229: Chapter 229 Plan

The phantom pain had finally passed.

It felt good to no longer have a headache.

Li Ming finally had some energy to think about other things.

Slumped in a hammock, Li Ming listened to the sound of water in the bathroom and fell into deep thought.

He had brought back the water purifier and storage tank originally installed upstairs in his home today, so he was being a bit extravagant and let Kate take a shower first.

At first, she wasn't very willing, but she eventually succumbed to the temptation of having a proper bath for the first time in a long while.

As for him... he was considering whether to take one later, but it didn't seem very polite to use a girl's bathroom.

Better forget it then.

Thinking this, Li Ming drifted off to sleep once more.

When he woke up again, it was around four; it was dark outside, so it was four in the morning.

Li Ming climbed up, and Kate, curled up on the sofa, rolled over, seemingly not woken by the noise.

Li Ming put on his gear and left the garage quietly.

The camp at midnight was very quiet. Since Li Ming was already registered with the Mediation Force, he successfully entered the camp after an inspection by the night watch soldiers.

There was always a choking smell of smoke in the command room, which might be considered the last luxury for the command level.

Elsa seemed used to these smells, or rather, compared to when people were here during the day, the smell had dissipated quite a bit.

As for now, she was leaning there alone, claiming to be organizing information, but in reality, there was nothing that needed organizing; she was just using it as an excuse to numb herself and avoid others.

But without a doubt, she was too exhausted, so much so that her senses had degraded, and she didn't even notice Li Ming entering.

It wasn't until Li Ming dragged a stool over and sat down that she reacted belatedly.

"Li Ming? Why are you..."

"If I said I came to see a joke, would you believe me?"

Elsa opened her mouth, then closed her eyes. "If you want to laugh at me, then laugh."

"I'm joking, but seeing your embarrassed look is indeed quite interesting. Ha. Ha. Ha."

Letting out three flat 'has', Li Ming leaned back in his chair. "I just heard that someone, in order to find me, took the initiative to seek out people she didn't want to see to search everywhere for me, then found a place to hide and cry herself."

"I did not!"

"See, getting defensive again."

"Li Ming! You!..."

"What about me? Are you planning to tell me to get lost?"

The girl's face might not have turned red from shyness, but from a rising temper.

Of course, she still restrained her anger and sat down properly. "I didn't... cry..."

Li Ming set his bag down and watched as she turned her blushing face toward the wall. "Kate is very worried about you. I couldn't sleep, so I came to take a look."

"Mm..."

At the mention of Kate, Elsa looked back. "Is she okay?"

"She's doing great." Li Ming took a map out of his bag. "But I see you're not doing so well. You haven't rested much these past two days, have you?"

"I naturally..."

"Naturally rested? Or been busy?" Li Ming looked at her. "Have you looked at your face? Do you even believe yourself?"

"Mm..." She touched her nose a bit self-consciously. "Is it... is it that bad?"

"Your skin is a bit saggy."

"Eh?"

"Just kidding. You're in better shape than I expected."

"Li Ming, you..."

"Hey, hey, don't get mad. I'm here to help, aren't I?" Li Ming quickly interrupted her and spread out the map. "Take a look for yourself?"

Suppressing her irritation, Elsa looked at the map.

The I-610 Loop...

On it were clearly marked the location of every outpost, personnel deployments, patrol times and squad sizes, and...

Weak points.

"If I'm not mistaken, both Maria's and Kate's tanks are facing a shortage of fuel supplies, right?"

Elsa raised her eyebrows.

"You know as well as I do how much fuel those gas turbines burn. If my guess is right, only you are currently available as mobile firepower to go out, correct?"

"...A very sharp observation."

"Therefore, my target is right here: Hobby Airport to the south."

Li Ming said, "Of course, before that, we need to create a large enough distraction."

"You want to..."

"Mm... I'm still thinking." Li Ming shook his head. "It might require your coordination."

"That's dangerous! You'll get killed!" Elsa stood up and looked at him.

"Are you worried about me?"

"I!... I am not..."

"There's a saying in Huaxia: to explain is to cover up, and to cover up is the truth." Li Ming beamed; even he felt his own personality was a bit split.

"Li Ming!"

"Alright, alright, I'll stop joking..." Li Ming quickly surrendered because Elsa had already lifted the stool. "I have confidence in myself. There's no need for you to worry."

"Tch..." Elsa put the chair down, but she still frowned. "At least take more people with you?"

"I do need people for backup, otherwise hauling supplies will be a hassle," Li Ming answered. "Especially since someone needs to break through the southern loop; charging in directly would cause big problems."

"Mm... the problem is, how do we break through their defensive line?" Elsa looked at the southern map. "You haven't forgotten about their reinforcements, have you?"

"Soldiers will be blocked by generals, and water will be blocked by earth."

Li Ming replied, "With our current manpower and equipment, trying to handle all these things at once is a pipe dream, unless we have support from main battle tanks."

"I can help. But if there are targets in multiple directions at the same time, I might not be able to handle it all."

"No, I have a way. I can at least take control of one camp silently," Li Ming said. "But after that, you'll need to change into their uniforms as quickly as possible and pretend to be the garrison."

"What are you planning?" Elsa raised an eyebrow. "How do you need us to coordinate with you?"

"I don't know how to put it specifically yet, but if possible, pass the word to the commander tomorrow," Li Ming said. "If possible, give me a dozen people and just wait for my signal."

"You're being so vague... it'll be hard to convince the commander."

"Then I'll say it myself tomorrow. When the time comes, I'll find a way to sneak in; you guys just coordinate with me."

"But you right now..."

"What about me right now?" Li Ming pulled off the gauze on his head, revealing a perfectly intact head. "Maybe I don't have the powerful physical fitness you guys have, but... I'm also very strong."

Elsa stood there stunned. "Your... your head."

"Alright, my head isn't important." Li Ming shook his head. "I think you should rest for a bit now. Right now."

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