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

In the city, by the Weiming Lake.

The late autumn wind swirled golden ginkgo leaves, gently scattering them onto the stone path. Not far away, in front of the National Advanced Science and Technology Laboratory Building, stood a black granite monument, taller than two people. The monument bore no lengthy inscriptions, only nine characters carved in bold, vigorous strokes:

Though there be thousands, I will go. —Liu Ming

This is a monument erected five years ago after the world-shaking breakthrough in the chip industry, which was established through a joint petition signed by thousands of young researchers who applied to higher authorities and were ultimately granted permission to do so.

At this moment, a group of young students who had just finished their postgraduate thesis defense were gathered in front of the stone tablet.

"Senior, are you really planning to give up a three-million-dollar annual salary at a quantitative hedge fund on Wall Street to go to the far northwest and work on deep-space propulsion?"

A young man wearing black-rimmed glasses held two completely different letters of intent in his hands, looking at the young man next to him with a conflicted expression.

The young man was clean-cut, wearing a slightly faded school uniform, but his eyes were as clear as a mountain spring. He didn't answer directly, but simply reached out and gently stroked the cold stone tablet.

"Three million is indeed quite tempting."

The young man smiled, a burning fervor flashing in his eyes:

"But ten years ago, when General Manager Liu was just a junior clerk in Qingyun County, he didn't even blink when faced with the temptation of billions of yuan. Later, when he commanded the fleet in the East China Sea, he even forced the commanders of two Western aircraft carrier groups to the negotiating table and confess their crimes."

He was only in his early thirties at the time.

The young man turned around, patted his companion on the shoulder, his tone calm but revealing a stubbornness that refused to turn back even after hitting a wall:

"Our generation was born with plenty of food, and what we saw when we opened our eyes was space stations and nuclear fusion. If all we top university graduates are thinking about is going to the financial market to manipulate numbers and exploit ordinary people, then Mr. Liu, the blood they shed in the quagmire back then will have been wasted."

"The Northwest is a tough place."

"But in the sky there, there is a star map that belongs to our Dragon Kingdom."

……

Similar sounds can be heard everywhere across this vast land of Kyushu.

In the high-tech industrial park in Jiangnan Province, newly graduated programmers printed out Liu Ming's "New Policy Memorandum" from back then and posted it in the most conspicuous place at their workstations. When they encountered technical bottlenecks, they would work for three days and three nights in a row, refusing to admit defeat to the overseas compradors.

At a remote border post, young border guards meticulously wrote the word "Shura" on the inside of their helmets, and, braving blizzards of minus forty degrees Celsius, polished the boundary marker until it shone brighter than their own eyes.

In debates at various universities, when someone questions whether young people should pursue stability too early, the opposing side always pulls out a photo of Liu Ming tearing up an unequal treaty at the National Development and Reform Commission, and that one sentence is enough to bring the whole audience to a standing ovation.

"Stability is earned through force, not by begging on your knees!"

Liu Ming is no longer just a senior advisor living within the confines of official documents and red ribbons.

He became a symbol.

It became a large, fluttering red flag.

Deep within countless young, passionate, and unconventional souls, he is a spiritual totem that can never be eroded by storms.

……

In the evening, at a long-established braised pork restaurant in Nanluoguxiang, the city.

The shop was cramped, but steaming hot. The air was filled with the familiar aroma of broth, the spiciness of garlic, and the smell of smoke.

Liu Ming sat in the corner by the window, wearing an ordinary dark blue fleece sweater, holding a clove of peeled raw garlic in her hand, her forehead slightly sweating as she ate it.

Across the table sat Lu Chen, dressed in casual clothes.

Lu Chen is now a highly influential minister in the council, with a stack of confidential documents he reviews every day taller than a person. But in front of Liu Ming, he still habitually rushes to the front desk to serve two steaming bowls of pork intestines, just like he did back in Ningzhou.

"Brother, you're really living like a god now."

Lu Chen chewed on a flatbread, wiped the oil from the corner of his mouth, and his eyes held a hint of envy and amusement:

"Today I went to the Party School to give a report to the training class for young cadres. During the Q&A session after class, those troublemakers selected from all over the country asked me twenty questions, eighteen of which were about my private life. They asked what kind of tea I usually like to drink, how many mercenaries I have killed on the border, and one young girl even asked me how my three wives at home get along peacefully."

"puff--"

Liu Ming almost spat out the mouthful of hot soup she had just taken a sip of.

He rolled his eyes, threw the peeled garlic into his mouth, and crushed it fiercely.

"These little bastards, instead of studying macroeconomics properly, they're always fussing over this gossip. Go talk to the academic affairs office and double the physical fitness test standards. Anyone who can't run at least five kilometers should be sent back to their hometown."

"Hahaha!"

Lu Chen burst into laughter, which drew the attention of several diners around him. However, no one could recognize that the two men sitting in the small, unassuming restaurant, munching on offal, were the most powerful figures on this planet.

After laughing for a moment, Lu Chen's gaze slowly darkened, and his tone took on a rare solemnity:

"Seriously, bro."

"This chapter of history has been completely turned over."

"The internal traitors have been thoroughly investigated, the West has been subdued, and the space base has been completed. You've only just turned forty this year, which should be the golden age for you to take charge of the central leadership and make great strides. Several senior leaders at the top were discussing privately the day before yesterday that they wanted you to officially take on the responsibility of leading the next term."

"You...are you really planning to give up completely?"

Liu Ming put down the white porcelain spoon in her hand.

The spoon struck the rim of the bowl with a crisp "clang".

He turned his head and looked out the window at the old street, which was dyed red by the setting sun. Several primary school students wearing red scarves were chasing each other past, and the crisp sound of bicycle bells echoed among the blue bricks and gray tiles. Not far away, under a big tree, several old men were arguing heatedly over a game of chess.

Peaceful. Calm. Without killing or bloodshed.

"Senior brother, look outside."

Liu Ming's voice was soft, yet it conveyed a sense of clarity and acceptance that came from traversing countless mountains and rivers:

"My father gave his life to break through the barriers. Old Lin worked until he was ninety-nine to protect this family business. I left the military at the age of twenty-six, and I've lost count of the blood on my hands and the infamy I've carried on my back."

"I've been both the sword and the shield."

Liu Ming turned her head, looked at Lu Chen's weathered face, and a proud yet warm smile appeared on her lips:

"But the wheels of time are ultimately not pulled by any one person."

"I paved the way for them."

"I chopped down all those jackals, wolves, tigers, and leopards that dared to block my way."

"In Kyushu today, there are tens of millions of young people who are smarter, braver, and less burdened than I was back then. They will fly spaceships to Mars, and they will write new rules all over the galaxy."

Liu Ming pulled out a rough napkin, wiped her hands, and casually threw it into the trash can.

"And me? My mission is accomplished."

"It's good to be a totem."

"Standing atop the mountain, serving as a landmark for future generations is enough. If one were to stand in the main hall every day pointing fingers and gesturing, one would become an annoying old coffin interior."

Lu Chen stared at him for a very long time.

His gaze shifted from incomprehension to shock, and finally culminated in a long, heartfelt sigh.

"A peerless hero..."

Lu Chen picked up his water glass and solemnly toasted Liu Ming:

"You can bear these four words, and you can also let them go."

……

Night fell completely.

Liu Ming bid farewell to Lu Chen, and instead of taking a private car, she strolled slowly back along the alley with her hands in her pockets.

The cool autumn night breeze ruffled his short hair, brushing past a faint old scar on his forehead. In the distance, the giant neon lights of the city's commercial center tumbled beneath the clouds, and occasionally, a faint, ethereal blue streak would flash across the night sky—a civilian cargo spacecraft traveling between Earth and the Moon.

This is a magnificent era.

It was also a golden age where no one dared to look down on even a fraction of the land.

Push open the heavy wooden door of the courtyard house.

The lights in the courtyard were warm and inviting.

Under the grape trellis, Xi Wanqing, wearing her reading glasses, was helping her youngest son check his homework; Nangong Yao, leaning back in a rocking chair, was holding a glass of red wine and whispering something to the president of the European branch in a video conference; Lin Xiaoxiao, with her sleeves rolled up, was loudly directing several guards to set up a copper hot pot in the corner of the yard.

"Dad! You're finally back!"

The youngest son, Liu Nian, rushed over like a cannonball, grabbed Liu Ming's leg, and tilted his head back excitedly.

"Our history teacher told your story today! All the classmates wanted my autograph! Dad, were you really that amazing? They said you could take on a hundred special forces soldiers all by yourself, is that true?"

Liu Ming laughed heartily, picked up her son, and carried him on her shoulders.

Nangong Yao closed her laptop and looked over. Xi Wanqing put down her red pen, smiled, and looked up. Lin Xiaoxiao even took a skewer of freshly skewered lamb and stuffed it into his mouth.

The warmth of human life filling the courtyard instantly melted away the demon who had once conquered the world.

The echoes of the story resonate throughout the long river of history.

The clash of swords, the scheming and plotting, the solitary courage and battles in the long night, finally came to a slow end in this warm and welcoming courtyard.

At this moment, Liu Ming's red peak was forever frozen by time into an immortal monument.

"The pot's boiling!"

Lin Xiaoxiao lifted the lid of the copper pot, and a rich aroma, along with white steam, rose up, blurring everyone's vision.

Xi Wanqing handed over a pair of chopsticks, and Nangong Yao poured a full glass of mellow old wine.

Three stunningly beautiful women turned around at the same time, smiling, and looked at the man standing in the dim light.

"Advisor Liu, tonight's toast—is it to your past arrogance, or to your present composure?"

Liu Ming took the chopsticks, ate the meat in big bites, and tilted his head back to drink the strong liquor in his glass.

Looking at his loved ones filling the courtyard and the dazzling starry sky above, the sharpness in his eyes transformed into boundless pride and relief.

"Respect for tomorrow."

Liu Ming laughed loudly, his clear voice echoing throughout the entire courtyard:

"Salute to the young people of Kyushu, each generation more daring than the last!"