UC will eventually reach the stars

"Norris, is it?" Kinias looked knowing. Gao Long, who was with Ye Yun, was now missing and his fate was unknown, so the only other test pilot was Norris. "He will go with you. You can rest assured about my security. There are not many people here who can touch me."

“Alright! Keep calling Gao Long, and if possible, gather some evidence… This time, Zeon’s actions have disgusted me! Aren’t they shouting some slogan about protecting the inhabitants of space? Then this matter cannot be left like this.” Ye Yun said coldly.

Many things, when viewed in historical records, may not seem particularly moving. However, when such events occur clearly before your eyes, especially in places you have recently visited, the impact of such tragedies can be immense!

To make a real analogy, it's like hearing about a horrific car accident on the news versus witnessing a horrific car accident happening right in front of you, facing the bloody, mangled scene.

"I've already made the arrangements for you! But you need to go to Chabro, South America. The private jet is already parked at the airport. You need to leave immediately. I'll pack up and send your precious toy over later." Ye Ning, who arrived last, put down her phone and said quickly, her eyes narrowing. "The Federation seems to have something similar to ours, but that's not surprising at all. Zeon has already deployed it in MS battles multiple times. It's impossible for the Federation not to have made technical preparations. But Ye Yun, are you sure what you've brought out will work?"

"Don't worry, although the Mistral particle reactor can be miniaturized, the cost is still there. If the Federation really wants to scale up production, then our battery technology will be something they can't bypass." Ye Yun said this with great confidence, after all, SEED had clearly told him that nuclear-powered machines were undoubtedly high-end machines, and their numbers were extremely limited. Yes, that was absolutely true!

Ye Yun asked Kinias to estimate the cost of the miniaturized Mie particle furnace and the price difference between it and the MS price driven by their battery technology.

Goodness, it almost came down to 1 to 3!

Moreover, if we really want to calculate it, Ye Yun is very confident about the design that Kinias is about to complete, in terms of production time and ease of maintenance!

Of course, the most important point for Ye's Heavy Industries is that their production lines can be seamlessly connected... All production equipment hardly needs any large-scale adjustments, and production can begin immediately as soon as the blueprints arrive.

In this way, no matter what advantages the Federation forces have on the other side, Ye's Heavy Industry can confidently say that they can take a huge slice from this massive order!

After all, war is all about numbers! Without sheer numbers, even the most powerful performance is useless.

“Sister! Maybe…” Ye Yun took a deep breath, “My thinking has changed slightly. This time, we must help the Federation win this war as soon as possible, otherwise, from the perspective of all humanity, the price we pay will be too high.” Ye Yun hesitated for a moment, then frowned as he spoke. He knew very well what his sister was excited about. The long-standing tacit understanding between the siblings made Ye Ning very clear about his previous plans.

"I know...of course I know, my silly little brother." Ye Ning chuckled, tapping her silly little brother's head. "I support you this time! I've already contacted familiar media outlets and politicians. Don't worry, your sister knows more about this than you do!" Ye Ning tapped Ye Yun's head. "However, it seems there's another person who also has some ideas. She just had a fight with her father." After saying that, Ye Ning stepped aside, revealing the girl who had come in with her. Sera's expression was clearly very serious.

“Sera?” Ye Ning looked at the girl in front of him and hesitated for a moment. “This is very different from what we talked about before. After all, SIDE5 is right across from SIDE2. Are you sure? It’s very possible that SIDE5 will be attacked again.”

"Zeon doesn't care, and the Federation doesn't have the resources to care, so someone has to find a way to save ordinary people."

"Phew... You've chosen the most difficult path."

Chapter Nine Showcase

“Young man, the evidence you submitted… is interesting, but you should know that the military is different from the political and business worlds.” Gap sat in his chair, tapping his fingers on the table in front of him. “The military only considers three things: military spending, who to fight, and winning. This kind of evidence of yours is what politicians need; we don’t need it.”

“General Gao Pu, you’re right, but for the military, these three questions are interconnected!” Ye Yun smiled. The old man was quite interesting. He seemed to have given him the answer directly, but without revealing it. Was he testing him? Interesting, very interesting. He was able to contact a high-ranking military official in such a short time. His sense of smell was sharper than anyone else’s.

"Hmm." Gao Pu simply nodded silently.

"So let's look at them one by one..." Ye Yun took a deep breath, "The first thing to do about Zeon's actions this time is to see how the Federation defines them."

"What do you mean?" Gao Pu glanced at Ye Yun, his eyes revealing an unreadable meaning; the old man was very shrewd.

“Currently, although the Federation has not explicitly stated it, it generally views the Principality of Zeon as an insurrection or rebellion, not as a direct enemy.” Ye Yun’s lips curled up. “This is not a good thing for the military.”

“…” Gao Pu tapped the table without speaking, his eyes revealing a strange look.

"The military is an institution of violence. It's fair to say that for the military as a whole, times of peace and prosperity are the most difficult." Ye Yun's smile twitched slightly, but there was no other way; speaking to people in their own language was a basic skill for anyone in society. If it were Rebil, who had long faced various disturbances in the universe, perhaps Ye Yun could have used some grand principles to persuade him.

But talking to a cunning old fox like this... ha, his pronouncements are far more exaggerated than yours. Talking about this with such a guy is just asking for trouble. Instead, you need to offer something that can truly move him.

"So?" Gao Pu glanced at Ye Yun, his eyes somewhat wandering. The little guy... has a bit of a cleverness.

"So this war is a very good opportunity for the Federal Army! And for you too." Ye Yun said with a smile, knowing that some things are better left unsaid, as saying too much would be annoying.

"..." Gao Pu suddenly found it amusing. This little guy was capable, but his eloquence and shrewdness needed improvement; he was too straightforward. But he was still a young man; what kind of young man was he without drive? "I heard you have a surprise for me today. What's the surprise?"

"May I ask you to come to the other helipad?" Ye Yun knew he had passed the test. The fact that it was so easy could only mean that the old fox in front of him had been tempted from the very beginning.

"Okay!" Gao Pu agreed without hesitation. Ye Yun's sister had already given him some information, which surprised Gao Pu slightly. After all... in a sense, it was a robot that had experienced actual combat, which was very interesting to the Federation. Yes, for now, it was only interesting. He hoped that seeing it in person would give him a little surprise. "Your plane has indeed been circling in the sky for a long time."

The two did not meet at the Federation Army's Chabro base, but in the small city of Chabro, which is one of the many entrances and exits of the Federation Army's super fortress Chabro. Therefore, the transport fleet that Ye Yun was on had been notified and granted permission before Ye Yun arrived.

——————————————————————————————————————————

"Young Master's communication, airdrop initiated! Package 1 dropped!" Doris sat in the cockpit, a smile on her lips, and gave a thumbs-up to the rear. The group in the cabin quickly pulled the control levers, releasing the container slots, and then the containers slid out one after another.

The huge parachute unfolded under control, and the plane airdropped four packages. There was nothing special about this scene. Gao Pu just glanced at Ye Yun, took the binoculars Ye Yun handed him, and started watching. In essence, this airdrop organized by Ye Yun was not particularly special; it was just a typical airdrop by the Air Force.

Gao Pu had seen too many similar situations. He was even certain that if the Federation pilots had been in charge this time, they could have done a better job. Not only would the airdropped cargo have landed in a more concentrated area, but it was now scattered everywhere.

However, seeing the little guy's confident demeanor, Gap didn't say anything more and continued watching.

"Cargo delivery successful, warehouse open signal received!" Doris's voice was very clear in Ye Yun's earpiece. Similarly, "Norris, now it's time for your performance!"

"Okay..." Norres, who was sitting in the cockpit with his arms crossed, pretending to doze off, didn't say much. He simply reached out and opened the Leo's operating system. As a retainer of the Sakhalin family, and a butler who had raised Kinias and Aina since childhood, he had voluntarily completed the full set of MS pilot training when Kinias began developing MS, and his skill level was even... frighteningly high. "GAT00 Leo... Norres! Launch!"

With his voice, the Industrial Leo, which in some ways was more complete than the model Ye Yun had previously piloted, or rather, was close to a truly complete MS, slid out in a half-crouching position and then stretched out its body in mid-air.

"Hmm!?" Gap saw this scene through his binoculars, but he didn't say much. He just turned to his adjutant and said, "Tell the men below to shut up and not say anything more."

"Yes!" Gap's adjutant nodded and went to relay the order. As a senior federal general, his simple words could solve many problems, but this did not prevent the federal officers who came out with Gap from having solemn expressions.

Although they weren't part of the Space Force, this was the Federation Forces headquarters, and intelligence on the battles in space had already reached them. It was no secret that Zeon's mobile suits were engaged in small-scale Federation operations; they had clashed with the Federation forces multiple times. The exchange ratio... wasn't particularly impressive. However, one question undoubtedly arose in the minds of these high-ranking officers: "How come the Space Force's incompetent soldiers are completely helpless against such a large target?"

“It’s a target.” One of the officers, holding up his binoculars, looked at the pre-dropped package, squinting as it automatically unfolded into a tank-shaped balloon and a giant human-shaped balloon like those seen outside supermarkets during holidays. The officers instantly understood the purpose of the package.

The layout is just so scattered...

"Boom!" A series of explosions interrupted everyone's thoughts; 100mm shells had obliterated all three targets in a very short time...

Upon seeing this, all the officers narrowed their eyes. Even if they weren't actual combat commanders, as soldiers, they still had basic awareness. Undoubtedly, this method of attack was equivalent to hitting the top of an armored vehicle, which was definitely the last thing an armored vehicle, which emphasizes frontal defense, wanted to encounter.

At this moment, Leo's parachute detached on its own, and Leo's thrusters ignited for a final deceleration, allowing Leo to land smoothly. Leo did not throw away the machine gun with its magazine empty, but instead hung it on his lower back and drew a short sword from his waist, and sprinted away!

The sheer power of a robot nearly 20 meters tall and weighing 70 to 80 tons charging across the ground was terrifying. Even from a distance of more than two kilometers, a group of Federation officers subconsciously swallowed hard as they watched Leo wielding his sword in one hand (given that MS are typically over 18 meters tall, this is roughly equivalent to the height of a 7 to 8-story building; it's like a house charging at you).

Finally, Leo delivered a clean and decisive blow, shattering the humanoid balloon.

"Hmm...a very good demonstration!" Gao Pu looked at Ye Yun. "Industrial robots shouldn't be able to do this level of performance. Has it been redesigned?!"

Industrial robots naturally don't need to be equipped with jump mechanisms or deceleration thrusters, nor do they require specialized designs for handling running during rapid maneuvers. The previous firing sequence, too, required a dedicated observation and aiming system and limb control system. Don't underestimate the implications of this firing sequence; simply put, it required the limbs and torso to coordinate and stabilize the weapon, ensuring the trajectory of the bullet, while the thrusters on the back of the robot simultaneously fired at a low speed to stabilize the robot's approximate position.

Shooting during this landing process would be extremely difficult for an ordinary person to operate a firearm with accuracy, but now an MS has done it.

“Of course, apart from the shell, almost everything has undergone extensive modifications.” Ye Yun said with some pride. “Of course, this is just a modified version, and our Dawn Heavy Machinery is willing to provide the finished product…” Ye Yun reached out and took the prepared proposal from Rachel beside him, “to the Federation Army!”

“G?” After glancing at the capital letter on the cover, Gao Pu gave Ye Yun a deep look.

To be honest, Gao Pu's meaningful glance puzzled Ye Yun. What was going on? Why couldn't they use this name? Ye Yun remembered that the initial Gundam development projects for SEED and UC seemed to have different names.

Yes, that is, the federal classified MS development project that was just on the Gaopu desktop, called Operation "V"!

It's no wonder Gao Pu is overthinking things. After all, it seems like Ye Yun might already know something. As the highest-ranking general in the Earth Federation Army, he would naturally be very vigilant.

However, upon closer reflection, Gao Pu felt it wasn't surprising, because Yeh's Heavy Industry was an important part of the Federal military-industrial complex. Although it was a special component customization mixed in with other orders, Project V did indeed order some components from Yeh's Heavy Industry, so it seemed understandable that it was discovered.

Gao Pu closed the project proposal and glanced at the cover one last time: "The Development Plan for a Universal, Continuously Enhanced Mobile Weapon Mechanism, or Project G for short, is that so?"

Chapter Ten: What's Moving?

“Ye Yun, your ‘G’ plan has yielded quite good results, but…” Gao Pu turned to look at Ye Yun, seemingly oblivious to Leo who was slowly approaching beside him, a stark contrast to the panicked Federal Army officers beside him. “Do you know why I agreed to meet with you so easily?”

"This..." To be honest, Ye Yun wasn't too sure. He himself was somewhat confused. Although it was true that his family had some connections in the Federal Army because of their military industry business, he never expected to be able to directly meet with the highest-ranking general in the Federation.

Arasso Gap, a general in the Federation Army, was portrayed as General 369 in a certain strategy game. In reality, he is a super big shot hidden behind the history of the UC. A certain "grey saint" is nothing in front of him. Chabro, where he is stationed, has always been the Federation's most stable super rear base.

At the beginning of the One Year War, the Federation Army was in such a dire state that not only did this man not let a single Federation soldier go hungry, but he also provided enough technological weapons for the entire Federation Army to regroup. It can be said that without Reibil, the Federation Army might have had a much harder time winning (in the GTO anime, before Reibil's speech even began, the Federation Army's high command had already almost decided that they were just going to "fight a little more attractively" with the Zeon Army, not to negotiate a peace. And to be honest, Reibil's influence was not so great that his speech alone could determine the Federation Army's decision). However, without Guppy, the Federation Army, which was already in a state of disarray at the time, would most likely have collapsed in terms of logistics, and it would have been uncertain whether they could have won.

So, the "General Groundhog" thing is just a derogatory term used by petty people to smear others.

So Ye Yun was genuinely surprised that such an important figure would meet him directly. According to Ye Yun's expectations, it should be a lieutenant general in charge of logistics or technical research and development, or even just a major general. After seeing the finished product he provided, the person would be surprised and agree to recommend Da Ou for a higher position.

This gave Ye Yun time to set up the experimental site, instead of just randomly throwing the targets down like he was doing now. If it weren't for Nores's truly amazing skill, which resulted in him shooting directly in mid-air, such a brilliant performance might not have earned him a "good" evaluation from this expert.

Based on such an assessment, it can be almost concluded that Dawn Heavy Machinery Manufacturing will be able to secure orders from the Federation Army in the subsequent war.

"Because your people have made efforts we couldn't have imagined." Gap turned to look at Ye Yun. "I guess you haven't received the specific intelligence communications yet, but... at least we know what Zeon did in Side 2." As he spoke, there was a hint of anger in Gap's tone.

"Phew..." Ye Yun sighed, covering his forehead. "To be honest, I rushed here because of this. I'm almost going crazy. A colony satellite has tens of millions of people, and the entire Side 2... I don't even dare to think about it."

“I saw your efforts, that’s good. Your men were also very good. After leaving Side 2, while the Federation fleet covered their retreat to buy time, they first pretended to escape to Side 6, then turned to Side 5 halfway there. After accelerating to top speed, they shut down the engines, cut off communications, and sailed in complete silence, almost gliding to reach the airspace of Side 5.” Gap sighed. “Although the news came a little late, they brought the most valuable evidence.”

“Then… I’ll tell you something else.” Back in his office, Gao Pu picked up a document from his desk. “Take a look.”

"Hmm?" Ye Yun took the thin sheets of paper, glanced at them, and his fingers tightened instantly, almost crushing the entire document. "A colony satellite?! It's moving?!"

The report in Ye Yun's hand made him doubt his own eyes. The Zeon army's large-scale massacre of Side 2 was already outrageous, but this report clearly stated that just 24 hours after the Zeon army used poison gas to attack Side 2, the Federation Army observed signs of movement on the Side 2 colony.

"...So...Zeon...is planning to drop the colony?!" Ye Yun's mind was filled with only one word: Junius 7. Yes, this is the kind of trouble that can't be avoided when it comes to Gundam...the fall of the colony.

So when Ye Yun heard that the Side 2 colony had been massacred by the Zeon forces, he immediately realized something, but he couldn't quite recall it at first. After all... not to mention that the SEED anime was a distant memory for Ye Yun, who could think in that direction when faced with such a thing happening in person?! After all, normal people's thinking can't keep up with these lunatics.

But imagine the devastating disaster caused by the fall of Junius 7... Ye Yun's hatred for Zeon deepened. Even though he had already classified the entire Zeon leadership as war criminals and inhumane elements from the moment the Side 2 massacre broke out, at this moment, Ye Yun still felt that he had underestimated the extent of Zeon's madness.

"Your awareness of this is slightly surprising." To be honest, at this moment, Gao Pu already had a little bit of appreciation for Ye Yun, and then he asked the next question, "Guess the target?"

"..." Ye Yun thought for a moment, then his expression turned extremely ugly.

"Hahahaha..." Gao Pu laughed heartily when he saw Ye Yun's face, which looked like he had eaten shit. "Much smarter than those strategists. You barely managed to calculate the landing point after all that calculation. Tell me your reasoning." Now, he really admired this smart and capable young man in front of him.

"...There's not much to say, I just guessed their purpose." Ye Yun took a deep breath. "General Gap, if the target location for the colony satellite crash is here, why..."

“Why am I still here?” Gap looked at the young man in front of him and shook his head. “I am a general of the Federation. Even if duty doesn’t matter, I have a reason to stand here.” After saying this, Gap glanced at Ye Yun. “Besides, if Chabro can’t be saved… then the Federation will have no hope.”

"..." To be honest, Ye Yun had never been more shocked than he had ever been in his life. To be honest, someone of Gao Pu's high position and power would almost certainly value his life, but in such a critical moment, he was still able to stay calmly at the designated target location of the colony satellite, which made Ye Yun very impressed.

"Don't worry, Tiam has been frantically blocking Iphishu Island these past few days, so it shouldn't be completely fruitless." Gap took a deep breath. The Zeon army's "Operation Britannia" had indeed taken Gap by surprise; it was utterly insane! He had to admit that such an attack could indeed use the most extreme methods to completely destroy the Earth Federation Forces' headquarters and the Federation Forces' hidden, terrifying production capacity.

Yes, the Federation Army's most terrifying research and production base is located in the enormous super fortress beneath Chabro. Therefore, Guppy's statement that if Chabro is destroyed, the Federation Army will lose is not an exaggeration.

"Are you willing to join the Federation Army?" Gao Pu looked at Ye Yun. For Gao Pu, Project G was good, but only good. For the Federation Army, it wasn't even a replacement project. Project V was the core development project initiated by the Federation Army itself, and now a series of supporting projects for Project V were already in full swing.

However, this does not mean that Ye Yun's G Plan was worthless. Even after just a quick glance, Gao Pu had to admire the young man's grasp of the army's needs.

Because it was developed based on industrial robots from Shuguang Heavy Machinery Company, which belongs to Yeh's Heavy Industry, the development cost was incredibly low. Moreover, the use of batteries for energy further reduced the proportion of MS energy and supporting heat dissipation and protection mechanisms. Most of the consumables used in the machine are commercially available mass-produced products that can be manufactured in any large factory in the world.

In a sense, as long as the Federation forces provide the funding, this relatively inexpensive, easy-to-maintain, and high-performance mobile suit could already be continuously produced off the production line.

Gao Pu even guessed that the ambitious Ye's Heavy Industry might have already begun building some core components, and if the Federation Army paid for them, the total number they could provide might exceed three digits.

Thinking of this, Gao Pu glanced at Ye Yun a few times. As far as he knew, although the Ye family had experienced a change a few years ago and the previous generation had died young, they left behind an ambitious daughter and a younger brother who seemed to be a playboy. Now it seemed that this little guy himself might not be a playboy at all, but rather an ambitious fellow.

It's good to be ambitious...

He was only afraid of having mediocre subordinates, not ambitious ones!

"Uh..." Ye Yun was stunned. What? Me? Join the Federal Army?

“Yes, you are one of the most knowledgeable people about MS in the Federation right now, and you also have excellent MS pilots readily available. If it were you, it would greatly accelerate the formation of the Federation's MS forces.” Gap walked to his desk, took out a bottle of liquor, and poured two glasses of wine. “Come help me.” After saying this, Gap did not pick up the glasses to hand them over, but instead tapped on the G Project documents on the table. “How about it?”

"..." Ye Yun took a deep breath. What kind of bizarre turn of events was this? Moreover, the conditions and threats this old guy offered were something he actually had to seriously consider. He would help him, and in return, he would put Project G into the Federation Army's selection pool. Tsk tsk, old guy, did he have any room to refuse? If he refused, he would probably be hung at the door of Ye's Heavy Industry by his devilish older sister.

Moreover! Ye Yun came here with a belly full of rage, so making a choice is difficult. "Can I kill that Zeon bastard?"

"Yes, and a lot of it!"

Chapter Eleven Conferment of Titles

"In recognition of Mr. Ye Yun's outstanding contributions to the Federation Army's G Project, Mr. Ye Yun is hereby awarded the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Federation Army and is responsible for establishing the Federation Army's First MS Experimental Regiment." An officer handed a letter of appointment to Ye Yun.

"Thank you very much!" Ye Yun saluted, while Gao Pu and several senior generals applauded. Putting everything else aside, the level of this conferment ceremony was ridiculously high.

Since it is now almost certain that war will break out, the Federal Army's high command quickly assessed Ye Yun's G Plan.

While technically speaking, Project G from Yeh's Heavy Industries is indeed far inferior to Operation V, which utilizes a large number of new technologies, the problem lies precisely here: Project G uses almost entirely off-the-shelf technology, allowing for rapid mass production. This is extremely tempting for the Federation forces, whose war is not only imminent but has already begun.

Especially... at last night's review meeting, Gao Pu defied public opinion and gave Kinias and Ye Ning each a chance to speak.

The path of first developing a high-performance technology demonstrator and then downgrading the technology for mass production is not viable.

Project G was developed by upgrading the industrial machine manufactured by Shuguang Heavy Machinery and replacing some military components, resulting in GAT00 Rio. Further technical adaptation and optimization were then carried out on this basis to obtain the official production model of Project G, GAT-001, currently named "Short Sword"! There are further development plans to follow.

Even from a preliminary look, it's clear that Yeh's Heavy Industry and Dawn Heavy Machinery are ambitious. At least Gao Pu can see that in the first phase, they will take advantage of the Federation Army's equipment needs at low prices to seize the market on a large scale during the Federation Army's power gap. Then, in this process, as long as the Federation Army gets used to using this batch of MS provided by Yeh's Heavy Industry, then... the Federation Army will choose not to use the products developed in the second phase of Project G.

What will happen next is something Gao Pu could guess with his eyes closed: as a key MS supplier for the Federation Forces, Ye's Heavy Industries will create patent barriers and establish exclusive rules. In short, Ye's Heavy Industries wants to monopolize the Federation Forces' MS orders!

All of this seemed unimportant to Gap, just as he had said before. What mattered most to the Federation Army right now was to win!

The Earth Federation Forces need to acquire equipment that will help them win!

Therefore, the key to everything lies in how well the mass-production model of the G plan, which Ye's Heavy Industry and Shuguang Heavy Machinery Manufacturing promised to complete within a week, performs.

However, within a week... Gao Pu really wanted to guess whether he could see the finished products that were almost finished being manufactured when he went to the Dawn Heavy Manufacturing Plant.

For someone of Gao Pu's caliber, it was only a thought that prompted him to act. Soon, a photograph was delivered to Gao Pu; to be precise, it was a photograph of the assembly line inside the Shuguang Heavy Machinery Manufacturing Company's factory, which was proactively provided by Ye's Heavy Industry.

On the production line, rows of steel giants are neatly arranged. Within the area captured in the photo, there are seven or eight mobile suits that are quite well completed. A large number of workers are assembling these mobile suits like building blocks. On the mobile suit at the front, the right mechanical arm is being hoisted. The torso and legs have been assembled. The head armor is on a platform on the ground, and it seems that workers are carrying out the final installation and debugging of the head equipment.

A week? Does that mean all the short swords here have been made?