Chapter 715: Rescue (Part 2)
Maudo was also enraged, as the Blue Whale was attacked, and he lost the most supplies.
"Calm down."
Long Ming appeased him.
"How can I calm down, our ship was bombed, everyone's supplies are gone, and the frontline supply has issues. If we don't fight them, they really think we're made of clay."
Luford retorted angrily.
"We can't fight, without proper justification we can't fight."
Long Ming dismissed it again.
Amilo also expressed his fury: "Council President Long Ming, that's not right to say, how is it without proper justification? It's obvious it was them, pretending to be interstellar pirates doesn't cover it up."
"I think they're not hiding it, but rather rubbing our intelligence in the dirt. What pirate group has level 5 ships and so many fourth-generation mechas? What pirate group dares to attack us? Especially on our route."
Meimikas said with deep resentment.
"But have you considered why they disguise as interstellar pirates?"
Long Ming asked seriously.
For a moment, everyone was speechless.
"Although we know it was them, we lack solid evidence, starting a war would be unjustified. At the start of a war, morale might be high, but it will weaken over time. Meanwhile, the opponent's morale will definitely soar. We must remember that the Imperial Army is more battle-hardened and they even have one more member state than us. Do you think we stand much chance? Have you forgotten how the previous participants in the Heavenly Cup were defeated, how many died from this kind of issue, and there's another thing, we currently owe Star Ring City over 100 billion Star Coins in loans. The time to repay with interest is at the end of the year. If we go to war with the Imperial Army now and can't repay Star Ring City, are you planning to let Star Ring City deal with us?"
Long Ming's gaze swept over the people present.
"So what do we do? Just swallow it down? Our frontline troops are about to run out of supplies."
Luford asked through gritted teeth.
"How can we just let it go like that, this event is blatantly trampling on our bottom line, but we can't start a full-scale war. Since they like playing dirty, we'll play along."
A hint of coldness flashed in Long Ming's eyes as he spoke.
"What do we do?"
The people present all asked.
"My informants in major Empires have reported an important piece of news, the Imperial Army's supplies headed for the frontline haven't set off yet. Since they dare to make the first move, we'll dare to follow suit. We'll send out a large number of ships disguised as interstellar pirates, and as soon as their transportation ships leave Star Ring City's range, we'll attack them. If we can seize them, great; if not, we'll destroy them. If our frontline soldiers are starving, theirs can too. If we can't repay by the end of the year, neither should they. If they can't live well, then none of us will!"
Long Ming said harshly.
"That's right, let the Imperial Army know our might, our people didn't die in vain."
Luford almost shouted.
"I agree!"
"I agree too!"
...
The people present all expressed their stance.
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Three days later, in the Guardian Ship Command Room, Qian Chengxue and others gathered to discuss the current situation.
Among them, Su Mo piloted Shadow of Lightning, constantly escorting outside the Guardian Ship, but he participated in the discussions using the mecha's holographic projection.
Zi Qing began to briefly report the current situation.
"Our situation right now is not optimistic, most of the supplies we carried were loaded onto the transportation ships, the supplies on the Guardian Ship are very limited, and with so many people squeezed in, survival resources will soon become scarce."
"How far are we from the third station?"
Qian Chengxue asked.
"Back then, the Blue Whale left the third station using superluminal flight, traveling for about seven days. This Guardian Ship can't even achieve sub-light speed flight. If we rely solely on ourselves, it'll take at least a few months or half a year. The worst part is, to evade the pursuit of Imperial ships, we didn't dare escape along the main route, and now we've deviated significantly from it, making the actual journey back even longer."
Zi Qing calculated roughly, and said worriedly.
Su Mo, after hearing this, said with a headache: "That's too long, at this rate, we'll starve to death."
"Then we can only rely on calls for aid and rescue, but there's a big problem with that too. The communication capability of our escort ship is limited, and we can't directly contact checkpoint stations. We can only try our luck along the way, continually sending out distress signals via radar, hoping to run into a rescue fleet. But even if we do, the question remains whether they would prioritize rescuing us."
Zi Qing said less optimistically.
At this time, Qian Chengxue raised her head, her expression calm as she said: "Zi Qing, just navigate the ship as usual, search for rescue ships along the way, and I will come up with a solution for the rest."
"Alright."
Zi Qing didn't say much more, as this was the only option for now.
"Everyone, try to endure for a while longer with minimal food and water intake, I believe we can pull through."
Qian Chengxue addressed the group.
"Sister Xue, we believe in you."
Although Sun Li and the others were a bit downcast, they still lifted their spirits one by one.
"Alright, let's end the meeting here. Everyone, go rest."
Qian Chengxue said, as basically everyone, when they have nothing to do, would lie down and rest to minimize consumption.