**"Hey, Boss, can I talk to you in private?"**
Hearing the sudden question whispered in his ear, Jason, who was drowning in frustration, lifted his head and found himself face-to-face with the new external recruit, Long Zhan.
If it had been another rookie, Jason, in his foul mood, would likely have ignored them entirely. But Long Zhan was different.
From the very first moment Jason met Long Zhan, the newcomer's unrelenting confidence and unconventional, free-spirited demeanor left a profound impression on him.
Perhaps it was this impression, or maybe Jason was infected by Long Zhan's confidence at that moment, but instead of snapping at him to leave, Jason nodded in agreement. He bent down briefly, gently stroking the young boy lying on the bed, who was groaning in pain, before silently getting up and walking straight to the fire escape on the left.
Long Zhan followed him silently. As soon as they entered the fire escape, he went straight to the point: **"If I'm not mistaken, you're waiting for the special forces to arrive for support. But your request was overridden by the higher-ups, wasn't it?"**
**"Your observational skills are sharp,"** Jason replied, confirming Long Zhan's suspicion, his face showing no trace of emotion.
Yet, beneath the calm exterior, there was a heavy sense of dejection mingled with a fierce unwillingness to give up.
Long Zhan was unfazed by Jason's cold demeanor and continued, **"Actually, this isn't a dead end. We can still turn things around."**
**"If you're suggesting we stay behind to fight the Syrian forces, forcing the Department of Defense to deploy the special forces for support, let me be clear—I've already decided on this course of action. Of course, everyone has the choice to leave, and I won't compel anyone, including you."**
Jason's approach was all-or-nothing, relying on the Department of Defense's reluctance to leave traces of U.S. forces in Iraq. This would, in theory, force them to recall Bravo Team. However, engaging a special unit against an entire army was undeniably dangerous—a gamble with likely fatal consequences.
The bodies of Bravo Team might be the only thing returned in the end.
But for the honor Jason had pursued his entire life, and for the heroic dreams he had held before enlisting, he was willing to take the risk and make this bet for the sake of the innocent civilians. Jason had reached a desperate impasse.
**"You want to be a hero, huh? Hahaha, I'm not interested in being some heroic fool. I just want to survive. I want all of us to survive and make it back alive,"** Long Zhan said, laughing so boldly that Jason's expression darkened, then turned an ominous shade of green.
Just as Jason was about to lose his temper, Long Zhan abruptly stopped laughing. His tone shifted, and with a sly smile, he said, **"We have a better way to force their hand. We don't need to take such a huge risk."**
**"Oh?"**
Jason, who had been ready to explode, froze for a moment, realizing Long Zhan wasn't speaking nonsense. Driven by his responsibility for his team members' lives and his strong desire to save the civilians, Jason couldn't help but ask, **"If you can really pull it off, the codename B6 will be yours for life."**
When Long Zhan first entered the Bravo Team briefing room, he had brazenly declared he would take the B6 codename. Jason's meaning was clear now—he was serious about it.
Even though Long Zhan had ranked last in every training session with the Green Team for over five months, Jason knew that with Long Zhan's extraordinary abilities, this was impossible under normal circumstances.
For Long Zhan, joining DG was already a certainty, but whether he could enter Bravo Team was still uncertain. This verbal assurance from Jason was exactly what Long Zhan needed.
After all, DG had four operational squadrons, with over 20 squads in total. Who knew which squad leader would end up recruiting him after graduation?
Now, with Jason's promise, Long Zhan had no more reservations. He immediately leaned in and whispered something into Jason's ear.
Upon hearing Long Zhan's ingenious plan, Jason's eyes lit up, and a smile broke across his face.
The previous sense of despair vanished completely.
He immediately returned and gathered everyone in Bravo Team, except for the two who were standing guard, including Dr. Lucien. Jason shared the new plan and outlined what everyone needed to do next.
**"They need evidence of the toxin being manufactured here. If we can't bring back samples, then these civilians become the only evidence. This is brilliant, Jason. Truly befitting of Bravo Team's leader,"** Ray exclaimed after hearing the plan, showering Jason with praise.
If they could indeed force the special forces to intervene, having them escort the team would make the revised evacuation plan far safer than the original one, let alone the suicidal resistance plan.
Ray wasn't the only one impressed. Everyone else also felt their anxiety ease and began praising Jason for his cleverness.
**"Wait, wait!"**
Overwhelmed by the compliments, Jason quickly gestured for silence. He wasn't about to steal credit from a rookie. With a big smile, he patted Long Zhan on the shoulder and said, **"You should direct all these praises to Long, our future Bravo Team member, because this idea came from him."**
Jason's words were clear—Long Zhan's place in Bravo Team was practically confirmed.
Hearing that the game-changing idea came from Long Zhan, even Ray, despite his preference for Clay, had to fully acknowledge Long Zhan's prowess.
From head to toe, Ray admitted Long Zhan was the strongest recruit of this cohort.
The others, already on good terms with Long Zhan, eagerly showered him with praise for once again saving the day.
**"Amazing!"**
**"Well done!"**
**"As Sunny called him, the wonder boy!"**
Listening to the flood of compliments, Long Zhan accepted them without any pretense of modesty.
In the world of the strong, only strength earned respect and recognition. Humility was worthless here.
After aligning everyone's understanding of the plan, Jason began his performance.
**"Command, this is Bravo One. The biochemical specialist has completed toxin sampling. The tests yielded negative results. He suspects the laboratory has been thoroughly cleansed, and the toxin fully diluted, leaving no viable samples. Please advise."**