Chapter 38 Newspaper News

  The huge inn, only Yang Suo and Yang Ji Rui were still standing stupidly. Yang Suo always felt that there was something uncomfortable in his heart, as if something was wrong, but he didn't know where the problem lay. As for Yang Ji Rui, it was simply because he was old and slept less, and had no intention of sleeping at all. The two stood silently like this, looking at each other, feeling extremely bored.

  Finally, Yang Jirui called the shopkeeper and gave him a gold coin to buy all today's newspapers to pass the time.

  The newspaper was quickly brought over, a thick stack of it, but Yang Shuofeng didn't have the heart to look at it. There was always something lingering in his mind that made him feel uncomfortable. Suddenly, he inadvertently saw the large headline on the newspaper and couldn't help but say with half-belief and half-doubt: "The Beihai Fleet won a victory? Wow, that's unprecedented."

  Yang Ji Rui picked up the newspaper and took a look, then coldly threw it down, saying disdainfully: "A report full of lies."

  However, Yang Shuangfeng was still very much looking forward to picking up the newspaper and quickly browsing through it. The report stated that the Imperial North Sea Fleet had recently engaged in an unprecedented fierce battle with the Geuo Pirates in the Huoniao Island waters, with Fleet Commander Tang Chenghuai leading the charge and bravely fighting, sinking eleven warships of the Geuo Pirates and achieving a glorious victory. However, Deputy Commander of the Imperial North Sea Fleet, Admiral Alan Detre Parker, unfortunately died in battle.

  Yang Shuang looked around and around, the more he looked, the more he felt that something was wrong, and suspiciously said: "What's going on?"

  Yang Ji Rui said disdainfully: "As for the results of the Beihai Fleet, you must look at it from the negative side. I dare to confirm that this brave General Tang Chenghua is absolutely not on the battlefield. As for sinking eleven Kurobe pirate battleships, we can understand that the Beihai Fleet has lost another eleven battleships. Poor Admiral Te Pak, with a heart full of passion but unable to exert himself. He still did not humiliate the reputation of Essex people, sacrificing his life and achieving eternal fame."

  Yang Shuang said bitterly: "If one day the military lies about its achievements, the country will not last long."

  Yang Ji Rui said coldly, "According to the Imperial newspaper reports, since losing the Amazon Islands, the North Sea Fleet has not lost a single battle! If you add up the results of the North Sea Fleet's battles, there would be no pirates left in this world! However, the more enemies the North Sea Fleet eliminates, the more places we lose. From the Amazon Islands to the Great Mahara Islands, every time we win a battle, we lose an island. In these two or three years, how many important islands have we lost..."

  Yang Xuanfen let out a long sigh and said bitterly, "The Northern Sea Fleet's false report of their battle results is also too outrageous. Alas, what is the Military Affairs Department doing?"

  Yang Ji Rui said disdainfully, "What's the big deal? It's not just the North Sea Fleet that falsifies battle results. Our beloved Tang Hu Gongzi also did it in the Azure Corridor campaign! Do you know how many enemies he eliminated there? Over 60 million! But the entire population of the Azure Corridor is only about 70-80 million! Did he really kill off three-quarters of the population? Ridiculous! He claimed to have annihilated tens of millions of enemies, but in the end, he lost the strategic military town of Benning Prefecture!"

  Yang Xuan's face was wooden for a long time, his mind a complete blank. The painful silence lasted for a while before he spoke in a bitter tone: "I just don't understand, why did the pirate Ge Ou Hai become so powerful? He actually managed to annihilate the North Sea Fleet! How could an ordinary pirate have the power to rival the Empire's Navy?"

  Yang Ji Rui let out a deep sigh and said slowly: "Actually, the Gao Ou pirates are not real pirates, 'pirates' is just a derogatory term we use to refer to them. In fact, the Gao Ou pirates are the naval forces of the Barbarian Nation on the Erofu Continent, they just hire mostly Gao Ou people who have been living on the water for years as sailors, so they are commonly known as the Gao Ou pirates. The backers of the Gao Ou pirates are the barbarians on the Erofu Continent, and their base is located in the southern port of the Erofu Continent."

  He slowly drank a cup of water, and Yang Jirui said with hatred: "The barbarians of the Erofu continent have been coveting the Yilan continent for a long time, but because the Longjing country has firmly guarded the only passage from Erofu to Yilan, the people of Erofu want to occupy Yilan through the sea route. They gave money and weapons to the Geou people, letting them be the vanguard, specifically harassing the trade circles on the North Ocean, taking our wealth. Of course, our southern neighbor, the country of Masah, cannot shirk its responsibility either. They secretly provided a lot of weapons to the Geou pirates, also in order to weaken the power of our empire. For example, the Thunderbolt cannons they equipped were all masterpieces of the Masah people."

  Yang Shuangfen still frowned and said in confusion: "So that's how it is. But even so, the Beihai fleet was so miserable! In terms of strength, our navy should be much stronger than the Marsha country's navy. Can't we even fight back a little against the Geou pirates? The Geou pirates are powerful, but they can't be more powerful than the Marsha country's navy, right?"

  Yang Ji Rui shook his head and said with a heavy heart: "The Northern Sea Fleet has had too many incidents over the years, it's already made people anxious, morale is low, military preparations are lax, and combat effectiveness is gone. Their warships and sailors are still there, but they have completely rotted from the inside out. Poor Admiral Te Pak, he was the only officer in the Northern Sea Fleet who could still fight. Now that he's sacrificed, the Gao Yu pirates will surely sweep everything away, continue south, attack Huo Niao Island and Jin Gui Island, and by then, the northern waters of the Empire will all be under the control of the Gao Yu pirates."

  Yang Shuangfen remained silent for a long time, feeling weak and powerless all over, wanting to muster up her energy but unable to do so. In the end, she slowly shook her head and slumped back into the armchair, exhausted.

  There is another piece of news about the Imperial Navy in the newspaper, that is, Vice Admiral Yufei Fan, deputy commander of the First Fleet of the Southern Ocean of the Tangchuan Empire, suddenly resigned and left the First Fleet of the Southern Ocean. General Donald, Commander-in-Chief of the Tangchuan Empire Navy, personally confirmed this matter, but when asked about the reason for Yufei Fan's sudden departure, he replied with four words: "No comment". This has led to countless speculations. Yufei Fan is a trusted assistant to Admiral Tang Lin, commander of the First Fleet of the Southern Ocean, and has an exceptional talent in fleet training and organization, winning awards year after year. His sudden resignation is indeed thought-provoking. The newspaper's speculation about his sudden departure is numerous, but all the reasons seem very forced, and even the author himself does not quite believe them.

  Yang Ji Rui also sighed and said: "The Imperial Navy is really a withering of talents! Admiral Te Pak is the only general in the North Sea Fleet who can still fight against the pirate Ge Ou, now he has sacrificed himself, and the North Sea Fleet will never have any hope again. Yu Fei Fan is the most talented commander in the South Sea Fleet, but he left without saying goodbye, does it also mean that the South Sea Fleet is following in the footsteps of the North Sea Fleet? Ah, what a terrible thing!"

  Yang Shuangfen said doubtfully, "Why did Yu Feifan leave without saying goodbye? Is there some unspeakable secret? The newspapers even speculated that he might be a spy sent by the country of Martha..."

  Yang Jiui immediately retorted, "Nonsense! A pack of lies! If he were really a spy sent by the Martha Nation, would he still be fighting with the Martha Nation's navy to the death? In recent years, Tang Lin, the commander of the First Fleet of the South China Sea, has been making a big show, and is known as the empire's rising star. But in fact, behind his back, more than half of his achievements were quietly created by Yu Feifan. Would such a person be a spy for the Martha Nation? What a joke!"

  Yang Shuang furrowed his brow: "Then why did he want to do this?"

  Yang Ji sighed and said helplessly, "The truth is probably only clear to Yu Fei Fan himself. Maybe he thinks the empire has no hope and wants to go elsewhere for development. Although the Southern Fleet of the Empire has more battleships and tonnage than the Martha Navy, their command ideology, command system, technical level, and personnel quality are far behind those of Martha. Especially in terms of naval commanders' command art. In recent years, Martha has indeed recruited many talents, such as Rodhart and Slivia, who are extremely cunning naval commanders. As outsiders in Martha, they must prove their talent with battle achievements to stand firm under the pressure of the Yuwen family. Therefore, their desire for war is very strong. If the Southern Fleet is not careful, it will indeed be a disaster!"

  Yang Shuangfen listened more and more depressed, only silent.

  There are many more rumors in the newspaper, such as the Minister of State Affairs of the State of Yanjing, Chunfeng Qi, secretly proposing to the third prince of Yilan, Xiao Tang, and wanting to marry the eldest princess of Yilan, Xiao Wanjun. However, the Yilan side has not given any response yet; Chunfeng Qi has never been married in his life and holds the military and political power of Yanjing, he is a man who stands above all others in Yanjing, marrying Xiao Wanjun, who is in a state of widowhood, is undoubtedly sensational news. However, considering Xiao Wanjun's beauty and background, this is indeed a match made in heaven.

  Xiao Zitian, known as the most beautiful woman on the mainland, recently arrived in Santalucia, the capital of Yulan Country, to prepare for her performance. Nobles from all directions gathered in Santalucia, eager to hear her sing. There was even a rumor that Yunyue, the commander-in-chief of the Yulan army, secretly negotiated with his opponent, Xiangnan, the crown prince of Yilan Country, to hold a special meeting and request a five-day ceasefire so he could return to Santalucia to watch Xiao Zitian's performance. Although this news was clearly fabricated, it only added to Xiao Zitian's allure.

  There are also reports that an adventurer finally made it to the mysterious Yin Yue Huang Chao region in the central part of the Yiyun continent, a place said to be filled with gold. However, the adventurer did not see any gold, but was instead met with countless poisonous arrows and deadly traps. All of his companions died there, and only he managed to escape. What he repeatedly described was not the expected "gold everywhere" or "spices all over the ground", but rather the more coveted "the women there are really beautiful, each one as lovely as Xiao Zi Tian".

  Trading ships from the Yago League to the Tongquan Empire were attacked by pirates again on the northern waters of Xingjia Island, losing goods worth 5-6 million gold coins and many gold, silver and jewels. Most people on board were killed, only a few survived and escaped to Lusong Island. According to the author's analysis, piracy in the Solomon Sea is becoming more rampant and has reached a level comparable to that of the Geou Sea pirates. He warned imperial merchant ships traveling to the Yago League to be extremely cautious and advised them not to pass through those waters.

  "Martha's country has built another railway, alas!" Yang Jirui suddenly sighed heavily, throwing a newspaper to Yang Shuangfeng.

  Yang Shuang looked at it and found that the imperial newspaper reported the completion of the sixth railway line in Martha with a obscure and sour tone. As a result, the total length of Martha's railways reached 6,800 kilometers, surpassing Ireland and ranking first on the Ireland continent. In the most inconspicuous part of this report, the author subtly criticized the empire's slow pace of railway construction. So far, only two railway lines in the Tangchuan Empire are fully operational, with a total length of less than 1,200 kilometers, far behind others. The railway line currently under construction from Niluo God's capital to the capital of Lona Kingdom, Minnastrel, is also intermittent and often suspended due to lack of funds. Six years have passed since the groundbreaking ceremony, but only a quarter of it has been completed.

  "What a joke." Yang Shuofeng could only say with frustration. The great Tangchuan Empire, yet it can't even surpass the surrounding small countries in terms of railway construction. It's really unknown what those officials in the imperial court are thinking.