Yu Lian's fleet, which had just achieved ten straight victories and a string of glorious triumphs, returned to Saide Fortress on October 20.
This actually meant that all the strongholds and star systems "north" of Saide Fortress, which the Commonwealth forces had painstakingly recovered, were abandoned once again.
Of course, some people on Earth raised objections. Some media outlets even made malicious accusations, claiming that retreating to Saide Fortress was an act of cowardice, that victory did not count if they had won but failed to reclaim lost territory, and that the frontline commanders were deliberately keeping the enemy strong for their own power, and so on.
To be fair, if the mighty Galactic Empire had truly fallen to the point of becoming a "bandit" that others could deliberately keep alive, the Blue Star Commonwealth would have long since become the only nation standing at the summit of the known universe.
The problem was that some people really did join in the uproar.
The tabloids that published these statements were then investigated and shut down by the security police reorganized under the Internal Affairs Committee. Even their websites and forums were not spared. Apparently, following the trail led to the arrest of quite a few real people. They did not catch any Imperial spies, but there were still plenty of old remnants and descendants willing to bring their own provisions.
In reality, as long as one's loyalties were not misplaced and one's brain had not been chewed on by zombies, even the most exacting person had to admit that the substance of Yu Lian's ten straight victories was enough to be recorded in the history textbooks.
At this largest border fortress of the Blue Star Commonwealth, Lieutenant General Sylvester, the host, had arranged everything to welcome the officers and soldiers