Starting from the Planetary Governor - Chapter 988

Chapter 979, without bloodshed?

Gu Hang has huge ambitions.

But he actually prefers to call it determination.

He has probably understood his role in this universe now. At his current position, he has no room for escape.

So, if he wants to do it, he must do it well.

Keeping the mess of the old empire, and then spending countless thoughts and efforts on it, in the end, there is no guarantee of getting any good results.

Why bother?

As for Robert, Gu Hang knew that it would be a bit difficult for him to accept for a while. On the

one hand, he was worried about Gu Hang’s “ambition” and could not trust him.

On the other hand, he was also worried about whether it would work.

As for the latter, Gu Hang believed that Robert could figure it out.

If they were really penniless and had nothing, relying on brute force to overturn the old system of the empire and then rebuild a new building from the ruins, it would cause big problems. The empire’s territory is too large and the difficulty of ruling is too high. No matter how bad the old order is, it is still an order. If the order is destroyed, any problem in the reconstruction process will lead to a particularly big chaos.

But the difference is that Gu Hang isn’t rebuilding the empire from scratch; he has the Alliance. He’s spent over a hundred years building an efficient administrative system capable of swiftly taking over.

Gu Hang believes that Robert, renowned for his rationality and wisdom, is fully capable of discerning whether the Alliance government has the capacity to take over, and whether the Alliance Central Committee, after replacing the Imperial Central Committee, can effectively manage such a vast human empire. Of

course, the Alliance isn’t perfect, and no one can be.

Not even the Emperor himself could achieve that.

As long as it’s stronger than the old system, and significantly stronger, that’s enough.

As for Robert’s first concern, that depends on him.

It depends on whether Robert has the wisdom to build mutual trust with Gu Hang.

And, more importantly, whether Robert truly upholds the principles of “Imperial First, Humanity First” and is free of personal gain.

If he harbors a lust for power and prioritizes the immense authority that comes with the position of “Regent,” then no matter how much of a honeymoon they may have, the two will likely eventually part ways.

But if he were truly intelligent and selfless, no matter how much friction there might be, he would eventually see clearly that allowing Gu Hang to fully control the empire was the best option.

Gu Hang had said that the mutual trust between him and Robert was the cornerstone of the new empire’s eternal stability. But he hadn’t mentioned that this cornerstone was the “dual leadership system.”

Of course, discussing this now might be a bit far-fetched.

Holy Terra hadn’t been taken yet.

Without the heart of the empire, all talk was castles in the air.

The distribution of post-war benefits presupposed victory.

Without Terra, what was the point of talking about kings and prime ministers?

And the war was already underway.

So far, things seemed relatively smooth.

After Robert concluded his “discussion” with Gu Hang and roughly determined the future distribution of benefits, he immediately began preparing for the war against Holy Terra.

Honestly, Robert had never imagined that he would one day be on the offensive in a battle for Holy Terra.

However, he did have an advantage:

he knew Holy Terra well.

He also knew all the defense facilities of the human empire’s capital, including many hidden cards.

He was the Regent of the Imperium of Man, supreme ruler for over a hundred years in the era following the Emperor’s Ascension and the bitter victory in the Civil War.

He had initially worried whether Holy Terra’s orbital defenses, its defensive strategies, and its various hidden weapons would have changed. After all, ten thousand years had already passed.

But… based on current observations and intelligence, none had.

Humanity had made no progress at all in those ten thousand years.

In fact, it had actually regressed considerably.

This was what the Custodians had told him.

They were, of course, well-versed in Holy Terra’s defenses. The Imperial Palace was undoubtedly the largest, strongest, and most resolute fortress on Holy Terra. The Custodians, of course, were most familiar with its internal defenses.

Furthermore, they were likely to forcefully take over the entire palace.

In the past, not only the Imperial government, but also numerous other key Imperial departments, had their offices in the Terra Imperial Palace. Now, they planned to seal everything off. Martial law would be imposed on the palace, and the Custodians would take full control. The Palace Guards are a mortal force entirely under the command of the Custodians. Their loyalty and purity are likely impeccable, but the Custodians will remain cautious and conduct a thorough audit of the Palace Guards’ reliability over the next period of time.

All other military forces, aside from the Custodians and the Palace Guards, will be removed from Terra Palace.

Terra Palace’s various defensive structures will naturally no longer pose an obstacle to Robert’s offensive.

This alleviates Robert’s greatest concern.

If the firepower from Terra Palace’s deep walls were directed upwards, it would be unimaginable how much it would cost to control the planet’s orbital region.

Of course, Holy Terra’s orbital defenses extend beyond the Palace itself. With the Palace eliminated, approximately 70 percent remain.

Robert also raised the question of whether the Custodians could proactively attack and help control some of the situation if they had the spare capacity.

He wasn’t simply asking them to do so. After all, while the Custodians were powerful, their numbers were still too small. Later, Robert’s expeditionary force will risk an airborne assault, aiming to land a significant number of troops at the landing zone created within the Terran Imperial Palace.

Led by a number of Custodians, they will attack strategic points.

These matters have already been negotiated, and the Custodians have agreed.

Thus, the problem of controlling Holy Terra’s orbit has been partially resolved.

The other threat lies with the Solar Fleet.

Part of this fleet is on the Moon—the same force to which so many admirals bowed and knelt.

They are now fully under Robert’s command and no longer pose a hindrance.

However, they comprise only 10% of the Solar Fleet at most.

Furthermore, expecting them to turn their weapons against their former comrades is unrealistic.

Firstly, they could easily provoke rebellion. Secondly, their internal situation is complex, and their loyalty is not monitored, so their reliability is uncertain. If they were to turn against Robert at a critical moment on the battlefield, it would be disastrous.

However, they could also leverage their shared connection with the Solar Fleet to reach out to more of its fleet commanders, captains, and generals, striving to win them over.

This was already underway, and many captains had expressed their interest.

Because of this, Gu Hang and Robert were both in a good mood, feeling that things were progressing smoothly.

Even more optimistically, was it possible to simply leverage political and diplomatic means, leveraging their prestige, and capture Holy Terra without a single drop of blood?

(End of Chapter)