"Sounds nice, but would you dare not give it to me?"

Wang Yi sneered.

Mr. Shu didn’t argue with her. He turned around and walked toward the building next to the theater. Until the supplies arrived, neither he nor Wang Yi could leave this square area.

"Where are you going?"

Wang Yi incessantly pursued with questions.

"Of course, to demand ransom from their family. If I go easy on them now, it’ll be me who suffers later."

Wang Yi raised her eyebrows with a hint of realization, "You plan to use them to make up for this loss. How much are you asking them to pay?"

"Ninety percent."

Mr. Shu’s nasolabial folds deepened in the darkness.

...

The distant mountains outlined themselves from the horizon, their edges still clinging to the remnants of night.

A massive metallic dragon stretched across the asphalt road from Yanbei Pass to the theater, cracking the ground beneath its weight. Mechanical arms, like stakes, pinned to the ground on either side, stabilized the vehicle, while the cultivation pod and a dozen or so carriages floated on water behind.

At the front of the vehicle, Black Kite personnel began receiving a steady stream of rescue supplies.

Beds in compartments 13, 14, and 15 were already occupied by wounded soldiers.

Inside compartment sixteen, the usual smell of disinfectant was replaced by thick smoke. A burly man, resembling a bear, lay on the bed, his chest wrapped in white cloth stained with dark red blood.

At this moment, he held a cigar in one hand and roughly flipped through battle reports submitted by Licking Rabbit and Qu Hang with the other, his face blackened like charcoal.

"Over a hundred and twenty dead, more than eighty injured, meaning a battle cost us over two-fifths of our men?"

Lin Xia, along with two doctors, stood timidly to the side, watching Pang Tu teach them how to perform surgery. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

"This is how you tie off major trauma wounds. I admit your bow tie is impressive, but is that proper? Pay attention, so in the future, you don’t turn me into a bundle of bow ties."

Licking Rabbit’s face was tense, "The front was fine, but when the enemy counterattacked later, our formation got disrupted. The soldiers lack experience, and once they panicked, many got killed."

"Fine my ass!"

He Jie threw the report in the other’s face and cursed furiously, "If it weren’t for the apocalypse, I’d shoot you without a trial!"

"Xiaoba’s energy was insufficient, didn’t you know to contact the flanks to coordinate an encirclement? Relying solely on frontal attack? If it weren’t for Lu Xiao holding on with his wife, they’d have all run away!"

"How can you mess up a chase like this? Did you learn battlefield command from a dog?"

"..."

"Cough, cough..."

His emotions were so intense that he smoked half a cigar in one breath.

His chest heaved, and patches of blood seeped through.

He Jie seemed unaware.

Qu Hang was about to speak when he saw a strong, slender hand reach over from behind He Jie, precisely pinching the cigar’s flame. Accompanied by the sound of sizzling, grey smoke rose.

"Tsk, such a temper."

Qu Hang’s complexion changed slightly, and when he looked up, he saw the train conductor standing at the bedside, smiling.

Outside, in the hallway of the compartment, Han Qin was leading He Zhenzhen and the others toward them.

"Conductor."

The voices inside the compartment sounded respectfully.

"Major General He is seriously injured and needs to rest for a while. Don’t bother him with this; you two handle it yourselves."

Su Huan waved his hand, and the two felt relieved as if pardoned.

Watching their expressions, He Jie snorted coldly, but inwardly he also relaxed. After all, it wasn’t communal living anymore. Now, everything depended on the boss’s thoughts. If the work looked too bad, the person responsible had to scold a bit; otherwise, if the boss got angry, it would be impossible to protect his subordinates.

"This time it’s my fault. If it weren’t for my injury..."

"I’m not here to discuss that."

Su Huan stepped aside, pulling up a little one who had been tugging at his pant leg.

He Xiaoxiao wrinkled her little nose when she saw He Jie, "Daddy, have you been smoking?"

He Jie’s tense face instantly softened as he flicked the half-smoked cigar to Qu Hang’s feet, shamelessly badmouthing Qu Hang, "He was the one smoking. Don’t learn from him; he’s full of bad habits at such a young age..."

Qu Hang’s mouth twitched, pretending not to hear.

Beside him, He Zhenzhen rolled her eyes repeatedly but it wasn’t easy to say anything in front of such a crowd.

"Anyway, this compartment has few residents. You guys stay here and watch him."

Su Huan straightforwardly instructed, then turned to leave.

The battle had just ended; there were endless tasks needing his direct attention as the train conductor.

He was just making a round; as long as He Jie wasn’t dead, it was fine.

A person like him, if he doesn’t die, will reach his previous heights sooner or later.

As for the ordinary soldiers, it’s more of a basic resource issue. Once the war compensation is obtained, the concern won’t be about having too few resources, but about managing an excess.

Qu Hang and others came over, wanting to hand in the documents, but Su Huan waved his hand, "I’ve already seen this. The logistics team is working on the reward plan. You can start by comforting the soldiers and summarizing the operations. No need to show me; just be clear when we meet in a few days."

"Yes."

With He Jie down, Licking Rabbit, as the frontline commander, definitely needed to make a summary.

As for Qu Hang, he was currently the highest apart from Yu Yue in the armed train, surely having to handle some daily tasks on behalf of He Jie.

This includes the daily training arrangements for the soldiers. Only by quickly returning to routine life can they wash away the chaotic wartime aftereffects.

Before the conversation finished, they bumped into the hurriedly approaching secretary Shu Wei.