"Hmph, that guy must be close to retirement by now. People from foreign armies often pull these stunts." Mo Yan’s mouth curled up dismissively as she picked up a small stone from the ground and tossed it away.
Shen Jingwei continued, "He said the Mercenary Corps doesn’t have an age restriction; as long as you have enough strength to protect yourself and complete missions, you’ll naturally obtain greater power and wealth."
"I’m not interested in that. He also said that once you become a mercenary, you can do things as you please, and no one or nothing will bother you again. Because you’ll be an active mercenary in the international community, it’s best to work for the United States, then your personal safety will have a greater guarantee."
Mo Yan, who always talked reason or resorted to fists, swore for the first time—and for a young kid, at that.
"Do you think by becoming a mercenary, you can run off to Beiping or somewhere else, kill Lei Bao, and perhaps even better, exterminate his whole family to avenge your uncle? In that way, no one will hold your uncle accountable, nor will anyone be able to catch you, because you’d have the United States as your protective shield. You might even become a celebrity in the mercenary world, gaining both fame and fortune?"
Shen Jingwei did not confirm or deny, still staring at the sunset in the distance.
This attitude infuriated Mo Yan, a man from a military family with the same xenophobia as the older generation, especially towards Japan and the United States.
Mo Yan’s attitude took Shen Jingwei by surprise, but he still stood up, quietly watching the beautiful girl in front of him with a piece of foxtail grass in his mouth. To Shen Jingwei, she was really just a girl—at least for the time being, she didn’t need a man to cool her down.
"How much do you know about your uncle?"
"My uncle is a great hero."
"But he has knelt before others. Huaxia’s heroes, they are not supposed to kneel."
Shen Jingwei’s mouth twitched, clearly unimpressed with Mo Yan’s statement.
"Your uncle is a soldier, and a steadfast one at that. Do you know for whom he will live the rest of his life? For those comrades whose fates are still unknown, and for those formidable opponents he cannot yet confront. Do you think with just your two hands you can avenge your uncle? Yes, you are formidable; at just fourteen you managed to fight the King of Northeast Tigers alone. If all the world’s problems could be resolved with Kung Fu, then the Eight-Nation Alliance would not have breached the Forbidden City."
"I don’t care. My uncle gave me my name; half my life is his. I once lost that half, and it was my uncle who picked it up. My whole life belongs to him."
"Oh, what a grateful tough guy you are! This little lady is nearly moved to tears by you. How about I take a photo of you and publish your name and heroic stance in the newspaper for the whole country to see what a man Shen Jingwei is?" Mo Yan’s tone dripped with biting sarcasm, "Your uncle must be so proud to have you as a nephew."
Shen Jingwei retorted with a pout, still a child at heart, silently choosing not to argue against women’s sharp words.
"What’s wrong, not satisfied with my compliments? What, do you think because I’m a woman, I can only run my mouth and not my fists?"
Although Shen Jingwei didn’t speak, his disdainful look seemed to agree with Mo Yan’s assertion. Mo Yan, folding her arms across her chest, watched him with utter contempt, "Alright then, I’m also not satisfied. Since you’re wearing this uniform, don’t whine here. Come at me, and if you can withstand three moves, I’ll immediately arrange for you to join the world’s best Mercenary Corps. Otherwise, you stay here and behave for a few more years, lest you go out and embarrass your uncle and your country!"
Mo Yan stepped back a few steps, but Shen Jingwei remained unmoved, still standing there.
"You don’t need to go easy on me; we can stop at light contact."
Seeing that Mo Yan wasn’t joking, Shen Jingwei asked, "Do the words you just said count?"
"If they didn’t count, why would I still be wearing this military uniform? Stop wasting words!"
Before Mo Yan could finish speaking, a gust of wind suddenly whipped towards her, fierce as a tiger and as ferocious as a wolf. With a scornful twitch of her mouth, Mo Yan kicked out.
Her kick was unrivaled in dominance.
With a dull "thud," the gust of wind was instantly sent flying backward, ending up landing awkwardly on the ground.
"Cough cough!" Shen Jingwei coughed twice, frowning as he spat out the dry yellow weeds filling his mouth and finally cleared the gritty taste of earth. Lying limp on the ground, it took him a while to recover his senses. Looking at the clear blue sky, he felt as if the sky had collapsed.
Attempting to move, aside from some pain in his chest from the kick, his limbs could still move. Shen Jingwei tried to stand, but as soon as he put strength into it, his chest felt like it was about to explode, preventing him from breathing, so he had no choice but to continue lying down.
Mo Yan approached Shen Jingwei nonchalantly, squatting down to look at this immature kid, her face full of disdain, "With your meager skills, you dream of becoming a mercenary overseas? Dream on!"
Shen Jingwei wanted to speak but couldn’t due to the immense pressure on his chest.
"Your uncle has his own path to follow. If you truly want to help him, then stay here properly; I will find you again someday. As for your age, it’s not a big deal. I remember there are special departments in the military that don’t consider age restrictions. If you’re interested, you could give it a try. But looking at you now, heh, just forget it."
Mo Yan was about to walk away when Shen Jingwei stopped her, "Wait... wait a moment."
"Who are the people bullying my uncle? Where do I need to climb to?"
At least he has some brains.
Mo Yan thought for a moment, looked at the mighty and formidable tank units in the distance, and turned to say, "The higher, the better. Your uncle is not on the same path as you, but it leads to the same destination; someday you’ll meet."
Shen Jingwei lay on the ground, gasping for breath while tilting his head to watch the camouflaged figure disappear from his sight.
Ye Tian would never believe that Zhen Yulin would just obediently listen to him after a beating, and hand over the slow rock gracefully. If it were that easy, he wouldn’t have spent over twenty years struggling in the competitive Tianhe City.