Officially Inducted

Beside the guard post where Wu Xu currently stayed was an earthen cliff. It was not steep, but it commanded an excellent view. Lao Jian had arranged for people to help move his things to the squad station, but Wu Xu thought it over and declined. He was not fond of talking; communal living would likely bring him trouble, and at the same time, he felt it was best to keep someone stationed at this post. However, from this day forward, Wu Xu would participate in all training exercises and take his meals at the station. This day was April 10, 1991—clashing with the Dragon, evil spirits in the north. In every practical sense, Wu Xu—the man rumored to have been picked up by Han Qingyu from a canyon in Nepal—was officially inducted into Azure's Huaxia Front, the Sole Witness Legion, Squad 1777, Third Array. There was no induction ceremony on the spot. Originally, Lao Jian had intended to have everyone give Wu Xu a round of applause—first to thank him for protecting the station and the squad's rear today, and second to welcome him to the ranks. But Han Qingyu stopped him. "Wu Xu isn't used to that." Han Qingyu explained while gesturing toward the distance. Not far off, quite a few soldiers were walking up one after another to greet Wu Xu with smiles. Their way of expressing gratitude and welcome was simply to pick a spot on his body they could reach and slap him twice on the shoulder or give him a friendly punch. Wu Xu looked somewhat at a loss as to how to react, but on the whole, he seemed happy. In truth, for him, that earlier scene of so many people charging back across the hills had already been the finest welcoming ceremony. "Well, that works too." Lao Jian considered it and did not insist. Turning to Han Qingyu, he gestured, "A word in private?" With that, he walked over to the edge of the earthen cliff first. At the scene, some soldiers were recovering corpses and treating the wounded, while others registered the Yu clan war slaves. The area was somewhat noisy, yet orderly. "How will these war slaves be handled, Captain Lao?" Han Qingyu hurried two steps to catch up as they crossed the ground and asked. "That's not for us to worry about. In short, we hand them over to higher-ups. A policy regarding them and similar insular clans should be coming down soon," Lao Jian said. "Of course, the Yu clan did wrong Azure after all. Once interrogation reveals the family they partnered with, a few heads will definitely have to roll." Chatting like this, one behind the other, Lao Jian and Han Qingyu reached the earthen cliff and came to a stop. Below, the figures of Wen Jifei and the others had long vanished. The two carried their blades on their backs, facing the distance side by side. "Are you alright physically? It's always like this—you cough up blood after every fight." It was rare for Han Qingyu to show concern, and speaking like this felt a bit awkward to him. "I'm fine. Coughing it up all the time is the real sign that everything's fine. It gives my body a chance to replenish fresh blood and stay young," Lao Jian said with a calm chuckle. Han Qingyu: "..." "After what happened today, there shouldn't be any more problems with Wu Xu's background check. By rights, he ought to be commended for merit." Looking at the distant mountains, Lao Jian lit a cigarette. "And if there are still issues? Will you really go raise hell?" Captain Lao offered a cigarette, but Han Qingyu did not really smoke, so he declined. He looked out over the distant mountains as well, smiling. "Besides, bringing him in directly like this—aren't you afraid of trouble?" The distant mountains seemed higher than where they stood, but further out, there were mountains even higher. "Really go raise hell... and I really don't fear trouble." Lao Jian looked at the mountains, smiled, took the cigarette from his mouth, and blew out a puff of smoke. "I've made up my mind. For the next few years, I'll be the one to headbutt everything straight on. When it's time to fight, seize, or cause a scene, we won't back down an inch. I'm not afraid of offending everyone first..." Here he paused, then continued with visible pride, "Anyway, once 1777 truly rises and earns its colors, I'll step down and hand it over to you... When that time comes, you can start fresh and build your glorious image." Hearing this, Han Qingyu smiled hesitantly and wanted to speak, but did not know what to say. "When the time comes, you have to keep me in the squad so I can retire here; I'm not going to the rear." Lao Jian did not give him a chance to speak and muttered to himself. When he said this, Captain Lao was forty-two years old. After speaking, he glanced around and changed the subject. "What is he picking up?" Wu Xu had already stepped away from the main scene. He was now squatting beside the boulder in front of the guard post, seemingly picking something up. His bleeding had stopped, and his wounds had received preliminary treatment from the squad's medics; any further treatment would require a trip to the medical station. Bu Mang ran over, tail wagging, eager to join the commotion. Wu Xu raised a hand to block it, patted its head, and shooed it away. "I'll go check." As Han Qingyu walked forward, Lao Jian called out quietly behind him, "Wen Jifei and the rest have already gone to raid the estate. Hurry over there too, and remember to exercise some discretion." Han Qingyu stopped in his tracks and asked, "Where's the line on discretion?" "Specifically... see for yourself." Captain Lao's words seemed to tacitly acknowledge the possibility of unexpected windfalls, after which he added, "In any case, hauling in the Yu clan was beyond our official duties. The rewards from above won't be stingy." With that, Han Qingyu understood completely. "Thanks, Captain Lao," he said. Lao Jian said nothing more, watching the young man's back with a helpless smile... Squad 1777 could not afford an elite team right now, so wherever the regulations did not explicitly forbid it, and as long as it did not violate Azure's core principles, he always had to crack open a little leeway. Han Qingyu walked over to Wu Xu. "What are you picking up?" Wu Xu held up the plastic bag in his hands and asked, "Can this... still be fixed?" Han Qingyu looked at the shattered radio pieces in his hands and said, "We'll buy another one later." "Okay." Wu Xu nodded calmly, but still collected the radio fragments. *** Finding another member of the Yu clan to guide the way, Han Qingyu set off to catch Plague Chicken. Milla went along as well, bringing three other soldiers. At the same time, they brought along the two young soldiers injured earlier during the strangulation of the Great Spike, as well as Wu Xu. The group rode in a truck. Later, the truck would haul back the supplies and some of the personnel, while others would be assigned to take the three wounded in the jeep Wen Jifei's group had driven earlier, heading to the nearest facility, Medical Station 101. In the truck, Milla handed Han Qingyu a specially made map of Medical Station 101 and taught him how to read it. After listening, Han Qingyu was somewhat puzzled and asked, "I'm going too?" "Of course," Milla folded the map and handed it to him, saying, "The safety of wounded personnel traveling to and from the medical station has always been a major concern. Captain Lao made a point of instructing that you accompany them. That way, we can send fewer escorts overall." "What if another Great Spike comes..." "How could it be such a coincidence? Back-to-back appearances don't happen," Milla glanced at him and said. "Besides, even without you, we can defeat them, you know. It just wouldn't be as easy, and casualties would be inevitable..." Han Qingyu considered it and realized she was right. In the end, he decided to leave both Shen Yixiu and He Tangtang behind. "If an unexpected situation arises on the road, will you alone be enough?" When Milla asked, she automatically excluded Wen Jifei and Liu Shiheng, whom Han Qingyu intended to bring. "Enough. Don't forget, Wu Xu will be there too." Milla thought about it and said, "That's true." That man, even wounded, was probably formidable. From when he was injured in battle until now, through both the bleeding and the medical treatment, Milla had not heard Wu Xu utter a single whimper. "Right, there's something I kept forgetting to tell you," Milla suddenly spoke up again after two minutes. In truth, generally speaking, when someone said "there's something I forgot to tell you," it meant "there's something I want to talk to you about." Han Qingyu: "Yeah?" "My parents might be returning home to work in the second half of this year, at the latest by year's end... And they, along with the Coalition, hope that I can return with them." "Ah? Why?" "Well..." Milla thought for a moment and lowered her voice. "Did you know that my motherland doesn't have its own Front?" Han Qingyu knew Milla came from a small Eastern European nation, but did it really lack its own Front? Puzzled, he asked, "Then you are...?" "Along with several neighboring countries, we fall under the unified administration and command of the Xiongzhanli Front." Milla looked around, leaned in, and said cautiously, "The situation in the Xiongzhanli Front isn't very stable. They've been heavily infiltrated by the civilian government and seem to be leaning toward breaking away from the Coalition... That's what my parents told me. They also said that precisely because of this, the Coalition wants to reassign more trustworthy and reliable people back to try and stabilize the situation." "Then, Captain Milla, will you leave?" "Maybe. I don't know either."