The free Q&A session of the press conference.

  Several reporters simultaneously raised the issue of compensation for the deceased.

  “Regarding the compensation for the deceased, what I can say for sure is...” Bernardo had absolutely no contingency plan for this question. His previous thought was that military victims would be compensated according to the wartime pension system for the fallen. As for civilian deceased, he hadn't really thought about it.

  Strictly speaking, this wasn't even supposed to be the responsibility of a military district commander.

  But now, he was the one who had exposed the mess. The problem was right in front of him, and he had to answer.

  After thinking quickly, Bernardo continued to stall for time with a single sentence. “The Ministry of Defense will definitely issue a relevant plan.”

  “What kind of plan exactly?”

  “Can the families of civilian deceased also receive compensation?”

  “Since the military admits its mistake but won't cover the losses of civilian casualties, won't this cause even greater public outrage?”

  ...

  It had to be said that although the reporters' angles were tricky, most of the questions were within a reasonable range.

  Bernardo was extremely embarrassed and looked at Antonio with a pleading gaze.

  Antonio flicked his eyelids and pretended not to understand. If the old man didn't open his mouth to beg him, he wouldn't help. He wasn't the one being humiliated anyway.

  “Let Division Commander Antonio answer this question. He is currently responsible for communication regarding the compensation.”

  Anyone with a brain could see that Bernardo was completely unprepared and had dumped the problem on his subordinate. But the military under a wartime system was high and mighty; as long as no obvious blunder was made, no one would press too hard.

  “Cough.”

  Antonio cleared his throat and gathered his thoughts.

  He wasn't good at speeches, but the tragic scenes from clearing the battlefield last night were vivid in his mind. He felt it was necessary to say everything that was weighing on his heart.

  “The West Gate Street incident was so violent... comparable to a battlefield... When I was clearing the scene, looking at the corpses, whether they were soldiers or civilians, it was heartbreaking.”

  “What I want to say is, our country is sick. This isn't the problem of one person, but a problem with the country composed of all of us.”

  “All of us are responsible.”

  “The deceased, whether soldiers or civilians, told me with their lives that the country is sick and must change. It must become fairer and more reasonable, otherwise, there will be even greater conflicts and more deaths.”

  “From this perspective, only compensating soldiers according to the wartime pension system while ignoring civilian deceased is unreasonable. The country belongs to both soldiers and civilians.”

  “So my formal submission to my superiors is: whether they are civilians or families of the fallen, they should be treated equally with equal compensation.”

  “Of course, my proposal still needs to go through levels of official review and approval. Please wait patiently for the result.”

  The applause was sparse at first, but soon, it erupted like thunder.

  Someone outside the press conference cried out and shouted: “Civilians should get compensation! Civilians should also get compensation!”

  “We are citizens, not slaves!”

  “The military should not stand above the people!”

  “Equality! Freedom!”

  Slowly, their shouts turned into protests again, and people began trying to swarm into the hall.

  Several rows of reporters near the door were knocked down. Someone started screaming, and a stampede was imminent.

  “Please allow me to restate this!” Antonio grabbed the microphone and shouted loudly: “Those in the back might not have heard what I just said. I’ll say it again. My proposal is that both soldiers and civilians are citizens and should receive equal compensation. Please remain rational. Smashing our country is smashing your own home; it does us no good at all. Wait a little longer for the result of this proposal.”

  The shouting outside the conference finally quieted down slowly.

  “Antonio, I am a reporter from the Economic Daily. I’d like to ask...” The female reporter who had said Antonio was handsome finally grabbed the microphone.

  “Sure,” Antonio replied politely.

  “You said earlier that the 10% equity in the mining land was given to you by the miner Sebastian without your knowledge. But didn't you attend the auction that day? I feel your words are a bit contradictory.”

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Flashes began clicking intensely again.

  This was the focus.

  But Antonio answered directly without a pause:

  “Exactly. It was a weekend, and Mr. Sebastian just invited me to an auction. But when I arrived at the church, Sebastian took me to the auction billboard and told me the auction was over, and I had automatically acquired 10% equity. Before I could figure out what was going on, reporters rushed out to take photos. I remember there were reporters from your Economic Daily there too.”

  “When I looked at the newspaper the next day, I was puzzled. Why did you reporters only report the pictures you took of me and Sebastian talking in front of the billboard?”

  “But at that time, there wasn't a single piece of trash on the floor of the church. The tables and chairs weren't messy; they were perfectly neat. More importantly, where the priest recites scriptures, there was no auction podium set up at all.”

  “My point is, the auction Sebastian spoke of likely never even happened. I suspect I was kept in the dark.”

  “Whoosh!”

  Everyone got excited, pushing and shoving forward again.

  This was another huge scoop!

  “But why didn't you media members question whether the auction actually took place back then? Weren't there many reporters who arrived at the scene before me? None of your news reports about this matter contained photos of an auctioneer or the public sitting in the church.”

  “Actually, many details can be checked. For example, did the sales at the food stalls near the church increase that day? The nuns and priests can also serve as witnesses. I saw a nun standing in the corner that day.”

  The reporters were either scribbling notes like crazy or nodding thoughtfully.

  Some were already whispering urgently to their colleagues to get moving, dying to rush to that church and interview every single person Antonio mentioned—right this second!

  “Naturally, after I returned that day, I reported this to Military District Commander Bernardo and Army General Ricardo. Like, I’ve acquired 10% of the mining land for no reason, what should I do?”

  “Commander Bernardo, didn't I report this to you in the dining hall the next day? Maybe the military cook Lito can testify.”

  Bernardo was cursing inwardly!

  Good old Antonio, he didn't even give me a chance to deny it!

  Bernardo remembered saying this back then: “Silly boy, what are you talking about? The world is a mess; only what you can hold in your hands truly belongs to you...”

  If Antonio blurted that out without thinking, he’d be finished.

  Facing so many reporters, Bernardo could only force himself to stay calm and answer with a smile: “Indeed, you reported to me in the dining hall during lunch. You expressed a wish to donate the mineral equity to the state. But there were too many protests on the streets then, and I was worried this matter would cause too much dispute, so I chose to give it the cold treatment. After all, the equity is just a number to you; you haven't made any real profit? That was my attitude then. Antonio, you did well. Please continue.”

  “I also reported this to Army General Ricardo that day. The General and the District Commander had the same attitude: it’s fine to donate it, but we have to follow the formal process, and we can’t do it while the country is going through so many extreme incidents.”

  “That’s how I handled it.”

  Antonio finished speaking and gave the female reporter a smile.

  The female reporter stared at Antonio with her mouth open, dazed, almost drooling.

  His military cap and uniform were perfectly neat. His body was tall but not thin; that broad chest looked like it could wrap a woman’s entire body in his arms.

  And his faintly visible thick stubble... the female reporter was now imagining rubbing her body against it.

  That handsome face had such sharp contours.

  His definitely-not-feminine, warm red lips, and the thick, black short hair neatly trimmed under his cap—all radiated intense male hormones.

  The female reporter had fallen into a lingering, sensual fantasy.

  She felt like there was a ball of cotton between her and Antonio, and she wanted to sink into that soft warmth and never come out.

  Mmm... She felt lucky she wasn't married yet.

  She heard this commander was divorced!

  Antonio felt that this female reporter in the front row was actually quite enticing too.

  She felt the hall was too hot and had actually undone a button. Her surging breasts, encased in her underwear, were almost entirely exposed.

  With her petite figure, Antonio was confident he could lift her up with one hand.

  To be honest, if this were a lively bar, Antonio would definitely grab a drink and walk over to chat her up.

  But this was a military district press conference.

  Antonio swallowed his saliva.

  By the time the female reporter snapped out of it, Antonio had already left. She could only chase after him, shouting.

  “Commander Antonio, I still have questions for you!”

  “Next time. There are many urgent matters in the military district.” Antonio just waved his hand at her without looking back.

  As Antonio walked out of the briefing hall, he was also wondering: what was wrong with him? Was he in heat?

  It was all Lady Sweet’s fault.

  They’d been divorced for three years, and she was still controlling his private life.

  It had caused him to not have a taste of a woman for three years.

  After saying goodbye to Bernardo, Antonio unconsciously walked toward the National Security Bureau office.

  He had to make it clear to Lady Sweet; things couldn't go on like this.

  Men also liked the nourishment of love.

  If there was no love, fine—he could accept just physical nourishment.

  But the last time was about a year ago. He was drunk and about to hit the sheets with a girl he met at a bar when Lady Sweet suddenly appeared and beat the girl up.

  But as Antonio crossed the training field, he gradually found it hard to walk. He felt his steps were very heavy, so heavy he could hardly breathe.

  Was it the smoke from the battlefield in his memories clouding his vision and choking his lungs? Or those nights of fearful anticipation, with enemy planes circling overhead, when he and Lady Sweet could only hide inside a python’s den.

  That giant python was in a standoff with them. Lady Sweet was shivering with fear.

  Luckily, that snake—thick as a man’s waist—seemed to have already swallowed a soldier’s corpse... Those memories... they felt so very far away now……

  By this time, Antonio finally calmed down.

  He changed direction and went to check on Dante’s training.

  Every afternoon, Dante would study various extreme combat skills with the National Bureau instructor arranged by Lady Sweet.

  Today’s project for Dante was "Wall Running."

  While running fast, one can use their feet against a wall to leap across a dangerous path. For example, in a narrow road with walls on both sides and a car crashing toward you, your only way to survive is to step on the wall and leap in the opposite direction of the car.

  The premise is, you can’t afford to care anymore whether you’ll get hurt.

  Of course, if you can ensure you aren't hurt after landing, that’s even more perfect. This is an extreme skill that only National Bureau special forces can learn.

  Dante was studying very hard.

  Naturally, Antonio was very satisfied.

  Regarding this kid's background, Antonio had a clear answer through Rocco’s investigation in the guard room.

  Dante was just a common gatekeeper who Antonio had mistaken for one of Bernardo's people. He seemed to really cherish the occasional opportunity to stay by the Vice Division Commander’s side.

  This opportunity wasn't just about a pay raise; it could mean a limitless future.

  Antonio knew Dante was determined to follow him.

  In that case, how could he ever throw away such a serious and hardworking personal escort?

  After seeing Dante complete three consecutive sideways wall-leaps, Antonio clapped hard:

  “Dante, good job! When training is over, you’re allowed to come to the officers' mess with me for dinner. I’ll add a chicken leg for you!”

  “You better not break your word!” Dante shouted back.

  Author’s Note: After finishing this chapter, I let out a snort-laugh like a fat pigeon!