Chapter 1039
These two together are considered to be protecting their teammates.
As the roar of the Flying Sky One's engines gradually subsided and it landed steadily on the airport tarmac, Cui Ming had just stepped out of the cockpit when he saw two familiar figures standing not far away—Daigo and Shinjo were hanging their heads, their clothes still covered in mud, clearly having just emerged from the Flying Swallow after its forced landing, looking like two defeated roosters.
Cui Ming looked at the two unfortunate companions, his lips twitching involuntarily. Even someone as experienced as him, who had weathered countless storms, found this scene unbearable. Moroboshi Dan, standing nearby, stared wide-eyed, walking over incredulously to scrutinize the two men: "No way, how did you two manage this? How many times has this happened? How is it so strange? Every time you take off, something bad happens?"
When Daigo and Shinjo heard the voice, they looked up and saw Choi Myung and Dan Moroboshi. Their cheeks instantly turned bright red, and they quickly lowered their heads and whispered, "Instructor." Their tone was full of embarrassment, and they didn't even dare to lift their heads—after all, they had just watched Choi Myung pilot the Hiten-1 and wreak havoc in space, and then they themselves crashed again. The contrast was just too stark.
Cui Ming walked up to the two men, his eye twitching involuntarily. His tone was full of helplessness: "You two, don't go near Xuefeng and Feitian No. 1 anymore. I'm really scared of your crash-prone nature." He was genuinely scared. Xuefeng and Feitian No. 1 were his treasures, and they couldn't withstand these two's "curse of causality." If they got involved with them, they might inexplicably malfunction one day.
Upon hearing this, Shinjo was so anxious he almost cried. He quickly raised his head to defend himself: "Instructor! We have the skills! Last time we fought Gazort, if it weren't for our accurate shooting, the monster would have run away long ago! This crash was due to magnetic field disturbance, not our fault!" He felt wronged. Despite his decent combat capabilities, he was always "treated differently" because of these absurd accidents.
Looking at Xincheng's anxious expression, Cui Ming sighed helplessly: "I know you have the skills. I've seen the data from the black box, and your operation is flawless, even better than many veteran team members. But unfortunately, I'm afraid of you." He paused, then added, "It's not that I don't trust your skills, it's that I don't trust your luck. I don't want my warship to have an accident for no reason."
Daigo and Shinjo fell silent instantly. They looked at each other and saw grievance and helplessness in each other's eyes. They didn't want to keep crashing, but they always encountered all sorts of absurd accidents. Their luck was even more difficult to deal with than a cosmic monster.
Seeing the two looking so pitiful, Dan Moroboshi couldn't help but laugh: "Alright, Old Cui was just joking with you, but you two really need to be careful. Before your next flight, why don't you have a fortune teller do a divination? Maybe that will help you avoid accidents."
Upon hearing this, Daigo and Shinjo looked even more aggrieved, their lips drooping slightly and their eyes reddening, resembling two students being scolded by their teacher. Looking at them, Choi Myung felt a pang of sympathy and softened his tone: "Alright, stop looking so down. You did a good job on this mission. Although the plane crashed, you successfully contained the monster, which is commendable. I'll send you on any future ground missions."
Hearing this, Daigo and Shinjo felt a little better and whispered, "Thank you, Instructor." But the thought of not being able to touch the Yukikaze and Hiten-1 again made them want to cry—after all, who wouldn't want to pilot a powerful warship and fight in space like Choi Myung?
As night fell, Cui Ming returned home, changed out of his combat uniform, and looked at Ju Jian Hui who was preparing dinner in the kitchen. He couldn't help but bring up what happened at the airport during the day: "Hui Zi, when I came back today, I saw Daigo and Shinjo with their heads hanging down again. I don't need to ask to know that they must have crashed again."
Megumi Kijima came out of the kitchen carrying a plate of freshly stir-fried vegetables. Hearing this, she shook her head helplessly, her tone full of headache: "I know about this too. The GUTS team's report just came to me. They said they encountered a special magnetic field disturbance, but luckily the two of them weren't injured." She put the vegetables on the table, sat down, and continued, "Actually, I'm also having a headache. These two kids are really strong in combat, but it's like they're under a curse. As soon as they take off, something bad happens."
Cui Ming picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of food, and frowned. "I told them today not to get close to the Yukikaze and the Hiten-1. I'm really afraid their constitution will infect my warships." "I understand your thoughts," Ju Jianhui sighed, her eyes filled with helplessness. "But there's no other way; these two have to operate together. Think about it, if we let other people fly with them, who knows if they'll be let down by their 'luck'? Once, we tried to pair Horii with Shinjo, and the Hien-1 encountered a flock of birds right after takeoff. Although it didn't crash, it gave Horii a fright. Since then, no one has dared to fly with them."
Upon hearing this, Cui Ming paused for a moment, and after thinking about it carefully, he realized that it made perfect sense. Rather than having others take the risk with them, it would be better to have these two "brothers in misfortune" team up. At least they had more experience and were better at dealing with unexpected events than others. Even if the plane crashed, they could ensure their own safety and not implicate their teammates.
“Alright, I’ll listen to you, Huizi.” Cui Ming put down his chopsticks, looked at Ju Jian Hui, his eyes full of tacit understanding, “From now on, send them on more ground missions, and let the two of them handle the flight missions on their own, as long as nothing serious happens.”
“Well, that’s the only thing we can do now, Cui.” Ju Jianhui nodded, a faint smile on her face. “Actually, they have it pretty tough too. Every time there’s a crash, they have to face complaints from the logistics department and endure other people’s teasing. But the next time there’s a mission, they will still rush in without hesitation.”
Cui Ming recalled how anxious Xin Cheng was, almost crying, during the day, and couldn't help but laugh: "These two lads are quite stubborn. I'll have a good talk with them next time I have the chance, and see if I can help them think of a way to improve their luck."
Hearing this, Megumi's eyes lit up: "That's great! If it can really help them, they'll be very happy."
The two exchanged a smile, and the atmosphere at the table instantly became warm and cozy. There were no tense missions, no formidable enemies, only casual conversation between husband and wife, recounting amusing anecdotes from their team—simple and blissful.
After a while, Megumi seemed to remember something and said, "By the way, the GUTS team has a ground reconnaissance mission tomorrow. I've already arranged for Daigo and Shinjo to go. Do you want to go and take a look? You can also give them some guidance while you're at it."
Cui Ming nodded: "Alright, I'd like to see if these two kids are just as 'outrageous' on the ground as they are in the air."
Megumi couldn't help but laugh: "You shouldn't tease them. They've already suffered enough."
Cui Ming smiled, picked up his chopsticks, and continued eating—he actually quite admired Daigo and Shinjo, admiring their courage and optimism in the face of setbacks; it was just that their "crash-prone nature" was a real headache. (End of Chapter)