Chapter 3434: Combustion (23)

The bodies of the fallen soldiers were carried onto the helicopter one by one, to be transported back home.

Everyone tilted their heads up, saluting as they watched the helicopter ascend.

Ning Shu felt something circling and churning in her chest.

Hot blood nourished honor. At the price of their own bodies, they forged something greater than themselves.

She thought about some of those comrades—people they had lived and fought alongside day and night—now lay silently aboard that aircraft.

Song Yi had been staring up at the helicopter all along. Only after a long moment did he lower her head. Seeing his squad watching him, he said, “I hope all of you make it back alive after every mission.”

“We hope you make it back alive too, Sir,” said Old Two.

Song Yi let out a long, quiet sigh.

He had once been a steely and unyielding soldier, but lately, he had lost count of how many times he’d sighed.

After sending off the remains of the fallen soldiers, Ning Shu felt a dull ache rising in her head. The constant back-to-back events were taking a toll on her body.

Her nerves had been running on overdrive. Overall, she wasn’t in great shape.

She crawled into her tent for a quick nap. She couldn’t afford to stay sluggish. This line of work demanded constant vigilance. One lapse in concentration could cost a life.

Sharpening the axe wouldn’t delay chopping wood.

That nap ended up lasting longer than she’d intended. By the time Ning Shu jolted awake, the sky had already gone dark.

Lights glowed in the area around her.

“You’re up. Come get something to eat,” Old Two called out, waving her over.

Ning Shu walked over, pulled out her bowl from her pack, and scooped herself a bowl of hot soup to drink.

“The squad commander is planning to break up with Miss Wu. Did you know that?” Second Brother asked her.

Ning Shu nodded. “Yeah, I know. But don’t worry, they won’t really break up. He is just overwhelmed with guilt right now, and Wu Xianrou did something incredibly foolish. Once enough time passes, things will go back to normal.”

Old Two sighed. “Feels like the squad doesn’t have the same spirit it used to.”

Ning Shu didn’t respond, quietly sipping her soup. When morale had fallen apart, and people’s hearts weren’t in it anymore, what team spirit would there be left?

A person only had one heart. Song Yi used to be a lone wolf, but now he had someone to care about. It was only natural he would hesitate and hold back.

And Wu Xianrou was someone who placed love above all else. She never had to worry about food or shelter. For her, love was everything.

Old Two sighed again. As the second-in-command of the unit, the last thing he wanted was to see this kind of situation.

Old Four’s death had rattled everyone to the core.

They’d feel bad even if the ones who’d passed had only been snipers or members of special forces squads. Moreover, this time, it had been their own comrade, from the same squad as them.

After finishing her bowl of hot soup and working up a good sweat, Ning Shu felt much better. She said, “There’s always a way forward. Everyone hits a rough patch. The squad commander is stuck in one now. Once it passes, he’ll be fine.”

Being blinded by emotions was like having a lump of crap shoved in your mouth and chewing on it absentmindedly.

In the end, higher-ups didn’t continue pursuing the terrorists, because they were just too scattered. Besides, this recent thunderous strike had already shattered their organization into pieces.

If they pushed too hard, there was no guarantee these people wouldn’t lash out in desperation.

Eventually, everyone boarded the helicopter heading home.

Song Yi’s expression was grave. His face carried the look of someone ready to kill.

The first thing he did after returning home was visit Wu Xianrou’s father. He told him he wasn’t right for Wu Xianrou.

He lived a life of constant danger. Seeing tomorrow was never guaranteed for him. He couldn’t look after Wu Xianrou wholeheartedly or meet her expectations.

So, to avoid wasting Wu Xianrou’s time, he had decided to break up with her.

Political Commissar Wu naturally didn’t want to lose a son-in-law like that. He tried to persuade Song Yi by promising to go home and teach his daughter a proper lesson and urging Song Yi not to speak of breaking up so lightly.

Song Yi pressed his lips tightly together and said nothing. He felt a deep, aching sorrow.

It felt like her heart was being ripped into pieces. No matter what he did, someone would end up disappointed.

Political Commissar Wu could still be reasoned with. But Wu Xianrou flat-out refused to accept the breakup. She ran to the dormitory building in a torrential downpour and confronted Song Yi, demanding to know what right he had to end things.

“You think you can just say it’s over and it’s over? You said you’d love and protect me for a lifetime—and now you want to break up?”

From upstairs, Ning Shu watched Wu Xianrou standing in the rain, drenched like a drowned rat.

She clicked her tongue.

How romantic of her to scream her heart out in the rain.

Was good weather somehow inappropriate for this kind of conversation?

The real reason Song Yi had brought up the breakup was to send a message to his squad.

He wasn’t blind to the loss of morale among them.

This whole performance was a psychological tactic. He meant to take a step back in order to move forward.

If he pushed the situation hard enough, the squad would end up feeling bad for him and start urging him to stay with Wu Xianrou.

Otherwise, they’d all end up looking like villains, standing in the way of true love.

The rain was pouring, with heavy droplets slamming into the ground and kicking up a mist.

Wu Xianrou stood downstairs, screaming Song Yi’s name over and over with gut-wrenching desperation, drawing a whole crowd of onlookers.

They started heckling and jeering, turning the scene into a spectacle.

Song Yi finally came out, holding an umbrella, and walked downstairs to Wu Xianrou’s side. The two of them pulled at each other, clearly in the middle of a heated exchange, though no one could hear exactly what was being said.

All anyone could tell was that Wu Xianrou was extremely emotional. She suddenly spun around and bolted.

Ning Shu figured Wu Xianrou probably loved the feeling of having her heart torn apart in the name of love.

Come on, love! There was always plenty of foolishness to spare.

Song Yi rubbed his eyebrows. With so many people watching, chasing after Wu Xianrou would be awkward, but not chasing her looked even worse. He was completely stuck.

Whistles echoed from all around them.

This kind of scene belonged in a melodramatic TV drama. This was absolutely mortifying.

Come on, act it up! There was plenty of time left to kill.

Alright, so Song Yi didn’t chase after her. That was bold.

He might just lose his darling girlfriend.

Wu Xianrou, soaked to the skin, took off running into the wind. THe fat raindrops slapped against her face and head hard enough to sting.

She eventually tired out and stopped, only to realize she was completely alone.

Song Yi hadn’t chased after her at all.

Damn it. Wu Xianrou exploded with rage.

Total scumbag. Grade-A bastard.

They were completely over.

Just then, a luxury car screeched to a halt in front of her, splashing her from head to toe.

Wu Xianrou immediately felt wronged. How could everything be going so horribly today?

“Well, well. Hey, beautiful—what are you doing out here?” The car window rolled down, revealing the face of a man with a devil-may-care, roguish charm.

“What’s it to you?” Wu Xianrou snapped and stormed off.

The car kept pace beside her, trailing her slowly.

“Can you not follow me?” Wu Xianrou was beyond irritated.

“You’re drenched. Your clothes are see-through. Your underwear’s showing. How about I take you somewhere to change?”

Wu Xianrou looked down and instantly clutched her chest. “What are you staring at, you pervert!?”

“I’m just a man who appreciates beauty,” the man said while smiling slightly. “Hop in. I promise I won’t lay a finger on you.”

Wu Xianrou hesitated, but eventually climbed into the car. The rain was freezing, and truthfully, part of her was acting out of spite.

So she got in.

The man ran his fingers across his lips and gave her a once-over. She had natural beauty untouched by makeup.

Then he slammed his foot on the gas, and the car vanished into the curtain of rain.

By the time Song Yi came running in a panic, Wu Xianrou was nowhere to be found.

He frantically searched her house next.

However, Wu Xianrou hadn’t gone home.

So he rushed back to the dorms and pounded on Little Nine’s door.

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