AYLS -Chapter 148

Gu Huayuan left the hospital, not planning to stay at home for long, and was ready to return to his post.

Originally, after his shift change, he would have had a few days off, but those days had passed lying in the hospital. And even on this day, he felt uneasy in his heart.

He also wanted to test himself through training, to see if his body had any lingering issues.

When Lin Qiao heard that he was in such a hurry to train, she was a little angry. She felt he was being reckless and not taking care of himself. He was making people worry for no reason, and he didn’t even seem aware of it.

Lin Qiao, annoyed in her heart, decided not to pay attention to Gu Huayuan and went to work at the chicken farm herself.

Su Weizhen smiled, “Aren’t you going to stay home and accompany your Old Gu?”

“I don’t care. He went to the training ground on his own, said he couldn’t stay at home.”

Lin Qiao’s face puffed up with anger as she spoke.

Su Weizhen found it amusing. “They’re all like that. My Xu Yuanzheng is the same. Just let him go. After all, they know their own bodies better than anyone.”

Lin Qiao, still frowning, said in dissatisfaction, “He doesn’t even know how much others worry about him.”

“You’re treating your Old Gu like a child, aren’t you?” Su Weizhen couldn’t help but laugh. She thought that Xiao Qiao’s personality was already somewhat childlike, and now she was worried about Gu Huayuan as if he were a child.

Lin Qiao blushed a little. “I’m not, I’m just worried.” She pinched her fingers. “I just don’t want him to get hurt again. That would be unbearable. Zhenzhen, I’ve never felt like this before. I just worry he might get hurt.”

Listening to her, Su Weizhen felt a soft warmth in her heart. Sometimes she thought that Lin Qiao’s personality wasn’t very typical of this era. She reminded her of the young girls from many happy families in the world she had lived in before.

Yet Lin Qiao also had the pure-hearted nature commonly found in people of this era.

Perhaps it was because of her unique qualities that people couldn’t help but sincerely want to be her friend.

“Comrade Lin Qiao, I promise you, Gu Huayuan will definitely be fine. Just rest assured,” Su Weizhen solemnly stated again.

Even if it meant revealing something to Old Xu, it was worth it.

Compared to Gu Huayuan’s life, even if there were real conflicts between her and Old Xu, she would accept them. She couldn’t let such a good Xiao Qiao experience tragedy again.

Fat Cat knew that Su Weizhen had noticed.

It felt a bit disdainful.

Does thinking about protection actually mean you can protect someone?

If it weren’t for its insufficient energy, it could already dominate this game world.

All because it ended up with such a useless player.

Fat Cat was furious with hatred, but seeing how much Lin Qiao valued Gu Huayuan, it became even more determined to earn the player’s negative energy by tormenting Gu Huayuan.

At the training ground, Gu Huayuan was exercising and had even brought a few veterans to practice together.

Although he had just been discharged from the hospital, his physical condition remained excellent. During sparring, it didn’t compromise his combat ability at all.

The few who had been knocked down sat on the ground, glumly watching him.

“Company Commander, you’re so strong. How did those bastards manage to injure you before? I even practiced with them afterward—they’re all soft! I really can’t understand it.”

“Right, right, I was thinking the same thing. Company Commander, how exactly did you get injured that time?”

Everyone looked at Gu Huayuan with open curiosity.

Don’t look at it as just “getting hurt once.” If it were during wartime, everyone could understand it—after all, who can dodge bullets and artillery every time? But in individual combat, what matters is a person’s overall ability. And Gu Huayuan’s overall ability needed no explanation—it was recognized unanimously from top to bottom.

So an injury like this happening to someone like Gu Huayuan… really made people curious.

Gu Huayuan chuckled. “Want to know? Practice with me more and you’ll find out.”

“No, no, no, let’s not practice. Even if we do, we still won’t be able to beat you.”

Gu Huayuan said, “You’re admitting defeat before the fight even starts? That’s not the style of our company. Of course, if you want to be cowards, I won’t force you.”

Who could tolerate that? Wasn’t everyone a hot-blooded man?

One by one they sprang to their feet, rolling up their sleeves, ready to fight.

Gu Huayuan picked three to go at him together. The three immediately spread out, looking like they were about to go all out.

Gu Huayuan’s spirit also rose. Gone was his usual easygoing smile—his eyes turned sharp, like a wolf preparing to attack an enemy.

“Come!”

The three veterans shouted and charged toward Gu Huayuan at the same time.

Just as Gu Huayuan was about to counter, his vision suddenly went black—as if someone had momentarily covered his eyes. It lasted only a split second, and his hearing and reaction time were normal. Relying on instinct and experience, he dodged the attack automatically. His vision returned almost immediately afterward.

When the sparring was over, everyone was too exhausted to keep going. Only then did Gu Huayuan dismiss them.

Each of them left as happy as if they were going on vacation, practically wanting to cheer.

Once they were gone, Gu Huayuan simply sat down on the training ground, staring at the area where they had just fought.

That moment—although it lasted only a second—had been far too significant for him.

If not for his reflexes, he definitely would’ve been hit. And since everyone assumed he would dodge, they definitely hadn’t held back. If he’d taken that strike head-on, he would’ve been injured for sure.

With his eyes closed, Gu Huayuan replayed the scene in his mind.

He knew very clearly that feeling wasn’t caused by his body.

It felt… like someone had used something to block his eyes. It was an external interference. Completely different from the paralysis he experienced last time.

He recalled overhearing the conversations of the adults around him when he was young.

Any possibility begins with the impossible. Never ignore the tiniest clue. Trust your instincts—whatever flashes through your mind first might very well be the truth.

And the first thing he thought of… was the mysterious, special-ability-having organization behind Xiao Qiao.

Xiao Qiao definitely didn’t know anything. Her personality was too straightforward—if she knew something, she wouldn’t be able to hide it from him. If it really was this organization… why hide it from Xiao Qiao and target him?

Gu Huayuan now treated this organization with even more seriousness. If they truly had the ability to control someone’s body and interfere with them, this was a very dangerous matter. If they wanted to harm anyone in this world, it might be entirely possible.

That was something Gu Huayuan absolutely didn’t want to see.

But for now, the organization’s target seemed to be him?

Thinking about it that way… was actually a good thing. He’d been afraid he’d never find a clue. Since they were focusing on him, it was practically delivering evidence to his doorstep.

Gu Huayuan was no longer worried about his physical condition. Instead, he hoped his guess was right. It would be a perfect chance to uncover the truth about the people behind Xiao Qiao.

He considered many things.

The abilities this organization had displayed were so mysterious—clearly they had the power to kill him outright. Yet every time they acted, they left him alive. Especially this time; the intent seemed to be merely to injure him.

That was very interesting. Was it that they couldn’t kill him? Or didn’t dare?

Of course, all of this was only speculation. He still needed more tests.

Meanwhile, the fat cat was collapsed weakly in its space.

It stared blankly at the energy points it had wasted, feeling utterly depressed.

He actually dodged it. All that energy… wasted.

The fat cat was furious, scratching around in frustration. It felt it shouldn’t have been stingy—it should’ve covered his eyes for a longer time.

……

Xiao Qiao was the type whose anger came and went quickly. She had been upset with Gu Huayuan earlier, but after Su Weizhen talked her through it, and with work keeping her busy, she forgot about it entirely.

Especially now that spring had arrived—the crucial time for full-scale chick hatching. Who had time to think about being angry?

Busy as she was, she forgot all about it. When she returned home and saw Gu Huayuan, she was affectionate again, asking about his health, whether he felt uncomfortable anywhere. This time Gu Huayuan didn’t comfort her—instead, he sighed. “It might not be that good.”

Xiao Qiao panicked immediately. Holding his face in her hands, she anxiously examined the wound on his head. “What’s wrong? There’s no bleeding. Does it hurt?”

“No, it’s just… today my vision blacked out for a moment. I wonder if I’m not fully recovered yet.”

“Of course! Of course you’re not fully recovered. I told you not to go out, but you insisted!”

Xiao Qiao became angry again. “You’re not fully healed, so you’re not allowed to go out anymore.”

“Honestly, it’s nothing serious—it lasted less than a second. See? I’m fine now.” Gu Huayuan reached out to rub her ear.

Xiao Qiao turned her head away. “Stop messing around, I’m talking to you seriously. Anything else uncomfortable?”

“No. It didn’t even last a second—it passed right away. I just didn’t want you to worry. I said it a bit more dramatic on purpose because I wanted you to feel sorry for me.”

“Really?” Xiao Qiao stared at him suspiciously.

Gu Huayuan smiled. “Really.”

“…” Xiao Qiao pouted at him for a while, then punched him lightly. “Try scaring me again and next time I’ll hit you on the head.”

Gu Huayuan laughed happily. “I wouldn’t dare, wouldn’t dare. I’ll never scare my wife, Comrade Lin Qiao, again. If there’s a next time, I’ll write a self-criticism.”

Lin Qiao didn’t look happy on her face, but in her heart, she was secretly delighted.

While she wasn’t paying attention, Fat Cat was staring expressionlessly at the progress bar, which was slowly—but noticeably—moving forward.

Spring had arrived. The reconnaissance company would need to wait until everyone returned to the unit, take proper rest, and then go on long-range missions. Gu Huayuan didn’t want to lead the team while his own condition was unclear, to avoid dragging everyone down. So instead of going on missions, he trained with the comrades in the company every day—reconnaissance drills, physical exercises, and the like.

In the following days, during training, Gu Huayuan experienced obscured vision, tripped over his own feet, and even stepped on shards of glass while walking.

The most dangerous incident occurred while passing by the shooting range—he grazed his arm.

The soldier shooting didn’t even realize he hadn’t aimed properly—how did the bullet suddenly fire?

This time, Lin Qiao felt heartache again, tears streaming down her face.

This was a gun injury.

“What on earth is going on?” Lin Qiao’s eyes were red, and she didn’t even know what to say.

If Gu Huayuan had gotten hurt fighting someone, she could have scolded him, but in this case, it wasn’t his fault.

Other than feeling distressed, what else could she do?

“You guys are really dangerous…” Lin Qiao felt wronged but couldn’t say anything that would convince Gu Huayuan not to be a soldier. Ever since she arrived in this world, she had lived in the army and treated it as her home. She could deeply understand the attachment veteran soldiers like Gu Huayuan felt toward the military.

In the end, she could only squeeze out, “You have to be careful from now on.”

Gu Huayuan smiled. “Alright, don’t worry. These are really just minor injuries. Look at the others—nine out of ten have had similar experiences. If we didn’t get hurt a little during training, it means we weren’t training seriously.”

“That’s nonsense. Isn’t it supposed to be that you can sweat without bleeding? You think I don’t understand?”

“I understand, Xiao Qiao, of course I understand,” Gu Huayuan said, smiling as he comforted her.

Seeing someone injured still trying to soothe her, Lin Qiao felt too embarrassed to be fussy. “I’m not blaming you; I just don’t want to see you hurt. Gu Huayuan, you have to take care of yourself.” She couldn’t relax—if she left this world one day and Gu Huayuan kept getting hurt, what would happen?

Everyone would forget her. Even Zhenzhen would forget. Then no one would help protect Gu Huayuan anymore.

Thinking of this, Lin Qiao couldn’t hold back her tears.

Gu Huayuan wiped her tears. “Why are you crying even more now?”

“I just can’t relax about you. You’re too worrisome,” Lin Qiao said, hugging him carefully, avoiding the wound, and resting her chin on his shoulder. “Promise me you’ll be careful, alright?”

“Alright.”