Chapter 104: The Captain's View of His Cadets

  Ji Xin'an walked over to help the two of them make their beds, "Don't cry, if they find out you're like this, won't they worry? Besides, after a while, it'll be summer break and you can see them again."

  "Hmm." The two of them nodded in agreement, but tears still fell from their eyes.

  "Don't cry, I'm also away from home for the first time, and I miss my family too. But as Ji Xin'an said, crying won't help, and if our parents find out, they'll worry even more." Zhang Xiaoxue walked over timidly and started comforting them as well.

  Others came over and offered a few words of comfort, helping to put things in order. Ruo Jia-yi didn't say anything but silently helped stack the quilts into neat cubes, apparently a true military family trait, as the stacking was done with precision.

  "Lu Jia-yi, can you help me? I think this little beauty must be very happy, but you've folded their quilt so neatly, are you trying to tell them they can't sleep at night?" Ji Xin-an looked at the neatly folded quilt and smiled at her, thinking that Lu Jia-yi's heart wasn't bad, maybe she just didn't know how to interact with people.

  She was taken aback by her words, and immediately thought of the impending lights out, her face also involuntarily turning red. "Am I not willing?"

  "It's okay, how can it not be okay? But I'm afraid they'll see how good it is and won't want to dismantle it." Yán Tíngtíng said as she put the toiletries in their designated places.

  Several people who heard her words couldn't help but burst out laughing, and the twins finally stopped crying.

  As she looked at the neatly folded quilt, Jing Xian suddenly thought of something and wondered if she had forgotten something. It seemed that she hadn't neglected her physical fitness, combat skills, or marksmanship training, but instead, these basic things like folding quilts, standing at attention, and marching in step hadn't been practiced. It seemed that she would have to start from scratch just like everyone else. The military knowledge she had gained in her past life was nothing compared to this kind of militarized training. She let out a soft sigh, wondering how she could have forgotten all these things.

  But then she thought that others are not all like Luo Jia-yi, everyone starts from the same starting line, and she believes that she won't be worse than others.

  Just as the seven of them were laughing together for the first time, the blackout alarm sounded and the lights in the room went out, causing everyone to be in a state of confusion.

  "Oh no, I haven't even washed my face or brushed my teeth yet." Lu Ziyuan suddenly jumped up and then let out a 'ouch' as she probably bumped into something.

  Everyone else was in a similar situation except for Luo Jia-yi, and the twins had just finished cleaning up. A few people were busy grabbing their toiletries to go out, and when they opened the door, they saw that other dormitories were also in a similar situation. However, it was very obvious that the old students' side was quiet, and all those who came out were new students.

  "Everyone go back, after lights out, no one is allowed to move around or talk." Just as everyone was about to rush to the bathroom, a student on duty with a red armband suddenly shouted from one end of the corridor.

  "We haven't even brushed our teeth or washed our faces, how can we sleep?" someone protested.

  "I haven't even gone to the bathroom yet."

  "No, everyone go back. This is the rule. After lights out, no matter what you haven't done, you're not allowed to do it anymore. Finish everything before lights out tomorrow." The duty officer continued to shout.

  "This is also too unreasonable, we don't know either." Everyone still didn't give up.

  "Right, discipline is dead, people are alive, can't you just give us one chance?" This was even more to her advantage.

  "If anyone of you makes another noise, I'll write down your name and dormitory number, and it will be announced to the whole school tomorrow." The duty officer seemed to be experienced, facing everyone's criticism without being flustered.

  After hearing her words, everyone reluctantly left with a sense of helplessness.

  After a moment of chaos, it finally calmed down. Ji Xin'an returned to her dormitory and saw that Luo Jia-yi had already put down the quilt and was lying on the bed. She thought to herself that although she had made so many preparations, she still hadn't experienced real military life, and there were still many things she lacked.

  Ji Xinan's first day at military school passed like this in a dreamland where he hadn't brushed his teeth or washed his face.

  On this side, new students have already entered dreamland, while on the other side, Luo Min, who had just left, did not return to her dormitory but came directly to the office.

  At this time, instructor Pang Kai also asked, "Have those two girls arrived?"

  "They've arrived, they've already been sent to the dormitory. Their car broke down halfway, but fortunately a kind-hearted driver brought them over. Otherwise, these two girls would have really had nothing to do with the military school." Luo Min said with some relief.

  "It's great that they're coming, I just hope it's not a special case and we miss out on something. " Pang Kai was also very happy, the two of them didn't do anything all night, just waiting for these two late-coming girls.

  "I hope I can stay too." Luo Min said with a sigh.

  "These few girls you've been in contact with, what do you think of them? Who do you think is more suitable to be the head of the girls' class?" Pang Kai flipped through the files of several girls. These files were different from those of ordinary universities, which were just a few simple pages. Although they didn't have everything, they were much more detailed.

  "Don't even mention it, you say these students are getting worse year by year. Although the grades are still the same, but in other aspects, they can't be compared to soldiers at all." Luo Min thought of the few girls in the class and got a headache.

  "What's wrong? Tell me about it?" Pang Kai smiled and handed over the seven files in his hand.

  "We were talking one by one, and this Luo Jia-yi, at first I thought she was a soldier's daughter, having gone through military training, should be pretty good, right? But look at her parents coming to send her off, not only did they bring a servant, but she didn't even lift a finger herself. And her personality is quite cold and aloof, with an attitude of not caring about anything. You'd think that soldiers are all about being competitive and strong, but is someone like this suitable for being a soldier?" Luo Min saw the first one was Luo Jia-yi's, immediately thought of the scene where the three of them stood aside while the servant did everything, treating her own daughter like a high-ranking official.

  "This is Luojia's father, I've talked to him before. He knows his daughter's personality and is worried about it too, but he can't control her either. So he also hopes that after joining the army, she will change and have more of a soldier's passion." Pang Kai told her what Luo Chuan had said.

  "When were we in kindergarten?" Luo Min didn't get any better because of his words.

  "Let's talk about this." Pang Kai picked up the second one, which was Lu Ziyuan.

  "Hey, this Lu Ziyuan is simply a rich young lady, she doesn't even dare to go up to the upper bunk, just watching her mother climb up and down to arrange things for her, and when I went there at night, she was crying too." Luo Min also showed dissatisfaction with this.

  "Just left home, it's normal to miss home and cry, and nowadays most are only children, so being a bit spoiled is also normal." Pang Kai started flipping through her file.

  "She's more than just a bit spoiled." Luo Min said helplessly, thinking to herself how long this young lady could last here.

  "This isn't tender." Pang Kai took out Xiao Xue's.

  "This is okay, she's from a rural area. I've reviewed her file in detail, and she can endure hardship and is willing to work hard. But how should I put it, she just lacks some wit. However, among so many only children, it's not easy to find one who is this willing to work hard." Luo Min finally nodded.

  "It's good that there is someone you can look up to." Pang Kai also nodded.

  "It's just a personal talent." Luo Min sighed, apparently not very satisfied either.

  "What's with this Yan Tingting?"

  "Zheng Yi felt very strong, had helped people chase thieves in high school, but was simple-minded and careless. Moreover, her self-care ability was too poor, when her family members left, they were still reminding her which bag had what, and where to put things for her." Luo Min shook her head again.

  "With a sense of justice and courage, with training, you can become a good soldier. And what about the twins you just brought back?" Pang Kai saw that she was still not satisfied, so he smiled and took out another one.

  "These two are just average, no obvious pros and cons. And there hasn't been much contact yet, so it's hard to evaluate." Luo Min said cautiously, not wanting her subjective consciousness to determine her attitude towards anyone.

  "This Ji Xin'an's self-care ability is definitely good, I heard she came by herself, right?" Pang Kai didn't comment this time and directly picked up the last one.

  "Ji Xin'an is now the one I least understand. She seems weak and fragile, but she dares not to let her parents and family members follow her and her classmates to take a twenty-hour train ride to school. Moreover, she has very good observational skills. I noticed that after Luo Chuan's orderly arranged his toiletries, only she followed him in arranging them in the same way, and very standardly." Luo Min didn't know how to evaluate Ji Xin'an accurately.

  "And she is also the one with the highest score among this year's freshmen." Pang Kai looked at her and knew that she was the first.

  "But what's the point, look at her appearance, I think she's more suitable to be a star or something, even enlisting in the cultural troupe would be better than coming here, I really worry that she can't even make it through three months of military training." Luo Min still shook his head.

  "You can't judge a person by their appearance, it's hard to say for sure, maybe she'll surprise you." But Pang Kai thought that this Ji Xin'an wouldn't be as weak as she said.

  "How is that possible?" Luo Min said disbelievingly.

  "Think about it, she was able to score so high and chose a military school, but there's not a hint of reluctance on her face, and she came here voluntarily. This shows that she's a very decisive person, so coming to this school must be her own idea. And since she chose this place, I think an excellent and intelligent girl like her wouldn't have come without any preparation at all. So I believe what we see is just superficial." Pang Kai directly analyzed for her.

  "That's also true, so you think she's suitable to be the class monitor?" Luo Min thought for a moment and felt that it was indeed the case, but still had some misgivings in her heart.

  "It's better not to, although our guesses are likely, but after all, they are just guesses, and she hasn't received military training either. Who knows how things will go during boot camp." Pang Kai thought for a moment, but still shook his head.

  "You take a look at them and see who's suitable, I couldn't choose." Luo Min said helplessly.

  "How is Luo Jia?" Pang Kai suddenly said.

  "She? Her military training is definitely no problem, but is her personality suitable for being a class leader?" Luo Min didn't expect him to take a liking to Luo Jia-yi.

  "It's precisely because of this that she should be the class leader, perhaps it's exactly what she needs to take on responsibility and slowly change her aloof personality. Who knows, maybe in three months she'll surprise us." Pang Kai knew her father, but he would never show favoritism in this regard.

  "It's okay like this, trying won't hurt." Luomin thought for a moment and agreed to his proposal. It wasn't that she didn't care, it was just that there really wasn't anyone else to choose from.

  "Alright, then it's settled." Pang Kai saw her agree and settled on it.

  "And what about the boys' side? Who do you think is suitable?" Luo Min asked again about another candidate for the boys' class monitor.

  "I've seen a few, all with military family backgrounds and having received military training. Among them, I think only Zou Ze and Bi Hui are the most suitable, but it's hard to choose between the two." Pang Kai actually had a pretty tough time, there were so many more boys than girls, and he had to study for a long time to pick the most suitable one.

  "I'll take a look at Zou Ze, he and Ji Xin'an are both self-sufficient, they came by train on their own, it can be seen that their ability to take care of themselves is not bad. Since other aspects are similar, then we can only consider these factors." Luo Min thought for a moment, and immediately remembered that the two of them had come together.

  "It's alright then, I was just wondering who would be better anyway." Pang Kai smiled and agreed.

  "It's settled then, I'm going to sleep." Luo Min glanced at the time and it was already midnight.

  "Go to bed early, there's still something tomorrow." Pang Kai put away the documents on his desk.

  The two people's work today has finally been completed.

  The next morning, everyone was woken up by reveille and loud slogans.

  "It's only five thirty, how can we start training already? It's too early!" Lu Ziyuan was woken up and looked at her watch, crying out in pain.

  "It's really going to be the death of me, I never got up this early even when I was in school." Complained Yan Tingting.

  "You'd better get used to it, today we're still new and don't have to do morning exercises, but later on we'll have to follow them every day." Ji Xin'an was already used to waking up early, she would practice her physical strength every morning before, now she sat on her upper bunk looking at the neat squares outside, listening to their complaints also made her smile.

  "Oh no, why did I take the military school exam?" Yan Tingting heard her words and started wailing even more.

  Lu Jia-yi and Zhang Xiao-xue were already dressed and ready to wash up, Lu Jia-yi acted as if she hadn't heard their words and continued doing what she was supposed to do. Zhang Xiao-xue walked over to their bed, "You two should hurry up, we have to assemble at 8 o'clock, don't be late on the first day."

  On the other side, a pair of twins, whether they were sisters or brothers, were calling out to another one by the bed, but had not yet succeeded.

  "Ji Xin'an, what are you looking at there? Is there something good to see outside?" Yan Tingting heard Zhang Xiaoxue's words and sat up straight, just seeing Ji Xin'an smiling as she looked outside.

  "Look at those formations, when can we be like that?" Ji Xin'an withdrew her gaze and began to tidy up the internal affairs.

  "What's so good about it? I now wish to be a freshman forever, then I won't have to attend early morning exercises." Lu Ziyuan saw that everyone else had gotten up, and only then did she take down the blanket from her head.

  "What's the difference between you two, He Xuan and He Mei? You both look the same to me." Ji Xin'an saw that even the twins were getting anxious, but looking at their identical faces, he couldn't tell them apart.

  "I couldn't tell either, two identical faces were flashing before my eyes and I felt dizzy." Yan Tingting heard Ji Xinan's words and also looked at the two of them.

  "I'm He Yixuan, she's my older sister. If you can't tell us apart, just look at our eyebrows. I have a mole here, but Yixuan doesn't." The He Yixuan who lived in the lower bunk explained with a smile.

  Several people who heard her words walked closer and took a closer look, and indeed found that there was a mole between her eyebrows that was as light as it could be.

  "This is too difficult, right? It's so hard that next time I call you, I'll have to pull you over and take a closer look at your eyebrows before talking to you?" Lu Ziyuan looked several times but still couldn't find the mole, and finally gave up.

  "It's okay, I'll just call you that from now on. If I get it wrong later, please don't mind." Xiang Tingting also gave up distinguishing between them, thinking that getting the name wrong shouldn't be a big deal.

  "It's okay, we're used to it." He Yimei smiled and replied. Since childhood, the twins had sometimes been mistaken for each other even by their parents. Although this would occasionally cause some unnecessary trouble, they still enjoyed the misunderstanding.

  "How much older are you than your sister?" Ji Xin'an asked curiously, she had always been very interested in twins and had thought about having a pair of twins if she got married, but this didn't seem to be something she could decide.

  "It's only eight minutes, but for these eight minutes she has been calling me 'eighteen-year-old sister' for eighteen years and will continue to do so." He Yixuan glanced at her and said with a smile, "You're all grown up now, you can't still be eighteen, right?"

  "I'm one year older than you, nineteen now. I started elementary school a year late, so I'm older than my peers." Yan Tingting continued, somewhat depressed about being one year older but still in the same grade as others.

  "I'm also nineteen years old, girls from our family usually start school late." Zhang Xiaoxue said in a low voice, possibly feeling a bit embarrassed.

  "I'm eighteen, hey, how old are you now, Luo Jia-yi?" Lu Ziyan said as she saw Luo Jia-yi returning after washing up.

  "I'm eighteen now." Nothing more was said.

  Yan Tingting somewhat disapproved of her being out of place, and glanced at Ji Xin'an with a slight pout, "Ji Xin'an, how old are you? You look like you should be younger than me."

  "Oh, I'm seventeen." Ji Xin'an said with a smile as she jumped off the bed.

  "How can you be so young?" Several people looked at her, eighteen was already old enough to start school, but she was only seventeen.

  "I skipped a grade when I was in first year of junior high and went straight to third year, so I'm one year younger than you guys."

  "You're also too amazing, skipping grades and still being able to take the exam here. We had to study for another year just to get in, what was your Gaokao score?" He Yixuan asked in surprise.

  Ji Xin'an mentioned her own achievements and caused a burst of exclamations from them.

  "You must be the top scorer in your province." Yan Tingting said with a face full of admiration.

  Jian Xin'an nodded, Lu Ziyuan looked at her with a gaze like a monster, "With such high scores, you can choose any university in the country, why come to a military academy?"

  "Your scores should be very high too, even if you can't get into Tsinghua or Peking University, it shouldn't be a problem to get into a key university. You all came to the military academy, and I only scored a few points higher than you guys. What's so strange about attending a military school? And I especially like it here." Ji Xin'an smiled casually.

  "How can it be the same, if I had a choice, I would not have come here. My grandfather was a soldier and he always wanted his children to join the army, but no one followed in his footsteps, so now the idea has fallen on our generation. When I took the university entrance exam, I was told that I must take the military academy exam, whether I wanted to or not.

  "We both read a military magazine, and there was a female officer wearing a uniform and a beret, looking particularly beautiful. We were both impulsive and signed up for the military academy." He Yixuan said, possibly not regretting it yet since he just arrived here.

  "I think that if I go to military school, after graduation I'll be assigned a job and even get housing, everything will be taken care of, no need to worry about finding work myself, how great." Yan Tingting's thoughts were realistic, Ji Xin'an couldn't help but feel that she had some foresight, this batch of university students was just the beginning of the expansion, in the future finding a job would only get harder and harder.

  "Luo Jia Yi, what's wrong? You're not interested in joining our conversation either, is it because of family reasons?" Lu Ziyan asked.

  "I? My fate was decided from the moment I was born, to take the military academy exam, to become a soldier, and it will probably be like this for the rest of my life." Luo Jia-yi's expression remained indifferent, as if she were talking about someone else.

  Several people also fell silent, it was unclear whether they were sympathetic or otherwise.

  Yan Tingting wanted to ease the atmosphere and asked Zhang Xiaoxue again.

  "My family has three children, I have a sister and a brother. My family is poor. My sister hid her university admission letter after graduating from high school so that my brother and I could continue studying. She didn't go to college herself and went out to work instead. I wasn't planning on going either because tuition fees were too expensive and our family's money was only enough for one person, but my brother is also a good student, so I wanted to save the money for him to go to university. Later, our teacher found out about our situation and advised me to take the military academy exam, saying that not only would it be free of tuition fees, but we'd also get an allowance every month. That way, I could study myself and also help my family, so I ended up getting in here." Zhang Xiaoxue's words made the others feel ashamed.

  No matter what they came for, they were all much happier than Zhang Xiaoxue.