One hour later — Base Conference Room
At one end of the long table sat the political commissar, Chief Engineer Liu, and an impatient-looking Xiao Zhan.
At the other end sat Su Yun, who looked fragile enough to topple over in a breeze.
In the middle of the table lay the disassembled “pulse gun.”
“After testing, this is indeed a miniature high-energy pulse device.”
The technician’s voice trembled as he reported. “Although the materials are crude, the core structure is extremely advanced… its power is sufficient to penetrate a 3mm steel plate within ten meters.”
The commissar sucked in a sharp breath.
A laser weapon cobbled together from radio parts? What kind of monster was this?
“Comrade Su Yun.”
The commissar tried to sound as gentle as possible. “The organization warmly welcomes you to join Base 031. Your household registration and food rations will be specially approved immediately. You can serve as Chief Engineer Liu’s special assistant—”
“I’m not being an assistant.”
Su Yun cut him off.
“This ‘fire poker’ is just a toy.”
She idly rolled a screw between her fingers, her words astonishing. “And that radar diagram? Just a little gift.”
“I also have a multi-stage rocket propulsion algorithm in my head, and a high-precision gyroscope design.”
“If you can provide the equipment, I’m confident I can double the range of your base’s missiles.”
Clack.
The pen in Liu Jianguo’s hand dropped onto the table.
Xiao Zhan’s half-lidded eyes snapped open, sharp as blades.
Double the range?
In an era of Sino-Soviet tensions and a strained border situation, everyone in the room knew exactly what that meant.
It meant national dignity. It meant whether the country could stand tall and speak with confidence.
“Conditions.” Xiao Zhan spoke, his voice hoarse. “What do you want?”
Su Yun smiled.
On her pale face, the smile bloomed like a white begonia growing out of ruins.
She raised a finger and pointed lightly at Xiao Zhan’s chest.
“I want the best laboratory, maximum freedom, and one serving of braised pork every day.”
“And I want him.”
All eyes turned to Xiao Zhan.
His face instantly darkened. “I’m a special forces captain, not a babysitter!”
Have him act as a bodyguard for a delicate girl who cried at the drop of a hat?
He’d rather die.
“Commissar, I refuse.”
Xiao Zhan stood up, rebellious energy radiating from him. “My duty is to defend the base—or go into no-man’s land to hunt wolves. Not play house here.”
“Then forget it.”
Su Yun leaned back in her chair, spreading her hands as she instantly switched back to her weak, half-dead state. Her eyes reddened on cue.
“I’m timid. I get scared easily. When I get scared, the formulas in my head glitch.”
She sniffed and pointed at Xiao Zhan, her voice soft but hooked with intent:
“I feel safe when he’s around. The killing aura on him wards off evil—I saw how that shrew was afraid of him earlier.”
“If he doesn’t stay by my side 24/7, I can’t sleep at night. If I can’t sleep, I can’t come up with solutions. If I can’t come up with solutions, the missiles won’t fly far…”
That counted as a reason?!
It was absurd!
Xiao Zhan laughed in anger, fists cracking. “You—”
“Comrade Xiao Zhan!” The commissar rapped the table sharply.
“Sir!” Xiao Zhan snapped to attention instinctively.
The commissar looked at him earnestly, though his gaze allowed no refusal. “For the country, for national defense, for that doubled range… you’ll have to make some sacrifices.”
“This is an order.”
Four simple words blocked every argument in Xiao Zhan’s throat.
A soldier’s duty was absolute obedience.
He took a deep breath, chest heaving.
His eyes locked onto the seemingly pitiful but actually cunning little fox across the table.
Su Yun blinked at him with watery eyes, even clutching her chest weakly, as if he were some tyrant forcing her into misery.
“…Yes!”
Xiao Zhan practically ground the word out between his teeth. “Mission guaranteed.”
It sounded less like he was accepting a bodyguard role—and more like he was heading out to blow up a bunker.
The corners of Su Yun’s lips curved upward.
In an era full of danger, what could be safer than keeping the strongest “alpha wolf” right by her side?
Besides…
This man had a very good physique. Just looking at him… whetted the appetite.
“Then I’ll be in your care from now on, Captain Xiao.”
She stood and extended her hand, smiling innocently.
Xiao Zhan glanced at the pale, almost glowing hand—but didn’t take it.
He snorted, grabbed his cap from the table, slapped it onto his head, and strode out.
“Coming or not? Or do you want me to carry you?”
His irritable voice came from the doorway.
Su Yun withdrew her hand without embarrassment and followed leisurely.
“I wouldn’t mind,” she called lightly from behind. “My legs are weak anyway.”
Xiao Zhan stumbled mid-step, nearly smashing into the doorframe.
He turned and shot her a vicious glare that clearly said:
This grudge just got a lot bigger.
The Expert Compound
It was the only red-brick building in Base 031.
Originally prepared for Soviet experts, it had been left empty after they withdrew.
Xiao Zhan kicked open the gate to Courtyard No. 1.
He didn’t hold back his strength—the door slammed into the wall with a loud bang, shaking loose a layer of plaster.
Su Yun, following behind, shrank slightly and shuffled into the courtyard.
She walked slowly. The color that had just returned to her face faded again from the shock of the noise.
“Report—no, just get inside!”
Xiao Zhan tossed her duffel bag onto the ground and pointed to the inner room.
“You take the inside. I’ll stay out here. Don’t lock the door at night—I need to be able to rush in if something happens.”
After saying that, he realized it sounded ambiguous and added stiffly:
“Rush in to save you. Not anything else.”
Su Yun didn’t have the energy to banter.
The quantum lab was in standby, but the effects of long-term malnutrition still lingered in this body.
Leaning on the doorframe, she looked around.
The outer room was a small sitting area—cement floor, with half-painted green walls.
Inside was a simple wooden bed with a straw mattress—the most luxurious setup currently available in the base.
“Not bad.”
She gave an honest evaluation. “Better than the pigsty I imagined.”
Xiao Zhan’s eyebrow twitched.
Not bad? Even Chief Engineer Liu hadn’t dared live here!
“Comrade Su Yun.”
Xiao Zhan removed his cap bearing the national emblem and hung it on the rack. Turning back, he stood upright.
Hands behind his back, chin slightly raised, the pressure of a special forces captain filled the space again.
“Since the organization assigned me this task, we need some ground rules.”
Su Yun leaned against the doorway, eyelids drooping.
Food coma. Sleepy.
“Go on,” she responded lazily.
“First, schedule.”
Xiao Zhan checked his worn Shanghai-brand watch. “Reveille is at six in the morning. You get up at six. I don’t keep idle people or lazy soldiers. Your blanket must be folded into a square, and your quarters kept tidy.”
Su Yun blinked but said nothing.
Six o’clock? That used to be her bedtime.
“Second, follow orders.”
He continued, gaze sharp. “Without my permission, you are not to leave this courtyard. You report before going to the bathroom, report before going to the mess hall—hell, even what you eat, you’d better inform me.”
Control freak.
Su Yun rolled her eyes internally but nodded obediently on the surface. “Okay.”
“Third.”
His voice suddenly rose, his expression turning fierce. “And most important—no crying!”
He pointed at her watery eyes, threatening viciously:
“If you shed even one more tear, I’ll throw you out into the Gobi to feed the lizards! Got it?!”
He meant it.
When she cried, he felt like he had committed some unforgivable crime—chills crawling through his bones.
It was worse than facing enemy bayonets.
“Got it.”
Su Yun yawned, a tear naturally forming at the corner of her eye. “Anything else? If not, I’m going to wash up.”
Xiao Zhan stared at that tear, fists clenching.
…That doesn’t count. It’s a natural reaction.
He comforted himself.
Su Yun turned into the inner room. On a wooden rack in the corner sat a chipped enamel basin with the “Double Happiness” logo. Beside it was a thermos filled with hot water specially sent by Liu Jianguo.
She walked over and reached for the thermos.
Heavy.
It was an old bamboo-shell thermos, filled to the brim—at least five or six jin in weight.
Her wrists were as thin as reeds. She barely lifted it before a sharp pain shot through her arm.
Clang!
The thermos dropped back onto the ground, hot water sloshing out and splashing onto the top of her foot.
“Hiss…”
Su Yun sucked in a breath, sliding down along the rack until she sat on the floor.
In the outer room, Xiao Zhan heard the noise.
Almost instinctively, he drew his gun, turned, and charged in.