Chapter 12 Chapter Twelve

The monarch of Lin Genxing thought about this matter silently. Although his heart was ups and downs, his calm and sophisticated expression remained the same. "Then you waited forty-eight hours to tell me," he said. Richter took the liberty to say: "There's no reason why we should tell you sooner. If we bothered you about everything, life would be a burden to you. We're telling you now because we're still adamant about it." No idea. It's queer, and there's no room for queerness in our position." "Say it again, and let me listen again."

The Sovereign rested one leg on the gleaming sill, and gazed out the window intently.The window itself may represent Lingenstar's unparalleled architectural oddity.Moderately sized windows set in the bottom of recesses five feet deep.The deeper the recess, the narrower it becomes.The window is as clear as water, as thick as a wall, and the surface is smooth and flawless. It is not so much a window as a lens, which gathers light from all directions into the room.In this way, looking outward, what people see is just like a reduced panoramic moving picture. From any window of the Sovereign's Mansion one can see everything from the zenith to the width of half the horizon above.From the edge of the window, the details are clearer, but the distortion is also increased, but this in itself makes the view unique: squashed and reduced scenes of urban activities: crescent-shaped stratoplane Take off from the airport, follow the curved track It rose slowly against the ground.People have gradually adapted to all this.Once the windows are opened, the bland and real scenery directly enters the eyes, but it will appear unnatural.When the position of the sun causes it to focus through the lens-like windows to produce unbearable heat and light, the windows are automatically darkened.This is done by using the polarizing properties of the glass to make the window opaque without having to open the window.

It seems that the architectural style of the planet is a reflection of the position of the planet in the Milky Way. This theory must be deduced from the argument of Lingen star and its window. Like its window, Lingen Star is small, but from it you can see the whole picture of planetary life.It is a "planetary country" in the galaxy, and at that time, it has surpassed the stage of economic and political development.In the area where most of the political entities are galaxies, Lingen Star still maintains its old appearance for hundreds of years-a lonely planet inhabited by humans.This did not hinder its prosperity.In fact, if Lingen Star is not rich and powerful, it will be difficult for it to survive alone.

Once a planet is in such a position that numerous jump routes can use it as a transit hub, or worse, must use it for the best economic benefit, then the development here is difficult to predict.A lot depends on the development pattern of the sky region.This includes the distribution of planets with natural conditions suitable for human habitation; the order of their colonization and development; and their economic forms, etc. Lingen star discovered its own value very early on, and this discovery was a great turning point in its historical development.In addition to actually occupying a strategic position, the most important thing is to have the ability to correctly understand and make full use of this position.Lingen once occupied asteroids that had neither the resources nor the ability to sustain their inhabitants on their own.Treat it as an object of occupation only because they will help Lingen maintain a trade monopoly.They built service centers on those rocks.Everything a spaceship needs, from superatomic engine parts to new microfiche books, is there.The service center gradually developed into a huge trading center.Fur, minerals, grains, beef, wood, etc. flowed from the nebular kingdoms; machinery, utensils, and medicines were continuously imported from the inner planetary kingdoms; the input of various manufactured products also formed a similar torrent.

Therefore, just like its window, from the microcosm of Lingen Star, you can see the whole Milky Way from the small to the big.It is a lonely planet, however, it is a thriving planet. While still looking out of the window, the Lord of Star Lingen said without turning his head: "Just start with the postal spaceship, Richett. Where was the first time it encountered that cruise spaceship?" "Within a hundred thousand miles from our planet Lingen. The exact coordinates don't matter. Because we've been watching them ever since. The problem is, even then. The Tyranid cruisers were still orbiting the planet. Orbital flight."

"They don't seem to have any intention of landing, but rather, who exactly are they waiting for?" "yes." "Can't tell how long he's been waiting?" "I'm afraid I can't tell. Nobody else saw them. I checked carefully." "Very well," said the Sovereign, "we will leave it alone for the time being. Their interception of the postal ships clearly interfered with the postal service, and at the same time trampled upon our agreement with the Tyranids." "I doubt if they are Tyranids. Judging from their unpredictable actions, they are more like a group of desperadoes, a group of spaceship hijackers."

"You mean the Tyranids? Of course, that's probably what they want us to believe. At any rate, their only definite action was to demand that a letter be delivered to me." "Yes, the request is presented to the Sovereign himself." "Nothing else?" "No." "They've never been in a postal ship?" "All communication links are made through the vision panels. The postal containers are shot from two miles away, skimming through the emptiness of space, and caught by the ship's pick-up net." "Is it communication by image, or only by sound?"

"Completely by video communication. That's the problem. Anyway, several people said that the speaker was a young man with a certain 'aristocratic style.'" The monarch slowly clenched his fists. "Really? Didn't take an optical image of that face? It was an oversight." "Unfortunately, there is no reason why the captain of the mail ship should have anticipated the importance of this, if any such importance existed. Is all this of any use to you, sir." The monarch did not answer. "This is their letter?" "Yes, an extraordinary letter of five words. They thought we were going to send it to you directly. Of course, we didn't. Because, for example, it might have been a fission postal container, which had been Someone has been killed like this before."

"Yes, the monarch is also killed in this way." The monarch of Lingen Star said: "Just the five words 'Gilbret'. Five words. 'Gilbret'." Lord Lin Genxing still maintained his indifferent calm, but he began to feel that he lacked certainty, and he didn't like this feeling of lack of certainty.He doesn't like things that make him feel powerless.A monarch should be omnipotent, and, on Lingen Star.There are no laws of nature that bind him. The existence of monarchs has not existed since ancient times. In the early years, Lingen Star was ruled by a dynasty established by merchant princes, and the families that first established the sub-planet service center were the rulers of this country.They lack land and thus are not socially equal to the ranchers and farmers on neighboring planets.However, they have a rich currency, so they can do the same thing as ranchers and farmers, and, sometimes, they can also do business through capital turnover.

Lingen suffered the fate that a planet usually suffers: the balance of power swings from one family to another, and the regime is constantly changing hands between families; If it is the best example of orderliness, then Lingenxing is an example of unrest and disorderly development. "It's as unpredictable as the Lingen star." The people said so. In hindsight, such an outcome was inevitable.When the neighboring planetary nations merged into the United Kingdom and grew stronger and stronger, at last the whole nation was willing to do whatever it took for the stability of the national situation.So, they trade plutocracy for dictatorship.Moreover, they lost little freedom in this transition.A dictator combines the power of several people in one person.However, the prince is often very friendly to the common people on purpose, because he wants the common people to be a counterbalance to the always noisy merchants.

Under the rule of the autocratic monarchy, Lingenxing became rich and powerful, and even when the Tyrens wanted to take away their supreme power thirty years ago, they had to be forced to back down.The Tyranids have not been defeated yet, but they have given up.Even that setback has become a permanent setback.Since the year they attacked Lingen, no planet has been conquered by the Tyranids. The other planets in the Nebula Kingdom became the subjects of the Tyranids.However, Lingen Star is an "alliance country".In theory, it is an equal "ally" of the Tyrannian star.Its powers are protected by the Treaty of Union. Such a situation did not go to the head of the king of Lingen star.The chauvinistic fanaticism of the Lingen star would have intoxicated them in the joy of thinking they were free, but the monarch knew very well that in the past generation, the threat of the Tyranids was only a short distance away, and it would not be farther away. Now, Lingen Star may be entering a long overdue final fight soon.Apparently, he had bought it the time it expected.Although the organization he established was ineffective, it was enough to constitute an excuse for the Tyranids to punish.Moreover, from a legal point of view, it was Lin Genxing who was at fault. Is the arrival of the cruise ship the first round of the final fight? The sovereign said, "Is there a guard on that ship?" "As I said, they're being watched. Our two transport ships"—he grinned—"keep within reach of their gravitational rangefinders." "So, did you learn something?" "I don't know. I only know Gilbret. If his name itself means anything, it means Gilbret o' Hinriad of Rhodia. Have you ever dealt with him?" "The last time I saw him was when I went to Rhodia," said the sovereign. "Of course, you wouldn't have said anything to him, would you?" "certainly." Richter narrowed his eyes. "I thought you might have acted indiscreetly, and the Tyranids have benefited from the same indiscretions of this Gilbreth—the Hinriads are weak-willed cowards these days. Now They're setting this trap for you to end up in." "I also find it suspicious. The timing of this incident is very strange. I have been away from Lingen for more than a year. I just came back last week, and I will leave in a few days. This letter was delivered just when I could receive it." "Don't you think it's a coincidence?" "I don't believe in coincidences. And there's only one case in which none of this is a coincidence. So I'm going to see myself on the ship. Alone." "No, sir." Richett was taken aback.Immediately above his right temple was a small bumpy scar that had suddenly flushed red. "You forbid me to go?" asked the monarch coldly. After all, he is the monarch, Richter scowled, and said, "Please, sir." On the "Relentless", waiting brought growing unhappiness.For two days, they have been orbiting without deviating from the flight track at all. Gilbret stared coldly at the controller.He said aggressively, "Can you tell they didn't move?" Byron just looked up slightly.He was carefully shaving with Tyranid beard spray. "No," he said, "they're not moving. Why should they? They're watching us, and they're going to keep watching." He concentrated on the tricky part of his upper lip.The beard spray touched his tongue, and he felt a little sour, and he couldn't help frowning impatiently.The Tyranids may be able to use the beard spray with poetic elegance, and it is undoubtedly the fastest and most thorough non-permanent shave for those skilled in its use.Essentially, it's an extremely fine air-jet abrasive that scours the hair without damaging the skin.Of course, only a slight pressure, probably caused by air currents, is felt on the skin. However, Byron was very unimpressed with the spray.The legend, or news, that the Tyranids have a higher incidence of facial cancer than other races is well known.Also, some people blame the Tyranid beard spray.For the first time Byron thought of hair removal, which is what people on some planets usually do.However, he dropped the idea.Because hair loss is permanent, but the fashion of beard and sideburns is always changing. Byron was examining his face in the mirror, wondering how he would look with sideburns that reached his cheeks.At this time, Artemisia was at the door, and she said, "I thought you were going to bed just now?" "I've slept," he said, "and now I'm awake." He looked up at her with a smile. She patted his cheek and flicked it a few times with her fingers. "Naked. Looks like eighteen." He brought her hand to his mouth. "Don't let it charm you." "Are they still spying on us?" she said. "Still watching. It's a dreary break, it gives you time to sit and worry. It's annoying, isn't it?" "I don't think this break is dull." "You're looking at things from another angle, Atta." She said, "Why don't we drop them and land on Lingen?" "We've considered that option. But I don't think it's time to take that risk. We can wait a little longer, when there is less water." Gilbret yelled, "I tell you, they're moving." Byron walked to the console and watched the readings on the gravitational field tachymeter.He looked at Gilbret: "Maybe, you're right." His fingers flicked the computer's keyboard once or twice, his eyes fixed on its display. "No, those two ships didn't move relative to us, Gilbret. It was the third ship that joined them that changed the rangefinder reading. I can report its distance, and it's closest to us. There are also more than 5,000 miles. Assuming that I directly calculate according to the customary clockwise direction, the angle θ between it and the line connecting the spaceship and the planet is about 46 degrees, and φ is about 92 degrees. Assuming that the calculation is not according to the customary direction, the two numbers are respectively Should be 314 degrees and 168 degrees." He paused to look at another reading. "I think they're approaching us. The ship is small. Can you make contact with them, Gilbret?" "I'll try it," Gilbret said. "Okay then. Don't use images, just use audio communication, and wait until we have a clearer picture of the ship." Gilbrecht fiddled with the controller of the etheric radio, of which he was clearly a genius.In the process of communicating with an isolated point in space with the straight beam of etheric radio, the data files on the ship's console were of little help to him.The distance of the spacecraft he got may be wrong by about a hundred miles.One or both of the two angles he got were probably off by five or six degrees in either direction. Thus, the exact position of the spacecraft is within a vast space of 10 million cubic miles of possibilities, and the rest is left to the operator and the radio beams to do the rest.This radio beam is like a probe, within its receptive range, the widest cross-section is not more than half a mile.It is said that a skilled operator can judge how far the beam is from the target by feel on the controls.Of course, from a scientific and technical point of view, this theory is pure nonsense, but in many cases, there is no other possible explanation. In less than ten minutes, the reading on the power meter of the radio communication machine rose sharply. The wave velocity emitted by the "Relentless" began to echo. After another ten minutes, Byron leaned back and said, "They're going to send a man aboard our ship." "Shall we let them come?" Artemisia said. "Why not? Alone! We have weapons." "However, can we get them too close together?" "We're on a Tyranid cruiser, Ata. Even if they're on the best combat ship on Lingen, we have three to five times more firepower than theirs. That baby The Treaty of Alliance binds them feet are bound, and we carry five powerful bombardment guns." Artemisia said, "Do you know how to use a Tyranid bombardment gun? I thought you couldn't use it." Byron didn't want to lose the compliment, but he said, "Unfortunately, I don't know how to use it." Yes. Not yet, at least. But, you know, the Lingen ships won't know that." Half an hour later, a spaceship appeared on the visual panel.It was a squat little airship with two sets of four tail fins, and it seemed that the airship was often assigned to stratospheric flights. As soon as it appeared on the glass, Gilbret gave a cry of delight. "That's the speedboat of the Lord of Lingen Star," he said with a smile on his face, "It's his personal fast airship. I can guarantee it. I told you that mentioning my name is the surest way to get him to pay attention." After a period of deceleration and adjustment, the Lingen spaceship stopped motionless on the visual panel. A faint voice rang through the receiver. "Is the dock ready?" "Ready!" Byron replied briefly. "Only one person is allowed." "Alone." said the reply. The scene is like a long snake stretching its coiled body.Metal mesh cables released from the ring on the Lingen ship were hurled toward them like harpoons.On the visual panel, the cables get thicker and the magnetized cylinders at their heads get closer and bigger.As it got closer to the cruiser, it slowly moved toward the edge of the cone of vision, and finally disappeared completely. The cable echoed hollowly when it came into contact with the hull of the spacecraft, and the magnetized cylinder was fastened to the hull of the cruiser.The cable was like a spider's silk, and instead of sagging in the usual curve of its own weight, it retained all the knots and loops it had at the moment it made contact with the spaceship.Because of the inertia of the cable, the knots and loops on it continue to move slowly forward. The Lingen's ship moved away smoothly and carefully, the cables taut.Because it is stretched so tightly, it looks very thin, so thin that it blends into the space, almost invisible.The taut cables glisten in the sunlight of Lingen Star, which is wonderful. Byron turned the telescope, and the spaceship became unnaturally large in the field of view of the telescope.Thus they could see at the end of the connecting cable half a mile away, a figure was beginning to approach them, holding the cable alternately in both hands. This is not the usual form of butt.Typically, the two ships are docked in close proximity so that the stretchable transition modules can be brought together under the action of a powerful magnetic field, forming a tunnel through space.The people on the spaceship only need to put on the clothes worn in the spaceship, and pass from one spaceship to another spaceship without other protection.Of course, this form of docking requires mutual trust. Docked by the space cable, the man is dependent on his space suit, and the approaching Lingen man is wearing his bulky thing.It was a fat, inflatable metal-mesh spacesuit.The joints can move without muscle exertion.Even at the man's distance, Byron could see: his arms slapping the ground every time a new groove appeared at the joint. The relative speed of the two ships must be adjusted carefully. As long as one spaceship speeds up inadvertently, the space cable will be torn off, and the person holding it will be under the slight influence of the distant sun and the initial velocity when the cable is disconnected. Falling into space orbit—no friction, no hindrance, nothing that would prevent him from attaining this form of immortality. The Lingen moved forward confidently and quickly.As he approached, it was easy to see that his movement was more than a simple hand-to-hand movement.Every time he bent his little arm to move himself forward once, he let go of his hand and continued to float for more than ten feet, and then changed his hand and stretched out to the front cable to pull again. It's literally a tree-climbing trick in space, with the spaceman like a shiny metal gibbon. Artemisia said, "What if he misses?" "Looks like he's good at it," Byron said. "But if he does miss, he'll still shine in the sun. We can get him back." The Lyngen had approached, and he disappeared from the vision board.Another five seconds later, there was the sound of footsteps rattling on the hull of the spaceship. Byron pulled the joystick vigorously, and turned on the signal light mounted on the transition module of the spaceship.After a while, there was a hasty knock on the door.The first door opens.Then, there was a loud bang from an empty wall in the cockpit.The first door closed, the blank wall slid open, and a man entered. His space suit was immediately covered with a layer of hoarfrost, covered the thick glass of the helmet, and turned him into a snowman, and the frost on him was terrible.Byron turned up the heat on the heater, and the incoming air was warm and dry.start.The frost on the suit stayed put, but after a while it began to thin and melt into beads. The Lyngen fumbled for the buckle of his helmet with clumsy metal fingers, as if impatient with the whiteness before him.He lifted the helmet all over, the thick, flexible insulation inside messing with his hair as it came out. Gilbret said: "Your Excellency!" With the joy of victory, he said: "Byron, this is Your Excellency the Lord of Ringen Star himself." However, Byron, who was puzzled, just couldn't help calling out: "Jondy!"