Chapter 83

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Chapter 83: Strategic Commander

The sea breeze felt sticky against her skin, and the air was heavy. Dark clouds loomed over the distant sea, signaling an impending storm.

Luo Yu stood at the edge of the aircraft carrier’s flight deck, gazing at the gloomy ocean, recalling the vibrant, azure sea she had visited with Mo Chuan in the Ponsuo Tribe. It was lively and colorful, unlike the lifelessness surrounding her now.

However, she felt no despair at the sight. Nature, like the initial humans, possesses strong adaptability and self-healing abilities. As long as they rid the world of the self-righteous pests, one day this world could regain the deep blue oceans like those in the Ponsuo time period.

She was determined to recreate the beautiful world she once saw before the end of this time cycle arrived.

Just then, a drop of water landed on her cheek. She raised her hand to feel it, followed by another drop, then two more, splattering on her arm. It had started to rain.

She was about to turn back when she suddenly felt a shadow overhead. The rain that had been falling steadily ceased; Zhu Huai approached with an umbrella. “Why are you staring? Can’t you see it’s raining?”

Luo Yu smiled lightly, turned, and walked inside with her. On the way, she listened to Zhu Huai talk about some news she had seen online.

It had been two days since the Federation was attacked from the air. Both the Southern Federation and the Western Federation had officially declared their independence, elected new presidents, and issued a series of martial law orders. Their armed groups had also moved to the borders. The Federation was now completely falling apart, and its previously planned external developments had all been shelved. The various conglomerates had to renegotiate their spheres of influence.

Due to the Federation’s disintegration, the Northern Continent had sent messages for two consecutive days regarding the Poli Port incident without receiving any response. Naturally, the disbanded Federation could not take responsibility for past matters. The former presidential office remained inoperative, and insiders reported that the former president had fled overnight, his whereabouts currently unknown.

The Eastern Federation, which had been controlled by the Euyun family, was originally the site of the former presidential office. Now, the populace was voluntarily pushing for elected autonomy. The independent Southern Federation and Western Federation had no responsibility for the Poli Port incident and were tacitly pretending to be deaf and mute, with the new president not commenting on the matter at all.

For years, the Northern Continent’s agents had incited internal strife within the former Federation. Now, with nowhere to vent their anger, they declared war on the Eastern Federation early this morning, aiming to seize the Euyun family’s mining industry in the East to recover their losses.

"Wow, things are getting livelier," Luo Yu said lightly.

Zhu Huai nodded. "The more chaotic the situation, the harder it is to keep the Poli Port incident under wraps. Instead of hiding it, it’s better for everyone to be informed and prepare early."

Since various countries had advanced in the development of nuclear weapons over the past few years, the world had not grown peaceful; rather, local frictions escalated. To prepare for the potential of large-scale warfare, countries had begun constructing various underground bunkers for refuge, including civilian high-rise buildings. In recent years, it had also become popular to have multi-level underground garages equipped with air-raid shelter capabilities. Besides city-planned refuges, there were also relatively inexpensive commercial shelters for sale; many households bought them for storage.

Now with chaos erupting outside, alert people should have started preparing.

Luo Yu and Zhu Huai chatted as they toured the ship, then headed towards their rest chamber. Along the way, they hardly encountered any crew members on the aircraft carrier. They had heard that everyone was in the central conference room, where Wen Yang and high-ranking officials from the Territorial Waters Convention Agency were holding a meeting to discuss future routes.

Due to the Federation’s troubles, the aircraft carrier needed to gather reports on the activities of surrounding cruisers regarding territorial waters while monitoring the spread of the nuclear leak from Poli Port, doing its best to slow the contamination.

The number of crew members on the aircraft carrier was originally small, most being multi-skilled. At this moment, aside from the personnel on duty at various positions, almost everyone was crowded in the central conference room for decision-making. That left only the two of them, the "unemployed wanderers," with time to roam.

Back in the lounge, Zhu Huai scooped some ice cream from the snack cart and plopped onto the small sofa. Just as she prepared to talk to Luo Yu about upcoming arrangements, Luo Yu picked up a tablet and tapped it twice, bringing up the sound of a video call.

Luo Yu moved to the edge of the sofa, placed the tablet on the small round table, and sat beside Zhu Huai. Soon, a smiling face appeared on the screen—it was Hu Jiao. "You two seem to be enjoying life! How’s the situation on your end? Safe?"

Luo Yu smiled slightly. "Safe. How about you?"

“Not too bad. The Personnel Department should issue a statement this afternoon,” Hu Jiao winked at them. “The Inspection Department has completed the search and evidence analysis of Jacob Euyun’s office. I’m betting the other two Federal seats in the Bureau Office are in jeopardy. Just wait and see the show this afternoon.”

Zhu Huai leaned back on the sofa, took a bite of ice cream, and observed Hu Jiao’s assured demeanor with a chuckle. "Are you trying to build suspense? Okay, we’ll just wait, but don’t let us down."

Hu Jiao grinned, "Got it! Enjoy yourself, Zhu Huai." After saying that, she ended the video call just as Wen Yang messaged them, informing them that the meeting was over and calling them to come eat. The two checked the time and realized it was already noon, so they stood up together towards the cafeteria.

They had lunch that day in the small lounge outside Wen Yang’s office, dining with Wen Yang, her secretary, and two ship captains. They discussed the current state of various countries’ territorial waters and several oceans.

Recently, the Territorial Waters Convention Agency headquarters had dispatched a fleet to test the spread of radiation protection agents across different seas. According to the latest reports, the agents had mostly covered the waters and countries between 50 degrees north and 50 degrees south, while the Poli Port location was at 60 degrees north. With the colder water to the north, the spread was still quite slow. Overall, although the leak was severe, the impact on global public health remained manageable.

Wen Yang was also considering whether to report the radiation protection agents matter to the World Unity Organization to stabilize public sentiment. However, the two captains had differing opinions, thinking it was best not to publicize it just yet.

At that moment, Luo Yu put down her utensils and wiped her mouth. "I also think we shouldn’t announce this; after all, this agent only works on those with the X chromosome and has a body fat requirement. Not everyone can produce antibodies. If we announce it, those who can’t produce radiation protection antibodies might cause trouble. It won’t stabilize public sentiment but could make things even more chaotic."

Wen Yang nodded in agreement. "That’s a valid point, Luo Yu. I’ve been hesitant about this too. Let’s put this matter on hold and reassess the situation later."

They then casually chatted about recent news from various countries, finishing their meal. Afterward, Luo Yu and Zhu Huai returned to their rest chamber, waiting for news from the Space Administration.

The two relaxed on the sofa for a while. Around three o’clock, the tablet on the table rang. Luo Yu picked it up to see it was a message from Hu Jiao. After connecting, the two leaned in front of the tablet to watch, discovering the scene unfolded in the Space Administration’s auditorium on the ninety-ninth floor.

Upon seeing this, Luo Yu immediately understood that Hu Jiao was using the shielding-invisible camera she had brought back from the Ponsuo Tribe. The angle showed a few directive officers from the Bureau Office already present at the main seat in the auditorium, and the audience was not large—comprising key figures from the Bureau Office and various divisions of the Space Administration. This was a small but grand appointment ceremony.

It seemed the Personnel Department had already issued documents, but since they had separated from the Space Administration, they hadn’t received the internal documents. Given the current chaotic circumstances, the Bureau Office decided not to follow the usual announcement process and instead held the ceremony immediately after the issuance of documents.

After a while, as all the personnel arrived, the secretary of the Bureau Office announced the first appointment: to appoint the head of the Inspection Department and the Time Bureau’s Executive Officer, Zhu Long, as the Strategic Commander of the Bureau Office. Once the secretary finished reading, the screen at the front displayed both the position name and Zhu Long’s real name, Jiang Jing.

Zhu Long then slowly walked onto the stage from the side, dressed in black. A purple light flickered in her right eye as she stepped to the center and paused.

The chief directive officer of the Bureau Office had already taken the stage to present her with the appointment certificate. After receiving the certificate, she shook hands with the chief directive officer and then walked over to sit at the side at the Bureau Office’s position.

At this moment, Luo Yu noticed that among the seven seats in the Bureau Office, aside from the chief directive officer’s position, which was empty due to the person being on stage, two others were also vacant—likely the two seats formerly held by the Federation.

Once Zhu Long sat down, the secretary read out the next appointment: to appoint the leader of the Time Bureau’s Shan Hai Jing as the Executive Officer of the Time Bureau. The screen displayed her position title, followed by her real name, Hu Jiao.

Soon, Hu Jiao appeared on the screen. She wasn’t wearing formal attire today; instead, she wore vibrant, bright red sportswear, which made the occasion lose some of its solemnity.

Luo Yu observed the chief directive officer’s faint frown but didn’t say anything. She picked up the appointment certificate prepared nearby and handed it to Hu Jiao, who accepted it with a grin and gave a salute.

In a setting where the ceremony emphasized a cult of power, Hu Jiao’s rebellious outfit was full of mockery and disdain for the power structure in Luo Yu’s eyes.

If this appointment ceremony had been more public and less hurried, her attire certainly would have warranted a change; however, given the tense situation, it was clear that such details had been overlooked.

After Hu Jiao received her appointment, the secretary continued: "To appoint Ying Zhao, head of the Time Bureau’s research team, as the Science Advisor of the Time Bureau.” The screen then changed to show Ying Zhao’s real name, Yan Yi. At this point, Ying Zhao walked up from the side nonchalantly, accepting the appointment certificate handed to her by the chief directive officer.

This role was no surprise for Ying Zhao; she should have been appointed last year, but at the time, an old scientist closely tied to Fuxi had monopolized the research team’s leadership position, frequently launching inexplicable criticisms of the Yan Yi matrix theory. Even after being refuted by Ying Zhao, he remained seated at the scientific advisor position. Now, with Zhu Long’s intervention, the research team had become much cleaner.

Subsequently, there were a series of personnel announcements that they carefully listened to. Zhu Long had arranged these promotions thoughtfully, adding a well-qualified confidant as her deputy and ensuring that one of her trusted aides took over the Inspection Department. At that moment, she truly secured her position within the power structure of the Space Administration.

This appointment ceremony revealed numerous personnel changes and lasted for over two hours. After it concluded, there would be a high-level banquet. Luo Yu guessed that Hu Jiao would contact them later to discuss the details behind the appointments and the issue of the two missing Federation seats.

As they closed the video, while discussing this matter, a sudden knock came at the door. Luo Yu stood up to open it and found Wen Yang standing there, holding a document. "Is this a good time?" she asked with a smile.

Luo Yu smiled and stepped aside to let her in. Zhu Huai quickly stood up as well. Wen Yang leisurely walked over to the sofa and placed the document on the table. “The Special Operations Department has tracked down the culprits behind the three air raids in the Federation. The wanted notices have been issued.”

Both of them quickly leaned forward to look at it. Sure enough, it was the Special Operations Department’s highest-level global wanted notice, signed by the Deputy Director of the Special Operations Department, Yao Chi. It listed the major suspects in the Federation’s air raids: former executive team members of the Time Bureau, code names Luo Yu and Zhu Huai.

A small note below stated: "Due to the theft of Personnel Department files from the Space Administration, the true names and nationalities of these individuals are unknown. A substantial reward is being offered for relevant information.”

After reading, she placed the wanted notice on the table, laughing, “They’re looking for Luo Yu. What does that have to do with me, Wen Jing?”

The woman standing next to her chuckled while stroking her short hair. “Then Zhu Huai has even less to do with me, Xue Zheng.”