She knew that she was going to return soon, but she still felt reluctant to leave. It was as if she had treated this place like her home subconsciously.

Subconsciously, she felt a sense of belonging here. She could not bear to leave this place and part with Duan Yanhao.

She turned around a few times, but there was still no sign of Duan Yanhao. Bai Yaoyao sighed. He had urgent matters to attend to at home, and it was the New Year as well. She should not be so finicky and overly affected by this.

"Miss Bai, please!"

Bai Yaoyao nodded and finally boarded the plane.

When the plane took off, she took in a deep breath, revealing a bright smile on her face. She was about to see her best friend soon.

This time, when she left, she felt carefree and not as burdened as before. This was because she was going back with her hopes for the future in mind. She did not feel as lost and without direction as she did the last time.

Furthermore, she would be back really soon.

When a person has hope and direction in life, their mood would surely get better, and their mental state would be different as well.

…

Meanwhile, Duan Yanhao was in the army holding an emergency meeting. He was looking at the map with a few generals as he a.n.a.lyzed the situation.

Once Duan Yanhao knew that Bai Yaoyao had boarded the plane, he heaved a sigh of relief. His heart that had been tense could finally be at ease. As long as she left Country X, she would be safe. He could then be a.s.sured to carry on with his work.

"Major, I heard that this time, the Southern army invited one of the hidden powerful families to be their strategist. They want to s.n.a.t.c.h our control over the military in the North."

"Yes, Major. They hurried to strike during the New Year season. Who knows what's their motive for doing this?"

"This is a blatant provocation. All along, the various armies in Country X guarded their own territories, and there was relative peace amongst us. The Southern army wants to break the balance now."

"The Ouyang army of the East did not partic.i.p.ate. The Duanmu army of the West also did not partic.i.p.ate. This is too much of a coincidence."

"I think the other party surely has another move hidden under their sleeves. We cannot send out our soldiers recklessly. Look at the map, this is the heart of our Duan family in the North. We have to protect this area first."

Hearing the opinions of the various generals, Duan Yanhao remained silent. He stared at the map with a sharp and icy gaze, but his lips were pursed as he remained in deep thought.

Duan Yanhao suddenly pointed his finger at one part of the map and said, "At the first gunshot from the Southern army, we will take down this place!"

Duan Yanhao spoke with the dominance of a leader who directed the winds and immediately gave his orders.

When all the generals saw the place that Duan Yanhao was pointing to, they all gasped inwardly. They stared at Duan Yanhao in a mix of shock and surprise. The Major wants to take down the heart of the Southern army.

"For the war this time, we must be fully prepared. We must lay our defenses well. I will lead one-third of our army and head straight to the South. We will dress in plain clothes as normal citizens and enter the South separately. We will surround this place, while all of you will lead the remaining two-thirds of the army to defend the North. As long as the first gunshot is shot, the Southern army will become the party who instigated the war. All of our wars were well-known…"

All the generals listened seriously to Duan Yanhao's a.n.a.lysis. As they became more agitated, their expressions became even more solemn and stern.

Their Major had already been a military genius when he was around ten years old. All these years, as long as he was around, they regarded him as their leader.

They believed that under the leaders.h.i.+p of their Major, their Northern army could seize this chance to take down the South. They were confident of this.

However, a war was still dangerous. To the citizens, this was not a good thing, but the power struggle and fracture within Country X required a real war to unite the country and end the power struggle.