Chapter 23 Part 1

It was Shen Bei.

Song Ran felt herself sober up instantly.

Shen Bei laughed in surprise. “Song Ran, you went out for a drink? I wouldn't have guessed. You're quite bold in a place like this.”

“I was with a local friend.”

Song Ran hadn't known Shen Bei was coming, so she was a bit dazed. Shen Bei explained that the station was doing a routine rotation of frontline reporters, and she had signed up.

Today was September 15th. Song Ran had been in Dongguo for exactly two months; it was time for a rotation.

“No one told me you were coming.”

“The station planned for me to come next week, but I wanted to come early to acclimate with you. I was too excited when I left and forgot to tell you. I tried to call you after arriving in Gamma, but there was no signal.”

“The journey must have been tiring, right?”

“The layovers were torture.” Shen Bei pounded her sore lower back, and only then did Song Ran notice she was wearing a delicate silk nightgown.

“You should get some rest.”

“Okay.”

After returning to her room, Song Ran leaned against the door in a daze. Her mind was blank, unable to think of anything, so she tidied up and went to bed early.

The next morning, she woke up to a message from Xiao Qiu: “Miss Shen went to your place early?”

Lying in bed, Song Ran replied: “Yes.”

“That makes sense. If she didn't go soon, you would have stolen all the limelight.”

Song Ran didn't know what to say and replied with a dazed emoji.

Xiao Qiu: “There, there. Don't worry, she can't reach the heights of that CARRY photo.”

While they were still chatting, Song Ran heard a door open outside and got up to look. Shen Bei was dressed in a short T-shirt and tight jeans, ready to leave with her bag on her back.

Song Ran was surprised. “You're up so early?”

“Jet lag.”

“But, where are you going?” Song Ran was planning to visit the refugee settlement in the suburbs with Sasin today and had intended to take Shen Bei along.

Shen Bei smiled. “Oh. I want to go and film the Government Army here, and the Peacekeepers.”

“...Oh.” Song Ran responded, adding, “But you just arrived, you're not used to the environment yet.”

“Don't worry. There are reporters from Shen City TV here who are friends of mine. I'm going with them.”

“...Oh.” Seeing she was about to leave, Song Ran added, “You should wear a jacket. It's a desert climate here. You'll get dehydrated dressed like that... Also, you'd better change into a looser pair of jeans, or you'll be very uncomfortable.”

“Ah, thank you.” Shen Bei went back to her room to change.

Song Ran closed the door, tilted her head back, and hit the back of her head hard against the door.

At nine in the morning, Song Ran and Sasin drove to the Government Army base in the northeastern suburbs of Hapo City. Recently, more and more refugees had been gathering in that area.

Sasin drove, while Song Ran sat in the passenger seat, looking out the window.

Halfway there, Sasin asked, “Are you in a bad mood?”

“Huh? No.” Song Ran turned back. “Why do you say that?”

“You've been especially quiet today. Although you're not a particularly enthusiastic girl, you usually say a few words.”

“Maybe it's because I didn't sleep well.” She rubbed her eyes.

“Is that so?” Sasin suddenly smiled. “Could it be because of that peacekeeping soldier from the bar yesterday?”

Song Ran didn't speak.

“That soldier is very handsome,” Sasin said. “I bet he likes you.”

Song Ran was surprised. “Don't be ridiculous.”

“Song, I'm a man.” Sasin patted his chest, his large eyes, characteristic of Dongguo people, blinking as he spoke. “Trust me. I can't understand Chinese, it's like a heavenly script to me, but I saw it. Every word you said made him laugh, made him unable to stop laughing. But my dear Song, you're not exactly a humorous girl. I'm sorry, you're a good girl, but believe me, the distance between you and the word 'humor' is as far as from Hapo to Galuo.”

“...”

Song Ran wanted to believe it but dared not. She said, “Maybe it was because of the alcohol. Weren't you and that girl from yesterday also flirting thanks to the alcohol?”

This time, Sasin fell silent. He thought for a moment, then shrugged. “And yet, I still think there was something in the way he looked at you. Otherwise, I must have been drunk yesterday.”

“I think you were the one who was drunk.” Song Ran looked out the window, putting on her face mask and helmet again. “Let's not talk about this anymore. Let's focus on work.”

Sasin didn't argue with her and put on his helmet.

...

The Joint Special Operations Team was billeted in a Government Army base in the northeastern suburbs of Hapo. The night before, Benjamin had gone on a date with a girl and only returned at three in the morning, but he still woke up at seven as usual, full of energy.

A British soldier on the team joked, “You did manual labor all night and still have so much energy.”

Benjamin said, “Believe it or not, I still have the energy to fuck you.”

Everyone burst into laughter.

Benjamin turned back and asked Li Zan, “What time did you get back yesterday?”

Li Zan didn't answer, but the British soldier chimed in, “At the normal time, he came back with us.”

Benjamin clicked his tongue. “I told you at the bar last night, if you had just taken the initiative to kiss her, that girl would have definitely gone home with you. I could tell... Ouch!”

Li Zan, passing by with his toothbrush and toothpaste, kicked the back of Benjamin's knee. Benjamin's leg buckled, and he fell to his knees.

“Li, I was just trying to help you find happiness!” Benjamin said aggrievedly.

At 7:30 in the morning, the team members, all geared up, assembled in the Government Army's operations room to analyze the latest battle maps and divide up the day's patrol zones.

Fifteen minutes later, the strategic deployment was complete. The meeting adjourned, and a crowd of reporters had gathered outside the operations room.

Li Zan and the others were long used to it. The Government Army had cooperation agreements with several international media outlets and would let some reporters in for interviews every day. It had nothing to do with their combat team.

Li Zan and his team had another fifteen minutes to prepare their various equipment and ammunition before departing at eight sharp.

As he and his teammates left the operations room, they headed out directly, not expecting a reporter from the crowd to run over. “Li Zan!”

It was Shen Bei.

She ran towards him, her face wreathed in smiles. A Government Army soldier nearby was about to stop her, but seeing that they seemed to know each other, he held back.

Li Zan was a little surprised. “Why are you here?” he asked.

“I'm a reporter, of course I'd come to the front lines.” Shen Bei looked him up and down and said with a smile, “You look really good in this uniform.”

Li Zan didn't respond, asking coolly, “Didn't you say your station doesn't send female reporters to the front lines?”

Shen Bei smiled. “It was my dad who didn't want me to come, so he had someone lie to me. But I convinced him later and insisted on taking part in the training.”

“Oh,” Li Zan said. “Be careful, then. I have things to do, I'm leaving.”

“Hey!” Shen Bei called out to him. “Can I follow you for an interview? I want to report on the Peacekeeping Special Operations Team.”

“The Special Operations Team does not accept interviews from non-state-level media, and it requires official written approval from the Joint Operations General Command.”

Shen Bei was taken aback. “It's that strict? ...Can't you make an exception?”

“Reporters without self-defense capabilities or dedicated protection would cause us significant trouble and be a burden.”

Shen Bei fell silent, biting her lip slightly as she looked at him.

But Li Zan just gave a nod as a farewell and turned to leave.

Not a single extra word.

After checking the equipment in the vehicle, Li Zan walked to the passenger side, opened the door, and got in. Only then did he notice Shen Bei still standing not far away, watching him.

Nearby, Benjamin laughed. “You're really in demand.”

Li Zan said coolly, “Don't talk nonsense.”

“ZIP!” Benjamin drew a finger across his lips in a zipping motion, and after a few seconds, said, “But I choose Song Song.”

...

Song Ran and Sasin drove, gradually leaving the city center behind.

Outside the window, the city began to reveal more scars of war. Broken walls and ruined buildings, damaged structures and ancient monuments, faded quickly in the rearview mirror. Homeless people were everywhere.

Upon entering the suburbs, the bodies of civilians lay strewn by the roadside, yet to be collected. Some had died in the conflict; others had no external injuries and had likely succumbed to disease or starvation.

After passing through this hell on earth, they finally reached their destination. It was a refugee settlement less than a kilometer from the Government Army base. Because of its proximity to the army, it was relatively safe, so many people had come here to seek refuge.

Since most of the houses in the suburbs were empty, housing the refugees wasn't difficult—they could simply occupy the vacant homes; it was just that food relied on aid.

There was a children's house in the area that took in children who had been separated from their parents during the war. This was Sasin and Song Ran's destination for the day.

The two parked the car by the road. Children of all sizes were playing in the street. Some chased and kicked an empty can as a ball, some sat by the road playing with clumps of mud that had fallen from a wall, and others were digging bullet casings out of the bullet holes in the walls.