At the foot of the mountain, a man and a woman dressed in camouflage uniforms walked forward with backpacks on their backs.
Su Quyun had a gentle and somewhat shy personality.
She simply followed Lu Yun step by step without saying much, making the journey rather quiet.
Lu Yun deliberately slowed his pace.
Since they had started earlier than usual, he wasn’t in much of a hurry.
Finally, he broke the silence first.
“What’s the event that’s coming up in a few days?”
Su Quyun quickly replied, “It’s the third anniversary of the Fire Phoenix Special Forces Base. Didn’t you know?”
Lu Yun shook his head.
Only then did he realize why everyone had been taking the preparations so seriously—it was the base’s third anniversary celebration.
He asked again, “Don’t you need to rehearse?”
“I can practice on my own. Nobody really keeps an eye on me.” Su Quyun walked closer to him.
“I wanted to come into the mountains to clear my head and maybe find some inspiration. I don’t want to stay cooped up in the base all the time.”
“Hmm? Inspiration?”
“Yeah. I want to write a song, but I haven’t come up with any good ideas yet.” She looked a little troubled.
“Are you an outside recruit?” Lu Yun asked in surprise.
Many people in the performing arts troupe had been recruited from outside the military, and even those who weren’t often had connections to the entertainment industry.
“No. My father sent me here, but I’ve always loved singing.” Su Quyun smiled as she explained.
Lu Yun nodded and changed the subject.
“Why did you go to Mingri High School that day?”
“The music teacher there is one of my classmates. She said she’d help me write a song, so I went to see her. But I didn’t really like the song, and then that incident happened.”
“I see.”
Lu Yun smiled in understanding.
Blinking curiously, Su Quyun asked, “Why are you coming into the mountains?”
“To make a bow.”
“Oh.”
The memory stirred her emotions.
Before long, they arrived at the outdoor training grounds, where countless soldiers were sweating under the blazing sun as they went through various exercises.
“It’s Lu Yun!”
“That guy’s here again!”
“Damn, this time he even brought a beautiful girl with him. Isn’t she the star of the performing arts troupe?”
“That’s right, I know her. She’s gorgeous!”
“How did she end up with Lu Yun? This is so unfair!”
The soldiers whispered among themselves.
Their eyes were full of admiration when they looked at Su Quyun, but when they looked at Lu Yun, they were filled with envy and resentment.
After walking for another half hour, they ran into Lei Zhan and his team, who were driving an off-road vehicle.
Lu Yun didn’t even glance at them and continued walking beside Su Quyun, chatting and laughing.
Inside the vehicle, Old Fox looked at the pair’s backs and muttered, “The guy already has eighteen wives, and now he’s flirting outside too?”
Yan Wang sighed.
“Even if he’s a spoiled rich kid who doesn’t study or train, his luck with women is unbelievable. I don’t even have a girlfriend yet.”
“Hmph!”
Lei Zhan’s face darkened as he thought of An Ran.
Looking at Su Quyun walking beside Lu Yun only made him feel worse.
“What kind of world is this? Is there no justice anymore?”
After thinking for a moment, he muttered gloomily, “No, I have to tell An Ran. She needs to know Lu Yun isn’t a good person.”
By the time they had left the military zone behind, it was already one in the afternoon.
Both of them were exhausted.
The mountain paths were rugged, and the humid weather quickly drained their strength.
Sweat soaked their clothes, making them sticky and uncomfortable.
Yet they still had to wear long sleeves to protect themselves from insects.
“Let’s rest for a bit,” Lu Yun said as he sat down on a rock beneath a large tree.
Su Quyun quickly sat beside him, fanning herself with her hand, though it did little to cool her down.
She took out two bottles of water and handed one to Lu Yun.
“Here.”
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Lu Yun accepted it and took some food from his backpack, sharing it with her.
She happily accepted it and ate in small bites.
After resting for a while, they prepared to continue.
Seeing that Su Quyun’s fair face had already turned bright red from the heat, Lu Yun said, “There’s still a long way to go, and the road ahead is even worse. If you can’t keep going, you should head back.”
Su Quyun immediately shook her head and looked at him pitifully.
“I’m not going back. We’ve already come this far. Don’t leave me behind.”
Lu Yun sighed helplessly and waved his hand.
“All right, let’s go.”
The two continued on their journey.
Although Su Quyun had a gentle personality, her physical condition was actually quite good.
She had probably gone through recruit training before.
Even though she was tired, she gritted her teeth and kept going.
After a while, she asked, “What exactly are you looking for in the mountains?”
Lu Yun replied, “Wood, horn, sinew, glue, silk, and lacquer.”
Su Quyun froze.
“Huh? What are all those?”
Lu Yun smiled and explained each material to her.
Only then did she understand.
“Then I’ll help you look for them too. Two people searching will definitely be faster than one.”
Lu Yun nodded.
“Okay.”
As they walked, Lu Yun searched for materials while thinking about his future plans.
Although he was skilled with pistols, firearms had many limitations.
In some situations, bows were actually more powerful.
A bow could be used for both long-range attacks and close combat, had tremendous power, and was easy to carry.
In many circumstances, it was even more convenient than a gun.