Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 518

Chapter 516: Führer? Come with us.

Mr. Gu gave too much…

Zhai Guangshan was almost vomiting blood after hearing this.

“What exactly did he give? Wasn’t the Star Region Government good enough to you, Granya, and your Shipbuilding Group? Just a few benefits to buy you off? And you gave too much! How could you possibly give more than the Star Region Government? Before this, you were the stars of the entire Star Region! Orders, raw materials, policies… What didn’t the Star Region Government give you? Even when you asked for the entire planet Granya, the Star Region Government found a way to give it to you! Even the entire Menghe Fleet, the Star Region indulged you, allowing you to wield such strong influence… Is this how you repay the Star Region Government?”

Zhai Guangshan almost cursed out the word “ungrateful wolf.”

Fisher, standing opposite him, felt a little embarrassed.

Even he, looking back now, felt a little bewildered during the negotiations with Gu Hang.

Although the conditions are very tempting and the offer is generous, they are still a rare commodity after all, so they won’t agree on the spot, right?

Although they will eventually agree, won’t they be a little reserved?

“Alas…” He let out a mock sigh. “There’s nothing we can do. General Gu, with the righteous cause of the Imperial Central Government and the Cosmic Domain Government, and a massive army approaching, what else can we do?”

“The Menghe Fleet has been dispatched to you!”

“If they force their way in, what can we do with the fleet? Would anyone dare order a direct war against the fleet of Commander-in-Chief Gu, the Imperial-appointed leader of the Southern Theater Command? Wasn’t the previous sector leader also your trusted confidant? He led a large group of elites to block Gu Hang, who arrived alone, and didn’t you dare say a word before letting him go?”

Zhai Guangshan’s face darkened to the point of tears. “So, your Shipbuilding Group is just giving up on an industry you’ve run for centuries?!”

“Don’t talk nonsense,” Fisher waved his hands repeatedly. “How can you say you’re giving up? We should say we’ve found a new opportunity that can elevate the entire Shipbuilding Group to a higher level…”

At this point, Fisher outlined the alliance’s terms to Zhai Guangshan.

They weren’t very detailed, and nothing was particularly confidential. Despite this, Zhai Guangshan grew silent as he listened.

Orders? Market?

Is the Menghe Star Region bigger than the Alliance?

Raw materials?

Does the Menghe Star Region have as much in abundance as the Alliance?

Furthermore, reaching the agreement doesn’t mean Grangar loses everything in Menghe. On the contrary, they’ll retain it, especially in the future, when the Alliance is likely to further control the entire Menghe Star Region. This will ensure greater stability. Furthermore

, the Alliance can provide market, orders, and raw material support that the Menghe Star Region cannot offer.

This isn’t just about the resources of the more developed Dragon Eagle Star Region, which the Alliance represents, but also the entire Eastern Universe.

After all, the Alliance currently enjoys the support of the Universe Government.

Going against it would only bring harm, no gain.

While these things are merely icing on the cake, they’re not necessarily a problem. After all, the Shipbuilding Group has enjoyed a comfortable life thanks to the support of the Menghe Star Region Government.

However, many of the things that will come next are simply beyond the reach of the Star Region Government.

Gu Hang promised that the Shipbuilding Group could invest in the Alliance’s two current shipbuilding centers:

Tianma and Yunluo.

These two star regions, along with several surrounding linked star regions, boast robust shipbuilding industries.

In the future, the Shipbuilding Group may even have the opportunity to directly invest in shipyards on Feiyi and Yunluo. While building a large-scale shipyard is currently difficult, the Alliance has already provided them with at least one shipyard on Baishuo.

While it’s a small facility, even smaller than Granya’s, unable to produce even cruisers, it has a solid foundation and can build destroyers, merchant ships, and transport vessels—a truly impressive feat.

For Granya, this represents a lucrative opportunity.

The Shipbuilding Group wouldn’t dare invest in places like Feiyi and Angry Owl right away. They’re too large and too expensive.

On the other hand, not only do they have the opportunity to invest, but the Alliance will also invest in them.

This investment isn’t simply a financial investment.

As the only location in the Menghe star region capable of building large ships, Granya’s money isn’t the most crucial factor.

As Zhai Guangshan said, if it were just a conventional price, what would it really matter? The Alliance’s offer was generous, but the Menghe Star Region certainly wasn’t incomparable. Furthermore, Granya’s importance to the Menghe Star Region, not to the Alliance, was unique. Therefore, even if Menghe were impoverished and broke, they would still want Granya. And no matter how much the Alliance paid, they still had to consider cost-effectiveness.

However, the Shipbuilding Group’s opportunity to invest in the Alliance’s shipyards was something the Menghe Star Region could never meet. They simply didn’t have the conditions.

This was the irreplaceable nature of the offer.

Furthermore, the Alliance’s investment in Granya wasn’t simply about the money; most importantly, it came with a team of consultants and, crucially, the technology.

Gu Hang had already explicitly promised to bring Moon-class cruiser construction technology to replace one of Granya’s River-Zhen-class shipyards. If cooperation was successful, the Alliance would also consider providing additional technical support and converting a shipyard used to build a Giant Belly-class merchant ship into one capable of producing a Holy Grail-class battlecruiser!

How could the Shipbuilding Group resist such an offer?

They threw away their composure and simply slumped to their knees.

Similarly, this is also the reason why Zhai Guangshan kept silent.

If it were money, he would sell everything he had to keep Granya; but the two conditions for mutual investment given by the alliance were something he could not meet no matter what.

What else can he do?

But Zhai Guangshan was not so easy to give up.

He said: “Do you know the policies of the alliance? How do they treat enterprises?”

Fisher sighed and said: “Indeed, this is what we were most worried about at the beginning. The system implemented by the alliance is not very friendly to us. However, this is also included in the conditions that Gu Hang left for us. Within the alliance’s system, there are actually private business entities. While obtaining corresponding job levels, they give up all government subsidies and can obtain profits according to the business conditions of the business entity, and the group still belongs to us.”

“The only two things that need to be changed are, first, employee management in accordance with the alliance’s methods; second, after accepting the alliance’s investment and support, production tasks must be completed in accordance with the alliance’s requirements.”

“After discussing these two conditions, we feel that they are completely acceptable…”

Hearing Fisher say this, Zhai Guangshan became furious. “Have you ever considered that he might be deceiving you? Let their troops in. Once they control Granya, whether through investment or assignment, why would they keep you around? By then, what room will you have to resist?”

This was Fisher’s turn to be silent.

Indeed, this was the biggest risk.

There had been considerable discussion within their shipping group.

What if they cross the river and then stab you? Even if we don’t act now, wait a decade or eight. Cooperation deepens, penetration deepens, and the scale of the two sides becomes completely unequal. The Shipbuilding Group begins to come under significant control. Then, what’s the point of their claims of ‘private ownership’ and ‘the group is still ours’?

We’ll be kicked out at a moment’s notice!

However, in their discussions, this risk was ultimately overlooked.

It wasn’t because it wasn’t important.

Rather… there was no choice.

The reason was simple: if you don’t trust the Alliance’s credibility and believe it’s a rigged operation, then it’s better to worry about them getting angry and forcibly seizing Grangar now than worrying about being swallowed up in a decade or eight.

The Menghe Fleet could stop the Alliance’s advance fleet, but once they added their weight, what would the “Fire Nova,” rumored to have decimated the Greenskins during the Iron Teeth War, do?

And why would they?

Are they rebelling by confronting the Southern Theater Commander?

Of course, Fisher didn’t want to make these words perfectly clear to Zhai Guangshan.

He thought for a moment, then offered a vague exhortation, “Cooperating with Commander-in-Chief Gu is both an order from the Cosmic Realm and the Imperial Center, and it’s also the practical option. Of course, we might have another option, but the Alliance is closer, and that option is further away. Headmaster Zhai, you must think it through carefully…”

“Which choice? The Divine Emperor bears witness to my loyalty!” Zhai Guangshan emphasized, then paused before continuing, “But serving the Divine Emperor doesn’t mean unconditionally following the Alliance. We might have a third option…”

At this point, the conference hall door suddenly opened.

Zhai Guangshan paused, looking outside to see Commander-in-Chief Gu, looking youthful and energetic, striding towards him on the red carpet that stretched all the way to the door.

Gu Hang even managed a smile. “What third point? Sorry, I just arrived and seem to have missed some of your conversation. Would you mind sharing it with me?”

Zhai Guangshan replied with a forced smile, “Sorry, it was just a private conversation, and it’s not convenient to share it with Mr. Gu. Let’s get down to business. The Alliance’s encroachment on the Menghe Star Region must cease. Your actions violate Imperial law and undermine the administrative structure of the Menghe Star Region. I’ve repeatedly protested to you, but instead of abating, your actions have intensified, even reaching Granya…”

Gu Hang looked at Zhai Guangshan tenderly, listening to his long speech without responding.

Slowly, Zhai Guangshan’s momentum faded.

He was, after all, the head of a star region, a powerful lord. When meeting with high-ranking officials in the Zhou Territory government, they would show a basic level of respect. Unlike Gu Hang, who refused to respond

, his anger was rising.

He dropped the subject, then, somewhat angrily, asked Gu Hang, “What are you laughing at, Commander-in-Chief? You don’t seem to respect me at all.”

“No, quite the opposite,” Gu Hang sighed. “I truly respect you, President Zhai Guangshan. It’s precisely because of this respect that I’ve been listening carefully to your final words, hoping to see if there’s anything that can save you.”

“Something that can save me?”

“Yes,” Gu Hang said frankly. “We’ve got some evidence concerning you, concerning the ‘choice’ you discussed with Chairman Fisher. You may not be as loyal as you say, nor did you make the right choice as you claimed. On the contrary, your choice was utterly wrong.”

“Slander!” Zhai Guangshan raged.

“Whether it’s slander or not, your words don’t count.”

“Does your words count?” Zhai Guangshan retorted. “You’re the Commander-in-Chief, sure, but when did you ever have the power to decide whether a star region leader is guilty?”

Gu Hang spread his hands and said, “Indeed, I don’t seem to have that power. However, I’ve brought someone with authority.”

Zhai Guangshan was stunned.

The conference room door opened again.

A man appeared, dressed in a leather jacket, leather boots, and a rather retro-styled top hat.

Pinned to his chest was a badge.

It was a radiant light.

Seeing this attire and the badge, Zhai Guangshan was stunned.

He knew what it symbolized.

The Inquisition, the Glittering Inquisition from the Eastern Universe.

This Inquisition wasn’t as prestigious and powerful as the Silver Inquisition, nor was it the three most renowned Inquisitions: Heretic, Demonic, or Anti-Xenophobic. They were still young, not even very old.

But within the Eastern Universe, the Glittering Inquisition held considerable renown. This faction, the Inquisition, was built on a local foundation, with its primary area of activity being the Eastern Universe.

Regardless of the Inquisition’s own capabilities, at least the Empire’s regulations regarding the powers of Inquisitors were set there.

From this perspective, the Glittering Inquisition did have the power to convict him.

Of course, this was impossible under normal circumstances.

What had enabled the Silver Inquisition to achieve such a formidable reputation?

Isn’t it because they have done something so shocking as to overthrow a chairman of the universe?

Why don’t other small tribunal factions learn from them? Is it because they don’t want to?

That’s obviously because they don’t have the ability.

The Flash Tribunal wants to make trouble for Zhai Guangshan… How many divisions and fleets do you have in the Flash Tribunal? Do you dare to think of such a thing?

Even if it is an assassination, with the ability of the Flash Tribunal, can it deal with the guards and bodyguards around Zhai Guangshan?

It is difficult, and once it fails, the Flash Tribunal will probably suffer crazy revenge from Zhai Guangshan.

But now, it seems that there is no problem.

The Flash Tribunal has the power, and Gu Hang is capable.

After discovering this, Zhai Guangshan was really panicked.

“Head of State? Please come with us.” The judge said.

(End of this chapter)