The Empire begins with the Fourth Scourge.

Chapter 2733 The Rebellion in the Capital (Part Two)

2733, The Rebellion in the Capital (Part Two)
At this moment, Arden-Lin was dressed in a black combat suit, even her mechanical right arm was painted black, with the white Galactic Empire symbol sprayed on it, shimmering with a cold luster.

She bowed meticulously to Palpatine and said, “Marshal Zarin’s research is of utmost importance. I am personally overseeing this place to ensure that the remnants of the Jedi Order and the spies of the Kingdom of Dawn do not cause any damage.”

Palpatine snapped his eyes open, a dangerous glint in his golden pupils. He grinned and said coldly, "When did you become so proactive, Arden-Lin?"

Arden-Lin said calmly, "You know what I want. Since you've achieved that goal, I will naturally do my best to serve you. I hope you won't go back on your word."

“Heh heh heh, you’ve done very well, Arden-Lin. You will get what you want! Your husband Sindor, who has been gone for over 20,000 years, his soul still wanders in the river of the Force. As long as I find him, I will naturally be able to summon his soul.” Palpatine let out a strange laugh.

"My power is at your disposal." Arden-Lin knelt on one knee, expressing his loyalty with great respect.

"Please come this way, Your Majesty. I have prepared a very intuitive introductory program on the bridge, which will allow you to understand all our achievements before participating in the live-fire test." Demetrius Zarin bowed to Palpatine.

Palpatine glanced at him. He sensed no danger in his Force perception and, like everyone else, he never felt that this famously honest man posed any threat.

More importantly, all twelve imperial marshals, and even his thirteenth choice, were the kind of people who could only obtain the greatest benefit by relying on the imperial power in his hands. Therefore, whether from the perspective of power, politics, interests, or personal relationships, he did not believe that these imperial marshals would have any disloyal intentions.

Palpatine was caught off guard. He revealed that twisted smile and followed Demetrius Zarin toward the bridge of the warship.

Arden-Lin remained kneeling, watching the emperor's guards in red armor walk past her until Palpatine was out of sight, at which point she raised her head.

On the other side, a handsome young man walked over; he was her apprentice, Jing Fang.

Jing Fang was dressed in the uniform of a hangar platform ground crew member, but underneath he was wearing a black combat uniform, clearly indicating that he was fully prepared for battle.

“Palpatine has taken the bait completely.” Jing Fang bit his lower lip, looking somewhat excited. “The hatred for the Jedi Order will be settled today!”

“You stay here and take care of the Emperor’s guards. Palpatine, leave that to me and Hora,” Arden-Lin said calmly.

“I…I want to be with you too!” Jing Fang said.

Arden-Lin shook his head and said, "You need more training. You are not capable of participating in this level of combat right now."

Jing Fang lowered his head, somewhat disappointed, but he still understood that Arden-Lin was right. "I understand, Master."

……

After Palpatine departed Coruscant's surface in his shuttle, an unseen undercurrent began to stir in the heart of the Empire. Security forces silently began their troop rotations, and media centers and communication bases were imperceptibly surrounded. Three Imperial Class II Star Destroyers approached the Imperial Palace. People had grown accustomed to the presence of Star Destroyers during this period, failing to notice that these new ones were flying lower than usual, and that their orbital bombardment cannons were coldly pointed at the main structure of the Imperial Palace.

Some noble families are also secretly taking action, and the mercenaries who have been secretly hired have already appeared on the outskirts of Coruscant.

Even some lawless gangs seemed to have received some information. They gathered their men, distributed weapons, and waited for a certain time to arrive.

……

Meanwhile, in his solitary cell in the Imperial Palace, Thrawn, who was reading ancient texts of the Galactic Republic, suddenly looked up and gazed out the window.

The skies over Coruscant remain busy, with countless spaceships and hovercars constantly streaking across the sky, forming numerous moving lines.

Thrawn's attention wasn't on the magnificent scenery; he was carefully observing the passing spaceships and watching the Star Destroyers approaching in the sky, silently counting them in his mind.

A sense of unease began to creep into his mind—the mobilization frequency of the security forces was much higher than usual, and the number of civilian airships was gradually decreasing. Because he was located within the Imperial Palace complex, what he saw was the airship situation surrounding the palace.
There was no reason for the Star Destroyer to approach unless there were special orders, but Palpatine had just left, and there were no orders for them to come.

It seems... something is about to happen here.

Solon stood up, walked to the cell door, and said to the guard, "That's enough, let me out."

The guard approached, somewhat impatiently, and said, "I haven't received any orders..."

His words remained unspoken as a burst of energy pierced his chest.

Thrawn put away his blaster, then used a cipher tube to open the door and stepped out. The reason he had been kept here was because Palpatine had told him he was not yet fit to appear in public, and remaining in custody would keep the attention of Dunn Wessex and his associates from focusing on him.

Therefore, Thrawn can leave at any time if he wants. Palpatine gave him these things when he came last time.

But given the current situation, Thron felt he should learn more, otherwise, when the storm really came, he, being completely ignorant, might be torn to shreds.

……

"...As I just explained, this is my design concept for the superweapon 'Gun of the Galaxy'." Demetrius Zarin was explaining his latest research findings to Palpatine on the bridge of the Star Destroyer, the Majesty. "In fact, before the Death Star Cannon of the Dawn Kingdom appeared, we were also considering ways to conduct intergalactic orbital strikes. The appearance of the Death Star Cannon also gave us design inspiration, and through the joint efforts of many brilliant scientists, we have overcome the key problems."

He opened a series of data: "The Galactic Lance can deliver a direct strike to a target within a range of ten thousand light-years via hyperspace jump. Its power is enough to destroy the crust of an ordinary planet!"

“If this weapon works, I’ll launch it towards Dawn Planet right now.” Palpatine smiled with satisfaction. “That’s right! Launch it now!”