CHAPTER 1889: CHAPTER 1882: GREAT PLAN

"I know, I know, I never hated you, just resented you..." Luo’er said, choked with emotion.

"You resent me for not caring about you, right," Luo Qishan sighed softly, "That was indeed my fault, I completely ignored your feelings at the time."

"I won’t leave again, the Advance Team has been disbanded, I won’t be sent abroad again." Luo’er continued.

"I already know."

Though Luo Qishan said this, he still showed a satisfied expression and closed his eyes peacefully.

"Besides..."

Luo’er seemed to want to say something but ultimately kept silent.

Luo Qishan clearly sensed his concerns, so he opened his eyes and said to Luoya, "You all leave first, let Luo’er sit with me for a while."

"Understood."

Luoya sniffed, and gestured for the doctor and nurse, who were also wiping their tears, to leave the ward.

As she stepped out of the ward, she saw two girls outside wiping their tears and continuously using tissues.

"Well, now it’s just the two of us in the room. What do you want to say?"

Luo Qishan took a deep breath, as if regaining the poise he should have as a General.

"The higher-ups plan to let Lipei govern autonomously, and then support Lipei with aid to resist the possible upcoming war." Luo’er said solemnly while wiping his tears.

"Sit down, why are you kneeling?" Luo Qishan glanced at him and said.

"No, I’m fine kneeling."

Luo’er shook his head.

"Alright," Luo Qishan sighed, pondered for a moment, then looked at him and asked, "Are they planning to let you take the role of the highest leader?"

"Yes."

Luo’er nodded.

"I had a feeling," Luo Qishan pursed his lips and shook his head, "I wondered why they were more anxious than I was, even hiring the High-peak people’s fleet at high costs to search for you in the East Continent. Turns out, they wanted to hand Lipei over to you..."

"Should I take it on?" Luo’er asked.

"Are you asking me," Luo Qishan glanced at him, closed his eyes, and said, "I’ve already retired..."

"I’m afraid I don’t have enough capability..." Luo’er said worriedly.

"Whether you have the capability or not is not for you to decide," Luo Qishan gently shook his head and said, "Luo’er, the people at headquarters know you better than you know yourself. They know you have this capability; otherwise, they wouldn’t make such a decision..."

"So, it’s never about whether you can do it, but about whether you are willing to do it, do you understand?"

"I understand..."

Luo’er nodded deeply.

"I really hope you can relax, spend time with me, spend time with Luoya, spend time with your loved ones, but..."

Pausing for a moment, Luo Qishan continued, "You’re Luo Qishan’s grandson. If the nation is in great trouble, you definitely won’t stand by and do nothing. Your actions should not only honor the name Luo but also live up to the family’s traditions, right?"

"Yes," Luo’er said, looking down, "I am Luo Qishan’s grandson, grandpa was a General, so the grandson can’t be a coward."

"Then go do it," Luo Qishan gazed at him lovingly, "Don’t worry, don’t be afraid of not doing well. Since they’ve chosen you, they have a hundred backup plans to ensure you do well."

"I understand."

Luo’er nodded deeply again, and when he lifted his head again, the doubts in his eyes had finally been swept away, replaced by a determined expression.

After a long conversation, Luo’er left the ward satisfied. As he stepped out of the room, he was immediately blocked by three girls.

"Luo’er, is grandpa alright?" Tangmo asked with concern.

"With some rest, he’ll be fine. After all, he’s already quite old." Luo’er replied, looking a bit weary.

"Can we go in to see him?" Tangmo asked eagerly.

"Uh," Luo’er looked at Luoya, paused, and said, "then let Luoya accompany you in."

"But aren’t you going in?" Tangmo asked, puzzled.

"No, I still have some things to handle by myself." Luo’er waved his hand.

"Do you want me to accompany you?" Baiyue mustered up courage and asked boldly.

"No need, you all go in."

Luo’er smiled slightly and politely declined her request.

"Alright then..." Baiyue hung her head, muttering to herself.

Leaving the ward, Luo’er, escorted by two men in black, traversed the corridor and took the elevator to the hospital entrance. When he looked up, he saw a familiar person leaning against an unmanned vehicle waiting for him.

"Want to join?" Li Si asked.

"Did you specifically come to wait for me?" Luo’er asked, a bit surprised.

"After all, there’s still some work to hand over, right?" Li Si smiled and said.

"I haven’t decided to agree yet." Luo’er said with a wry smile.

To this, Li Si didn’t immediately respond but instead smiled again and said, "Let’s talk in the car."

With the matter already at this stage, Luo’er followed Li Si into the unmanned vehicle. As soon as they got in, Li Si activated the military code, granting the vehicle the highest authority as it sped towards the academy, with vehicles on the road automatically giving way.

"Actually," Li Si spoke up in the car, "the reason headquarters is so keen on calling you back is primarily due to pressure from two departments."

"There are actually departments that can pressure headquarters?" Luo’er asked, somewhat surprised.

"What are you saying, headquarters is a weak unit, anyone can step on it." Li Si grinned widely.

Pausing, he continued sternly, "No more beating around the bush, I’ll say it straight. The Science Academy and the Aerospace Science and Technology Group went to the central authorities to pressure headquarters, demanding that headquarters must protect Lipei, or else their plans would all go to waste."

"Plans?"

"Yes, I believe you’ve heard about it long ago," Li Si looked at him solemnly and said, "the Magpie Bridge Plan, or the Stargate Plan, has already been officially implemented. And Lipei’s Otherworld Gate is the key node for the entire plan, so the people from these two departments are urgently demanding headquarters to protect Lipei."

"Magpie Bridge Plan..."

Luo’er frowned slightly, though he had indeed heard about it, that was already something from years ago.

Seeing this, Li Si snapped his fingers. Since the military code was pre-entered, the unmanned vehicle immediately switched to conference mode.

Then, through the holographic screen, Li Si pulled some of the data from his wristband and projected it onto the holographic projection screen inside the unmanned vehicle.

"The Magpie Bridge Plan, also called the Stargate Plan. Specifically, scientists plan to open a door to Mars through the Otherworld Gate. In this way, they can transport building materials from Lipei to Mars using airboats..."

"When the Mars base is completed, they will rely on the Mars base to launch rockets to construct a space station. Once the space station is also completed, they will open another Otherworld Gate to connect the space station, and then, we can reach the space station directly through the Otherworld Gate..."

"Then, the space station will continue to expand, with the ultimate goal of constructing it into a starport in Mars orbit. There, we will build star warships as our first step into the sea of stars..."

"Of course, this is the conservative plan. The most aggressive plan is to open the Otherworld Gate directly on a comet, so that we can use the comet as a cosmic warship to achieve our goal of stepping out of the solar system."

Li Si spoke passionately, stirring up some emotions in Luo’er.

"So, have you noticed," Li Si unfolded a three-dimensional map of the West Continent, pointing to a spot, "everything revolves around Lipei’s Otherworld Gate. So, the Otherworld Gate of Lipei cannot be lost at any cost; no one can afford the loss of Lipei’s Otherworld Gate..."

"Without the Otherworld Gate, we can only miserably launch rockets from Earth and play a childish arms race with the Americans, while the Westerners continue to maintain the arrogance they’ve held for hundreds of years."

"So," he repeated with emphasis, word by word, "Lipei must be protected, and the Church Court must be preserved. This is the first step in achieving our nation’s great revival, and any force that dares to obstruct us, even the so-called Aud Empire, shall be overturned without mercy!"

"I understand..."

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Luo’er finally furrowed his brows, his expression turning serious.