Rebirth of a Mercenary: The Ace Mercenary Forced to Be the Beloved of the Group

Lu Xiao leaned against a pillar in the corridor on the second floor of the office building, holding a bottle of mineral water in his hand, but didn't drink it. His gaze swept across the parade ground, over the running track, and landed precisely on a row of new recruits lying on the ground, holding their guns.

"Old Li."

Li Mo was leaning against the wall at the other end of the corridor, flipping through a training manual. Hearing this, he looked up and asked, "What's wrong?"

"That bastard Zhao Lei is pulling on Xiaobaicai's gun."

Li Mo's fingers, which were turning the page, stopped.

"It was pulled three times. The last time it was pulled with a lot of force, and Xiaobaicai's elbow must have been rubbed raw."

Li Mo put the manual on the windowsill and turned to walk towards the stairwell.

Lu Xiao was stunned for a moment, then quickly chased after him.

"Old Li! Where are you going!"

"Have a good talk with that bastard."

Lu Xiao felt a chill run down his spine. Last time, Li Mo said he wanted to "have a good talk" with the Third Company Commander. The Third Company Commander was thrown seven times by him in the combat training field, and the last time he was directly choked unconscious by a lock.

Lu Xiao caught up with him in three quick steps and grabbed Li Mo's arm.

"Calm down, calm down, calm down—"

Li Mo paused for a moment, pulled by him, and turned her head.

"I am very calm."

"Calm down my ass! Your eyes are practically frozen!"

Li Mo did not refute this statement. He shook off Lu Xiao's hand and continued walking forward.

Lu Xiao chased after him again, this time going around to Li Mo's front, walking backwards, and blocking his way with his arms outstretched.

"Old Li, listen to me. That's rifle stance training. That's how rifle stance training is done. How can the squad leader know if the recruit is gripping the rifle tightly or if the posture is correct if he doesn't pull the rifle? This is training, not targeting anyone. You know Zhao Lei, he treats all recruits like this, not just targeting Xiao Baicai."

Li Mo didn't stop. Lu Xiao was forced to retreat, his heel already touching the first step of the stairs.

Lu Xiao took a deep breath and changed his strategy. He stopped retreating, steadied himself, and placed his hands on Li Mo's shoulders.

"Okay. So what if Little Cabbage's elbows get bruised? What then?"

Li Mo looked at him.

"It's inevitable to get injured in the military. You'll get blisters from wielding a gun, blisters from marching, and bruises from hand-to-hand combat. These are all commonplace."

Li Mo's jawline tightened.

"He's different."

"What's different?"

Li Mo opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything.

Lu Xiao spoke for him.

"Because he's Bai Chen's younger brother? Because he's been pampered like a little princess by all of us since he was little? Because he has such delicate skin and doesn't look like someone who should be suffering?"

Li Mo did not deny it.

Lu Xiao took his hand off his shoulder, his tone softening from its previous urgency.

"Old Li, think about it. Why did Xiao Baicai want to join the army?"

Li Mo didn't reply.

"He must have come to find his brother. Bai Chen has been missing for three years, and the military has concluded that he was 'presumed dead,' but he doesn't believe it. So he came. A sixteen-year-old kid, giving up a peaceful life to come to the military camp to suffer, to be tortured, to have his elbows rubbed against gun barrels. What's he after?"

Lu Xiao paused for a moment.

"He's as stubborn as his brother. Once Bai Chen makes up his mind, nothing can change it. Xiao Baicai is the same. He's decided to join the army, he's decided to find his brother, do you think we can stop him?"

Li Mo's Adam's apple bobbed.

"We can't stop him," Lu Xiao said. "Since we can't stop him, we can only let him go forward. If he wants to take this path, he has to endure the hardships along the way. Shooting his elbow until it's raw is just the beginning. There's shooting training, hand-to-hand combat training, field training, and live-fire exercises coming up—he'll suffer more injuries and more hardships. You can stop Zhao Lei once, but you can't stop everyone. You can protect him for a while, but you can't protect him forever."

Li Mo remained silent for a long time.

"I know."

His voice was very low.

"I know I can't stop him. I know he has to endure these hardships. I know he has to walk this path by himself."

He looked up.

"But I am—"

The words were left unfinished.

Lu Xiao waited a moment, but when he couldn't hear the second half of the sentence, he continued on his own.

You're just not at ease.

Li Mo neither nodded nor shook his head. But his silence itself was a form of acknowledgment.

Lu Xiao suddenly smiled.

"You look like a mother hen protecting her chicks."

Li Mo's lips twitched. He raised his hand, seemingly intending to give Lu Xiao a whack on the back of the head.

Lu Xiao nimbly dodged to the side, and his smile widened.

"Seriously, Lao Li," Lu Xiao said, his joking expression fading, "we've watched Xiao Baicai grow up. From the first day Bai Chen brought him to the base, every one of the dozens of people at Pokong has held him, changed his diapers, or been covered in his pee."

Li Mo's lips twitched involuntarily.

Lu Xiao continued, "In the years that Brother Chen has been away, we've taken turns going to his city every month to check on him from afar and make sure he's doing well. We know he got a new schoolbag. We know he got first place in his grade. We know he had a fever and was getting an IV drip at the clinic. He's our Pokong's little darling, and that's no exaggeration."

Li Mo slowly lowered his hand.

"But our little darling has grown up." Lu Xiao walked to his side and stood beside him, both looking out the window towards the training field. "He's no longer that little brat who needed us to change his diapers. He chose this path himself and got here on his own. When he was holding his gun, the barrel was pulled, and he frowned, but he didn't let go. His hand was still on the forehand, and the muzzle was still pointing towards the target. He's much stronger than you think."

Li Mo clenched his fist at his side.

Lu Xiao reached out and hooked his arm around Li Mo's neck from behind, pulling him closer to himself.

"Alright, alright, stop thinking about it. The more you think about it, the more upset you get."

Li Mo's body tilted slightly as he was pulled, and her shoulder bumped into Lu Xiao's chest.

"Let go."

"No way. Unless you promise me you won't go to Zhao Lei."

Li Mo remained silent.

"Old Li, Zhao Lei is a good squad leader. He's strict with the new recruits, but he never does anything reckless. He pulled on Xiao Baicai's gun barrel because Xiao Baicai was holding it steadily; he was testing his limits. That's what a good squad leader does. If you talk to him about it, do you think he'll dare to teach Xiao Baicai properly in the future?"

Li Mo's jawline was still taut.

"And think about it, even Xiaobaicai himself didn't take it seriously. If he knew you went to settle accounts with Zhao Lei because of this, what would he think? He would feel that you treated him like a child. The last thing he needs is to be treated like a child."

These words struck a chord with Li Mo.

His shoulders relaxed slightly.

Lu Xiao sensed the change, tightened her arms, and pulled him closer.

"Alright, alright. I'll go to the infirmary at noon to get some iodine and bandages, and bring them to Xiaobaicai tonight. I'll also check on his elbow. Is that alright?"

Li Mo remained silent for a few seconds.

"……Um."