Chapter 125

Ilya suddenly looked out the window, his back to Jiang Wenxing. Jiang Wenxing asked anxiously, "What's wrong outside?"

“It’s nothing,” Ilya said after a pause and a slight swallowing sound. He had already swallowed the bracken. The sentry captain looked normal, except for a little sweat on his forehead.

To prevent himself from vomiting, Ilya changed the subject.

Is there any special detail or method to what you've made?

After thinking for a moment, he decided to ask, just in case there was anything he didn't know. Agus, the honest man, was already barely holding back his laughter: "Captain, if you want to throw up, just throw up."

Ilya glanced at Aguz, rested his arms on his knees, and said very seriously, "This pig... Wild vegetables are good for mental landscapes?"

Jiang Wenxing had originally planned to wait until the sentry had tried it before making a decision. He cleared his throat, stood up, and said with bright eyes, "Yes, the sentry has always had a high level of physical exertion, and his diet consists mainly of meat and starchy foods in order to quickly replenish his energy."

"Foods that are low in calories and don't taste very good are rarely welcomed by sentries."

"But Captain, based on my experience and observations, sentries living inland or in the south are less likely to experience serious out-of-body experiences. Scientists who studied sentry-direction relationships in ancient times believed this to be a geographical phenomenon."

"This concept has profoundly influenced the sentries, but for the southern sentries stationed in the northern frontier, the most direct change is in their diet."

"Even now, sentinels living in areas with better conditions have significantly fewer cases of mental separation than those on the frontier. You might say that this is because frontier sentinels have been fighting against the ant tribe for a long time."

"But in Kush, wounded soldiers would give their high-calorie food to the sentries patrolling the mountain in order to ensure their comrades' fighting ability, while they themselves would eat wild vegetables and naan bread."

“These sentries are malnourished and recover slowly, but their mental state is better than that of the combat soldiers.”

“There are almost no sentinels in Kush with serious mental stagnation. Almost every one of them has been wounded and has eaten coarse food for their teammates.”

"Agus, think about it, when was the last time you were injured?"

Aguz's one-eyed man fell into deep thought; he had indeed not been injured in a long time.

But Captain Ilya, like him, hadn't been to the medical room for over a year. As for the captain's mental state... Aguz glanced at Ilya.

Ilya, of course, understood what Aguz was thinking. He shook his head slightly and said seriously to Jiang Wenxing, "If it's just a guess..."

Jiang Wenxing pushed the bowl of bright green bracken over: "That's why I need the most direct example."

The air fell silent for a moment, then the honest sentry, Aguz, said, "Eat up, Captain."

Two people with four big eyes.

Sergeant Xiong, who had just finished vomiting in the ditch, rushed back, pulled up a stool, and exclaimed, "Captain, why aren't you eating? Hurry up and eat!"

Three people with six big eyes.

For some reason, Ilya lifted the chopsticks with unusual heaviness, but put them in his mouth without hesitation.

But this time, he couldn't hold back any longer, and a few tears welled up in his eyes as he began to wear the mask of pain.

Jiang Wenxing was startled. He knew this thing didn't taste good, but he had tried it himself and felt it was just hard to swallow. Not many sentinels had such a strong reaction, especially Ilya, who looked like he was about to suffocate.

"Captain, Captain, if you can't take it, just spit it out first."

Having witnessed his comrade's miserable state, Aguz stood up without regret, having gotten his wish: "Captain, please eat slowly. I just remembered I still have a training session to finish, so I'll be going now."

Sergeant Xiong: "Wait, I have something to do too, let's go together."

Ilya's posture changed; he now rested one hand on his forehead and stood with his feet together.

A giant, gray-white wolf was silently released from the mental imagery and blocked the doorway.

Aguz and Squad Leader Xiong paused in their steps.

Behind him, Captain Ilya asked in a hoarse, deep, serious yet warm voice, "Isn't one example enough?"

Then the little guide, who had just been feeling sorry for the sentries, suddenly stood up, her face flushed, and ran over to them, enthusiastically trying to persuade them to stay: "Squad leader, Agus, how about I heat it up for you and you can eat some more while it's hot? You've almost thrown up... The captain is here too, eating together might make you feel better."

Unable to leave, Aguz and Squad Leader Xiong sat down nervously. Jiang Wenxing lit the small stove, and before long, two large bowls were brought back.

Agus picked up his chopsticks: "..."

Squad Leader Xiong: "Ugh."

Jiang Wenxing felt it was a pity that the bracken he picked that night was not finished, so he had to feed the remaining bracken to the pigs.

Kush has his own farm with 10 large black pigs. Jiang Wenxing tapped the pigpen with a spoon, and the pigs rushed over, sniffed the trough, and started eating with relish.

Jiang Wenxing sighed, wishing that the captain and the others could eat so heartily.

The next day, the old guide spoke with Jiang Wenxing, and Zhu Ning was also in the room.

Jiang Wenxing was uneasy, not knowing what was going on. The old guide took off his glasses: "Zhu Ning said you set up a small library?"

Jiang Wenxing had nothing to hide: "These are all books I brought from home, and some comrades borrowed them from me."

Zhu Ning glared at him: "Nonsense! You're the one forming a clique. If you want to borrow it, why don't you just give it up openly? What's the point of hiding it in your house? Are you plotting something, trying to build up your faction here!"

Jiang Wenxing was incredibly tongue-tied; the angrier he got, the less he could say. His once-pretty face turned bright red with anger: "You're slandering me!"

Zhu Ning said, "I saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears. Only a few people came and went to borrow books. Sometimes the door was even closed. If you're not forming a clique, then why are you keeping the door closed?"

Jiang Wenxing: "You, you go find someone, you go find them and ask them!"

Zhu Ning raised his head: "Ask? I won't ask, you know the answer yourself!"

Jiang Wenxing: "What do I know? What do you want!"

Zhu Ning said, "I know you have low awareness and don't want to take responsibility, but you can't sow discord among Kush's people!"

Jiang Wenxing's eyes reddened with anger: "You're talking nonsense!"

Zhu Ning said, "Kush is not a place for opportunism. Do you think others can't see through your little scheme?"

Zhu Ning retorted sharply, "The library belongs to everyone, not just you. Even if it were your personal book, you can't use it to form cliques or bribe comrades. I propose that we move the library to the small white building. This is for the collective good, for everyone's sake!"

Jiang Wenxing took a deep breath, his lips pressed tightly together, his voice rising involuntarily, even cracking with excitement: "Zhu Ning, I can give you the book, but you need to explain yourself clearly!"

Zhu Ning was about to speak when he was silenced by the old guide's angry voice: "Alright."

Jiang Wenxing turned his face away and did not speak.

The old guide wiped his glasses and put them back on. He was a very energetic old man with a straight mouth that showed an unusual sternness and seriousness. He looked at Jiang Wenxing and asked, "What are your thoughts on the library matter?"

Jiang Wenxing's nose and eyes were completely red, half from being unable to speak and half from the hatred of being slandered.

"I don't care what the library is like, but I've never thought about forming cliques!"

Zhu Ning laughed: "Yes, you didn't think that way, but that's what you did!"

The old guide turned to look at Zhu Ning, who remained silent.

He should have let Zhu Ning go, but with only him and Jiang Wenxing left, the other guides were bound to be resentful and have something to say. But deep down, the old guide was very impatient with these struggles. He was getting old, and there was no one to take his place. All the guides who came here wanted to leave, so he had to make more considerations.

He did not criticize Zhu Ning, but he was disappointed in his character.

The library was in the guide's room, which would disturb the guide's rest and was very inconvenient. He valued Jiang Wenxing's character and wanted to improve him.

"I want to move the library out and hand over the responsibility of managing it to Zhu Ning."

Whether Jiang Wenxing agreed or not, the old guide was prepared to test and compensate him, but he never expected that the young guide would not want to listen.

"I have no objection!"

The young guide turned his head, his face tense, tears streaming down his face, and quickly stood up, opened the door, and ran out.

He decisively cut off the rest of the old guide's words.

...

Director Liu ran to the sentry barracks, where Ilya was teaching the sentries how to maintain their guns. The sentries, all very competitive, were pulling their captain aside to have a gunfight.

"Captain! Captain!"

"Li Mu! Li Mu!"

Director Liu's ears were about to explode from the noise, so he called out to him, "Ilya."

Whether the sentry heard or not, he didn't raise his head, his long, curled eyelashes remained still, his eyes slightly darting around to glance at the parts, his fingers flying like the wind as he quickly assembled the bolt and barrel.

The sentry beside him was highly tense, moving faster and faster, his fingers moving so fast they were almost spasmodic, and he was only one piece away from completing the task.

"Oh oh oh!"

Ilya finished first and slammed the gun on the table.

A roar erupted from the surrounding sentries, and the losing sentry, his face flushed, shouted defiantly, "Again!"

Ilya raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of roguishness on his face, and was about to nod.

As soon as the air raid was about to begin, Director Liu grabbed his vest strap and said, "Come on, come on, hurry up."

Ilya: "..."

Once outside, he put on his military uniform and asked, "What is it?"

Director Liu hesitated for a moment, he was only thinking about coming to see Ilya and hadn't thought of a reason yet. He hummed and hawed for a few seconds and then made up a reason: "Go to the guide's dormitory and ask Jiang what size shoes he wears."

Ilya: "..."

Director Liu pushed him, saying, "Hurry up, I'm very busy. Go and ask quickly, this is a military need and must be implemented immediately."

Ilya didn't know what illness Director Liu had, but Jiang Wenxing must have run into trouble, so he didn't refuse and headed towards the guide's dormitory, even calling out the wolf halfway there.

Upon receiving its master's command, the giant wolf gracefully frolicked its way towards the guide's quarters.

When he arrived, the door was closed. Ilya knocked on the door, but there was no answer. He felt that Jiang Wenxing should be inside, so he knocked again.

The door opened, and Jiang Wenxing looked unwell, his eyes red. Seeing Ilya, he perked up and said, "Captain, how are you feeling today? Has your mental state changed at all?"

Ilya remained silent.

Jiang Wenxing looked up at him. Ilya was quiet, his eyes deep and his eyelashes long. They were now gently lowered, making him appear not serious. "Have you been crying?"

Author's Note: