Volume 1 / Chapter 51: First Day of Military Training Begins
Because the military training was scheduled to last only five days, there was no such thing as a full day of rest. The moment lunch ended on day one, the official training began.
Maybe it was because it was still the first day, but the lunch scene was rather chaotic. Everyone just sat wherever they liked, gathering in groups of friends to enjoy the meal together.
The dishes were mostly vegetarian, with just a few meat options. The overall spread looked plain and not overly greasy.
Each table seated ten people, and there were only two meat dishes: one was hĂłngshÄo shÄŤzitĂłuâbraised lionâs head meatballs, and the other was a plate of braised pork belly that looked especially greasy.
As soon as Mò XuÄyĂĄo took her seat, her eyes locked onto the two meat dishes like a guided missile.
For someone like her, who rarely had the chance to eat meat, this was a rare and precious opportunity.
Still, she held back, waiting until everyone had started eating before she politely picked up a lionâs head meatball and placed it atop her bowl, which was already heaped with rice.
âI wonder if our military training instructor will be male or female,â said WĂĄng JiÄlè, who was seated beside XuÄyĂĄo. Her comment sparked a round of speculation among the other girls.
âHopefully a guy,â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o said with a smile, as she picked up some leafy greens for her bowl.
âWhy a male instructor? Whatâs wrong with a female one?â HuÄ YĂnyĂn asked in confusion.
âI think a male instructor would be better too,â ChĂĄlĂ, who sat on JiÄlèâs other side, agreed with Mo XiÇoxiĂ o. XuÄyĂĄo noticed she had switched the side of her ponytail again.
âWhy though?â HuÄ YĂnyĂn remained puzzled. âYou all just want to look at cute guys? That female instructor we saw earlier was gorgeous too!â
âItâs not about looks...â ChĂĄlĂ shook her head. âItâs just that male instructors tend to be more gentle.â
âExactly,â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o nodded. âAt the very least, they treat girls with more care.â
âThat's trueâ WĂĄng JiÄlè said emphatically. âMale instructors are more likely to be soft-hearted. A female instructor wouldnât care at all about sparing the flowers and cherishing the jade.â
âŚUsing that idiom on yourself doesnât feel a little shameless?
XuÄyĂĄo muttered inwardly while finishing off the lionâs head meatball.
The table had a large rotating tray in the middle, and a big communal bowl of rice was placed on it. Anyone who wanted a refill could just serve themselves.
The bowls were about the same size as those used at home. For most girls, one bowl would be plenty.
Normally, one bowl would be enough for Mò XuÄyĂĄo too, but today, she figured sheâd probably need more.
After all, just that single lionâs head had already gone through nearly half her rice.
Sheâd probably gotten used to being frugal. Every time she got to eat meat, she instinctively tried to eat more rice with it to stretch it further.
It seemed the other girls still had no intention of touching the meat dishes. XuÄyĂĄo felt a little too self-conscious to reach out for more, so she settled for picking up a few strands of shredded potato instead.
âAhhâI want a lionâs head too!â WĂĄng JiÄlè stretched out her arm, but the plate was too far from her side of the table.
âJust spin the tray,â ChĂĄlĂ said, and gave it a turn for her.
âThis thingâs heavy... I can barely move it,â JiÄlè grinned goofily as the plate came her way. âHehe, lionâs head~â
âCome on, everyone have some meat,â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o encouraged the other girls. âWe can share it. The meat looks like itâs portioned just right.â
The braised pork belly came in big chunksâabout ten pieces in total. Enough for everyone at the table to have one.
But ChĂĄlĂ shook her head. âYou all go ahead. Iâm not eating meat. Iâll gain weight.â
âYou, fat?â JiÄlè asked through a mouthful of rice.
ChĂĄlĂ pinched her waist and thigh. âLook, all this is fat! Even my thighs and tummy have it. There are so many boys thinner than me!â
âThatâs just being curvy,â HuÄ YĂnyĂn said, picking up a piece of pork. âBeing as thin as a bamboo pole isnât attractive at all.â
âExactly,â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o added seriously. âGirls are supposed to have a bit of subcutaneous fat. Itâs normal.â
âNope, nope. You all eat the meat. Iâll just stick to the veggies,â ChĂĄlĂ insisted as she picked out a few chili peppers from the stir-fried pork and chili dish in front of her.
That dish technically counted as a meat dish, but since it was basically all peppers with a bit of minced meat thrown in, no one really treated it as such.
It felt like calling it meat would be an insult to meat.
The other girls, whose names XuÄyĂĄo couldnât remember, also chimed in, saying they werenât eating pork either.
Even one lionâs head was being split between two girls.
XuÄyĂĄo couldnât help herself anymoreâshe reached out and grabbed a piece of braised pork for her bowl.
After finishing that, she picked up another.
âUm... XiaoyĂĄo, arenât you worried about gaining weight?â JiÄlè whispered.
âNot really,â XuÄyĂĄo replied casually.
Which, of course, wasnât entirely true.
But for someone who hardly ever got to eat meat, how could she worry about gaining weight from a rare indulgence?
The boysâ side finished eating much faster than the girls. Before long, LiĂş XiÇowÄi came over with his bowl: âHey, you girls not eating the meat?â
âYup,â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o glanced at XuÄyĂĄo and noticed her bowl was already emptyâsheâd had two bowlsâso she said, âGo ahead, take it. Better than wasting it.â
âEh...â Mo ZhĂşyĹu glanced at her sister, a bit disappointed.
She hadnât eaten much meat either.
Or maybe... she was just holding back for the sake of appearances?
XuÄyĂĄo glanced back at ZhĂşyĹu. Sheâd been about to stand and grab another lionâs head, but now she hesitated.
Was it really embarrassing for girls to eat too much?
Still not entirely used to this new world, XuÄyĂĄo felt a bit unsure of herself. She didnât want to lose face, but she really wanted another one.
When the boys finally reached for the last lionâs head, she couldnât hold back anymore.
âUh, hey, I wanted that one...â she said awkwardly. The boy reaching for itâZhĹu YÇng, an average-looking guyâjust nodded and shifted his chopsticks to the remaining pork.
The boys didnât seem to find it strange at all.
LÇ HĂłngrÇn even picked out every single morsel of minced meat from the stir-fried chili dish and ate it cleanâno one batted an eye.
In fact, some of the boys even gave him a thumbs-up. âDamn bro, youâre a beast. Even managed to pick all that out.â
But some of the girlsâ gazes drifted toward Mò XuÄyĂĄo, making her squirm.
The lionâs head in her bowl didnât taste nearly as good anymore.
Or maybe... she was just being too sensitive?
Maybe the girls were just curious about how much she could eat.
Half an hour after lunch, the real military training finally began.
When a male instructor walked up, the boys collectively sighed, while the girls were visibly excited.
âYay! A male instructor after all!â WĂĄng JiÄlè quietly nudged XuÄyĂĄoâs hand.
âAh⌠yeah.â XuÄyĂĄo was still recovering from the awkwardness at lunch, and her response was a beat too slow.
Statistically, getting a male instructor was far more likely.
There was only one female instructor, after all.
She was assigned to Class 3, which was right next to their Class 2. The boys who landed the pretty female instructor were already making faces and flaunting their luck at the neighboring class.
âYou lot! Still grinning like fools after training has started?â the female instructor barked. Turns out she wasnât nearly as gentle as they had imagined. âBack row boys, ten laps around the square! Now!â
âHey! I didnât even do anything!â one guy protested.
âYouâre one team. Doesnât matter who did whatâeveryone runs.â
âHahahaââ the Class 2 boys laughed, relieved it wasnât their class in trouble.
âAhem, alright, stop gawking. Do I look less handsome than her?â Class 2âs instructor coughed to draw attention back. âHi everyone, Iâm Instructor HuĂĄng . Just call me Instructor HuĂĄng.â
âHello, Instructor HuĂĄngââ the class responded with scattered enthusiasm.
âYouâre handsome alright, but sheâs pretty. Totally different leagues,â GÄo YuĂĄn joked.
âYou were the cockiest one just now,â Instructor HuĂĄng chuckled. âWhat, you like pretty instructors? Want me to put on a skirt and act like one for you?â
âIâd be down for that!â ZhĹu YÇng egged him on.
âFine! Letâs make it funâwhoever performs the worst today gets to wear a skirt. Deal?â
âDeal~!â The girls were delighted.
âI think that chubby oneâs got a good chance,â Instructor HuĂĄng teased. âMaybe he likes cross-dressing?â
âThatâs not me! I didnât say anything!â GÄo YuĂĄn stood up straight in protest.
âWell, letâs see if you can keep it up.â Instructor HuĂĄng blew his whistle and looked around at the other classes warming up with light jogs. âLook at thatâeveryone else is jogging already.â
âThen letâs run too!â GÄo YuĂĄn said, eager to please.
âNope. Why follow the crowd? Just because they run doesnât mean we have to.â Instructor HuĂĄng grinned mischievously. âSee that sunny patch over there? It's so cold today-let's grab a good spot to sunbathe!â
âUgh, weâre gonna get tanned...â The girls pretended to complain while clearly enjoying the break.
Mò XuÄyĂĄo thought this instructor might actually suit her temperament.
And despite the complaints, most of the girls seemed to like Instructor HuĂĄng right off the bat.
Standing beside her, WĂĄng JiÄlè whispered, âThis instructorâs kinda fun, huh?â
âRight? Pretty interesting guy,â Instructor HuĂĄng said suddenly, having overheard her whisper. He even winked at her.
Startled, JiÄlè jumped in place.
âHaha, what are you so scared for? Just teasing. Not like Iâm making you run laps,â HuĂĄng laughed heartily. âAlso, youâre shorter than the girl in front of you, right? You should move to the front.â
âUm... okay...â JiÄlè nodded meekly and returned to her spot. Sheâd stepped back earlier just to chat with XuÄyĂĄo.
Among all the girls, WĂĄng JiÄlè was the shortest at about 150 cm, followed by HuÄ YĂnyĂn at 155 cm, and then Mò XuÄyĂĄo at 158 cm.
Most of the other girls were over 160 cmâthough few reached 170âclearly separating them from the three petite ones.
Comments (0)
Please login or sign up to post a comment.