Hard Going

"Who? Who the hell stole my power as Grand Marshal Xi Yan?"

"Do they buy their mothers wholesale?"

Xi Yan gritted his teeth as he scrolled back and forth through Empire One-Click.

This office software combined online office tools with corporate messaging.

Xi Yan began looking up the division of official posts within his military junta.

In short, the Marshal nominally held supreme power in the Interstellar Human Military Junta, and because of the Empire's authoritarian government, the Marshal was essentially no different from an emperor.

When the old Marshal Xi Lie had still been alive, he had naturally kept all his ministers firmly in line.

The trouble was that the moment the Marshal died, every kind of freak and schemer came crawling out of the woodwork. That was the greatest drawback of absolute monarchy, especially in an interstellar empire like the Interstellar Human Military Junta, which was a military junta in name but an absolute monarchy in practice.

Before his death, the Former Marshal had appointed five "Regent Generals" to help Xi Yan govern the Empire. Each of these five generals held some measure of power, and they had certainly contributed to Xi Yan's current predicament.

Just as Xi Yan was scratching his head in frustration, Empire One-Click chimed with a new message.

"Marshal, a Regent General requests an audience," Beta reminded him.

Xi Yan immediately began rummaging beneath his desk.

"What are you looking for?"

"Where's my gun? I'm the Marshal, for crying out loud. Don't I have a weapon of my own?" Xi Yan answered the utterly useless Beta while pulling a matte-black pistol from his drawer.

"Ah, here it is."

Xi Yan inspected it, dredging up memories of gun videos he had watched on YouTube.

Things shouldn't have changed that much in two hundred-odd years... right?

Fortunately, his sidearm looked as simple as a child's toy. A safety, a trigger, and a magazine were all it needed. Even a twenty-year-old kid could handle it.

With Beta's help, Xi Yan racked the slide, then sat up straight with the pistol's grip clenched in his hand.

He took a deep breath, trying to relax his body.

Since he had already transmigrated, and into the world of Stellaris at that, there were plenty of "good deeds" he would have no choice but to do.

Then I'd better get used to it now!

Come on, Xi Yan, you can do this. If this bastard stole your power, just shoot his head off!

"Beta, what's this Regent General's background?"

Beta retrieved the information instantly and replied, "Most of the Regent Generals were subordinates of the Former Marshal. The general coming to see you is an Army commander, Prigozhin. He is of Russian descent from the United Nations of Earth, and his ancestral home is..."

That name sounds so familiar. Almost like someone I used to know...

A figure immediately surfaced in Xi Yan's mind.

He sat quietly in his office for a while. Before long, the security system alerted him that someone was approaching outside.

"Marshal Xi Yan."

A voice spoke in Russian outside the door, and with the help of his portable translator, Xi Yan immediately understood every word.

"Come in."

A bear of a Russian pushed open the door, and Xi Yan fell into a brief daze at the familiar face.

What a resemblance. A really striking resemblance. (Admiring)

"Ahem! General Prigozhin, it's been a while. What brings you here?"

Xi Yan held the pistol's grip beneath the desk, his face wreathed in smiles.

The burly, middle-aged Russian gave him a friendly smile, then caught sight of Xi Yan's yellow, dragon-patterned outfit and nearly lost his composure. He gave a dry cough and sat down in the chair opposite Xi Yan. "Marshal, it's your first day in office, so I came especially to see how you were doing."

"Is the work difficult? Are you feeling any pressure?" Prigozhin seemed very concerned. "The Former Marshal specifically asked me to look after you."

Xi Yan had a natural talent for telling people exactly what they wanted to hear. He immediately smiled. "You're too kind, General. There's a little pressure on my first day, but I can manage. Thank you for your concern."

"That's good. I'm sure you'll soon be able to shoulder Marshal Xi Lie's responsibilities and continue leading our Empire." Prigozhin returned the pleasantry.

Then the middle-aged Russian changed tack. "As you know, each of the five Regent Generals has his own responsibilities. I oversee the Army. If you need anything, you can come to me at any time to mobilize troops."

Now we're getting to the point.

"Of course, of course!"

Grinning, Xi Yan produced a teacup from somewhere and poured the Russian some plain hot water. "General Prigozhin, you've always been devoted to the nation. I've seen that since I was a child. With the Army in your hands, I can rest easy!"

Xi Yan knew he had no talent for open power struggles, covert intrigue, or tripping other people up. His brain simply couldn't make sense of such things.

But his strengths lay in reading people, treating them sincerely, and putting on an act.

He could tell that General Prigozhin was much like him, with little talent for scheming, though he seemed somewhat cautious.

"Still, I don't know how many Army troops you have under your command. Could you give me a number?" Xi Yan asked casually, his eyes innocent.

"Three million standing troops!" Prigozhin said clearly, with a touch of pride on his face and no attempt to conceal anything.

That many?

You son of a bitch, I can't let you live!

For an instant, Xi Yan wanted to pull out the gun and put a bullet in him, but he held back.

Prigozhin was straightforward. At least, he didn't seem to be hiding anything from Xi Yan. When Xi Yan asked him a few questions, he answered them honestly.

Was he demonstrating his loyalty? Or was he simply being frank?

Xi Yan didn't call attention to it. The two of them drifted onto other subjects and began chatting idly.

Before long, Prigozhin said he should leave. Xi Yan made a few casual attempts to persuade him to stay, and then they parted in the office.

Listening to the general's unhurried footsteps recede, Xi Yan shoved the gun back into the drawer and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Marshal, what are you thinking about?" Beta asked.

At that, Xi Yan glanced at its cartoon avatar on the computer and said evenly, "Can I trust you?"

"Marshal... I'm an AI. You can tell me anything."

"Then give me your opinion on this and tell me what I should do."

Beta's mechanical voice sounded helpless.

"But I'm only an AI..."

"I hereby grant you full rights as a citizen of the Empire. You can express your opinions now," Xi Yan said.

"Understood. Please forgive my impertinence." Beta seemed rather dim-witted and immediately replied, "According to my data, although the Marshal nominally holds supreme power, actual power rests entirely in the hands of the five Regent Generals."

"Especially in military matters, your orders must pass through the Regent Generals before they can be relayed down the chain of command. Therefore, I recommend that you first bring the Regent Generals under your control in order to unify military power."

Political power grows out of the barrel of a-

Xi Yan wholeheartedly agreed with that.

But could he really accomplish it with his abilities?

"Forget it. One step at a time."

Xi Yan rubbed his face.

I'd better learn the basic facts about the Empire first.

Like the vast majority of civilizations in the Sea of Stars, the Interstellar Human Military Junta had a cabinet system.

The Empire's head of state, Minister of Science, Secretary of State, and Minister of Defense formed a basic cabinet.

But the Interstellar Human Military Junta was different. It prioritized the military, and its five Regent Generals, Minister of Science, and Secretary of State formed a seven-member cabinet. The Marshal was not among them.

Without a doubt, the role of military power would be magnified to the utmost.

Xi Yan stood up and decided to go see his Secretary of State.