Tomboy Past (4)

Zhong Lichun never expected her fate to take such a turn. Although this turn wasn't the freedom she had hoped for, from the day she could get out of bed, Zhong Lichun's status within the entire group changed.

This one-eyed man was named Grede Nash, the leader of this group. Of course, "leader" was a polite term; he was actually the head of a bunch of terrorists. This guy was the second son of a former oil tycoon and had been pampered since childhood. However, the rebellious Grede wasn't interested in being a rich second-generation heir living off his family's wealth, so he left home and secretly joined the army. During those years in the military, he witnessed too much darkness and became extremely disgusted with the government's subservience. Because of this, after retiring, he joined an extremist organization and, relying on his outstanding abilities, rose through the ranks. After the unexpected death of the previous leader, he became the new head of the organization.

Grede had great ambitions; he wanted to overthrow the current government and establish a new regime. Of course, with his limited manpower, this wish could only remain a wish. At best, he could only launch terrorist attacks and create disturbances in the surrounding areas.

This man was truly ruthless and decisive, never dragging his feet. Therefore, his subordinates were filled with fear and reverence for him. It was precisely because of this that Zhong Lichun, who had caught Grede's eye, had an unusual status.

Zhong Lichun also didn't expect Grede to value her so highly, even announcing to all his subordinates that Zhong Lichun was his goddaughter. This status in this place was almost equivalent to being a princess.

Unfortunately, having personally witnessed her mother's murder, Zhong Lichun would never recognize a killer as her father. However, although Zhong Lichun was young at the time, she had come to understand a crucial principle: if she wanted to avenge her parents, she had to survive.

Under the influence of this thought, Zhong Lichun changed. She no longer easily expressed her emotions, became cold, and developed a strong desire to learn combat skills.

Grede had initially kept Zhong Lichun simply because he found the girl interesting. With his personality, he would have lost interest after a year or two at most, and Zhong Lichun's fate would have been grim.

But what happened next made even Grede somewhat disbelieving. Zhong Lichun learned various combat skills at an astonishing pace that ordinary people couldn't comprehend. She could handle any weapon with ease after only a little practice. In terms of hand-to-hand combat skills, she was even much stronger than boys her age. Her terrifying combat talent even impressed some veteran soldiers.

How could they know that this seemingly young and frail little girl before them was completely filled with hatred in her heart? Hatred had become the driving force for her survival. For the sake of revenge, Zhong Lichun had abandoned all her emotions, even her qualification as a human being.

Time flew by once again. Five years passed in the blink of an eye. During these years, the Western Allied Forces launched large-scale attacks on this country, leaving it shattered. Zhong Lichun's extremist organization, seizing this opportunity, rapidly grew from a ragtag group into a medium-sized military group equipped with tanks and armored vehicles.

Grede himself proclaimed he was a General. In these years, Grede renamed his group the National Liberation Organization and planned numerous terrorist attacks. Of course, to establish an image of serving the country and its people in the eyes of the public, its targets were primarily the Western Allied Forces.

This year, Zhong Lichun turned sixteen. The once-young girl had blossomed into a young woman and had become the second-in-command of the organization. She had gone to the battlefield at fourteen. Compared to boys her age, Zhong Lichun was more valiant and cold-blooded. Having witnessed so much death, she had become completely numb to life. The number of enemies she had killed was countless, and her prestige and status within the organization were even comparable to Grede's.

Grede also grew to trust his goddaughter even more. However, Zhong Lichun vaguely began to notice that as she grew older, Grede's gaze towards her became somewhat strange. It was no longer like a foster father looking at his daughter, but rather like looking at prey. She had a premonition that Grede was harboring ulterior motives.

However, due to Zhong Lichun's strength and her position within the organization, Grede did not dare to do anything excessive. Under Zhong Lichun's careful vigilance, Grede had no opportunity at all.

More than half a year later, because of the constant trouble they caused the Western Allied Forces, the organization was heavily attacked by them. It was a fierce battle. Faced with the enemy's absolute firepower suppression, the organization's combat strength was insufficient to resist, resulting in heavy losses. Two-thirds of their personnel were annihilated, and all large-scale equipment was destroyed. Only Grede and Zhong Lichun, leading a small number of survivors, managed to break through and escape. However, after this battle, the organization was on the verge of collapse, making it extremely difficult to sustain.

Grede needed a large sum of money to restore the organization, as recruiting personnel and purchasing equipment both required funds. But where could he, as a terrorist organization, get so much money? In the end, he made a decision that Zhong Lichun found extremely repulsive: to return to his old ways and kidnap people from other countries to demand huge ransoms from those nations.

Because of this matter, Zhong Lichun had a huge argument with Grede. Unfortunately, Grede was the leader of the organization, and her position within it was not enough to counter him. In the end, Zhong Lichun, in a fit of pique, refused to participate in any of the organization's actions and, throwing a tantrum, drove a jeep away from the temporary camp.

However, in this war-torn region, Zhong Lichun had nowhere to go. Having received military training since childhood, she was not suited for a normal life. So, after wandering for a few days, Zhong Lichun reluctantly returned to the camp. When she got back, she found that many more people had arrived at the camp, and these people were all hostages captured by Grede.

Most of these people were from other countries. Among them, Zhong Lichun surprisingly saw several people wearing United Nations Peacekeeping Force uniforms. There were men, women, old, and young among them, even a few children. Seeing these children, Zhong Lichun subconsciously recalled her own childhood, her father who was taken away and never returned, and her mother who fell in a pool of blood while shielding her.

At this moment, Zhong Lichun's mood began to become agitated, and a nameless anger gradually intensified within her. Was everything she had experienced back then about to happen all over again?

Furious, Zhong Lichun rushed into Grede's tent and had another huge argument with him. But the outcome remained unchanged. According to Grede, to make the organization strong again, sufficient funds were necessary. These people were money trees, so how could Grede easily let them go? He still relied on them to obtain high ransoms!