After doing what she wanted to do, in the following few days, Su Mi didn't think about Meng Xi-cong anymore. Instead, she had been inquiring about Ling Zheng's whereabouts from the mayor's mansion.
However, the universe was vast, and it was as if this person had disappeared without a trace, neither alive nor dead could be found.
It wasn't until three days later that You Mo-nian invited her to his office again.
Unlike their last meeting, he seemed to have a bit more of a worried look on his face. When he saw Su Mi, he gave a kind and gentle smile: "I called you here to let you meet someone."
Su Mi's heart skipped a beat. A deep voice came from behind her: "Xiao Mi."
She paused for a moment before turning to look at the person who had come. There was a strained smile on her face: "Brother Li."
If a detector could be installed in her heart, it would be found that beneath her seemingly calm and somewhat dull exterior at the moment, her emotions were fluctuating violently.
Why was Li Xi-zhong in the mayor's mansion?
Could he be a double agent?
Recalling that she hadn't said anything explicitly about rebelling to him, her heart calmed down a little.
Li Xi-zhong was still the same as before, looking simple and honest, but with dark circles under his eyes and a tired look on his face. He walked forward, hugged her into his arms, and let out a sigh.
This sigh was so full of emotion that even You Mo-nian, looking at the two of them embracing, showed a gentle look in his eyes.
Su Mi stared at him: "Why are you here?"
Li Xi-zhong had a solemn look on his face: "Something happened on the ship."
The three of them sat down. Li Xi-zhong briefly explained the reason, and You Mo-nian added a bit of explanation. Su Mi was horrified and her expression changed greatly as she listened.
It was said that as the confidant of Captain Lian Duo, Li Xi-zhong had recently noticed that his behavior was abnormal. He had been using a confidential channel to communicate with someone, but it wasn't known with whom. By chance, he overheard that Lian Duo was actually in contact with a mercenary force in outer space, discussing the rescue of Meng Xi-cong who was imprisoned on Hope Planet.
As a soldier loyal to humanity and the Alliance, Li Xi-zhong found it difficult to be loyal to both sides. After painful consideration, he made a very difficult decision – to tip off the mayor. However, when the Alliance army planned to board the War Phoenix under the pretext of an exercise to arrest Lian Duo, the news leaked out. Lian Duo took a few confidants, rebelled on the War Phoenix, and escaped by space-jumping in a Cheetah. Before leaving, he left a letter to the Alliance, proclaiming, "Since you are unkind, I will be unrighteous. Lian Duo hereby swears allegiance to Meng Xi-cong."
"Now then..." Su Mi glanced at the somewhat uncomfortable Li Xi-zhong. "What if the news of Meng Xi-cong's capture has spread? What should we do?"
You Mo-nian had a resolute look on his face: "Even if I have to offend all the mercenaries in the universe, I will make him stand public trial."
The three of them fell silent.
Su Mi was now absolutely certain that You Mo-nian was truly an upright and good man. He possessed all the fine qualities of humanity. This thought made Su Mi feel a bit uneasy.
She couldn't figure out how much of what Li Xi-zhong said was true and how much was false. Since Lian Duo was loyal to Meng Xi-cong, he should have been in the same camp as Li Xi-zhong. Why was he betrayed instead?
But if Li Xi-zhong had betrayed Meng Xi-cong, why was he acting out a play with her?
Recalling Lian Duo's character, a clue suddenly came together in her mind – Lian Duo had joined the regular army from the mercenaries years ago for the sake of his relatives. Although he was rough and violent, he was a man of his word. If he really wanted to rescue Meng Xi-cong, he would probably have directly resigned from his post and petitioned the Alliance instead of doing something like "plotting a rebellion through a secret channel".
So –
Lian Duo had been forced into rebellion by Li Xi-zhong's design.
She looked at Li Xi-zhong, who was "feeling guilty for betraying Lian Duo" beside her, and then at You Mo-nian, who had a solemn look on his face.
Well, now You Mo-nian completely believed these two guys with ulterior motives.
But it was okay for Li Xi-zhong to set up Lian Duo, but why did he come all the way here to You Mo-nian's place? Surely he wasn't planning to break into the prison?
The answer was revealed when she returned to the hotel.
The two of them walked back to the hotel where Su Mi was staying like lovers. As soon as they entered the room, Su Mi shook off his hand. He then immediately inspected the room for a week and only relaxed when he found that there were no eavesdropping or surveillance devices.
"You're quite loyal to him." She said.
Li Xi-zhong smiled: "It was only a matter of time before the commander forced Lian Duo to rebel."
Su Mi was stunned for a moment before realizing that the "commander" he was referring to was Meng Xi-cong.
"What are you here for?" She threw him a pack of food. "You're not planning to break into the prison, are you?"
He glanced at her: "You're quite interesting."
She didn't understand what he meant.
After wolfing down the food, he let out a burp before slowly saying: "We received the news on the first day the boss was captured. You don't need to worry about this – I'm here to save you."
"Save me?"
"After you made that phone call, how could You Mo-nian let you off? If I didn't make this trip, I'm afraid you'd never be able to clear your name." He said, "Don't ask so many questions. At noon on the day after tomorrow, come with me to the military dock and leave in my Cheetah."
"To do what?"
"To go back to our space fortress."
In the following few days, Su Mi was on tenterhooks. She knew that Meng Xi-cong would surely escape, and when that happened, there would probably be another storm of chaos. And with her special identity, should she go with Li Xi-zhong or stay in the Alliance?
Li Xi-zhong, on the other hand, was much calmer. Besides sleeping on the floor in her room every night, he spent his days holed up in the room playing games, not giving away the slightest hint about how Meng Xi-cong would break out of prison the day after tomorrow.
Who would have thought that on the appointed day, early in the morning, You Mo-nian sent someone to look for Su Mi.
"See you at the dock at noon." Su Mi dropped this sentence and hurried away.
When she arrived at the mayor's office, it turned out that You Mo-nian was drafting the materials for convicting Meng Xi-cong. He asked Su Mi if she wanted to prosecute him. After considering for a while, Su Mi answered no.
"Although I hate him," she said calmly, "but no one likes to have that kind of thing put on public trial."
You Mo-nian stared at her fixedly: "You've always been straightforward. I never expected you to be so traditional at heart."
Just then, the phone on the table rang. You Mo-nian signaled her that she didn't need to avoid it and picked it up directly.
"Father." His voice was as deep as water.
Su Mi's heart tightened. The president of the Alliance? Lord You Lin-ju?
However, You Mo-nian remained silent, only his thick eyebrows furrowing deeper and deeper. In the end, he said firmly to his father: "He has broken the law and must be punished. I have sworn to uphold the authority of the Alliance's laws. Father, I will not let him go."
After hanging up the phone, he was silent for a long time before looking at Su Mi.
"My father scolded me for the first time." He smiled. "He told me not to provoke the mercenaries and not to cause him trouble. But I refused."
"Sir, I also want to ask, why are you so insistent?"
He looked at her, his expression firm: "Do you know that since I was a child, I've known that the Alliance's resources are scarce, and many poor people can't get enough to eat or wear warm clothes. And the important resources in the neighboring galaxies have always been occupied by the mercenaries. In the past, when the mercenaries broke the law and hurt people, the judges always turned a blind eye. Su Mi, if everyone is in fear for their lives, where is justice? Where are the Alliance's laws?"
Su Mi was silent for a while before saying: "You're right."
You are the heroic defender of justice and purity, while he is just a villainous marauder.
Near eleven o'clock, she bid farewell to You Mo-nian and silently left his office.
Walking along the long and narrow path of the mayor's mansion, she walked quickly towards the door. After just a few steps, she suddenly sensed something unusual.
She turned her head and saw the guards stationed every few steps all looking up, staring at the sky in surprise.
She looked up too and gasped.
The sky was blue and cloudless, a clear and sunny day. Except for eight black dots that had suddenly appeared in the farthest reaches of the sky within her line of sight.
Even at such a far distance, they were so conspicuous. There was no doubt that they were eight space fortresses, simultaneously appearing in the atmosphere of Hope Planet.
The entire Alliance only had fifteen space fortresses. And now, eight of them had gathered above just one planet!
Those quiet black dots suddenly gave off a terrifying threat. Her heart pounded like a drum, and an incredible thought came to her mind. To confirm this guess, she turned around and ran back to You Mo-nian's office. The guards didn't stop her when they saw her coming back.
As soon as she walked into the room, she saw You Mo-nian sitting quietly in the chair. The floating LCD screen on the wall had been turned on at some point. The code at the bottom of the screen was recognizable to Su Mi. It represented the image transmitted by the military's space lens.
On the huge wall, the massive black space fortresses looked vivid. Each surface was densely covered with neat rows of gun muzzles, dark and gloomy, indicating powerful lethality. Inside the huge fuselage, who knew how many Cheetahs and Xuefengs were hidden.
Above each space fortress, there was a thick silver-gray cross printed, shining with a dull light in the sunlight.
She walked up to the screen in a daze, pointed at the cross-like pattern, and asked in a trembling voice: "What is this mark?"
You Mo-nian took a deep breath and answered word by word: "Mercenaries."
"His forces..." So strong? Su Mi could hardly believe what she was seeing.
You Mo-nian nodded, with a hint of defeat in his voice: "The other planets in the Alliance refused to send troops. We only have three space fortresses."
"Then let him go." She said.
"Do you think it's that simple?" You Mo-nian paused and said, "The mercenaries haven't shown up in the Eternal Galaxy for five or six years. This time they're making such a big show. How could they let it go easily?"
Just then, the door of the office was suddenly pushed open. A team of guards walked in and quickly surrounded You Mo-nian.
You Mo-nian's face instantly darkened. Su Mi stared at the people who had come warily. These were the guards of the mayor's mansion, but they were now surrounding You Mo-nian. They could only have received an order from one person.