Episode 7
"I'm 23 this year, 9 years older than you, so don't call me little Sasin!"
"Yes, yes, it's a reporter!"
In his impatience, Benjamin recalled the work pass he had received when Sashin first came here: "Sashin, male, war correspondent." Now that he thought about it, it wasn't a good idea to underestimate this young man.
"team leader."
"You don't need to call me that, because you're not a mercenary, and it doesn't matter how you call me Benjamin."
"Then my name is Ben?"
"I already said it doesn't matter."
"......"
In fact, Sasin was already hinting at this when he used the word "Ben," and Benjamin directly expressed his indifference towards Sasin's use of the word "Ben," but it seemed like there was a thick layer of paper separating them, and neither of them dared to break through. After driving Sasin to the train station for half an hour, Benjamin simply said:
"Safety on the road."
Come visit me when you have time.
"goodbye."
"goodbye."
"......"
Two days later
"Sassin, there is a letter for you."
"letter?"
Because he had never written a letter before, but he did have his own letters, when he opened the envelope, Sasin was wondering who would write to him? Could it be a letter asking for help or a thank-you letter? However, when he opened it, a photo fell directly to the ground.
"What the hell?"
"What's wrong?"
"fine."
The photos in the letter all happened five days ago, and from Sasin's perspective, the "What the hell?" he just asked was actually a photo of himself sleeping. Now that he thinks about it, he does look strange when he sleeps, and his colleagues are all talking about him. Doing this just satisfies his own thoughts.
"How about it?"
"not good!"
This was the first thing he said to the person he called after seeing the phone number on the back of the photo, but for him, that call was walking into a mercenary's "trap".
Why is it not good?
"Because you took pictures of me without my permission."
"Really?"
"It's starting again."
"......"
"So what's your purpose in posting this?"
"I thought you looked cute when you were sleeping, so I took a picture of you sleeping."
"You're a really strange person..."
"I guess so......"
"But how did you find out about my workplace?"
"I have to thank your boss for that."
"My boss?"
“While you were away, someone else interviewed me. It was also someone from your TV station. In the days following the terrorist attacks, and with that person’s comments in the media, it always opened our eyes.”
"Li Zan?"
"......"
"Holy crap, it really is him?"
"He has changed."
"You trusted him too much."
"......"
"But why didn't I feel the car stop? Were you sleeping while driving?"
“I wasn’t driving very fast that night, and I also made a special trip to a service station. There was a car parked there, you probably didn’t even know that?”
"I have absolutely no recollection of it."
"That's true..."
Benjamin couldn't help but reminisce about what happened that night. After driving to the service station, Benjamin went straight to the restroom, so he could only whisper what he wanted to say to himself.
“You were snoring that night.”
Does it make a sound?
"Extremely loud."
"......"
"But after a while you stopped snoring."
"......"
"And then? Does the wound still hurt?"
"It doesn't hurt anymore."
I'll come see you in a few days.
“”
How are things where you are now?
"It's not as chaotic as it was a few days ago."
"Have you found the child Li Zan was talking about?"
"No, I couldn't find it."
Where is Song Ran?
"Hasn't she come back?"
"No, she didn't come back. It was her boss who came back."
"......"
"....."
The two then realized that she was too love-struck, which led to her wanting to go in but being unable to get out, just like Li Zan. However, Benjamin was more worried about something else. This time, Sasin was shot in the abdomen; where would he be shot next? Another question was, why did those terrorists have so many PTRS-41 sniper rifles? If those terrorists were mercenaries like themselves, then who was the real boss?
Why are you here?
"Let's take a look at a reporter who's so easy to manage."
"......"
"It's so worrying, it's driving me crazy."
I'm so sorry!
"Bad attitude!"
"Is this your reason for locking me up in solitary confinement?"
"Yes, yes, yes."
"goodbye......"
"Take care, and don't bother seeing me off."
This is what Sasin was dreaming about. He's at work now, and he sees a photo with nonsensical contact information and some rather obscure text on the back:
“Ber one.”
"Choose for yourself."
"Face, or forehead?"
These are all things Benjamin wrote on the back of the photos. Two days later, Benjamin came to see Sassin, partly to check if there were any signs that the stitches needed to be removed, and partly to fulfill the "ber" he had written on the back of the envelope.
Who are you going to see this time?
"Of course it's that brat."
"Sasin?"
"yes."
"Going to bully him again?"
"This brat is quite amusing; I'd feel uneasy if I didn't tease him a little."
"Starting to put on airs again, huh?"
"Who are you with?"
"Anyway, I'm not on your side."
"?"
As for why he sided with Sassin, it was simply something Benjamin himself didn't want to admit. Even if he did admit it, Pei Xiaonan thought it was just a roundabout way of admitting it.
"I kissed him that night."
Does he know?
"I don't know, because he was sleeping at the time."
"I see, that's how it is."
In the very end, she let Benjamin go because her left eyelid kept twitching, a sign that something good was about to happen. Later...
Where did you kiss?
"Forehead."
"Are you going to wait until you see him to kiss him again?"
"......"
"Then I wish you every success."
"......"
He really wanted to criticize Pei Xiaonan's use of the idiom and her sarcastic tone. However, for Pei Xiaonan, he was more interested in seeing Sassin right now, and before leaving, Pei Xiaonan coldly said something to Benjamin;
“A child.”
"?"
"There's news, about that 'A child' you mentioned the other day."
"So fast?"
"Song Ran passed by here that day, but she seemed a little off. Perhaps it was because she saw something she shouldn't have, or perhaps..."
"She saw Li Zan, and he became a different Li Zan."
"I'll go early so I can see him sooner and come back sooner."
"Be careful on the road."
"I don't drive military vehicles; I'll ask Solider for help."
"goodbye."
"goodbye."
From that day on, Solider patrolled day and night to protect Pei Xiaonan's safety. However, she didn't want to do this. She was just a military medic, and while protecting medics was of paramount importance, sending too many troops would arouse suspicion. That was one reason. Secondly, terrorists were now adept at disguise. Two wouldn't be a problem, but if there were several, that would indeed be a bit...
What's happening?
Don't worry.
"Yes, sir!"
Benjamin encountered a lot of trouble on his way back. The most widely circulated story is that he had to be careful of a lot of minefields because Pei Xiaonan reminded him to wear sunglasses during his medical examination.
"Wearing sunglasses?"
"Yeah, what else?"
Is it really that exaggerated?
"When you were discharged early because of this, you realized that making you wear sunglasses wasn't such a big deal."
"......"
"What's wrong?"
"I discovered that my military career was controlled by two people."
"who?"
"You and Sasin."
"You're still as unlovable as ever."
"Thank you for your feedback."
"Not bad, they have a good sense of self-awareness."
This was a rare moment of unspoken understanding between them, and they never imagined that their return would be their last, because...
"Please come in."
"Dr. Pei."
"Li Zan?"
"It's me."
How did you get here?
Li Zan stopped halfway through his journey after learning that Pei Xiaonan still had soldiers on both sides. However, what he was about to talk about was cooperation.
"cooperate?"
"good."
"Why?"
"You're a little more rational than Benjamin, that's all."
"What if I refuse?"
"Those two are no match for me, you understand that, right?"
"Then you'll have one less opportunity to negotiate."
"Then what?"
"The list of assassinations has been expanded."
"If that's the outcome I'm hoping for, then I can consider it."
"Song Ran".
"?"
"Is this condition acceptable?"
"Is she your girlfriend? Aren't you afraid of getting PTSD from all the criticism if you use her during the war?"
"Then what about Benjamin? Could it be that Benjamin didn't use Sassin to achieve his own goals?"
"She's not quite right now."
"It's definitely not normal, it's my fault."
"So, does that mean my condition is to turn Song Ran's abnormality into normality?"
"This is just one aspect."
"And what's the other point?"
"Send her back."
"What benefits will I get?"
"......"
When Benjamin arrived at Sassin's workplace, he was used to the time difference in the East. When he returned to Sassin's workplace, he saw them leaving get off work. He waited and waited but Sassin did not leave. Helpless, he had no choice but to call Sassin. Unexpectedly, he met Song Ran's superior, Shen Bei.
"Reporter Shen!"
"You know me?"
“We met at the hotel.”
“I remember now, you are Commander Benjamin, right?”
"Yes, it's me."
"I heard about you from the Sassins. Thank you for taking care of him when you were in the East."
"......"
"What's wrong?"
"To be honest, I feel quite ashamed."
"I've heard about it."
"......"
"Actually, it's not your fault. This kid always likes swimming, but what surprises me is why he's such a different person after returning from his trip to the East. What happened?"
"He was a great help, and often his help was crucial."
"So that's how he got the wound on his abdomen?"
"yes."
Sasin had told himself that he had someone he admired, and that having that person as his partner would be the best thing for him. His biggest fear was falling for that person, a fact known only to Benjamin, Pei Xiaonan, and Li Zan. But that was enough. From that point on, he began doing dangerous things to attract Benjamin's attention, and eventually, he ended up like this.
"It's all my fault that he's become like this, and it was my own decision to bring him back here."
"He really has a good attitude."
"Yes, her mindset is just too good..."
Sometimes Shen Bei envied people like that, but as a journalist, she understood that the more she knew about this matter, the more detrimental it would be to her. Therefore, she asked Benjamin one last question:
Where is Song Ran?
"Still in the Eastern Kingdom."
"She's not coming back?"
"She's not coming back. This is her fate."
"......"
Shen Bei's attitude towards Song Ran was one of surprise mixed with a hint of relief, so she believed that not being able to go back was not necessarily a bad thing but a good thing.
"director."
"Um."
"I have to meet someone today, and I would like to leave work half an hour early. I hope you can approve it."
"No problem, I approve it."
"Thank you for your approval, Director."
This happened many years ago. Back then, Benjamin called Sasin a "little reporter." Three years later, they were supporting each other.
"Hello?"
"Hey, little Sasin."
"What do you want, Mr. Mercenary?"
"I've come to visit you at home."
"......"
"Is that not allowed?"
"Okay, I'll come pick you up."
"I'll come directly to you. Although you've been discharged from the hospital for a while, you're still very weak."
"What? Are you feeling sorry for him?"
"Um."
After much deliberation, Sasin gave Benjamin his address. As Benjamin went upstairs, he found something extra in his hand. Later, when they entered the house, Benjamin gave Sasin a loving smile.
"What are you laughing at?"
"Can't I give you a loving smile?"
"The mercenary is laughing quite happily, and it's been a long time since I've seen you this happy."
"Yes, ever since I met you, I've had a really strange feeling."
"What a coincidence, that's what I was thinking too."
"Actually, I kissed you that night."
"Forehead?"
"It seems you already know."
"Your little mouth was all sticky. When I got home tonight, I thought I had chewed gum on my forehead."
"I'm really sorry!"
"Let me kiss you."
Although somewhat "reluctant," Sasin kissed Benjamin the next second. Since Sasin had expressed his feelings, he should reciprocate.
"what?"
"Let me see."
"where?"
"Wound."
"How unromantic..."
"Has the wound healed? Where did you do the strenuous exercise?"
"without."
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