The Qinghe University students and the Trinity Institute members remained outside the forward operating base for a short while before returning inside. Then they waited at the medical center for the Pyro Company to get everything under control.
Everyone was very nervous at this moment. Meanwhile, Ren Xiaosu fell asleep right on the operating table in their department while Yang Xiaojin stayed by his side to protect him.
After all, Ren Xiaosu had just been through a life-or-death battle. With all the adrenaline coursing through him, and coupled with his injuries, it tired him. This was a normal physiological reaction.
The students outside the department were sitting against the wall in the hallway of the medical center when they heard Ren Xiaosu snoring.
Everyone was speechless. That guy was way too careless. He could even fall asleep like that?!
When Yang Xiaojin saw Ren Xiaosu’s expression, she revealed an unusual gentleness in her. Back at Mt. Dashi, Ren Xiaosu had more things to worry about than her, and he also acted as the bait during their hunt for the barbarians.
Sometimes, the two of them would take turns to keep watch at night. If Ren Xiaosu kept watch for the first half of the night, he would not have the heart to wake her up for the second shift. As a result, he would just keep watch for the entire night by himself.
After the battle on Mt. Dashi, Ren Xiaosu did not even have time to catch up on sleep when they encountered yet another attack on the camp. Even if he were made of steel, he still would not be able to bear it.
Usually, Ren Xiaosu would not snore when he slept. As his physical fitness improved, his bodily functions also became stronger and more vigorous. His respiratory system and cardiopulmonary function were already far beyond that of normal people, so snoring was not something that should happen to him.
But now, his snores were like a message of fatigue that even made Yang Xiaojin’s heart ache a little.
This young man who belonged to her habitually took on all of the responsibility himself.
Yang Xiaojin subconsciously tried to soothe Ren Xiaosu’s frown as he slept. But just as she reached out with her hand, someone from the Pyro Company walked in from outside the medical center.
This commotion woke Ren Xiaosu up. He happened to see Yang Xiaojin reaching out, so he said with a smile, “What are you doing?”
“Oh.” Yang Xiaojin said nonchalantly, “I heard your snoring, so I wanted to pinch your nose to stop it.”
Ren Xiaosu stood up and ranted, “How could you do something like that?”
Yang Xiaojin said with a smile, “But you do things like that quite often too.”
“That’s true.” Ren Xiaosu nodded.
The two of them walked out of the department and saw Ji Yi saying something to a Pyro Company soldier. However, that soldier said coldly, “I’m sorry, we don’t have any spare vehicles to send them back now. We can go to the front lines if you want to, but we can’t retreat. Besides, we also need all of you to go to the front lines. Starting on the day after tomorrow, no outsiders will be allowed to remain here to ensure the security of the FOB.”
Ji Yi was stunned. “But our Qinghe Group has our own vehicles.”
“Your vehicles have been requisitioned for the transportation of supplies.” The soldier calmly explained, “After the attack this time, the supply convoy suffered an extremely serious loss. Please understand why we made such a decision. You all can wait for the vehicles to be loaded up with the supplies tomorrow before heading to the front lines together with them.”
Then the Pyro Company soldier asked, “Were you all in the medical center all this time? Mr. Wang Jing, have you seen any strangers coming in?”
“No.” Wang Jing shook his head. “When the attack happened, all of us fled out of the base together. It wasn’t until things settled down at the FOB that we returned to the medical center. Why?”
The Pyro Company soldier was still very polite to Wang Jing and the others. “It’s like this. We speculate that the two snipers who appeared previously were shooting from the top floor of the medical center. Later, they left us a very important message, so we wanted to find them to express our gratitude.”
“I’m not too sure about that then.” Wang Jing shook his head again. “It was already very late by the time we got back to the medical center, so we didn’t see any strangers around. Don’t you know the identities of those two snipers? I thought they were your people. They also saved us during the chaos, so we’d like to express our gratitude as well.”
“They’re not with us.” The soldier shook his head. “They could be aspiring fighters who want to stand against the North together. If you have any information, please contact us immediately.”
“Mhm, I will.” As Wang Jing spoke, he did not even look at Ren Xiaosu as he was afraid that he would expose him. It was the same for the other doctors as well. It could be seen just how meticulous Wang Jing was when he handed down instructions to the rest earlier.
“Then you all should get some rest quickly. All medical personnel will have to travel with the military to the North tomorrow. If you need anything, you can let us know at any time.” After bidding farewell to Wang Jing, the soldier went straight to the top floor and took several sets of photos before leaving.
The students looked at each other. A student representative said to Ji Yi, “Professor Ji, now that we don’t have any vehicles to take us back, why don’t we head to the front lines to have a look instead?”
“That’s right! You heard what that soldier said too. Those two snipers also came over to volunteer. Right now, the entire Central Plains has to unite….”
Ji Yi did not say anything and felt extremely vexed.
…
At this moment, the P3 commander of the forward operating base was speaking with someone. He said very carefully, “Commander P5092, I wish to communicate with you regarding something very important.”
P5092 said noncommittally, “What do you want in exchange?”
“You should’ve received the news by now. Although the plan to lure the enemy out tonight was successful, a large portion of our supplies was still destroyed. This matter is enough to get me court martialed. If I get convicted, I’ll probably have to spend the rest of my life in prison.” P31921 said softly: “But as you know, I was just cooperating with your plan.”
P5092 said without emotion, “You made a lot of mistakes tonight, though. Even if you were just cooperating with my plan, you shouldn’t have stupidly parked the entire supply convoy’s vehicles together and given the enemy a chance to blow up the supplies. Furthermore, barbarians really were lurking in the rear. Even without my plan, something would’ve happened to you sooner or later. If the information you have for me is important enough, I will guarantee your safety.”
P31921 was overjoyed. This was the promise he was looking for. Although Commander P5092 was cold, he would not go back on his word.
P31921 deliberated for a moment before saying, “You encountered two snipers at Mt. Dashi, right? I know you’re looking for them. Just a few days ago, two doctors from the Trinity Institute suddenly left the FOB and only came back after the battle on Mt. Dashi had ended. The timing of their return is consistent with the duration of the battle.”
P5092 said nonchalantly, “What can two doctors do? Don’t claim baseless speculation as intel.”
“It’s not speculation.” P31921 quickly said, “Others might not have noticed what happened tonight, but I found out the Trinity Institute left the danger zone before the barbarians’ arrival. Moreover, one of the two doctors who left the base happened to be the miracle doctor you ordered us to take care of.”
P5092 was stunned. For some reason, he believed P31921’s words the moment he mentioned Ren Xiaosu!
