Yin Shixiong contacted General Ji’s personal secretary immediately. “Mr. Huo wants to speak to General Ji. When will he be available?”
Half an hour later, General Ji returned his call. “Shaoheng, you were looking for me?”
Huo Shaoheng kept it short and sweet. “General Ji, I have some things to discuss with you, and I think it’ll be better if we talk face to face.”
General Ji could hear the serious tone of his voice and he immediately replied, “When can you come over? I’m done for today.”
“Now.” Huo Shaoheng hung up and turned around. “Prepare the car. Go to the Army’s Supreme Council building.”
Half an hour later, Huo Shaoheng arrived in his chauffeured car at General Ji’s office in the Army’s Supreme Council building. He placed all the documents in front of General Ji and briefed him on Yamaguchi Aiko, Yamaguchi-gumi’s official response, and his hypothesis. Finally, he told General Li his plan.
“General Ji, I would like to go to South America personally,” he proposed.
General Ji gave him a grave look and said, “Shaoheng, your status is different now. You’re not fighting on the front lines of the Special Forces anymore. Is there any particular reasons you want to do this yourself?”
It was General Li’s opinion that the Special Forces agents based in America could easily complete this mission themselves. Huo Shaoheng had long prepared his reply.
“General Ji, this concerns Gu Xiangwen, Nianzhi, and the He’s in South America. It is of great importance. I would like to see that it is done properly.”
General Ji put his glasses back on and began looking at the documents Huo Shaoheng had provided. His brows furrowed as he read.
“You suspect that the personal assistant who died at the crime scene isn’t the real Yamaguchi Aiko?”
“Yes, but there is no evidence of that yet,” Huo Shaoheng replied honestly. “I’ve already discovered that they’ve left the country, so I can handle this as well.”
General Ji nodded. “Anywhere outside the country is your battlefield. You won’t be bound by our laws, and we know not to probe too much into what the Special Forces do overseas.”
“That’s the reason why the Special Forces were created.” Huo Shaoheng sat up straight, put his hands on his knees, and looked at General Li seriously. “Everything we do, we do for the benefit of the Huaxia Empire, and the safety of its people.”
“I have never doubted your intentions,” General Ji comforted Huo Shaoheng. “But Shaoheng, you have to think carefully. You’re already the highest ranking commander, and your primary task is to remain where you are and adjust your commands accordingly, not to fight on the frontline. Your safety has already become of utmost importance in the Special Forces. Do you really want to chain yourself to a suicide mission?”
Huo Shaoheng closed his eyes and nodded. “I understand what you’re saying General Li, but as the highest commander, I feel that I shouldn’t only give commands, but also be able to fight for our people on the frontline. Every single one of us in the Special Forces should exhibit this flexibility. Plus, the Special Forces should not rely solely on me. We all have a plan B. When I’m away, please fill my position. It will ensure the smooth operations of the department.”
General Li had to admit Huo Shaoheng made sense. Even though Huo Shaoheng was extremely valuable, the Special Forces needed to be able to operate when he was not around. Anything less than that would be considered a failure on his part.
After a long moment of silence, General Ji finally nodded. “Fine. I’ll support your decision. Arrange your follow-up well. I’ll be waiting for your good news.”
“Thank you, Sir!” Huo Shaoheng stood at attention and bowed. Then he turned around and left.
…
Upon returning to his headquarters in the Special Forces, Huo Shaoheng spoke to Yin Shixiong and Zhao Liangze.
“Find Cuba’s Military invitation. We will accept and attend on behalf of the army.”
Yin Shixiong and Zhao Liangze immediately understood that Huo Shaoheng was going to handle this personally, and, like General Li, they tried to talk him out of it.
“Mr. Huo, must you go? We can handle this on our own.”
Huo Shaoheng ignored them and returned to his desk. “We’ll leave tomorrow. Get ready.”
They understood that Hu Shaoheng’s mind was set, and he did not want to continue wasting time.
Yin Shixiong and Zhao Liangze had no choice but to reply, “Yes, Sir!”
The decision to represent the Army in Cuba had been made very last minute, so Yin Shixiong and Zhao Liangze had to use practically all the people in the Secretarial department to prepare for their trip. Huo Shaoheng had to work through the night to finish reading all the important documents on hand, and once he was done, he forwarded them to General Li. It was six o’clock in the morning when he finally finished his work. It had been a cold night, and Di Capital was still foggy. Huo Shaoheng walked out of his office, and let out a slow, long breath on the balcony. He put on his Bluetooth earpiece and said, “Connect Gu Nianzhi.”
The automatic function on his earpiece immediately dialed Gu Nianzhi’s number.
Gu Nianzhi was still asleep in her dorm room. She had rushed to complete her thesis the day before and had only managing to turn it in at about one or two in the morning. It was only six o’clock, and she was still sound asleep. Her phone rang, but even though the ringtone could be heard in the room, it did not wake her.
Huo Shaoheng listened as the phone rang then forwarded his call to the voice mailbox. He knew Gu Nianzhi must still be asleep. After a moment of thought, Huo Shaoheng changed into plain civilian clothes and got Fan Jian to drive him to B University.
It was exactly seven o’clock when he arrived at the lobby of B University’s female dormitory. Many students were already awake and heading towards the cafeteria for breakfast. Gu Nianzhi was still asleep, but her internal clock slowly woke her up. However, she did not want to move and decided to sleep in and enjoy herself.
“Priest, shrine, war, arrow, whose past do they belong to? I love how you belong only to me in the midst of this crowd.”
Huo Shaoheng’s custom ringtone rang again. It called for her to open her eyes. In no time she grabbed her phone from the side of her bed and swiped to answer it.
“Hello.”
Huo Shaoheng sat in the car and listened to Gu Nianzhi’s sleepy voice. A smile spread across his lips, and he said gently, “Nianzhi, come down. I’m in your lobby.”
“What!” Gu Nianzhi was delighted. She put on her robe and rushed to her window. It was true! That familiar car! That was Huo Shao’s car!
“Huo Shao, give me a minute. I’ll be down soon!” Gu Nianzhi changed quickly and didn’t even bother to comb her hair. She knew Huo Shaoheng’s car could only stay in the temporary parking lot for 15 minutes.
“Huo Shao, why are you here? Is something wrong?” Gu Nianzhi asked the moment she got in the car. She knew Huo Shaoheng would never come to her at this time under normal circumstances.
“Nothing much.” Huo Shaoheng looked at her sideways and put a strand of stray hair behind her ear. “I’ll have to travel for work soon.”
So he’s here to say goodbye, she thought.
For a moment Gu Nianzhi was overwhelmed with happiness, but then a sense of dismay took over her. She couldn’t bear to be apart from him.
Leaning on his chest, she asked softly, “How long will you be gone for?”
Huo Shaoheng allowed her to lean onto him. “I don’t know. I’ll be back the moment I’m done there.”
He might be able to bring back answers from my past this time, Gu Nianzhi thought. When he comes back there will be no more mysteries to separate us.
Gu Nianzhi knew the nature of Huo Shaoheng’s job was highly confidential, and she shouldn’t ask any questions. But how could she hold back when he was going off? She was worried about him. She would miss him. Couldn’t she ask just one small question?
Huo Shaoheng wouldn’t give me direct answers anyway, she thought.
“Fine then, but please take care. I’ll be waiting for you.” Gu Nianzhi raised her head, paused, and continued. “Huo Shao, can I send you off?”
“There’s no need for that.” Huo Shaoheng caressed her hair. “Just take care of yourself.”
“I’ll be good. Really good.” Gu Nianzhi promised quickly. “Promise to be careful!”
This was what worried her the most. Huo Shaoheng lowered his gaze to look at her pink lips. He wanted to kiss her, but Fan Jian was in the front seat, so he knew he couldn’t do anything too shocking.
“Yes, wait for me.” Huo Shaoheng only tightened his grip on her hands before saying, “Go back. I have to leave now.”
His time was calculated by the seconds. Gu Nianzhi couldn’t bear to leave, but she used all her determination to pull herself from Huo Shaoheng’s side. She stood on the steps of the dormitory and watched as Huo Shaoheng’s car disappeared in the distance. She felt as if her heart were leaving along with him.
She returned to her dormitory with a heavy heart and threw herself onto her bed. She hugged her panda pillow and felt depressed. She did not want to get up for a long, long time.
After a while, Ma Qiqi knocked on her door and reminded her, “Nianzhi! Come out for breakfast! Don’t you have classes this morning?”
Gu Nianzhi remembered that she still had to go to He Zhichu’s office. Frowning, she rose, washed up, and got dressed. Then she picked up her bag and left.
He Zhichu noticed her mood the moment she entered the room.
Placing a glass of milk in front of her, He Zhichu asked, “What’s wrong? What happened?”
Gu Nianzhi took the milk and began sipping on the straw, but she remained silent.
“Quarreled with Huo Shaoheng, did you?” He Zhichu asked. He couldn’t contain his curiosity.
