Time flew into July. Yang Yi's return was a bit delayed because finding a qualified construction company had taken a few days. There were no issues with Murphy. Although their last meeting had ended on a sour note, it didn't affect their nightly phone calls. The content of these calls was rather peculiar. They didn't talk about love or romance, but instead chatted day after day about Xixi. If Xixi was with Yang Yi, Murphy would ask him to report the day's funny stories about their daughter. If Xixi was staying at her mother's place, Murphy would share Xixi's news with Yang Yi. This kind of marathon phone call was indeed strange, but even stranger was that Yang Yi quite enjoyed the process, and Murphy, after hanging up, would secretly feel a sweet warmth, as if Yang Yi had whispered sweet nothings—though of course he hadn't. How could that wooden man Yang Yi ever say romantic things?
When Yang Yi returned, the happiest person turned out to be his editor, Qiangzi! "My dear boss, you're finally back," Qiangzi said, almost weeping with joy after seeing Yang Yi's reply on SNS. Yang Yi was puzzled. "Did I stop updating?" "No, there's still some drafts left in the folder." "Then did my readers riot again?" "Well, a bit. After the new female lead appeared, some readers got upset, but it's still under control."
This all started last week. Under the joint counterattack of the two major military forces and some minor warlords in the country, the Japanese invaders finally retreated step by step, were driven out of the homeland, and chased back to their own island. In the end, they unconditionally surrendered... This history was somewhat similar to Yang Yi's previous life, but more so, it was a moment of triumph for the Chinese army, with no further interference from Western forces. After the great victory, civil war was inevitable. In the joint operations, the minor warlords' strength was nearly exhausted, leaving only the two major military forces to face off. History, though disguised, was strikingly similar. After Yang Yi's artistic modifications, the story's trajectory returned to the original plot: Li Yunlong's faction, based on workers and peasants, and Chu Yunfei's faction, backed by entrepreneurs and bankers, clashed across the vast Chinese land. Li Yunlong, though unknown, displayed cunning and tenacious combat prowess that left his opponents frustrated. It was like his faction—though appearing rustic and unrefined, it was strong enough to make anyone who looked down on it slap themselves in the face.
But fate was peculiar. Li Yunlong and Chu Yunfei, two men who admired each other yet had to be wary and hostile, met again. Once both were regimental commanders, Li Yunlong, due to his temper—sometimes killing prisoners, sometimes disobeying orders—rose and fell, always stuck at the regimental commander level, even though his unit had grown to a brigade-sized independent regiment and, during battles, expanded to a division. (In the original novel, Li Yunlong was later promoted to division commander, but the title of regimental commander remained deeply ingrained.) Chu Yunfei fared better. Talented and more diplomatic than Li Yunlong, he climbed the ranks smoothly, reaching the rank of major general. Of course, they both led divisions. When their paths crossed, these two characters, whom readers adored, were destined for a life-or-death showdown.
But how could anyone guess Yang Yi's tricks? At the end of Chapter 12, Chu Yunfei ordered his men to fire artillery at Li Yunlong, while Li Yunlong had his machine gunner shoot at Chu Yunfei. Readers' hearts shattered at that moment... Fortunately, in the end, Li Yunlong was pulled back from the brink of death by the hospital. Wrapped up like a dumpling, he lay unconscious for eight days before finally waking. Overjoyed readers felt as if they were Li Yunlong's subordinates: "Listen, if anything happens to our division commander, I'll shoot you first, then the doctor, got it?"
A rough man always attracts a delicate woman. This time, during his recovery, a nurse named Tian Yu appeared beside Li Yunlong, as if stepping out of a painting. Zhao Gang, the literary-minded political commissar, recalled a line from "Song of Everlasting Regret"—"Her face is like a lotus, her brows like willow leaves"—to describe her exquisite beauty. But readers didn't welcome her just because she was beautiful! Strangely, in the world of web novels, male-centric stories are usually dominated by male chauvinism, with most readers wanting the male lead to collect every attractive woman. But in this book's comment section, there was a call to reject Tian Yu's character, with almost unanimous disapproval. Perhaps it was because Xiuqin had left such a deep impression! That stubborn, self-sacrificing woman who died for her man—wasn't she the perfect match for a man like Li Yunlong? Why, after his wife's death, did "another vixen" so quickly worm her way into his heart?
Of course, the story's timeline had jumped over a long period. Readers saw this development over just a few days and didn't realize that Xiuqin had been gone for years. In the following chapters, readers' attitudes subtly shifted. These two seemingly mismatched characters began to undergo a chemical reaction that readers reluctantly but couldn't help smiling at. Tian Yu, from a scholarly family, was chivalrous and caring. She not only tenderly looked after Li Yunlong but also came to understand him deeply. She even defended him to her colleagues when they discussed how his wife had blown herself up along with the Japanese. Li Yunlong, too, transformed from a rough man into one with a softer heart. He tried to recite poetry to Tian Yu, sulked when the hospital changed his nurse, and played little tricks to get her reassigned back... This imbalance gradually made readers feel that the two were actually quite well-matched! Finally, when Li Yunlong stood guard outside Tian Yu's home to propose... Though some readers still grumbled in protest, most had accepted the story's direction.
Wait, this seems to have strayed a bit! Back to Yang Yi and Qiangzi's conversation... Yang Yi asked, puzzled, "Then why are you in such a hurry?" Qiangzi quickly replied, "It's about the physical publication of 'Soldier Assault'! Your contract says you need to be involved to discuss the rights. Now several publishers have come knocking, and some even want to sign both your books in one go..." Well, there were indeed forward-thinking people who, before "Bright Sword" was even halfway through its serialization, had already seen its potential. Qiyue naturally wanted to strike while the iron was hot to secure more benefits, but Yang Yi had been away! "I understand." Yang Yi paused thoughtfully. "Have them come to me to discuss it. Next week—I'll be at the shop most of next week." "Great, I'll arrange it right away. Colleagues from Qiyue's copyright department will accompany them," Qiangzi replied swiftly. The delighted Qiangzi didn't see through the screen that Yang Yi's lips also curled into a smile—a slightly profound one.