The boss has no descendants, but he encounters four smaller versions of himself

The meeting ended quickly.

When Ivan came out leaning on his cane, his expression was complicated, showing both the tension of being entrusted with a heavy responsibility and the worry of the fierce battle that was about to begin.

But deep in his eyes, a flicker of waning fighting spirit was ignited by the news of reinforcements and the capture of the target.

He gathered his dozens of men and began assigning tasks behind a relatively empty set of ruins.

Most of the soldiers' faces showed numbness and resignation, with only a few young ones showing eagerness, swayed by Ivan's deliberately impassioned tone.

Su Chaoji approached silently, squatted in an inconspicuous corner, and listened to Ivan's rough tactical arrangements.

They mainly relied on the upcoming strong reinforcements to launch a frontal assault and suppress the enemy with firepower, while their company was responsible for flanking maneuvers and mopping up the remaining enemy forces.

The plan is rudimentary, heavily reliant on external factors, and carries extremely high risks.

But the scarred commander was clearly eager to make a name for himself and didn't care about anything else.

Su Chaoji thought to himself, this might be an opportunity.

Once a large-scale attack begins, the chaos and danger level in the camp will rise.

But it is also an opportunity.

Having received new orders, their attention will inevitably be focused on preparations for the attack, and surveillance of the interior, especially of "insignificant" refugees and children, will be further relaxed.

He could take advantage of the chaos and their lowered guard to get Sofia away from here.

So late that night.

The scarred commander went out with a few trusted men, supposedly to pick up a batch of important supplies, leaving the camp relatively unguarded.

In the latter half of the night, it was Ivan's turn to stand guard with a new recruit.

Ivan's injured leg hadn't fully healed, and he was dozing off against the wall, while the new recruits were yawning constantly.

Su Chaoji slid out from the corner where he was hiding.

He had already figured out the route, avoiding the occasional flashlight beams, and silently approached the makeshift shack on the edge of the wounded soldiers' area.

That was the spot the soldiers had cleared for Sofia.

Sofia was not asleep in the shack.

She sat on the tattered blanket, hugging her knees, her beautiful eyes wide open in the darkness, gazing at the slivers of starlight through the cracks, her small shoulders trembling slightly.

She misses her grandfather.

She longed for the warm fireplace and soft bread at home, but she tried hard not to cry out loud, only secretly burying her face in the blanket and sniffling.

Just then, the tattered curtain at the entrance of the shack was lifted a crack.

Su Chaoji came in.

Sofia was startled and abruptly looked up.

By the extremely faint starlight, Su Chaoji saw her eyes, which instantly turned wary and then quickly confused.

He extended his index finger and gently placed it to his lips, making a "shh" gesture.

Sofia's eyes widened suddenly as she stared at him in shock.

She recognized the young man; he was the mute boy from the camp.

These days, the young man has been following behind those soldiers, helping them with many small tasks. He and Ivan have a good relationship, but the two have never spoken to each other.

Because this older brother can't speak.

But now, this young man's mouth is actually making sounds.

He's not mute!

So Sofia was shocked.

Su Chaoji squatted down in front of her and said in a very low, clear voice in English, "Sophia, I know your grandfather, Bart."

Sofia's eyes widened instantly, and she tried to sit up in excitement.

"grandfather......"

Su Chaoji immediately shushed him again: "I came here to tell you that I will take you back to find your grandfather, but you must be obedient, you must not make a sound, and you must not tell anyone."

Sofia immediately covered her mouth with her small hand.

She blinked hard and nodded slightly to indicate that she understood.

Although she didn't know why this young man knew her or why he said he would take her to find her grandfather.

But she trusted the quiet and reliable young man in front of her.

She believed that this young man wouldn't lie to her.

She even moved forward slightly, reaching out her small hand to carefully grasp the hem of Su Chaoji's clothes, as if she had grasped a lifeline.

Su Chaoji breathed a slight sigh of relief, then added, "I'll find a chance to take you away tomorrow. Remember, don't attract attention..."

After saying that, he took out a rye bread that he had been saving and carefully wrapped in oil paper from his pocket and put it in her hand: "Hide this well, you might get hungry tomorrow."

Sofia took it, held it to her chest, and replied softly in Chinese with a slight foreign accent, "Thank you...brother."

Su Chaoji suddenly stopped, looking at her with a hint of surprise.

He subconsciously asked in a low voice in Chinese, "You... speak Chinese?"

Sofia nodded obediently, her dirty blonde braids swaying as she spoke, her voice still low but with a hint of pride: "Yes, Grandpa taught me. He said Chinese is beautiful and very useful. I can speak many languages ​​too."

Her Chinese wasn't very fluent, but her pronunciation was accurate, her vocabulary was simple and direct, and communication was seamless.

Su Chaoji quickly concealed his surprise, a barely perceptible hint of admiration flashing deep in his eyes.

This is good; communication in Chinese is more discreet than in English, and it's almost impossible for a third person to understand it in this camp.

He nodded and said in a low voice in Chinese, "Okay, then we'll communicate in Chinese. Sophia, you're very good."

Upon receiving the praise, Sophia immediately smiled and whispered back, "Hehe, brother, you're amazing too."

In her eyes, this young man who could infiltrate the enemy camp, meet her grandfather, and take her away was the most amazing person in the world.

Su Chaoji composed himself, his tone becoming serious. "Listen, tomorrow during the day, do what you normally do. Don't look at me, and don't show any unusual behavior, especially when changing the wounded soldiers' dressings. Stay calm. At night, if you hear a loud explosion or commotion from the northwest, don't panic. That might be an opportunity. When things are at their most chaotic, slowly move towards the pile of oil drums behind the shack. I'll find you there, understand?"

Sofia listened very attentively, memorizing every word, and then nodded solemnly: "Yes, I understand!"

"Okay." Su Chaoji glanced at her one last time to make sure the little girl had listened before turning to leave.

Just as he had come, he silently lifted the curtain, slipped out, and quickly disappeared into the darkness outside.

Silence and darkness returned to the shack.

Sofia, clutching the cold rye bread in her arms, curled up under the blanket, her heart pounding wildly.

But this time it wasn't out of fear, but out of excitement.

She tried to calm her breathing and buried her face in the faint aroma of wheat from the pancake.

Grandpa... my little brother said he'd take me to find Grandpa...

She was wide awake, her big eyes sparkling in the darkness as she repeatedly recalled every word her older brother had told her.

Soon, I will be able to see Grandpa.

Outside, the clouds seemed to have parted a bit, revealing a few stars that twinkled slightly.