Why did you provoke me?

Secretary Wu had no good way to deal with this stubborn young man, so he could only remind him, "Be more careful in the future. If anything happens, remember to let Uncle Wu know."

"Uncle Wu, I've got it." Hua Shulang pushed Jing Er's hand away.

Jing Er turned off the intercom. "Then I'm leaving. Take care."

"Thank you for your help this time, brother. I won't say thank you. If you ever need anything in the future, just let me know, and I'll never refuse." Hua Shulang solemnly stated his attitude.

Jing Er left with his men. Jingchuan's leader in the fourth battlefield also left with his men.

In the blink of an eye, only Hua Shulang's group remained in this place.

Everyone stared silently at Hua Shulang.

"Captain, you should go with them."

Hua Shulang just smiled roguishly, "You guys don't know me yet. I'm used to making my own decisions and I'm not used to being managed by others."

"I wish I could be managed by someone, but unfortunately they don't want me," someone muttered to themselves.

Hua Shulang paused for a moment, looking at his old buddies opposite him, "You guys think so too?"

Everyone looked at each other and then nodded.

Hua Shulang's smile froze, his voice low and hoarse, "These years with me, have you all...?" He didn't say the word "regret" after all.

"No." Everyone growled. This sound startled Hua Shulang.

"Captain, we know you refused because of us. But as you've seen, you can't succeed by going it alone in this world."

"Yes. If it weren't for their rescue, our entire team would have been buried underground, and no one would have cared about our lives."

"You should go with them," another voice said.

Hua Shulang plopped down on the sand. His old comrades hadn't abandoned him; they only wanted him to have a good life.

But what about him? He always dreamed of building his own business, but reality is cruel. After years of hard work, he still had nothing. And this time, he almost caused the entire team to be wiped out because of one person.

"Captain, what are you hesitating for? They'll be gone in a minute!" someone shouted anxiously.

Hua Shulang glanced at the tent, and everyone immediately understood. "Captain, she'll return to her family sooner or later. Our team can't keep her here."

"Yes, if it weren't for her, we wouldn't have had to take a trip to the gates of hell." Someone finally voiced their grievances.

Just then, Yang Xue, who was about to come out of the tent, heard these words. Her face turned pale, and tears instantly streamed down her face. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I've dragged everyone into this."

Everyone lowered their heads; no one dared to look at her.

Hua Shulang had no choice but to stand up. "Are you feeling better? Can you walk? We'll protect you as you leave this battlefield. Go inside and get some rest for the night. We'll set off tomorrow morning."

Yang Xue gripped Hua Shulang's sleeve tightly. "Brother Hua, come back to the Lu family with me. I'll have my father thank you profusely."

Hua Shulang patted her shoulder reassuringly, "We don't need to say thank you between us. Without Aunt Yang, I wouldn't be where I am today."

Yang Xue sobbed, lying on Hua Shulang's body, "I really didn't mean to, I didn't mean to hurt them."

"I know, I know all of this, no one blames you." Hua Shulang half-carried her into the tent.

Those outside looked at each other in bewilderment; their captain was no longer the decisive and ruthless leader he once was.

After settling the person onto the bed, Hua Shulang sat down beside them. "Sleep now, I'll stay with you."

Yang Xue lay on the bed and reached out to grab Hua Shulang. "Brother Hua, trust me. My father's family is very powerful; it's a super-powerful family. I would never betray you. Come with me."

Hua Shulang didn't say whether he would go or not. He put Yang Xue's hand under the blanket and said, "Go to sleep. We'll talk about these things later."

But Yang Xue's hand struggled free and grabbed Hua Shulang again. "Brother Hua, Kyoto is better than that Jingchuan, right? Even with your Aunt Qing in charge, what can such a remote place accomplish?"

"Brother Hua, once you go to Kyoto, with your abilities, Father will definitely give you an important position. At that time, you can bring Aunt Qing and Uncle Wu over, and taking care of them in their old age won't be a problem."

Hua Shulang smiled and put her hand back. "Go to sleep. You don't need to worry about me. I've done my job by getting you back safely."

"Are you leaving again?" Yang Xue's tears came instantly. "Aren't you going to leave me? Those people are completely unreliable. I don't want to ride in that car anymore. Brother Hua, every time I close my eyes, I feel like that dead man is still sitting there. I'm scared."

"Don't be afraid, he's dead, what's there to be afraid of?"

"Brother Hua, Brother Hua, please take me home. I'm really scared." Her tearful eyes kept looking at Hua Shulang.

After a moment of hesitation, Hua Shulang finally nodded.

Yang Xue raised her upper body and hugged Hua Shulang tightly. "I knew it, you still care about me."

The people outside the tent looked at each other and went back to their own tents. They all knew that after this incident, the morale of their team had collapsed.

Yu Meng and the others didn't walk very fast, and Niannian followed behind Yu Meng with some worry.

"After you go out, rest first. I need to go into seclusion for a few days," Yu Meng said.

"Fourth Sister, are there houses around here too?"

"Yes, I had one rented."

"That's great. I know I don't have to worry about anything if I follow Fourth Sister."

……

Jingchuan Hall.

Secretary Wu turned off the intercom and sat down in a chair. A long time passed before he went to Qingyuan's laboratory.

"Oh, you're a rare guest. Did something happen to Yu Meng?" Qingyuan asked while pouring tea.

No. It's just that the flowers are sparse.

"Hua Shulang, what's wrong with him?" Qingyuan's hands trembled slightly.

"He fell into the underground pit and sent out a distress signal, which was received by Teacher Yu."

Qingyuan let out a deep breath. "That's good!"

Then she looked at Secretary Wu. "So you're here now because Hua Shulang couldn't be rescued?"

"He's been rescued. He said he wasn't even scratched." Secretary Wu's voice was steady.

Qingyuan looked at Secretary Wu suspiciously. "Old Wu, just say what you need to say."

"He refused to come back again."

Hearing this, Qingyuan slammed her hand on the table. "That stubborn girl. What about Yu Meng?"

"Teacher Yu had to leave early and didn't know about this. Jing'er wanted to bring him back, but he refused."

"Tell me, is he stupid? He should just come back and say something. We're not restricting his movements. Wouldn't it be better for people like Xiao Wen and the others to leave the alien battlefield and live peaceful lives?"

"Don't be angry, he's not a child. I keep thinking, maybe we're interfering too much, and he's afraid to come back and see us." Secretary Wu looked very forlorn.

Qingyuan sat in the chair, feeling helpless. "I just thought that with our support, he could suffer less and endure less hardship. I never expected it would push him even further away."

"If Yu Meng doesn't know about this, there will be other opportunities in the future, but Jing Er will definitely not hide it from Yu Meng." Qing Yuan was truly worried sick.

"Teacher Qing, everyone has their own destiny, and many things are beyond our control," Secretary Wu could only offer this consolation.

Then, looking intently at Qingyuan, he said, "Actually, my main purpose in coming here is not to show off the flowers, but to show that we ourselves should change our attitude."

"Us?" Qingyuan asked, somewhat puzzled.

"We've already broken the rules several times for Hua Shulang's sake, and I don't want to do that again."

Qingyuan fell silent, as did she. Although she hadn't openly pressured Yu Meng, Yu Meng had still been wronged. She would always bring it up unconsciously, but for Yu Meng, it was a burden, and she couldn't help but overthink it.

After a long silence, Qingyuan asked softly, "When is Yu Meng planning to come back? How long has she been gone?"

"He didn't say. Chief Nangong was preparing to go to the first battlefield, but then Teacher Yu went to the fourth battlefield, and that's when he gave up the idea."

"What is he thinking? And he's going to the front lines." Qingyuan's voice rose considerably.

"Yes, he's afraid Yu Meng won't come back."

After saying that, neither of them spoke again.

After a long silence, Qingyuan's voice finally rang out, "No, she said she would take me with her wherever she goes."