211: Anyone who invades our territory will be punished!

Lu Chuan read the entire post repeatedly, even dissecting it word by word, but still couldn't understand the true meaning of "Mi Zong Huan Ying."

He could have stated it directly, yet he insisted on using cryptic, incomprehensible language to describe the "truth."

Left with no choice, Lu Chuan could only use Ding Xinyang's account to send a private message to the other party.

(Since Lu Chuan's current registration was a new account, he couldn't use the forum's private messaging function.)

"[One Leaf Knows Autumn: Hello Mi Zong Huan Ying, I'm your fan. Because of some matters, I temporarily cannot leave the Demon Capital. May I ask what you mean by the sentence, 'The truth can be understood in reverse,' which you mentioned at the end of your post?]"

After sending the message, Lu Chuan waited for two hours, but there was still no reply from the other party.

Ding Xinyang, watching Lu Chuan monopolize his phone for two hours, scratched his head.

"A Chuan, it's late at night. Maybe he's sleeping soundly, or perhaps he simply doesn't want to reply. Waiting any longer is useless. Can I have my phone back?"

Lu Chuan looked at Ding Xinyang, who was scratching his ears and cheeks without a phone to play with, and wordlessly handed the phone back, not forgetting to remind him.

"Remember to check periodically if he's replied!"

"Alright, alright."

Ding Xinyang nodded repeatedly and went off to play games with his phone.

After all the customers had left, there were still twenty minutes until closing time. Lu Chuan had no desire to do anything else, so he started browsing short videos.

Amidst the cheerful background music, the fourth day of street vending also came to an end... As per usual, Commander Ye Baoguo first conveyed the spirit of the superior's meeting.

Below the stage, everyone wrote diligently, constantly noting important matters in their meeting notebooks.

The meeting lasted all night.

It wasn't until the sky began to faintly lighten that the long meeting finally concluded.

"The meeting concludes here. I ask all colleagues to work together with concerted effort and ensure that all preparatory work is thoroughly implemented. We absolutely must not hinder the front line in logistical support, nor must we, due to negligence, allow the vast citizenry of the Demon Capital in the rear to suffer mortal danger."

Ye Baoguo took a sip of strong tea to refresh himself, then said earnestly.

Those present at this meeting were all the top leaders of various key units and departments.

Although they had also been up for an entire day and night, in a matter of such great importance, no one dared to be careless.

Therefore, each one nodded seriously, vowing to dedicate themselves to the utmost.

"You have all worked hard. After victory, we will raise our cups and drink together!"

Ye Baoguo announced the end of the meeting.

The various heads all stood up and quickly departed.

The spirit of the meeting and all deployments had been conveyed one by one. Now, with responsibilities assigned to individuals, it would be clear who was not exerting their full effort.

If any errors occurred, accountability would absolutely be pursued with severe strictness.

But opportunity is always hidden within risk.

If the work was done exceptionally well, then perhaps the chair under one's backside could even be moved up a notch.

Thinking of this, although each and every one of them was utterly exhausted, they were as if injected with a stimulant, quickly heading towards their main battlefields.

In a blink of an eye, the vast conference room was left with only Ye Baoguo and Ye Chen.

Ye Chen's face was even paler, like a blank sheet of paper, looking chilling.

"Ye..."

Ye Baoguo opened his mouth, wanting to call Ye Chen by his full name, but in the end, he changed his words.

"Director Ye, are you really alright?"

Ye Chen shook his head, not wanting to waste time on such a trivial question.

"Commander Ye, if you kept me here to discuss such matters, then I'll return to the institute first."

"Wait."

Ye Baoguo quickly raised his hand to stop him with a helpless expression, then opened a brown document, pulled out a red-headed file marked "Top Secret," and handed it to Ye Chen for review.

"This is urgent news received two hours ago. Please take a look first, then decide if the combat plan needs to be modified."

Ye Chen took the file and began to read it.

During this time, Ye Baoguo kept observing him, but was disappointed to find that even this top-secret file, which could trigger a major international conflict, still failed to alter Ye Chen's facial expression.

Perhaps he truly had a naturally detached disposition... Ye Baoguo thought, somewhat lost in thought.

His feelings towards this son by blood were actually very complex: pride, shame, disappointment... various emotions mixed, finally blending into an indescribable sense of distance.

Coupled with Ye Chen's disregard for his fatherly role and his indifference to so-called family affection, a huge, invisible, intangible, yet truly existing chasm, like the Mariana Trench, had ultimately formed between the two.

Perhaps in this life, he would never have the chance to hear Ye Chen call him 'Dad' or 'Father.'

"Commander Ye?"

Ye Chen looked at the dazed and lost Ye Baoguo, and called out again with a cold expression.

"Ah... Oh, oh, yes."

Ye Baoguo came back to his senses, responding somewhat unnaturally.

Ye Chen didn't care what he was thinking; he simply handed the file back and then spoke:

"I've finished reading the file. These few little mice, if not careful, could indeed cause some hindrance to the combat plan. However, I've already made preparations in advance; only minor modifications to the plan are needed."

Ye Baoguo reinserted the file into the document, then nodded and replied:

"Alright, send me the combat plan later, and I'll have the staff and relevant departments cooperate."

However, Ye Chen shook his head.

"No need. Others can proceed with their respective parts of the plan as usual."

Ye Baoguo was momentarily stunned but didn't ask further, only nodding.

Ye Chen's scientific research capabilities were evident to all, but his strategic intellect was also top-tier.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be bypassing such a large team of strategists to have him create the contingency plans.

Since Ye Chen said so, Ye Baoguo felt reassured.

After some thought, he looked at Ye Chen's pale face and couldn't help but express concern again.

"Alright, the serious matters are settled. Although you're impatient to hear it, it's still the same message: take care of your health."

Ye Chen nodded indifferently, and it was unclear if he had truly listened.

Ye Baoguo sighed, watching Ye Chen stand up and leave.

At this moment, in the vast conference room, he was the only one left.

Standing up, he walked to the floor-to-ceiling window with his hands behind his back and pulled open the heavy curtains.

Ye Baoguo squinted, looking at the countless streams of cars below the building, forced to leave the city due to the impending disaster, and a hint of unwillingness and weariness involuntarily appeared on his face.

His originally straight and sturdy physique had unconsciously finally sagged, appearing to show signs of age.

Just then, the sun rose, and myriad rays of light pierced through the oppressive dark clouds.

In an instant, the morning light fell upon him.

The rising sun was not dazzling, but it carried a touch of warmth, dispelling some of the night's chill.

Beautiful colorful cloud edges hung over the city's tall buildings, and Ye Baoguo was momentarily lost in contemplation.

Time quietly slipped away.

The weariness on his face gradually faded, and with a slight curl of his lips, a faint smile appeared.

His previously slumped back straightened once again.

How could such beautiful scenery be destroyed by a group of beasts... Those who invade our territory shall be punished!