Warlords: Rising from the Northwest Border and Sweeping Across the Powers

A brightly lit office in the Tsarist Russian military headquarters.

"General, here is the latest military dispatch report." An officer brought the document to the desk.

"Put it here." The current General Petrov said without looking up. After the officer left, he immediately started the secret telegraph under the table.

"The operation begins. The first step is to implant content related to the "Thunder" plan into the military's confidential documents. These documents will be inadvertently discovered by English intelligence personnel during routine intelligence exchanges. - Polaris"

Soon, a reply came from Dragon Nest: "Be careful not to be too obvious."

Polaris sneered. As the deputy chief of the Russian military's operations department, he was well versed in the rules of the power game.

At the military meeting the next day.

"Everyone," Polaris suddenly said, "Should we re-evaluate England's attitude? Some of their recent actions seem very unfriendly."

"What does General Petrov mean?" the Army Chief asked.

"For example, their military operations in the Baltic Sea. Ostensibly aimed at the Byrd Empire, but who knows what their real intentions are?"

These words immediately attracted the attention of the military leaders, and soon the topic was passed to the highest level of the Tsarist Russia through various channels.

Three days later, England's embassy in Tsarist Russia.

&34；这是从沙俄军部截获的一份绝密文件，&34；情报官员向使馆武官汇报，&34；内容提到了&39；雷霆&39；计划的细节。&34；

"What?" The military attaché was shocked. "Let me see."

The document clearly recorded the model of the bomber, the route plan, and even the performance parameters of the "London One" bomb.

"Report to the country immediately!" the military attaché said sternly.

London, MI6.

&34；将军，&34；汤普森匆匆走进史密斯的办公室，&34；从沙俄传来重要情报。他们的军部似乎早就知道&39；雷霆&39；计划的细节。&34；

Smith took the document, read it carefully, and suddenly frowned: "Interesting... These contents are too detailed."

At this time, another report arrived: "General, the Russian military has recently become wary of Ingrid. Their senior general Petrov has hinted on many occasions that Ingrid's actions threaten the interests of the Russian Federation."

"Petrov?" Smith mused. "Look this guy up."

However, just as the investigation was about to begin, a bigger bomb was dropped.

The Russian Embassy in Yingli suddenly issued a statement strongly protesting Yingli's military action threatening the security of the Russian Empire. At the same time, the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Ambassador Yingli and asked him to explain the true intention of the "Thunder" plan.

"This is interesting," Smith said to himself, "not only did the Russians know the contents of the plan, they also took the initiative to question us..."

Just as he was about to continue his investigation, an order suddenly came from the Prime Minister's Office, asking him to suspend the investigation into Tsarist Russia in order not to affect relations between the two countries.

"Sir," Thompson said, confused, "isn't it strange to call off the investigation at this time?"

Smith sneered: "Of course it's strange. It seems that Mr. Brighton has made suggestions to the Prime Minister again."

He walked to the window and looked at the Tower of London in the distance: "A spy lurking in the military, a senior adviser who influences decision-making, plus the sudden reaction of the Tsarist Russian military..."

&34;Do you think these are all related?&34;

"Of course there are connections," Smith turned, "but the question is, are these connections real or are they artificial?"

At this time, a secret report from the military arrived: "General, when we were tracking down Petrov of the Tsarist Russian military, we discovered a shocking secret..."

&34；长官，&34；汤普森拿着最新的情报走进办公室，&34；从沙俄传来一份有趣的文件。他们的军部似乎早就知道&39；雷霆&39；计划的细节。&34；

Smith sneered: "Another trick of trying to cover up something that only makes it more obvious."

&34;You mean...&34;

"The Chinese's trick," Smith lit a cigarette, "They always like to create illusions to divert our attention."

At this time, Petrov, a senior general of the Tsarist Russian military, suddenly expressed strong dissatisfaction with Ingrid's military actions on many occasions.

"Interesting," Smith mused, "General Petrov, jumping out at this time..."

"Want to check him out?" Thompson asked.

"No," Smith shook his head. "That's exactly what they want. To keep our attention on Russia and ignore the real threat."

He walked to the wall with photos hanging on it: "Continue to check Wilson, the aide-de-camp to Major General Blake, and Brighton from the Prime Minister's Office. These two people are the key."

However, just as the investigation was about to go deeper, a diplomatic note from the Russian Empire shocked the entire British top leadership. The Russian Foreign Ministry strongly protested that Britain's military actions threatened their interests and demanded an immediate explanation of the true intention of the "Thunder" plan.

"This is getting interesting," Smith said, looking at the latest report. "Not only did the Russians admit they knew about the plan, they took the initiative to provoke a diplomatic dispute."

"Could it really be Tsarist Russia..." Thompson was a little shaken.

"No," Smith said categorically, "quite the opposite. This shows that the manipulators behind this have extremely deep influence and can mobilize the diplomatic resources of a major country to cooperate with their actions."

&34;You mean...&34;

"Think about it," Smith's eyes became sharp, "Who is secretly building a network of relationships with various countries now? Who has the ability to make Tsarist Russia cooperate with them in this drama?"

At this moment, an order came from the Prime Minister's Office to suspend the investigation so as not to affect the relationship between England and Tsarist Russia.

"Brighton has spoken to the Prime Minister again," Smith sneered, "which further confirms my judgment."

"But, sir," Thompson was a little confused, "if the Chinese were really behind this, why did they let Russia intervene so high-profile? Wouldn't this attract more attention?"

Smith was suddenly startled: "Wait... maybe this is the key!"

He walked quickly to the table and pulled out the previous investigation materials: "You're right, this is indeed too high-profile. So high-profile that... it makes people feel unreal."

&34;It&34;s like...&;

"It's like a deliberately designed smokescreen," Smith's eyes lit up, "They deliberately let the Tsarist Russia act so obviously, just to make everyone think that this is a diplomatic farce. And under the cover of this farce..."

He stood up suddenly: "Go check immediately to see who left London during this period of time for various reasons!"

Three days later, Thompson returned with a list.

&34；长官，最近确实有几个人以各种理由离开。其中包括......&34；他的声音突然变得凝重，&34；威尔逊上校。他以&39；探望生病的母亲&39；为由，请了一周假。&34；

"Finally, the truth is revealed," Smith's eyes flashed, "Just when the Tsarist Russia was creating a diplomatic storm, the real spy quietly evacuated."

&34;That Brighton...&34;

"He won't leave," Smith shook his head. "A pawn of his level is the safest. No one would suspect that the prime minister's senior adviser is a spy."

&34;What do we do now?&34;

Smith thought for a moment and said, "Let's hold off for now. Since we've seen through their plan, let them think their smokescreen worked."

He looked out the window: "This chess game is very clever. Use the Russian Empire to create momentum and divert attention. Then in the chaos, quietly withdraw the important chess pieces."

&34;What about those who stayed behind?&34;

"They are the safest," Smith sneered, "because their positions are so important that no one would believe they are spies."

In Moscow, Polaris is sending a message to Dragon's Nest:

"The diplomatic storm has been created. While everyone's attention is on Tsarist Russia, Europe One has been safely evacuated. And Longyan and I have become more stable - after all, who would believe that a Tsarist general who created opposition to England and a prime minister's adviser who tried hard to quell the dispute are pawns of the same organization? - Polaris"