I put you in charge of those rebellious female soldiers, how come they all became top special forces

Chen Zheng put the boots back in their original place.

"Um."

Chen Zheng didn't say much to comfort him.

At times like these, saying too much is useless.

Now that we've come this far, the answer is getting closer and closer.

The two searched the brick kiln inside and out, and after confirming that there was no other movement for the time being, they found a place to stand on the inside.

Chen Zheng then dragged over a few bricks and planks and built a makeshift table.

Once the bag was opened, all the guns and magazines were laid out on top.

First, disassemble the two guns, wipe them with a gun cleaning cloth, then put the parts back in place one by one, and redistribute the magazines.

Which rounds should be loaded with tracer rounds, which with regular rounds, and which should be reserved for emergency use – all these need to be arranged carefully.

Anran squatted at the other end, spread out the scrap paper, and redraw the route according to the coordinates she had noted down and the old irrigation canal that Akun had mentioned.

Chen Zheng glanced at it and reminded him, "Add the emergency signal."

An Ran nodded and then wrote a few strokes on the corner of the paper.

"Two long lines and one short line indicate an immediate break-in."

"If three things are short, then we'll take a different path."

Chen Zheng nodded.

"Can."

Anran carefully pressed the paper down and looked up at the thermos on the corner of the table.

Several new scratches have appeared on the cup.

After cleaning a gun, Chen Zheng suddenly pushed the thermos cup over.

"If anything happens to me, take this back. You or An Jianjun can keep it."

An Ran paused, and without even thinking, pushed it back.

"If we're going to die, we'll die together. Don't try to shift the blame onto me."

Chen Zheng looked at her, and the corners of his mouth involuntarily curled up slightly.

"OK."

He paused, then bent down to wipe the gun.

After a while, he added a sentence.

"I also have a backup of the snow line on my terminal, stored in..."

Before she could finish speaking, An Ran slammed her hand on the table.

"Shut up!"

"Don't say things like that!"

Chen Zheng looked up.

An Ran stared at him, her eyes leaving no room for negotiation.

"You are not allowed to say a word."

Chen Zheng glanced at it for a few seconds, then simply hummed in response.

The brick kiln fell silent again.

After a moment, An Ran seemed to remember something, reached into her collar and pulled out the identification tag.

She stared at it for two seconds, then suddenly got up and stuffed it into the crack between the bricks in the corner of the wall.

The movement was small, but Chen Zheng still noticed it.

"What are you doing?"

An Ran paused for a moment, without turning around.

"Hide it here first."

"If they search us and take everything, we'll have nothing left."

Chen Zheng got up and walked over. He didn't take the identification tag away, but instead took a piece of rope, threaded it through the loop, and tied a knot.

She stood there calmly without moving.

He hung the rope around her neck and tucked it into her collar.

"Take your mother with you."

Upon hearing this, An Ran felt a lump in her throat.

She lowered her head and pressed the identification tag, trying not to lose her composure, and only gave a very soft "hmm".

After the preparations were completed, it was getting darker.

The two were finally able to sit for a while.

Anran leaned against the brick wall, slowly turning the straw rope bracelet on her wrist, lost in thought.

Chen Zheng sat opposite him, his back against the wall, with a cleaned gun beside him.

After a long silence, An Ran finally spoke.

"When I was a child, my mother taught me how to use a slingshot."

Chen Zheng looked up at her.

She looked down at the ground and said softly.

There's a row of empty cans in the yard.

"I keep missing, it's driving me crazy."

She pinned my hand down and said, "Whether it's accurate or not is a matter for later; let's just detain it first."

"I dare not deduct; it will never be accurate."

At this point, An Ran paused and smiled slightly.

She doesn't usually mention her mother much, but the atmosphere had gotten so heated that it would seem inappropriate not to.

Chen Zheng remained silent for a while before speaking.

"Someone else said something similar to me before."

Anran looked up.

"who."

Chen Zheng lowered his eyes and screwed on the bolt.

"An old friend."

"That's all."

An Ran stared at him for two seconds, knowing she wouldn't get an answer, so she simply stopped pursuing him.

She fiddled with the straw rope on her wrist, then suddenly asked again.

"What will become of that little girl in the future?"

Chen Zheng put the gun away and shrugged.

"That depends on whether Zhou Cheng is reliable or not."

An Ran laughed in exasperation.

"Can't you speak more politely?"

Chen Zheng didn't laugh, but his tone softened a little.

"She'll be alright."

After she finished speaking, An Ran remained quiet for a while.

After a long while, she finally looked up at Chen Zheng.

Why do you insist on staying with me?

"And why... are you so good to me?"

This time, Chen Zheng did not respond immediately.

The kerosene lamp flickered twice between the two of them.

His reply took a while to come.

Anran eventually assumed that the person was going to pretend not to hear again.

Chen Zhengcai spoke in a low voice.

"Because if it were me, I wouldn't want to go alone either."

"You deserve my staying too."

An Ran was taken aback for a moment.

Then, he immediately turned his head to the side, not wanting the other person to see his expression.

He spoke after a long pause.

"You really know how to pick your moments."

Chen Zheng hummed in agreement.

"good."

An Ran took a breath; her eyes were still a little hot.

Fortunately, the man didn't finish the job.

The night deepened little by little.

Chen Zheng glanced at his watch, got up, and moved the kerosene lamp to a position against the wall.

"You go to sleep first."

"I'll keep watch for the first half of the night."

Anran agreed verbally, but after lying down, she turned over several times and still couldn't close her eyes.

It wasn't just because the brick floor was hard, but also because my mind was in a mess.

She simply sat up, hugged her knees, and moved to the wall.

Let's go together.

Chen Zheng turned his head to look at her.

"I told you to go to sleep."

Anran sat up against the wall and said softly, "I can't sleep."

"Besides, what if you get bored to death keeping watch all by yourself?"

Chen Zheng was amused.

"You're about to die, and you're worried I'll be bored."

An Ran rolled her eyes at him.

"This isn't something that can be done casually."

The two sat there, separated by a nearly empty kerosene lamp.

No one tried to start a conversation.

An Ran realized that as long as Chen Zheng was around, she always felt that no matter how big the problem was, it wouldn't be a problem.

In the latter half of the night, she could no longer stay awake, her eyelids drooped little by little, and she gradually fell into a state of half sleep and half wakefulness.

Chen Zheng reached out and helped her straighten her head, then pulled his coat closer to her.

The movement paused for a moment when the fingertips touched the straw rope bracelet.

The lamplight illuminated the yellowed straw rope.

"So ugly."

……

early morning.

When An Ran woke up groggily, Chen Zheng was standing by the window stretching his shoulders.

She rubbed her eyes; her voice was a little hoarse.

"What time is it?"

"It's time to go."

Chen Zheng turned his head and glanced at her.

"safely."

"Um."

"If we all come out alive."

Upon hearing this, An Ran sat up straight and instantly became fully awake.

She stared at Chen Zheng, waiting for him to continue.

Chen Zheng paused for two seconds, then a slight smile finally appeared on his lips.

"I'll treat you to some goji berry tea."

An Ran was taken aback at first.

The next second, she rolled her eyes.

"Are you sick in the head?"

Chen Zheng smiled, tucked the gun behind his waist, picked up his bag, and walked towards the door.

"Let's go."