Ed Campbell

Three days had passed since the counter-ambush battle in the Asteroid Belt.

At that moment, Lin Fan was waiting with Liang Xue in the starport docking area. A communication had just come in saying that the spacecraft carrying the negotiation team had arrived.

Soon, a destroyer docked inside the starport.

However, when Lin Fan saw the person leading the group down, he felt that the man looked familiar. Very familiar.

Wait, he remembered now. He had often seen him on television before. Wasn't this Ed Campbell?

He was probably from the same family as Emma, Lin Fan thought to himself.

Ed led four people down the gangway, while Lin Fan and Liang Xue stepped forward to greet them.

"Hello, I'm Lin Fan, commander of the 101st Task Force Fleet. This is my adjutant, Liang Xue."

Lin Fan directly held out his right hand.

"Hey, kid, why are you saying hello to me? It's only been nineteen years. Have you already forgotten who I am? I even held you when you were born."

Lin Fan was covered in black lines. Forgotten you after nineteen years? Come on, I'm only nineteen, okay?

So the only time we had ever met was when I had just been born? Was that something a human being could remember?

Lin Fan was already too drained to complain. This uncle's train of thought was really a little...

"Alright, stop standing there. I was just joking with you. My name is Ed Campbell, and I'm the leader of this negotiation team. Those four are all my subordinates. Also, it's true that I held you when you were born."

"Uh, alright, Uncle Ed!"

"That's more like it!"

Seeing that Lin Fan had obediently corrected his form of address, Ed nodded in satisfaction.

"Oh, right, Uncle Ed, may I ask you something? Is Emma Campbell from the Interstellar Military Academy part of the same family as you?"

"What do you mean, part of the same family? Emma is my daughter. What, do you know my daughter?"

"Uh, yes. We're in the same class, after all. You have the same surname, and it's Campbell, so I wondered whether you came from the same family."

"I see. Wait, I remember that a few years ago, my daughter seemed to say there was someone in her class who was always telling her dirty jokes. That wasn't you, was it?"

"Uh, definitely not me!"

Alright, Lin Fan shamelessly denied it. Back when he had first entered the Interstellar Military Academy, he had discovered a stunning beauty named Emma.

But this beauty had been like an iceberg. Of course, she was still much better than Liang Xue, who was standing beside Lin Fan now.

So shameless Lin Fan had gone to her every day and told her dirty jokes. At first, Emma had been annoyed whenever she saw Lin Fan.

But when someone talked beside you every day, for two years...

The result was that after more than two years, Lin Fan had managed to change Emma's personality quite a bit.

Of course, he absolutely could not admit that in front of Ed Campbell.

"Mm, that makes sense. You don't really look like that kind of person."

"Mm, Uncle, you are wise indeed!"

Liang Xue's expression twitched slightly at the side, unnoticed by anyone. At that moment, she thought to herself.

I think that person was Lin Fan.

"Alright, enough about that. Take me to see the Ninth Prince. I need to understand how important he is within the Oakes Empire before I can formulate the right negotiation strategy."

"Alright, Uncle Ed, please follow me!"

Lin Fan led Ed toward the detention area, while Liang Xue followed behind them.

"Hey, kid Lin, doesn't your adjutant seem a little too cold?"

"Mm, Uncle Ed noticed too? I've been trying to fix her personality, but I have no idea where to start!"

"For this type, tell him dirty jokes every day."

"Mm, true. I'm good at that. I can tell several every day without repeating any."

Wait, did I just fall into a trap?

Slap

Lin Fan suddenly felt a hand pat his shoulder.

Slowly turning his head, he found Ed Campbell smiling at him. But why did that smile look so terrifying?

"Uncle Ed, I think there may have been a misunderstanding between us..."

"There's no need to explain now. Focus on this mission. Once we return, I think we need to have a good talk."

Beside them, Liang Xue, who had listened to the entire exchange, had the corners of her mouth twitching. It was obvious that she was enduring with great difficulty.

When she first heard the two of them saying that she was too cold, Liang Xue had nearly exploded. But the later development had almost made her lose control and laugh.

Fortunately, as someone who had been an iceberg for years, she had a solid foundation in keeping a straight face. She was merely having a difficult time holding it in.

Lin Fan, meanwhile, looked at Ed Campbell with a bitter smile.

As expected, people in charge of negotiations were all old foxes. What a headache.

Soon, the three of them arrived at the detention area.

"Uncle Ed, it's here. Open the door!"

"Yes!"

The detention area guard immediately jogged over and opened the door for the three of them.

After entering, they saw a humanoid creature locked inside an individual cell.

Although it was humanoid, it still differed quite a bit from humans in appearance.

He had two horns on his head, somewhat like bull horns. His skin was red, making him look a little like the demons of human legends.

Ed was not surprised by Duolun's appearance. After all, this was not the first time humans had captured an Oakes person prisoner. They had long grown used to that face.

He walked up and spoke through the cell door.

"Oh? You're the Ninth Prince of the Oakes Empire?"

"Who are you?"

"Me? My name is Ed Campbell. In a little while, I'll be heading to your side for negotiations. Do you have any message you want me to bring?"

"You want to use me as a bargaining chip in the negotiations?"

"Oh, you're quite smart!"

Although Duolun was a complete rookie in battle, the sort of commander who only knew how to talk theory on paper, he was very seasoned when it came to politics. After all, he had represented the Oakes Empire in negotiations with other civilizations many times.

Moreover, the Oakes Empire's royal family was full of intrigue and scheming. Duolun had grown up in that sort of environment from birth, so how could he fail to understand what Ed was trying to do?

"Don't waste your effort. I'm the least favored prince. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been thrown onto the front lines to command a small fleet."

"Mm, that's enough. Let's go."

Ed said this to Lin Fan, then turned and walked outside.

Liang Xue, on the other hand, was full of question marks. What had they come here to see?

After leaving the detention area, Ed looked at Liang Xue and said to Lin Fan.

"Looks like your adjutant doesn't quite understand. Why don't you explain it to her?"

"It's actually very simple. First, from those few sentences just now, we could tell that this Ninth Prince isn't stupid. On the contrary, he's very intelligent and extremely familiar with political intrigue. So no matter how much more we asked, we wouldn't get an answer."

"Second, we already obtained the most important intelligence. When he said just now that we shouldn't waste our effort and that he was the least favored prince, his eyes drifted slightly to the left, and his hands made some subtle unnatural movements. Therefore, he was lying."

"This Ninth Prince isn't merely not unfavored. He is extremely favored, and he may very well be the Oakes Empire Emperor's favorite prince!"

They had figured out so much from just a few sentences?

Were these two really human?

While shocked, Liang Xue silently thought to herself.