Chapter 538 The one who should have left was me!

The ward was so quiet that there wasn't a sound.

Qian Wei stood like a statue by the hospital bed, staring motionlessly at Hou Baoquan, who was pale and weak.

Lu Dong was also in the ward, but he stood by the window. They didn't speak, and he remained silent as well.

It's unclear how much time passed, but Hou Baoquan was the first to break down and speak, unable to bear the oppressive atmosphere any longer.

"Qian Wei, you don't seem like yourself at all."

His breathing was very unsteady, but he tried to sound relaxed, indicating that he was alright.

Qian Wei pursed his lips tightly and took several seconds to say with difficulty, "It's my fault that you're in trouble."

Hou Baoquan wanted to laugh, but the pain in his chest prevented him from even letting out a laugh. "It has nothing to do with you. I just did what I was supposed to do."

Qian Wei's emotions instantly flared up, "How can it not have anything to do with me! You took a bullet for me, otherwise I would be the one lying here now!"

The bullet grazed Hou Baoquan's heart, and doctors spent two whole days trying to save him from the brink of death.

He was out of danger and regained consciousness yesterday afternoon.

He should have been the one to bear all of this.

Hou Baoquan looked at Qian Wei's reddened eyes and knew how upset Qian Wei was, but he was truly willing to do it.

"I heard that you not only successfully escaped the danger and captured most of the Blue Army's battalion, but you also held out until the very last moment of the exercise. You are a hero of our 3rd Company!"

"Who the hell wants to be this kind of hero? I'd rather do nothing than see you become like this because of me!" Qian Wei roared out his true feelings.

He didn't even know how he got through these past few days. If anything really happened to Hou Baoquan, he would live with guilt for the rest of his life.

"I'm not doing this because of you, but because I'm a soldier in the 3rd Company." Hou Baoquan said these words with the weakest voice.

Qian Wei breathed heavily, and he could roughly understand what Hou Baoquan meant by the sense of honor that comes with being a soldier.

He would never have been able to understand this before, this ethereal thing, but now he suddenly understands it.

"What will you do in the future if you act like this now?"

The doctor has made it very clear that although Hou Baoquan has survived, his heart can no longer withstand any intense training.

Looking at the self-reproach and guilt on his face, Hou Baoquan smiled and said something that deeply troubled him.

"Even if I hadn't been injured, I would have been discharged this year anyway. Being able to make a useful contribution to the 3rd Company in my final moments is what makes me happiest."

The thought of being discharged from the military has always been a huge burden on his mind; he has never even dared to imagine that day coming.

But now, he can say it so easily, so this exercise was not a life-or-death escape for him, but rather the most important battle of his life.

"You're leaving the army?!" Qian Wei's voice suddenly rose, and he subconsciously looked at Lu Dong, who hadn't said a word.

Lu Dong nodded, confirming that what Hou Baoquan said was true.

Qian Wei became furious and angrily questioned, "Company Commander, how could you let him retire? He was willing to risk his life for the honor of the 3rd Company. Such a good soldier, why should he be discharged!"

"If someone has to leave, it shouldn't be him, it should be someone like me!"

He added angrily at the end, feeling that this was not fair!