69: Chapter 69 Who is taking the blame for whom?

"Chen Mo, do you have any wine?"

Old Man Zhang, his mouth glistening with grease, pulled his head out of his rice bowl and stared straight at Chen Mo, still chewing on a tough piece of meat tendon.

"Where am I supposed to steal wine for you? Besides, this is a fortress; alcohol is prohibited."

Chen Mo rolled his eyes. This little old man looked scrawny, but his appetite was truly not small.

"Heh, I knew it."

Old Man Zhang chuckled and secretly pulled two plastic bags out of his pocket.

"Look at what this is: homemade rice wine, a specialty of Kun City."

"Try some!"

"Old man, you have high blood pressure and high blood sugar, yet you still dare to drink?"

Chen Mo was taken aback. The bag was sealed very well; he hadn't even smelled the alcohol.

"What's the big deal? Can't I have a drink after fighting wars my whole life?"

Old Man Zhang curled his lip, bit off a corner of the plastic bag, and started drinking.

"Besides, I'm covered in hidden injuries; I can't sleep without a little drink."

Chen Mo took the plastic bag from Old Man Zhang, bit off a corner, and started drinking.

The rice wine was sweet, and the taste was actually quite good.

None of them spoke anymore; on the hill behind the cadre building, only the sounds of chewing and the glug-glug of drinking remained.

I don't know how much time passed, but the stir-fry in the pot was eaten clean by them, and Shen Zhou even used the oil at the bottom of the pot to mix with his rice.

"Burp~"

Old Man Zhang let out a full burp, picked up his cane, and stood up shakily.

"Ahem, well, I'm going back to sleep now."

"I won't chat with you guys anymore."

"Rare, truly rare. I finally had a comfortable, full meal."

Watching Old Man Zhang's receding figure, the three of them looked at each other and immediately began digging a hole to destroy the crime scene.

But they had barely dug for a moment when a dense sound of footsteps came from behind them.

"Stop! Immediately squat down with your hands on your heads!"

Several soldiers holding alloy steel blades looked at the three with vigilance, their Qi and blood ready to burst forth.

As long as the three of them dared to make any unnecessary movements, those steel blades could punch a hole right through them.

Seeing this, the three looked at each other and had no choice but to honestly squat down with their hands on their heads.

A few minutes later...

Commander Shen looked at the three squatting on the ground with a dark face, not knowing what to say to these three brats.

Normally, this kind of violation would warrant confinement, but the National Joint Examination started tomorrow, and confinement might affect the futures of these three little guys.

He didn't know whether to punish them or not.

"Report!"

"Come in!"

The door to the conference room was pushed open, and a little old man with a sheepish grin was brought in.

"Zhang Laosan?"

Commander Shen stood up abruptly, looking up and down at that scrawny little old man.

"Report, hello Chief!"

Old Man Zhang barely straightened his waist and saluted Commander Shen.

"Why are you here?"

"I came to see my son. Isn't this an event you guys put on..."

Old Man Zhang chuckled and sat down without caring about any rules.

"Well, Commander Shen."

"I ordered these three brats to cook. My mouth has been so bland in the nursing home I could die, you can understand that, right?"

"Besides, we're from the same enlistment year. Can you do me a favor and let them go?"

Old Man Zhang winked and grimaced at Commander Shen. Commander Shen was no fool; he immediately understood that Zhang Laosan was trying to take the blame for these three little guys.

"Zhang Laosan! Stand up!"

"Do you know this is a fortress? You actually ordered new recruits to cook for you; this is called abuse of power!"

"Considering you're a war hero, I won't hold the three of them responsible, but you will have to accept punishment!"

Commander Shen was also a guy who knew how to take a hint, and he immediately changed his expression.

"Yes!"

Old Man Zhang had an "I was wrong" expression on his face, while the expressions of Chen Mo and the other two became quite strange.

"Alright, get back to sleep!"

"Zhang Laosan, you're about to face your punishment!"

Chen Mo and the others secretly gave Old Man Zhang a thumbs up, then disappeared down the end of the corridor in a flash.

After everyone had left, Old Man Zhang and Commander Shen looked at each other and burst out laughing together.

"What, remembering the days when we used to sneak out to cook extra meals?"

After laughing for a while, Old Man Zhang coughed violently twice and sat down on a chair.

"Yeah, the food that kid Chen Mo makes is much better than what you, Commander Shen, used to make."

"Back then, if the brothers weren't starving, there's no way we would have eaten that piece of crap you made."

"You old bastard, you ate it more happily than anyone!"

"That was because there was nothing else to eat, we were starving!"

The little old man and the burly black man argued for a while before stopping in unison.

"Laosan, how is your… body?"

As an Eighth-Grade Martial King, Commander Shen could naturally see Old Man Zhang's current state.

His Qi and blood were withered, and the vitality in his body was minimal, like a candle flame flickering in a gale, ready to be extinguished at any moment.

"I don't have many days left to live."

Old Man Zhang waved his hand.

"I'm just here to see my silly son before I die."

"The brat doesn't even know to leave an heir for my Zhang family. His two older brothers were the same, died without leaving an heir."

"Just on this point, they aren't as good as their old man."

It would have been better not to bring up this topic; once it was brought up, Commander Shen didn't know how to respond.

"Alright, don't give me that gloomy look."

Old Man Zhang chuckled and reached out to pat Commander Shen on the shoulder.

"Big brother, dying on the battlefield and sacrificing one's life for the country is the highest honor for a person of the Great Xia."

"You just have a few more sons than me; didn't your second and fifth sons also die on the battlefield?"

"You don't need to feel anything about it. If my son dies in battle before leaving an heir, then it can only be considered that heaven doesn't want my Zhang family to have an heir."

"But, if that day really comes, please help me take good care of my old lady."

"Alright, don't say anymore!"

Commander Shen took a deep breath and grabbed Old Man Zhang's hand.

"Laosan, rest assured, I will definitely find a way to make sure your son has an heir."

"My younger brother has a daughter around his age; I'll play matchmaker for the two young people then."

Old Man Zhang's eyes lit up, and he gripped Commander Shen's hand even tighter.

"That's a good thing!"

"I never expected, never expected that someone from my Old Zhang family would have a day where they could live off a woman."

"Tsk tsk tsk, why didn't I have the fate to live off a woman back then?"

With Old Zhang's wisecracking, the initially heavy atmosphere instantly eased.

The two old guys started reminiscing about the old days in that very conference room.

The next morning, the bugle call for waking up sounded.

Chen Mo, who was sleeping groggily, sat up. He looked at his surroundings and remembered that he had arrived at Luofeng Fortress.

"Oi! Wake up!"

Chen Mo kicked Lin Ye, who was sleeping like a dead dog, and incidentally pulled up Shen Zhou, who was drooling.

"Hmm?"

The two of them were confused, only feeling a sense of vertigo before they were inexplicably pulled up.

"Today is the first day of the National Joint Examination, hurry up and wash up to assemble."

Chen Mo didn't waste any words; the three groggy guys rushed into the washroom to start washing their faces and brushing their teeth.