In Debt, But Became Captain

A few minutes later.

Yang Ming put on the metal room door with his back to Milili, looking a little disheveled.

He suddenly felt a bit of existential doubt.

Milili was a supporter of asexual love, advocating the use of mutual sensing devices for direct neuron-to-neuron communication... Well, that was her freedom.

What else could Yang Ming do? Besides expressing understanding and offering encouragement—gently encouraging her to stay true to herself like an elder, trying his best to appear avant-garde and fashionable.

A beam of light appeared to his side, weaving out Molly's image. The woman was chuckling non-stop.

"You knew all along?" Yang Ming glared at Molly.

"Yes, Master Hanton," Molly pushed up her glasses. "Master Milili is very fond of cutting-edge science, but she's a bit too obsessed. Perhaps you could use your masculine charm to change her preferences, Molly thinks."

"Come on, Molly, one should respect others' hobbies."

Yang Ming put his hands behind his head and walked towards his room.

Molly immediately followed.

Due to the limited placement of the projection devices, her figure flickered in and out of clarity.

"Master Hanton, are you sure you don't want to try seducing Milili? She's a young girl, and she's already experiencing specific hormonal secretions towards you. From my understanding, as long as you pique her interest, fall in love with her, and are sufficiently dominant, she'll most likely submit to you in the end."

"Molly, you used the word 'submit'."

Yang Ming turned and stared at Molly.

Molly said, "The weak submit to the strong; this is the basic ecology of human society that I've observed."

"Then your observation is limited and not detailed enough," Yang Ming explained earnestly. "Friends and partners should respect each other; conquest is only necessary for enemies and subordinates."

Molly asked, "Is this a manifestation of hypocrisy?"

"Why would it be hypocrisy?"

"Conquest is what brings pleasure and causes your brain to secrete more dopamine, Master Kolev told me."

Yang Ming chuckled, "Then can you understand what friendship, responsibility, and sacrifice are? If you only understand it from a biological perspective, parents facing their three or four-year-old children have had their specific hormones regarding that child fade, yet they endure the child's disturbances and protect them, help them. Why is that?"

Molly said thoughtfully, "Perhaps I need more observation and reflection."

"Yes, Molly," Yang Ming smiled. "You haven't been to the outside world. Human society is extremely complex. When enough individuals gather, they form a network, and when each individual is extremely complex, the amount of information this network can generate in one second could blow out your hard drive."

Molly was silent for a few seconds.

She said, "Alright, I won't do anything beyond my capabilities. I'm just a verbose intelligent housekeeper... The old master is waiting for you in the hangar. He already knows about you two being in the same room."

Yang Ming cursed, "You little traitor."

"Kolev is my first master, and you are the third. For Molly, there's a difference in command priority."

Molly emphasized:

"This isn't betrayal; it's a difference in priority."

Yang Ming calmly turned towards the hangar, his mind still somewhat troubled.

Ah, this Milili was giving his uncle a headache.

In Milili's room.

She raised her hand to her forehead, staring at the two helmets for a while.

"Sigh, I think I messed up... He doesn't seem to accept this method?"

Milili muttered softly, "But everyone has their own freedom. What's wrong with that?"

She then lay down on the sofa, gazing quietly at the still-warm cakes. Afterward, she sighed dejectedly and remained motionless for a long time.

Like a beautiful salted fish that had lost its dreams.

In a corner of the hangar, Yang Ming gazed at the pincer-shaped warship before him. It looked like a behemoth, not a light vessel as defined by warships.

"What did you guys talk about just now?"

Kolev leaned in from the side, muttering softly.

"Just some small things."

Yang Ming looked at Kolev guiltily.

Kolev fiddled with the electronic parts in his hand and sighed, looking down.

"Actually, she has her own freedom, and I shouldn't interfere. But you know, Hanton, she's my only family. I always end up overprotecting her without realizing it."

"Nothing happened between us," Yang Ming explained. "And you should focus on her mental health."

"No need to comfort this old man. If I were a young woman, I'd be attracted to you too," Kolev's smile was filled with bitterness.

Yang Ming felt a bit speechless and could only nod in agreement.

Did the Star Widow need his care and affection?

Yang Ming felt that if things continued like this, the chances of him being a kept man in the future were higher.

Milili had already shown excellent strategic vision and leadership in battle.

"Let's discuss business," Yang Ming said. "Tell me about your revenge plan. It's almost three months away."

Kolev's expression turned serious again. "I plan to contact a confidant. He was second only to Gimo in the pirate group before and has boundless ambition. His name is Guka."

"And then?"

Yang Ming frowned. "I can't really trust this Guka. In fact, besides the pirates here who I can't contact from the outside, I don't trust anyone in your Black Dragon group."

"I don't trust him either, nor anyone in their current ranks," Kolev said. "But that doesn't stop us from making a plan. There's something you need to understand: the Black Dragons are also my life's work. I want to salvage as many ships as possible."

Yang Ming shook his head. "They've already betrayed you—though it was Milili who betrayed you directly. What you need to do isn't to reclaim the Black Dragons, but to destroy them, eliminate the threat, and then help Milili establish a new pirate group."

Kolev stood with his hands behind his back, his old face etched with thought.

"I know, Hanton," Kolev said. "You are always wise and perceptive, and you are absolutely right. But everyone makes mistakes in life. I've fought for the Black Dragons for most of my life, and I don't want to..."

"Listen, First Mate!"

Yang Ming's voice rose slightly, his gaze sharp and aggressive.

"The Black Dragon Pirate Group is not your private property. When you decided to pass it down as private property, the subsequent events were inevitable. It's a collective; you are the leader, but you are not the entire flock! What we need to do now, or rather, if you want to do something for your daughter, is to eliminate this threat. Your former pirate group has become an enemy to you and your daughter!"

Kolev sat down, leaning on the edge of the table.

His cloudy eyes held a hint of bewilderment.

Yang Ming looked at the old man, feeling a bit of sympathy.

"I might have spoken too harshly, but I stand by my opinion."

"I understand," Kolev said with a wry smile. "But Hanton, those guys, the ones I trained myself, I still feel... I need to find a way to reclaim at least three or four ships and re-establish my authority among them."

Yang Ming sighed inwardly and said gently, "I know your capabilities, Kolev. Without you, the Black Dragon Pirate Group would just be a second-rate pirate group. Tell me your plan, and I'll help you as much as I can. For the sake of this ship."

"I want to use Guka to counter Gimo," Kolev said. "Guka's ship has firepower second only to Gimo's. He's now the deputy leader of the Black Dragons and has significant disagreements with Gimo. But I know he's only interested in three things right now."

"Three things?"

"My influence, my wealth, and my beautiful daughter."

Yang Ming's expression was hard to describe. "Is this Guka also a fan of no-contact?"

"What?" Kolev asked, confused.

"Ah, never mind," Yang Ming said. "Then what's your plan?"

Kolev made a gesture, and lines of light intertwined, forming a projection screen in front of him.

--Molly was already adept at this.

Two half-body portraits appeared on the screen: Gimo and Guka, Kolev's trusted lieutenants from years ago.

Kolev said, "Whether we can incite a war between Guka and Gimo is the key to our victory. My current goal is to target ships other than their two factions. Guka's personality is patient, ruthless, vicious, and greedy. He's most interested in my wealth right now, so if he captures me, he won't kill me immediately."

Yang Ming frowned tightly. "You plan to use yourself as bait."

"Exactly," Kolev said. "I plan to throw myself onto the scales. This is the only way to break the balance between them right now."

Yang Ming carefully examined the information on the screen, slowly sitting on the edge of the workbench. His well-built body, radiating warmth, gleamed slightly under the light.

He asked, "Since I've accepted your benefits, I'll naturally help you execute the plan. Will I be protecting you personally?"

"No, no, no, you are Plan B."

"Hmm?"

Kolev raised an eyebrow. "I've considered the practical situation fully when devising this plan. I need a force on the periphery that can threaten both of them. You are that force."

Yang Ming's interest piqued. "Tell me more."

"My thinking is very simple."

Kolev shed his weariness, his eyes shining as he spoke:

"First, I will find a way to fall into Guka's hands, then publicly support Guka. Guka and Gimo have planted spies on each other. I'll be waiting for them to confront each other and focus their attention on each other, trying to make them fight.

"This is my responsibility.

"When they start arguing... if the argument is on land, I don't have to worry about anything. You can easily resolve it, right, Hanton?"

Yang Ming stated rigorously, "I need to know their specific strength, firepower intelligence, and a large amount of weapons."

"I'll give you all of that... but that's the easiest scenario. The pirates will be very vigilant. I suspect the confrontation will most likely happen between ships."

Kolev continued, "When both sides start fighting, you need to infiltrate Gimo's ship. Don't hold back for my sake; you can blow up the entire ship. You can kill Gimo in front of everyone. In this phase, you need to show dominance, and then I can take over from Guka."

Yang Ming thought carefully for a moment.

Kolev reminded him, "The reward for this task is that you can buy this spaceship for one million credit coins, and my pirate base will be your supply port forever."

Yang Ming sighed, "Your plan sounds executable, but it's essentially four words: act according to circumstances."

"Hahaha! That's right!"

Kolev laughed for a while.

"You might run into trouble, Kolev," Yang Ming warned him.

"That possibility has been with me for over forty years, Hanton. It's the nature of being a Pirate."

"Since you insist," Yang Ming shrugged, "I'm willing to take the risk with you. After all, the discount you're offering is too good to pass up."

Kolev smiled with relief and stood up.

"Come with me, First Mate. I've had Molly split off an AI of the same specification. It's now the main control system for your ship. However, due to the limitations of the ship's onboard computer capacity, she won't be as lively as Molly."

Yang Ming was overjoyed. "Molly's nagging has been restricted? That's absolutely fantastic."

Molly's voice rang out from the side. "Can I take that as you finding me annoying?"

"Without a doubt," Yang Ming answered decisively.

Molly snorted. "Then it means there's a very high probability I'll be popular with the public."

A butler robot drove up in a 'tourist car,' taking Yang Ming and Kolev to the docking bay of the pincer-shaped spaceship.

Kolev took a glass tablet, about the size of a 'cell phone,' from the robot.

"This is the authentication key for this spaceship. I've already entered your biometric information. I collected your hair follicles over time—don't worry, I've destroyed your biometric data. I have no interest in bio-modification.

"This is an IOU. You need to sign it."

Yang Ming carefully read the simple, almost ridiculously simple, statement.

[Hereby indebted to Kolev for one million Federal Credits, to be repaid within three years. Interest equivalent to the Empire's central bank's normal commercial loan rates will accrue if overdue.]

Then, he solemnly... signed Hanton's name.

"This is basically just a formality. I can't go against my principles as a Pirate. Now, Captain Hanton, you need to name your spaceship and your auxiliary system."

Yang Ming thought for a moment and casually entered a line of Empire script.

Spaceship Name: Flying Henan Person.

Main Control System Name: Molly Two.

Yang Ming calmly clicked the confirm button, amused by his own joke.

What a terrible meme.