Volune 1 / Chapter 67: The Day We Go Home

October 22, 1999, Friday. Overcast.

After the morning's closing ceremony, the students were finally liberated.

On the back of a pickup truck collecting the camo military uniforms, the pile of clothing had already grown into a miniature mountain.

The students changed back into their own clothes or Yǔkōng High School’s school uniforms and lined up in orderly rows, preparing to leave.

Five days—during the training, they had felt unbearably long.

But now that it was over, those five days suddenly felt far too short.

That stretch of near-isolated living made Mò Xuěyáo feel as if she’d undergone some kind of subtle transformation.

Though she couldn’t be sure if it was just an illusion, at the very least, without the distractions of the outside world, she’d found more quiet moments to reflect on life.

Even while standing motionless during drills, her mind would constantly drift back through memories, sifting through the past to make the hours pass more bearably.

No grand revelations—just a quiet sense of settling.

When she got back on the same bus that had brought them here, it had only been five days, yet it felt like the world had shifted.

More trees were bare now, and fallen leaves blanketed the ground like a year's worth of unspoken sorrow, carried away on the wind with time’s passing.

“Goodbye, Instructor——!!”

Students on the bus waved enthusiastically at the drill instructors. Their reluctance to part was written all over their faces.

To Mò Xuěyáo, it oddly resembled the emotional farewell of a retired soldier bidding goodbye to their loyal police dog.

Even Huā Yínyín , sitting beside her, dabbed at the corners of her eyes with a napkin. Her eyes still shimmered with unshed tears.

That surprised Mò Xuěyáo. Who knew this usually carefree girl could be sentimental?

“Cough… I just really liked the nights we all spent in the dorm together. It was fun… I guess I’ll miss it a little,” Huā Yínyín muttered as she gazed out the window, trying to sound nonchalant.

Mò Xuěyáo didn’t reply. But she did feel that everyone on the bus had grown closer.

The boys were completely at ease with one another now, and the girls chattered like old friends.

From the back seat, Chálí could be heard discussing with Wáng Jiālè the shape of a certain male body part…

The topic was so ridiculous that Mò Xuěyáo blushed to the tips of her ears and quickly turned to stare out the window, pretending she hadn’t heard a thing.

Amid waves of farewells, the bus slowly started to move, winding its way down the mountain road, parting ways with the towering hills.

Whether they’d ever return again in their lifetime—who could say?

Perhaps this was goodbye forever.

A sudden melancholy washed over Mò Xuěyáo.

How many places in her life would she visit once, never to return?

How many people had she met just once, never to cross paths with again?

“Want a tissue?” Huā Yínyín’s voice came from behind her.

“…N-No need.” Mò Xuěyáo quickly wiped at the corners of her eyes. “I was just wondering how much longer until we get back to school.”

“Probably around four in the afternoon. By then the other grades will have gone home already.” Huā Yínyín pouted. “Ugh, everyone else gets to go home early on Fridays, and we’re stuck here for two more hours. Totally unfair.”

“It’s not unfair,” Wáng Jiālè chimed in cheerfully. “After all, when the other grades were in first year, they went through the same thing.”

“…That kinda makes sense. Ugh, fine, I give up.” Huā Yínyín flopped sideways and clung to Mò Xuěyáo’s thigh. “Xiao Yáoyáo, let me nap here for a bit~ Wake me up when we get there, okay?”

“When we arrive, don’t wake her,” Chálí said with mock seriousness from beside Wáng Jiālè. “Just leave her on the bus.”

“Hmph! My Xiao Yáoyáo would never be so heartless, right?”

“What do you mean your Yáoyáo? She’s mine!” Wáng Jiālè huffed.

“She belongs to everyone,” Mo Xiǎoxiào interjected calmly, settling the debate with a single sentence.

Everyone laughed knowingly at that.

Even Mò Xuěyáo couldn’t help but give a helpless smile.

Why was she so popular with girls, anyway?

Still… it wasn’t exactly a bad thing.

It just got a little overwhelming sometimes, being surrounded and clung to by so many people.

Even though it was the same road, the journey back felt completely different. Even the scenery outside the window seemed to have changed.

She had wanted to take in the view along the way, but somewhere in the middle of the trip, she dozed off.

She dreamed of returning to the same mountain after graduating college. In her dream, she saw a new group of Yǔkōng High School freshmen undergoing military training.

But this time, she was just a passing tourist.

She also saw her old teachers. They looked just the same as she remembered, untouched by time.

Yet when she looked closer, she could see subtle signs of age marking their faces.

“Yáoyáo, wake up~ You said you’d wake me up, and then you fell asleep too?”

Huā Yínyín’s voice pulled her out of the dream.

Startled, Mò Xuěyáo’s eyes snapped open, nearly scaring Huā Yínyín.

“Whoa—you weren’t awake?”

“...I was asleep,” Mò Xuěyáo murmured, eyes wide as she looked out the window.

For a brief moment, she felt grateful she was still just a first-year student. There were three more years ahead.

And after that, there was still college.

At least for now, she was still young—and so were her teachers.

Sixteen years old… and already she was worrying about growing old.

She chuckled at herself as the bus slowed to a stop at the school sports field. One by one, the students filed out.

No need to return to the classroom—after a quick headcount, they were free to leave.

“Mò Xuěyáo, hold on a sec.” Just as she was about to head to the underground garage to get her bike, she was called back by Teacher Yè Wén.

“Yes, Teacher?”

“Your mom just called. She asked you to wait at the school gate. Your godfather is coming to pick you up.”

“Ah… okay.” Mò Xuěyáo scratched her head. “But my bike’s still here at school…”

“That’s between you and your mom. I’m just passing along the message.”

“Got it. Thanks, Ms. Yè.”

As she walked toward the school gate, Mò Xuěyáo was already wondering how she’d get to school on Monday without her bike.

“Eh? You’re not going home, Xuěyáo?” Mo Xiǎoxiào and her younger sister Mo Zhúyōu had exited through the small gate and slowed when they spotted her.

“I’m waiting for my godfather.”

“Ohh, no wonder we couldn’t find you earlier. Alright then, we’re heading off!”

“Bye-bye~” Mò Xuěyáo waved cheerfully.

Other students also passed by—some familiar, some not—and many greeted her warmly.

For a moment, she almost felt like the class celebrity.

Even a few boys came over, joking and laughing as they said their goodbyes.

She was smiling so much her cheeks started to ache from all the forced politeness.

Finally, the familiar Santana pulled up in front of her.

“Beep beep——”

The horn sounded twice, and the window rolled down.

“Hey, Xuěyáo!” Her godfather Yú Liáng looked like he’d put on a few more pounds, but his cheerful energy hadn’t changed.

“Coming.” Mò Xuěyáo opened the door and got in.

Aside from her godfather, the car was empty.

“Why’d you come pick me up?” she asked curiously.

“Haha, your family’s fruit shop is about to open, right? Figured we should celebrate—have a nice meal together!”

He said it like the shop was his.

“What about everyone else?” Mò Xuěyáo buckled her seatbelt, ever proper.

“Your godmother and god-sis went out earlier. They’re coming from another direction.”

Yú Liáng reached for his cigarettes, glanced at her, and then put them away. “We’re eating out tonight.”

“Isn’t that a bit wasteful?”

“It’s a special occasion!” he laughed.

Of course, for her family, eating out at a restaurant was a rare treat.

“Godfather, you’re not wearing a seatbelt again.”

At a red light, Mò Xuěyáo finally couldn’t hold back.

“Ugh, I’m too fat. It’s uncomfortable.”

“No excuses. Safety is safety,” she said sternly. “Rules are rules. Just because no one’s watching doesn’t mean you get to ignore them. This is about your life.”

“Alright, alright—” Yú Liáng chuckled, defeated. “I’ll wear it, okay?”

He reached over with some effort, fumbling with the seatbelt until he finally clicked it in. He looked like a dumpling only half wrapped in its leaf.

Mò Xuěyáo couldn’t help laughing.

“Haha, funny?”

“A bit,” she tried to keep a straight face. “Which restaurant are we going to?”

“The one by Chángmù Bridge. Good homestyle food, not far from your place either—easy to get home after.”

“Ohh.” Mò Xuěyáo nodded. She remembered that’s where the Mo sisters lived.

Would they be heading out for dinner around now too?

If they ran into each other, maybe she could invite them to join.

Her thoughts wandered, and before she realized it, they were already pulling up near the restaurant.

“Not easy to park here. I’ll stop up ahead, and we’ll walk the rest. Your parents and godmother should be arriving soon,” Yú Liáng said as he glanced at his phone.

“Okay.”

“Ahhh—feels good to stretch.” He unbuckled his seatbelt with relief and stretched out his limbs.

“Godfather, you really need to lose weight.” Mò Xuěyáo couldn’t resist poking his belly—it made a thump thump sound. “Look at this! People might think you’re pregnant.”

“Ehhh, middle-aged folks gain weight easily. Exercising is such a pain.”

“But it’s bad for your health. My dad’s not fat at all!”

“Ahem… I just sit around all day, that’s why.” He patted his stomach. “Come on, let’s head inside.”

“Wait—did you lock the car?”

“Oh! Almost forgot.” He hurried back, stuck the key into the lock, turned it with a click, tugged the door handle to double-check, and finally led Mò Xuěyáo into the restaurant.