“Hello, fellow students. I am Rong Shi.”

One sentence captured everyone’s attention, silencing the boisterous classrooms in an instant.

Rong Shi looked straight ahead, his voice deep, steady, and unhurried.

“As you can all see, I am currently on the front lines.”

Woah!

A collective gasp swept through the classrooms.

Didn’t the Chairman go to the Imperial Capital Star for an exchange?

Something really did happen on the Imperial Capital Star!

Those with quick minds had already figured out eighty to ninety percent of the twists and turns.

Rong Shi: “I believe you are all aware of the situation on Xuefu Star. Troop mobilization and reinforcements take time. If we can hold out for the most crucial 24 hours, we can reduce casualties by more than 90%.”

The students in the classrooms felt their hearts stir, and they unconsciously began to hope.

Could it be that the Chairman could—?

As if hearing their thoughts, Rong Shi continued, “Most of us are not official soldiers, but in these special times, we can all contribute a little to our country. I can secure about a hundred spots. Students who are willing to join the expedition, please gather at Training Hall Number One within ten minutes.”

The video announcement was only a few short sentences. When the virtual screen went dark, no one in the classroom spoke for a long time.

Suddenly, someone stood up and strode out.

“Stop!” the teacher on the podium called out to him. “Where are you going?!”

The student: “To Hall Number One! I want to go on the expedition with the Chairman!”

Where there was one, there were two. Everyone in the class stood up one after another.

“We also want to go on the expedition with the Chairman!”

The teacher’s gaze swept over all the students, his expression serious. “This is not a drill. Do you understand what going on an expedition means?”

The student standing at the door turned around and gave the teacher a military salute. “If I can hide in peace while the enemy is at our doorstep, then I am not worthy of being a warrior!”

The teacher looked at the others. “Do you all feel the same way?”

In unison, everyone gave a military salute. “Yes, sir!”

The teacher took a deep breath. “Form up and move out!”

After turning off the video, Rong Shi suddenly remembered that this was not an internal mobilization of a legion; he couldn’t make the decision alone.

Although the Chairman had the authority, the school administration had to be informed.

Thinking that Qian Fan was the acting principal, he felt a bit of a headache and immediately sent a communication request.

The moment it connected, he was met with a barrage of scolding.

“You brat! You didn’t even tell me before making an announcement?”

Rong Shi’s face was expressionless, but he felt a little guilty. “I thought you would definitely support—”

“Support my ass!” Qian Fan was furious. “I’m going to be angered to death by you sooner or later!”

Rong Shi: “…Then I’ll retract the commu—”

Qian Fan: “Alright, we’ll talk when you get here!”

The screen went black. Qian Fan had hung up.

Rong Shi: “…”

Taking advantage of the half-hour when the enemy was being toyed with by 01, Rong Shi had his people contact the garrison to clear a path and have the military academy open a landing passage.

At the entrance of Training Hall Number One, the AI detected Rong Shi’s Chairman authority, and the door opened automatically.

The vast hall was packed with nearly a hundred thousand students, all with serious expressions, lined up and waiting for orders.

“Chairman.”

Chen Chen, Liu Hong, and the others walked over quickly.

Chen Chen: “How can we miss out on this kind of excitement?”

Liu Hong said gruffly, “Hurry up, I’ve been wanting to beat the crap out of those bastards for a long time!”

Hu Feng: “Count me in.”

Rong Shi looked at them, then at the vast formation that stretched almost to the end of the hall. The fighting spirit that had been worn down in him was rekindled a little.

The military command had been corrupt and divided for years, with too many powerful factions involved. The royal family had tried for years but couldn’t improve the situation.

Combined with the tragic outcome of his previous life, Rong Shi was utterly disappointed with such a military.

But now, it seemed there was still some hope.

Members of the student council ran over one by one.

Seeing Rong Shi look over, Wu Han hesitated. “The Vice Chairman, he—”

“Why even mention him?!” Liu Hong had a hot temper and flared up at the mention of Lu Ming. “He’s already a rebel!”

The empire did not practice collective punishment. Even if a father rebelled, the son would not be punished as long as he was not involved.

But Lu Ming had suddenly disappeared just before the rebels arrived.

Rong Shi was not surprised by this.

In his previous life, Lu Ming and his father, Lu Youqi, were staunch supporters of the First Prince.

Chen Chen: “It’s not just him. Many others ran off with him in the past two days.”

“That’s not our concern,” Rong Shi said calmly. “Let’s solve the problem at hand first.”

He found Qian Fan, who had rushed over, in the crowd and went to meet him.

Qian Fan’s face was grim. Before he could lose his temper, he saw Rong Shi give him a salute.

Rong Shi: “Thank you for your support.”

Qian Fan: “I haven’t even said anything, and you already know I support it?”

Rong Shi: “These students are your answer.”

He couldn’t even pretend to be angry. Qian Fan was both amused and annoyed. He stood on the high platform with him, his hands behind his back, and joked, “I finally climbed to the position of principal. Don’t you go causing trouble for me, you brat.”

Rong Shi chuckled. “Your position as principal, no one can take it away.”

[01: Master, the AI of all the small warships has been brought under control.]

Hearing 01’s prompt, Rong Shi faced the crowd, his voice transmitted to every corner of the hall through the loudspeaker.

“Are you all willing to go on this expedition with me?”

All the students clicked their heels together, their backs straight, and gave a military salute.

“Yes, sir!”

---

Commanders like Lin Yue and Lu Youqi successively discovered they had been tricked and exploded with rage on the spot.

“Bombard them!”

In less than twenty minutes, the protective shield was shattered.

A large number of fighters and mechas poured in. Even with the garrison resisting, many still broke through the defense and landed on the ground.

At the same time, Lin Quan looked at the one-sided public opinion on the internet and was very satisfied.

Almost everyone believed that the one who had rebelled was the Second Prince, Song Yu, and that he was representing the military to purge the rebels.

Everything was going very smoothly. Although it was many years ahead of schedule, the years of planning had not been in vain.

Qian Li and Qin Chi’s bunch of good-for-nothings were no match for him.

Lin Quan instructed his adjutant, “Have the ground troops find Ji Ming and bring him back as soon as possible. Get ready, I’m going to hold a live broadcast for the entire network.”

If Song Yu can use a live stream to create public opinion, so can I.

Adjutant: “Yes, sir!”

He changed into his most formal military uniform, pinned all his medals to his chest, and faced the camera confidently. “Citizens of the empire, I am Marshal Lin Quan. Please do not panic about the current crisis. The rebels have been completely brought under our control, and the rebellious Second Prince has also been captured. They will not pose any threat to the empire—”

The Lu father and son stood in the command cabin of the Ninth Legion, watching Lin Quan’s live stream.

Thinking that Rong Shi had picked the wrong side and would soon face failure, and even imprisonment, Lu Ming felt a secret thrill.

He opened the comment section, wanting to see if anyone was cursing Rong Shi.

But with just one glance, his pupils shrank, and his whole being felt unwell.

Comment Section—

“The real thief is shouting ‘stop thief.’ What a piece of crap. Get lost!”

“People even dare to live stream a rebellion these days? Hilarious.”

“The rebels have indeed been completely controlled. I’m talking about you, you old thief Lin.”

“The whole empire knows you’ve rebelled now. If you know what’s good for you, surrender quickly. I’ve never seen anyone so stupid.”

“Second Prince: I’m just sitting at home, and trouble comes knocking. I’m not taking the blame for this. [smiling]”

“You’re so old. Wouldn’t it be nice to go home and farm?”

Lu Ming’s mind exploded. His heart pounded, and an inexplicable panic made his fingertips tremble uncontrollably.

He quickly scrolled down and found that all the comments were surprisingly consistent, all of them attacking them.

Something’s not right!

Something is very wrong!

The image of the warship’s AI misreporting flashed through his mind. Lu Ming, not knowing what to think, randomly opened a social media platform. When he saw the live stream hanging high above, it felt as if his head had been hit by a hammer, and he was completely stunned.

The scene of Lin Quan’s live stream was itself being live-streamed.

The live stream room that Qin Luo had opened was竟然 still not closed. The camera was aimed at the enlarged virtual screen in the middle of the command cabin, and on the virtual screen was the live-streaming Lin Quan.

What was going on?! Wasn’t this live stream already cut off?!

Before Lu Ming could figure it out, he heard Qin Luo’s voice.

“Old man Lin is so confident, even trying to pin the blame on the Second Highness, tsk tsk… Everyone, just watch for fun. No need to go to his live stream to curse him. I’m afraid the old man has a fragile heart and will get depressed from your scolding.”

Comment Section—

“Shameless!”

“Seeing the rebels being so stupid, I can finally sleep peacefully.”

“The enemy needs a better programmer. They lost before the fight even started.”

“Our side’s technological level is a whole era ahead of theirs. It’s incredible. They’re being played for fools.”

“A war is about to break out, but I’m here laughing like a fool in bed?”

“Haven’t they realized their network has been hijacked yet? I’m getting anxious for them~”

“What’s going on?!” Lu Youqi, standing beside him, also noticed something was wrong, his face changing drastically.

Lu Ming had no time to deal with him. He entered keywords into the platform to search for related topics.

After scrolling down, both father and son were dumbfounded.

Where did all the comments supporting them go?!

Where did all the comments cursing the Second Prince go?!

Why was everyone cursing them?!

Lu Ming didn’t believe it. He opened several social media platforms one after another, but no matter which one, the public opinion was surprisingly consistent.

No one was supporting them.

In fact, the information war Lin Quan had spoken of was nowhere to be seen. The reality was the complete opposite!

“There’s a problem with our network.” Lu Ming’s face was ashen as he slumped into a chair. “It’s fake. Everything before was fake.”

Lu Youqi stared blankly for a long time, muttering to himself, “Impossible… If there’s a problem with the network, why couldn’t our people detect it?”

Just as he finished, he suddenly remembered the warship’s AI that kept misreporting earlier, and a chill ran down his spine.

---

Lin Quan confidently recited a speech of several thousand words. Seeing his adjutant repeatedly gesturing to him, he was displeased. It took him a while to find the button to open the comment section.

The moment he saw it, blood rushed to his head, and his vision went black.

Who? Who were those people calling a rebel?!

As if to make him understand what was going on, his live stream screen suddenly switched to another command cabin.

The camera panned from the enlarged virtual screen to the command seat, and Song Yu appeared in the frame with a smile.

“Elder Lin, you’re too old to be playing with live streams.”

Lin Quan shot to his feet, his vision went black, and he stumbled back.

“You… how are you here?!”

Song Yu crossed his long legs, rested his chin on his hand, and looked over lazily. “If I’m not here, where would I be?”

Lin Quan’s ears were ringing.

He finally realized something was wrong.

Lin Quan’s face darkened, and he shouted sternly, “Betraying the country will not end well. I advise you to surrender immediately!”

Song Yu looked as if he had heard something hilarious and couldn’t stop laughing.

“Your acting skills are subpar.”

Lin Quan gritted his back teeth. “You hijacked the Queen and the First Prince, harmed His Majesty in an attempt to rebel. I will never—”

“Father, he says I harmed you.” Song Yu turned his head to the side.

The camera panned slightly, and the King, Song Zheng, appeared in the frame.

Song Zheng looked at Lin Quan with cold eyes. “Do you have anything to say to me?”

Lin Quan’s eyes widened in disbelief.

How is that possible?! Wasn’t Song Zheng under Ji Ling’s control and unable to wake up?!

Song Yu didn’t give Song Zheng too much screen time. He lifted his long fingers, and the camera panned back.

He played with the ring on his ring finger, smiling nonchalantly. “Still haven’t figured out the situation? Then let me show you something.”

Song Yu snapped his fingers, and several small windows appeared on the live stream screen.

The first window scrolled continuously, showing controlled scholars, top-tier superstars, and elite athletes one by one.

These were the people who were supposed to be the main force of the information war.

The second window showed Ji Ling and Song Ke locked in a prison cell.

The third window showed the rebuilt underwater base on Andromeda X88, where all the R&D and management personnel had already been brought under control.

The fourth window showed the heavily garrisoned Snow Star, where the omegas waiting for modification were walking out of an underground exit, one by one, in shackles.

The more Lin Quan watched, the more alarmed he became.

Impossible!

How could their actions be so fast!? Where did they find the time?!

“I’ll give you ten minutes. Withdraw all your troops and bring your men to the Imperial Capital Star to confess your crimes. I might consider sparing their families. Otherwise—” Song Yu’s eyes grew cold. “They’ll have to be neighbors with the level-five mutants.”

These words sent a tremor through the hearts of all the rebel soldiers.

The Second Prince is going to exile their families to a level-five danger zone?! What’s the difference between that and a massacre?!

The adjutant listening nearby had a mental breakdown. He rushed in front of Lin Quan and shouted at the live stream screen.

“Imperial law stipulates that there is no collective punishment. You have no right to do this!”

“The empire does indeed stipulate that guilt is not collective, but treason is an exception,” Song Yu’s voice was calm and unhurried, without a hint of guilt. “I just added that rule a moment ago.”

Adjutant: “This does not conform to the basic principles of human rights—”

“Human rights?” Song Yu sneered. “You who opened fire on your own compatriots are worse than beasts. What human rights do you have?”

The adjutant met his gaze and was so frightened by the sharpness in it that he stumbled back a step, almost falling down the steps of the command platform.

Song Yu looked at Lin Quan. “You have eight minutes left. Time waits for no one.”

With that, Lin Quan’s own face reappeared on the live stream screen in front of him.

Seeing that ashen, defeated face, four words kept flashing through Lin Quan’s mind—the tide has turned.

Just half an hour ago, everything was progressing so smoothly. Why had it all suddenly collapsed?

The comment sections of both live streams exploded.

“What, what? The beautiful Song is the Second Prince?!”

“Fuck! That sleazy A from the scandal is actually the First Prince? I’m gonna puke!”

“Ahhhhhh my god! Song Yu fits all my beautiful fantasies of a prince! A divine prince!”

“Awoooo then isn’t our Chairman the princess consort?!”

“Heavens! I actually shipped the prince’s CP! It’s so damn shippable!”

“You dog Lin, I order you to surrender immediately. Don’t disturb our shipping!”

---

“Not good!”

A subordinate ran over in a panic.

Lin Quan looked over blankly and heard the other report anxiously, “The ground troops encountered a strong attack and have already lost half their men!”

Lin Quan slammed his fist heavily on the armrest.

A surveillance virtual screen enlarged, showing the situation on the ground.

Fighters and mechas flew in through the damaged protective shield, only to be blown to pieces two seconds later.

As the protective shield broke further, everything below gradually became clear.

Lu Ming’s eyes widened, and he muttered to himself, “How is that possible…”

A steady stream of fighters flew over from the direction of the military academy. Their formations were tight, operating in small squads, but the coordination between squads was incredibly tacit, ensuring they could evade enemy attacks while counterattacking in the most effective way.

On the ground, a long line of heavy armored vehicles set out from the gates in all directions of the military academy, their bodies loaded with various heavy cannons. They dispersed to various districts to support the garrison at each station.

Behind the dense formation of fighters, the mecha troops poured out in full force.

Although the military academy had its own armory, it didn’t have that many guards!

This was also why they weren’t afraid of the military academy’s armory.

The military academy students were the hope of this generation’s military. Unless necessary, it was impossible to let them participate in this kind of war.

This was an imperial custom, and also a bottom line.

But now, they had all been deployed!

Why?

Why was it completely different from what they had predicted?!

“There’s no way back.” Lu Youqi’s face was ugly. “If we give up now, everything will be over.”

Lu Ming’s expression changed, and he gritted his teeth. “I want to fight!”

The only person who could organize the entire military academy’s actions is Rong Shi, only he has that kind of ability!

I must defeat Rong Shi! I haven’t lost yet!

---

The high platform in Training Hall Number One served as a temporary command post. Rong Shi looked at dozens of enlarged virtual screens, issuing commands one by one in an orderly manner.

Behind him, Hu Feng, Chen Mu, Chen Chen, and others were busy helping him sort through various data.

A virtual screen popped open. Liu Hong sat in the cockpit of a mecha, his voice rough. “Chairman, an enemy fighter squad keeps chasing and bombing us. You have to think of something quick.”

Chen Chen looked up and retorted mercilessly, “You’re the vice captain of the mecha troops now. Can you not be so excitable?”

Liu Hong: “I wasn’t talking to you!”

While they were bickering, Rong Shi saw the fighter squad he was talking about through the shared vision of Liu Hong’s mecha.

Liu Hong’s squad was assigned to attack the enemy’s mecha vanguard. It was indeed difficult for them to deal with fighter bombardments at the same time.

Rong Shi swiped lightly on the virtual screen, his finger stopping on a small enemy warship.

“01, get ready.”

[01: Roger!]

Before Liu Hong could hear what he said, he saw a white light flash across the sky. He reacted quickly, pulling back at full power.

The next moment, the white light pierced through the fighter squad, and five fighters were instantly shattered.

“What the fuck!”

He was scared out of his wits. Then he heard Rong Shi’s voice in his ear.

Rong Shi’s expression was blank, his voice faint. “It’s been dealt with.”

Liu Hong: “…!!”

Using the enemy warship’s cannons to bomb their own fighters. So ruthless and cunning. Absolutely brilliant!

With all the military academy students mobilized, in terms of numbers alone, they were now enough to contend with the enemy.

But the students were still green, lacking battle experience. The vast majority of them had never experienced a large-scale war.

Commanding them was more difficult than commanding a legion.

Qian Fan watched as Rong Shi made everyone act according to his will with just a few words, once again refreshing his understanding of Rong Shi.

“This child is a natural-born commander.” Zheng Hai stood with his hands behind his back and sighed. “I’ve never seen any shortcomings in him. A talent like this, our empire might not see another one in a hundred years.”

“Young Rong is very good.” Qian Fan’s eyes were full of gratification, his voice low. “Young Song is not bad either. There was another one more than twenty years ago, but unfortunately—”

Zheng Hai was taken aback. “Are you talking about Rong—”

He paused halfway through.

That person had been glorious for a time, but unfortunately, that incident happened later. To prevent him from suffering more criticism, the teachers had an unspoken agreement not to mention his name again.

“Rong Guang, my most outstanding student.” Qian Fan looked at Rong Shi’s back, tears welling up in his eyes. “Old Zheng, I believe that there is a bloodline inheritance in the unseen.”

Rong Shi reviewed the reports sent by his brothers from the Second Legion and gave accurate and timely replies.

From the very beginning, Rong Shi’s positioning of the student legion was very clear.

The garrison would resist on the main front, while they were responsible for rear support and auxiliary attacks.

Although the students’ professional skills were not necessarily mature and their combat experience was lacking, they were young, energetic, and dared to fight.

Rong Shi had the hundred brothers from the Second Legion divided according to their individual abilities to command the various student teams. He then controlled the overall situation on this basis, ensuring the smooth progress of each team’s actions.

As long as they were commanded properly, these one hundred thousand people would be able to unleash unimaginable power.

A virtual screen popped open, and the mecha troop captain, Qiu Tianhao, appeared in the frame.

“Chairman, Lu Ming is here.”

Rong Shi looked up, his gaze sweeping over the surveillance footage.

Lu Ming was piloting a mecha, firing at the student legion. He was piloting a Z_MAX999, currently the most offensive model of mecha in service, nicknamed the Terminator.

Rong Shi’s eyes narrowed slightly as he watched him force back a mecha and pursue it.

“You—”

His terminal suddenly vibrated, and a virtual window enlarged in front of him.

“Brother.” Song Yu’s beautiful peach-blossom eyes narrowed slightly as he smiled at him. “I missed you.”

Rong Shi: “…”

The enemy is at the gates. How can he be so moved by just one sentence from his wife?

Rong Shi suppressed his accelerating heartbeat and said with a straight face, “I’ll call you later.”

Song Yu: “Are you rejecting me?”

“No.” Rong Shi glanced at the bowl in his hand and asked casually, “What are you eating?”

Song Yu smiled brightly. “Porridge made by Dad. I heard it’s very nourishing. You can go nine times a night after eating it.”

Rong Shi: “…………”

Qiu Tianhao, pretending to be non-existent: “…………”

Song Yu glanced at the surveillance footage, his smile fading. “Some people have already climbed over your head. Don’t you want to deal with him?”

Rong Shi: “…”

Song Yu looked a little aggrieved. “The bunny mecha I gave you, don’t you like it?”

Rong Shi: “…………”

Three minutes later, the hangar door above the military academy’s armory opened, and a round, tender white bunny mecha shot out—

---

Author’s Note:

Cat Dad: Here, drink this porridge. Nine times a night. [smiling]

Cat Father and Little Cat obediently take the bowls.

That night, the two of them ran to the bathroom nine times—

Rong Bunny: It really is nine times a night. [bunny gives a thumbs up]