1282 Acting General.

“If he didn’t disappear, then I wouldn’t have anything against it. Ling Lan is Lingtian Independent Army’s commander and his rank is lieutenant general. He is somewhat qualified to take the position,” said the First Marshal. “However, right now, there’s a huge problem and that is Ling Lan has disappeared. Disappeared. No one knows whether he’s dead or alive. Lan Luofeng, think about it clearly. Even if I don’t say anything, the other two marshals won’t agree to let the position of general be given to a person who cannot be determined as alive. They can’t let the 23rd Division just rot like that.”

“My son is fine. He will definitely come back,” shouted Lan Luofeng angrily.

“Alright, even if Ling Lan can come back, when will he come back?” asked the First Marshal. “The entire military headquarters cannot let an official general’s position be empty for too long. It can at most drag on for one month. If Ling Lan can come back within a month, I won’t meddle with this issue. However, if he doesn’t appear within a month, I can’t let the 23rd Division wait for Ling Lan forever. As the Federation’s First Marshal, I must take responsibility for the 23rd Division.”

“One month… You clearly know that is impossible.” Lan Luofeng laughed coldly. Ling Xiao’s death had definitely caused Ling Lan to be cautious and careful of the Federation. She would definitely not return to the Federation and fall into the hands of those people who plotted against them. She didn’t forget the words Ling Xiao had told her before heading off into war. Now, she could only try her best to hold onto the power and influence Ling Xiao had left behind. She must wait until Ling Lan matured into a super strong individual. Only then would Ling Lan come back in full force and take revenge for all of them.

“If you know that’s impossible, then why are you even having such crazy thoughts?” The First Marshal was almost angered to the point of unconsciousness.

“Ling Lan isn’t here, but I can be his acting general.” Lan Luofeng suddenly tossed out a suggestion which made the First Marshal shudder.

He unconsciously took out a metallic box with cigarettes in them from his pocket. He took out one cigarette and lit it up. Then, he lowered his head and began to think deeply about it.

Lan Luofeng becoming the acting general wasn’t something that couldn’t be done. As the family member of General Ling Xiao and the wife of the Federation’s hero and idol, once this suggestion was tossed up for discussion, the citizens and most lower ranking soldiers would all support it. Although the final decision was made by the three marshals and the military headquarters, if the citizens were to all agree to it, the three of them and the military headquarters must consider the thoughts of the public.

The most important part was the fact that Lan Luofeng was from the Lan family. The First Marshal could then send an a.s.sistant from the Lan family to aid her. That way, the 23rd Division would still fall under his faction and wouldn’t be given out to the second and third marshals.

Originally, the First Marshal was already thinking about how to take the 23rd Division under his faction’s control. However, he knew the Second and Third Marshals also didn’t want to give away such a juicy piece of meat like the 23rd Division to him. On the battlefield of the Twilight Empire, the 23rd Division fended off Zaoyi Army and Hejia Army while not losing and they even had moments when they suppressed their opponents. Although these two armies were wiped out only after Qi Yaoyang’s reinforcements had arrived, the 23rd Division still performed incredibly. They definitely weren’t any worse than those veteran divisions that had been established for thousands of years. The 23rd Division might even be stronger than those divisions. The three marshals definitely had to think about how to take the 23rd Division for themselves.

“Will the higher-ups of the 23rd Division approve of you becoming the acting general?” asked the First Marshal as he raised his head.

There was still one more problem with Lan Luofeng becoming the acting general. That problem was whether she could be accepted by all the officers within the 23rd Division. If they were to refuse, no matter how strong the support of the public was, they still had to consider the officers and their thoughts on the issue. Otherwise, without them obeying her, Lan Luofeng would just be an empty sh.e.l.l of a general. She wouldn’t then be of any use to him. The lack of an effective leader might even cause the originally overpowered 23rd Division to be in a state of disunity. In the end, it would be overrun by others. That was not something he wanted to see happen.

“This suggestion was given by the 23rd Division’s command center. I’m only reporting it,” Lan Luofeng said calmly.

“They brought it up?” The First Marshal frowned slightly. He began to think about why the 23rd Division would do that. Were they planning on using Lan Luofeng to achieve the goal of taking the 23rd Division for themselves? The First Marshal was a sly and meticulous individual. He would always think about underlying intentions and think more deeply about them.

Lan Luofeng didn’t make a sound. She was only standing there silently, waiting for the First Marshal’s final answer.

The First Marshal finally stood up and stared at Lan Luofeng, “If you become the 23rd Division’s acting general, then you must prepare yourself. The position of the 23rd Division’s vice general will also be reinstated. As for this position, there will be two people. In order to let the Second and Third Marshals agree to this suggestion, we must take a step back. There is no doubt that they will be putting their eyes on the position of the 23rd Division’s vice general if we take the position of general.”

“It’ll depend on you how you control the 23rd Division before Ling Lan returns as the official general. Don’t waste all your efforts and then in the end have the 23rd Division be handed to others on a silver platter,” warned the First Marshal.

“Don’t worry. The 23rd Division can only be Ling Lan’s possession. I won’t let others get a hold of it,” said Lan Luofeng without hesitation. Her original weak personality now became strong and determined. She never showed this side before because back then, she had Ling Xiao. She decided to not care about anything and just willingly became the woman Ling Xiao cared for. Then when he had ‘died’, she wanted to become strong for her daughter. Instead, she got a responsible and reliable daughter who wanted to protect her, so she had no choice but to be the person being protected once again to make her daughter feel that she needed her. This pressure and responsibility made Ling Lan become stronger and moved forward without fear.

Sometimes, she would think to herself whether this was the right thing to do. She shouldn’t let her daughter live such a harsh life. She had once tried being more hardheaded, but her daughter was becoming more and more pushy as she grew older. Her pus.h.i.+ness might even have surpa.s.sed Ling Xiao… Well, in the end, she couldn’t do anything about her stubborn daughter and could only relent to the fact that she had to be protected by her daughter.

It had to be said that Lan Luofeng was someone who knew how to change her lifestyle well. She was just like water. She would naturally become an existence that the other party needed and perfectly cooperate with the other party. It was like this with Ling Xiao and the same with Ling Lan.

However, when the two people who let her enjoy their protection suddenly left her side, she knew clearly what was her best course of action. She then naturally turned into a strong and decisive woman.

At the same time, Qi Yaoyang and Qi Long met up. He told him his request. Of course, he couldn’t get away without being beaten by his father and was bruised up by Qi Yaoyang.

After that itch out of his body, Qi Yaoyang went straight to the Third Marshal’s manor. He and the Third Marshal had a long secretive meeting on the matter of the position of Lingtian Independent Army’s commander.

“Report!” shouted a senior colonel officer who stood in front of the door outside the office of the highest ranking officer on the Flying Dragon Special Forces base.

“Come in.” A cold voice echoed from the room.

“Yes, chief.” The senior colonel pushed the b.u.t.ton on the side to open the door. The door opened by itself and he quickly walked into the room.