Chapter 149: Station Farewell
Fortunately, the three of them reacted in time, and with their fast speed, they didn’t take much effort to spot Squadron Leader Gao in Wolf Fang’s parking lot, who had just opened the car door and was about to get in.
“Squadron Leader Gao, wait a moment.”
Seeing that Squadron Leader Gao had one foot already in the car, Chang Ning got anxious and quickly shouted to stop him.
Hearing someone call him, Squadron Leader Gao pulled his leg back, stood by the car, and turned his head toward the direction of the voice.
Seeing that it was Chang Ning and the other two, he instantly figured out why they were looking for him.
Today Old Miao was transferring out, and three Special Forces Soldiers from Night Tiger Reconnaissance Company under him had come to find him, clearly planning to have him take them to see Old Miao.
“Smart kids!”
Squadron Leader Gao almost instantly pieced together the whole story after seeing the three, and by the way, gave a thumbs-up in his heart to Chang Ning’s calmness.
With Xiao Zhuang’s personality, when he learned that his respected company commander was about to leave the unit, he definitely wouldn’t think to report first; he would find a way to quickly leave the barracks and do whatever it took to see Old Miao fast.
For this purpose, he certainly wouldn’t come to report, but would choose to climb over the wall to quickly see Old Miao.
Lao Pao had a steady temperament, but his ability to handle sudden events wasn’t outstanding, meaning his adaptability was inferior to Chang Ning’s.
Two out of the three were already “useless,” so Squadron Leader Gao easily locked onto the “culprit” leading this incident.
“I guess you’re looking for me because of Old Miao, right.”
After the three had caught their breath a bit, he spoke up.
Then, looking at the three’s stunned expressions, he didn’t give Chang Ning and the others a chance to speak and continued: “But I can’t take you all to find Old Miao.”
With that, he reopened the car door and got in.
“Wait a minute!”
Whenever Xiao Zhuang couldn’t control his emotions, his actions always came before his thinking.
Looking at Xiao Zhuang holding the car door with both hands to stop him, Squadron Leader Gao’s face visibly darkened.
He didn’t have time to waste here with these three; Old Miao’s train wouldn’t wait.
“Let go! Do you know what your behavior right now means, Private!”
Squadron Leader Gao scolded.
“Squadron Leader Gao, you have to at least tell us the reason.”
Chang Ning and Lao Pao walked up to Xiao Zhuang, had him let go of the car door first, and while talking to Squadron Leader Gao, pulled the car door open again.
“Old Miao doesn’t want you to come see him off.”
Seeing these three acting like they wouldn’t let him go without a clear explanation, even though he was in a hurry, Squadron Leader Gao still chose to explain the reason.
If it were just Chang Ning and Lao Pao here today, Squadron Leader Gao wouldn’t explain so much; Chang Ning and Lao Pao were much calmer than Xiao Zhuang.
After hearing Squadron Leader Gao’s reason, Xiao Zhuang’s face was full of disbelief; he didn’t believe those words came from Miao Lian.
Xiao Zhuang was a very self-centered person; when emotional, he rarely listened to advice and often numbed himself with his own imaginings.
Just like now, he insisted it was Dog Head Old Gao trying to stop the three of them from seeing Miao Lian off, pretending to use Miao Lian’s words to deceive them.
“Squadron Leader Gao, the three of us are Miao Lian’s hopes for the Special Forces, and Xiao Zhuang is also a soldier Miao Lian thinks highly of.
Their bond is deep; if we don’t let Xiao Zhuang see off his respected company commander at this time, not to mention what outrageous thing he might do, this will become a regret in his heart later.
Besides, Miao Lian probably wouldn’t complain about you bringing the three of us along; after all, we’re all soldiers he trained, and he knows our personalities.
When he sees Xiao Zhuang, he’ll understand your decision.”
To persuade Squadron Leader Gao, Chang Ning ended by lightly teasing Xiao Zhuang.
With the stubborn Xiao Zhuang watching him from the front, Chang Ning appealing to emotion and reason from behind, and Zheng Sanpao on the side as a “substitute” itching to join in.
Squadron Leader Gao felt that in the current situation, if he didn’t agree to these three, first off, the hothead Xiao Zhuang wouldn’t let him leave easily.
This kid’s mind right now had no concept of superior-subordinate; his whole body was full of youthful impulsiveness.
It wasn’t that he was deliberately belittling him; compared to Chang Ning beside him, Xiao Zhuang was far behind in both military skills and handling people.
Sometimes the gap between people is just that big.
Glancing at the time on his wristwatch, Squadron Leader Gao still agreed to the three’s request and took them along to see Old Miao off.
But even letting the three get in the car didn’t mean this matter was lightly brushed off.
Squadron Leader Gao, driving the car, still had a cold face; being messed with by his own soldiers like this made him lose face too.
Chang Ning and the other two knew they were in the wrong and obediently squeezed in the back seat; no one wanted to sit in the passenger seat to face the angry Squadron Leader Gao alone.
The atmosphere in the car started to become oppressive; no one in the car felt comfortable, but fortunately Squadron Leader Gao could control his emotions and kept the car speed within a relatively acceptable range.
Otherwise, there would probably be a “Fast and Furious” scene right now, with “See You Again” as the narration.
Fortunately, the train station was away from the city area, shortening part of the journey, and the four quickly arrived at the destination.
Arriving at the platform, they saw a middle-aged man of medium build, wearing unmarked military uniform, standing straight with a bag on his back as if waiting for someone.
Decades of military career had infused Miao Lian’s body inside and out with an indelible barracks aura.
“Miao…”
Seeing that familiar back, Xiao Zhuang couldn’t contain his excitement and was about to shout right away.
Chang Ning was quick-handed and covered Xiao Zhuang’s mouth, dragging him to the corner with Lao Pao.
“What are you doing!”
Facing the two stopping him, Xiao Zhuang glared angrily.
“What’s the rush? Squadron Leader Gao and Miao Lian have decades of comrade friendship; let them meet first.”
Lao Pao’s eyes were even wider than Xiao Zhuang’s, and as Xiao Zhuang’s old squad leader, he had an innate aura advantage.
“Xiao Zhuang, we’re already here; Miao Lian will definitely see us.”
Chang Ning persuaded from the side.
“Got it, got it; let me go first.”
Though Xiao Zhuang was easily swayed by emotions, he had one good point: he listened to advice, especially from close ones.
The three hiding in the corner didn’t know that Miao Lian had spotted them long ago and was now complaining to Squadron Leader Gao.
“How did you bring them? Didn’t I tell you earlier not to let them come?”
Mentioning this, Squadron Leader Gao immediately felt upset; after all, being blocked by his own soldiers wasn’t something easy to talk about.
“Sigh, don’t mention it; they blocked me right there…”
Then Squadron Leader Gao bitterly smiled and recounted the details to Miao Lian.
After listening carefully, Miao Lian naturally teased Squadron Leader Gao a bit.
“Hahaha, even you, Old Gao, have soldiers you can’t handle? How about the soldiers I sent; not bad, right!”
“Nothing else to say, Old Miao, you’re a master at training soldiers; they’re all good prospects.”
With the two about to part, Squadron Leader Gao had no mood to argue with his old comrade. Setting aside the various flaws of the three recruits, they did have talent, which Squadron Leader Gao didn’t deny.
“Of course, this is the skill I honed in the unit!”
Miao Lian said proudly; having the “West Line’s First Warrior” admit he was inferior in some aspect would make Miao Lian happy for a long time.
As they talked, both their eyes reddened.
“Have you settled on the unit for your transfer?” Squadron Leader Gao asked.
“Settled long ago, in Judu Detachment. When they heard I was transferring, the director personally came to talk to me.
I heard it was the place we fought back in the day, so I agreed.” Miao Lian replied.
“Pretty good, back to reconnaissance, doing your old job; maybe we’ll have a chance to fight side by side again.”
Squadron Leader Gao said with a smile.
“The train’s about to leave; help me bring those three kids over.
I’ll give them a few more words, so they don’t keep troubling you.”
Miao Lian checked his wristwatch, saw there was still some time, and had Squadron Leader Gao call over Chang Ning and the other two hiding nearby.
Seeing Squadron Leader Gao beckoning them, the already impatient Xiao Zhuang dashed toward Miao Lian.
“Miao Lian~”
“Miao Lian~”
Looking at Xiao Zhuang’s excited state, Miao Lian laughed and scolded: “You brat, always embarrassing me!”
Xiao Zhuang was still the same as always; his first words to Miao Lian were surprisingly: “Miao Lian, can you not leave?”
He was already leaving, and Miao Lian’s temper wasn’t as fiery as in the company days, but hearing Xiao Zhuang’s words still made him a bit unhappy.
“You think the unit is your family’s? Do whatever you want?
Xiao Zhuang, remember, a soldier’s duty is to obey orders.
Iron barracks, flowing soldiers; I’m already an old guy, with injuries on my body—I won’t shamelessly stay in the unit burdening it.
Xiao Zhuang, you’re a soldier I think highly of; you must do well in Wolf Fang, don’t embarrass me!
When facing things, don’t be impulsive; discuss more with Chang Ning, Lao Pao, Squadron Leader Gao, and them; don’t always let emotions control you…”
“Woo~”
The train’s whistle sounded, white smoke enveloping the front of the train.
“It’s departing; no more talking.”
With that, Miao Lian quickly boarded under the attendant’s guidance, went to his seat, and pulled down the curtain.
He didn’t want the soldiers he trained and his comrades to see him crying.
“Miao Lian!”
The train started moving, and Xiao Zhuang began chasing it, constantly shouting.
Seeing this, Chang Ning and Lao Pao hurried to catch up and stop him.
Chasing a train was too dangerous; what if he got caught in the tracks? They wouldn’t even have a chance to rescue him, and besides, he couldn’t catch up anyway.
Xiao Zhuang struggled hard, and after realizing he couldn’t break free from Chang Ning and Lao Pao, he slowly stopped resisting.
He stared at the gradually departing train and shouted loudly toward its direction, whether Miao Lian could hear or not: “Reconnaissance Company~”
“Kill~”
“Kill~”
“Kill~”
Three battle cries, shouted hoarse; Xiao Zhuang’s voice was raw.
It gave Chang Ning chills; he couldn’t do something like Xiao Zhuang’s raw emotional display anyway.
No wonder he’s the artsy one; much stronger empathy than him.
After shouting, Xiao Zhuang collapsed on the ground, tears streaming down his face.
Seeing Xiao Zhuang in this state, Chang Ning frowned deeply, his brow furrowed enough to squash a mosquito.
“Get up; the person’s gone far, what’s the point of this? Miao Lian wouldn’t want to see you like this!
He just said not to embarrass him; do you think you look like you’re embarrassing him right now?”
While Chang Ning said this, Lao Pao was reminding him from the side not to be too harsh, but it seemed to have no effect.
It gave him a feeling like the kid had grown up and couldn’t be disciplined anymore.
“Right, I can’t embarrass Miao Lian.”
Xiao Zhuang seemed to wake from a dream, roughly wiping the tears from his face with his sleeve, nimbly getting up from the ground, then straightening his uniform.
“Let’s go back.”
Seeing Xiao Zhuang’s emotions stabilize, Chang Ning and Lao Pao exchanged a glance, both full of helplessness. Dealing with an emotional comrade like Xiao Zhuang left them pretty helpless too.
Fortunately, Xiao Zhuang stayed level-headed during missions, or they would all be wiped out.
Chang Ning and Lao Pao brought the tidied-up Xiao Zhuang to the train station exit and found Squadron Leader Gao leaning against the car hood.
He had a cigarette between his fingers, not smoking it, but staring at the cars passing on the road, lost in thought.
When he came back to his senses, Chang Ning and the other two were already standing in front of him.
“Did Old Miao leave?”
Seeing the three come out, Squadron Leader Gao knew Old Miao had left, but he still asked this redundant question.
“Yeah, he left.”
Seeing Squadron Leader Gao not in good spirits, Chang Ning didn’t say much.
“Haven’t smoked in a long time; kinda not used to it.”
Squadron Leader Gao put the cigarette to his lips and took a hard drag; with a lot of air entering the filter, the tobacco glowed bright orange instantly, then turned to ash with the paper, flicked off by Squadron Leader Gao.
After it hit his lungs, the stimulation made Squadron Leader Gao cough hard.
“If you can’t smoke, don’t.”
For some reason, seeing the somewhat dejected Squadron Leader Gao, Chang Ning felt a pang in his heart.
He’d never seen this emotion on this man before.
“Back at Laoshan, in the whole company, only Old Miao and I smoked the heaviest.
Haven’t touched this stuff in a long time; surprisingly still not used to it.
Heh heh heh~”
After a few hard drags, the cigarette was down to the butt.
“Get in the car, heading home!”
The cigarette butt arced beautifully through the air, landing in the trash can, while its owner had already driven off.
By the time they returned to Wolf Fang, it was getting dark, with a bit of fiery clouds lingering on the horizon, signaling tomorrow would surely be a sunny day perfect for training.
Miao Lian’s bond with the four was unbreakable; his leaving the unit greatly affected their emotions, so none of them had eaten all day.
Only after getting out of the car did they realize they were starving, front chest to back; but the cafeteria was long closed by now, so only the barracks guesthouse could still take orders.
“Alright, I’m treating you all to dinner today.”
Squadron Leader Gao led the way to the guesthouse.
Someone’s treating, why not go; plus, he was hungry too.
Chang Ning was never one to stand on ceremony with people; when the leader’s treating, being polite would just disrespect him!
The other two saw Chang Ning leading the way and followed; right now, nothing mattered more than filling their stomachs.
Four thousand words delivered, one chapter for today.
