Chapter 233: 233, On the verge of breaking out

Hu Shuo had been in a pleasant mood all day, punching in the morning, teaching the children, with Ren Xiaosu not around—what a comfortable and leisurely day it was.

As Ren Xiaosu had guessed, he could have simply sent someone to bring Yan Liuyuan and the others directly, which would have been so much easier. But he had his own purpose.

If he had brought Yan Liuyuan, Wang Fugui, and the others directly, how would he have gotten rid of Ren Xiaosu?

Other purposes were not important; being able to make Ren Xiaosu leave the outpost for an entire day was worth the trouble of fabricating a Li's regular army identity for him.

Just look—Ren Xiaosu was gone for a whole day, with six hours on the road, and another eight hours wasted here and there.

It was like a holiday!

Yet he never imagined that in the afternoon, someone would deliver a telephone, saying the Supervision Department's director was furious.

At first, Hu Shuo didn't understand what was happening, but after answering the call, he learned that Ren Xiaosu had been investigating smuggling in the market town! In a system where everyone had clearly defined roles, if you seized someone else's authority, there was no way to justify it.

Hu Shuo was stunned—"You went to pick someone up, so why are you investigating smuggling?"

At that moment, he hung up the phone and looked at Ren Xiaosu: "You went to investigate smuggling?"

Ren Xiaosu laughed: "Helping your department expand into new business, impressive, right?"

Hu Shuo clenched his fists in anguish: "Did I ask you to expand? Why didn't you also take over the Order Department's work?"

Ren Xiaosu was displeased: "You never said it wasn't allowed. Before I left, I asked you—didn't you say you weren't afraid I'd cause trouble?"

Hu Shuo's eyes widened, ready to explode, when Yan Liuyuan suddenly approached, obediently saying: "Hello, Grandpa Hu Shuo."

Seeing Yan Liuyuan's clean and proper appearance, Hu Shuo's anger immediately softened into a smile: "Hello, hello."

"Well," Yan Liuyuan said: "My brother mentioned you. He said you're so capable, especially knowledgeable, teaching with such ease. I want to become as learned as you someday."

"Hahahaha, really?" Hu Shuo's anger dissipated: "Did that kid actually say that?"

"Of course," Yan Liuyuan replied: "So don't be angry anymore. He didn't mean to."

"Fine, fine, I won't be angry," Hu Shuo smiled: "Hurry up and put your things in the house. We'll start cooking for you right away—oh, there are so many girls here."

"Thank you, Grandpa Hu Shuo," Yan Liuyuan said, turning to wink at Ren Xiaosu. The argument dissolved into nothingness. Ren Xiaosu was somewhat at a loss, and indeed, Yan Liuyuan's natural ability to befriend the women in the town was truly innate...

Hu Shuo then looked at Ren Xiaosu and said: "Your younger brother is much more sensible than you. Hurry up and clean the house—I don't want to see you right now!"

At that moment, Chen Wudi led Xiao Yu and the others on a tour of the entire outpost. The outpost wasn't large, and after Xiao Yu inspected each room, she frowned: "How dirty it is in here. Don't these men know to clean up on a regular basis?"

Yan Liuyuan whispered: "Xiao Yu has been a bit obsessive about cleanliness lately. We're all afraid of her at home—she won't let us touch our chopsticks without washing hands first, and Fugui's uncle is the same..."

"Come on, girls, take the cleaning tools. Let's clean the whole place," Xiao Yu coordinated the female students like a housekeeper, and they listened to her especially well.

Originally, the outpost was full of rough men, most of them refugees who had never received military training and had no concept of keeping their quarters clean. But after half an hour, the entire barracks were transformed beyond recognition. Li Qingzheng and the others could hardly believe this was where they had once lived.

Xiao Yu and the others even wiped the window glass, and the room instantly became bright and orderly!

Ren Xiaosu sighed—Xiao Yu was becoming more and more like a capable homemaker.

The men in the outpost, like Li Qingzheng, watched the girls moving in and out, cleaning, their eyes nearly popping out.

Every time the female students saw Ren Xiaosu and Yan Liuyuan, they would show sweet smiles.

A group of rough men sat by the bonfire, barbecuing. Li Qingzheng sighed: "Brother Xiaosu is truly capable!"

After speaking, they were almost in tears of envy.

At that moment, Xiao Yu stood at the door, exhaling a puff of smoke: "Finally done cleaning."

She glanced at the bonfire: "Just eating barbecue isn't enough. I'll cook some vegetable dishes for you."

Wang Fugui smiled at Ren Xiaosu: "At home, it's all up to Xiao Yu to handle things, or else it would be chaos. Xiaosu, it looks like the Li family is going to war. Will that affect us?"

Ren Xiaosu said: "Have you found out where the 88th Stronghold is?"

"No," Wang Fugui shook his head: "But have you asked that old man? He seems to know a lot."

Ren Xiaosu looked at Hu Shuo. Before, he had worried that asking Hu Shuo would be seen as colluding with the enemy, since he had assumed Hu Shuo was a high-ranking officer of the Li family and would side with them. But now, with further judgment, he could ask.

Ren Xiaosu invited everyone to sit by the bonfire, and he sat next to Hu Shuo: "Do you know where the 88th Stronghold is?"

"The 88th Stronghold of the Yang family?" Hu Shuo glanced at Ren Xiaosu: "Why are you asking about this?"

"I'll just say it—we originally planned to go to the 88th Stronghold, but we were conscripted and ended up here," Ren Xiaosu said.

"I advise you not to think too much about it now," Hu Shuo said: "The 88th Stronghold is northeast of the 108th Stronghold. Now, that area is heavily garrisoned by the Li family, and the Yang family has also deployed troops. There are three strongholds between the 88th and 108th. You might make it alone, but how will those with you get through? This matter can't be handled just with the Special Reconnaissance Department's identity anymore."

"Is there really going to be a war?" Ren Xiaosu frowned.

"Not only that, even the Qing family has sent troops to the junction of the three families," Hu Shuo looked at him: "The Li family hasn't resolved the experimental subject at the 109th Stronghold yet, and the great battle is about to break out. If you want to cross the battlefield to reach the 88th Stronghold, you'd better prepare for casualties among your companions. Bullets and shells don't discriminate—they don't care who you are."

Ren Xiaosu furrowed his brow: "We'll be safe here in this outpost, right? We can just hide here for now."

Hu Shuo sighed: "The Li family's forces may not be sufficient. They might even drag the outpost's private troops to the front lines as cannon fodder."