First Battlefield Commander! - Chapter 71
Chapter 71: Answering Questions
Lian Sheng initially went on Sanyao to earn points for the battlefield. Later, she found mech battles quite interesting, and she also liked the Qixing model.
Given the current situation, there was an irreconcilable contradiction between maintaining a mech and earning battlefield points. Their common point was that she couldn't do either right now.
If forced to choose between the two, she chose to maintain the mech while still going to the battlefield.
After all, dreaming didn't cost points.
Lu Mingyuan watched her sigh deeply and tentatively asked, "Did you actually lose points instead?"
Lian Sheng gazed into the distance and lamented, "The first step is always the hardest."
"..." Lu Mingyuan said, "Seeing you choose the Qixing, I had a feeling. Don't play with mechs recently, save up, maybe there's still a chance. The registration starts in a couple of days—you can earn points after signing up."
He paused mid-sentence and asked, "How many points do you have left?"
"I have eleven points left." Lian Sheng nodded. "Actually, I had thirty yesterday, but I bought some ammunition."
Lu Mingyuan: "..."
"I'll try my best—I should be able to break a hundred tonight." Lian Sheng tapped her fingers rhythmically on the table and asked sincerely, "What are the chances of someone with my points getting selected twice in a row?"
Lu Mingyuan said, "Try to earn a hundred thousand points tonight, and I'll answer that question tomorrow."
Lian Sheng spread her hands. "Oh—you get it."
"Oh—you get it too." Lu Mingyuan took back his optical computer and waved at her. "See you at the next tournament."
Lian Sheng: "..."
Lian Sheng took her tray to dispose of it, then turned toward the dormitory.
After Lu Mingyuan's comment, she also wanted to know how many points she could earn in a day if she focused solely on grinding. So starting that afternoon, she logged into Sanyao and set up a challenge arena.
People were shocked to see Piaoqi Great General during the daytime. Word spread quickly, and the arena in District 12 soon filled with spectators.
Today's challengers were particularly troublesome—not because of their skill, but their strategy.
It seemed they had conspired and agreed on one thing: Great General was severely short on points and had no backup mech besides the Qixing. If they could damage her mech and she couldn't repair it, she'd have to use the default starter mech.
They might not be able to defeat Great General piloting the Qixing, but against her in a starter mech, they stood a fighting chance.
With sinister grins, they rushed forward, ready to sacrifice themselves for the greater good.
These people were just bored out of their minds, treating Great General as a raid boss. District 12 was rarely this lively, and the rare occurrence of a collective competitive event quickly ignited the crowd's enthusiasm.
Last night they were kneeling and shouting "666," but upon waking up, they realized that actually fighting in the arena was more fun than cheering. Because shouting "666" had gotten a bit tiring.
Thus, their love had soured.
In the face of glory, there are no idols!
Lian Sheng noticed their intentions and was forced to keep her distance, resorting to ranged attacks. Still, she nearly got caught in their self-destruct systems several times.
Mech battles were extremely physically demanding. After all, whether jumping or running, every movement was performed by the pilot. And the intense mental focus only exacerbated the physical strain.
The opponents' chaotic, frenzied attacks made it hard for Lian Sheng to predict their patterns. After several matches, because she had to constantly guard against their tactics, each battle took far longer than usual. Ammunition consumption also multiplied.
The efficiency was too low—the points earned early on were barely enough to buy bullets. She couldn't even afford to repair minor scratches and issues on her mech.
By eight o'clock, Lian Sheng clearly felt her stamina waning, her mouth parched. Ignoring the crowd's sincere pleas for her to stay, she logged off to drink some water.
The fridge was in the living room. After rummaging through it, she realized she had run out of stored water. She'd been too busy lately and had forgotten to restock.
Lian Sheng rubbed her hair, feeling deeply unfortunate.
"Looking for water?"
Roommate C heard the noise and shuffled out in slippers. She dug out a bottle of milk from the fridge and handed it over. "Here, mine. You can have it."
Lian Sheng accepted it. "Thanks."
The cold liquid rolled down her throat, instantly making her pores relax and her whole body feel refreshed. She exhaled deeply and leaned against the fridge to rest.
Roommate C saw her pale face, rapid breathing, and the slight trembling in her calf muscles—she looked like she was in pain. "Are you okay? Not feeling well?"
Lian Sheng straightened up and wiped her sweat. "It's fine. Just grinding points. Taking a break."
"Oh right! The Military Academy's tournament is coming up soon, isn't it? Registration starts in a couple of days? I have a friend who's been talking about it online—he's in the Military Department too." Roommate C asked excitedly, "How many points do you have? Haha! Maybe you two will be teammates. I'll introduce you."
Lian Sheng thought for a moment. "If his points are in the tens of thousands, then mine are probably... the fraction of a fraction... of his fraction."
Roommate C: "..."
That sounded utterly tragic.
Roommate C walked over. "How do you earn points? By fighting in the arena? Want me to make a few accounts and feed you some points? I can ask my brother too if needed. Don't worry, he won't complain—he's volunteering!"
"..." Lian Sheng declined politely. "Thanks, but no need."
She fought a few more matches that night but felt her luck wasn't great, so she stopped and switched to reading.
Though she attended Alliance University, for her it might as well not exist. Apart from her dorm, the cafeteria, and the training grounds, she wasn't familiar with the campus. Her time was free, and generally, no one disturbed her.
Her schedule was tightly packed, including sleep and meals, and for a long time, there had been no disruptions.
This fact was somewhat eerie—she had never executed a plan so smoothly before. It also indirectly reflected that, in this era, she didn't seem particularly needed.
It was disappointing and lonely. The rhythm of this era was too hard to keep up with.
The next morning at 8:30, Meng Jiangwu suddenly called her.
Lian Sheng answered groggily. Meng Jiangwu quickly asked, "Are you up yet?"
Lian Sheng: "My schedule says wake up at nine."
Meng Jiangwu looked unsurprised and urged, "Hurry up and get ready for class! Be in the classroom by 9:30. The professor hates people eating in class, so finish breakfast before coming!"
"Class?" Lian Sheng came to her senses, responding half a beat late. "But I don't understand your classes."
"How dare you skip class at a time like this?" Meng Jiangwu said. "Midterms are coming up—professors are starting to take attendance. Get over here!"
Lian Sheng hesitated. "What happens if I'm absent when they take attendance?"
Meng Jiangwu said firmly, "You'll die."
He thought about it—even if Lian Sheng had perfect attendance, she'd probably still fail. But if the professor remembered her, she wouldn't even escape failing the makeup exam. So he amended, "No, you'll be annihilated."
Lian Sheng: "...I'm coming now."
Lian Sheng hadn't attended class in nearly a month. She had tried self-studying based on the syllabus but was still lost.
Each subject covered too much ground, and one topic often bled into another. She lacked understanding of many foundational concepts. Sometimes, a single sentence would send her researching entire theories, which then led to even more theories. By the time she finished, the day's allotted study time was already over.
It was too hard. For someone of her intelligence, she had never thought studying could be this difficult.
This session was their major's core course. Lian Sheng checked her schedule, found the classroom, and rushed over with her materials.
She made it before 9:30. Meng Jiangwu and the others had saved her a seat and waved her over. She squeezed through the gap to sit down.
Lian Sheng glanced around and saw many latecomers standing at the back with no seats. "Why so many people?"
"The classroom was booked too small—two classes are combined today." Meng Jiangwu said, exasperated. "You probably don't even know who's in your own class."
About ten minutes later, a man in a suit walked in. He looked relatively young, around forty.
Becoming a professor by forty was already quite an achievement.
He glanced at the students standing against the wall, then at those seated.
"This student, are you here to audit?" The professor looked in Lian Sheng's direction. "We're already overcrowded today. Could auditing students come back next time? We don't have enough seats."
Lian Sheng looked left and right, confirming he meant her, and said, "Professor, you're mistaken. I'm in this class."
Professor: "Really? I have great confidence in my memory. If I don't recognize your face, either you've been skipping class, you're auditing, or you've had plastic surgery. Which is it?"
Meng Jiangwu thought that in her rush, she'd say she was auditing. But then Lian Sheng answered earnestly, "I've been reborn."
Zheng Lei clenched his fist in admiration. "A true warrior!"
The professor would remember her even if she were ground to dust!
Meng Jiangwu covered his face beside her.
Oh god! We're doomed!
The professor walked closer and pointed at her. "Stand up."
Lian Sheng stood.
The professor scanned her face with his optical computer and said, "Lian Sheng? Not much different from when you transferred departments."
Lian Sheng scratched her forehead. "I meant in spirit and demeanor."
The professor's face was expressionless, his tone neutral, but his words betrayed his irritation: "The spirit and demeanor of a class-skipper?"
Meng Jiangwu tugged at Lian Sheng's sleeve and whispered, "Just apologize!"
"Why should her apology be up to you?" The professor frowned. "Military Department students—"
Lian Sheng bowed slightly and apologized politely. "If my actions have displeased you, I apologize. But I have my reasons for not attending class. I don't believe I was wrong."
The professor suddenly smiled. "Then why skip my class? Do you already know everything? That confident?"
"No, because I know nothing. I don't understand." Lian Sheng said. "I've been self-studying, starting from the basics. I haven't been slacking."
The professor shifted his stance and stepped closer. "What have you been studying?"
" Modern War History , Summary of the Hundred Greatest Battles , Edwin's Memoirs ." Lian Sheng said. "For this course, I've only read those three so far."
The professor lifted his chin. "What do they say?"
Lian Sheng took a deep breath. "The prefaces."
Everyone: "..."
The professor nearly slammed his optical computer into her face for her nonsense, but then Lian Sheng continued slowly, " Edwin was a legendary figure in military history. This book chronicles the life of this once-in-a-century genius... "
The students were stunned as she recited chapter after chapter verbatim. Several quickly searched the text online to compare.
She wasn't making it up—it was word for word.
Now no one could stay calm. Whispers broke out around them.
The professor cut her off. "You've memorized it?"
Lian Sheng shrugged. "Yes. But it's still too hard. I don't understand."
Professor: "..."
His feelings were complicated.
He'd never seen a student like this. Probably wouldn't in five hundred years.
The professor's expression shifted through several emotions before he picked up his optical computer again. "I'll give you a chance. I'll pose a question. If you answer well, I'll forgive your absences and acknowledge your self-study efforts. You'll be exempt from exams for this course. Of course, you can still come to me with questions."
Meng Jiangwu thought this was an opportunity!
The professor sent the question from his optical computer to the class's public platform. The other students looked down to check.
The question consisted of only two images.
First, a city's layout, marking all its entrances. Then a scaled-down terrain map. Red and blue indicated the positions and forces of both sides, with mountains and their heights clearly depicted around them.
But there were no text prompts or descriptions of friend or foe. The map's scope was small, showing nothing beyond.
The question was simple: From which direction should you attack to capture the city most quickly under these circumstances?
The two images provided very little information. Lian Sheng stared at the screen for a long time.
Meng Jiangwu's palms were sweaty. Though Lian Sheng had repeatedly demonstrated her command talent, she was still a novice. Hearing no response from her, he wondered if he should prompt her.
The professor stood silently nearby, neither rushing her nor making any move.
Just as everyone thought she wouldn't answer, Lian Sheng suddenly said two words: "Negotiate surrender."
The students were confused. "Huh?"
Lian Sheng said, "If we're the righteous side, of course we should negotiate surrender first. If not, I don't condone wars of aggression."
The students were taken aback. Wasn't this dodging the question?
They turned to gauge the professor's reaction.
Professor: "Suppose we are, and they refuse?"
Lian Sheng followed up: "Do they have reinforcements? From where? How many? What's their strength? What's our supply situation? Any vulnerabilities in our rear? What are our orders?"
Lian Sheng put down the optical computer. "Without premises, your question is flawed."
She spoke boldly and confidently.
Everyone turned to see the professor's expression—was this answer innovative or worthy of scorn?
The professor's face suddenly turned serious. After a pause, he said, "Assume they have no reinforcements. Our supplies are ample. Vulnerabilities? None. Orders? Take the city. But if we can capture it within the month, we'll earn extra merits."
Lian Sheng said, "Then negotiate surrender."
Professor: "They refuse. Enemy forces are blocking the gates."
"They have no reason to resist. The military's stance doesn't represent the civilians'." Lian Sheng said. "If they refuse, lay siege. To prevent surprises, guard the mountain pass ahead to ensure no reinforcements."
Professor: "Siege, then?"
Lian Sheng: "Until they run out of food, causing panic, then negotiate again."
Professor: "They still refuse."
Lian Sheng: "When they're starving and exhausted, attack. Any gate will do—they won't have the strength to resist after prolonged hunger and stress."
The professor fell silent, watching her without speaking.
A student said, "Is negotiation your only solution? The question was clearly about which direction to attack from. Isn't this just dodging?"
"From a commander's perspective, attacking immediately is the worst option. Why should I pick from the worst answers? The only benefit of attacking is glory, which I don't need. As commander, I'd make this decision." Lian Sheng said. "The goal of war is to achieve the greatest victory at the smallest cost. And nothing is more precious than life."
Lian Sheng said, "A forced attack could provoke desperate retaliation. It would increase our casualties and risk civilian harm."
The student retorted, "But how long would we have to siege? How many more resources and manpower would we waste? How many more risks would we face? War is about speed—who deliberately drags it out?"
"What's the purpose of war?" Lian Sheng looked at him. "I believe war's ultimate goal is peace, not slaughter. It's to one day end such tragedies. To ensure we won't regret it when that day comes, we must value every life. Soldiers on the front lines are guilty yet innocent."
Lian Sheng straightened. "I simply gave the most reasonable answer based on the professor's premises. Other contingencies weren't provided."
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Ty for the update!!
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