753: Chapter 753 will be added tomorrow.

"I... I..."

Yale was so terrified by his father's majesty that his whole body trembled. His lips quivered as he tried to explain, but his mind was a mess. The words were stuck on the tip of his tongue, and he could only stutter. For a long time, he couldn't say a complete sentence, only opening his mouth in vain, his forehead covered in fine beads of cold sweat.

Looking at his son's hesitant and panicked appearance, an extremely terrifying thought suddenly flashed through the Deputy Chief of Staff's originally tense mind.

As soon as this thought emerged, his whole body stiffened, his pupils suddenly contracted, and the sternness on his face was instantly replaced by endless horror. His mouth opened subconsciously, and he stared fixedly at his son in disbelief.

He took a step forward, his voice trembling uncontrollably, filled with extreme disbelief and panic, as he asked word by word.

"Yale... don't tell me... that this matter the Imperial Military Department is strictly investigating—the framing of Comrade Li Yang... was your doing?!"

As these words fell, the office instantly fell into a deathly silence. Only the sound of two people's heavy and panicked breathing remained, and the air seemed to have frozen.

Seeing the horror and rage in his father's eyes that saw through everything, the last line of defense in Yale's heart completely collapsed. He knew that the entire matter could no longer be hidden.

His legs went weak, and he could no longer support himself. With a "thud," he knelt heavily on the cold floor, his back tense and his head buried deep. His voice was full of panic, regret, and pleading as he repeatedly admitted his mistake to his father.

"Father, it was me! I was momentarily possessed by a ghost, I was foolish, I was wrong, please save me!"

"You!"

The moment the truth was confirmed, the Deputy Chief of Staff felt his blood rush to his head. His face instantly turned red, his eyes widened in anger, and his entire body radiated a towering rage.

He was shaking with anger and raised his hand without hesitation, delivering a loud and heavy slap squarely across Yale's face.

The crisp sound of the slap was exceptionally piercing in the silent office.

"You bastard! You've gone absolutely mad!"

The Deputy Chief of Staff withdrew his hand, his fingertips trembling with anger. He pointed at Yale, who was kneeling on the ground, and barked a stern rebuke, his voice turning hoarse from fury.

"Li Yang is the dignified Commander of an Independent Military Region and a high-ranking general personally appointed by the Empire. You actually dared to harbor wicked thoughts and frame him? To frame one person, you didn't hesitate to use the lives of tens of thousands of officers and soldiers in a fleet as bargaining chips. This isn't some colleague's scheme; this is clearly the murder of Imperial comrades and the trampling of military discipline and regulations! Do you want to completely destroy yourself and drag our entire Family down with you?"

A burning pain spread from his cheek. Yale's head was knocked to the side by the blow. He could only cover his stinging cheek, kneeling on the ground and shivering. He didn't dare to argue at all, nor did he dare to look up at his father's enraged face, only keeping his head bowed low, not daring to take a loud breath.

He knew in his heart that he had committed an unforgivable mistake, and any explanation at this moment would appear pale and weak.

"Speak! Now! Immediately! Tell me the whole ins and outs of the matter, all your thoughts, and all your action plans. Account for everything without missing a single word!"

The Deputy Chief of Staff panted heavily, suppressing the anger and despair in his heart as he issued a stern command. He had to find out how many absurd things his son had done and how much evidence he had left behind.

Yale didn't dare to disobey in the slightest. His throat bobbed several times, and with a sobbing voice, he tremblingly confessed his inner jealousy and dissatisfaction. He revealed how he had planned the fleet's deployment, how he had found someone to tamper with the starship System, and how he had set up signal jammers. He laid out the entire plan to use their lives to frame Li Yang, telling everything without any concealment.

After hearing his son's full confession, the Deputy Chief of Staff felt his vision go dark. He was so angry that his whole body trembled. He raised his foot, wanting to kick him, but ultimately forced himself to hold back, pointing at Yale and cursing loudly.

"Bastard! You've lived for thousands of years; has it all gone to the dogs? For a bit of power struggle and some personal grudge, you actually dared to take such a risk and plot such an absurd and vicious plan! For a mere grudge against a Military Region Commander, you dared to gamble with the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers. You are seeking your own death!"

The Deputy Chief of Staff slumped back into the chair behind his desk. His gaze fell heavily on Yale, who was still kneeling on the ground. A towering rage surged in his eyes, but even more so, there was an unmistakable feeling of disappointment that his son had failed to live up to expectations. The corners of his mouth trembled continuously, his heart filled with helplessness and despair.

He knew his son all too well.

Yale had been intelligent since childhood and had graduated smoothly from the Empire's top military academy. Upon entering his military career, he was directly commissioned with the rank of Lieutenant, a starting point far beyond others.

Because of his status and connections as the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Staff Department, he had paved all the roads for Yale early on. From beginning to end, he had arranged for Yale to be in core clerical positions in the rear of the Imperial Military Department.

These positions didn't require rushing into danger, facing the flames of war, or experiencing the blood and gore and difficult tempering of the front lines. They were perfectly gilded, lucrative posts where one could steadily accumulate military merit and seniority while easily building a network of connections.

For thousands of years, Yale had always lived under the protection of his wings, sailing smoothly and never experiencing any real setbacks, let alone a single bit of hardship.

Under his step-by-step elevation and layer-upon-layer of arrangements, Yale had climbed steadily to the rank of Marshal without any actual combat achievements or any eye-catching military merit.

Although this rank was more honorary in nature, without actual military power—a titular Marshal—to be able to obtain such a rank in the entire Imperial Military Department was already a height others could only look up to, a glory that countless soldiers could hardly reach in their entire lives.

He also knew the obsession in Yale's heart.

His son had spent thousands of years in clerical and titular positions. While it seemed prestigious, he never had a piece of real power territory of his own. He was bent on leaving the rear to command troops in a frontline Military Region and become a top leader with actual power.

He had never opposed this idea; instead, he had always fully supported it. Previously, when Yale submitted his application for a position to the Imperial Military Department, he had run around everywhere behind the scenes, exhausting his efforts and using all the connections he could mobilize, just to help his son fulfill this wish and secure the position of Military Region Commander.

But things didn't go as planned. The superiors suddenly issued an order to establish a new Independent Military Region and appointed Li Yang as the Commander. This directly disrupted all arrangements, and Yale's dream of being a top leader of a Military Region was completely shattered.

He thought that at most, his son would feel disappointed and complain a few times. After all, missing the opportunity was already a settled matter, and there would be countless turns of events in the future.

But he never imagined that the son he had meticulously cared for and supported all the way would be so narrow-minded. Just because of such a setback in his career, he had harbored such deep-seated hatred for Li Yang.

He was even bold enough to use the connections he had secretly accumulated to take a risk and set a trap, not hesitating to sacrifice the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers to frame Li Yang.

Thinking of this, the Deputy Chief of Staff's chest heaved violently. Looking at his son kneeling before him, the disappointment and heartache in his eyes almost overflowed, and he couldn't say a word for a long time.