Apart from Liu Menghan, everyone agreed with the decision to temporarily abandon the capture of Hannibal.
After all, no one would dare risk their life in the face of such a powerful and unpredictable enemy.
“Mr. Chen, your decision is wise.” Dr. John spoke first, his aged face etched with weariness and relief. “We have already lost too much; we cannot allow more people to sacrifice themselves in vain.”
Colonel Paul nodded, though a hint of resentment lingered in his eyes, but more so in acceptance of reality: "You're right, the dead are gone, and we who survived have a more important mission to accomplish."
Upon hearing this, Lin Lele said with a mocking expression, "You soldiers from the United States seem to have forgotten your situation. You were captured prisoners by the soldiers of my 'Anti-Cold Disaster Relief Militia Group,' and you have an important mission? Isn't that ridiculous?"
Colonel Paul's expression changed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure.
He looked at Lin Lele and explained, "Madam, you may have misunderstood. We were not captured by anyone. The reason we are here is that we showed ourselves voluntarily and came with your soldiers."
"Voluntary?" Lin Lele asked, puzzled.
"Secretary Lin, that's indeed the case. Here's what happened..." Zhao Feng recounted the events in detail.
It turned out that after Chen Yu and Lin Lele left, the militiamen conducted a routine reconnaissance of the surrounding area.
As a group of militiamen passed through a nearby town, a group of Merika soldiers suddenly surrounded them.
Faced with this situation where the enemy outnumbered them, they were startled and their first reaction was to raise their guns in preparation for battle.
To their surprise, the Merika soldiers did not attack them. Instead, they raised their hands in a gesture of goodwill and asked to surrender to the militia.
This was the first time the militia members had encountered such a situation. In this foreign land, their first reaction was that these Merika soldiers were up to no good.
But since the other side had already surrendered, they couldn't just open fire rashly. So the team leader decided to keep them calm while sending someone back to inform Zhao Feng.
Upon receiving the news, Zhao Feng immediately led a group of soldiers to the scene. He carefully checked the equipment and identification of the Merika soldiers, and after confirming that they were not disguised enemies, he took them back to the "Cold Relief and Disaster Relief" airship squadron camp, intending to make a decision after Chen Yu returned.
However, upon learning that the other party was actually a soldier from the aircraft carrier they had encountered yesterday, Niu Ke and Liu Menghan decided to try to find out about the "neutrino organism" on the aircraft carrier from them.
Originally, they were prepared for a protracted battle, since this matter concerned the highly confidential information of the Merika military, and they did not have high hopes.
Surprisingly, the Merika soldiers were very cooperative after learning their intentions.
The only request they made was to give them a full meal.
That's why Chen Yu and Lin Lele saw this scene when they returned.
Chen Yu was speechless. Wasn't it supposed to be top secret? They sold it out over a simple meal?
Colonel Paul seemed to sense Chen Yu's doubts, so he took the initiative to explain: "In the face of this great disaster, nations are no longer nations, families are no longer families, and humanity is facing an unprecedented crisis. In such an environment, individual positions and national interests seem insignificant. The reason we are willing to cooperate with you is because we know that only by uniting can we fight this disaster together and give our human civilization a glimmer of hope!"
Colonel Paul looked righteous and awe-inspiring, as if he were the embodiment of justice.
"Hehe, Colonel Paul, I'm very pleased that you think this way!" Chen Yu patted Colonel Paul on the shoulder, looking at him with admiration.
“At times like these, we truly need more unity and understanding, not division and conflict,” Chen Yu continued, his voice steady and powerful, seemingly able to penetrate everyone’s hearts. “Colonel Paul, your attitude has shown me a glimmer of hope for humanity in the face of adversity. We may come from different countries and have different beliefs, but at this moment, we are all guardians of the Earth, and we all bear the responsibility of protecting human civilization.”
“Mr. Chen, I have a request.” Colonel Paul looked at Chen Yu, his eyes shining with determination. “I hope that we can also join your ‘Cold Relief Militia’ and do our part for the ‘Cold Relief’ cause.”
Upon hearing this, Chen Yu frowned slightly. His "anti-cold disaster relief militia corps" had no precedent of recruiting foreigners.
After a moment's thought, Chen Yu said to Paul, "Let us discuss this matter."
Then, he turned to look at Lin Lele, Zhao Feng, and the others, gave them a look, and then led the way to the side, intending to hold a temporary small meeting.
Seeing this, Lin Lele and the others quickly followed.
After Chen Yu and the others left, John asked Paul with a puzzled look, "Colonel, that's not what we said at the beginning. We are a regular aircraft carrier group of the Merika, how can we join these ragtag troops from the Great Xia Kingdom?"
Paul retorted irritably, “They have plenty of manpower and equipment, and they have no worries about food and drink. If we don’t rely on them, do you think we can survive in this end times on our own?”
John was taken aback by Paul's words; he truly lacked the confidence to survive alone in this apocalyptic world.
“But Colonel, we are soldiers of Merika, we have our own pride and beliefs,” John said, still unwilling to give up.
“Pride and faith?” Colonel Paul sneered. “In the face of life and death, those are meaningless. What we need to do now is survive. According to the Code of Conduct for Members of the Armed Forces, soldiers may choose to surrender when ammunition and food are exhausted and there is no foreseeable future replenishment to sustain combat; if the casualty rate of an army exceeds 60%, it can be considered that the unit has lost its organized combat capability, at which point surrender is an option; when communication with the outside world is completely cut off and cannot be restored, soldiers may also choose to surrender. We have now fully met the criteria for surrender!”
Upon hearing this, Dr. John's expression changed slightly. He knew that Colonel Paul's words were true. In the current apocalyptic environment, survival had become the only rule, and those past prides and beliefs indeed seemed pale and powerless in the face of life and death.
“But, Colonel, we are, after all, soldiers of Merica. It’s one thing to surrender to people from other countries, but to have to serve them is another…” Dr. John still found it hard to accept this reality, his words filled with hesitation and resentment.
“John, I understand how you feel.” Colonel Paul patted John on the shoulder and said in a deep voice, “But you have to understand that we are not fighting the enemy on the battlefield now, but looking for hope for survival in this apocalyptic world. Besides, they all said that they came to Merica to fight the cold and provide disaster relief. If we join them, we are also doing our part for our own people.”
John nodded thoughtfully upon hearing this.
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