Seeing the expectation on Zhang Shicun's face, Xu Fan smiled faintly.

"In this lifetime, we are brothers. I'll help you with this."

At first, this kid had coaxed the General to come along, and Xu Fan was quite annoyed, thinking this kid was taking advantage.

Now that he knew the truth, he was still upset, but this time it was because the guy wasn't being a good brother and didn't tell him sooner.

Whether it was for the soldiers who had sacrificed their lives for Huaxia or for his brother's revenge, Xu Fan would handle it, even if it involved the biggest powers.

If the sky falls, he'll hold it up.

"No need to thank me, brother. Thank you."

Seeing Zhang Shicun force out a smile, Xu Fan couldn't help but shake his head.

This guy, his smile is truly ugly...

"Brother Xu Fan, who do you think did this..."

Hearing Zhang Shicun's question, Xu Fan furrowed his brows in thought.

From the footage, from start to finish, there wasn't a single gunshot heard from the enemy.

Even the soldiers' conversations hinted at something.

They were facing just one enemy.

A lone figure hunting down a well-armed squad like prey—this kind of skill must be above Neijia level.

As to who it was, Xu Fan first thought of the people from Myanmar.

But he quickly dismissed this idea.

He initially thought it was retaliation from the Myanmar incident, but the timing didn't match.

This group had gone missing seven days ago.

It's really hard to determine who did it in a short time.

Xu Fan took a breath and said, "We're not sure yet. I need to go to the scene to investigate."

Although they had gathered all the evidence, there weren't many clues they could deduce.

Maybe, there are clues they've overlooked at the scene.

Xu Fan thought of personally going to the scene.

"Alright, then this time, it's all on you."

Clearly, this matter wasn't something that could be resolved quickly.

Since Xu Fan had agreed, he would see it through to the end.

Zhang Shicun looked at Xu Fan with a face full of gratitude.

"Alright, Brother Xu Fan, this time it's really up to you."

"If there's anything you need our help with, just let us know. We'll do our best to support you."

At this moment, the old General stood up and looked at Xu Fan.

This matter came so unexpectedly, he really had no clues.

He could only entrust this important task to this young expert based on Zhang Shicun's suggestion.

"I will definitely reward you generously."

"Alright, just treat me to a drink then."

Seeing the old man's serious expression, Xu Fan smiled and politely replied.

He had other matters to attend to, so after saying goodbye to Xu Fan, he left the conference room.

At this moment, only Xu Fan and Zhang Shicun were left in the room.

The atmosphere was a bit awkward. Seeing Zhang Shicun fiddling with the USB drive absentmindedly, Xu Fan picked up a packet of Zhonghua cigarettes from the table and walked over.

"Here, have a smoke."

He put one in his mouth, lit it, and handed one to Zhang Shicun.

Seeing his dazed expression, Xu Fan squinted and teased, "Don't tell me you don't know how."

"Of course I can..."

Zhang Shicun's dry lips cracked into a bitter smile.

Even if he didn't know before, after smoking dozens of packs in the past few days, he should have learned by now.

He took the cigarette, let Xu Fan light it, and inhaled the smoke, his eyes full of loneliness.

Phoo...

Xu Fan took a breath, blowing away the smoke ring he exhaled, and asked, "Why didn't you tell me about this when you invited me for a drink earlier?"

At that time, the Thorn Squad had already gone missing, but this guy was drinking with him without a care in the world.

Not a single word about it.

Thinking back, he even seemed to avoid the topic of the woman.

"Brothers rarely get together, as the host, I couldn't bring up something so unlucky."

Zhang Shicun shook off the cigarette ash and smiled bitterly.

Actually, there was another reason he hadn't told Xu Fan at that time.

Back then, he still harbored a bit of hope.

Maybe they were just out of touch for a few days and would come back.

But now, finding this footage, it was like a slap in the face...

Hope... was always just hope.

"She's your fiancée, right?"

The two men sat at the table smoking, Xu Fan squinted and asked.

"Yes, fiancée, we were planning to get married this year."

"Looks like God wasn't willing to let me step into the grave of marriage and wants me to be free for life."

Zhang Shicun said, forcing a smile on his face.

Still, that smile looked very ugly.

"Actually, I couldn't have made it this far without her help..."

Holding the cigarette between his fingers, the smoke swirling, Zhang Shicun seemed to recall some memories, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

"Brother, you know, she's different from other girls."

Not caring if Xu Fan was listening or not, Zhang Shicun continued in a hoarse voice, smoking his cigarette.

"When I was still a rookie, she was already with me. You should know, in our line of work, we give everything to our country and have no time for women..."

"Hehe, she never said anything, but I guess she complained a lot behind my back. Especially her parents, they really didn't like me, a soldier boy."

Thinking back to being kicked out of her parents' house, Zhang Shicun couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head.

"Honestly, with my rough and gun-toting life, I didn't deserve such a great girl. But you know what she did after we broke up?"

Extinguishing his cigarette, Zhang Shicun smiled and looked at Xu Fan.

Xu Fan found it amusing and couldn't help but smile.

There aren't many military women, Xu Fan guessed she probably wasn't in the army before.

"Did she join the army with you?"

"Yes."

Zhang Shicun smiled and nodded, "Can you believe it? She actually did it."

"Haha, it's my fault for being so handsome that she couldn't let go."

Smugly, Zhang Shicun lit another cigarette with a snap.

Took a deep breath, exhaling the smoke, he squinted, recalling the stubborn girl.

"The army, huh, not a place for pretend war games. For a delicate girl, what did she come here for?"

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