Counterfeit Hero

”General Douglas....” Bernadotte glanced at Leefer, then turned to General Douglas on the communication screen: ”Please connect me to Major General Tian Xingjian.”

Sanity and madness are just a thought away.... the generals looked at each other, while a hint of sarcasm flashed in Leefer’s eyes!

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A group of bandit army officers sat around the monitor screen, watching the confrontation between Fatty and Hanfrey in the detention cabin.

These were two completely different people.

Hanfrey was handsome in appearance and outstanding in temperament. Although only in his thirties, years of noble upbringing training had instilled in him a kind of elegant charm from within. Added to his military talent, his illustrious duke title, and vast wealth, he could make any woman with a Prince Charming complex’s heart skip a beat.

But Tian Xingjian was quite the opposite. He had a plain appearance, a fat body, and a thoroughly bad demeanor. If one must point out any charm, it would be that he attracted women to give him a good beating; there’s no better way to describe his sleazy nature. Even having the rank of Major General, he couldn’t shed the shell of a commoner.

”It seems you won’t cry until you see the coffin!” Fatty was exasperated on the screen.

Fang Xiang couldn’t help but burst out laughing; Fatty’s expression was too genuine. Those reddened eyes, bulging forehead veins, rapid breathing, coupled with somewhat helpless body movements, depicted perfectly the face of a greedy and opportunistic petty character. Such acting talents should never go wasted without competing for an Oscar.

Fatty had been haggling with Hanfrey for a whole hour.

Even though both fleets had stopped attacking and disengaged from combat, the real war hadn’t stopped at all. Inside this small detention cabin, Fatty was strategizing against Hanfrey.

”Since I’m captured, I have the consciousness of a captive.” Hanfrey was not intimidated by Fatty looking as if he might attack at any moment, saying calmly: ”How you dispose of me is your right. Deciding what price to pay is my right. To me, being humiliated and dying is the same outcome, it’s just an all-out fight.”

”Don’t think I won’t take action!” Fatty tightened his grip on the wolf fang club, his eyes shifted fiercely for a moment, then showed a ferocious light.

Looking at Fatty’s fierce eyes, Hanfrey’s heart instead grew increasingly at ease.

Hanfrey himself had profound expertise in psychology and negotiation techniques. He always remembered a famous saying—what is not achieved at the negotiating table must be seized on the battlefield.

The reverse of this saying also holds true, that what cannot be seized on the battlefield should be obtained at the negotiating table.

A good negotiator is more important than a well-equipped Armored Division. What cannot be gained in battle might just be a few understated words at the negotiating table.

The highest realm is to subdue the enemy without battle.

Hanfrey always believed that negotiation and combat needed to be under dual control, mutually dependent, and inseparable. This time, his hand wasn’t that good. Falling into Fatty’s hands, he was disadvantaged from the start. Besides the advantage that the Feiling and Feiyu Fleets held over the Fei Alliance Fleet, he had no other cards.

Fortunately, this card was big enough to hold the line! After enduring Fatty’s initial threats, he realized that this Fatty was simply not his opponent. Deciphering a person’s psychology from their gaze, action, and expression was one of his fortes.

In Hanfrey’s view, Fatty was a Leray person, and the bandit army he led wasn’t the main force of the Fei Alliance; hence, they were urgently in need of a large number of ships and weaponry. That was the primary reason why Fatty opened his mouth so wide from the beginning. However, he was too anxious. Clearly, for some reason, he needed to get sufficient benefits quickly.

Quickly, this word often belongs to the losing side in negotiations. What victors most often do is use various means to compress the losing side’s negotiation time, forcing them to ultimately yield.

Although Fatty was hideous in appearance, shouting his means were extremely despicable, his body language betrayed him.

Hanfrey could entirely feel that this silent battle had already entered his rhythm. He just observed Fatty calmly, guessing Fatty’s greedy and anxious factors in his mind.

Greed is predictable. Everyone knows what the current situation in Leray is like. This Fatty, at Mars, clearly couldn’t toss out two Elephant-class Royal Fleets.

Capturing him was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him and for all of Leray, which he was bound to utilize fully. If he didn’t gain enough benefit, he probably wouldn’t sleep well for the rest of his life!

The reason for his anxiety could only be either of two things, self or enemy.

One possibility is he sensed danger and must complete the negotiation before the danger arrives. Such danger might concern worries about the Binart Fleet’s all-out resistance or possibly because he knew some Western Alliance Fleet was advancing here. The latter possibility is greater. Jiepeng people wouldn’t just stay outside the Longbow Star System watching. Over a hundred hours were enough for them to prepare everything.

The other cause for Fatty’s restlessness might come from within their Alliance forces.

The strength of the Feiyang Republic is known across the universe. If this campaign’s final results were to be divided, presumably, the Feiyang Republic would be taking the lion’s share. Fatty wants to swallow the results, so he must hurry to complete the negotiation before the Feiyang people intervene. The reason why he is held here, threatened repeatedly by Fatty without seeing any Feiyang officer, is perhaps precisely this reason.