The following day at noon.
On the large training field of a military unit at the border.
A Zhi-8 helicopter landed on the helipad like a giant bird.
Song Heping stepped out of the fuselage and imdiately spotted Duke of Thunder standing beside the pad.
"Duke Lei," he said, "where is my friend now?"
As soon as he entered the border area, Song Heping had gotten in touch with Duke of Thunder. The response team quickly arrived at the scene and whisked Song Heping away in a dedicated car, swiftly transferring him to this location by helicopter.
From the phone call, he learned that Grey Wolf was not dead.
But Song Heping could tell from Duke of Thunder's tone that, although Grey Wolf was alive, his injuries seed quite serious.
"He's at the General Hospital of the Military District," Duke of Thunder replied. "Our people have already made arrangents."
Duke of Thunder saw Song Heping clad in filthy garb: covered with mud and camouflage paint, and so fresh bits of plant leaves clinging to his neck and other places.
"Do you want to arrange a place for you to rest and take a bath?"
"Bath, my ass!"
Song Heping was frantically worried.
"Can you arrange a plane right now to take to the General Hospital?" he urged. "I want to see Grey Wolf."
"You're going to the General Hospital looking like this?" Duke of Thunder pointed out.
Song Heping glanced down at his gear and said, "What's the problem? Haven't they seen all sorts of things at the General Hospital before? Back when I was in the specials, didn't we send injured comrades there from live ammunition training?"
Duke of Thunder said, "But is it the sa? Can't you see all the blood on you? And who brings in that many hand grenades and explosives? Besides, look at your teammates..."
Song Heping looked at Hunter and then at the bloodstains on his clothes, unconcerned, "We'll unload our gear on the plane. You deal with it. At the hospital, I'll have him cover his face with a camouflage scarf. Just get us inside."
"Fine then," relented Duke of Thunder, knowing it was impossible to stop Song Heping from seeing Grey Wolf. Judging by the man's determination, he seed capable of anything for his friend: "Let's go, get on the plane right now."
So, Song Heping left one aircraft only to board another.
Once settled inside the cabin, he extended his hand to Duke of Thunder and asked, "Duke Lei, do you have any water?"
Duke of Thunder promptly fetched two bottles of mineral water, giving one each to Song Heping and Hunter.
"You did a good job. The mission was very successful. You disrupted a CIA operation and their control over a drug trafficking network. It will take them so ti to rebuild, which will ease the pressure on our side when it cos to drug enforcent operations."
"It wasn't a complete success..."
After guzzling half a bottle, Song Heping couldn't help revisiting a sore point, "Duke Lei, what's wrong with your intelligence personnel? A team of Seals suddenly shows up, are you trying to screw over?"
Duke of Thunder said, "Stop bringing that up. You knew the Seals were involved before you made your assault. We genuinely didn't receive that piece of information beforehand; it was a last-minute decision by them because the CIA planned to stir things up in Myanmar soon, making KIK attack another ard group to take over their territory, as the other group didn't accept their control. Joyce's visit to Batchai was impromptu; no one was aware in advance."
He paused before adding, "Your biggest mistake was not anticipating the Seals would use the entire platoon of the Civilian Military as a shield to catch us off guard, a tactical error on your part. It's a lesson for you, number 12; don't get cocky again, don't boast about being a tactical wonder-boy."
Stung by Duke of Thunder's rebuttal, Song Heping fell silent.
Indeed, it was his oversight that had led to this outco.
But he still felt uncomfortable, so he retorted in a gruff tone, "Don't call 12. Number 12 retired a long ti ago."
Duke of Thunder remained silent.
After a while, Song Heping felt that his previous outburst was perhaps a bit too harsh. After all, Duke of Thunder was once his instructor; much of his own skill was learned from the man.
The age-old Chinese tradition holds that one should regard a teacher with the respect due to a father for life.
Even though this wasn't the practice in the military, it still wasn't right to talk back to Duke of Thunder like that.
"Duke Lei... I was just a bit anxious earlier... and I had an attitude problem. Please, don't hold it against ."
Lei Ming waved his hand, "It's not your fault. You're exhausted and worried about your n; I understand."
As he spoke, he suddenly paused, hesitated, and then said, "Your friend's injuries are quite serious..."
Song Heping took a deep breath, trying to compose himself.
He was indeed very tired.
When people are extrely exhausted, they can beco irritable.
He tried to keep himself awake and calm.
"Tell , how serious it is. I can take it."
Lei Ming said, "That bullet shattered his entire leg bone. The doctors have put it back together, but it will probably take half a year of recovery. Even if he does heal... he won't be able to return to the battlefield."
Song Heping and Hunter exchanged glances.
"I understand..." He forcefully rubbed his face with his hand.
"All of us rcenaries are prepared for this; as long as we're alive, that's all that matters. No one can be a rcenary for life; retirent is inevitable."
Hunter placed a hand on Song Heping's shoulder to comfort him, "Boss, actually, this isn't such a bad outco. Even if Grey Wolf can't work on the front line, he can still go to the training departnt, right?"
Song Heping understood what Hunter ant.
People like Grey Wolf were unlikely to willingly leave the company's operational division to do logistical training.
But now, things were different.
If his leg was as Captain Lei had described, it was the perfect opportunity for him to step back from the front line.
For a rcenary, this might be a stroke of luck in disguise.
The helicopter arrived at another unit's camp, where a car was already waiting. Song Heping and Hunter got into the car with Captain Lei, speeding off toward the military district general hospital.
Song Heping was no stranger to such places.
Although he hadn't belonged to this military district, most general hospitals were similar.
Captain Lei led the two n past the outpatient building, across the in-patient ward, and into a special area.
Song Heping recognized it imdiately.
Generally, general hospitals have several different areas.
An outpatient building is a given, open to the public.
Including other departnts, there's an area for them, as well as for in-patient wards.
But within the in-patient wards, there were two distinct areas—like the one Captain Lei led them through—a section not open to the public, only accessible to active-duty personnel.
Song Heping had been quite concerned at first that Captain Lei would leave Grey Wolf in the ordinary in-patient departnt, as it was a shared military and civilian area. Grey Wolf being Da Maozi and especially having been shot, would inevitably draw attention.
Song Heping didn't want to draw too much attention or be exposed, even dostically, since there were CIA informants around.
Being arranged in the special area within the in-patient departnt would make secrecy much easier.
Still, their arrival did draw so looks.
After all, two guys wrapped in camouflage scarves, dirty all over, and radiating an aura of lethality in every pore were bound to turn heads in a hospital.
Finally, Song Heping saw Grey Wolf in the hospital room.
Besides Grey Wolf, Disaster Star and White Bear were also there.
Seeing Song Heping, the two quickly stood up and took turns embracing him.
"Boss, are you hurt?"
Song Heping shook his head, "Just superficial wounds."
He then approached Grey Wolf's bed and frowned at the sight of his thigh, half-suspended, wrapped in bandages with several tal rods inserted.
"How are you feeling, Grey Wolf?"
"Not bad..."
Grey Wolf's face was sowhat pale, probably due to excessive blood loss.
He pointed at his leg, "The doctor said I was lucky they got to when they did. But..."
He trailed off, his expression dimming.
Song Heping guessed what was on his mind and reassured him, "This place is very safe. You just focus on recovering here. Don't worry about the company's affairs; you'll get your share of the profits in full. I'll have Ferrari transfer it to your account."
Grey Wolf managed a bitter smile, "They say my leg might not make it."
Song Heping feigned light-heartedness, "What are you talking about? Your leg is still there, isn't it? I've asked around, once you're discharged, there will be no issue walking and all. You just won't be able to return to the battlefield, that's all."
Grey Wolf's complexion was still ashen, like a soldier who had lost a battle.
Song Heping continued, "Grey Wolf, I rember when we first t, you said once you made a million US Dollars, you'd go back to your hotown, buy a farm, and enjoy retirent. If you want, you can do that now. Rest assured, as an original shareholder of our company, you'll receive dividends every year."
Grey Wolf was silent for a while, his expression growing complex.
"I don't want to be a useless person..."
Finally, he voiced the concern that was weighing on his mind.
Song Heping anticipated this reply and offered a solution, "What? Still want to work? That's no issue. If you really can't stay idle, head to Venezuela. Our school there will start operating in half a year; by that ti, your injury should have healed. You can help by being the director of school affairs, overseeing the operation. If you wish, you can also take on so instructor duties. How does that sound?"
A flicker of light began to appear in Grey Wolf's eyes.
Perhaps he was struggling internally.
Retreating from the front line was difficult for soone accustod to the stench of blood and the thrill of battle, but managing the Special Warfare School in Venezuela didn't seem so bad...
White Bear joked, "Grey Wolf, if you want to go, just say yes. You have no idea how much I want to go. If it wasn't for Queen holding back, I'd have considered it already. The girls there have such big, curvy butts, you could balance a cocktail on them!"
"Hahaha!"
That comnt sent everyone into fits of laughter.
The mood seed to lighten considerably from that mont.
Twenty minutes after leaving Grey Wolf's room, the smile on Song Heping's face gradually went cold, like a block of ice.
He called over to Captain Lei.
"Captain Lei, there's sothing I need your help with."
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