Lianfeng understood what Ducao meant, but she still found it hard to accept. After all, this was the first time the Xiongbing Company was going into battle, and if there were any casualties, Lianfeng felt it wouldn't be worth it.
"General Ducao, although I agree with your viewpoint, I still think it's not worth it. If the Xiongbing Company suffers any casualties, our losses would be too great," Lianfeng said, firmly holding onto her belief that giving the Xiongbing Company more time to grow was more important than throwing them straight into battle.
"Lianfeng, the enemy isn't giving us any time. Ge Xiaolun and the others don't have time to grow slowly," Ducao responded.
Ducao thought Lianfeng was excellent in many ways, but sometimes she viewed things too idealistically. This might be because of her background as a scientist; without enough data, she was unwilling to take risks in experiments. But the battlefield wasn't a laboratory, and there was no such thing as a guaranteed victory in war.
"I still stand by my opinion," Lianfeng said stubbornly. She could be quite headstrong at times, and although she felt Ducao made a good point, she still believed her approach was the right one.
Ducao could only smile bitterly at Lianfeng's stubbornness. There wasn't much he could do to change her mind. "Alright, Lianfeng, what's done is done. Let's talk about the armor now," he said, not wanting to debate with her any further.
"Yes, regarding the armor, we can certainly manufacture it with our capabilities, but achieving the current level of performance is impossible. We don't have alloys of that strength," Lianfeng replied, shifting her focus to the technical issue. "However, we could work on making the armor more agile. If we can't improve its defense, we should try to avoid enemy attacks altogether."
Ducao, being a soldier, was less concerned with the technical details and more interested in results. "That's possible, but we need the armor for experimentation, especially regarding its energy source. Zhang Zheng's armor has quite advanced energy systems," Lianfeng added. She wasn't overly impressed with the overall technology of Zhang Zheng's armor, but she did find the new element reactor to be quite promising. The reactor was small in size yet provided a substantial amount of energy.
However, what Lianfeng didn't know was that the exceptional endurance of Zhang Zheng's Iron Armor was mainly due to the energy absorption capabilities of the vanadium alloy, not just the new element reactor. The reactor was good, but it was far from achieving the results Lianfeng imagined.
"Alright, I'll coordinate with the military to get a set for you," Ducao agreed to Lianfeng's request. At the same time, he stepped back slightly, as Lianfeng had unconsciously moved closer to him again.
"Xiao Zhang, what do you think the relationship is between Sergeant Lianfeng and General Ducao? I always feel like they're a bit too close," whispered a soldier named Xiao Wang, who was observing the interaction between Lianfeng and Ducao from the back of the command room.
"Brother Wang, haven't you heard? People say that Sergeant Lianfeng is pursuing General Ducao," replied Xiao Zhang, a technician, leaning in to share some gossip.
"Oh, so that's the kind of relationship they have!" Wang, a newcomer to the Juxia, was curious about the gossip surrounding Ducao and Lianfeng. He thought it was a shame that such a lovely woman as Lianfeng would be involved with someone who didn't appreciate her.
Wang silently lamented this, feeling it was a pity for Lianfeng. He could only imagine the situation based on what he had heard.
"Not quite, Brother Wang. You're new, so you might not know. I've heard from the veterans that it's actually Sergeant Lianfeng who's been pursuing General Ducao," Xiao Zhang quickly clarified, trying to defend Ducao's reputation. Initially, he too had suspected Ducao's character, but after observing for some time, he noticed that Lianfeng was always the one approaching Ducao, while Ducao seemed rather tense and tried to keep his distance.
"Bastard! How could the general reject someone as beautiful as Sergeant Lianfeng?" Wang exclaimed, feeling indignant on Lianfeng's behalf.
This is the advantage of being a beautiful woman—no matter what she does, it's the man's fault in other people's eyes.
"You think so too? A lot of people think the same," Xiao Zhang agreed, thinking that if Ducao weren't a general, there might be a lot of single men lining up to beat him up.
"Hey, are you guys talking about General Ducao and Sergeant Lianfeng?" Another soldier nearby overheard their conversation and joined in.
"Yeah, Brother Chen, we heard that General Ducao turned down Sergeant Lianfeng again, and we're feeling bad for her," Xiao Zhang explained, repeating the story for the newcomer.
"Xiao Zhang, your information is outdated. Last month, someone saw Sergeant Lianfeng leave General Ducao's office with a red face. She was in there for three minutes, which should be enough time for someone of Ducao's age," Chen, an old soldier on the Juxia, revealed, sharing a rumor that had been circulating. The incident had occurred when Ducao was planning negotiations with the angels, and a passing orderly had witnessed Lianfeng leaving Ducao's office, which quickly became gossip fodder.
"So spicy! Only three minutes though... Poor Sergeant Lianfeng," Xiao Zhang and Wang sighed in unison, lamenting the situation. They felt it was a shame that Lianfeng was paired with Ducao.
"Don't say that. I've heard General Ducao is an alien who's over 10,000 years old. Given his age, three minutes is pretty good," Chen said, trying to defend Ducao.
"Shocking!" Xiao Zhang and Wang exclaimed, surprised to learn that Ducao was so old. Their respect for him grew, impressed that at his age, he still had a beautiful woman pursuing him.
The trio's gossip wasn't heard by Lianfeng, but Ducao caught wind of it, and his expression darkened noticeably.
"General Ducao, are you alright? You don't look well. Should I call Yuqin to check on you?" Lianfeng asked, concerned, as she noticed Ducao's expression and stepped closer, reaching out to place her hand on his forehead.
Seeing Lianfeng's hand, Ducao quickly stepped back, putting some distance between them. "Sergeant Lianfeng, I'm fine. No need to trouble Yuqin," he said, not wanting Lianfeng to get any closer. The "three minutes" gossip from those youngsters was infuriating. He really wanted to grab those soldiers and give them a piece of his mind. How could they reduce him to just three minutes?
And so what if he's over 10,000 years old? Did that mean he had to eat their rice or steal their cabbages?
Of course, with over 10,000 years of experience, Ducao was far too broad-minded to actually hold a grudge against a few young soldiers. "Lianfeng, I'll submit your request to the military. You should get back to work," Ducao said, dismissing her while glaring at Xiao Zhang and the others.
The three soldiers who were caught gossiping nearly wet themselves in fear. They had been busted gossiping about their superior. What now?
They all glanced at the rank insignia on their shoulders, hoping they could keep them. At this point, they weren't even dreaming of promotion—they'd be content just to keep their current rank.
4o