Qin Dongting is a man of few words, with a born countenance that resembles a coffin, and naturally, he seems to be missing a few screws in his head.
Among the mbers of the Second Generation rcenary Team, it’s estimated that there are none whose nas he can call to mind, and, most likely, the only surna he rembers is that of Yue Jinghua.
As for Shalman and Weiwei, with whom he has spent over a year, he often confuses the two.
Not to ntion the female rcenaries fluttering before his eyes like butterflies, he probably hasn’t rembered a single one of them.
Therefore, when he said he wanted to recomnd a rcenary, and a female one no less, Yue Jinghua’s first reaction was: impossible.
The second reaction was still: impossible.
It wasn’t until Helen chid in that everyone realized he was telling the truth.
"The female drunkard got to know Qin Dongting during his stint as a bartender, showing up to drink till she was utterly plastered every ti, never paying a di, and often getting beaten black and blue by the bartenders. Yet, just a few days later, she’d be back, impossible to drive away," perhaps it’s because her experiences and the past Qin Dongting shared so similarities, both having drunk on credit and living in extre destitution, that Qin Dongting actually rembered such a person.
Of course, the above wasn’t spoken by Qin Dongting himself, but relayed by Helen.
Helen is a businesswoman, and the one thing she detests most in life is freeloaders.
Qin Dongting could run a tab for special reasons, but Helen was far less tolerant of that female drunkard.
To her surprise, however, Qin Dongting showed unprecedented friendliness toward the female drunkard. Once, when she truly had no money to pay her tab, Qin Dongting treated her to a drink.
Maybe out of gratitude, or perhaps for so other reason, the female drunkard jokingly said that she too was once a rcenary.
"A drunkard’s words are never to be taken seriously. That female rcenary is drunk probably half the month, her words mostly fueled by liquor," Helen wasn’t optimistic about the female rcenary, but since Yue Jinghua was looking for soone, Helen naturally wouldn’t obstruct.
At this point, Feng Buhui had already returned to the tavern, hugging Dongdong.
Seeing the teasing looks and the jeering whistles from everyone, Dongdong blushed and burrowed into Feng Buhui’s embrace.
Feng Buhui burst out with a hearty laugh, and through his laughter, Yue Jinghua caught a glimpse of the once vigorous and dashing young rcenary he had been in the elite rcenary Group Ni Huo.
Helen rembered the female drunkard ntioned earlier with an "ah," as she was often seen in the tavern and certainly rembered her.
"Are you talking about Chi Xi? She’s actually quite nice, just a bit too fond of the bottle. She lives in a shack not far from our place. Judging by the ti, she should be heading to the tavern about now," and as she spoke, a shrunken figure appeared at the entrance of the tavern.
A woman walked in with hair like weeds and wearing a rusted set of light armor.
Her walk was shaky, as if she was still recovering from a hangover, and her face under the unkempt hair looked as if she had just overco a severe illness—sallow and thin.
Upon reaching the bartender, the female drunkard fumbled in her pockets but ca up empty.
Lacking money to buy alcohol, the female drunkard didn’t leave imdiately. She stumbled over to the rcenaries who were incessantly drinking and gnawing on at. While they weren’t paying attention, she quietly swiped an empty bottle of wine.
After groping around and collecting five or six bottles, the female drunkard, not minding the filth, sat down right there in a dusty corner of the tavern. She leaned close to the bottles, trying to pour out a few last drops from the empty bottles.
"Brother Yue," Weiwei whispered, "this person has a blank stare and stiff limbs. She looks quite old, probably over forty, and certainly isn’t used to hard labor. Such a person isn’t reliable."
"Chi Xi has a rather pitiful background," Dongdong said, her eyes turning red. As a woman herself, she understood well the difficulties a woman faces in trying to make a living.
Dongdong had encountered Chi Xi several tis, as their hos were near each other. On many occasions when Chi Xi had drunkenly fallen asleep on the streets, it was Dongdong returning ho who had found her and helped her back to her place.
After many such instances, Chi Xi, while inebriated, would occasionally cling to Dongdong, recounting parts of her past.
Thus, Dongdong ca to know of Chi Xi’s background. "Chi Xi was once a female rcenary. During one escort mission, she t her future husband, a young businessman from the Imperial City. They hit it off and Chi Xi gave up her rcenary life to be with the businessman in the Imperial City. However, that businessman’s family looked down on Chi Xi’s background and refused to formally wed her into their family. With no other choice, Chi Xi temporarily beca the businessman’s concubine, until she gave birth to a child. Not long after, the businessman married another woman, a Noble Lady. The Noble Lady appeared kind in public but sched behind the scenes to sabotage Chi Xi’s relationship with her husband. Moreover, Chi Xi’s straightforward personality and her inability to cater to her in-laws led to her being driven out soon after her son ca of age."
The identity of a rcenary is indeed a very awkward one in the eyes of common folk.
They work for the people, yet they are not officials.
Most nobles and businessn look down upon rcenaries as if they were bandits. After getting married, Chi Xi cut all ties with her forr rcenary comrades.
After being driven out of her husband’s house and having had no contact with rcenary tasks for over twenty years, Chi Xi had no choice but to leave the Imperial City and return to Five Saints Town.
But upon returning to her old town, she found that Five Saints Town had completely changed from what it once was.
Mourning her child left behind in the Imperial City day and night, she joined several rcenary Squads and rcenary Groups, but she kept causing trouble assignnt after assignnt. Before long, like the Second Generation rcenary Team, she was blacklisted and no rcenary Group would accept her.
After hearing the story, Yue Jinghua finally understood the background of Chi Xi. Not wanting to think about it was one thing, but upon hearing it, Yue Jinghua couldn’t help but curse the situation internally.
This was a typical modern lodrama: A middle-aged woman with no youth, no skills, and no ambition. With all these three conditions t, the shaless mistress successfully usurped her position.
"In the current situation, as long as soone is a rcenary and has a rcenary Badge, that’s enough," Yue Jinghua thought and then reconsidered. "First, recruit her in and see how it goes. If all else fails, she could at least serve as a logistics nurse. After all, Chi Xi has been a good wife and mother for over a decade. The mbers of the Second Generation rcenary Team are all a bunch of unruly troublemakers."
Having made up her mind, Yue Jinghua picked up two bottles of chilled beer and a dish of squid strips and walked over.
Chi Xi was sitting in the corner of the tavern, numbly watching the drunken rcenaries stagger past her.
She tilted the bottle in front of her again but not a single drop ca out.
Drinking, she just wanted to keep on drinking.
"Out of alcohol? Let treat you," a strange young man sat down beside her, flashing her a dazzling smile.
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