Half a quarter-hour later.
Sun Qizhi sat in a grand armchair, his expression grave.
The instant he saw Ju Xingyu standing before him, Sun Qizhi understood what lay behind all of this.
Only six months remained before Ju Xingyu would qualify to take the assessment.
As a former soldier of the Far West Elite Army, Sun Qizhi knew perfectly well that leave was absolutely out of the question at this juncture.
Thus, the moment Ju Xingyu appeared before him, he reached a conclusion.
Something must have gone wrong.
Sun Qizhi had served in the Elite Army for twenty-five years. He had to admit he had been lucky: throughout those twenty-five years, his corps had never gone to the front, nor had it even participated in any internal purge operations in the Far Eastern Lands.
Before his enlistment term drew to a close, Sun Qizhi had also heard that his corps would likely be sent to the front within the next year or two.
He had spent a long time thinking it over.
He was already in his forties, yet he was still only a lowly squad leader. Even if he signed on again, he could never achieve much in the army.
If he went to war, his most likely end would be death on the battlefield.
After weighing the gains against the losses, Sun Qizhi chose to retire.
He had spent two-thirds of his life in the army. It was time to return home and enjoy his remaining years.
Having never fought in a single battle, merely passing twenty-five uneventful years in the army, Sun Qizhi naturally received no honors upon his return.
After collecting two thousand taels of silver in discharge pay, Sun Qizhi returned to Changguang Town. He renovated his old family home, then settled down in this