Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Jinling General Hospital.
The soldiers who were wounded in combat were transferred to this hospital for the best treatment.
This included Battalion Commander Li Gaoliang…
Even though Wang Peng didn’t recommend Lu Zhou to come here, Lu Zhou was persistent. Wang Peng received approval from his superiors and brought Lu Zhou here.
According to Lu Zhou, these people were injured because of his project. It would be too cold-hearted of him not to visit.
Lu Zhou followed Wang Peng and came to a closed-off section of the hospital.
Lu Zhou looked at the soldiers standing at the corridor entrance, and he casually asked, “There are soldiers on duty here?”
“Of course,” Wang Peng nodded and said, “if we don’t keep this thing a secret, the news would spread like wildfire.”
Lu Zhou nodded and followed Wang Peng.
Wang Peng showed a letter to the door guard. After carefully examining the letter, the guard gave a military salute before stepping aside.
Wang Peng entered the ward and saw Li Gaoliang lying on the bed. Li Gaoliang’s legs were wrapped in bandages. Lu Zhou paused for a second before saying, “Your leg…”
“It was cut off,” Li Gaoliang said. “Professor Lu, why are you here?”
“I’m here to visit you.” Lu Zhou placed the fruit and milk on the table and said, “I’m terribly sorry to see you like this…”
Li Gaoliang looked to the side and coughed. He said, “Don’t say that, I’m the one who should be sorry… I’m sorry I failed to protect the experiment facilities. I’ve failed my country.”
Lu Zhou shook his head and said, “The experiment doesn’t matter, as long as people are safe.”
Even though Lu Zhou was sad that the experiment was damaged…
But nothing was more important than human lives.
As long as the humans were okay, all Lu Zhou needed was some extra time to put the experiment back on track.
Li Gaoliang sighed and looked at Wang Peng.
“Can you light me a cigarette?”
Wang Peng shook his head and said, “When I came here, the doctors told me that you just finished the operation and shouldn’t smoke.”
Li Gaoliang said, “Just one puff, I can’t help this addiction.”
“No,” Wang Peng said, “not even one puff!”
Li Gaoliang turned toward Lu Zhou and said helplessly, “Well, Professor Lu, I’ve been here for days, could you possibly…”
Wang Peng coughed and said, “Forget about it, he doesn’t smoke.”
Li Gaoliang said, “There are guys who don’t smoke?”
Lu Zhou said, “Yeah, me. Do you have a problem with it?”
Li Gaoliang coughed and said, “No, that’s not what I meant…”
Lu Zhou shook his head and said, “Anyway… Could you tell me what happened?”
Li Gaoliang suddenly became silent.
After a while, he said, “I can only tell you what I know.”
Lu Zhou nodded.
“No problem.”
Li Gaoliang looked at the IV bag beside him and began to recall the past.
“It was around five o’clock in the evening. A sandstorm was blowing over the desert. The wind was very strong to the point that you couldn’t see a foot in front of you.
“They hijacked our water truck and approached our checkpoint during the sandstorm.
“The situation was very dangerous. Fortunately, the soldiers at the checkpoint noticed something was wrong, but then…”
What happened was simple, and it could be explained in a couple of words. However, the entire story took a lot more than just a few words to explain.
The soldier on duty at the checkpoint noticed something was wrong and secretly pressed the alarm button. However, the enemies noticed this. When the enemies realized, they immediately took off their camouflage and launched the attack.
These armed militants had obviously received formal armed training as their response and combat power were far more advanced than ordinary terrorists.
However, this was all expected. After all, ordinary terrorists wouldn’t be able to find a research facility hidden in the desert.
It was obvious that they had observed the facility for more than a month and did a lot of careful planning. It could even be an inside attack…
Fortunately, the four battalions were stationed there. When the armed men in the vehicle tried to drive the modified water delivery vehicle through the camp’s experiment facilities, the sniper on duty quickly responded and killed the driver with a single shot.
An intense fight broke out inside the checkpoint. An RPG was fired at the outer walls of Biosphere A, igniting the lithium-sulfur battery solar panels, which caused the facility to catch on fire.
Surprisingly, all of the 12 militants fought to the death. Even though they were all surrounded, none of them surrendered. The gunfire finally stopped after everyone was killed.
As for Li Gaoliang’s leg… He wasn’t injured during the battle. When he tried to rescue the experiment equipment, his leg was damaged by a falling concrete block.
After hearing Li Gaoliang’s story, Lu Zhou replied, “How many were injured?”
This time, Li Gaoliang didn’t say anything. He looked at Lu Zhou in silence.
Wang Peng sighed and said, “Don’t do this to him…”
Lu Zhou could tell something was wrong from the way Wang Peng looked at him.
Some things shouldn’t be made public.
Rather, they should stay undisclosed for at least a decade.
Wang Peng had to pull plenty of strings just to let Lu Zhou visit this wounded soldier.
Regardless, no matter how many casualties there were, the soldier at the checkpoint who pressed the alarm button must not have made it.
Lu Zhou still faintly remembered that the last time he went to the desert to select a site for the Garden plan, the young soldier saluted him. He did not expect the same soldier to be buried in the battlefield in less than a year…
Lu Zhou said, “… Sorry.”
The dark-skinned Battalion Commander shook his head and said, “Don’t be sorry. Defending the country is a soldier’s duty. The country will take care of us. Both of my legs are gone, but that means I’ll be able to retire and receive benefits for the rest of my life…”
The Battalion Commander smiled as he spoke.
However, Lu Zhou could still sense a trace of sadness and depression.
The Battalion Commander was obviously hiding his emotions.
Not only did his soldiers die in battle, but he also lost his legs.
He might have been happier to die in battle. Spending the rest of his life in a wheelchair would be torture…
Wang Peng looked at the Battalion Commander and didn’t say anything.
After a while, he said, “If you ever need a favor, tell me. I’ll do whatever you need.”
Li Gaoliang smiled and said, “Haha, I’ll remember that!”
Wang Peng said, “I promise.”
“Okay.” Li Gaoliang shook his head and said, “It’s fine, I just lost my legs. I don’t need you. Just come and drink with me sometimes. It’s time for the nurse to give me medicine. You should take Professor Lu and get out of here.”
Wang Peng nodded and turned around.
The ward door was pushed open, and a doctor and a nurse walked past Wang Peng.
The young nurse looked at Lu Zhou and spoke politely.
“Sir, could you please leave the ward? We need to examine the patient’s body and change his bandages…”
It was like Lu Zhou was awakened by the nurse’s voice.
Lu Zhou looked at Li Gaoliang and said, “Maybe the situation isn’t that bad.
“Maybe… I can make you walk again.”