The annual freshmen military training at Capital University is always a hot topic.
This is because the training takes place in a unique location.
It's held at a military training ground situated at the foot of the mountains, about seven to eight kilometers away from the university.
Early in the morning,
before dawn,
the freshmen from Capital University, dressed in their military training uniforms, board the buses one after another.
They wait for departure.
Everyone seems unusually excited, filled with curiosity and admiration for the military training ground, without the usual complaints and protests seen at other schools.
The boys discuss rifles and cannons, while the girls talk about military uniforms and soldiers.
Qiao Ying yawns as she steps off the bus and joins the back of the line. Once she gets on the bus, the previously noisy atmosphere gradually quietens down.
Dozens of eyes gaze at her, even the driver steals a few glances, thinking how lively and delicate the young girls are nowadays.
There are only two or three empty seats left, and they are already occupied by one person each.
Qiao Ying carries the school-issued backpack and casually sits down next to a vacant seat next to a male student.
She lifts her hand to adjust the military training cap on her head, covering most of her face. With her arms crossed in front of her chest, she closes her eyes and rests.
She woke up too early and hasn't fully awakened yet.
After being reborn, she no longer has the identity of an assassin and no longer needs to undergo scheduled training. People have become more lethargic, and their sleep time has increased.
"Is she the girl from the forum?"
"Seems like it. Damn, she's actually in our class!"
"She looks even better than in the photos."
The discussions grow louder, and the boys become more excited.
"Did she join the class group? Yesterday, everyone was sharing photos in the group. How come there are no pictures of her, even though she looks so good?"
"Yeah, that 'Tang Xiaoguo' girl posted dozens of photos yesterday. She posts a few every time she joins a group. Those pictures are... I couldn't recognize her when she got on the bus."
Tang Xiaoguo turns her head and glares at the boy. "What's wrong with you? Why are you talking about me for no reason? Ridiculous!" Her displeased gaze sweeps over Qiao Ying.
"There are so many people on the forum who photoshop and edit their pictures. Hilarious."
"Mom, I love Capital University, I love computer science, and I love my class."
"I thought Li Shiyin was pretty, but compared to her, it's not even on the same level. She's definitely a goddess."
"Jealous of the guy sitting next to her."
The boy sitting next to Qiao Ying has a face full of acne. He seems introverted and studious, with no interests or hobbies other than studying. At this moment, his face turns red, and he sits up straight nervously.
When it's time to depart, the instructor finishes taking attendance.
A student shouts, "Didn't they say there's a 150-pound female warrior in our class? Why haven't we seen her? Isn't she participating in the military training?"
"Nonsense, how could she run? Haha."
The bus sets off amidst the noise and commotion.
Although the straight-line distance is only seven to eight kilometers, it takes nearly two hours to reach the military base in the bustling metropolis filled with steel and concrete.
The bus stops outside the military base gate. Two soldiers with loaded guns stand guard, along with the instructors who have been eagerly waiting.
The students are filled with excitement as they watch.
After handing over the students to the instructors, the training officer leaves.
Qiao Ying's instructor has a stern face, a square and upright appearance, standing with his hands behind his back and his legs apart.
A perfect military posture.
"Hurry up and move! Enter through the main gate and walk straight for two hundred meters, southwest direction 75, on the third floor, rooms 45 and 46 are the female dormitories, on the fourth floor, rooms 45 and 46 are the male dormitories. After putting down your belongings, quickly gather at the northwest direction 105 of your dormitory building's playground. You only have ten minutes."
"What is the position of southwest 75 and northwest 85? I don't understand."
Facing the imposing aura of the stern drill instructor, the students felt a sense of dread in their hearts. The excitement and longing they had when they arrived suddenly plummeted.
Qiao Ying, with her hands in her pockets and a bag in one hand, walked calmly at the back of the line. When they entered the main gate, she instinctively glanced at the weapons in the hands of the stationed soldiers.
"What are you looking at?" asked the stern instructor with a dark face.
Qiao Ying replied, "I'm looking at the guns."
The instructor's face darkened even further and he asked, "Did you notice anything?"
Qiao Ying politely responded, "Just a minor observation, the triggers are so worn out that the paint has chipped off."
Qiao Ying was being considerate. After all, the capital city ranked first nationwide, yet the military equipment in the military district was so subpar.
Even such an old fellow couldn't find the weapons from the Shadow's arsenal ten years ago.
The instructor remained silent.
The stationed soldier also remained silent.
The instructor was about to reprimand her, but Qiao Ying entered on her own with her bag in hand.
The instructor was left speechless for a moment.
Every year, the new students who came here would be like mice seeing a cat, behaving like obedient little chicks, with many of them crying in fear. But she was different, she had courage.
All the students gathered below a few dormitory buildings, completely unsure of which direction the instructor was referring to, and they became anxious.
"Is southwest 75 this way? Should we go up and take a look?"
At this moment, they saw Qiao Ying continue walking without stopping and heading straight towards one of the buildings.
"Hey, she went in. Should we follow her?"
"Is it this way? If we get it wrong, we'll be punished with running laps."
"Forget it, even if we don't make it in ten minutes, we'll still be punished."
So everyone hurriedly followed Qiao Ying.
Li Shiyin, Tang Xiaoguo, and a few others initially didn't want to follow and sarcastically said that Qiao Ying was pretending to know but would end up leading them astray. However, seeing that everyone else had entered, they reluctantly followed suit.
Qiao Ying went up to the third floor, entered the fourth room, randomly chose a bed, put down her things, and then went downstairs.
"Quick, let's follow her," the girls hurriedly followed.
The male students upstairs also came down. The base was quite large, and they encountered several patrolling soldiers along the way, walking with Qiao Ying for over a thousand meters before finally seeing five or six large playgrounds.
They continued following Qiao Ying until they arrived at one of the playgrounds.
In the vast playground, there was only their class. They were worried if they had come to the wrong place, but their stern instructor appeared.
Other instructors also arrived one after another, but there were no other students in sight.
Clearly, they had found the right place, and they were the only ones who did.
Li Shiyin and several other girls who had been leading with their sarcastic remarks had no choice but to stop. They were annoyed.
"Not bad, out of so many classes, only your class found the right dormitory and the right playground. It's not a complete stupidity," the instructor remarked.
The students heard this and were delighted, one by one looking towards Qiao Ying.
"She's amazing, she actually found the right place. I don't even understand these directions, and even if I did, I wouldn't dare to be a hundred percent sure."
"Yeah, not only is she beautiful, but she's also so smart. It seems like heaven truly favors her."
"Quiet, everyone," the stern instructor scolded, and instantly, silence fell.
Then, the stern instructor glanced at Qiao Ying.
"In a row from left to right, ten students lined up, with the boys standing in the back."
"You can't even form a proper line. Did you forget your brains?!"
Amidst the instructor's grumbling, they finally managed to form a formation.
Students from other classes started to arrive one after another.
The stern-faced instructor, Instructor Hou, introduced himself and greeted the students with a professional but impersonal tone.
Instructor Hou continued, "Although you managed to find the dormitory and the training ground, you didn't arrive within the designated ten minutes. Since your class is the first to arrive and today is the first day, I won't punish you."
"Now, put away anything unrelated to military training."
They were about to collect their phones.
Facing the intimidating Instructor Hou, the students didn't dare to utter a sound and obediently followed the instructions, surrendering their phones.
Qiao Ying also handed over her phone. After all, she had just told Qin Han Yue the day before that students should behave like students.
"Is everyone done surrendering their items?"
"Yes, we're done," the students shouted in unison.
"You, step forward," Instructor Hou looked at Qiao Ying.
"Have you finished surrendering your belongings?" he asked Qiao Ying, taking a glance at the watch on her wrist.
Qiao Ying calmly took off her watch.
Instructor Hou patiently waited for her. But in the next moment, he saw Qiao Ying tuck the watch she had taken off into her pocket.
Instructor Hou frowned.
Before he could explode in anger, Qiao Ying calmly said, "This item is valuable and shouldn't be bumped around. I'll take it back to the dormitory after the dismissal. I won't wear it during the military training."
Instructor Hou suppressed his anger. "If you can return within five minutes, bringing back the item and joining the assembly, I'll let you wear it!"
"Five minutes? How is that possible? I roughly calculated it just now. It's more than two kilometers for a round trip, not to mention going up and down the stairs. Even a normal person would need at least ten minutes, and a professional would take seven to eight minutes. It requires great endurance," the students buzzed with voices.
"He clearly wants her to give up."
Li Shiyin and others watched Qiao Ying embarrassing herself, secretly delighted.
Instructor Hou's face turned black, and his voice suddenly rose, "If you can't do it, then surrender the item..."
Before he could finish, Qiao Ying interrupted, "Three minutes."
"What did you say?" Instructor Hou's anger surged, thinking that Qiao Ying was causing trouble.
"Three minutes, round trip. I'll take the watch back," Qiao Ying's tone changed, "But it lacks a bit of fun this way. How about we make a bet, Instructor? We'll see who reaches the dormitory first. If you win, I'll give you the watch, and if I win, you'll return my phone."
She even played it safe with just three minutes.
