Chapter 149 He Is Still Alive

"Understood, Commander!" The young officer's fingers instinctively accelerated their pace on the keyboard. Immersed entirely in his work, he failed to notice the deeply solemn expression on Elder Wang's face beside him.

Hua Tianyu, Hua Tianyu... Elder Wang repeated the name over and over in his mind, his expression growing a fraction more severe with each repetition.

Are you still alive? Is Dragon Soul still alive?
I hope you are safe. The military of Huaxia can do without me, but it cannot do without you!
You must be alright!

"Report, Commander! Here is the incident report you requested!"
Lost in his thoughts about Dragon Soul and Hua Tianyu, Elder Wang was snapped back to reality by his subordinate's report.
He glanced at his watch. An hour had passed without him realizing it, but he knew that uncovering the entire background of this matter within an hour was no easy feat.
The young people of the Huaxia Republic were truly remarkably efficient!

Nodding, Elder Wang took the report and began to read through it carefully.
Ten minutes later, Elder Wang slowly closed the report, stood up, and walked toward the exit, murmuring as he moved, "The Han family? It seems I need to give Old Han a call first to find out what's going on!"

In a square-shaped courtyard not far from the secret archives, beside an ordinary stone table, an elderly man with silvery hair but a vigorous and energetic spirit was holding a bowl of congee. Before him sat two small dishes containing his favorite fermented soybeans and pickled mustard tubers.
At a casual glance, anyone would take him for an ordinary centenarian eating his breakfast.
Yet, the visible and hidden sentries stationed everywhere throughout the courtyard unmistakably signaled to anyone that this was a heavyweight figure whose single word could dictate the nation's destiny.

Despite such tight security, Elder Wang walked in as if no one were there, taking a seat beside the silver-haired elder.
"You're here?" The elderly man asked with a chuckle. "Care to join me for a bite?"
"Certainly, thank you, Elder Gao!" Elder Wang accepted cheerfully.
A guard nearby quickly handed over another bowl of congee and two small dishes of pickles, placing them before Elder Wang.

"Forgive me, I only have these two kinds of side dishes here. I've grown used to eating them and don't care for anything else," Elder Gao said, pointing to the fermented soybeans and pickled mustard tubers in front of Elder Wang that matched his own.
"Haha, don't I know you by now? You've been eating these two things for decades. It's fine, it's fine, I love them too." With that, Elder Wang picked up his bowl of congee and began to eat happily.

It was not long before both elders finished their congee. Once the guards had cleared away everything from the stone table, Elder Gao finally spoke up, "Is yesterday's matter cleared up?"
"Yes, it has. The files that were accessed belonged to Hua Tianyu, the leader of Dragon Soul," Elder Wang replied.
"Hua Tianyu?" Even Elder Gao's calm and unruffled voice showed a trace of change.
"Tell me about the investigation."
Elder Gao straightened his posture in his seat. Elder Wang knew this was the older man's habitual gesture before listening attentively.

"It was through the connections of the Han family that Hua Tianyu's name was checked, which triggered the alarm. The first attempt yielded nothing, so they hired someone else to check again. It is said that Old Han's girl ran into Hua Tianyu in Shangjiang City, Tiannan Province, so Hua Tianyu should still be alive," Elder Wang reported, highlighting the key points.
"I have already sent people to verify the news of Hua Tianyu in Shangjiang City, and at the same time, to scout for any word of other Dragon Soul members there."

"Well done! Should we even thank the Han family's girl? Without her, we wouldn't have any news of Dragon Soul, and my heart has been hanging in suspense every day," Elder Gao said with a smile.
"Heh, then let's call the Han family's merits and demerits balanced!" Elder Wang replied with a smile as well.
"By the way, Elder Gao, once the news about the other Dragon Soul members is confirmed, I'd like to recall them all to Tianjing City to investigate the truth behind the last ambush on Dragon Soul!" The Huaxia military still harbored deep resentment over the ambush on Dragon Soul; they were eager to restore the truth of the matter as soon as possible and find the mastermind behind the scenes.

Hearing this, Elder Gao closed his eyes, his body swaying slightly in his seat as if pondering a decision.
After a long while, he slowly opened his eyes and said, "Judging from the information at hand, the ambush on Dragon Soul is far from simple. Now, as long as Hua Tianyu is still alive, our greatest trump card remains intact. Therefore, Dragon Soul's operating methods should stay just as they were before."
"Only issue missions, without interfering with their operations?" Elder Wang asked.
"Correct, including the investigation into the ambush; follow this same rule. If he is willing, have a chat with him and see if anything can be uncovered," Elder Gao said slowly.
"Also, before the Dragon Soul members fully regroup, give Hua Tianyu some quiet time in Shangjiang City to rest."
"Understood." Elder Wang acknowledged the order. Seeing Elder Gao close his eyes once more, he said, "Then I'll be leaving first?"
Elder Gao nodded slightly without speaking...

Hua Tianyu, who was drawing the attention of Huaxia's top brass, was currently suffering from a severe headache over a Qixi Festival gift.
When he returned to Jinhai Garden that evening and handed the lipstick he bought to Tian Lin, he noticed Lin Lin's eyes fixed squarely on him.
"Ahem, today is Qixi Festival!" Hua Tianyu cleared his throat and said.

"And then?" Lin Lin asked.
"Qixi Festival is Valentine's Day!" Hua Tianyu said.
"And then?" Lin Lin continued.
"Valentine's Day is when lovers give each other gifts!"
"And then?" Lin Lin repeated those exact same words.
Hua Tianyu: "..."
What in the world does "and then" mean? Can't you speak properly, Lin Lin?
"And then?" Lin Lin raised her voice.
"And then I didn't prepare a gift for you!" Hua Tianyu said.
"Hua Tianyu, you've changed!" Lin Lin stared at him, another sentence bursting from her lips.
Hua Tianyu: "..."
How have I changed? I've always just treated you like a niece, because you're the daughter of Old Bear Lin Luohua! Why on earth would I give a gift to my niece on Valentine's Day?
"Hua Tianyu, you've now become cold-blooded and ruthless, putting romance above friendship, despicable and shameless, sinister and vicious, utterly unpardonable..." Suddenly, idiom after idiom came hurtling out of Lin Lin's mouth.
"Wait a minute!" Hua Tianyu hurriedly interrupted her. He was completely baffled; he just hadn't bought Lin Lin a gift, yet in this short span of time, it sounded like crimes worthy of a firing squad were too light for him.
"Who taught you Chinese? Did you use any of these idioms correctly?" Hua Tianyu asked.
Actually, casually buying Lin Lin a gift was a truly minor matter for him, but the problem was that Hua Tianyu had always regarded Lin Lin as his niece and had no intentions of making her his girlfriend!