Counterfeit Hero

A few days ago, they were still drifting in the universe, still suffering the bullying of the Suss people and Jiepeng people. But now, they are fortunate enough to stand here, looking at their own territory, their own army, with tears in their eyes.

Their emotions had been stirred to the extreme. There was a name that had been pent up in their chests.

When that familiar figure appeared in front of them, no one could control themselves anymore.

Call it out, shout it out, all the grievances, all the pain, and all the pride.

”Tian Xingjian! Tian Xingjian!”

This thunderous voice instantly swept across the entire base port, wild and fervent.

”Long live Leray!”

”Long live the bandit army!”

In the midst of this cheer, Fatty’s face suddenly turned crimson. Looking up, on the balcony of the port hall, a girl in a white dress, like a gentle fawn, was quietly watching him with tearful eyes.

”I’m so glad to see you, General Tian. I thought we might not meet anymore.”

Leaving the port where the cheers echoed in the sky, back in the central command room of the base, Fang Xiang shook hands with Fatty.

This was her first real-life meeting with Fatty, yet there was a feeling of old adversaries about it.

The bargaining that took place left such a deep impression on Fang Xiang that, no matter how others praised Fatty or cheered for him, Fang Xiang wished she could bite off a piece of Fatty’s flesh. She tugged at the corner of her mouth expressionlessly, giving a semblance of a smile. However, her words carried a hint of provocation and revenge.

”Didn’t you say I could do whatever I want after six months? Once the time’s up, I’m leaving, and let’s see how you handle it!”

Women naturally have the right to be petty!

”General Fang, I’ve always wanted to say.....” Fatty held Fang Xiang’s hand, his eyes somewhat unfocused: ”You really look like my sister.”

Fang Xiang was stunned. She didn’t expect the first thing Fatty said upon meeting her would be this. He said she looked like his sister, but why didn’t he ever mention this during so many video calls?

Seeing Fatty holding her hand dazedly and not letting go, Fang Xiang was about to pull her hand back, but suddenly noticed that Fatty’s eyes had already turned red at some point. From such a close distance, she could clearly see the rising mist in his clear eyes, and within that mist, the overflowing longing and pain....

Fang Xiang’s heart suddenly trembled.

”Sister....” Fatty murmured distractedly. His somewhat confused, somewhat struggling, yet somewhat aggrieved gaze left Fang Xiang at a loss, yet unable to refuse. After a moment, Fatty regained his composure and released Fang Xiang’s hand with an apologetic look: ”I’m sorry, sorry.... I lost my composure.”

”It’s okay...” Fang Xiang absentmindedly withdrew her hand.

”You look too much like my sister...” said Fatty, who had no sister, already brewing his emotions, now smoothly delivering them as if in heartfelt recollection: ”When I was little, I was my sister’s tail, wherever she went, I followed. We argued every day, fought over things, yet neither of us could do without the other. I thought we would be together for life, but this damned war......”

Fatty painfully closed his eyes, gritting his teeth, a tear trailing from the corner of his eye.

In the silence of sorrow, Fatty took deep breaths while raising his head, blinking rapidly as if trying to retract the unstoppable tears.

Finally, when Fang Xiang’s eyes were red with tears, Fatty said in a trembling voice: ”General Fang, from today on, you are my sister, we are family! Believe me, one day, I’ll go with you back to Saleria, reclaim your homeland, expel the invaders, and avenge General Tolstoy!”

Fang Xiang involuntarily nodded. The bit of awkwardness before the meeting had long been cast away to the winds.

In terms of intelligence, Fang Xiang was extraordinary; in emotional intelligence, she was no slouch. But she was facing Fatty here, who could stimulate his emotions thousands of times in front of a mirror, skilled in psychology. With premeditated calculation, how could Fang Xiang win? At this moment, Fatty’s emotions showed genuinely. Meeting his gaze upon her, what Fang Xiang saw was an inexplicable attachment. It felt as if she indeed was his sister.

”Alright!” Chekov wiped away tears that were actually from laughter, saying choked up: ”Let’s not mention these sad things. I believe as long as we work together, we can definitely defeat all our enemies!”

Chekov patted Fatty on the shoulder, squeezing it, admiring his performance.

Fatty wiped away his resilient tears, giving a thumbs up behind Chekov’s back, thinking, damn, this old guy’s alright.

Barbarossa, who was watching everything clearly from the sidelines, couldn’t help twitching his face. This bunch of Leray people, none of them were virtuous, especially those taught by Fatty, were simply a collection of extreme rascals! Look, how moved the Major General of Leray with reddened eyes was. His gaze towards Fatty was also full of affection.

This sister, it seems, had already been drawn into Fatty’s fiction.

”Fatty, this is the star system distribution map of the space stations and SkyNet detectors we currently control.” Chekov handed an electronic folder to Fatty, pointing at the interstellar map in the folder: ”The performance of the miniature detectors designed by the logistics research department is excellent, with a large detection range, strong interference capability, and integrated communication relay function. Most importantly, they are easy to manufacture. We’ve spread nearly a million of these miniature detectors across those star systems, creating a sensory grid that encompasses all Jump Channels. Currently, the manufacturing department is working overtime to produce more. In a while, we’ll be able to cover the most critical parts of the Mars Channel’s star systems with our miniature sensing detectors.”