Chapter 14: You Call This a Red Flag?

“By the way, why did Wei Xiu apologize to you?”

Outside the shop, the atmosphere was one of universal celebration.

Zhang Mingrui silently approached Chen Zhongyi from behind.

“Uh—nothing… just a little misunderstanding,” Chen Zhongyi stammered, his voice trembling.

Damn it, this was truly infuriating.

The platform had been plagued by scandals these past few days. Online, people were stirring up trouble, complaining about the high fees.

Chen Zhongyi wasn’t going to tolerate it; he wanted to make an example out of someone to warn others.

After some consideration, he settled on Wei Xiu.

Wei Xiu had a decent following—enough to cause a stir, but not so large as to be unmanageable. Sending a legal notice would scare him half to death.

Confident, Chen Zhongyi came to stir up trouble.

What he never expected was that this soft target had the toughest backing.

He didn’t dare tell the truth to the officer standing before him.

“Don’t pretend,” Zhang Mingrui said suddenly with a cold smile.

“I know you’re trying to cause trouble for him.”

“And I also know it was you who shut down his livestream.”

Chen Zhongyi turned around in terror.

He was utterly terrified.

When this general got angry, it was truly frightening.

What was even more terrifying was that Zhang Mingrui placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Mind your own business.”

“If you cause any more trouble for Wei Xiu—”

“It won’t just be a simple talk next time.”

Chen Zhongyi’s back hairs stood on end.

He was petrified on the spot.

A thousand excuses rose in his throat, yet none could be uttered.

The aura was oppressive, filled entirely with dominance.

“Commander… I…”

“Enough. Just disappear,” Zhang Mingrui waved his hand like shooing a dog.

Chen Zhongyi obediently slunk away like a beaten dog, completely dejected.

About fifteen minutes later, the festive crowd gradually dispersed.

Wei Xiu returned to the shop, feeling as if something was missing.

“What about that Chen guy?”

“He went home,” Zhang Mingrui smiled slightly. “He said to convey his congratulations to you.”

“I don’t believe that for a second.”

What kind of person was Chen Zhongyi?

Could a dog’s mouth spit out ivory?

Most likely, seeing that he had joined the military, he got scared and slunk away.

But that was fine.

On such a joyous day, having him around would only be bad luck.

Wei Xiu didn’t care much about such a character and had no intention of quarreling with him.

After all, when a dog bites a person, the person shouldn’t bite the dog back.

Seeing that Zhang Mingrui had no intention of leaving, Wei Xiu directly asked,

“Minister Zhang, you’re not giving me this plaque for free, are you?”

Zhang Mingrui was caught off guard. “What?”

“You don’t have to pretend. You came all this way and won’t give me a plaque? I don’t buy it.”

“Hmm…” Zhang Mingrui’s face showed seven parts surprise, three parts admiration.

“You’re really clever. I am a bit busy and need your help.”

No kidding.

Wei Xiu’s insight was no joke.

From the start, he had seen through Zhang Mingrui’s intentions.

Indeed, just as Wei Xiu suspected, the plaque wasn’t going to be a freebie.

“Here’s the thing: I have a car that broke down. I want to trouble you to fix it.”

“A war-damaged model again?” Wei Xiu felt a twinge of PTSD.

“Not that bad, just some issues with the chassis.”

“What kind of car?”

Zhang Mingrui answered succinctly, “Hongqi.”

“Where is the car? Did you bring it here?”

Zhang Mingrui waved his hand, “No, it’s at the base. Come with me and take a look.”

“Alright,” Wei Xiu nodded in agreement.

Then he turned to the screen.

“Folks, happy times are always short.”

“Got a job to do, I’m signing off.”

“Wishing my patrons endless life, forever clean and fresh.”

“886.”

“???”

The chat was left wanting more.

‘Is it over just like that?’

‘Are you kidding me?’

‘It’s been so hard to get him back, and the stream is only forty minutes?’

‘The streamer is really short.’

Some fans were reluctant to leave.

But some rational viewers analyzed the clues from the limited information.

‘Holy crap!?’

‘The general wants Wei Xiu to fix his car?’

‘My favorite streamer is being drafted?’

‘666’

‘Hongqi must be the most expensive car Wei’s ever worked on, right?’

The fans exclaimed in awe.

Wei Xiu had gone from an unknown small streamer to a top mechanic valued by the military.

Even a general personally came to invite Wei Xiu to fix his car.

Who wouldn’t be baffled by that?

……

……

More than half an hour later.

The car was brought to a remote base about ten kilometers away.

Wei Xiu got out of the car, feeling a chill. He instinctively tightened his coat.

“Is the car here?”

“No, we’re transferring to a helicopter here. The car is at the war zone headquarters.”

“???”

Wei Xiu then noticed a dark green helicopter parked nearby.

Suddenly, characters appeared in his mind.

[Z-20 Army Aviation Transport Helicopter]

[Turboshaft-10 Engine × 2]

[Cruising Speed: 270 km/h]

[…]

[Integrity: 100%]

Seeing the system info, Wei Xiu couldn’t help but smile.

This thing had to be 100%, or he wouldn’t dare to ride it.

But speaking of which,

This was Wei Xiu’s first time flying in a helicopter; naturally, he was a bit excited.

Zhang Mingrui was different.

Sporting a star on his shoulder, helicopters were among his daily transport tools.

So he naturally gave Wei Xiu some psychological coaching.

“Fasten your seatbelt.”

“Last time a plane crashed, those without seatbelts hit their heads hard.”

“It was brutal.”

Wei Xiu’s throat tightened as he buckled up tightly.

“So if I fasten it, I’ll be fine?”

“Yes, those with seatbelts aren’t afraid if something happens; they get off alive.”

“???”

He wasn’t nervous at first.

But after hearing this, Wei Xiu became extremely anxious.

Good grief, so it was a guaranteed killer?

Zhang Mingrui couldn’t help but chuckle, “Just kidding, I’m trying to ease your nerves.”

“If you hadn’t said that, I wouldn’t be nervous at all.”

Ridiculous.

Though Minister Zhang acted all serious and proper,

he was truly terrible at speaking and behaving—always joking about life and death.

Soon, the helicopter reached the designated altitude, the fuselage slightly tilted, rushing toward a direction and disappearing into the forest.

After another half hour,

the view opened up again.

On the ground stood modern buildings, while engine noises constantly echoed around.

There were tanks, wheeled vehicles, and even the distant roar of dragon-like engines.

“This is a war readiness base in the Qilin war zone.”

“A multi-branch combined force.”

“The car you need to fix is parked right here.”

After a brief introduction, the helicopter landed smoothly.

Before Wei Xiu’s feet fully touched the ground,

several soldiers on the tarmac snapped to attention and saluted Zhang Mingrui, greeting him with crisp, uniform “Greetings, Commander!”

It was clear these soldiers were no joke; every gesture carried an inviolable sacred aura.

As they walked across the tarmac,

seven or eight squads continuously saluted Zhang Mingrui.

He responded with nods like an unfeeling machine.

They stopped before a huge open-air warehouse.

At Zhang Mingrui’s command, the guards entered the security code, and two iron gates slowly opened.

“This is it.”

“This car has been broken for over a month.”

“Several groups have tried to fix it but failed…”

Before Zhang Mingrui finished, Wei Xiu pointed to a green beast parked in the shadows.

“You call this a Hongqi?”

Zhang Mingrui’s face was clear and straightforward.

“That’s right, Hongqi 9.”