"Old Xu, why don"t you just ignore the invitation?" The vice-captain of the scouts team, Yang Zhenyong, frowned as he said.

Xu Shiming took out a cigarette box from his pocket and pulled a cigarette out of it. He placed it in his mouth and lit it up with a lighter on the side. He took a puff of it before saying, "Old Yang, tell me your opinion." Every time he was in a dilemma, he would smoke and listen to other"s opinions.

"An outsider will never win against an insider. Du Mingyi has been in control of Base 013 for 20 years, proving his roots are deep in the military. Ling Lan might have a powerful background but Song Yiqing"s case tells us that a powerful background is not enough to pull Du Mingyi down," Yang Zhenyong explained his thought process.

Xu Shiming nodded and narrowed his eyes as he puffed out a cloud of smoke. He remembered the domineering and decisive Ling Lan during the welcoming dinner, comparing Ling Lan to Song Yiqing might be a huge mistake. Additionally, Song Yiqing had such a weak personality that he would never do something as decisive as Ling Lan.

"Leader, Regiment Commander Cui from the Ai"er Mecha Clan is looking for you," a soldier by the door suddenly informed Xu Shiming.

Xu Shiming was surprised by the visit. "Why is Cui Yunxuan here?" He quickly replied, "Invite Regiment Commander Cui in."

"Cui Yunxuan?" Yang Zhenyong was shocked too.

"Yes. Something must have happened for him to come here personally." Xu Shiming knew that Cui Yunxuan was someone who never visited someone unless he needed something.

Cui Yunxuan walked into the office and saw both Xu Shiming and Yang Zhenyong were inside. He found a sofa and sat down. He went right into the topic. "Did you receive the invitation from Regiment Commander Ling of 250 Ace Mecha Clan?"

Xu Shiming frowned. "You asked everyone?"

Cui Yunxuan waved his hands. "How is that possible? The moment I got the invitation, I came to find you. My instinct tells me you must have received the invitation too."

Xu Shiming gave a bitter smile. "Your instinct is right. I did receive it. However, I didn"t expect you to receive it too. I wonder how many leaders and regiment commanders in the base got his dangerous invitation."

"You could tell?" Cui Yunxuan turned serious.

"Of course. His intention is obvious, he is forcing us to take a stand." When Xu Shiming received the invitation, he immediately understood Regiment Commander Ling"s intention. Du Mingyi had tried to suppress the news that 250 Ace Mecha Clan went to the warehouse to s.n.a.t.c.h their supplies, but officers like him who had a decent amount of power could easily find out about it. Regiment Commander Ling of 250 Ace Mecha Clan had fallen out with Commander Du Mingyi. Therefore, it was impossible for anyone in the base to sit on the fence between the two of them.

"Are you going?" Cui Yunxuan asked.

"What about you?" Xu Shiming asked him back.

"I"ll follow you." Cui Yunxuan was direct, revealing his intention instantly. If Xu Shiming went, he would follow. If he didn"t, he wouldn"t go too. Their two teams had worked together for so many years. Thus, Cui Yunxuan trusted Xu Shiming"s judgment.

"You are so direct…" Xu Shiming took a puff of his cigarette and leaned back in his chair. He raised his head and looked at the empty ceiling with many thoughts going through his head. Soon, the cigarette finished burning, and Xu Shiming sat straight up then calmly placed the cigarette b.u.t.t into the ashtray.

Cui Yunxuan and Yang Zhenyong"s ears perk up, as they knew that Xu Shiming had made a decision.

"My decision is filled with risks. We might not be able to rise in rank anymore. If we are unlucky, our positions might even drop." Xu Shiming looked at Cui Yunxuan intently. "Are you still willing to follow me?"

"Great opportunities come with great risk. I"ll follow you." Cui Yunxuan was a decisive person too. That was why he became good friends with Xu Shiming.

"I will go." Xu Shiming had thought about it carefully and decided to take the risk. Whether it was his first impression of Ling Lan or the way she forced the members of Evil Wind into her mecha clan, it proved that he was not an easy person for Du Mingyi to handle.

Of course, the most important reason was, Xu Shiming didn"t like Du Mingyi"s narrow-mindedness. Instead of a.s.sociating himself with this kind of person, he rather took the bet with Ling Lan.

Yang Zhenyong shook his head when he heard this. Actually, when Xu Shiming hesitated the second he received the invitation, he knew his leader would make this decision but, no matter what decision he made, their team would still follow him. If Xu Shiming wasn"t here, their team would have been annihilated by Du Mingyi long ago, as Du Mingyi didn"t know anything but give stupid orders.

Hence, Xu Shiming and Cui Yunxuan accepted Ling Lan"s invitation and went to 250 Ace Mecha Clan"s camp.

All the regiment commanders and leaders who accepted Ling Lan"s invitation thought that they were supposed to come to some consensus during this meeting. For instance, they would look for Du Mingyi together and blamed him for neglecting his duty. Surprisingly, it was just a simple gathering. It was like a networking session for a new regiment commander to make some friends as they just talked about some unimportant matters. The feud with Du Mingyi was not mentioned at all, making some of the regiment commanders that came quite puzzled. After the gathering, they left 250 Ace Mecha Clan"s camp in confusion.

"Leader Xu, why do you think that person invited us?" Cui Yunxuan was confused too. They offended Du Mingyi in order to attend this gathering but Regiment Commander Ling showed no intention of working with them. Cui Yunxuan got anxious.

When Xu Shiming came back to his camp, he touched his chin and went into deep thought. After hearing what Cui Yunxuan said, he smiled. "What a smart person."

With this devious plan, it was now impossible for Du Mingyi to find any evidence against Ling Lan. However, Ling Lan did all the things he wanted to do. Xu Shiming was still worried about his decision at the start but now, he was confident.

Cui Yunxuan looked at Xu Shiming expression and asked doubtfully, "Did you made an agreement with him without me realizing?"

Xu Shiming smiled. "How is that possible…" In actual fact, there was no need to reach any agreement. They had already reached a consensus when they accepted the invitation.

"Boss, why did you ask for their opinions on Du Mingyi?" After the regiment commanders and leaders left, Luo Lang rushed to his Boss"s office and asked Ling Lan.

Everyone in there turned attentive as they waited for their boss to answer the question. They were lingering in their Boss"s office because they wanted to know why she didn"t do anything even after inviting all of them.

"There are two kinds of people that will accept the invitation, one, they have a grudge against Du Mingyi or two, they were sent by him." Ling Lan replied calmly, "Once I know which of the two they are, I have achieved my aim. So, it doesn"t matter whether I said anything or not."

Luo Lang widened his eyes. He didn"t understand what his Boss was saying! "Is he really stupid?"

Han Jijyun sighed. "Smart people will know that it was a non-verbal alliance. As for those that don"t understand, let them remain like this so that they won"t spoil the plan."

Luo Lang was furious. "Han Jijyun, are you making fun of my stupidity?" "Spoil the plan? Will I spoil the plan?"

The calm personality inside Luo Lang"s mind felt the veins on his head bursting.

"I"m sorry!" Luo Lang"s gaze suddenly turned cold as he apologized to Han Jijyun.