Ruan Bai raised his head to look at the people displaying various expressions before him.
This was his first time coming into contact with so many humans, and these humans looked very strange. Clearly, they were wearing smiles on their faces, yet he disliked them intensely.
From the crowd emerged a refined man dressed in a white trench coat. With a clear and gentle voice, he looked as though he were terribly shocked upon catching sight of Huo Jiuxiao: “Marshal Huo, you’re still alive?”
Seemingly catching himself acting out of line, the man offered a mild smile carrying a tone of slight apology, “Marshal Huo, all of us have been so worried about you. Why didn’t you send us a message in advance when you were fine?”
Hearing Gu Jun’s words, everyone attending the funeral wore subtle expressions.
Weren’t the Crown Prince’s subtextual words basically accusing Marshal Huo of deliberately concealing the news that he was still alive?
While the people present could still maintain superficial poise, the netizens across the interstellar network weren’t nearly as restrained.
Word had spread that Marshal Huo had met with an accident, prompting a massive proportion of netizens to flood the official blog with all sorts of appeals and calls searching for Marshal Huo.
To completely cement the “fact” of Huo Jiuxiao’s current death, this funeral was broadcasted live across the entire empire.
Netizens had assumed something genuinely happened to Huo Jiuxiao, and many had sincerely grieved and mourned for him. Now, to be told that the Marshal was fine and had even concealed the news?
Naturally, netizens couldn’t stomach that, leaving comments one after another demanding to know what the actual truth was.
[I don’t think Marshal Huo is that kind of person. There must be some unspeakable reason.]
[Has a hidden reason +1]
[What hidden reason? Even if he couldn’t tell us, couldn’t he at least inform His Highness the Crown Prince?]
[Agree with ls (lou shang/poster above), I reckon hjx (Huo Jiuxiao) just has too much paranoia, making us worry for nothing.]
[Worrying for nothing is one thing, but His Highness the Crown Prince has been wearing himself out laboring over his affairs for so long…]
The interstellar network was arguing heatedly and in complete chaos.
The ones speaking up for Huo Jiuxiao were mostly military academy students; they worshipped and idolized this God of War Marshal, grateful for the years Huo Jiuxiao had spent defending the empire.
To many imperial citizens, Marshal Huo felt far too distant from the general public. While ordinary citizens respected him, what they felt even more was awe.
Gu Jun was the Crown Prince and represented the face of the royal family. Frequently active before the media with a warm and cultivated demeanor, he boasted a massive following of loyal fans on the interstellar network.
Naturally, these individuals stood firmly on the Crown Prince’s side to speak up.
Upon hearing Gu Jun’s words, Ruan Bai flew into a towering rage, lifting his head to glare fiercely at Gu Jun as though ready to lunge forward and take a bite out of him at any second.
He knew Mr. Marshal had been betrayed by a traitor, so how did it suddenly become a case of “deliberate concealment” in this guy’s mouth?
[Though, wait! Marshal Huo’s cat is gorgeous.]
[…Is it just me, or is hjx’s cat super fierce? Could this be a case of pets taking after their owners?]
“My apologies to everyone, it’s not that the Marshal didn’t send word back in advance, but rather that he was genuinely worried about complications arising.” Holding a document folder, Qin Lang strode forward with long, confident strides.
He brandished the object in his hand, “During this recent battle against the Zerg, the Marshal’s mecha was destroyed and he sustained severe injuries, forcing him to make an emergency landing on the Mother Star.”
With that, he saluted Huo Jiuxiao, “Reporting to the Marshal, the traitor Feng Hui has confessed.”
[Feng Hui? Is that the Feng Hui I’m thinking of?]
[Marshal Huo’s mecha maintenance specialist, how many other Feng Huis could there be?]
[Hss! The Feng family is the empire’s largest mecha manufacturer and the Empress’s maternal family…]
[Well, there’s nothing unclear about this anymore. No wonder the Marshal didn’t announce it beforehand; if it were me, I wouldn’t dare either.]
[Does the ls have any evidence? His Highness the Crown Prince certainly didn’t know about this…]
Huo Jiuxiao scooped the little cat on his head, which looked ready to go on a rampage at any second down into his arms, his tone ice-cold.
“Feng Hui was a mecha manufacturer specialist assigned by His Majesty to stay by my side. I have no idea who directed him, but he tampered with the Black Blade. For a mere Feng Hui to dare tamper with the supreme commander’s mecha while the Thirteenth Legion was battling the Zerg—”
Dropping his dark eyelashes slightly to block the mocking glint in his eyes, he continued, “Then I am forced to wonder whether the Feng family, as the empire’s largest mecha manufacturer, might also tamper with the mechas of my Thirteenth Legion.”
The smile froze on the corners of Gu Jun’s mouth as he fought desperately to maintain outward composure, “Marshal Huo exaggerates. This was Feng Hui’s personal fault alone, how could it implicate the entire Feng family?”
[I think Marshal Huo is completely right. Who would ever dare use the Feng family’s mechas anymore, lest you die without knowing how it happened.]
[ls is going too far. I think His Highness the Crown Prince made a valid point; how can you implicate an entire family because of one family member?]
[Horseshit. That Feng Hui is the young master of the Feng family; who knows what kind of trash the Feng family actually is.]
“Your Highness the Crown Prince.” Huo Jiuxiao’s gaze turned sharp and freezing, his voice frigid, “I must be held accountable for the lives of the Thirteenth Legion’s warriors. The matter of the mechas can be discussed at a later time.”
“Right now, I would like to ask His Majesty to give me an explanation to give the Thirteenth Legion an explanation. Why was Frank, whom you sent over supposedly for practical experience, actually a Zerg general?”