Gong Yuechen's words were truly unreserved, even dragging the 'big shots' into his scolding. This terrified the retired veteran Gong Tingjian, who quickly tugged his son's sleeve, urging him to stop.
"And you! Dad, she's your own cousin's daughter!" Gong Yuechen's red-rimmed eyes were clearly visible as he stood up abruptly. "At worst, I'll quit being a Major General too!"
"Gong Yuechen! What are you saying! Do you know how difficult it was for others to reach your position?" Gong Tingjian, his beard practically bristling, pointed at his son, almost unable to speak. "You, you..."
"Me? So, the effort I put into climbing to this position wasn't to protect my family, but to make me lose everyone I care about?" Gong Yuechen pointed at himself in disbelief, scanning the conference room. No one dared to meet his gaze. "Wasn't it easy for Bai Cha to stand before us? I've killed less than a fraction of the enemies she has, so now, just because you've met people with more benefits, you're going to abandon her?"
"Then if one day you don't need me anymore, and you find someone more capable of being a Major General, will I also suffer the same fate?" Gong Yuechen leaned his hands on the table, and as he spoke, his heart grew cold.
No one dared to speak.
Among these people were not only those hostile towards Bai Cha, but also neutral parties, and even many who owed Bai Cha favors. However, they remained silent. They were all good people who chose silence.
Gong Yuechen could only laugh. What was the difference between a good person who remained silent and an accomplice to the wicked? No wonder Bai Cha didn't even want to see him anymore. Even he, what was the difference between him and an accomplice?
"Damn it, you all play amongst yourselves. I really can't stay here for another day." Gong Yuechen, furious, left the meeting.
Who would have thought that Gong Yuechen's departure would be like someone finally leading the way? It was as if a switch had been flipped, and soon, a second person stood up.
Upon closer inspection, this person's hands seemed to be trembling, perhaps out of fear for making such a 'rebellious' choice and action in front of so many people for the first time. Yet, he resolutely left the conference room.
Where there was one, there were two. In the end, almost half the people left in indignation.
Bai Cha, of course, did not know this.
This time, she abandoned flying. Instead, she bought tickets and, along with Lucifer and a few others, enjoyed a commercial flight, squeezed in with ordinary people.
"Oh, it's so stuffy wearing a mask. I've never been so bundled up before." As soon as Freya sat down, she took off her hat and scarf. The people from the Shadow faction, sitting a few rows around them, no longer feared ordinary people squeezing in to give them strange looks.
"I told you to wear a wig, but you refused. Pink long hair is bound to be conspicuous." Bai Cha helplessly took Freya's hat and asked Lucifer to put it away. "The airplane meal will probably be another hour. You didn't eat breakfast, so you might have to bear with it."
"Alright, alright. I'm not that delicate. As long as I'm with Cha Cha, I'm happiest doing anything," Freya said, hugging Bai Cha's arm and acting spoiled. "Finally, we don't have to fly ourselves. I'm going to enjoy it thoroughly."
Bai Cha remained silent. They usually flew quickly, traversing the world at the fastest speed to complete missions, always in a rush, never stopping to enjoy the scenery, nor lounging back in their seats as she was now, feeling drowsy.
In the end, these seemingly ordinary modes of transport for ordinary people had become a luxury for them. They earned a lot of money, but when they carefully calculated it, they realized they had never truly lived like a person.
"Oh, right, this is for you." Bai Cha handed Freya a small, black ball the size of a walnut. Freya took it and noticed a hint of sadness in Bai Cha's eyes.
"I originally obtained this from Leviathan as a small gift to make you happy. I didn't expect so many things to happen." Bai Cha leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes, and said in a low voice, "This small world has been emptied. It needs power to maintain it, requiring energy input every day, which can be troublesome. If you don't like it..."
"I like it, of course, I like it. How could I not? Anything you give me, I like," Freya said happily, holding the small world. Her eyes sparkled. "Since you're willing to give me something so precious, I won't thank you."
"Cough, you don't need to thank me." Bai Cha turned to look at the scenery outside the window. The plane hadn't taken off yet, and she could see the vast airport with various vehicles and people directing them.
The weather was clear, so clear that Freya could clearly see Bai Cha's slightly flushed earlobes.
"Is Cha Cha falling for me more and more?" Freya buried her head in Bai Cha's shoulder, her tone playful and her expression grinning.
However, Bai Cha suddenly felt that Freya wasn't as happy at that moment.
Why? Was it because she was acting out of character that Freya found it uninteresting?
Bai Cha tilted her head, lost in thought.
"Are you... unhappy?" Bai Cha was finally starting to believe Lucifer's words that her emotional intelligence might have been used to compensate for her intelligence. She thought for a long time, unable to figure out if she had said anything wrong to upset the girl.
Bai Cha had seen many girls online become unhappy over seemingly ordinary words from men. For example, Bai Cha once saw an example online.
A girl says: "I saw your ex-girlfriend when I went to the hospital today."
In that case, the focus certainly wouldn't be on the ex-girlfriend, but on letting you know she felt unwell that day and needed you to care for her and buy her medicine.
Perhaps she was truly a bit slow-witted, like those dense guys. Bai Cha reviewed everything she had said in the last two seconds, but couldn't find anything wrong.
"It's not unhappiness, I'm very happy." Freya squeezed Bai Cha's hand. She lowered her head, and Bai Cha couldn't see her face, only hear Freya's sweet voice: "I heard that happiness makes people dependent, and then people become fragile? Cha Cha won't change because of me, will you?"
Become fragile?
Bai Cha was confused. "What do you mean by change?"
Freya thought for a moment before finding a suitable example. "Like King Zhou, who became unpredictable and wasted national resources for Daji, even willing to be killed by Daji and die together with her in a burning tower while drinking wine?"
Bai Cha: "?"
"Did you watch a Nezha animation?" Bai Cha held her forehead. What was she even talking about? This example was worse than not giving one. After giving it, she became even more confused.
"Alright, alright, it's more or less the same. Cartoons are just really good to watch," Freya said coquettishly.
So, was she implying that she might become unpredictable because of her?
Bai Cha didn't understand, but to comfort Freya, she could only respond, "I won't become fragile. I will lead everyone out of hardship."
"I know, I've always known that. So, when will you finally live for yourself?" Freya gripped Bai Cha's hand tightly, making it hurt a little.
Bai Cha looked in surprise at the little pink spirit. In her impression, Freya had always been a sweet and cute girl, seemingly free from worries and anger, filled with love for everyone and even the world.
This was the first time Freya had shown such strong negative emotions in front of her.
She seemed... angry?
"Cha Cha, won't you come with me? We'll ignore all these scums and the country's troubles. We'll leave here now. If we want to save the world, we can just hide until the Dragon Mother descends and then come out," Freya suddenly raised her head, her bright, crystal-like pink eyes staring directly at Bai Cha.
The intensity made Bai Cha afraid to look directly.
"Let's leave here and find a deserted island where these human schemes can never find us." Freya said seriously, "We can hide forever, and only come out to fight the Dragon Mother when she descends. Other than that, we won't bother with anything, okay?"
Bai Cha was stunned; she felt a little dazed.
Looking at the earnest and fervent Freya, Bai Cha knew she thought about it. In fact, even without Freya's words, Bai Cha had considered this possibility countless times, or rather, she harbored a sliver of hope deep down.
Could she live for herself?
This wasn't the first time someone had asked her this question. But not now. At least not now, it was absolutely impossible.
"I'm sorry." Bai Cha's voice was soft and a little dry. She saw the light of hope in the little pink spirit's bright eyes suddenly extinguish, replaced by disappointment and sorrow.
She had seen this look before.
It was when she was twelve years old, and Freya confessed to her, only to be rejected by her. At that time, Freya had looked at her with the same expression.
"After the World Competition, I'll go with you." Seeing Freya's dejected look, Bai Cha hesitated for a long time before compromising. "I'll retire and no longer get involved. After we get past the Dragon Mother, I'll cut ties with them."
"Then, I'll go wherever you want to go."
Freya didn't speak. She gently hugged Bai Cha, accepting her words. She knew this was Bai Cha's biggest concession, and she had indeed conceded too much.
"It's okay. As long as Cha Cha is here, it's paradise," Freya must have been crying. Bai Cha could feel a slight dampness on her shoulder and Freya's somewhat unsteady voice.
"As long as Cha Cha is here, anywhere is paradise."
Now, Bai Cha truly didn't know how to respond.
Many times, Bai Cha doubted whether she could truly bear the hopes of so many people and lead them to break through adversity. She could only become stronger, reassuring them and not disappointing them.
They had indeed wasted a lot of time. There were only three months left until the World Competition. Time always passed so quickly. After various trivial matters were concluded, it always felt like a dream, a blur of seasons. Before she could even realize what time it was, she would be engrossed in the next task.
Shadow, a group of thousands, had been flooded with messages since Bai Cha announced their resistance. Every few hours, Bai Cha's notification count would exceed 999+.
Some posted pictures of themselves drinking in bars, some posted from concert venues, some took annual leave and went hiking and traveling with friends, and some slept in and posted tempting food pictures late at night.
Nothing about serious matters.
These messages directly pushed aside those related to missions. Bai Cha had to scroll down for a long time to pick tasks.
Wow... now she could use the word "pick" for tasks. It actually felt pretty good.
Bai Cha rested her chin on her hand, her mood slightly improved.
"Cha Cha, what's wrong?" Seeing Bai Cha suddenly chuckle, Freya leaned over curiously. After taking a glance, she exclaimed, "Wow wow, are you all having so much fun now?"
"Yes, we were so busy before that we were dizzy. Now we can pick tasks, and if we don't want to do them, we can decline them." Bai Cha said helplessly. Although she wouldn't decline, seeing others so happy brought her some comfort.
"Sometimes I feel like some people are truly cheap. We risk our lives for them, and they don't care. Only when we slap them will they come crawling, bowing and scraping to us." Bai Cha snorted coldly. "Before, they thought I was useless and tried to suppress me. Now that I'm really quitting, they're getting anxious."