204: care

He Jingrui, hiding behind the second-floor window, knew that due to a momentary emotional fluctuation, he hadn't hidden well enough and had been discovered by Ban Yangming.

A bitter feeling arose in his heart; he wanted to go down and reveal himself, but he didn't know how to explain his situation.

Most importantly, he had promised A Chuan not to expose A Chuan's affairs.

His heart was filled with a sudden, overwhelming anxiety.

Just then, he suddenly saw a piece of paper on the table behind him.

He recalled that the paper seemed to have been there when he first hid on the second floor.

He had only failed to notice it then because he was in a hurry to avoid Ban Yangming.

He Jingrui thought for a moment, then picked up the paper.

Opening it, he found two sentences written on it:

【Don't do things you'll regret; even if you regret them, it will be later.】

【So, boldly do what you want to do; go.】

The familiar handwriting, and a Q-version cartoon smiley face at the bottom.

This was the paper A Chuan had left here before going to the hotel.

He really is smart, much smarter than me; he knew I'd be agonizing right now... He Jingrui carefully folded the paper, then tucked it into his breast pocket and patted it.

Since that's the case, I'll go see my Squad Leader Ban.

Opening the window, He Jingrui leaped down.

The wind ruffled his clothes, and also blew away his worries.

After landing on the ground, He Jingrui scratched his head and gave a simple, honest smile as he greeted Ban Yangming, who had a complicated expression.

"Good evening, Squad Leader Ban."

However, his response was a heavy punch, filled with complex emotions.

He Jingrui's dynamic vision was extremely sharp, allowing him to easily dodge this sudden punch.

But seeing the bloodstains on the knuckles, he felt a knot in his stomach, and deliberately relaxed his facial muscles, taking the punch head-on.

It didn't hurt as much as he expected.

He Jingrui was stunned for a moment, then looked at Ban Yangming, who was hugging him tightly.

"This is great, this is great, you're not dead, this is great, ah hahahahaha..."

Listening to the laughter that was both joyful and tearful, He Jingrui pursed his lips.

Ban Yangming vented his emotions for a while, finally regaining his composure.

"Let's go, I'll take you back to the squad!"

He grabbed He Jingrui, about to turn and leave.

He Jingrui heard this and quickly broke free from Ban Yangming's hand.

"No, I can't, I can't leave yet."

Ban Yangming was taken aback, turning to look back, his eyes full of confusion.

"Why?"

He Jingrui hadn't thought of how to explain, so he could only stammer, "I... I have some things unfinished, I can't... can't leave yet."

Ban Yangming asked in surprise, "What things?"

He Jingrui's gaze flickered, unsure how to respond.

"...It's, it's just, that..."

Ban Yangming knew He Jingrui too well; seeing him like this, he knew there was something he was hiding.

It was always like this when He Jingrui messed up a mission when they were in the same squad.

The familiar feeling returned. Ban Yangming's lips pressed together slightly, a smile in his eyes, but he maintained a serious expression and shouted, "He Jingrui!"

Almost instinctively, He Jingrui immediately stood at attention and called out, "Here!"

Ban Yangming looked at He Jingrui's sloppy stance and couldn't help but shake his head.

"Look at your stance, you've completely forgotten all about formation discipline."

As he spoke, he delivered a kick.

However, he found that he couldn't move him at all; instead, the sole of his foot felt a hard, stone-like impact.

This startled Ban Yangming.

He, after all, possessed physical capabilities close to the human limit; although he hadn't put much force into that kick, it shouldn't have been completely ineffective.

"You..."

Before he could finish, He Jingrui let out an exaggerated cry of pain, then stumbled back a few steps.

"..."

Watching He Jingrui's terrible acting, Ban Yangming's brows furrowed in annoyance, and he said, "You little brat, do you think I'm stupid? Your acting is terrible, and you're still showing off?"

He Jingrui heard this, and an embarrassed expression immediately appeared on his face.

Just as he scratched his head, at a loss for what to do, he saw the dissatisfaction on Ban Yangming's face disappear, replaced by a hint of helplessness.

In that moment, the image of the big brother in the hearts of all the young squad members returned.

Ban Yangming said, "You're hiding a lot of things; is it inconvenient to talk about them?"

He Jingrui opened his mouth, unsure how to begin.

Ban Yangming walked closer and patted his shoulder.

"It's okay, everyone has secrets, you can keep yours. But why don't you come back to base? After you... sacrificed yourself, the Captain and all of us were very sad, and a lot happened afterwards..."

At this moment, scenes of He Jingrui's time with Gao Lingfeng and his squad members flashed through his mind, and an urge to immediately return to base surged within him.

But when his peripheral vision caught sight of the Midnight Diner sign, he fell silent again.

A Chuan had helped him a lot; he couldn't just leave.

Moreover, if he went to the base, his secrets would be exposed, and A Chuan would also be implicated.

Perhaps there wouldn't be danger, but his freedom would definitely be restricted.

He knew this was something A Chuan could never accept.

"I'm... I'm sorry."

He Jingrui looked at Ban Yangming, paused, and whispered.

Ban Yangming noticed He Jingrui's expression of momentary struggle when he looked towards the Midnight Diner, and he vaguely understood something.

"It seems that young boss isn't simple either. Never mind, since you don't want to go back now, I won't force you."

"But I want to tell you something, the squad..."

He paused, looking at He Jingrui's confused expression, feeling a pang of reluctance, and his original intention changed again.

He changed his words and said, "Never mind, let's not talk about it. In short, everyone is doing... quite well. If you miss everyone, just come back to base; the Fox Hunt Squad will always have a place for you."

He Jingrui didn't know what Ban Yangming had intended to say before he changed his mind, but seeing Ban Yangming's relaxed expression, he thought everyone must truly be doing well. A weight lifted from his heart, and a smile appeared on his face.

"Squad Leader Ban, thank you! Once I've finished things here, I'll definitely go back."

Ban Yangming smiled, then he looked around, and after confirming that no one was near the alley, he leaned close to He Jingrui's ear and whispered, "Right now, everyone has received missions and is scattered throughout Demon City. I can't tell you the specific missions, but something big seems to be happening in Demon City recently, so be careful."

Hearing this, He Jingrui blinked, a little taken aback.

"Alright, that's it, I'm leaving."

Ban Yangming stepped back a few paces, waved at He Jingrui, then turned and left.

He Jingrui watched Ban Yangming's retreating figure, feeling a bit reluctant, wanting to catch up, but then wondering what the point would be.

"Never mind, it's not a permanent farewell."

"When I'm strong enough, there will be no regrets that cannot be undone."

He Jingrui clenched his fists, feeling the surging power within his body, and thought silently... Back home, Ban Yangming looked at Li Zhenzhen and He Qianqian, who were still waiting in the living room and hadn't gone to sleep, and asked in surprise, "It's almost dawn, why aren't you two asleep yet?"

He Qianqian saw Ban Yangming return, blushed as she greeted him, then scurried back into her room.

Li Zhenzhen, however, immediately ran up to him, first circling Ban Yangming, then patting her chest and letting out a huge sigh of relief.

Ban Yangming was a bit speechless by her actions. He pulled her closer, ruffled her hair, and asked, "What's wrong with you, acting so strange?"

Li Zhenzhen unhappily swatted Ban Yangming's hand away.

"It's just that when you left tonight, your whole mood seemed really off. Qianqian and I waited for you to come back all night, worried, and with the nature of your work being what it is..."

Before she could finish, Ban Yangming gently smiled and ruffled her hair again.

"Silly girl."

Li Zhenzhen unhappily swatted his hand away again.

"Oh, stop ruffling my hair! Don't you know how strong your hands are?!"

Ban Yangming raised his hand and chuckled a few times.

Just then, Li Zhenzhen leaned closer again, pointed towards He Qianqian's room, and smiled slyly.

"Actually, I'm fine, I'm used to it. But Qianqian, she really waited for you all night ~ You don't know, she listened to the evening news all night, tsk tsk tsk ~"

Ban Yangming didn't expect his cousin's best friend to be so warm-hearted, and he felt a surge of emotion, quickly chuckling, "Thank you both for caring about me so much. Tomorrow, wherever you want to go, I'll accompany you all the way!"

Li Zhenzhen blinked, then looked at the crack in He Qianqian's open door, and shook her head helplessly.

Her cousin seemed like a warm guy, but she didn't expect him to be a complete 'steel straight man' at heart.

Speechless, absolutely speechless.