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

In the city, the last rain of late autumn fell softly on the courtyard house that had witnessed a century of history.

The jujube tree has lost all its leaves, and its bare branches tremble slightly in the cold wind, as if silently sobbing for the departure of someone.

Liu Ming was sitting in his study, processing a confidential document about the Nantianmen Project, when suddenly, the red encrypted phone on his desk rang urgently.

"Ring ring—"

The sound, in the dead of night, was particularly jarring and terrifying.

Liu Ming's hand froze in mid-air. As someone who had crawled out of piles of corpses, he had an almost pathological intuition for this kind of warning ringtone. He answered the phone.

"I am Liu Ming."

On the other end of the phone, there was an extremely long silence. Only heavy, suppressed breathing could be heard.

"Director Liu..."

That was the voice of guard Xiao Wang, so hoarse it was almost unrecognizable, carrying a heartbreaking sense of brokenness.

"The sir... the sir is gone."

"boom--"

Liu Ming felt as if a bomb had been dropped into her mind, and her mind went completely blank.

"What did you say?"

He heard his own voice trembling. It was an uncontrollable shudder from the depths of his soul.

Five minutes ago.

Xiao Wang finally burst into tears on the other end of the line, hysterical and without restraint.

"He passed away in his sleep."

"The doctor said he passed away peacefully without suffering."

……

2:00 AM, PLA General Hospital, Special Care Ward.

The entire corridor had been completely sealed off by fully armed internal security forces. There was no noise or commotion, only pairs of bloodshot eyes and steel guns tightly gripped in their hands.

Everyone here is like a stone statue whose soul has been taken away, because they know that the old marshal who once supported the military spirit of the nine provinces with his big hands, the one whose name made foreign enemies tremble at the mere mention of his name, has truly taken his final bow.

Liu Ming pushed open the door to the ward, his steps heavy. So heavy it felt as if each step was on a knife's edge.

In the ward, three women had already arrived. Lin Xiaoxiao collapsed to the ground, crying, while Nangong Yao and Xi Wanqing supported her on either side, their faces also covered in wet tears.

Old Master Lin lay quietly beneath the pristine white sheets, his face still as dignified as ever, but those eyes, which always gleamed with a sharp light, would never open again. He truly passed away peacefully.

There was even a very subtle, satisfied smile on his lips, as if he had seen some kind of prosperous and glorious era.

Ninety-nine years old is considered a happy death in folk tradition, but for Liu Ming, it felt like the sky had fallen.

Liu Ming walked to the bedside. He didn't cry or shout. He simply stretched out his calloused hand and gently, very slowly, took Lin Lao's already cold hand in his.

"grandfather."

He murmured softly, his voice hoarse as if a rusty iron saw were gliding across a whetstone.

Memories, like a floodgate opened, instantly overwhelmed him.

He recalled those days at the border. He had disobeyed orders to rescue his comrades, and it was this old man who, at a meeting where the entire army was being criticized, slammed his hand on the table and roared:

"Who dares to touch Liu Pojun's grandson? I'll be the first to kill him!"

He remembered when he first arrived in the city and faced the encirclement and suppression by those interest groups, it was this old man who personally brought him a bowl of dumplings on New Year's Eve.

He laughed and said, "Xiao Ming, go for it. Even if the sky falls, your old bones can still hold you up for a few more days."

He recalled how, on the eve of the East China Sea naval battle, the old man, disregarding the doctor's objections, insisted on wearing the military uniform covered with medals.

He stood ramrod straight in the sunlight and said to him:

"Go, let the world see just how tough the blood of the Lin family really is."

……

"Liu... Brother Liu Ming..."

Lin Xiaoxiao sobbed and threw herself into Liu Ming's arms. She cried like a child who had lost the whole world.

"Grandpa is gone... He doesn't want Xiaoxiao anymore... He'll never scold me again..."

Liu Ming held her tightly, his gaze never leaving her aged face. This old man had witnessed Kyushu rise from the ruins and the dragon awaken from the abyss.

He also witnessed his own transformation from a lone wolf filled with hatred into a national hero.

He was his guide, his protector, and, most importantly, the relative in the world who was most like a father to him.

"Xiaoxiao, don't cry."

Liu Ming gently stroked the back of her head. His eyes were so red they were almost bleeding, but the strength of a special forces soldier prevented him from letting the tears fall.

"Grandpa is tired. He's fought all his life, it's time for him to rest."

At this moment, several generals who already held significant positions in the capital solemnly entered the ward. They all gave the highest-level military salute to Elder Lin's remains.

General Zhang, the tough guy who had threatened to tear down someone's roof at Liu Ming's family banquet, now had tears in his eyes.

"Mr. Liu."

General Zhang walked up to Liu Ming, his voice choked with emotion.

"Before leaving, the officer was conscious for three minutes. He knew we were coming and gave us a few instructions."

Liu Ming looked up, her gaze sharp.

"The officer said that from now on, the Lin family's army will only recognize the rules of 'Dragon Fang'."

He said, "A major transformation is just around the corner. We cannot lose our traditional foundation, and we cannot be weak-willed."

"at last……"

General Zhang paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and looked at Liu Ming with a heavy look in his eyes that seemed to entrust her with his life.

"...The officer told us all to leave. He said he wanted to leave his last words to you."

……

The ward fell silent again. Liu Ming told the three women to go to the outer room to rest. He sat back down by Old Master Lin's bedside alone.

He held that aged hand, pressed it against his cheek, and felt the last bit of warmth fading away.

"grandfather."

Liu Ming said softly.

"What do you want to tell me? Are you scolding me for being useless, or do you want me to take better care of Xiaoxiao?"

Whether it was an illusion or not, under the cold light, Old Lin's eyes seemed to twitch slightly, and a murky tear slowly slid down the corner of his eye, which was covered with age spots.

Liu Ming leaned close to his ear and held her breath.

"...Little...Ming..."

The extremely faint sound seemed to come from the far end of time and space, or like the sigh of the wind blowing through the pine forest.

Liu Ming's muscles tensed instantly, and he gripped Old Lin's hand tightly, his knuckles turning white.

"I'm here! Grandpa! I'm here!"

"...Our...family...has...grown...up..."

The old man's voice was broken and intermittent, yet it carried an unprecedented and extremely complex longing.

"...From now on...the wind...will be...stronger..."

He was breathing heavily, each word seemingly requiring all his strength.

"...Don't...be afraid..."

Suddenly, with a burst of its last bit of strength, Old Lin's icy hand gripped Liu Ming's wrist tightly.

At this moment, his already cloudy eyes miraculously opened a crack, and inside, there was still that invincible aura that made heaven and earth tremble—the aura of the founding war god!

He stared intently at Liu Ming, as if trying to infuse all the iron will and determination he had accumulated throughout his life into the very bones of his successor through that single glance.

"...Little...Ming..."

"...Protect...our...home..."

These are the last six words he left for the world, and also the last military order he left for Liu Ming.

"Snap." The old man's hand fell limply onto the bedsheet. Those hands, which had once commanded armies and guided the nation, had completely lost their warmth. On the monitor, the curve that had been pulsating for ninety-nine years had finally become a blank.

Eternal, cold. A straight line.

……

"ah--!!!"

Suddenly, a heart-wrenching howl, like that of a lone wolf in dire straits, erupted from the ward.

Liu Ming knelt before the bed, burying his head deeply in Old Lin's palm. His shoulders trembled violently, and the tears that had been building up for years finally burst forth at this moment.

He personally saw off the last powerful figure who had supported him in his life.

The rain outside was falling harder and harder.

When the ward door reopened, Liu Ming stood up. He wiped away the tears on his face, and his face, which had been slightly dejected due to grief, became colder and more ruthless than ever before.

More powerful than ever before.

He took the general's hat from General Zhang and solemnly put it on his head.

He looked out the window at the pitch-black night, at the capital city swaying in the wind and rain.

He knew that from this day forward, he would be the new pillar of stability in this land of China.

"Send a telegram."

Liu Ming's voice was cold and filled with overwhelming authority.

"The entire army."

"Hang white flowers."

"To the superior..."

"...Seeing them off."