Chapter 1313 - Bargaining Chip.
Chapter 1313 Bargaining Chip.
Once the chattering subsided, the host of the conference opened his mouth. “Let’s invite the three candidates to explain their future plans for the 23rd division.”
Lan Luofeng took a deep breath and stood up. She walked up the stage slowly.
This was the first time Lan Luofeng went up on stage as the main speaker. She wasn’t following Ling Xiao up as she did in the past. However, her footsteps were firm just like in the past. She didn’t seem nervous at all.
He Xuyang finally felt at ease when he saw Lan Luofeng’s confident posture.
No one noticed that when Lan Luofeng got up, Ren Feiyu (Ling Xiao), who was wearing an indifferent expression all these while, suddenly straightened his body and glanced quickly at Lan Luofeng.
Lan Luofeng was Ling Xiao’s widow so Qiao Zhenyu and Yang Tie naturally took a step back to let Lan Luofeng speak first.
Lan Luofeng politely rejected their offer but the other two people remained firm. Thus, she nodded and went up to the center of the stage.
Lan Luofeng stood on the stage and looked at the huge number of people below her. She felt that her heart was going to jump out of her throat. She had already mentally prepared herself beforehand but when she actually faced the situation, she was still nervous.
She wouldn’t be worried if it was only for herself since she didn’t mind losing. However, she was fighting for Ling Lan. Hence, she was afraid that her mistake would affect Ling Lan’s succession of the 23rd division.
For a moment, Lan Luofeng didn’t know what to say. She remained silent.
Ling Xiao clasped his hands together tightly. This was the first time Lan Luofeng left his protection and faced the public to speak. He knew that Lan Luofeng had a strong personality. At first, he started liking Lan Luofeng because of her voice. However, as he got to know her better and understood her personality more, he fell in love with her. From then onwards, he couldn’t leave her anymore.
That year, he left his wife a little more than a month after she got pregnant. Although he had to leave because it was a command from the military, he knew Lan Luofeng would be able to pull through it with her personality. She would find a suitable way to survive without him.
Because of trust, he left her and went to the battlefield. Because of trust, he kept his vows to her for 16 years. Because of trust, he fought desperately to find a way home. Because of trust, he chose to hide his identity and protect her secretly.
Ling Xiao released his right hand slowly and his gaze turned indifferent again. He believed his Luofeng. She would definitely pass this test with flying colors.
Lan Luofeng started speaking. Her voice was clear and stable. She wasn’t nervous even though there were so many people present.
“First, I would like to thank all the members of the 23rd division for their love for Ling Xiao. They were willing to give all their trust to his judgement that Ling Lan would be the best candidate for the position as the general of the 23rd division. They applied internally to allow Ling Lan to have this precious opportunity to become a candidate for the general’s position.”
“The war with Twilight caused me to lose Ling Xiao. At the same time, I also lost contact with Ling Lan. Hence, when he was pushed into this position, I was initially opposed to the idea. The 23rd division was built by Ling Xiao and he had gained the respect and trust of all his soldiers. It couldn’t be denied that many people labeled the 23rd division as Ling Xiao’s division. However, I would like to say that the 23rd division is the same as the other 22 divisions of the Federation. There’s nothing special or unique about it. It doesn’t belong to Ling Xiao. I, Lan Luofeng, don’t mind who becomes the general of the 23rd division. I’m sure that if Ling Xiao was still alive, he would feel the same way.”
Lan Luofeng’s speech was magnanimous. The representatives below started applauding loudly. At first, they just respected her because she was Ling Xiao’s wife. Now, they realised that she was a reasonable and selfless person. Their impression of her got better and they admired her even more.
The First Marshal frowned slightly when he heard Lan Luofeng’s speech. Lan Luofeng’s words had put him at a disadvantage. If the representatives below felt that Ling Lan and Lan Luofeng didn’t want the position of 23rd division’s general, the faction of the Second Marshal and the Third Marshal would benefit. After hearing Lan Luofeng’s speech, the Second Marshal and Third Marshal’s expressions got gentler.
The representatives from the 23rd division all had stunned expressions. This speech was entirely different from the materials they had prepared. They didn’t know what to do.
He Xuyang tapped his thighs silently. He decided to watch quietly. He believed that the lady his general loved wasn’t a stupid person. Major General Lan must have something up her sleeve.
Only Ling Xiao closed his eyes after listening to Lan Luofeng. He looked as though he didn’t care about this matter anymore but if you look closely, you would realise that there was a tiny smile on his face. He completely understood what Lan Luofeng was doing.
“However, the representatives from the 23rd division convinced me. They respected Ling Xiao. If the 23rd division was taken over by someone else right after Ling Xiao passed away, they won’t be able to accept it. They actually feel strongly against it too. They recommended Ling Lan because he’s Ling Xiao’s son. They hoped that he could inherit Ling Xiao’s unfulfilled wish and lead the 23rd division to glory. Since Ling Lan is missing, they requested me to be his representative to solve the problem.” Lan Luofeng’s eyes were filled with tears as she continued speaking. Her voice was full of emotions. “I can’t reject their earnest request. I have my own selfish thoughts too. I want to see the 23rd division, which Ling Xiao regarded as his pride, becoming the 23rd division wished it will become.”
He Xuyang clenched his fist tightly. Without a doubt, Lan Luofeng was starting to give more bargaining chips to Ling Lan. She pointed out the attitude of the soldiers in the 23rd division so that the representatives below knew how much they would reject the arrival of a new general. If they didn’t do it right, the new general might be just a mindless puppet. The only way the military could change the general to whoever they wanted was to sweep away all the main officers of the 23rd division.
But, this would shake the hearts of all the soldiers in the 23rd division. If the anger of the soldiers was ignited, it might affect the other divisions too. Thus, unless there was no other way, the military wouldn’t touch the 23rd division so soon after Ling Xiao’s death.
But, Lan Luofeng’s actions pushed the higher authorities of the 23rd division out. These people would be blacklisted by the military and their path in the future would be heavily affected. They might have a hard time rising in rank.
Many representatives from the 23rd division had an unhappy look on their faces.
‘Since they wanted to use Young Master Lan and mistress, they must be prepared to pay the price.’ He Xuyang smiled lightly. Not everyone wanted to protect the 23rd division sincerely like him. Some people respected Ling Xiao but as the saying goes, the tea cools down when the person is gone. Without a powerful person suppressing the majority of the people, some of them would turn greedy. However, everyone had the same thing. In that case, he would make use of them too. Once everything had settled down, he would slowly count the debt.