Chapter 13 Chapter VI Command

Of all the worlds in the galaxy, Kalgan's history is undoubtedly unique.Other planets, such as Terminus, have had a history of constant leaps; Trantor, once the capital of the galaxy, has been in almost constant decline.However Kargan... Two centuries before the birth of Hari Seldon, Kalgan was first known throughout the galaxy as a resort.Its entire world is betting on tourism and entertainment—a profitable, sure-fire business. Moreover, it is also a stable industry. This sentence can be said to be applicable to all galaxies.As all the civilizations in the galaxy decayed, Kalgan was hardly affected at all, and nothing changed at all.

No matter how the economy and society of neighboring star regions change, the upper class will always exist.And one of the characteristics of the upper class is that they have enough leisure, and this fact is itself a privilege. Therefore, Kargan has successively provided the best services for the following people—firstly, the weak and arrogant officials of the imperial court, and their coquettish concubines; then those brutal warlords who conquered and ruled the world with iron and blood And the sluts they favored; later, the base tycoons with fat stomachs and luxurious lives, and their mistresses with superb sexual skills.

Since these people are all wealthy, Calgan treats them all equally.In addition, Kalgan has always been open to visitors, and will never worry about no business; the leadership is wise enough to never interfere in the politics of other worlds, and has never coveted the territory of other planets.Based on the above factors, Kalgen was able to stand out in the turbulent galaxy and always be able to maintain prosperity. In the years when other worlds were increasingly depressed, only Kalgen's living standard was getting higher and higher. The appearance of the mule finally rewrote the history of Kalgan.This conqueror, unprecedented and unrepeatable, was indifferent to everything but war.Therefore, Kargan could not escape the fate of falling.All planets are the same for mules, and Kalgen is no exception.

In the next ten years, Kalgan transformed into the capital of the entire galaxy—after the end of the Galactic Empire, another "empire" that rose for the first time was established here. Then, immediately with the death of the mule, things took a turn for the worse.The base first broke away from the mule's "empire", and other worlds followed suit.Fifty years later, the achievements of the mule have completely disappeared, leaving only a page of incomprehensible memory in history.The sudden ups and downs of Xun Tian's power seemed to be a fantasy induced by opium.However, Kalgen has never fully recovered. It is no longer the paradise of the past, and the curse of power has never been truly lifted.Over the years, Kalgan was ruled by one strongman after another, whom the Foundation dubbed "Kalgan Lords," but they all called themselves "First Citizen of the Galaxy"—the only title the Mule held during his lifetime.They deliberately retained this title in order to maintain the appearance of a conqueror.

The current leader, Kargan, has only been in office for five months.This commander was originally the commander of Kargen Starfleet. He took advantage of the convenience of this position, coupled with the negligence of the previous commander, and obtained the position of commander in one fell swoop.However, in the field ruled by Kargan, no one is stupid enough to take this kind of thing too seriously. However, this phenomenon of the law of the jungle and the survival of the fittest, in addition to encouraging crime and bloodshed, sometimes really allows the capable to stand out and gain the position of leader.Commander Shi Tieting is such a capable person, and he is quite difficult to serve.

Not even the venerable Prime Minister—the old widow of the previous Commander, who devoted himself to both Commanders equally.If he lived long enough, he would definitely continue to serve the next leader in the future. The Lady Jiali also felt the same way—she and Shi Tieting did not have any status, it can only be said that their relationship was between friends and husband and wife. That evening, in the private apartment led by Shi Tieting, these three people got together, and no one else was present.The First Citizen is a massive figure, and in his beloved uniform of the Admiral of the Fleet, he looks dazzling and intimidating.He was sitting on an uncovered plastic seat with a serious expression, his brows were deeply furrowed, and his whole body was as motionless as the chair.His prime minister, Lev Melas, stood in front, facing him absent-mindedly, stroking the old face with his long, nervous fingers, from the hooked nose to the thin cheeks, from the cheeks to the gray The bearded chin, and then back to the hooked nose, and so on.Lady Jiali sat on the fur-covered bench in an elegant posture, her plump lips were slightly pursed and trembling slightly.

"Your Excellency," Melas said at last--the only title for the Chief who claimed to be the First Citizen.Then he said: "You don't have enough understanding of the consistency of history. You have experienced many major changes in your personal life, leading you to think that the development of civilization is also not difficult to change suddenly, but it is not the case." "The mule gave us a counter-evidence." "But who can imitate him? He's a superman, don't you forget that. And even a mule isn't quite successful." "Boogie—" Dame Carrie burst into sobs, but the First Citizen made a fierce gesture that scared her into utterance.

Commander Steeting said in a stern tone: "Carrie, don't interrupt. Melas, I can't stand doing nothing like this. The previous commander spent his entire life training the fleet into a military force invincible to the galaxy, but he didn't live to see it. Come in handy. Am I going to follow in his footsteps too? I—a fleet commander?" He continued: "Do you know how perishable this force is? At present, it has become a burden to the treasury, but it can't return anything. Hope to restore the glory of the empire, do you have the ability to understand this?" "What you say is just a superficial reason," Myras replied, "but I can understand what you mean. Fiefdoms, trophies, glory-of course it is very exciting to obtain, but the process in between is always dangerous Extremely, and full of misery and pain. Don't forget that the frenzy of starting a war can't last long. And in view of the lessons of history, attacking a base is definitely not a wise move. Even a mule knows how to avoid..."

Tears welled up in Lady Carrie's blue, hollow eyes.In recent days, Buji has rarely come to see her. He finally agreed to accompany her tonight, but unexpectedly, the Prime Minister barged in—this scary, thin, gray-haired old man, who stared at her every time. He seemed to be able to see through her even when he was there—but Buji actually agreed to meet him.She didn't dare to say anything, for fear that she would not be able to help crying. She really didn't like Steeting's voice now, it sounded tough and impatient.He said: "You old-fashioned pedant, although the base has a vast area and a large population, but they are scattered and vulnerable. Over the years, their superficial unity is just a kind of inertia, and I have enough strength. This kind of inertia defeats you. You were bluffed by the aura of the base back then. At that time, they were the only world in the galaxy with nuclear power. After narrowly escaping the last blow of the dying empire, only warlords supporting themselves were left. Be against them. Those warlords are all simple-minded people, and the warships they own are old goods from the empire era. Of course, they cannot compete with the nuclear-powered starships at the base.

"But, my dear Myras, the appearance of the Mule has changed all that. He has spread the secrets of the base's secrets to half the galaxy. Gone are the days when the base had a monopoly on science. , and now we are good enough to rival them." "But what about the second base?" Myras asked coldly. "But there's a Second Base?" Stettin repeated in the same tone, adding, "Do you know what they're up to? It took them five years to stop the Mule—if they did, But there are still many people who doubt this. Don't you know? Many psychologists and sociologists in the base agree that since the appearance of the mule, the Seldon plan has been completely smashed. If the plan no longer exists , then I have the potential to fill that vacuum, and anyone is eligible."

"Our knowledge of this area is not enough to guarantee that we can win this bet." "Our own knowledge may not be enough, but on our planet, there just happened to be a visitor to the base. Do you know about this? That person's name is Hummel Meng - as far as I know, he wrote Quite a few articles on mules. Just like I said, he also believes that the Seldon Project is long gone." The Prime Minister nodded and replied: "I have heard of this man, at least I know the articles he published. What does he want to come here?" "He wants to ask us to allow him to enter the mule hall." "Really? We'd better say no. The whole planet is held together by superstitions, and it's wise to avoid them." "I'll think about it - and then we'll talk about it." So Melas bowed and took his leave. At this time, Lady Jiali said tearfully, "Are you angry with me, Buji?" Shi Tieting turned around suddenly and shouted at her: "Didn't I tell you? Never call me that ridiculous name in front of other people!" "You used to like me calling it that." "Okay, but I don't like it now, and I must never make this mistake again in the future." He stared at her angrily, thinking that it was incredible that he could still tolerate this woman.She was a frail, embroidered pillow, nice to the touch; and her docile affection was a simple reprieve from the rigidity of life.Yet even that feeling was tiresome to him now—she dreamed of marrying him, of becoming First Lady. Absurd! She had been a good companion when he was Admiral of the Fleet - but now that he was a First Citizen and on the verge of conquering the galaxy, she was no longer the right woman.He needs a few sons of noble blood to help him rule the future territory.This is something Mule has never been able to do, and it is the real reason why Mule's empire collapsed immediately after his legendary life ended.He, Shi Tieting, needed a famous lady from the base to be his empress, and the two joined hands to build a dynasty. Why didn't he divorce Carrie now, he thought with displeasure?There would be no trouble at all in doing so, of course, and she would be crying for a while--but he quickly dismissed the idea that she was lovely once in a while, if only occasionally. Carrie was beaming again now, for the grey-bearded old man was gone, and Boogie's granite face was softening.She stood up gracefully and snuggled up to him. "You won't scold me any more, will you?" "No," he caressed her absently, "can you sit quietly for a while now? I want to think about it." "About the people from that base?" "That's right." "Buji?" She hesitated to speak. "What's up?" "Buji, that man brought a little girl with him, you told me, remember? Can I see her when she comes? I never..." "Tell me, why did I ask him to bring that kid with me? Is my drawing room a kindergarten? Stop bringing up such absurd ideas, Carrie." "But I'll take care of her, Boogie, and it won't bother you at all. It's just because I rarely see children, and you know how much I like children." He glared at her mockingly—she never tires of that.She likes children, which means she likes his children, that is to say, his heirs, and to put it bluntly, she hopes to marry him.Thinking of this, he suddenly laughed. "The little thing you're talking about," he said, "is actually a big girl of fourteen or fifteen, maybe about your height." With the last hope, Carrie said, "Let me meet, okay? She can tell me everything about the base. My grandfather is from the base. You know, I've always wanted to go there. You Can you take me there sometime, Buji?" Steiting couldn't help smiling when she heard her say that—maybe he would really do it, but he would go as a conqueror.This idea made him quite happy, and his tone softened a lot because of this: "I will, I will. You can meet that girl and talk to her about the base, but you have to stay away from me, understand? " "I won't bother you, I promise, I'll take her to my room." Carrie felt very happy. In recent days, she was rarely as happy as she is today.She wrapped her arms around his neck, feeling that after a slight hesitation, all the muscles in his body relaxed, and he gently leaned his strong head against her shoulder.