Chapter 42: Happy Birthday

The moonlight spilled quietly over the African savanna. Amidst the chirping of insects, Shi Yi fell asleep leaning against a large tree.

After a while, Qin Hao Bei quietly opened his eyes. He came to Shi Yi, then raised his arm and carefully covered the girl with the blanket she had just given him.

"So, your name is Shen Xingyao... I'm truly curious about what kind of story you have."

Qin Hao Bei looked at the girl's delicate and quiet face, and a warmth surged in his heart, as if it had melted into a pool of water. However, he knew he still shouldered an important mission and absolutely couldn't be distracted at this time.

"I'm leaving," Qin Hao Bei said softly, looking at Shi Yi's face, "Wait until I finish the mission, then I'll come back to find you."

"Little Limpy."

After finishing, he shouldered his backpack, and his figure disappeared bit by bit into the vast night.

The next morning, as soon as the sky brightened, a cool motorcycle stopped with a "screech" beside the extinguished campfire in front of Shi Yi. Lin Xiaoman jumped off the motorcycle, walked up, and gave Shi Yi a big hug!

"You scared me to death, Yi! I couldn't find you for half a day just now and thought something had happened to you. Seriously, why didn't you stay in the car properly! By the way, where's that special forces soldier?"

Shi Yi rubbed her sleepy eyes, turned her head to look around, but Qin Hao Bei's figure was gone. However, she immediately remembered what had happened yesterday and knew that Qin Hao Bei must have gone to execute his mission. With such an urgent mission, every day of delay meant another day of danger.

"He... left," Shi Yi answered helplessly.

"What, left?! He doesn't want his motorcycle anymore?" Lin Xiaoman widened her eyes and said incredulously.

At this time, Chen Mo also walked off the motorcycle and came to Shi Yi's side, silently draping his own coat over Shi Yi.

"Where did he go?"

"I don't know... he didn't say," Shi Yi said awkwardly; she couldn't reveal Qin Hao Bei's mission.

"Then what happened to your face? Why is it so dirty? What happened last night?" Chen Mo frowned and pressed.

Shi Yi stammered in reply: "Nothing... I just fell while picking firewood last night..."

"Why didn't you sleep in the car? It's so cool outside."

"I was afraid... there might be danger on the other side of the road, and the rebels might come back to take revenge on me, so I found a more hidden place to sleep."

Chen Mo looked at Shi Yi with suspicion; he always felt that something must have happened last night...

Just then, a cheer sounded beside them.

"Great, that special forces soldier doesn't want this motorcycle anymore, so this car... should belong to me, right!"

Lin Xiaoman was seen bending over in front of the motorcycle, stroking the car with full love, as if stroking her own child, "I really like this car, it's so cool."

Shi Yi and Chen Mo:...

Chen Mo raised his hand and knocked on Lin Xiaoman's head, "What are you thinking?! It's someone else's car; they'll definitely come to get it later!"

"Let's return to the camp first."

Lin Xiaoman, Shi Yi, and Chen Mo drove the off-road vehicle back to the camp. Qin Hao Bei's motorcycle was placed on the roof of the off-road vehicle.

There were no more obstacles along the way, and a few hours later, the three successfully returned to the camp.

Wang Yang, Zhou Yutong, and Old Jiu saw the three return safe and sound and came to greet them with excitement and joy.

"Great! Congratulations to Yi for successfully completing her first mission!" Zhou Yutong walked up and pulled Shi Yi into her arms.

Shi Yi blushed in embarrassment.

"Thank you, Sister Yutong, for the bracelet; luckily this bracelet protected us."

Wang Yang sensitively sensed that Shi Yi had something more to say, turned his head to look at Chen Mo, and asked:

"Dr. Chen, did you encounter any danger on the road this time?!"

Before Chen Mo could answer, Lin Xiaoman snatched the water cup from Wang Yang's hand and gulped down a few mouthfuls of water, "Oh, Wang Yang, we didn't just encounter danger this time; it was a narrow escape from death! Thanks to my quick reaction and first-class driving skills, we managed to escape. And we traveled a thousand miles alone to safely deliver the serum to the refugee camp. Ahem, let me tell you slowly..."

Wang Yang and Zhou Yutong's expressions changed, full of anxiety: "What exactly did you encounter?"

Chen Mo pursed his lips helplessly:

"Don't gild the lily; we were saved by the special forces soldiers of the peacekeeping force, okay."

Old Jiu stood to one side, looking at the lively group of people laughing and talking, shook his head with a smile:

"You guys keep talking, I'll go make dinner."

The sun set in the west, and dinner was soon ready. The five members of the medical team gathered together again at the small table in front of the canteen.

Three months ago, the colorful lights that welcomed Shi Yi to join the team hadn't been taken down, and at this moment, they lit up in various colors, illuminating the small courtyard of the camp warmly and brightly.

Just then, Old Jiu walked out of the kitchen, holding a large cake in his hands.

"Come and eat cake!"

The cake was covered in pure white cream, decorated with colorful, fresh fruits like blueberries, mangoes, and watermelon, with a candle lit on top, and the words "Happy Birthday" written in chocolate sauce.

"Whose birthday is it today?" Shi Yi looked around, somewhat puzzled.

"Hahaha, silly girl, today is to celebrate your birthday!" Old Jiu placed the cake in front of Shi Yi with a smile, "Yi, your birthday was yesterday, right? It should have been celebrated for you yesterday, but you didn't return last night, so we're making it up for you today!"

Shi Yi's heart gave a jolt; only then did she remember that yesterday was October 12th, and it really was her birthday.

"Dr. Chen, this..."

Shi Yi turned her head to look at Chen Mo in embarrassment. From childhood to adulthood, she had never celebrated a birthday once. Being told suddenly that tonight was to celebrate her birthday, she felt a bit at a loss.

Chen Mo saw Shi Yi's embarrassment and said with a smile:

"You don't know yet, in our team, everyone has to celebrate a birthday once! What are you still standing there for, blow out the candles quickly!"

"Exactly, blow out the candles quickly! I can't wait to eat cake!"

"What's the rush? Yi, first make a wish silently in your heart."

"Don't say it out loud! If you say it, it won't come true."

Amidst everyone's blessings and urging, Shi Yi's face slowly turned red, like a ripe cherry. She didn't know what wish to make, so she just put her hands together, closed her eyes, and made a gesture, then lowered her head and blew out the candles.

Clatter, clatter—

A burst of cheerful applause sounded all around, and everyone shouted loudly in unison:

"Yi, happy 23rd birthday!" ===== CHAPTER 43 =====