110: Chapter 110 Night Walk

"I'm going... oh dear... I knew I shouldn't have drunk..."

Li Ming swayed unsteadily, feeling dizzy. Although he had only drunk a little red wine and less than half a glass of beer, he ended up like this, looking a bit comical.

Royal Fortune’s persuasion to drink was quite successful. After all, Li Ming was already eighteen, and some things could be experienced.

Like getting drunk.

But clearly, he had some awareness of his alcohol tolerance.

One hand rested on the loyal A6, the other draped over the reliable Z23’s shoulder.

Alert looked up and down; the Commander's alcohol tolerance was really quite bad.

Senior Royal Fortune said he had a good relationship with the Northern Parliament seniors. She wondered how they managed to be with him...

"Alright, you two be careful on your way back..." Royal Fortune truly hadn't expected this. Although he was still somewhat conscious, he was already swaying.

But even so, he maintained basic cognitive ability.

"Then we'll be going now. Remember to find me if anything happens..."

"Alright, Commander, be careful on your way back!"

Li Ming waved his hand, sobered up by the sea breeze, and then stood straight.

"Oh god... I really don't want to drink..."

"Then don't drink next time. Commander, there's no need to force yourself..." Z23 patted Li Ming's back. "If you're uncomfortable, you should say so."

"Sigh, everyone was in such high spirits, wouldn't it be unsociable if I didn't drink a little?"

Alert's face was flushed under the streetlights. She had drunk quite a bit today and was a little tipsy, but she seemed alright?

Z23 had only tasted a little, as she had to be responsible for looking after the Commander.

A6 truly hadn't drunk; she strongly disliked alcohol.

"Then you and A6 can drink orange juice together!"

"Next time for sure, hehe..."

"Sigh..." Z23 was helpless.

Alert hesitated, wanting to speak.

"Alright, let's go back... Alert, how about you and I follow behind?"

"Eh?"

"You have a lot of questions you want to ask, don't you?"

In the end, it was done according to Li Ming's arrangement.

Walking beside Li Ming, Alert looked at the bright streetlights in the night and asked, "Comrade Commander, aren't you angry? This was clearly a good opportunity to expose the problem..."

"Because we are still too weak, Alert." Li Ming shook his head. "You want to stand up for me, not just because he was attacking me, right?"

"Yes, Comrade Commander... I can't understand why everyone is so... restrained."

"Or rather, weak, acquiescing to oppression," Li Ming added. "You're right, Alert. But we are new here, and a direct conflict doesn't align with our overall interests. Has Z23 told you about my core mission for coming to the mainland personally?"

"Uh, no..."

"My mission is to find everyone who is lost," Li Ming replied. "Not anything else... I don't have that many ideas, nor do I have the ability or energy to do so."

He paused, "From my perspective, although culturally somewhat similar, I am Huaxia, or rather, an Eastern Radiance person, not a local Xia Person. From this perspective, I don't need to stand up for them. There's an Eastern Radiance saying: the gun shoots the bird that sticks its head out."

"Hmm..." Alert understood, but... "But, I really, really feel uncomfortable..."

"That's normal, Alert, because your feelings are very correct," Li Ming replied.

"But... you..."

"I'm not someone with lofty ideals, but I do know another saying..." Li Ming hesitated, then suddenly reached out and picked Alert up.

"Eh eh eh? Comrade Commander, you..."

"Just trying it, you're very light." Li Ming's mood improved greatly. "Do you dislike this?"

"I don't dislike it, but you seem to be treating me like a child..."

"Aren't you a child?"

"No, I'm not!"

"Hahaha..."

Z23 and A6 looked back.

Li Ming had no intention of putting her down. Smelling her faint scent of alcohol, Li Ming continued forward.

"Comrade Commander..."

"Hmm?"

"How do you view ideals? Tell me about it."

"Ideals?" Li Ming was silent for a long time.

"I'm not sure." After a long while, Li Ming finally said, "Perhaps I once had ideals, but that me, the one with ideals, no longer exists."

"Hmm..." Alert looked troubled, as if it had gone off-topic, but why did that sentence sound so heavy?

"Haha, that went a bit off-topic... Having ideals is a good thing, better than daydreaming all day. At least people with ideals have motivation in life."

"What kind of ideal did you once have?"

"That must have been a long time ago..." Li Ming recalled. "Probably to be a very powerful person? Like Long Aotian in those wish-fulfillment novels... Oh right, you don't know Long Aotian, it means mindlessly strong."

"I understand... Why?"

"Because then, I would know everything, and wouldn't have to be forced to learn things I could never understand every day."

"So the Commander likes to be omniscient and omnipotent?"

"No, because later I realized that omniscience and omnipotence come with a price." Li Ming smiled. "But, what I mean is, having ideals and the motivation to pursue them is a good thing. Although we have to consider practical issues, but..."

"Do you remember? I had a sentence I didn't finish earlier. I know another saying that corresponds to 'the gun shoots the bird that sticks its head out,'" Li Ming reminded her.

"Eh?" Alert thought about it. "I don't know. I'm not familiar with those ancient Eastern Radiance texts."

"It's not really ancient text, just a rebuttal to 'the gun shoots the bird that sticks its head out.'"

"What is it?"

"If there were no birds to stick their heads out in the world, all would be chickens in a cage, waiting to be slaughtered."

Alert paused, then reacted, finally understanding what it meant. "A very sharp rebuttal!"

"Yes, it's sharp, but there's nothing wrong with that saying. How many capable and righteous individuals have fallen in the darkness, just so everyone else could embrace the light?" Li Ming said. "Although I don't have the practical ability to be an idealist, I won't stop you from practicing, Alert."

"But..." Alert's legs swayed gently. Like him, she didn't want her actions to cause trouble for everyone.

"We have some rules in our family. First, you can always trust your family. Second, you can always trust that your Commander will unconditionally support you as long as you don't harm your family." Li Ming's arms around her tightened slightly. "My newborn Red October, I, Li Ming, am not a good person, but if it's for you... I am willing to help you..."

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