Galuo City was bustling in the evening. This was especially true for the few streets near the military base, where shops operated as usual and pedestrians came and went like a woven tapestry. Children kicked soccer balls on the roadside without worrying about accidents in the next second.

Song Ran followed Li Zan back. The street was noisy with chatter, but the two of them hardly spoke the entire way.

He didn't speak, and she couldn't guess his thoughts, so she simply kept quiet as well.

It wasn't that Li Zan was in a bad mood, but rather that he was utterly exhausted after a long day.

They passed by a local restaurant, and the aroma of roasted meat wafted out.

Li Zan turned his head and asked her, "Are you hungry?"

Song Ran had originally planned to eat back at her place. She asked in return, "Are you hungry?"

"Yeah."

"...Then let's eat here."

The restaurant was quite full, but most of the customers were peacekeepers from the nearby base. When a foreign woman suddenly walked in, the soldiers' gazes drifted toward Song Ran, intentionally or not.

Li Zan noticed and said softly, "If you feel uncomfortable, we can find another place."

Song Ran didn't want to be a bother and said, "It's fine. I'm not some great beauty, nothing much to look at. Besides, the roasted meat here smells delicious."

Afraid she would feel awkward, Li Zan chose a table at the very edge, by the street. The two ordered the specialty roasted meat, flatbread, and boiled beans. While waiting for the food, Li Zan suddenly smiled and said, "How are you not a beauty?"

"I have a good sense of self-awareness," Song Ran said in a low voice. Seeing him smile, she knew he wasn't in a bad mood, so she finally asked, "Will there be any problems over there?"

"Where?"

Song Ran pointed her thumb behind her—in the direction of the US Military Base.

"No problem," Li Zan said. "People like that just need to be beaten into submission."

Song Ran didn't expect him to say something like that and couldn't help but laugh.

"What are you laughing at?"

"Nothing." She shook her head.

As they spoke, the owner brought over the sliced roasted meat, flatbread, and boiled beans, along with a small basin of clear water for washing hands.

Li Zan pointed his chin at the small aluminum basin and said, "You wash first." He held up his own hands. "If my hands go in, the water will turn black."

"Oh." Song Ran dipped her hands in the water and rubbed them gently.

Li Zan watched, noticing for the first time how delicate a girl's hands could be—fair, tender, and small. He watched for a good while before quietly averting his gaze.

Soon, Song Ran pushed the aluminum basin over to him. After he washed his hands, he casually wiped his face as well.

The flatbread wrapped around the roasted meat, dotted with boiled beans, had a unique flavor. Song Ran ate four wraps and a bowl of boiled beans in one go and was quickly full.

Perhaps it was a habit from the military camp, but Li Zan was very quiet and serious when he ate, not one for conversation. When he rolled the meat, he would arrange the slices of roasted meat neatly on the flatbread piece by piece, then fold the flatbread layer by layer like folding a quilt. Only then would he bring it to his mouth.

Song Ran found it quite amusing but didn't say anything to disturb him.

A peacekeeper passed by on the street, tossing an apple in his hand. Song Ran saw it and said casually, "The apples here are super expensive."

Li Zan was taking a bite of his flatbread. He looked up, mouth closed, as the man walked away, still tossing the apple. He asked, "You like apples?"

"They're okay, I guess," Song Ran said. "But there's no other fruit in Galuo."

After the meal, Li Zan paid the bill.

Song Ran felt a little embarrassed and said, "Should we go Dutch?"

Li Zan looked at her. "Reporter Song, don't be so polite."

So Song Ran didn't insist.

On the way back, she confirmed, "Benjamin won't cause you trouble next time, will he?"

"He won't."

Over the next few days, just as Li Zan had said, none of the soldiers from the joint operations team troubled him again. In fact, their attitudes toward him changed entirely. Especially after witnessing his bomb disposal skills, Benjamin would find any excuse to chat and joke with him.

Song Ran thought of Benjamin's mockery the first time she met him and his later "see you." She belatedly realized that a person like Benjamin just needed to be put in his place.

After the training camp ended, Song Ran, as usual, sent the edited video to Luo Zhan for review. This documentary wouldn't be broadcast on Liang City TV, but directly on the National News Channel and the Military Channel.

The video chronicled Li Zan's "special treatment" in the early stages of training to how he later integrated with the soldiers from various countries. Song Ran hadn't recorded the fight, but the two shoulder-throw altercations with Benjamin were documented. At the end of the story, a Special Joint Force, composed of bomb disposal experts, snipers, anti-aircraft soldiers, long-range artillerymen, and medics, was formally established. And Li Zan's presence was a crucial link in this team.

Luo Zhan was very satisfied after watching it and praised her repeatedly, "Song Ran, your grasp of detail and the overall picture is fantastic. I think you were born to be a reporter."

"Not at all. It's... Second Lieutenant Li's performance was too outstanding."

"That kid really has a way with things."

Song Ran said, "I feel like he's very clear about what he wants to stand for."

"Indeed. A young man like that is rare. By the way, has the episode on mine-clearing aired yet?"

"It aired last weekend."

Luo Zhan laughed. "After Ah Zan's part was broadcast, did a bunch of young girls come asking about him?"

"Yeah... The TV station received a ton of calls."

"That's good, too. It's good publicity. We'll find this young man a good girlfriend when he gets back."

Song Ran hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "I think Second Lieutenant Li already has a girlfriend, and she's from our TV station, too."

"What are you talking about?" Luo Zhan waved his hand. "His instructor arranged it. They met a few times, but he didn't like her. It didn't work out."

Song Ran was stunned.

...

In the vegetable patch, a few soldiers were watering the seedlings. In the garden beds, the tomatoes were turning red, and the cucumbers had grown much larger.

Song Ran sat to the side watching, glancing around from time to time. It was already past dinnertime; he would definitely pass by here on his way back to the dorm. But after waiting for more than twenty minutes, there was still no sign of him.

Song Ran patted her bottom, got up, and started to walk away when she suddenly heard a harmonica playing "Castle in the Sky." The melodious tune drifted over from the training ground.

She walked around the barracks and saw a group of soldiers who had just finished their day's duties. Some were sitting on the ground resting and relaxing, while others were heading toward the barracks. And Li Zan was sitting on the steps, playing the harmonica.

Song Ran remembered seeing a harmonica in his drawer last time she went to his dorm to borrow a comb.

She followed the gentle melody, went over, and sat down on the steps two levels behind him, resting her chin in her hands and listening quietly. On the training ground, yellow sand stretched out, and the setting sun hung in the sky like a salted egg yolk.

Li Zan finished playing. He twirled the harmonica between his fingers and looked up into the distance. He sensed something in his peripheral vision and turned his head. Seeing her, he was surprised, and a slow smile spread across his lips. "When did you get here?"

"I was just passing by and heard you playing the harmonica, so I sat down to listen for a bit," she said. "I was about to leave, actually."

"Oh."

A few of his comrades were heading back and called for him to join them.

Li Zan looked at Song Ran and said in a low voice, "I'm heading off."

She nodded. As he passed by her, she called out, "Officer Li..." She had used the wrong title again.

"Hm?" He turned back.

"The other day you said the situation in Galuo City was unstable and that I shouldn't wander around. But I need to go out and shoot on the streets tomorrow. Which roads would be safer?"

"Fifth Avenue, the..." Li Zan paused to think, then said, "We're going on patrol tomorrow. Why don't you come with us?"

She bit her lip. "Won't I be a bother?"

He chuckled. "What kind of trouble could you possibly cause me?"

Her heart skipped a beat. She nodded gently. "Okay."

"Alright. We'll go together then."

"Then..." Before she could ask, he said, "Nine in the morning?"

"Okay."

"Meet at the base entrance?"

"Yeah."

...

Humming the tune of "Castle in the Sky," Song Ran returned to the hotel. The moment she entered, she rummaged through her luggage and picked out a nude-pink jacket to wear the next day. She quickly washed her hair and took a shower while the water was still running. When her hair was half-dry, she tied it into a braid and coiled it on her head, so she would have curls tomorrow.

At nine in the evening, the sun was gradually setting. It was still light outside. Song Ran had been so tired these past few days that she felt drowsy and went to bed early.

At six in the morning, a phone call woke her up. It was the TV station. The situation in Dongguo had changed abruptly, and she had a new assignment—to go to Hapo, a border city between Dongguo and Ai Country, and report on the border refugees. Depart immediately.

Song Ran said okay.

She got out of bed to pack her things. It was only when she saw the nude-pink jacket that she remembered to undo her braid. She tied her curly hair into a casual ponytail, stuffed the pink jacket into her bag, and changed into a gray outfit. She quickly packed her luggage and rented a car through the hotel reception.

At seven in the morning, Song Ran loaded her luggage into the car and set off. She detoured to the base and told the soldier on guard that if he saw Li Zan, to tell him she had an assignment and had left Galuo.

The soldier agreed.

The streets were still quiet in the early morning, and brilliant sunlight enveloped the temples and buildings. Song Ran drove, letting the familiar scenery stream past. She knew that she might never return to this city again.

Or perhaps, if she did come back someday in the future, the city would be unrecognizable, ravaged by the flames of war. Who knew.

She felt a trace of melancholy and reluctance, but more than that, a faint sense of nervousness and excitement—she was slowly approaching the true scars of this country.