Gundam 00: Rise of China

"Teacher, I have a preliminary assessment of the Celestial Beings' next move."

"But before I get to that, I have some information here that you might find interesting."

Wang Ye sat up straight and spoke calmly.

Meanwhile, the car drove smoothly along the tree-lined road, the wheels crunching over fallen leaves, making a soft, rustling sound, as if providing accompaniment for the people inside.

"Oh? Go ahead." General Gao, holding his thermos, looked at his student with great interest.

"Before the Battle of Ceylon ended, I had already deployed a large number of unmanned reconnaissance aircraft to monitor the sea area."

"And those drones just happened to detect that the Gundam Exia was encountering a Union Flag Gundam that was deliberately provoking it over the high seas."

Observing the expression on the teacher's face, Wang Ye continued in a low voice.

"Judging from the pilot's style and tactical maneuvers, he is most likely Union's ace pilot, Graham Ecker."

"Graham Eka..." Upon hearing this name, General Gao quickly found the corresponding person in his mind.

Then, with a slight raise of his eyebrows, General Gao blurted out the other party's background.

"Graham, the one who killed his own teacher?"

"It's him." Wang Ye could tell that General Gao didn't seem to like Graham, but he still reported the information in its entirety.

"The two exchanged blows for only a few rounds before Exusiai severed the opponent's linear rifle with a single sword strike. Graham, seeing that he could not gain the upper hand, took the initiative to retreat."

As soon as he finished speaking, General Gao, who had previously shown no interest in Graham, immediately leaned forward.

For the first time, a look of urgency appeared on his usually calm face. He almost dropped his precious thermos before hurriedly asking the question.

"What about that rifle? Did we retrieve the severed linear rifle wreckage?"

Seeing his teacher's rare loss of composure, Wang Ye couldn't help but shrug and a smile appeared on his lips.

"Teacher, this is our tradition. With such a great deal right in front of me, how could I possibly let it slip away?"

"And you might not believe it, but the fishermen who happened to be fishing in that area were even faster than our search and rescue team."

Thinking back to the situation at the time, Wang Ye's tone was tinged with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.

"When they saw something falling from the sky, they didn't consider the risks at all. More than a dozen fishing boats rushed over at full speed, arriving a full twenty minutes earlier than our helicopters."

"Moreover, they not only retrieved the complete wreckage of the Flag Linear Rifle, but also a shield thrown out by the Exia pilot."

"Good! Good! Good!"

Upon hearing this, General Gao slapped his thigh, abandoning all pretense of refined manners, and burst into hearty laughter.

He laughed so hard that he choked on his own saliva and coughed for a long time before he could catch his breath.

"That's wonderful! That's really wonderful!" General Gao wiped his eyes, unable to hide the joy on his face.

"The shield of Celestial Being Gundam and Union's new linear rifle are perfect for reference, saving us a lot of trouble."

"These fishermen have done a great service! They must be richly rewarded when we get back!"

Seeing General Gao so happy, like a child, Wang Ye smiled too.

He knew all too well the value of these technological remnants.

For the current Human Reformation League, there is the complete Gundam shield and the remains of Union's rifle.

Within days of the Human Revolutionary Alliance, which was known for its "pay-to-win" mentality, even the opponent's most vulnerable secrets were exposed!

Those fishermen are probably going to go crazy again, after all, certain organizations have spent a long time spreading the word not to casually retrieve unidentified objects from the seabed...

After a while, General Gao gradually calmed down.

He picked up his thermos and took a sip of hot tea, but his eyes became unusually deep as he stared intently at Wang Ye for a very long time.

Because of this, the atmosphere in the carriage suddenly became heavy.

Sunlight streamed through the car window, illuminating General Gao's face in a half-light, half-shadow, obscuring his true emotions.

"Wang Ye."

After a long silence, General Gao finally spoke, his voice so low it was almost inaudible.

"There are some things that officers of your rank shouldn't know, and even Lao Jin was kept in the dark."

"But your performance today, and the results in Ceylon, make me feel it's time to tell you some truths."

Upon hearing this, Wang Ye's heart skipped a beat, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

"teacher?"

"Do you think the Celestial Being organization just appeared out of nowhere?"

"Do you think that a revolutionary weapon like Gundam was created out of thin air?"

General Gao looked out the window, his voice carrying an indescribable heaviness.

"Let me tell you, as early as fifteen years ago, our People's Revolutionary Alliance clashed with the Celestials."

"What?!"

Wang Ye's eyes widened suddenly, his face filled with disbelief.

Of course, this was just an act he put on, as someone who had traveled between two worlds.

He knew the history of Celestial Being better than anyone else, but at this moment he had to show the shock that a normal military officer should have.

"All the records have been classified as top secret by the Supreme Command." Looking at his disciple, General Gao shook his head, his tone bitter.

"We also suffered heavy losses that time. The enemy only showed one mobile suit named Gundam, but we lost face completely."

"We have been secretly investigating this organization ever since."

"Fifteen years, a full fifteen years, the Supreme Command has invested countless manpower and resources, but has only found some clues."

"It wasn't until recently that we finally confirmed that the Celestial Being organization was the same opponent we encountered back then."

After listening quietly, Wang Ye pretended to be processing the information, and then his tone carried a hint of unintentional doubt.

"Teacher, I still can't believe it. How could a private armed organization possess such advanced technological capabilities?"

"How could it possibly have been hidden for so long under the noses of the whole world?"

"They can even manufacture a revolutionary weapon like Gundam? That's completely illogical."

Upon hearing this, General Gao remained silent for a very long time, with only the faint rumble of the engine remaining in the carriage.

He then kept stroking the inside of the thermos with his fingers, his eyes shifting, clearly engaged in a fierce internal struggle.

After a full five minutes, he finally let out a deep sigh.

"You're right, no private organization could do that."

"Externally, the three major powers all claimed that the lack of reconnaissance back then allowed the Celestials to take advantage of the situation."

"But in reality, you and I both know that a large country like ours could not possibly allow an organization to develop in the background for hundreds of years."

"Able to deceive the eyes of all major powers, able to mobilize such vast resources, and able to manufacture revolutionary weapons..."

After a pause, General Gao spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Only great powers of equal standing can do this."

Wang Ye was immediately shocked again; this time, most of it was true.

As a time traveler, Wang Ye was fully aware of the information General Gao had given him, but hearing the truth from General Gao's own mouth still shocked him.

The so-called Celestial Organization is supported by conglomerates, which Wang Ye thinks can only fool children.

Indeed, there are no real fools in this world.

Those elites of major powers who navigate the international arena see things more clearly than anyone else.

They just don't say it, or rather, they can't say it.

Therefore, Wang Ye did not dwell on this issue any further.

He knew that it was best to stop there; continuing to pretend would only make the teacher look down on him, and he was well aware of the teacher's discerning eye.

Some of the things he said, even a student like myself could have guessed with my intelligence.

Changing the subject, Wang Ye returned to the previous topic.

"Teacher, let's not talk about this anymore. Let's talk about the Celestials' next move."

"In the battle of Ceylon, I shattered the myth that the Celestials were invincible. Their deterrent power was greatly diminished, and the whole world is watching them make fools of themselves."

"In order to save face and rebuild their deterrent effect, they will definitely take some action in the short term."