Evolution - Chapter 12
Chapter 12
When the legal experts from the Galactic Interstellar Alliance arrived, a welcome banquet was held in the Huaxia Imperial Capital.
For the upper echelons of the various nations, their interactions with Brigadier General Xie’er had been the darkest moments of their lives. The Brigadier General’s military bearing was intense; she was always direct and did not entertain dissent. At the time, all she sought was more information to make her judgments.
After Claire arrived with her delegation, things became much more amicable. At least there was room for discussion and negotiation, unlike with Brigadier General Xie’er, whose approach was: she speaks, you listen, you do as she says, and if you have an opinion, you keep your mouth shut.
The methods were gentler, but the number of matters being pushed forward had increased. However, for the upper echelons of the various nations, at least for the major powers, the cooperative ventures being advanced were beneficial to all, and the collaboration was quite pleasant. It seemed the Star Alliance had no intention of invading Earth. The idea of Earth joining the Galactic Interstellar Alliance was now, in their minds, akin to an organization like the Warsaw Pact, NATO, or the United Nations. It was simply, “Hey, we’re neighbors, so let’s all hang out together.”
Claire was in no hurry to reveal the full details of the Galactic Interstellar Alliance to these people. What they understood was only what they had seen so far—a small fraction of what Claire and Brigadier General Xie’er were willing to let them see.
After all, the direction of Earth’s evolution and the extent to which it could evolve would directly determine the treatment it would receive in the future and the kind of assistance it could obtain from the Star Alliance.
Since it was a welcome banquet, the atmosphere was naturally lively and relatively casual. Each country had selected young, handsome men or beautiful, elegant women to attend. Among them were promising young government officials, tall and handsome soldiers, and of course, the outstanding younger generation from the families of the upper class or their close associates.
Thus, when Claire and Brigadier General Xie’er arrived at the banquet accompanying the legal experts, they were struck by the sudden and dramatic increase in the attendees’ aesthetic appeal.
There were beautiful young women, handsome young officers, talented young officials, and even the scions of various prominent families.
Their intentions were as plain as day, but no one bothered to conceal them. Everyone harbored a beautiful dream—what if?
Xie’er casually picked up a glass of wine, politely declining an invitation from a handsome young officer. Her eyes swept the room, noticing that Claire was also surrounded by several men who fancied themselves outstanding. She let out a soft snort, swirled the wine in her glass, and strode toward Claire. A honey trap? Believe it or not, what she’s packing is bigger than yours!
The men surrounding Claire brightened at the sight of Xie’er. Both Claire and Xie’er were beautiful, but in distinct ways. If Xie’er, an omega, was glamorous and possessed an aggressive beauty, then Claire, an alpha, was far more gentle and reserved. Each had her own unique charm.
In the brief moment it took for Xie’er to approach, the men present had already concocted numerous stories in their minds—
For instance, beautiful women always had a subtly strained relationship. Moreover, these two seemed to belong to different camps—military and political. They could read between the lines.
Or perhaps, the two beauties were at odds because they were each proud of their own looks and subconsciously disliked the other?
Or maybe, the two beauties admired the same man?
All sorts of scenarios played out in the little theaters of their minds, the basic plotlines of their assumptions stemming from their own perceptions.
So, when Claire turned with a smile to watch the gracefully approaching Xie’er, their minds churned with the thought: Oh, look at that resigned yet polite smile!
When Claire leaned slightly forward and extended a hand, and Xie’er slowly placed her own slender fingers in her palm, the two standing side-by-side, hands clasped, the thought that tumbled through their minds was: Here it comes, the perfunctory display of intimacy.
When Claire glanced at the wine in Xie’er’s glass and, as a waiter passed, swapped it for a glass of juice, they all thought in unison: A subtle jab! The claws are out!
Holding the juice, Xie’er took a small sip and discreetly rolled her eyes at their changing expressions. It seemed to be the same everywhere, regardless of gender. People loved to jump to conclusions and gossip.
From certain angles, to certain people, that gesture looked no different from a flirtatious wink. Their hearts couldn’t help but flutter silently.
Claire squeezed her hand, signaling her to tone it down.
Xie’er huffed softly and released their clasped hands, but she didn’t leave, remaining by Claire’s side. She feigned disinterest in their conversation, her gaze wandering carelessly across the banquet hall, her fingers occasionally tapping a few times.
With her standing there like a statue, the men who had been fawning over Claire became much more restrained. After exchanging glances, one of them approached to strike up a conversation with her. Their thinking was rather clever: fawning over one beauty in front of another could easily breed resentment. If they split up and separated the two, everyone’s chances would improve.
Soon, however, things became awkward. Anyone who approached Xie’er was met with a polite and tactful refusal: “You all chat.” Her tone was one of, “I’m just standing here for a moment, don’t mind me, feel free to do your thing.”
But with you here, it’s hard for us to do our thing! These men had lived easy lives, accustomed to being coaxed and praised by others. They were not well-practiced in the art of flattery. Having always gotten their way, how could they tolerate such treatment? Though they knew they couldn’t cause a scene, their displeasure still showed on their faces.
Who isn’t a little princess here?
Xie’er scoffed inwardly. If you truly had any backbone, you wouldn’t have come over in the first place. And now that you’re here, you’re being this clueless? It’s maddening. If you want something, you should adopt a more humble attitude; it’s not like you’ll lose a piece of flesh. Now you’re putting on a sour face, expecting to be coaxed?
In your dreams!
Fortunately, the awkwardness didn’t last long. The upper echelons of the other nations, lacking the home-field advantage, were not about to let the host country have all the glory. With the determination to break up every potential pair they saw, they acted as diligent members of the discipline committee, their eyes wide as they patrolled. Wherever they saw a concentration of young talent, they would swoop in like shining spotlights.
As the discipline committee came to stir things up, Claire and Xie’er showed no particular reaction. The young talents tactfully retreated, and after a brief farewell, Xie’er also departed. She had little interest in such occasions to begin with. Her mission for the day was to protect the personnel from the Star Alliance; she could have remained unseen, or even sent a subordinate to handle security. But she was idle, so she decided to drop by for a look.
She could just consider it a break from being cooped up at the base, a chance to get some fresh air.
Recent explorations of Blue Star had revealed that the planet was rich in species, yet fragile. It was fortunate that they had stumbled upon its existence. Otherwise, given Blue Star’s current population and level of technological development, many resources would be wasted on polluting the environment and killing off more species. If this planet didn’t take action, it wouldn’t even take a hundred years for most of its existing species to disappear completely.
The Brigadier General Xie’er of today was different. While she had no patience for dealing with the planet’s upper crust, she was full of patience for the ordinary people of Blue Star. After all, to her, the nearly seven billion common people on Blue Star were all potential, mobile, merit points.
The more the people of Blue Star evolved, the greater their potential contribution to the Star Alliance in the future. And in their medal of military merit, there would be a small contribution from her.
Of course, how Claire and the others would ultimately allow Blue Star to naturally integrate into the Star Alliance was a tedious and complex matter. The self-aware Brigadier General Xie’er had no intention of getting involved. She just needed to do her security work well and, at the same time, ensure that during the evolutionary process, the sudden acquisition of powerful abilities by humans on Blue Star wouldn’t lead to chaos, turmoil, or challenges to the government.
While en route, the legal experts had already begun to study the relevant laws of Blue Star’s various nations. Some of the articles were baffling, but they continued their research with scholarly professionalism. After all, they had seen even more bizarre regulations in the history of the Star Alliance. What was there to be surprised about?
The opportunity to discover a new civilized planet was a once-in-a-century event. Although there was a standard set of procedures, the specific details varied dramatically each time—the direction of evolution, the planet’s population, its resources and species, its level of civilization, and so on, all required appropriate adjustments based on local conditions and timing.
Claire believed that for any kind of reform, a top-down approach was always best. Start with concepts and laws, a subtle and gradual influence. First, they would encourage discussion, opening the minds of the people of Blue Star and letting them discover a new world.
This would be a long process of repeated debate and discussion, related only to individual ideological systems, mental frameworks, and visions of an ideal society. It could not be shortened by technological means.
For now, it was best to focus on matters that could be expedited with technology. When the people of Blue Star evolved collectively and their technology was sufficient, many things they had never considered, or had ideas for but lacked the means to implement, would manifest one by one, turning former fantasies into reality.
The Star Alliance’s policy for developing starfields was just that simple: evolve, improve, show you a wider, more beautiful world, and make you want to step into that new world on your own.
Did a big boss carrying you to victory first have to reason with you, present facts, and get your approval before acting?
How arrogant!
The big bosses had always had a take-it-or-leave-it attitude. There were plenty of people with vision. Work with me, and I’ll make you rich. Don’t, and you can just watch me get rich.
Why waste time chattering away?
After the banquet, Brigadier General Xie’er led the team escorting everyone back to the base. With small spacecraft, traveling between any point on Blue Star and the base was convenient. Even though every individual from the Alliance possessed greater martial strength than anyone on Blue Star, and their weapons and technology were overwhelmingly superior, they would not let their guard down.
There were always people in this world willing to take desperate risks for perceived benefits. Taking an extra step or precaution wasn’t tiring, so why expose oneself to potential danger?
On Blue Star, no place was safer than the base.
Claire naturally returned to the base as well.
In the spacecraft’s main control room, Claire went to find Xie’er to confirm some news.
“Congratulations on your promotion to Major General.”
“What about your fleet?”
After the discovery of the primitive civilization planet, the military command had approved her promotion application. However, they also deemed that the region her fleet was stationed in could not be left unattended. Her second-in-command was promoted from Colonel to Brigadier General to temporarily lead the original fleet.
As for Major General Xie’er, she would be assigned new recruits.
Comments
Post a Comment