SCOM - Chapter 92
Chapter 92
After leaving Doctor Fang Yong's clinic, Zuo Luohuan hadn't temporarily marked Ji Yuezhi again. The two would occasionally spend weekends together, but most of their time was dedicated to training. The military cadets continued to intensify their training regimen, operating Skeletal Mechs every day. Their abilities had improved significantly, and they could now match their own speed without wearing the mechs.
“In previous years at this time, you would all be striving for the Fierce Shield.” Kang Guang looked at the three thousand selected cadets. “But starting this year, things have changed. The Military Committee has now incorporated the Skeletal Mech program. You will be the first batch of test subjects. Whether the Skeletal Mech soldiers of the future can make a name for themselves in the Federation is all up to you.”
Kang Guang only escorted them to the port; he wasn't going to the Northern District.
The First Military Academy had prepared a warship for them, capable of holding up to five thousand people. The selected cadets boarded the warship from the port in their respective teams.
“Seniors.” Ding Wuming, who was in line to board, immediately greeted Ji Yuezhi and Zuo Luohuan when he saw them.
Zuo Luohuan turned her head to look. Yan Yan, who was behind Ding Wuming, was also greeting them, so she returned the greeting to both.
“Our two juniors were also selected, not bad.” Jiang Hong gave Ding Wuming and Yan Yan a thumbs-up. “Only 24 first-year cadets were chosen this time.”
With tens of thousands of students in a single year, the majority of the spots this time were taken by third and fourth-year cadets. For Yan Yan and Ding Wuming to stand out from the crowd was a testament to their excellent skills.
“They did participate in the military exercise with us, after all. It would be pretty embarrassing if they weren't selected,” Guan Xue chimed in from the side. “Students from several military academies are going this time, so we should be able to run into other students from outside our school who also participated in the exercise.”
Jiang Hong nodded. “Right, I checked. They’re all going.”
The warship was enormous, and every cadet had their own room. The journey to the Northern District would take about three days. They departed on the 22nd and arrived at the Northern District's port on the 25th.
When they arrived, Luo Shaoyuan, who was supposed to pick them up, was nowhere to be seen. Jiang Hong made some inquiries and found out that on the 23rd, Luo Shaoyuan had skipped class for the second time to pick up An Yingjing and was caught red-handed by an instructor. She had been under strict surveillance ever since.
“She’s always the first to rush into fights and training; it’s hard for the instructors not to notice her. How could they not find out if she skips class without asking for leave?” An Yingjing grumbled over the optical computer. “I have no idea what she’s thinking all day.”
That day at the port, she had shouted his name in front of thousands of people from the United Military Academy. Before An Yingjing even had a chance to step forward, a vehicle full of instructors from the Northern Military Academy arrived and pinned Luo Shaoyuan to the ground before dragging her away.
He felt embarrassed for both Luo Shaoyuan and himself.
Of course, that wasn't what An Yingjing was angry about.
As soon as those instructors rushed over and restrained Luo Shaoyuan, they demanded, “We are responsible for receiving the students from other academies. What do you mean by skipping class every day to come out here? You can't be picking up your little lover every single day!”
“What little lover? They’re all my brothers and sisters.” Luo Shaoyuan tried to struggle. “I’ve already picked up the people from Yundong Military Academy, so of course I have to pick up those from the United Military Academy. I can’t show favoritism.”
An Yingjing thought reluctantly: ...Who's your brother or sister.
In any case, for the past few days, An Yingjing had been staying with the students from his own academy. Not only had he not seen Luo Shaoyuan, but he hadn't received a single communication from her, not even a message.
At the port, an instructor from the Northern District had already come to pick up the people from the First Military Academy. This wasn't a military exercise, so there was no competition between the academies, and the interactions were relatively harmonious.
“Because of the sudden influx of so many cadets, we’ll have to trouble you all to stay in multi-person rooms for now. There are no single rooms available,” the instructor said. “Alphas and Omegas will be separated, and Betas will be assigned to a different building.”
It was only when they arrived at the Northern Military Academy that they discovered these mixed multi-person rooms also housed cadets from other schools.
Cha Lili greeted Zuo Luohuan as she entered. The dormitory had four beds. Besides Zuo Luohuan, there were two cadets from Yundong Military Academy and one from the United Military Academy, all of them Alphas.
Zuo Luohuan nodded and placed her things on the only empty bunk.
She glanced at her optical computer. Ji Yuezhi and Qian Mao had been assigned to An Yingjing's room.
They probably wouldn't be staying in the Northern District for long. Once the teams were organized, they would likely head to the Winter Army's side and live within the military district.
However, that evening, someone from the Winter Army came in a flyer to pick up Zuo Luohuan. It was an order from Zuo Dihong.
It was common for the father and daughter not to see each other for over half a year, but this time Zuo Dihong had specifically sent someone, so Zuo Luohuan had to go.
The Northern Military District was under strict security. Even a flyer with Zuo Dihong's orders had to pass through multiple layers of inspection.
Zuo Luohuan leaned against the window, wondering what her father would ask her about: the matter of Xijiang Exile Star, or her relationship with Ji Yuezhi.
When she arrived at Zuo Dihong's office, she knocked and entered to find him busy. He was still handling various matters from the border.
Zuo Luohuan wasn't in a hurry and sat on a nearby chair to wait.
“Have you eaten dinner?” Zuo Dihong asked, looking up after finishing the task at hand. Without waiting for her reply, he added, “Come eat something with me.”
There was a ready-made meal on the side of the desk, though it had already gone cold. Zuo Dihong didn't mind. He opened the container, placed it on the desk, and gestured for Zuo Luohuan to come over.
“The food is cold. Should I ask someone to heat it up?” Zuo Luohuan asked, picking up her chopsticks.
“No need, everyone’s busy.” Zuo Dihong looked up. “You can’t eat it?”
Zuo Luohuan took a bite of vegetables. “It’s not that bad.”
“True. You’re so capable of enduring hardship, how could you not even be able to eat a cold meal.” Zuo Dihong’s words were laced with barbs.
Zuo Luohuan: “…”
“Since you have someone you like now, you should settle down and stop running around all the time.” Zuo Dihong, who had been busy all day, said while eating his cold meal, “It’s good that you can identify problems, but don’t go fighting alone. At the very least, let the people around you know.”
“Dad, why don’t you finish eating before we talk about anything.” Zuo Luohuan had been thick-skinned since she was a child. Aside from being timid around Ji Yuezhi, she had never been afraid of anything.
Zuo Dihong said no more. He ate quickly; having spent so long on the border, if he didn't eat fast, he would go hungry for a whole day.
After he finished eating, Zuo Dihong finally asked, “That Little Ji likes you? You didn’t force him?”
When he first heard the news, General Zuo's first reaction was also disbelief. After all, his daughter was never home, let alone at school. She was always wandering around outside, the complete opposite of Ji Yuezhi, who was an outstanding student representative every year.
Besides, he had another doubt.
“Tell me honestly, is it because Little Ji differentiated into an Omega that you like him?” Zuo Dihong was worried Zuo Luohuan was just playing around.
Far from feeling that her father was being nosy, Zuo Luohuan was actually a little happy that her parents cared about Ji Yuezhi. “No, I’ve liked him for a long time.”
Zuo Dihong: “?”
“Back when I differentiated, you said he was the one who found me.” Zuo Luohuan had come today with something to ask as well. “I want to know the specific details of what happened then.”
Zuo Dihong frowned, recalling, “Ji Xixiu and I were discussing matters in the backyard. Little Ji wanted to go up to see the glass garden and happened to pass by your room, which is how he discovered something was wrong with you. Later, when Ji Xixiu went up to find Little Ji, he carried you down. Only then did we find out.”
“What about him? Did you notice him?” Zuo Luohuan continued to ask.
Zuo Dihong was taken aback. At the time, they had only seen Zuo Luohuan, who was running a high fever, and had paid no attention to Ji Yuezhi at all. “He probably went home with Ji Xixiu.”
Having asked this much, Zuo Luohuan was now completely certain that the dream she had was something that had actually happened in reality.
“Little Ji is a good kid. Don’t you mess around,” Zuo Dihong warned. “If you do, Ji Xixiu might let you off, but your own father won’t.”
“…I know.”
Zuo Dihong changed the subject. “So, when are you two planning to get married?” He needed to prepare gifts, and he would undoubtedly have to give Ji Xixiu something. A huge expense was certain.
A rare look of bewilderment appeared in Zuo Luohuan’s eyes. “What?”
“Don’t play dumb with me. You’re already together, haven’t you thought about the future?” It was rare for Zuo Dihong to speak so openly with his daughter. “Back then, I proposed to your mother while I was still at the military academy. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have been my turn.”
Zuo Luohuan: “…” She had never heard about this. Wasn’t her father one of the top geniuses at the military academy back in the day?
As she thought this, she voiced her question.
Recalling the events of the past, Zuo Dihong’s face darkened. “No matter how much of a genius, wasn’t a person like Ji Xixiu also completely suppressed?”
Zuo Luohuan raised an eyebrow, understanding now.
Back then, Ren Pingbo was also at the First Military Academy. With him around, both Ji Xixiu and Zuo Dihong were completely overshadowed.
“Besides… your mother was infatuated with Ren Pingbo back then. If it weren’t for later…” Speaking of this, Zuo Dihong’s face fell. “The things a madman does can never be understood.”
With a single word, “boring,” he defected to the Gashiro Empire, plunging hundreds of thousands of people on the Federation’s border into misery.
Both Ji Xixiu and Zuo Dihong had thought about and analyzed this matter countless times, but they could never come up with a reason for Ren Pingbo to betray the Federation.
The Federation had never let down Ren Pingbo, of all people.
Mentioning Ren Pingbo, Zuo Dihong added, “He has his eyes on you. I have no way to divert his attention. If he decides to target you, I hope you won’t disappoint the Federation’s expectations. You are currently the highest-level Alpha in the Federation. Besides you, no one can compare to him.”
“I know.”
Zuo Dihong sounded somewhat self-deprecating. “Ren Pingbo never thought much of me or Ji Xixiu.”
“No matter how little he thought of you, you are now keeping him pinned beyond the border,” Zuo Luohuan said indifferently, having no particular feelings about Ren Pingbo. “No matter how powerful he is, he’s only one person. The Federation has enough people to wear him down until he dies.”
A smile appeared on Zuo Dihong’s usually stern face. “You’re right.”
The father and daughter talked for a while longer. Just as Zuo Luohuan was about to leave, Zuo Dihong called out to her, urging her again, “It’s best to handle things like proposals early. Don’t miss a good opportunity.”
Zuo Luohuan: “…General Zuo, you don’t need to worry about such things.”
Right now, all she wanted was for Ji Yuezhi’s glands to fully develop so he would no longer suffer.
The journey from the Northern Military Camp to the Northern Military Academy passed by buildings that were all rugged and grand. Staying in such a place could easily inspire a sense of heroic spirit.
After getting off the flyer, Zuo Luohuan walked towards her dormitory. The moment she pushed the door open, she found the room filled with people, either sitting or standing. Her eyes immediately fell on Ji Yuezhi in the center.
“You guys…” Zuo Luohuan’s gaze shifted to the cards on the stool. “Are gambling in a group?”
Luo Shaoyuan shot up from the floor. “Listen to you. I’m teaching them about the customs of the Northern Military Academy.”
Having finally escaped from the instructor's grasp, Luo Shaoyuan had forcibly dragged Jiang Hong, Ji Yuezhi, An Yingjing, and the others over to play.
“Is that so?” Zuo Luohuan tilted her head. “I think I just saw an instructor downstairs.”
Luo Shaoyuan was startled!
At that moment, Zuo Luohuan had already reached out and pulled Ji Yuezhi over, stuffing the cards in his hand into Luo Shaoyuan’s and leading Ji Yuezhi to a corner.
Bang—
The dormitory door was kicked open from the outside. In that split second, An Yingjing snatched the cards from the still-unresponsive Luo Shaoyuan’s hand and threw them onto Cha Lili.
The instructor at the door held an electric baton, peering in menacingly. His eyes widened when he saw Luo Shaoyuan. “Luo Shaoyuan, it’s you again! Gathering to gamble in the middle of the night!”
“I…”
“Instructor, she wasn’t playing. She was just reminding the people in this room not to do anything against the rules.” An Yingjing pointed at Cha Lili, who was sitting on the lower bunk, covered in a pile of playing cards.
“I don’t care if you’re from another academy or not, gambling within the Northern Military Academy is a violation. If there’s a next time…” The instructor raised the electric baton and pressed the button, and a current flashed through the air.
Cha Lili, his face covered in playing cards, stared blankly at An Yingjing. Are you being polite?
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