Next day.
First day of Lunar New Year.
The sun was up when Dong Xuebing woke up with a hangover. He had drunk too much yesterday and remembered he had fought eleven soldiers in a match. He hit his forehead and regretted it.
“Slurp… slurp….”
Little Qianqian was sucking her thumb and looking at Dong Xuebing.
“Oh, you woke up.” Dong Xuebing hugged Little Qianqian and tickled her with his stubbles. She giggled and waved her arms.
Dong Xuebing felt blessed to have such an adorable daughter.
Dong Xuebing played with Little Qianqian for a while.
Morning 9 am.
Dong Xuebing carried his daughter and went out for breakfast.
The celebrations last night lasted until early morning. Other than the soldiers on duty, most of the soldiers just woke up.
The gallery in the Navy vessel.
Dong Xuebing chatted with a soldier beside him while feeding Qianqian. “Comrade, we have been sailing around four days. How long do we need to sail before reaching the shore?” The Navy vessel is faster than the cargo ship, and they should reach the port by now. However, Niu Dazhao’s cargo ship was returning with the vessel, and they had to slow down.
That soldier replied. “We should reach today.”
Dong Xuebing asked. “Oh, this morning or afternoon?”
The soldier replied. “We should reach around noon, and we can see land soon.”
Dong Xuebing got excited when he heard they were reaching home. He was finally going home after spending around ten days in the sea.
After breakfast, Dong Xuebing carried his daughter to the deck to look at the scenery.
A few soldiers saw Dong Xuebing, and one went up to him. This soldier was one of the eleven soldiers who sparred with him yesterday. “Mr. Dong, you have good combat skills. Are you trained in martial arts? Can you teach us a few moves?” Dong Xuebing was too impressive last night.
Dong Xuebing apologized to that soldier. “I’m sorry for what happened last night. I am not good with alcohol and did not control myself.”
Another soldier said. “It’s alright. You taught us a lot last night.”
Another soldier joined in. “That’s right. You are better than us. Can you teach us?”
Dong Xuebing waved his hand. “My skills are not good, and I am not trained in martial arts. I don’t want to embarrass myself.”
Dong Xuebing was telling the truth, and the soldiers did not believe him.
In the end, Dong Xuebing gave in to the soldiers’ requests and taught them the moves he learned from Xu Yan. He also sparred with them. At first, it was only three soldiers, and more soldiers joined in. Within ten minutes, a crowd had formed around him. Two Officers saw them and joined in.
“Mr. Dong, where should we put our weight in this move?”
“On the heel of your back leg, move your weight to the front leg when you turn.”
“What about this move?”
“It will depend on the situation and react according to your opponent’s move.”
More soldiers heard about this ‘sharing session’ and joined in. The Colonel also went to the deck and watched his men learn from Dong Xuebing.
Dong Xuebing was awkward and said. “Let’s stop. The Commander is here.”
The soldiers turned and saw their ship’s Commander. There were still in the middle of a mission and were nervous.
The Colonel waved his hand and laughed. “Don’t mind me. It’s not easy to find an instructor with Director Dong’s level. Go ahead and learn from him. I also want to learn some moves.”
Dong Xuebing smiled awkwardly. Any of the soldiers knew more about close combat than him. He regretted drinking so much last night.
Two hours later.
The soldiers returned to their positions as the vessel got nearer to land.
The Colonel went up to Dong Xuebing. “Xiao Dong, reporters, will be waiting at the port later, and you should wait on board first. I will get my men to inform you when they leave and send you to the airport. Director Xie had prepared the air tickets to Beijing for you.”
Beijing?
Dong Xuebing’s mother and the rest were all in Beijing.
Dong Xuebing nodded. “Sorry to trouble you these few days.”
The Colonel laughed. “Don’t mention it. We should be the ones thanking you. We would not complete this mission without your help. Alright, I have to get off with the hostages later. I will say my goodbye now. Let’s have dinner together another time.”
Dong Xuebing nodded. “Sure.”
Both men exchanged numbers, and Dong Xuebing looked towards the shore. He could see the reporters taking pictures and hurried back into his cabin.
The Navy vessel docked, and it was chaos outside.
Cameras were clicking away, and reporters were shouting questions to the soldiers.
“Did you all face any danger during this mission?”
“I heard you all had saved the hostages of another ship hijacked by the pirates.”
The commotion lasted for a while.
Knock… knock… knock…. The female soldier knocked and entered Dong Xuebing’s cabin. “Mr. Dong, please come with me. I will send you to the airport.”
“Thanks.” Dong Xuebing carried Little Qianqian and followed that female soldier. He looked out of the Navy vessel and saw a military jeep waiting at the dock.
Soldiers started appearing on the deck suddenly.
One… five… ten… and more soldiers went onto the deck. They looked at Dong Xuebing.
An Officer suddenly commanded. “Salute!”
All the soldiers saluted Dong Xuebing.
Dong Xuebing was touched and immediately stood at attention. He returned the salute and nodded to the soldiers.
The soldiers remained in their salute position as they watched Dong Xuebing leave in the jeep.
