Chapter 917: Chapter 891:
The next day, at Tokyo Haneda Airport, a black stretch Lincoln car slowly drove into the presidential passage of the airport. Inside, a long red carpet had already been laid out, waiting for the plane to land. Yoda anxiously asked, "How much longer until the plane arrives?"
"The airport staff said about half an hour!" Miyazaki Yama quickly replied.
"Half an hour, huh?" Yoda nodded and said, "Alright, then let’s wait!"
"And the children? Let them go back to their rooms; it’s too cold here. With the snow melting, it’s several degrees below zero!" Miyazaki Yama quickly said.
"Let them wait a bit longer. It’s just half an hour; they can tough it out!" Yoda glanced at the children shivering in the cold wind. The kids, all dressed in school uniforms to welcome the papal emissary, boys in white shirts and suits, girls in dresses and white socks, holding balloons and flowers, stood on either side of the red carpet, shivering.
While Yoda felt sorry seeing them like this, there was nothing he could do. Since they were already here, they might as well persist a little longer.
Half an hour later, the children were already reddened from the cold, but the plane finally appeared in their view. Yoda breathed a sigh of relief. Not only the children, but even those wrapped in cotton coats, the ministers were shivering, too. When they saw the plane land, they all breathed a sigh of relief, joyfully saying, "It’s finally here, it’s finally here!"
Ten minutes later, after a slow descent, the plane settled on the tarmac, a lift came onto the red carpet, aligning with the cabin door. Soon, the cabin door opened, and the sound of music played over the red carpet, followed by a salute of twenty-one guns - the highest form of ceremony. Even for a state leader, only twenty-one guns are fired. However, Yoda insisted on giving the papal emissary twenty-one gun salutes, showing the Japanese government’s respect and loyalty to the Church Court.
Similarly, the twenty-one gun salute greatly surprised the Red Robed Sect Leader. After she walked down, she realized the amount of people there to welcome her, astonished by the scene. Yoda walked over slowly, smiling, "Respected Red Robed Sect Leader, welcome to Japan, the land of ceremonies."
"Prime Minister, you are too polite!" The Red Robed Sect Leader was somewhat bewildered by the Japanese politeness, standing stunned in place. Behind her, two maidens chose an appropriate moment to present the papal gift, a golden box containing a Jade Token representing the divine light of the Church Court.
Yoda was thrilled; he didn’t expect the Red Robed Sect Leader herself to visit personally. While feeling inexplicably excited, he held the golden box in both hands and said enthusiastically, "Wonderful, finally got the Jade Token from the Church Court!"
"Prime Minister, I hope you will remain loyal to the Church Court, keep your promises, and not betray or contradict us!" The Red Robed Sect Leader looked seriously at Yoda, continuing, "Where there is the Church Court, there is divine light shining. I believe you are certainly a smart person."
"Rest assured, Sect Hierarch, I will be loyal to the Church Court and always follow it!" Yoda hurriedly expressed his loyalty.
The Red Robed Sect Leader nodded in satisfaction. Yoda quickly asked the children to present the flowers, surprising the Red Robed Sect Leader. However, when she saw the children shivering from the cold, she couldn’t help but severely scold Yoda for not knowing how to care for the children.
Yoda dared not say more, only instructing the children to quickly go back and rest, and ordered medicine to be prepared to prevent colds. The stretch Lincoln drove the Red Robed Sect Leader to Kyoto. The red-clothed woman was housed at a high-level reception venue in Kyoto.
After a brief two-day rest, Yoda came to visit, bringing along several key ministers, such as Defense Minister Miyazaki Yama and Minister of Finance, among other important confidants, arriving at the Kyoto reception venue. Yoda had the Red Robed Sect Leader’s maid report first, and after getting permission, he walked inside.
"Sect Hierarch, are you adapting well during your days in Japan?" Yoda respectfully asked.
"Hmm, not bad!" The red-clothed woman smiled faintly, holding a glass of red wine, standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at Tokyo’s most bustling area. Yoda glanced at Miyazaki Yama, unsure of what to say next, Miyazaki Yama stepped forward, saying, "Sect Leader, may we inquire the purpose of your visit this time?"
"Hmm!" The red-clothed woman turned, placed the wine glass on the coffee table, then slowly walked to sit on a sofa beside, smiling, "Prime Minister, to be honest, I do have a request this time."
"How can I help? Your goal is our objective!" Yoda quickly said.
"This..." The red-clothed woman hesitated a bit, then continued, "This time, I hope you’ll find a way to eliminate Ye Chen. The Japanese territory and Leisure City are separated by a sea, you possess this inherent advantage, I believe success is possible! Moreover, now Leisure City’s defenses are weak, an unprotected city is a strategic opportunity, Prime Minister, look..."
Yoda widened his eyes, hastily looked at Miyazaki Yama, Miyazaki Yama shook his head, as if telling Yoda he didn’t know what to do either. Yoda then turned his head to the Minister of Finance beside him, the Minister of Finance turned away, avoiding eye contact with Yoda, unwilling to speak now. If successful it would be fine, but if it failed, all blame would be his. Seeing no one responding, Yoda gritted his teeth and said, "Sect Hierarch, attacking Leisure City isn’t a task completed in a day. Firstly, Leisure City has two portal islands. To attack Leisure City, both islands must be seized, but these islands facing Japan Island mainly have rocky beaches, not suitable for fleet travel. If bypassed, it’s easy to expose the target, which means fighting a tough battle is inevitable."
"Then what if we bypass from elsewhere?" the Red Robed Sect Leader asked doubtfully.
"This way, we’re entering the East China Sea, which can easily spark a Sino-Japanese conflict!" Yoda looked awkwardly at the Red Robed Sect Leader.
"That’s your issue!" The Red Robed Sect Leader smiled calmly and said, "The benefits you’ve gained from the Church Court during this period far exceed those from the Luo Sijue family, so you deal with it yourself. What I need to see is the fall of the Luo Sijue family!"
"I... I’ll do my best!" Yoda looked helplessly at the Red Robed Sect Leader.
"It’s not about doing your best, but a must-do!" The Red Robed Sect Leader looked seriously at Yoda.
"Yes, yes!" Yoda hurriedly nodded.
After giving orders, the Red Robed Sect Leader left Japan. In fact, the red-clothed woman was also conflicted inside, torn between her beloved Ye Chen and the Church Court that raised her. Both sides were difficult. Eliminating the Luo Sijue family meant eliminating Ye Chen. If anything happened to Ye Chen, what would she do? Her heart ached. This feeling was truly troubling. But due to the pressure from her superior, she had no choice but to do so.
...
Canada, Ottawa.
Everywhere was a world of ice and snow, but the cold did not stop the construction boom of Sunset City. Soldiers and construction workers rolled up their sleeves, grabbed shovels, broke ground, and started construction.
Ye Chen mingled with these workers, participating in these construction projects daily, working overtime to build. A wasteland behind the mountain finally rose with magnificent buildings. Looking at the multi-story buildings, Ye Chen couldn’t help but smile. The first phase seemed to have taken shape, and more than a month had already passed.
In mid-December, the first phase was nearing completion. The swift progress was mainly because Ye Chen invested more funds and requested the Government of Canada to add more construction teams, greatly shortening the construction period, allowing the second and third phases to begin simultaneously. Originally over a year-long project could now be completed in half a year.
Ye Chen looked at the grand project seemingly taking shape and revealed an excited smile. Once the project was complete, he could bring his wives here to enjoy happiness together.
"Brother!" Da Xia ran over hurriedly.
"What’s the matter?" Ye Chen asked, puzzled, looking at Da Xia.
"It’s bad, it’s bad!" Da Xia shouted while running, "Something terrible happened!"
Ye Chen’s face changed slightly, and he quickly asked, "What exactly happened?"
Ye Chen understood Da Xia well, and usually, he wouldn’t panic unless something significant occurred. Da Xia rushed to Ye Chen’s side, breathlessly saying, "The Japanese have new moves; the Fierce Tiger Gang has acted again in Tongzhou City, not only smashing our places but also kidnapping Princess Momo!"
"What!" The shovel in Ye Chen’s hand dropped to the ground, making a clattering noise, and his safety helmet tilted to one side. His face turned pale, and he said, "How could this happen? What about King Guangmu in Tongzhou City? Where are they? And what about Liu San and the others?"
"Brother Chen, they’ve all been beaten back to Jianghuai City by the Fierce Tiger Gang," Da Xia finally caught his breath and said, "Princess Momo is in their hands now. King Guangmu and the others don’t dare act rashly, so everything is waiting for you to decide, Brother Chen!"
"Useless, a bunch of useless!" Ye Chen gritted his teeth.
"Brother, what should we do now?" Da Xia quickly asked.
"What else can we do? Go back and save her!" Ye Chen threw his gloves on the ground and took off running.
...