Volume 1 / Chapter 61: Cracking the Stone Slab
The rain fell in a steady drizzle.
Under the rain canopy, the students were marching in goose step.
The same ceremonial step used during flag-raising.
But because the canopy was too small, everyone moved rather awkwardly. After just ten or so steps, theyâd reach the edge and have to turn backâeither that, or simply march in place.
Ironically, marching in place seemed even harder.
âMarch with strength! One, two, three, four!â bellowed Instructor HuĂĄng , his voice thundering. âWhatâs wrong with all of you? Didnât have breakfast?â
âYesâsir!â the students answered without missing a beat, as if it were only natural.
âOh right, I forgotâyou really didnât have breakfast.â HuĂĄng JiÇ poked his head out to check, then turned back and said, âAlright, alright, the company commanderâs left. You can take a break now.â
âYay!â
âLong live the instructor!â
Cheers broke out as the students sat down one by one.
Theyâd been training for about an hour already, which meant it was around 6:30 AM.
For most of them, this was about when they usually got up.
Those who lived close byâor just suffered from chronic procrastinationâmight get up even later.
Even Mò XuÄyĂĄo, who had done nothing but watch the whole time, felt her stomach growling a bit. Let alone those whoâd been marching for an hour.
They must be absolutely starving by now.
âJie... Iâm so hungry...â Mo ZhĂşyĹu lay limply across Mo XiÇoxiĂ oâs lap, mumbling like a sleepy kitten.
âBreakfast should be coming soon.â Mo XiÇoxiĂ o gently stroked her sisterâs head in comfort.
âInstructor! When do we eat breakfast? Iâm about to starve to death!â GÄo YuĂĄn raised his hand and called out loudly.
âYou? Starving? With that chubby belly? A little hunger would do you good!â the instructor teased.
âAhhâitâs water weight! Totally superficial!â GÄo YuĂĄn protested, trying to explain himself.
âIf youâre just âsuperficiallyâ fat, then who counts as truly fat?â ZhĹu YÇng teased from nearby.
âObviously TiĂĄn XÄŤnnĂĄn. Sheâs the real heavyweight!â
âYou damn fatty, who are you calling fat?!â TiĂĄn XÄŤnnĂĄnâs voice rose up from the crowd, ready to rumble like a sumo wrestler.
Although both of them were chubby, they werenât exactly in the same weight class.
GÄo YuĂĄn weighed around 130 jin and stood roughly 165 cm".
[Jin=0.5kg=1 pound]
TiĂĄn XÄŤnnĂĄn, on the other hand, was close to 180 cm and nearly 200 jin. The kind of weight that, quite literally, could crush someone.
âSeriously? Even a fatter person is calling me fat now?â GÄo YuĂĄn looked utterly dejected, making everyone burst into laughter.
âYou may line up for the cafeteria now. Breakfast time,â came a new voice. It was the Dean of Discipline, holding a solid black umbrella and wearing delicate gold-rimmed glasses.
She was going from class to class to notify them.
âFinally! Letâs go, letâs go! Iâm starving!â HuĂĄng JiÇ sprang up first, oddly more excited than the students themselves.
The group promptly formed neat lines. Mò XuÄyĂĄo returned to her squad and followed along.
Breakfast still required singing before they could eatâthis time, it was the national anthem. Only after singing could they take their seats.
The morning meal was simple and modest. The main staples were steamed cornbread buns and millet porridge.
Each metal bowl held some peanuts, pickled vegetables, and stewed wheat gluten.
The only item that even barely counted as meat was a single boiled egg per person.
At the front of the cafeteria were additional cornbread buns and flower rolls, free to take. And if the millet porridge wasnât enough, they could get refills.
It was plain fare, no doubt, but after a full hour of physical training, the students were so hungry they could barely see straight. At that point, who cared what was being served? If it was edible, it went in their mouth.
âIâve never had a breakfast without meat at home...â GÄo YuĂĄn grumbled quietly, yet still ended up eating a lot. After all, vegetables didnât fill you up the way meat did.
With yesterdayâs experience behind them, todayâs students were much more disciplinedâeating in complete silence. Whatever chatting they wanted to do, they saved for after the meal.
Mò XuÄyĂĄo didnât eat much. Since she hadnât exercised, her appetite was about the same as usualâjust an extra bowl of millet porridge.
The warm porridge settled in her stomach like a soft embrace. It was... comfort in liquid form.
âXuÄyĂĄo~â No sooner had she stepped outside and opened her umbrella than HuÄ YĂnyĂn popped up behind her, tapping her shoulder lightly like a little tail that just wouldnât leave. âHere, this is for you~â
âHuh?â Mò XuÄyĂĄo looked curiously at what HuÄ YĂnyĂn was holding. Whatever it was, it had been wrapped up so tightly that she couldnât see a thing.
âAn egg.â HuÄ YĂnyĂn grinned, pressing the still-warm boiled egg into her palm.
It still carried the warmth of HuÄ YĂnyĂnâs hand.
âUh... Why are you giving this to me?â
âI donât like boiled eggs. Iâve had too many at home. Itâd be a waste to throw it away. Unless... wait, do you not like eggs either? I can give it to someone else...â
âN-No, I didnât say I donât like it...â Mò XuÄyĂĄo mumbled, a little embarrassed. Then she quickly peeled and bit into the egg, as if afraid HuÄ YĂnyĂn might snatch it back.
âI heard eggs help with cramps during your period,â HuÄ YĂnyĂn said while lightly scratching XuÄyĂĄoâs chin.
Like she was petting a cat or something...
At home, Mò XuÄyĂĄo rarely ate eggs.
They werenât exactly cheap, after all.
Maybe once or twice a week sheâd get a boiled egg for extra nutrition.
She wasnât particularly fond of boiled eggs eitherâtoo dry. But she couldnât bear to waste the nutrition.
She didnât like the yolk much, but she did enjoy the whites. If only it were a tea egg, thatâd be even better...
After breakfast, the students returned to their respective training zones. Following a short rest, drills resumed.
Today was noticeably tougher than yesterday. Just standing at attention went from five minutes straight to fifteen.
Thank goodness Instructor HuĂĄng wasnât too strictâotherwise, if even one or two students had managed to last the full fifteen minutes, it wouldâve been a miracle.
Even so, over half the class began wobbling and swaying after just ten minutes.
Mò XuÄyĂĄo wasnât relieved. Instead, she was wonderingâhow long could she last if it were her up there?
âMò XuÄyĂĄo, come sit down. I need to stretch a bit,â Yè WĂŠn said, yawning and stretching before standing from the bench.
âOh... sure... thank you.â Mò XuÄyĂĄo snapped out of her thoughts and sat down slowly, a little shy.
Mostly because she was worriedâif she sat too quickly, something might... leak.
Even though sheâd packed four pairs of underwear, if the rain kept up and nothing dried, that could spell real trouble.
Better to be cautious.
After standing drill came another round of marching-in-place practice.
As usual, GÄo YuĂĄn got his steps mixed up again and was dragged to the front to march alongside the girls.
âOne, two, three, four!â Instructor HuĂĄng barked. âYouâve all had breakfast now, right? Then put some strength into it! No slacking!â
âLouder with the chants! Am I the only one shouting? Whereâs your class sports rep?â
âHere.â LÇ HĂłngrÇn raised his hand timidly.
âLouder! Lead the chant! One-two-three-four, go!â
âYes, sir!â LÇ HĂłngrÇn took the lead in shouting.
The boys immediately followed suit with renewed energy, not to be outdone.
The girls, meanwhile, were more relaxedâjust mouthing the words was enough.
After all, HuĂĄng JiÇ usually targeted the boys anyway.
Sitting off to the side, Mò XuÄyĂĄo could feel the ground rumbling beneath herâthump, thumpâlike a minor earthquake. Thatâs how hard the boys were stomping.
The most intense of them was ZhĹu YÇng. His voice was louder than LÇ HĂłngrÇnâs, and each stomp was powerful, like he was trying to crack the ground.
And he actually succeeded.
BANG! CRACK!
A loud sound echoed as everyone instinctively froze.
ZhĹu YÇng stared blankly down at his right foot.
A stone slab beneath him had shattered.
âWhoa...â Mò XuÄyĂĄoâs mouth fell open in awe.
No way she could ever pull something like that off.
ZhĹu YÇngâs form mightâve been messy, but he definitely had the strength.
Granted, the stone slabs were already a bit weathered. Otherwise, this probably wouldnât have happened.
Still, the impact was stunning.
âYouâve got guts, kid! Huh?â HuĂĄng JiÇ slapped ZhĹu YÇng on the shoulder and gave him a big thumbs-up. âYou cracked a stone slab! Are you hurt? Does it hurt?â
âDonât think so...â ZhĹu YÇng came to his senses, shaking his leg. âBut the bottom of my foot feels kinda... chilly?â
âNo wonder. You broke right through your shoe sole! I gotta hand it to you,â HuĂĄng JiÇ said, genuinely impressed. âYou got a spare pair?â
âYeah, but theyâre in the dorm.â
âFind someone to go with you. Change shoes and come backâbut ease up next time.â
âYouâre the one who told us to go all-out,â ZhĹu YÇng said honestly, a bit smug.
âYou little rascal.â HuĂĄng JiÇ laughed and smacked him lightly on the head. âGo pick someone.â
âHmm, I pick...â
âMe! Me!â
âMe too!â
A few boys who were close with him made funny faces and raised their hands eagerly.
âGÄo YuĂĄn, letâs go.â ZhĹu YÇng waved him over.
âHeh heh!â Delighted to get a break, GÄo YuĂĄn happily followed him out under the umbrella.
âAlright, break time for the rest of us. Heh, once that chubby kid gets back, heâll have to jump right back inâno break for him,â HuĂĄng JiÇ snickered. âBet he thinks he got luckyâha!â
âDamn, Instructor, thatâs evil. I love it!â The boys roared with laughter.
The ones who hadnât gone with ZhĹu YÇng felt like theyâd really scored.
Menâs happiness really was that simple.
ââThough, the girls clearly didnât understand what all the fuss was about.
Not long after, GÄo YuĂĄn returned. His reaction, upon learning the truth, was exactly what everyone had expected.
He beat his chest and wailed in frustration. âAhhh! I got played!â
The crowd exploded into laughter, unable to hold it in.
Mò XuÄyĂĄo suddenly thought of a similar class clown from her middle school daysâsomeone everyone got along with.
Just like GÄo YuĂĄn.
...Though, only among the boys.
Come to think of it, maybe every class came with a pre-assigned clown.
Almost like it was pre-arranged by fate.
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