the tower, the robots immediately came forward to greet them and ushered them into Wu Zhengming’s office.
Wu Zhengming stood at the doorway, gazing out eagerly.
When he saw Si Zhao, he hurried forward to greet her. But upon seeing Yunyang right behind her, he froze.
Wu Zhengming first bowed to them both, then asked in surprise, “Your Excellency Yunyang, what brings you here?”
Yunyang smiled at him. “Sister Zhaozhao has agreed to let me accompany the Federation troops to the insect planet.”
Wu Zhengming looked to Si Zhao for confirmation. Only after she nodded did he step aside and bend at the waist. “Your Excellencies, please come this way.”
Under Wu Zhengming’s guidance, the two entered the office and took their seats in the places that had been prepared for them.
The meeting then turned to Wu Zhengming’s progress report.
“Over the past two days, all thirty-two Federation armies have selected the personnel who will be heading to the insect planet, and they’ve been arriving at Planet T05 one after another.”
“As of this afternoon, the personnel from every army have assembled.”
“In total, 729,621 Federation soldiers will be heading to the insect planet. Among them are eighteen SSS-level Espers, 5,371 SS-level Espers, and 63,457 S-level Espers. The rest are all A-level Espers.”
That number sounded enormous, but compared with the insect race, whose population numbered in the hundreds of millions, it was completely inadequate.
However, every Esper dispatched by the Federation this time was at least B-rank, and even B-level Espers had been excluded.
So while the numbers might be somewhat lacking, the quality was absolutely top-notch.
After finishing his report, Wu Zhengming asked, “What do you think of this arrangement?”
“The number of people isn’t the main issue. What matters is how we conceal our intentions from the insects on Planet T05.”
If the insects on Planet T05 learned of the Federation’s plan, the remaining insects on the insect planet would certainly make preparations in advance. They might even recall the insects stationed on all the frontier planets.
The insect race’s ability to traverse space was superior to that of heavy starships. They would definitely reach the insect planet before the Federation army.
If that happened, the Federation army would be placed at a disadvantage.
Wu Zhengming naturally understood this and had begun making preparations long ago.
“I’ve discussed it with the other commanders. Tomorrow night, all the Federation armies will launch an offensive on their own initiative to draw the insects’ attention. That will be the best opportunity for the Federation army to depart.”
There was nothing wrong with this arrangement. It was simply that, with every Federation army now missing part of its forces, they would likely be at a disadvantage against the insects.
But as long as they could successfully exterminate the insect queen, every sacrifice would be worthwhile.
“You’ll have full authority over this operation. I won’t interfere.” Si Zhao offered no suggestions. Since she had entrusted the matter to Wu Zhengming, she had to trust his judgment.
She had only one request. “Yangyang’s beast husbands will not participate in the extermination operation. Their sole mission is to protect Yangyang.”
She remembered that several of Yangyang’s beast husbands belonged to the Federation army.
Wu Zhengming thought for a moment.
Of Yunyang’s beast husbands, the three who had come from the Federation army had all been included on the roster. Besides that Zhuonian kid, there was the Qin kid from the Twenty-Third Army, as well as a healing Esper from Leo’s side.
What was his name again… Leonardo, was it?
“Yes. I’ll have the three of them return to Your Excellency Yunyang’s side shortly.”
Only then did Si Zhao rise. “Take Yangyang and me to our quarters.”
She hadn’t been idle during the journey aboard the starship, and now she wanted to get some rest.
“Yes.”
Wu Zhengming gestured for them to proceed and led Si Zhao and Yunyang out of the office.
Cang Zhuonian was still waiting outside the command tower, gazing at them with eager anticipation.
When Yunyang emerged with Si Zhao, he sprang to his feet and stared at her hesitantly, wanting to speak but not knowing how.
Seeing his utterly hopeless expression, Wu Zhengming’s lips twitched.
What a disgrace!
When Yunyang showed no intention of looking his way, Cang Zhuonian turned to Wu Zhengming and gazed at him imploringly instead.
“Commander…”
Wu Zhengming rolled his eyes. “From now on, you’ll stay by Your Excellency Yunyang’s side. Make sure you protect her. If anything happens to Your Excellency Yunyang, I’ll hold you responsible!”
Cang Zhuonian first lit up with joy, then immediately straightened and saluted with impeccable precision.
“Yes, sir! I guarantee I’ll complete the mission!”
Only after that did he eagerly join the group of his romantic rivals.
It was only after following Yunyang toward the temporary quarters that he belatedly realized what Wu Zhengming’s words implied.
Could it be that the commander meant… his Mistress was going to the insect planet too?!
