Starting from the Planetary Governor
Chapter 32: A Token of Sincerity

The news of heretical cults spreading caused a flurry of activity throughout Revival City.

Meanwhile, the Governor, who had initiated this chaos, displayed no sense of urgency.

The next morning, he began addressing the territory’s food supply issue and made another contact with the Quintet in orbit.

Alicia still had no friendly expressions for him.

Gu Hang was indifferent to this and even very understanding.

If it were him, constantly having resources plucked away, his reaction would be even stronger than Alicia’s.

—Since I am so understanding, how about giving me the synthetic starch technology?

Of course, Gu Hang knew he couldn’t ask for it for free; he had to offer something in return.

“Navy Commodore Alicia, I have brought you some good news again!”

Hearing this, Alicia immediately recalled the three thousand slaves, three hundred Servant Soldiers, a pile of weapons and equipment, and four Wanderer Vs she had lost.

Heartache.

As for the Marine Captain she had sent previously?

Did that happen? She didn’t remember.

Alicia maintained a stern face: “The Governor’s good news always comes at a high price.”

“How could that be? I am sharing our achievements with my best partner.”

“If you have something important to say, get to the point.”

“Regarding the heretical cults emerging on Fury Owl Planet, I have some leads. I captured a heretic who turned out to be a high-ranking official in the planetary government!”

Hearing this, Alicia became serious: “Has it deteriorated to this extent? Tell me where the enemies are, and I will eliminate them.”

“No, no, no, it’s not time for that yet. I will soon locate those heretics precisely. At that time, I might need you to dispatch elite Marines and even the shipborne chapel’s forces to assist me in purging these heretics.”

“That can be arranged, but it would be best if you could create an opportunity for me to conduct an orbital bombardment directly.”

“I’ll do my best.”

Alicia had no objections to this.

Conducting orbital bombardments was the most convenient option.

If Marine forces needed to be deployed, that was acceptable too, as long as it led to military achievements.

Moreover, deploying Marine squads for missions is different from the previous manner of “loaning” people to Gu Hang, which essentially equated to giving them away.

Those “loaned” to Gu Hang would work under him long-term.

In contrast, during missions, whether to fight and how to fight is entirely under the starship’s command system, with Gu Hang merely providing targets and reference suggestions at most.

It’s a completely different concept.

Alicia’s expression calmed a bit, feeling somewhat relieved.

Finally, the investment in this Governor showed a glimmer of potential return.

Eliminating the heretical cult entrenched in the planetary government’s capital city was, more or less, an achievement worth mentioning.

Although not significant, having returns meant having expectations, and there were still two more years ahead.

Feeling better, Alicia asked a question she would later regret: “Very well, is there anything else?”

“Yes, I need the synthetic starch technology.”

Alicia’s face stiffened.

I thought you were just here to report some news.

Turns out you still came to ask for something?

“I am responsible only for combating the enemies of the Empire,” Alicia said. “Supporting construction is not my job.”

“This is for combating the enemies of the Empire!”

Gu Hang argued.

“The core of heresy breeding lies in the people having no hope. If they can’t even fill their stomachs, they are easily swayed by heresy. Synthetic starch technology can help us solve this problem.”

Alicia felt Gu Hang’s argument made sense, but… would the people saved this way count as Navy achievements?

As she pondered, Gu Hang’s voice came again: “Navy Commodore Alicia, please understand, facing enemies with overwhelming force to annihilate them is necessary. But if the situation deteriorates to the point where complete destruction is required to save the day, that’s not necessarily a good thing.”

“A city corrupted by heresy and then destroyed; or a city overrun by heretics but under your command, the heretics are exterminated and hundreds of thousands of the Empire’s citizens are saved. Which narrative sounds better?”

Destroyer or savior…

The former might sound cooler, but in the Empire—at least in the Pegasus Sector—the latter holds more value.

Moreover, the role of savior aligns more closely with Alicia’s current mission. Her task on Fury Owl Planet’s orbit for two years was not to eliminate enemies but to assist the Governor in revitalizing the planet.

At this point, Alicia had to admit that Gu Hang’s argument had once again moved her.

She began to contemplate how to provide the synthetic starch technology to Gu Hang and whether the cost would be high.

The conclusion was: not very high.

Starships indeed possess synthetic starch technology, which is vital during long interstellar journeys when resupplying is challenging.

This technology, capable of recycling nearly all organic matter into edible starch blocks, is an important auxiliary technology.

However, important as it is, the use of synthetic starch machines isn’t frequent. During non-combat times, when starships can resupply smoothly, no one prefers eating starch blocks.

Currently, the ‘Quintet’ had an ample supply of food, sufficient for several years.

Moreover, there was more than one synthetic starch machine on the starship. Sending one down wouldn’t be a big issue.

Of course, what Gu Hang wanted was the technology, not just the machines. But this also wasn’t too troublesome.

Sending down a technician responsible for logistics along with a machine and some spare parts should meet Gu Hang’s requirements.

In theory, this would be enough for Gu Hang to start producing his own synthetic starch machines, provided he had a certain industrial foundation.

If he didn’t, then Alicia could only express her inability to help further: I’m not your mother; can I directly feed you milk?

“I agree.”

…

Alicia relented, and a transport ship with the technician and equipment arrived at the surface.

On the return trip, Gu Hang loaded it with a considerable amount of supplies.

According to him, these were gifts for Navy Commodore Alicia, special products from Fury Owl Planet.

In reality, they were just a small portion allocated from the batch of food and textile supplies brought over from Revival City.

It wasn’t without meaning — it was a way to improve the ship crew’s meals and provide some supplies.

It was, after all, a gesture to show that the Governor didn’t take without giving!

As for the difference in value between the two… it’s the thought that counts!

Watching the transport ship fly away, Gu Hang plunged back into his grand plans for expanding production.