First Battlefield Commander! - Chapter 28
Chapter 28: Descending the Mountain
Lian Sheng looked up at the sun. The battle situation on the mountain was gradually dying down, entering a stalemate. With fewer people remaining, conservative strategies had begun to emerge.
The latter half of the exercise was like an endless stretch of foot-binding cloth—dragged out without conclusion. The mental state of the first batch of students who had gone up the mountain was already on the verge of exhaustion.
Nothing could rouse their spirits anymore. Except for beating Ji Fangxiao.
Lian Sheng asked, "So should we keep dragging this out? Or just head down already?"
The efficiency of earning points at this stage was too low, but according to the activity rules, it wouldn't end until the numbers dropped below a certain threshold.
Zhao Zhuoluo's team would usually stay until the end in previous years because the final points were also important. But this time, it seemed unnecessary—they had already far exceeded their expected score.
The sun shone down, beginning to dispel the cold. As warmth spread, drowsiness crept over everyone again.
A group of slackers lay on the ground, legs twitching as they watched the sunrise. Their limbs felt numb and weak—no one wanted to get up anymore.
Lian Sheng pointed at the sky and said, "It's going to rain today. Probably soon."
The others were startled. Meng Jiangwu said, "Really? Don't scare me."
Lian Sheng raised an eyebrow. "You can't even read the sky?"
"Who still reads the sky these days? We have weather forecasts. You're just making things up." Meng Jiangwu turned and patted Shen Yu. "Did you check the weather forecast?"
Shen Yu said, "When would I have time to check the weather? Getting dragged out to run in the middle of the night every day has driven me insane. I only have time to check the almanac."
Meng Jiangwu: "..."
"It's really going to rain soon," Lian Sheng said, pointing. "You, you, and you—your tents are by the river. You need to hurry back."
Meng Jiangwu sat up straight.
"If it really rains, no one can escape. The entire Command Department will be flooded," Meng Jiangwu said. "The downstream area is our main camp. With all the equipment there, they definitely won't let it accumulate water. They'll close the floodgates to block the river before the rain comes. The water level in our area could rise this high."
Meng Jiangwu gestured to show the height, then continued, "Did you think the place you're sleeping would be spared? Fat chance!"
Lian Sheng: "..."
They played it like this?
Seeing her speechless, Meng Jiangwu couldn't help but gloat. "We've been doing this exercise for three years—did you think we wouldn't know? Too clever for your own good, huh? Hahaha!"
Zheng Lei and Shen Yu joined in the laughter: "Hahaha!"
Lian Sheng: "..."
The three suddenly stopped.
Zheng Lei sighed. "Are we laughing at ourselves here?"
Shen Yu: "More like paupers laughing at beggars."
A sudden wave of despondency.
Lu Mingyuan said, "I'm hungry."
"Me too," Zhao Zhuoluo said. His physical exertion was the greatest among them, and he usually ate more. Now, he couldn't take it anymore. "Either we go rob some food, or we head back to camp."
Lian Sheng said, "I choose going back to camp."
The others: "We also choose going back to camp."
Lian Sheng pulled out her small wooden knife and held it in her hand. "The only one who can defeat me is myself. Who needs me to do the honors?"
The others discovered the small wooden knife was the ultimate "suicide tool"—painless, quick, and even allowing for dramatic poses. It was quite excellent. So they followed suit.
The most cunning team combination of this exercise finally met their moment of exit.
The instructor who came to collect them stood before the eight of them, lying neatly in a row, hands clasped over their chests in peaceful, blissful poses. Faces turned skyward, motionless. A bouquet of wildflowers was placed in the center.
"..." The instructor said, "What are you doing? A memorial service?"
Lian Sheng said weakly, "Instructor, we're about to become corpses here. Could you give us... a piece of bread first?"
Instructor: "..."
Soon after, the eight of them went down with the other eliminated students.
Seeing their listless, wilted state, a fellow student offered some humanitarian comfort: "The competition is about participation. No need to feel so bad. It'll be over soon—you basically made it to the end."
He looked at Lian Sheng and asked, "When did you guys come up?"
Lian Sheng: "Yesterday."
"Making it this far is already impressive. Few girls can last this long." The boy encouraged her. "It's fine if you didn't earn many points. Most of us didn't either."
Lian Sheng looked up and responded to his encouragement: "Oh, thanks. You keep at it too."
The instructor glanced back but remained silent.
When they returned to the foot of the mountain to turn in their equipment, several instructors looked at Lian Sheng with odd expressions—winking and smiling meaningfully.
Meng Jiangwu shuddered and said to her, "It's over. You're probably about to become famous."
Lian Sheng smoothed her hair, torn between showering and eating first.
After fighting for a full day and night, they were now disheveled and covered in grime.
The protective gear was thick and heavy. Combined with running and the hot weather, they had sweated buckets. The sweat had been absorbed by their military uniforms underneath.
After removing the protective gear, their uniforms were wrinkled and slightly damp, especially with that lingering youthful scent that refused to fade.
Now, with the wind blowing, their skin itched all over—probably heat rash.
Zhao Zhuoluo and the others unhesitatingly chose to eat first, so Lian Sheng followed.
It was still early morning, and the cafeteria was full of students and instructors. Those whose matches had ended before 8 p.m. yesterday still had to train on schedule today. They had a few hours to adjust their routines.
The group picked a table, ordered a large spread, and began wolfing it down.
Yesterday, to minimize bathroom breaks, they had held back on drinking water. Now, they gulped down bowl after bowl of soy milk to replenish lost fluids and quickly soothe their cramping stomachs.
The meal took fifteen minutes, during which none of the eight spoke a word.
As they were finishing, Fang Jianchen arrived. He spotted his comrades at once, pulled out a chair, and sat down beside them, asking excitedly, "Why are you back? When did you get back? All eight of you—did you come back on your own?"
Without waiting for a response, he slapped his thigh in exaggerated distress. "Why don't you value your lives? You eliminated me just to commit suicide? Ah! Ah!! Do you know what kind of life I've been living down here? Comrade Zhao Excellent, you've fallen! You've fallen, do you hear me?!"
Lian Sheng looked up at him. Fang Jianchen recognized her, puffed out his cheeks, and pointed at her accusingly. "You're toxic!"
Lian Sheng: "..."
You're the one who's toxic, you bastard.
Zhao Zhuoluo wiped his mouth with a napkin, silently picked up his tray, and headed for the door. The others naturally followed.
Fang Jianchen chased after them, chattering, "You still haven't told me if my death was worth it! Did you make good use of my sacrifice? What exactly did you do up there?"
When no one answered, he added pitifully, "Don't be like this. Does the team not need me anymore? What about our bond harder than diamond? It's not easy for me either—everyone should be more understanding..."
Lian Sheng and the others went in a different direction, returning to the Command Department's camping area.
Only when she got closer did she realize no one was packing up their tents. Some were inside catching up on sleep, while others were moving about outside.
Meng Jiangwu followed her back. Lian Sheng grabbed him and asked, "Why isn't anyone moving? Don't they know it's going to rain?"
Meng Jiangwu said matter-of-factly, "Of course! Even if it rains, we can't move! Each department has designated camping areas—we can't just change them. If we leave here, there's nowhere else for us to go."
Lian Sheng: "Then why did we come down?"
Meng Jiangwu said, "To eat."
"..." Lian Sheng said, "So we get to experience being flooded every year?"
"Not exactly. This area is special. Our department just had bad luck drawing lots this time—we got this spot. Other departments usually get it in previous years," Meng Jiangwu said. "Besides, these tents are actually waterproof. It's just that the entrance is a bit low. When the water rises, be careful not to let it flood in. Remember to stash your blankets somewhere safe, just in case."
Lian Sheng: "..."
Meng Jiangwu added, "Oh, and when the water rises, you can hear it flowing right by your ears. They say it's a... unique experience."
...What kind of nonsense was this?
Lian Sheng stood in front of her tent for a moment, feeling her skin itch again. She pulled out a change of clothes and decided to take advantage of the sparse crowd to shower first.
The showers were empty now, half of them unused. Lian Sheng swiped her card, grabbed a basin, and went in.
After closing the door, she yanked off her clothes. Looking down, she saw a patch of red rash on her waist. Reaching back, her skin felt rough to the touch. The skin on her shoulders had been rubbed raw, and her feet and fingers were even worse.
This was the most running she'd ever done in an exercise.
"Ah, such delicate skin," Lian Sheng said, patting her stomach. "But I like it." Not bad to the touch, huh.
She took a step back, dramatically flung her clothes to the ground, planted her hands on her hips, and scolded, "Is this any way to treat a delicate woman?!"
Before she could respond to herself, a girl suddenly chimed in: "Exactly! I've got blisters on my feet!"
Lian Sheng was startled.
The girls had just come in, the sound of doors opening and closing echoing.
Another girl said, "Choosing summer for this, making us wear such thick clothes—who can take it? It's unfair to girls from the start."
One girl said, "There's that new transfer student in the third-year Command Department, right? I heard she hasn't come down yet. The instructors are all talking about her."
Another girl said, "Don't even start. I think she's something else. Getting so lucky as to team up with a fourth-year Command student—unbelievable. Is she just hiding up there sleeping?"
The "something else" Lian Sheng: "..."
Lian Sheng turned on the water and showered quietly. The girls' conversation soon moved on to other topics she couldn't follow.
Lian Sheng finished quickly, tossed her dirty clothes into the machine, then carried her basin back to the tent.
Not long after she stepped out, rain began to fall.
Lian Sheng sat inside her tent, listening to the raindrops drumming against the fabric.
Each drop was sharp and low, relentlessly grating on her nerves.
She tried lying down but found the sound even louder near her ears. Remembering Meng Jiangwu's description of the flowing water, her expression darkened.
In her past life, leading troops had given her years of insomnia. Though it had improved, she was still sensitive to noise.
This kind of disturbance was unbearable. Without proper rest, she'd only grow more exhausted.
So she particularly disliked rainy days.
Lian Sheng got up again, folded her blanket, and stuffed it into the deepest corner. She put on her shoes, grabbed an umbrella, and headed for the infirmary.
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