Elder brother's garrison

Page 1359

The Empire glanced at Rome, who was tugging at its sleeve expectantly and trying to signal its presence, then silently nodded slightly to Veneto.

“Well… since it’s the Empire’s request, then there’s nothing I can do.” Veneto’s expression returned to calm as she addressed the Empire, “It’s rather unusual that the Empire would take the initiative to greet people. Well, it’s a good thing to be more cheerful.”

"What? The Imperial sister wants to see me?" Yubari was just hoping someone would interrupt her conversation with Veneto. Seeing the Empire and Rome approaching, Yubari couldn't contain her smile and jumped out from behind Veneto, grinning at the Empire and Rome. "What does the Imperial sister want to see me about?"

“A labor of love…” Empire began instinctively, but as soon as she opened her mouth, she remembered what Rome had just said to her. She paused for a moment, then changed her words, “I have long admired you…”

"Haha, it seems my fame has spread so far that even the Imperial Sister wants to meet me." Yubari laughed heartily upon hearing this, extending her hand to the Imperial Sister. "Hello, Imperial Sister! Actually, I've wanted to meet you for a long time too!"

"I?"

"Yes, you are one of the few planned ship girls in the naval base, and you are extremely precious even on a global scale." Yubari pointed a finger and gave the Empire a smug smile. "In a way, you are a rather noble humanoid document! I didn't get to see you properly when I returned to the naval base last time, and I'm still quite fond of studying your ship equipment!"

“If you want to see the Empire’s ship equipment, then see it now,” Veneto said to Yubari.

"I'd like to too, but I came back from vacation without even bringing any equipment. Studying your ship equipment now would just be me having a good look at it, and it wouldn't really help you." Yubari spread his hands and shrugged.

“It’s alright, go ahead and do your research. It’s perfectly normal for people within the naval base to help each other.” For some reason, Veneto was surprisingly open-minded. She smiled at Yubari and said, “I’m sure the Empire won’t mind.”

"...Really?" Yubari looked at Veneto warily. "Are you really not worried?"

“Well… if possible, I hope that before you delve into the Empire’s ship equipment, you can also take a good look at Rome’s ship equipment and help us see how far it is from being ready for modification.” Veneto crossed his arms and smiled at Yubari. “After all, this is a way for compatriots in the naval base to help each other, right? Thank you for your help, Professor Yubari.”

Chapter 1754 Heaven May Reward Diligence

Before Shiro arrived at the newbie naval base to take up the post of admiral, Yubari and Veneto didn't have much interaction.

After all, the life trajectories of these two ship girls did not intersect at that time. One of them was a science major who stayed at home all the time researching strange things, while the other ship girl only wanted to become the secret weapon of the naval base. She wanted to stay away from the core circle of the naval base and live a peaceful life with the destroyers in a quiet place, only coming out to fire two Italian cannons when necessary.

Therefore, Yubari and Veneto's relationship before was merely a nodding acquaintance, far from being as close as it is now.

If we're talking about why their relationship started to become closer, it really is because of Xiaobai.

It was because of Shiro that Veneto and Yubari, two ship girls with very different lifestyles and paces of life, were able to get along and finally have the opportunity to understand each other.

It was through getting to know him gradually that Yubari discovered that Veneto was not as difficult to get along with as she had imagined.

In Yubari's past impression, Veneto was a relatively inexperienced, arrogant, and even slightly aloof ship girl.

However, as Shiro connected Veneto with herself and gradually got to know Veneto, Yubari realized that the elements that made up Veneto, the ship girl, were far from as monotonous and boring as she had imagined.

Yubari looked at Veneto's smiling face and couldn't help but curl his lips into a smile.

—Actually, Veneto is just a stubborn tsundere. Although she enjoys making things difficult for Rome, when the time comes, she will seize every opportunity to help Rome get what it deserves.

"Hey, it's just checking the condition of Rome! Why bother with such a small matter? Leave it to me!" Yubari patted his chest and loudly echoed Veneto.

“Thank you.” Veneto’s gaze softened as she looked at Yubari. She beckoned to Roma. “Roma, come here and release your ship equipment for Yubari to see.”

"Huh? Oh, okay!" Rome hadn't heard the conversation between Veneto and Yubari. Based on Veneto's few words, she only understood that her boss might be asking Yubari to consider her modification. However, her unwavering trust in Veneto made Rome obediently walk up to Yubari and summon her ship equipment.

With a loud bang.

A massive battleship emerged from behind Rome, landing on the sand with a powerful aura, sending sand and gravel flying.

The moment Yubari saw the Roman ship's equipment, his eyes lit up.

Originally, Yubari wasn't really interested in Rome's ship equipment. Unlike her sister Empire, Rome wasn't a planned ship, nor was it a rare ship type like Changchun. For Yubari, who was used to dealing with battleship equipment almost every day during her work and had become completely numb to it, Rome didn't hold much appeal. If Veneto hadn't taken the initiative to ask, Yubari really wouldn't have taken the initiative to study Rome's ship equipment in detail.

However, at that moment, upon seeing the Roman ship's equipment, Yubari's eyes lit up, and she immediately became convinced of its appeal.

If we compare ship girl equipment to seedlings, then Rome, though seemingly unremarkable in its type, is the most robust and vigorous ship girl equipment that Yubari has seen in all his years of research on ship equipment—it has even reached the level of "beauty" through its vigorous growth alone.

"Yubari-nee, how...how is it?" Roma asked Yubari cautiously after summoning her ship equipment.

However, Yubari did not respond for a moment.

Rome waited in vain, then curiously turned its head to look at Yubari behind the ship's rigging.

"Alas?!"

Then Roma saw Yubari drooling as he obsessively stroked the hull of his ship's rigging, his palms rubbing against the rigging with a look of utter infatuation on his face.

"Slurp... Hehe... Roma, you've grown quite well... Slurp... The barrel is very strong and thick, the base is very solid, and the shape of the cannon is also very beautiful..." Yubari slurped and sucked, stroking Roma's body repeatedly. "Although I don't have the instruments to accurately measure your current data, I'm sure you've become much stronger since the last time I saw you... It seems you've successfully broken through your bottleneck..."

"Yubari, mind your image," Veneto sighed and reminded Yubari.

"Huh? Ah...cough cough cough..." Yubari realized she had been a bit out of line after being reminded by Veneto. She quickly wiped her chin, wiped away the drool, and then coughed lightly. She put on a serious expression and patted Roma's ship rigging. "Hmm...hmm! Very good! The ship rigging's form is very well developed, and the aura emanating from it is also very solid. It's the kind of ship girl ship rigging that's steadily and gradually getting stronger. In my work experience, I don't think I've ever seen ship rigging that's developed better than Roma's."

Speaking of it.

Yubari gave Rome a thumbs-up and smiled with admiration.

"Rome, beautiful!"

"Thank you... thank you, Yubari-nee!" Roma stood up straight, moved, and bowed to Yubari.

Yubari was the most authoritative person in the entire naval base to speak on ship equipment. To receive praise from Yubari was like achieving a personal accomplishment, a reward for one's long Spartan training, and proof that one's efforts were effective and worthwhile. This deeply moved Roma.

"So, is Rome's ship equipment already in the preparatory modification stage?" Veneto asked Yubari.

"Ah... well... let me see."

Yubari, stroking his chin, walked around Rome's ship twice, touching and looking at it. Finally, he came to Rome, cupped Rome's face in his hands, pried open Rome's eyelids and stared at it carefully for a while, then reached out and gently pinched the soft flesh on Rome's waist.

"Hey!!"

The soft flesh around the waist is the Achilles' heel of most girls, including Roma. When someone suddenly pinches her without warning, Roma instinctively lets out a very feminine scream. She quickly covers the spot where Yubari pinched her, and her face flushes red with embarrassment.

"Xi...Xi Xi Xi Sister Zhang, what you just did..."

"Hahaha, I was just joking, Roma, your reaction is really cute." Yubari raised her hands to indicate that she was harmless and smiled at Roma. "Very good, very good. Seeing you still retain a considerable degree of femininity, Roma, I'm relieved..."

As Yubari chuckled, he suddenly felt Veneto's gaze on him from behind begin to turn chilly.

Yubari's shoulders stiffened, and he quickly fell silent.

"Ahem, let's get down to business." Yubari patted Roma on the shoulder, then turned to Veneto and sighed, "Based on my experience, Roma shouldn't... be in the preparatory stage for transformation yet."

"As expected..." Veneto closed his eyes and sighed softly.

"Huh? Preparing for a modification?" Roma looked at Yubari curiously. "What are Yubari-nee and the boss talking about?"

“The pre-modification is…” Yubari whispered to Roma, “that’s roughly it. Actually, Veneto has been asking me to take charge of your future ship equipment modification project.”

"Ah! So that's it... uh..." Roma paused, then looked at Veneto in surprise, before his expression turned embarrassed. "So, I guess I still can't accept the transformation... I still haven't tried hard enough..."

"Roma, don't be discouraged. The pre-modification state is quite mysterious; it has nothing to do with the individual ship girl's strength or effort." Yubari patted Roma on the shoulder and said gently, "I can tell you with certainty that you are already the most hardworking ship girl I've ever seen. Your ship equipment growth rate is practically perfect. You're just missing a trigger, an opportunity, or perhaps a coincidence, to enter the pre-modification state. Believe me, hard work pays off, and sooner or later you'll be able to undergo modification like your sister!"

The drumbeats of Yubari resounded powerfully.

Rome nodded, moved.

"Yes! I... I will continue to remember what you said, Yubari-nee!"

"Put away the ship's equipment."

"Alright!" Rome waved his hand and put the ship's equipment back.

Although Yubari gave Roma a disappointing reply this time, Roma's expression was quite gratified, and he didn't seem to be affected by the fact that he hadn't entered the ready state yet.

Yubari, rubbing his hands, walked awkwardly to the side of the Empire.

“Well then, Imperial sister, it’s your turn~ Don’t be shy, just summon your ship equipment!” Yubari moved closer to Imperial, showing an eager expression. “Don’t worry, Veneto told me that you haven’t undergone the intensive training at the naval base yet, so it doesn’t matter if your ship equipment isn’t fully completed. My appreciation will shift from the completion level to the type of ship equipment you have!”

The Empire glanced at Veneto and Rome, and only after seeing Veneto nod slightly and Rome clenching his fists in encouragement did she quietly close her eyes.

wow——

White light flashes.

The moment the Empire summoned its ship equipment, a peculiar aura emanated from within the Empire and spread outwards.

This aura, like waves, spread outwards in all directions from the Empire's body, finally disappearing like smoke.

then.

Upon sensing the spreading aura, Yubari and Veneto immediately stopped moving and stared blankly at the Empire.

This aura was like an overflowing spring, gushing water outwards with a bubbling sound... The two of them were all too familiar with it.

During her work, Yubari was exposed to the aura of these ship girls almost every day.

Veneto, on the other hand, was directly reminded of a forgotten memory by the wave of energy emanating from the Empire—it seemed that when she was sent to the ship equipment research center by the naval base for modification, this was the kind of energy that permeated her entire body.

"Huh? This is..." Yubari stared blankly at the Empire.

The aircraft carrier was summoned.

The Empire opened its eyes under the watchful gaze of Yubari.

then.

A streak of brown light, like a shooting star flashing across the sky, disappeared in the stunned gazes of Yubari and Veneto.

Chapter 1755 I Have Good News

In the admiral's office of the newbie garrison, Xiaobai and Lexington were sitting at the admiral's desk, seriously discussing the pioneering matters of Chapter 8.

The USB drive that Xiaobai got from Admiral Haoding was safely plugged into the computer. On the monitor on the admiral's desk, windows about Chapter Eight were stacked one on top of another. Xiaobai pointed to the windows on the screen and kept explaining them to Lexington.

"According to the information left by Admiral Haoding, the strength of the Abyssal Fleet in Chapter 8 is about two or three levels stronger than that in Chapter 7. However, these are only the Abyssal Fleet that Admiral Haoding encountered in the near-shore waters. We don't know what will appear in the deep sea of ​​Chapter 8, or what kind of tiered changes the strength of the Abyssal Fleet will have, so it cannot be used as an absolute reference..."

"So the information I wanted to discuss with you this time, Lexington, isn't about the strength of the Abyssal Fleet in Chapter 8, but rather the supply shortage problem that Admiral Haoding mentioned, which will inevitably occur when exploring Chapter 8..."

"Personally, I prefer to deploy the naval base's main fleet for escort, and then transport large quantities of supplies into Chapter 8 in batches. Although this would be very inefficient, and deploying the main fleet would also incur significant costs, it's the fastest method I can think of..."

"..."

As Xiaobai spoke, he manipulated the mouse to click on the pop-up windows on the screen, displaying page after page of calculation data and information to Lexington.

Lexington listened to Xiaobai's speech, nodding occasionally, and carefully looked at the information on the screen, his eyes filled with thoughtful expression.

“Resource supply…that is indeed a big problem.” Lexington nodded thoughtfully, sighing in agreement.

“Yes… the operations of ship girls are inseparable from resources…” Xiaobai rubbed his forehead in distress, “And even with my method, it would take us at least half a year to gather enough resources to clear the eighth chapter without affecting the operation of the naval base…”

“After all, the environment in Chapter Eight is harsh, so only powerful capital ships can be used to transport supplies. Therefore, not only the amount of supplies transported, but also the speed of transport, as well as the consumption of the capital ships themselves during the expedition, are all severely limited…” Lexington said, then lowered his head slightly, rested his chin on his hand, and thought for a while. “Hmm… But, Little White, would you like to change your perspective?”

"Huh? What perspective?"

"Hmm... In my opinion, the biggest reason for the lack of supplies is that the Admiral's Guild hasn't settled in Chapter 8 yet, so there's no convenient, safe, fast, and efficient resource transport route between Chapter 8 and human society, right? Well, if we change our thinking, we don't need to cross mountains and dangerous seas. We just need to spend money to build bridges and roads, and create a safe resource transport route on land, just like in the other chapters' seas, right?" Lexington clapped his hands lightly and smiled at Little White.

"Build roads? Build bridges?" Xiaobai was stunned.

Lexington's idea... seems a bit far-fetched...

"Yes, build roads and bridges." Lexington nodded. "What do you think of this idea, Xiaobai?"

"Hmm...hmm...hmm?!" Xiaobai lowered his head, first resting his chin on his hand and thinking for a while. At first, Xiaobai didn't feel anything about Lexington's strange idea, which seemed like a whim. But as Xiaobai thought about it, he found that Lexington's idea was more and more promising. Finally, Xiaobai's eyes lit up and he looked at Lexington with surprise, "Hey...it seems like it can work."

To do a good job, one must first have the right tools; sharpening the axe won't delay the woodcutter; give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime... The experience accumulated by our ancestors over hundreds of years tells us that to get rich, build roads first! The supply problem in this eighth chapter is actually not a supply problem at all, but a transportation problem!

Although road construction will cost a lot of money in the short term, in the long run, it is indeed a good way to perfectly solve the resource supply problem!

"Lexington, you're amazing!"

"Hmm... I just suddenly had this idea." Lexington shook his head, reached out and patted Xiaobai's shoulder, pressing the somewhat excited Xiaobai down. "Besides, building roads and bridges isn't as simple as I just said."

"Eh? Can't you?"

“It’s not impossible.” Lexington withdrew his hand, and as he spoke, he placed his hands on the armrests of the chair and changed his posture. “Xiaobai, the organization we belong to is the Naval Base, and the Naval Base does not have the authority to build roads and bridges. If we want to build roads and bridges, we have to communicate with the Admiral’s Headquarters, which has the corresponding authority.”

"Uh... I see..."

“Yes, and the Admiral’s Headquarters probably won’t easily agree to our idea,” Lexington said. “Road and bridge construction is a massive undertaking. If the Admiral’s Headquarters approves our authority to build roads and bridges, it means they have decided to move into Chapter 8 and will begin organizing manpower to establish the Admiral’s Guild there. But the environment in Chapter 8 is still too chaotic to provide the Admiral’s Headquarters with the necessary conditions to move in. So, this approval authority… is probably very difficult to give us.”

"Huh? What should we do then?" Xiaobai became nervous upon hearing Lexington's words.

"Don't be too discouraged." Lexington looked at Xiaobai's face and smiled slightly. She reached out and stroked Xiaobai's long hair, and said, "After all, we are the world's number one naval base, so we still have some face. The Admiral's Headquarters is not an unapproachable organization. As long as we can show the Admiral's Guild the progress of the eighth chapter's development and prove the potential value of the eighth chapter, the Admiral's Guild should be able to make up their minds to move in. At that time, we won't even need to apply. The Admiral's Guild should take the initiative to contact us to discuss road construction."

"Oh! So... then in that case, our current goal is..."

"Yes, that's right. We'll take a batch of supplies that will last us a while to explore the eighth chapter and significantly accelerate its progress. Then we'll show the results to the higher-ups."

"As expected of Lexington! Your idea is much better than my clumsy method!" Little White happily opened his arms and jumped into Lexington's arms. "Hehe, this problem that has been bothering me for days has suddenly become simple!"

"That's good, that's good. Little White, you can get a good night's sleep now, right?" Lexington smiled and stroked Little White's hair, gently rubbing his forehead with his chin. "Without realizing it, Little White has become such a capable admiral who is willing to worry about the naval base... You must pay attention to resting in the future, rest is very important."

"Yes! I will!"

After the issue of Chapter 1756 was temporarily put aside, the atmosphere between Xiaobai and Lexington gradually became warmer.

Loki took in the scene in the office. She glanced at the goddess of the hearth lying motionless on the sofa, silently picked up the tea set on the coffee table, brewed two cups of hot sweet tea, and then brought them to Whitebeard's desk.

“Master, Mrs. Leigh.” Loki placed two cups of sweet tea on the table.

"Thank you, Loki." Lexington also picked up his teacup, smiled at Loki, and said, "It's really nice to have such a thoughtful helper like you by my side. A very professional tea-serving moment."