Chapter 124 Walk quietly
In a high-rise conference room of a skyscraper near Times Square, New York.
Huo Yanli sat on a simple, dark sofa, wearing a light gray shirt with the sleeves casually rolled up to his forearms. Compared to three years ago, his brows held a more profound and reserved air, his gaze calm yet resolute. Only the faint lines at the corners of his eyes spoke of the hardships he had endured over the years.
Sitting opposite him was Erica Thorne, a senior reporter for Time magazine. The recorder worked quietly, and the photographer adjusted the camera a short distance away.
“Mr. Huo, thank you for the interview,” Erica said with a smile. “You will be on the cover of the latest issue of the magazine. The tentative title is ‘From Business Tycoon to Peace Advocate: Huo Yanli and His Social Value Revolution.’ What are your thoughts?”
Huo Yanli nodded slightly, his tone calm: "'Business tycoon' is an understatement, and 'peace promoter' is an overstatement. I am just a businessman trying to incorporate more reflection on social value into my business practices."
“But the transformation of the Huo Group over the past three years has been disruptive.” Erica flipped through the folder. “From a traditional giant to a corporate role model that places social responsibility at the core of its strategy. The ‘Huo Peace and Development Foundation’ has projects in dozens of regions and has made huge cumulative investments. What is the driving force behind this transformation? After all, in pure business logic, such large-scale social investment is not ‘economical’.”
The meeting room fell silent.
Huo Yanli didn't answer immediately. His gaze drifted to the window, his fingers unconsciously tapping twice on the sofa armrest. After a few seconds of silence, he slowly spoke:
"one person."
This answer surprised Erica, who raised an eyebrow: "Alone?"
“Yes.” Huo Yanli nodded, his gaze becoming clear and sincere. “She showed me that beyond the business world, there is a broader and more real world. That world has war, poverty, and injustice, but it also has resilience, hope, and the most basic yearning for peace.”
He didn't mention his name, but the solemnity in his words allowed Erica to instantly grasp the story behind it.
"This friend has had such a profound influence on you?" Erica asked cautiously.
A faint but genuine smile appeared on Huo Yanli's lips: "She was an idealist, but even more so, an activist. She walked in that 'wider world' in her own way, trying to heal the rifts and sow seeds of hope." He paused. "Once, in Geneva, we met by chance. At that time, I had just entered these fields and asked her a question that now seems very superficial: 'What is the meaning of doing all this? After all, individual power is too small.'"
His gaze deepened, as if he were transported back to that moment: "She looked at Lake Geneva and calmly said, 'The lake is vast, but every drop of rain that flows into it changes its level. If everyone gives up because they feel insignificant, the lake will dry up.'" Huo Yanli gently shook his head, his tone filled with clear respect. "She didn't preach any grand principles, she just stated a fact. But that sentence made me think for a long time. Perhaps the power of commerce can become a more continuous flow into that lake."
Erica quickly took notes and followed up with, "So you believe that the ultimate value of a company lies in its social contribution?"
“I believe that a healthy enterprise’s profits and social contributions should be two sides of the same coin,” Huo Yanli corrected. “What we are exploring is a new business paradigm—creating social and environmental value while creating economic value. Facts have proven that this path is viable.”
The interview went on. Near the end, Erica asked a more personal question: "Mr. Huo, you've mentioned that friend several times. Have you maintained contact during this period of significant change in your personal life and values? How does she view everything you're doing today?"
This question silenced Huo Yanli once more. His eyes flickered slightly—was it nostalgia? Reflection? Or perhaps something deeper?
Then he smiled. A more genuine, relaxed smile, even tinged with a mixture of helplessness and warmth.
“Occasionally,” he said simply, adding in a natural yet firm tone, “we are comrades-in-arms.”
"Rades-in-arms?" Erica repeated the particular word.
“Yes, comrade,” Huo Yanli affirmed, his gaze distant. “On different fronts, we strive for similar ideals.” He paused, as if recalling something specific, and his smile deepened. “For example, she might send me a message during a break in a meeting to tell me that the children in the schools the foundation helped build have their first stable electricity and can read at night. Or, I might receive her encrypted work briefing late at night, in which she casually mentions that the newly improved water purification equipment performed well in field tests; it’s the result of three generations of iterations by our foundation’s R&D department, based on her suggestions after a crisis three years ago.”
His tone was calm, as if he were describing routine business: "We don't ask about each other's specific schedules or interfere with each other's professional judgments. It's just that... in the work we are doing, we will naturally make some preparations in advance for the difficulties that the other may encounter, or when the other makes even the slightest progress, we will say 'Received, very good' across the time zone."
He looked at Erica, his eyes clear: "So, the word 'comrade-in-arms' is very fitting. You know your flanks are being covered, your supply lines are being protected, you are advancing toward the same strategic objective, but each of you is responsible for different tactical tasks. Trust is built on every tangible support and professional feedback, not on frequent contact or emotional dependence."
Erica was a smart woman; she didn't press the matter further. She received a response that was both compelling and humane.
After the interview, Huo Yanli declined the invitation to lunch. He walked alone to the window and looked down at the bustling city.
The phone screen lit up with a message from an encrypted channel. The sender was "Song".
"The new school building is now in use. The children love it."
Huo Yanli's gaze lingered on that line of text for a few seconds. He could imagine how she looked when she wrote it; she had probably just escaped from a long meeting, her face showing exhaustion.
He quickly replied:
"Safety?"
The message was sent. He put away his phone and turned his gaze back to the vast sky outside the window.
He knew a reply might not come for hours, or even tomorrow. And it would probably only be a single word. But he was used to this pace.
Comrades-in-arms.
He savored the word softly, and that genuine smile reappeared on his lips.
Yes, they are comrades-in-arms. Separated by mountains and seas, by different battlefields, they each guard, in their own ways, that shared yearning for a better world. All their emotions and concerns are settled in practical collaborations, restrained greetings, and a profound understanding that needs no words.
The cover of Time magazine is about to go to print, with a dazzling headline. But for him, the real life behind the cover, the identity of that "comrade-in-arms" is closer to his heart than any title, and it is more worthy of his long-term, silent maintenance and quiet companionship.
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