Chapter 45 National Day

  After a day and night of bumpy mountain roads, we arrived at the meeting point agreed with Eagle Eye. Looking at the trampled wild grass on the ground, we knew that this was evidence that we had made Eagle Eye come in vain.

  After the green flat hat action, it never appeared again. We arrived here smoothly, half a day earlier than expected. Everyone stayed in the jungle to rest, I lay on the stretcher and didn't dare move. Although my physical strength had recovered a bit, the wound on my neck and the hole on my shoulder were very serious injuries. If I wasn't careful, they would worsen and cost me my life. So the doctor asked the wolf man and the big bear to watch me. If I made any slight movement, I would suffer inhuman "abuse".

  I was lying on the stretcher with nothing to do when the captain slowly walked over, stood there and stared at me. The look in his eyes made me feel very embarrassed, so I quickly asked: "Captain, is there something you want? Don't stare at me like that, it's scary!"

  "What's wrong?" The captain squatted down.

  "I'm afraid you like 'back door' (homosexuality)!" I said with a laugh, and the others also burst out laughing.

  "Look at you now, what a silly look! Not even opening the back door to find you!" The captain laughed and said: "Look at your current appearance, just like a pig head! Hehe!"

  The captain smiled and put on a serious face, saying: "GHOUL! Now I'm talking to you about something important. Take good care of this thing!" The captain handed me a military knife, a BuckMaster184 military knife. This kind of knife is an old-fashioned wilderness survival knife that BUCK directly sold 3,000 units of to the military in 1984, known as the Buck-Master, which is the predecessor to the M9. It's very rare! The werewolf has one but it's not as valuable as this one because the material looks different from his.

  "Captain, what's this?" I asked in surprise. Why did he think of giving me a knife at this time? But this wasn't the captain's either, his was a PHROBIS III BUCK M9.

  "This is the knife that was pulled out from your shoulder. You should be very clear about its origin, it's one of the first batch of equipment BUCKMASTER184, earlier than those 3000 in 1984, experimental type, specially made, only ten in the world! Those who were assigned this knife were all elite of various troops, when I was still a young punk, I dreamed of having one, but... Only Colonel Gess had one among the Green Berets." The captain didn't say anything more, because it's obvious that he meant to say, I killed who.

  "This is your spoils of war, take it! Use it well and don't let it rust in mediocrity." The captain placed the knife in my hand and then turned around to leave.

  I stared blankly at the military knife in my hand, never expecting that I had killed a rather formidable figure. Haha!!

  "Ghoul, I didn't expect you to spare no one, even those nearing 50 years old! How ruthless!" Just as I was getting excited, the trigger splashed me with a bucket of cold water.

  "Is he your boss?" I knew that Trigger was also from the Green Flat Hat origin, so I asked, not knowing why Trigger always liked to mock me a couple of sentences, wasn't it just because you won against me in the competition?

  "Not really, but I saw him when I first enlisted and he was my idol." The trigger looked at the military sword with a tinge of regret and said, "A hero in his twilight years!" It sounded like he was saying that I was bullying an elderly man who had lost his faculties, and that my injury was a sign of my incompetence.

  I was thinking of sitting up on the stretcher, damn it! The credit I fought hard to get is being belittled by you to be worthless. If you have the ability, come and challenge me one-on-one. But before I could even move, I was pinned down by Big Bear.

  "Mind your own business, you can try to get some back yourself if you're capable! Stop talking nonsense!" The werewolf stood up for me. Big Bear on the side also had a deep expression of approval. After all, our relationship was pretty good, although I'm the new one.

  The trigger saw us a few of them one nostril out of breath and left, the werewolf turned back to smile at me, making me very moved. I remembered something and asked the werewolf to help me call Li Ming over, after a while Li Ming walked over with an AK, seeing me smiling and said: "GHOUL! You're looking for me? Hehe! What's up? Don't move, don't move! Talk while lying down!"

  Li Ming pressed down on me as I was about to get up, then squatted beside me and looked at me, listening to what I wanted to say.

  "Uh, Uncle Li, uh...". I really didn't know where to start: "You know my parents don't know about me being a mercenary here, so please don't tell them about my situation, okay? I'm afraid they'll worry! And it's best not to mention it to my brother either!"

  "Is that so? Hehe, are you trying to get me to lie? This is a matter of principle!" Li Ming said with a sly expression.

  "Alright, alright, what do you want?" I smiled helplessly. What does this guy want to do?

  "I want your dagger and pistol!" Li Ming made his demand very clear, and his directness actually startled me.

  "No, I can't give you that BUCKMASTER 184, my friend will kill me!" I thought he wanted the BUCK.

  "No, I don't want that one, I want the military sword you have!" He pointed at the spare military sword on my leg, although it was missing a mouth on the back of the knife, but I never threw it away: "The style of that sword is very good-looking. I like it very much, and also your MK23!"

  I was stunned when he said that, there's a flaw on the back of the knife, but he thinks it looks good? What a unique aesthetic!

  "Deal!" I pulled out the knife and MK23 and handed them over to him: "A thousand! A thousand! Keep it a secret!"

  "No problem! Haha! You little guy is quite capable, biting that guy to death, awesome, awesome! Has a bright future!" Li Ming took the gun and fondled it lovingly: "German goods are indeed extraordinary, exquisite like a work of art!"

  "How is Wan'er?" I asked quietly.

  "What's wrong with her? She's scared!" Li Ming simply said, but his face seemed to be worried and hesitant.

  "Is it like this?" I muttered.

  "Is everything okay? If so, I'll leave first." Li Ming said goodbye and left after seeing me standing there in a daze. It wasn't until he was out of sight that I came back to my senses.

  As we watched the sky getting darker and darker, our group was chatting idly. When it turned completely dark, we heard the rumbling sound of helicopters coming from above - Eagle Eye had arrived!

  It was still the doe and the Shenyang J-11 transport plane, everyone was delighted.

  "Signal!" The captain ordered.

  The butcher and the knight set up the infrared strobe lights and retreated. These strobe lights emit flashes that are invisible to the naked eye, but can be seen with night vision goggles, so they won't expose the target while indicating its position. Before long, a strong gust of wind swept in, and the Eagle Eye landed. We quickly boarded, watching as our comrades ran into the cargo hold one by one, and the plane took off from the ground, our hearts finally falling back to where they should be.

  "Wah!..." The cargo hold was filled with the sound of crying, those refugees couldn't help but burst into tears, releasing the fear that had been pent up in their hearts for a long time.

  "Good job!"

  "Good job!" The soldiers didn't cry, they just clapped their hands and bumped fists to celebrate!

  "Alive again!!" The cowboy exclaimed: "I'm really great!!"

  Just listen to his cries and you'll know why he became a mercenary. What an adventurer!

  "It's great to be alive, right? GHOUL!" The all-rounder on the stretcher next to me stretched out his hand and laughed "Hey! Hey!". I high-fived him, a habit I only developed after coming abroad. Their gestures are really something else, there are dozens of ways to just bump fists, each with different meanings. Every group designs their own unique way to show off their individuality, maybe that's why foreigners seem more creative.

  "Hey! Brothers! How's everyone been doing these past few days? I heard you guys received a very warm welcome? Threw a few big parties?" Eagle Eye's voice came through the radio.

  "Get your plane open, you big turkey!" a group of people shouted.

  "You bunch of idiots!" Eagle Eye cursed with a laugh: "Believe it or not, I'll knock all of you down!" He was talking to this plane through the radio from another armed helicopter.

  "My old man will stuff a missile up your butt!" The devil's curses are always more "venomous".

  Haha!!!

  "Haha!!" Everyone burst out laughing...

  Time flew by quickly in the midst of nonsense, and we flew back to base. As soon as the plane landed, refugees, nuns, pastors, workers, and that government official rushed out of the plane, with some lying on the cement floor and yelling excitedly.

  It wasn't until I was carried off the plane and saw that familiar glow of electric lights that I felt the beauty of modernization. Electricity is truly a wonderful thing, it makes the world more beautiful! Lying in the medical room, the doctor walking back and forth beside me, smelling that strong smell of alcohol made me feel like my illness had reached a critical point. It's just a minor external injury, isn't it?!

  When they finally carried me out of the medical room, it was already four hours later. The feeling of being stitched up and down on my body was like I was a broken doll with its stuffing exposed. Soon after, I fell unconscious under the effect of the anesthesia. When I woke up again, it was already one day later.

  Early in the morning, I opened my eyes to find myself in a hospital room. Looking at the doctors and nurses walking back and forth beside me made me feel very uncomfortable. The unfamiliar faces made me anxious. I stopped a nurse who was coming in and asked: "Where is this? I want to go back to the barracks to find my comrades!"

  "Sorry, without a doctor's permission, we can't let you run around," said the nurse in fluent French.

  "Take me to see the doctor!" I demanded again.

  "No! The doctor is busy, it's wartime and many wounded soldiers are sent here. Please lie quietly in your position and don't run around, your injury is severe." The nurse said and then pushed the cart away.

  "Damn it!" Of course, I was heavier, the gunshot wound on my leg in the jungle was just bandaged with a piece of cloth, and this side was all plastered. The plaster on my neck is to fix me so that I don't twist my neck and move the wound, but what's the point of putting plaster on my leg? It must be some bastard's bad idea, I can list their names!

  Enduring the intense dizziness brought on by excessive blood loss, I struggled to sit up. I didn't believe that in the harsh environment of the jungle, nothing had happened to me, but after running here, I became a useless person. The plaster cast on my leg touched my wound as soon as I moved, causing me so much pain that I frowned. I understood why they put this thing on people - it was to prevent them from moving, not to help the wound heal. Summoning my strength, I found that my right hand could still move. I easily crushed the plaster cast and threw it on the bed, then secretly got out of bed and searched under the bed for my military uniform and boots. Although the wounds on my upper body were severe, there was nothing wrong with my legs, which didn't affect my mobility. I put on my clothes and slowly walked out, limping.

  The hospital was also in the base to identify the direction, I relied on the iconic buildings and signs that I saw when I was carried in last night, and walked towards our military camp. As soon as I arrived at the gate of the military camp, I suddenly heard a familiar melody.

  "Rise. People who do not want to be slaves, let our flesh and blood build our new Great Wall, the Chinese nation has reached its most dangerous moment...... Isn't this the March of the Volunteers? I was surprised to look up and saw a five-star red flag rising from the flagpole in the middle of the square, I quickly stood at attention, saluting the rising national flag until it rose to the top of the pole and fluttered in the wind."

  After the music ended, a voice in Chinese came from the flagpole: "The ceremony is over!" I looked around carefully and found Li Ming, Yang Jian, Wan Er and Li Ming's three bodyguards as well as the Chinese workers standing in formation. It was only then that I suddenly remembered today was October 1st National Day.

  Looking at the five-star red flag fluttering in the sky, I felt a thousand emotions in my heart. Unconsciously, I have been away from home for half a year. In this short half year, I experienced many things that I never thought of even in my dreams in the past 19 years. As a stranger in a foreign land, everything is so unfamiliar, although I have comrades by my side, there are still times when I feel lonely. Looking at the Chinese compatriots under the flag, I felt a sense of intimacy that I didn't get to experience on the battlefield the other day, and I walked over excitedly.

  As I walked over, a group of people showed expressions of fear and disgust, especially the Chinese workers who all ran away in fright. Yang Jian and Wan Er, being relatively familiar with me, didn't retreat but from their expressions it was clear that they weren't very pleased about my arrival.

  "Happy National Day!" I really couldn't think of anything else to say, so I said something a bit silly.

  "Happiness, happiness!" Yang Jian looked at my neck, bewildered. Finally, it was Wan'er who spoke up and said: "Is your neck okay?"

  "It's nothing, just a tracheotomy, no big deal. Even if it's severed, there are ways to think about it." As soon as I said this, I realized that everyone's face had turned even uglier.

  "I'm leaving first, I still have something to do!" Li Ming looked at us thoughtfully and nodded before walking away. Yang Jian followed him soon after. The square was left with only me and Wan'er, both of us standing silently without a word.

  "Sorry! I said something wrong again, reminding you of that day's thing." I don't want to say it over and over without being useful, so I'll muster up the courage to uncover this wound that everyone doesn't want to touch.

  "It doesn't matter!" Wan Er said with a visible shudder.

  Then there was silence, before we two would never have this situation, between us always had something to say, did not expect now can't find a little topic.

  "Xing Tian!" Wan'er said faintly: "You don't have to be so accommodating to us."

  "I didn't come to cater to you, I just wanted to be with you, being with you makes me feel like I'm still a Chinese person, do you know? Before coming, I hadn't even thought that today was October 1st, National Day! Can you imagine? Me, a Chinese person, actually forgot my own country's birthday, how shameful!" I couldn't help but shout out loud, and due to excitement, my neck hurt again.

  "This isn't your fault! Xing Tian. You've been struggling to survive in the midst of gunfire and bullets every day, for you, as long as you're alive, it's all good, no matter what day it is, there's no distinction. I finally understand a bit why you've changed, this kind of life isn't something ordinary people can bear, bloodshed, slaughter, danger, death, loneliness, fear, suffering, these occupy all of life, you can no longer see the radiant sunshine, you can no longer recall the sweet fragrance of flowers. Xing Tian, when I first found out it was you, I was filled with surprise and joy, I was so happy to reunite with you. But now..."

  "How is it now?" I asked anxiously, but I didn't know what I was anxious about.

  "Now I'm so regretful, regretful that it was you, you've changed, changed to not be the original you anymore. Kindness turned into cruelty, cleverness turned into viciousness, gentle words turned into coldness, agility turned into ferocity... I'm so regretful that the one covered in blood and holding a sharp object is you, the one who kills people and sets fires, peels skin and cuts flesh is you, the one with bloody hands and a mouth full of human flesh is you. Compared to these things, I'd rather you were really dead, at least that way my memories could have your goodness. But now, you've ruined everything, you... you... you... you've become a ferocious beast, a demon who eats people without blinking an eye. You make me so afraid! So afraid! In my dreams, it's always you walking towards me with someone's head in your arms... Please leave first, I'm so scared. So scared..." Wan'er knelt on the ground and cried uncontrollably.

  Her words were like a sharp knife stabbing into my chest, I felt my heart shatter. The pain was more agonizing than being stabbed in the body. It was an intangible and unstoppable ache. My mind went blank from her words, no thoughts remained, only one sentence kept echoing: "You are a ferocious beast, a man-eating devil... You are a ferocious beast, a man-eating devil... Get out... Get out..."

  This sound is infinitely amplified, constantly roaring in my brain and ears! Until it crushes all my thoughts!

  I didn't help Wan'er up, I just slowly left her side and walked aimlessly towards the barracks. As I pushed through the crowded throngs of people, each accidental touch sparked a pain that was like an anesthetic, dispersing the ache in my heart. I kept colliding with everything around me, trying to use the physical pain from my injuries to suppress the tearing pain in my heart.

  "Xing Tian!! Xing Tian!!!" Someone on the side was calling me, someone grabbed my shoulder, and I indifferently turned my head to look at the person who made the sound.

  "What's wrong with you!? Xing Tian!" The speaker was a woman, a silver-haired woman. What did she want to say to me?

  "What's wrong with you? Why is your body all bloody? Your wound has reopened... Don't you want to live?" The woman was shouting in front of me, looking very anxious. What was she in a hurry about? What was she worried about?

  "Speak up! Xing Tian! Speak up!!!" That woman was shaking my face back and forth, what was she trying to get me to say? What could I say? What's there to say? I'm a beast, I'm a devil! What do I have to say?! I don't need to say anything! What do I have to say?! I want to leave, I want to leave...

  "What's wrong with you? What's going on?" The woman slapped me in the face, it hurt a bit. Why did she slap me? I don't know what's wrong with me either...

  "Xing Tian, listen to me, what's wrong with you? Just say one sentence, just one! For God's sake, say one sentence! Doctor... doctor... speak up, damn it, speak up!! What is she biting on my face? What's wrong with her? Is she trying to eat me? Is she also a beast? Is she also a man-eating devil? So there are beasts and devils besides me..."

  "You... " I don't know how the sound came out: "Do you know me? Aren't you afraid of me? I am a beast, I am a man-eating devil... I want to leave, ...I want to leave..."

  "No, where are you going? You can't leave, you're not a beast...you're not a devil...I'm not afraid of you...Don't go...We need you...I need you..." Her words struck my heart like a bell, someone is not afraid of me, someone needs me...

  "Aren't you afraid of me? Do you need me?" I looked at the swaying figure in front of me, and the figures kept increasing: "Do you need me? Aren't you afraid of me?"

  "Yes, we are not afraid of you! We need you!" A chorus of voices came from all around. How many people were there? They needed me? Who were they? Why did they need me? What did they want a wild beast like me to do?

  "Do you need me? Why do you need me? I am a beast, a man-eating devil... What do you want with a beast and a devil? ...Why? Why do you need me? Why?..." I kept asking, as if asking them but also asking myself.

  That woman grasped my face with one hand and stared into my eyes, her eyes were so blue, like a sapphire... like the ocean... so beautiful!!!

  "We need you! Because we love you!" "Yes, we need you, because we love you!" A burst of voices followed the woman's words and exploded in my mind. Someone loves me... Someone needs me... Who are they? ... I want to see clearly... I want to see clearly...

  I carefully sized up the wall of people around me... The slow-moving figures gradually became clear... The red-haired one I recognized... He's called Butcher... The blonde one I recognized... He's called Cowboy... The green-eyed one I recognized... He's called Devil... The long-bearded one I recognized... He's called Roger... The one who only shows one eye I recognized... He's called Quickdraw... The one with a physique like a mountain I recognized... He's called Big Eater... The dark-skinned one with a scar above his eyes I recognized... He's called Assassin... The one with tiger-like fangs I recognized... He's called Werewolf...

  Slowly, all the faces became clear, I knew them, they were the wolf pack, they were my comrades, they were my brothers... Who was this woman? Silver hair... Blue eyes... Oh! I recognized her. Her name was Avel, Rebecca, I often called her REDBACK. She was that beautiful spider!

  "Are you Evie?" I pointed at REDBACK and said: "You are the butcher, you are the werewolf, you are the devil... You are... you are..." I pointed at them one by one and called out their names.

  "Do you need me?"

  "Right! We need you!"

  "Do you love me?"

  "We love you!"

  "Ah!" I covered my face and wailed, kneeling down on the ground, embracing REDBACK's waist and crying out: "Someone needs me... Someone needs me... Someone loves me... Someone loves me... Ah!!!!..."

  Slowly I regained consciousness, supported by REDBACK and stood up, looking at the worried faces of my brothers beside me, and emotionally said: "It's okay! Brothers. I'm fine! Thank you guys... thank you for your concern... thank you for your love..."

  "Are you really okay?" The butcher waved his hand in front of my eyes to make sure I was truly conscious.

  "I'm really fine! Butcher! Thanks for your concern!" I said seriously, looking into his grey eyes.

  "Is that so? Then I'll give you some concern!" A big fist came flying at me, hitting my face hard and sending me flying far away.

  "Are you crazy? Butcher, he's mentally normal! Don't beat him to death. Haven't you seen that their wounds are all split open again, and you're adding chaos!" The doctor punched the butcher with one fist, sending him flying onto the werewolf. The werewolf got up and punched the doctor in the face. Then the big bear who was pinned down by the doctor hit the werewolf into the sky. A group of people started fighting and mixing it up.

  Looking at the chaotic scene in front of me, I couldn't help but burst out laughing, and my laughter sounded incredibly joyful.

  After laughing, I was hospitalized again, but this time it wasn't that simple. The wound from the mental breakdown and collision was much harder to deal with than the first time. I spent more than a month in the hospital before I could walk on my own.

  Comrades have been by my side all along, constantly telling me how foolish I was that day, how stupidly I turned around. And how ridiculous they were, a group of big men standing there shouting "I love you" to a man. It made me laugh so hard that tears streamed down my face - those were happy tears.

  My wound healed slowly, and the wolf pack's contract was completed. We decided to leave Congo for France before Christmas. Since I was hospitalized again, I haven't seen Wan'er, and I didn't dare think of her because every time I thought of her, it seemed like I could hear that voice in my head shouting: You are a brutal beast, an eating human devil! Get out! Get out! What surprised me the most was that REDBACK and the priest were also going to France and wanted to stay at our base for Christmas. And my brothers strongly threatened that if I didn't treat them to their satisfaction, they would call my parents and tell them about the time I went crazy in the army, which scared me into promising them countless meals, basically covering their food expenses for a year. However, I had no complaints because if it weren't for my brothers, I would have really become mentally ill and turned into a madman. I never thought that I also had a fragile mental state, but the doctor later told me that everyone has a mental breaking point, and once that point is hit, people will go crazy. Even the strongest person has this breaking point; it's just whether or not it's been triggered.

  On a bright and sunny morning, I put on my uniform, packed up my luggage, shouldered my gun, and walked out of the barracks. Looking at fellow comrades standing on the airstrip outside, I slowly approached them and asked: "Are we going home now?"

  "Alright! Let's head back home." The captain and knight beside me patted my shoulder as they said this.

  "Let's go home!" We all shouted and rushed towards the transport plane.

  Click to view picture link: BuckMaster 184, Large Hunting Knife Blade Survival Knife