291: Who said I came here to negotiate with you?

“Sir, the Robin battle group has lost signal.”

In the command center, an operator stood up to report.

Silence filled the room, with only the whirring of instruments, which, due to signal interference, sounded like a faint, gasping breath, portending the decline of a hegemonic power.

The President closed his eyes heavily, his breathing trembling.

From the start of the War to its end, less than an hour had passed.

And in those brief 60 minutes, the Free Federation had lost half of its total assets.

Before the War began, Machina had analyzed countless scenarios of defeat.

Even the greatest projected loss was merely the complete annihilation of the Islanders’ fleet while covering a retreat.

But the reality far exceeded everyone’s expectations.

Two sky carriers crashed, and two Emperor-Ranked Professionals were killed in action.

In addition, the Islanders and the Koreans, their two major allies, were left “one dead, one crippled.”

The President’s gaze drifted, as if he were caught in an inescapable nightmare.

An hour ago, if someone had described such casualties to him, he would have thought that person insane.

Now, he only wished he were insane.

The silence was suffocating.

In the command room, no one dared to speak first.

The President took several deep breaths before regaining his composure.

He said to the operator: “Call the Five Sages; I need to speak with them.”

Just then, an operator said: “President, the Sejong the Great fleet has sent a communication request.”

“The other side is actively reaching out?”

“And through the Sejong the Great’s communication channel?”

The President’s eyes opened slightly.

Even before the Robin crashed, the Sejong the Great fleet had sent a message, stating that if there were no reinforcements, they would have no choice but to surrender.

The President didn’t need to see to guess.

By now, the Koreans must have lined up to surrender.

The “communication request” at this moment must surely be from the Jiuzhou Federation.

“Connect it,” the President said heavily.

Just then, an aide reminded him: “President, the fact that they are willing to communicate actively proves they do not want the War to escalate. Should we prepare first?”

Post-War communication is extremely important. These shrewd, old Childs still hoped to engage in some negotiation through talks.

But the President knew in his heart that as the losing party, he was not in a position to make the other side wait too long.

Moreover, Mike Os had just used a nuclear weapon.

Even if the nuclear weapon, for unknown reasons, did not hit its designated target.

This act alone was enough to provoke the Jiuzhou Federation, prompting them to launch a retaliatory strike.

The most important thing now was to stabilize the other side during communication to avoid greater losses.

“Connect the communication.”

As the President’s order was given,

a light screen unfolded in the command room.

A young man appeared before everyone’s eyes.

The young man looked to be in his twenties, yet he possessed an extremely seasoned demeanor.

He squinted his eyes, looking at the camera with a hint of disdain, his gaze sharp.

“How is it Lin Xuan’s grandson?”

The President paused slightly, a hint of secret joy rising in his heart.

At the same time, the aides beside him also showed signs of relief.

These politicians were all too aware of the importance of post-War communication.

Every word, every sentence, every action was a battlefield.

The President had originally thought that the person connecting the communication would at least be someone of Si Zhenfeng’s caliber.

Who would have thought it would be a young man who had barely come of age?

Isn’t this an easy win?

Although Qin Yang’s name had already made it onto the Free Federation’s threat list, and he had displayed incredible strength in this War.

He was, after all, a young man. No matter how strong his combat prowess, he couldn’t possibly outwit someone like himself, who was immersed in schemes and conspiracies daily.

“Your Excellency Your Excellency Qin Yang, a hero emerges from a young age. Your performance on the battlefield was unforgettable.”

The President thought, tightening his red tie, sweeping away the despondency of defeat, and trying his best to show the majesty of a supreme commander of a superpower.

Qin Yang remained silent, merely scanning the Childs aides present through the light screen.

After a while, he finally spoke: “It seems that everyone who matters in the Free Federation is here.”

The President paused slightly.

As a professional politician, he naturally understood the meaning behind Qin Yang’s words.

The other party didn’t even acknowledge him, the President, but instead directly addressed the Childs aides behind him.

“He’s just a young brat, doesn’t even understand diplomatic etiquette!”

The President cursed inwardly.

It was no secret that the Free Federation was controlled by the Childs deep state, but in international meetings, no one would ever expose this point.

Qin Yang breaking the formality right from the start was not only extremely impolite but would also completely offend him.

One must know that although the Free Federation’s economy was controlled by others.

The military command authority was still in his hands, the President’s!

Thinking of this, the President’s gaze darkened.

He said to Qin Yang with a stern Face: “Does your Jiuzhou Federation have no one else? You, a mere young brat, are not qualified to negotiate with us.”

Qin Yang coldly replied: “Who said I came to negotiate with you?”

The President showed a look of disdain.

He knew it; this young brat was here to provoke.

He raised his head, feigning bravery: “Don’t think that just because you won a localized conflict, you are so great. We, the Free Federation, still have eight sky carriers!”

“Furthermore, the two sky carriers were not destroyed by you. You are not qualified to act so arrogantly towards me. Let your Five Sages come and talk to me.”

With that, the President impatiently waved his hand, demanding to cut off the communication.

He was already emotionally and physically exhausted and had no energy to waste time on an arrogant young man.

Just then, the operator who had earlier called the Five Sages said: “President, Si Zhenfeng refused to connect, saying that Qin Yang’s opinion is the will of the Jiuzhou Federation.”

“What!?”

The President was stunned.

The aides behind him also started chattering amongst themselves.

“Does the Jiuzhou Federation have no one left? To send a young man not even twenty to represent the nation and negotiate with us?”

“Perhaps this is an insult, thinking we are not worthy of talking to them?”

“I think they don’t intend to talk at all; they want to start a full-scale War!”

The scattered, noisy chatter made the President’s head ache!

He slammed his hand on the table and roared: “Stop arguing!”

The aides collectively fell silent, and the command room instantly became quiet.

Normally, these arrogant Childs would not give the President Face.

But after this defeat, they became incredibly obedient.

In this world, an entity capable of threatening the Free Federation had emerged.

If the Free Federation fell, the entire Childs nation would lose its protection.

The President coldly scanned everyone,

then looked at Qin Yang in the light screen.

This time, there was no disdain in his eyes.

As a sober politician, he had another understanding of Si Zhenfeng’s words.

The other party did not send Qin Yang, this young man, because they didn’t want to talk.

Instead… Qin Yang had already entered the core of the Jiuzhou Federation’s power.

His words carried the most weight among the Five Sages!

The President said to Your Excellency Qin Yang: “Your Excellency Your Excellency Qin Yang, please forgive my offense. Let us return to our previous topic…”

As he said this, he tightened his tie, somewhat nervously saying: “What do you want?”