Special forces soldier demobilization: Starting from the county government compound, a meteoric rise

"Squeak—"

The heavy wooden door of the courtyard house, its paint peeling, was pushed open by a hand wearing white gloves.

Liu Ming was sitting on a stone bench in the courtyard, holding a freshly peeled boiled egg in his hand. He subconsciously looked up, and his previously cloudy gaze instantly cleared when it fell on the figure at the door.

What a magnificent sight it was, enough to make the world pale in comparison!

A crisp, wrinkle-free dark green army uniform accentuated his tall and agile figure. The two golden stars on his shoulders gleamed in the sunlight.

Those were medals earned through real combat achievements. His long, black hair was neatly coiled under his military cap, revealing a fair, capable face with a touch of cynicism and wildness.

Lin Xiaoxiao.

The "Little Witch of the Lin Family" back then. Later, a special forces commander. Now, one of the youngest female generals in the Chinese military.

She strode into the courtyard with rhythmic steps, her thick-soled leather boots clicking crisply on the blue bricks. The chilling aura emanating from the carnage instantly turned the previously leisurely atmosphere in the courtyard heavy.

Liu Ming looked at her, and a genuine smile gradually appeared on her lips.

"Oh, isn't this our General Lin?"

Liu Ming put the eggs back on the plate and joked, "Why are you out here so early in the morning, instead of going back to command post to stare at the map, coming to this old man's yard to mooch tea?"

"master!"

Lin Xiaoxiao's solemn expression crumbled instantly upon hearing the word "Master." She quickened her pace, taking a few strides to Liu Ming and, like a child clamoring for candy, unabashedly took his arm.

"You're making fun of me again! What great general? In front of you, I'll always be that little apprentice you threw into the mud with an over-the-shoulder throw."

With that one word, the "Valkyrie" who once dominated the border vanished. In her place came the "little fangirl" who had caused Liu Ming a lifetime of headaches.

"Never serious."

Liu Ming shook her head helplessly and gestured for her to sit down. "Wanqing is making desserts inside. If you had come two minutes later, those two gluttons would probably have washed all the plates clean."

"Sister Wanqing is here too?" Lin Xiaoxiao's eyes lit up. She grabbed the teacup on Liu Ming's table and took a big gulp. "I was so thirsty. I had a three-hour video conference at the ministry just now. Those old fogies were so noisy, they gave me a headache."

As Liu Ming watched her drink water, her unpretentious and forthright manner reminded him of the girl with a face covered in mud but a stubborn look in her eyes back on the training field.

"Is it still because of the outfit change?"

"Um."

Lin Xiaoxiao put down her cup, a sharp glint in her eyes. "Those people are clinging to the old rules. They think drones and exoskeletons are just aids, and the real battle still has to be fought with human lives. I had a fight with them and shut them down."

"So you came here to find some peace and quiet?"

Not entirely.

Lin Xiaoxiao suddenly stood up. She took two steps back and stood in the open space in the center of the courtyard. She deftly unbuttoned the top two buttons of her military uniform jacket, casually took off her military cap, and tossed it onto the stone table. Her long hair instantly cascaded down, flying wildly in the autumn wind.

"Master, it's been three years. I want to see how much my 'killing skills' have deteriorated since then."

Her gaze changed, becoming like that of a lone wolf on the polar ice cap, cold and aggressive. It was the unique gaze of "Dragon Fang".

Liu Ming leaned back in his chair, watching Lin Xiaoxiao strike a perfectly standard fighting stance. A faint flame of fighting spirit flickered within him.

"You want to fight me?" Liu Ming looked at her with a half-smile. "Xiaoxiao, you're a general now. If your subordinates see you getting beaten to a pulp here, where will your authority go?"

"Hey, now that I've defeated you, my prestige will truly reach the heavens!"

Before she could finish speaking, Lin Xiaoxiao moved.

She slammed her toes off the blue bricks, and like a streak of dark green lightning, she instantly closed in on Liu Ming! A fierce sweeping kick, accompanied by a sharp whooshing sound, aimed straight for Liu Ming's waist!

Fast! Accurate! Ruthless!

This move already shows about 70% of Liu Ming's skill from back then.

Liu Ming did not move. Just as the leather boot was about to touch his clothes, he slightly stepped back with his right foot and twisted his waist at an extremely strange angle.

"Whoosh—" The leg brushed past his clothes.

"Not bad, the speed is faster, but the power is not stable enough."

Liu Ming commented casually, then stood up. His previously hunched back straightened abruptly, as if an ancient spear that had been dormant for thousands of years had suddenly revealed its sharpness enough to pierce the sky.

"Again!"

Lin Xiaoxiao's fighting spirit intensified. She flipped over to regain her balance, her hands transforming into a flurry of afterimages as each punch and palm strike aimed directly at Liu Ming's vital points.

That was the killer move Liu Ming taught her, and also the purest form of violent aesthetics in the world.

Liu Ming kept one hand behind his back, his footwork as light as a leisurely stroll, defusing Lin Xiaoxiao's overwhelming attacks one by one within a small space.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The dull thuds of flesh colliding echoed in the courtyard.

Xi Wanqing and Nangong Yao, who were in the kitchen, came out when they heard the noise. They leaned against the door frame, holding rolling pins and flour, and looked at the two intertwined figures in the yard.

They didn't panic, nor did they try to stop them. They just watched quietly, their eyes filled with tenderness and longing.

They knew that this was a unique way of communicating between these two "madmen," and also the special bond between them that transcended life and death.

"Xiaoxiao's kung fu has improved quite a bit," Nangong Yao commented.

"Yes, if she weren't wearing this outfit, who would guess that she's the Blood Rose who strikes fear into the hearts of foreign powers?" Xi Wanqing sighed softly.

In the arena, Liu Ming seized an opening when Lin Xiaoxiao was exhausted. He suddenly stepped forward, his shoulder thrusting forward, and crashed directly into Lin Xiaoxiao's center goal.

"ah!"

Lin Xiaoxiao felt an overwhelming force surge towards her. Her body flew backward uncontrollably.

With lightning speed, Liu Ming stretched out his arm and, just as Lin Xiaoxiao was about to fall, firmly grabbed her waist and pulled her back.

Lin Xiaoxiao was panting heavily, her beautiful face covered in glistening beads of sweat, and her bright eyes were filled with an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.

"I still can't beat you."

She pouted slightly in annoyance, then smiled like a little fox who had stolen a chicken. "But Master, your move 'Mountain Lean' just now seemed a fraction of a second too slow. It seems that the hustle and bustle of the city has indeed made you gentler."

Liu Ming released her hand and tapped her forehead in an annoyed manner.

"That's because I'm afraid you'll damage your new clothes and I won't be able to afford to pay for them."

Liu Ming sat back down on the stone bench and looked at the girl standing in front of him, who was panting heavily but whose spine was still straight.

This little follower from back then, this crybaby who always pestered him to teach her martial arts, has now truly grown up.

She not only learned his killing skills, but she also took up the banner from his hands, safeguarding every inch of peace and tranquility in this beautiful land.

"Xiaoxiao." Liu Ming's tone became serious.

"exist!"

Lin Xiaoxiao instinctively brought her legs together. She subconsciously straightened her chest, a display of military discipline ingrained in her bones.

"I've done a good job in southern Xinjiang these past few years."

Liu Ming's gaze softened. "The organization remembers the border residents you rescued, and the overseas outposts you destroyed, and I remember them too. You didn't disgrace your grandfather, nor did you disgrace me, your adopted master."

Hearing Liu Ming's praise, Lin Xiaoxiao's previously carefree expression gradually subsided, and the disguise of the "little witch" disappeared. In its place was the purest sincerity of a general who was responsible for guarding the land and defending the country's borders.

She looked at Liu Ming. She looked at the man who had once been her only war god, and the goal she had strived for her entire life.

She took a deep breath, and slowly and solemnly raised her right hand to give the most standard and weighty military salute of her life to the old man sitting on the stone bench in civilian clothes.

Golden sunlight shone on her fingertips and on the two shining stars.

"Reporting, Instructor!"

Lin Xiaoxiao's voice was clear and loud, echoing for a long time in the ancient alley.

"Lin Xiaoxiao didn't let you down!"