Chapter 18 third chapter

In ancient times, when the Galactic Empire ruled the entire galaxy and Anacreon was the richest county on the outer edge of the galaxy, many emperors had officially visited the Governor's Mansion in Anacreon.And every emperor who came here once had a test of his skills there - driving a high-speed air car, hunting and killing giant birds like fortresses in the sky with needle guns. Today, Anacreon's prestige has entered history along with the glorious era of the empire.Now the governor's mansion, except for the side repaired by the base workers, is all ruins of broken walls.In the past two hundred years, no emperor has ever visited this place.

However, hunting giant birds is still a favorite hunting activity of the royal family here, and the first condition to become king of Anacreon is to be able to make good use of the needle gun for hunting giant birds. Lepped I is the current king of Anacreon, and as usual, he has the misnomer title of "Lord of the Outer Galaxy".Although he is not yet sixteen years old, he has long been a master at hunting giant birds.He opened the record when he was less than thirteen years old, and he had already shot a total of ten giant birds when he took the throne for only one week.Today he hunted down the forty-sixth one in his life, and he is happily on his way home.

"Before I become an adult, I will shoot fifty of them." After returning to the palace, he swaggered and said, "Who dares to bet with me?" None of the courtiers dared to fight the king. If they won, they would be killed, so no one dared to speak out.So the king triumphantly prepared to go back to his room and change his clothes. "Lepped!" Hearing this powerful call, the king stopped his steps immediately, and turned his head in displeasure. I saw Winnis standing at the door of his study, staring at his young nephew with stern eyes. "Let them back down," Winnis gestured impatiently, "Quickly make them back down!"

The king nodded stiffly, and the two attendants quickly bowed and retreated downstairs, while Lepped himself went into his uncle's study. Winnis looked at the king's hunting suit and said unhappily, "It won't be long before you have to focus on things that are much more important than hunting birds." After speaking, he turned and staggered towards the desk.Due to his old age, Winnis couldn't stand the impact of strong air currents, and he couldn't take the risk of diving under the wings of giant birds, and he couldn't use one foot to control the aerial vehicle to roll and climb, so he became very disapproving of this sport.

Lepped was well aware of his uncle's sour grapes mentality, but he deliberately said excitedly, "Uncle, it would be great if you would go with me today. Today we caught a giant bird in the Shamiya grassland." , It’s almost as big as a monster, it’s really exciting and enjoyable. In two hours, we chased at least seventy square miles, all the way to the Xiangyang Plateau.” The king said, gesticulating as if he were still on a high-speed car: "Then circled and swooped, and while it was flying up, shot it under the left wing, which enraged it and rolled it sideways. I am brave To fight, turn sharply to the left, and wait for it to fall straight down. As I expected, it did come down, but before I could move, it had rushed to the wings to hit me..."

"Lepped!" "Oh—I ended up shooting it." "I don't doubt it. Now will you listen to me?" The king shrugged, attracted by the food on the table, picked up a nut and ate it.He showed a look of grievance that a king shouldn't have, and he didn't dare to meet his uncle's eyes. Winnis made an opening remark first: "I went to that starship today." "What starship?" "There is only one real starship. Is there a second one? It is the one that the base will repair for our fleet. It is the star cruiser of the empire. Am I clear enough?"

"Is that the one? You see, I told you a long time ago that if we ask the base to fix it for us, they will not dare to resist. You say they want to attack us, it's just your nerves, you know? If How can they repair the starship for us if they mean that? It doesn't make sense at all, you know?" "Lipped, you're an idiot!" The king had just thrown away the husk and was about to stuff another into his mouth. Hearing this sentence, his face flushed and his movements stopped suddenly. "Okay, please pay attention—" Although the king's voice was not very happy, it still sounded like a baby: "You can't scold me like that, you forget who you are, I will be an adult in two months ,do you know?"

"Yes, you will be the head of the country and assume the responsibility of the king. If you can spend half of the bird hunting time on official duties, I can immediately resign from the post of regent with peace of mind." "I don't care about these things. These are completely irrelevant things, you know? Although you are the regent and my uncle, I am still the king and you are still my subject. Anyway, you don't You can call me an idiot, and you shouldn't sit in my presence, you haven't asked my permission. I think you should behave yourself, or I'll react—soon."

Winnis looked at the king with stern eyes: "Should I honor you as 'Your Majesty'?" "yes." "Very well—Your Majesty, you are a fool!" Under Winnes's gray brows, his black eyes flashed with anger, and the young king sat down slowly in fright.A smug look of sarcasm suddenly appeared on Winnis's face, but it was only for a moment. He soon smiled with his thick lips, and put a hand on the king's shoulder. "Don't mind, Lepped, I shouldn't be so cruel to you. But when the pressure is so great, it's really hard to be polite all the time. This pressure...do you understand?" His tone was gentle, but His eyes still haven't softened.

Lepped replied hesitantly: "Yeah, the country's affairs are quite difficult, you know?" Long-term disputes between the sporadic worlds in the rift and so on. Winnis continued: "Son, I have always wanted to talk to you about this matter, maybe I should have talked to you a long time ago. But I thought you were too young before, and I was afraid that you would be impatient to hear these tedious policy details." Lepped nodded and said, "Oh, it doesn't matter..." The king's uncle immediately rushed to say: "However, you will be an adult in two months. Besides, in the face of future challenges, you must play a proactive role. You will become a real king. Lepped."

Lepped nodded again, but with a blank expression. "Lepped, a war is coming soon." "War? Didn't we have a truce with Smirno?" "Not Smirno, but fighting the base." "But, uncle, they have agreed to repair the starship for us. You said..." He saw his uncle's lips twitch, and quickly swallowed the following words forcefully. "Lepped," Winnis's tone was no longer so friendly: "Now I will treat you as an adult to discuss issues with you. Whether they are willing to repair that starship or not, we will fight the base. In fact, they have already It is helping us to repair, so the war will break out faster. You should know that the base is the source of all visible and invisible power, and all the great achievements of Anacreon, including starships, cities, people, trade, etc., We are all looking forward to the breath of the base. And everything the base gives us is nothing more than its scraps, some unnecessary leftovers. I still remember that the city of Anacreon could only rely on oil Heating with coal, but leaving that aside, you can't even imagine life at that time." "It seems that we should..." Guo Tao said tremblingly, "We should be grateful..." "Grateful?" Wen Nisi roared: "They are only willing to give us a little scum. God knows how many treasures they have hidden-what are they hiding? This, everyone knows Harding's heart, they want to one day Rule the entire galaxy." He put his hand on his nephew's knee, squinted his eyes and said: "Lepped, you are the king of Anacreon, your son or son's son may become the king of the universe - if you can get The power hidden in the base!" "What you said makes sense." Lepped's eyes lit up, and his back straightened: "In any case, what right do they have to monopolize? It's not fair, you know? Anacreon should also have a share .” "Look, you're starting to get the hang of it. So, boy, if Smirnor decides to attack the base first and seize all the power, do you think we can stop being their vassals? How long can you be king yourself?" Lepped became agitated. "Jesus, yes! You're absolutely right, you know? We have to pre-empt this, it's just an act of self-defense." Winnis's smile widened a bit: "Besides, when your grandfather became king, Anacreon did establish a military base on the planet of the base - Terminus, which is extremely important for our national defense. But not long after, we were forced to evacuate due to the machinations of the leader of the base. The leader is a cunning scoundrel, just a scholar, of low birth, without a drop of noble blood in his body. Do you understand? De, your grandfather was humiliated by that commoner. I remember him, he was almost my age, when he came to Anacreon with a devilish smile and mind, and took three other kingdoms Backed up, they formed an alliance of cowards against the great cause of Anacreon." Lepped's face became flushed, and his eyes became brighter: "I swear to Seldon, if I were grandfather, I would be determined to fight no matter what." "No, Lepped, we decided to wait—wait for a more opportune time before we should be ashamed. Before your father had an accident, he hoped that he was... oh, oh!" Winnis said with a face Turn away for a while, and then say in a tone that seems very hurt: "Your father is my brother, if his child..." "Yes, Uncle, I will not disappoint the legacy of the late king. I have made up my mind that we must clean up the source of the trouble, and we must do it immediately." "No, can't do it right away. First, we have to wait until the cruiser is repaired. They took over the repair work in a low voice, and the only explanation is that they are afraid of us. Those fools want to please us, but we will never change our minds ,right?" Lepped clenched his fist with one hand and hammered the palm of the other hand: "As long as I am still King Anacreon, absolutely not." Winnis twitched his lips again, and said with a mocking look: "Also, we have to wait for Seve Harding to come here." "Sev Harding!" The king suddenly opened his eyes wide, and the fierce lines that were originally piled up on his clean and immature face suddenly disappeared. "Yes, Lepped, the leader of the base wants to come to Anacreon in person to congratulate you on your birthday—probably trying to curry favor with us. But it's useless for him to do so." "Sev Harding!" murmured the king. Winnis frowned and said, "Are you afraid of this name? This is Seve Harding. When he came last time, he simply stepped on our heads and caused the royal family to suffer great shame. You must not forget this .He's nothing more than a commoner - ghetto trash." "I don't think I'll forget, I won't forget, I'll never forget! An eye for an eye, an eye for an eye... But... but... I'm scared... a little scared..." Regent Wen Nisi stood up: "Afraid? What are you afraid of? What are you afraid of? You little king..." He swallowed the following words immediately. "That would be...uh...a sacrilege, you know? To attack the base, I mean..." The king paused. "Go on." Lepped said with a puzzled look: "I mean, if there really is a 'Galaxy Spirit', the Holy Spirit...well...it will be unhappy, don't you think?" "No, I don't think so." The voice was very cold. After speaking, Winnis sat down again, his lips twisted into a weird smile: "Are you really so worried about the Holy Spirit of the Galaxy? That's why you're thinking wildly and worrying so much, right? I think you've heard too much Verisov's nonsense." "He explained a lot to me..." "Are there any stories about the Galactic Holy Spirit?" "yes." "Oh, you scumbag. Let me tell you this, he doesn't believe a thousand times more than I do in all the deceitful things he tells himself, and I don't believe it at all. I How many times have I told you that it's all nonsense, don't you understand?" "Well, I know, but Verisov said..." "Don't listen to him, it's all his talking nonsense." Lepped didn't answer, seemed to be protesting silently, and said after a while: "Everyone is all convinced, I mean about the Prophet Hari Seldon and how he designated a base to complete his Hadith - some day in the future , 'Galaxy Paradise' will return to the human world, and those who disobey the hadith will die physically and spiritually, and will never be reborn. The common people believe in this statement, and I have presided over the celebration, so I know they all believe it." "Yes, they do, but we don't. In fact, you should be grateful for the fact that because of their ignorant policy, you can become king according to the will of God-and you have become a half-human Demigod, this is easy. It is because of this set of sayings that you eliminate all the possibility of rebellion, so that you can stand firmly above the ground and ensure the absolute obedience of the people. Therefore, Lepped, you must take the initiative to declare war on the base. I only But the regent is an ordinary man, and you are a king, and to the common people you are a half-god." "But I don't think so myself," said the King thoughtfully. "Yes, of course none of this is true." Winnis replied in a sarcastic tone: "But for other people, you are a god, except for the people in the base, understand? People outside the base think you are God. God, if the base is removed, no one will deny your godhead anymore, think about it carefully!" "By that time, we will be able to control the generators of the Spirit Temple, the unmanned spaceship, the holy food for cancer treatment and all other machines? Verisov said that only those who have been blessed by the Holy Spirit of the Galaxy can..." "Yes, of course Verisov said that. Remember, besides Harding, he is your worst enemy. Lepped, as long as you stand on the same line with me, you don't have to worry about them. Let us join forces , to rebuild an empire together—not only the kingdom of Anacreon, but an empire that includes hundreds of billions of stars in the entire galaxy. Is this more ideal than the verbal 'Galaxy Paradise'?" "yes!" "Can Verisov promise to get you more?" "No--" "Very good," Winnis's tone became more arrogant: "I think this problem has been solved." Without waiting for the king's answer, he said again: "You go, I will go down later—— I have something to do, Leppard." As soon as the young king reached the threshold, he turned his head quickly. Winnis's face was full of smiles, but his eyes were not the same: "Son, be careful when you hit the giant bird. Ever since your father died unexpectedly, sometimes I have a wonderful premonition about your safety. When the needle bullets from the needle gun are flying in the air, in the chaos, no one knows what will happen. I hope you will be more careful. Besides, you will do as I tell you about the base, Right?" Lepped opened his eyes wide, but avoided his uncle's sight: "Well—of course." "Very good!" Winnis watched his nephew's back blankly, then walked back to his desk. When Lepped left, his heart was full of worries and fears.Perhaps attacking the base and gaining the power that Winnis said is indeed the best strategy; but he also has a strong feeling that when the war is over and his kingship is consolidated, Winnis and his two proud sons , will wait to inherit his throne. However, being the king himself, the king could order the execution of any of his subjects. Not even uncles or cousins.