Chapter 104: Escaped!

*Xin Lei*

After a few moments of silence, which seemed like forever to me, Bai Li responded first. He brought his hand forward. "Nice to meet you."

Yuan blinked his eyes and tilted his head as if he was confused.

Oh yes, I forgot to tell him that Bai Li cannot see.

I signed him about the same.

Yuan seemed shocked and alternated his gaze between Bai Li and me.

He paused and nodded a moment later. He shook Bai Li's hand. "Nice to meet you, too."

Yuan said, "Xin Lei must have told you about me a bit, and I hope they are all good things."

Bai Li smiled. "Indeed. She has been ranting non-stop about your achievements and that I can rest assured."

"Well, yes. But I want to personally assure you, too, that you are in good hands. We will work together on your PTSD. I know it may seem a difficult task to get over your fears right now, but we will slowly get there."

Bai Li nodded.

"Alright. If you don't mind, then later sometime tonight, we can start with a small session."

"Tonight?"

"Yes. The sooner we start, the better. A clinic would have been better for that atmosphere to talk, but your current situation seems a bit tough. But as long as we have a quiet space, it's fine."

"Okay."

Yuan then looked at me. "Now, it's time for you to give me my reunion treat. I hope you have loads of cash ready because I plan to empty your pockets tonight."

I pouted and typed. "Alright."

Bai Li cleared his throat. "Liao Huifang and I will have dinner later on then. You two must have a lot to catch up."

Yuan waved his hand. "It's fine. We can have dinner together. Plus, I am the guest here in your group."

I typed. "Yes. Don't worry. We won't bore you with our catching up or maybe just a little."

Yuan rolled his eyes.

During the meal, I said everything that happened until now. So he understood how we three met in different circumstances.

Yuan looked shocked at first, and then his expression turned grim. He looked at Liao Huifang. "I am sorry for your sister's loss."

Her eyes were a bit wet, but she softly shook her head.

"I read about the murders in Natural Park. It's all over the news, but I never guessed that you would be involved in all this. Xin Lei...this is really dangerous. The culprits don't seem to be mentally sound. You shouldn't entangle yourself in this."

I pursed my lips. I typed. "We have already come this far, Yuan. We cannot step back."

I paused. I typed again. "I have promised Fu Meili that we would find her culprits and give justice to her and all the unfortunate victims."

Silence.

Yuan looked at Bai Li. "So Mr. Bai Li."

"Just call me Bai Li."

"Okay, if you don't mind. Bai Li. I have always admired soldiers. How long have you worked in the army?"

"Fourteen years."

"Wow. That's a pretty long service."

"Just like how you admire soldiers, I admire doctors. We practically cannot live without the medics. In every mission, some or the other soldiers are bound to get injured, and if they don't get treatment, the situation could be much worse."

Yuan smiled. "You have increased my respect for all the officers who sacrifice their lives in the frontlines. You all serve our country so bravely."

Bai Li shook his head. "Not just us soldiers. We all serve our country in our own way. In whatever profession we work, we always contribute to the betterment of this country."

I agreed and felt proud.

Yuan looked at me and whispered. "I see why you like him now."

We came back upstairs and freshened up.

Yuan was about to start his session with Bai Li. I typed. "Can we stay here?"

"No. It will be only Bai Li and me. Nobody else." He sternly said.

He was always an earnest and responsible doctor. Well, I knew the rules, but I still wanted to stay by his side.

I typed. "Please. We won't cause you any trouble."

Liao Huifang nodded. "We would be absolutely quiet!"

"No."

I showed him my most pitiful expression, and he sighed.

He narrowed his eyes. "I want absolute silence from you two. Any noise, and I will throw you out of the room. Pretend that you don't even exist."

"..."

"Sit in the corner."

Bai Li and Yuan sat in front of each other. Liao Huifang and I huddled in the corner.

Yuan said, "Bai Li."

"Yes."

He seemed a bit stiff.

"You are stiff. It's okay. I want you to take a few deep breaths and just relax. Let your body loosen up."

Bai Li seemed much better now.

After a pause, Yuan said, "If you feel ready, then can I ask you some questions?"

He nodded.

"We will go in detail later on, but right now, just tell me the gist of it. First. Tell me, how did you lose your sight?"

Bai Li was quiet for a moment. "Five years ago, I was on a mission in Baghdad. There was a bomb planted in a nearby car, which I was unaware of. It blew off. I near enough for its shrapnels to strike me. When I woke up, it was all dark."

"What did you feel about it?"

"I was in denial for a long time. When it sunk in, I became frustrated and started to lose my temper."

Yuan nodded. "It's understandable. Now think carefully. If you thought back on it, what do you feel angry about the most?"

Bai Li paused. "...perhaps that I failed to detect the bomb's presence in the car. Not only was I affected...two of my brother soldiers were also hurt, so…I should have checked the area more carefully."

I could sense that Bai Li was feeling guilty.

Yuan stared at him. "How far was the car?"

Bai Li paused again. "About ten yards."

"Are there explosive devices that one wouldn't be able to detect ten yards away?"

"Sure. If they are hidden really well, then you cannot see them at all."

"And the other soldiers with you at that time also didn't notice anything suspicious?"

"No. They didn't report to me anything of that sort."

Yuan paused, "Okay. What did you decide when you realized that you couldn't see anymore?"

Bai Li said, "It would have been impossible, but I wanted to go back to the army to serve. It was difficult because not only I lost my sight, but I had PTSD, and as such, I wasn't allowed to continue my service."

"What were your thoughts about it?"

"I understood their point, but I didn't want to back out either. I felt my place was in the frontlines. So I stubbornly chased after them to take me back. I trained to fight and handle weapons without my sight."

"What was the result?"

"The army thoroughly tested my capabilities and found that I was fit to serve. I had excellent marksmanship with the guns too."

"So, you passed."

Bai Li nodded.

"Okay. Regarding your experiences, we would stop here. Based on what you told, I want to share my thoughts with you."

"Okay."

"First. You think that you couldn't detect the bomb. But you just said that the bomb was well hidden. There was nothing suspicious either for you or the other soldiers. It was not just you. Your fellow soldiers couldn't detect it either. So why do you think that you or any soldier there have to bear the brunt of being unable to detect it?"

Bai Li seemed hesitant. His chest was rapidly rising up and down. "I should have been able to see and warn them."

Yuan paused. "Bai Li. In such missions, it is inevitable that sometimes you win, or sometimes the enemy may win. Do you think that you were careless or irresponsible in leading your troop?"

"No. I have dealt with all missions with equal seriousness and severity."

"Did you blame the other soldiers for failing to detect the bomb?"

"Absolutely not. They did their best."

"Did the soldiers blame you or you think that they would hold any resentment towards you?"

"No. They reassured me that I did a good job. They meant it. They understand that it was nobody's fault-"

Bai Li suddenly stopped.

Yuan smiled. "That is important for you to remember, Bai Li. You are taking all the blame on yourself but your comrades don't think so. You were helpless as much as them."

"...I see. T-that is right...I didn't think of it that way."

"It's alright. Not your fault. It's important that you realized it now."

His complexion seemed much better now and I felt so glad.

"How do you feel now?"

"...Not so guilty as compared to before."

"Good. It's a great start. Now, second. After you lost your sight, you didn't give up. You trained yourself hard to become capable. That takes guts. Do you feel proud of yourself that you achieved it?"

"Yes, I do."

"Now remember another thing."

We waited.

"You did the best you could—both of the times. You didn't fail anybody. So remember, Bai Li. Be kind to yourself."

Suddenly my phone vibrated. I panicked. Sure enough, Yuan was glaring at me.

I quickly dashed outside. It was from Lin Zihao.

"Bai Li!"

He sounded too tense. I switched to video call. I signed. "What happened?"

"Rodey. He has escaped."