And chicken drumsticks! If you changed it to anything else I wouldn’t have doubted you, it was no secret after all that Shu Ning’s favourite food were chicken drumsticks.
The sky was starting to get dark soon, and the man’s handsome face was getting a bit hazy, he appeared to look even more like a bigger version of Shu Heng now. Shu Ning felt suspicious of him but he wasn’t willing to say too much about his identity, only secretively mentioning himself as a relative. It seems that he may have to start avoiding him. Right at this time, a young man yelling Shu Ning’s name ran over, so Shu Ning borrowed this opportunity to stand up, say his farewells to the man, and ran towards his classmate.
So you were here? You should get back, quick, the squad leader has been looking all over for you.
Alright.
Ten people slept in the same room and the squad leader was chosen by a collective vote. That person seemed to be a hypocrite, could there be anything he’s missing? Shu Ning looked towards the boy next to him:
Zhao Long, did the squad leader ask you to look for me while doing roll call?
Mmhm.
Did he ask you to look for me because he couldn’t find me?
Mm, he said he looked south so he asked me to look north.
Thanks,
Shu Ning may have said his thanks but he did not think that way in his heart, it was very clear that the one next to him had been used. He was tall, handsome, and had a smile as warm as the son, he had already been eyed by the squad leader. Someone suddenly appeared to call him back while Shu Ning was with the company commander, perhaps this may have served to make the squad leader unhappy, or perhaps there was something else to it. When he returned he’ll test him out, nobody liked to be plotted against after all.
Shu Ning liked honest people but things can’t just come out so straightforwardly, his understanding of the other guy was not too deep as they had just met recently, so he could only hint at it:
Zhao Long, there’s no need for you to come out at night to look for me anymore, the platoon leader has noticed you.
Huh? That can’t be, right?
Why not? You were the one who had to seek me out yesterday as well. Our phones have been handed in so it’s easy to forget the time, it was nine o five when you returned, so seeing that you weren’t here for roll call, the platoon leader had already jotted your name down, and I’m not sure if this is going to affect your results in the future.
That’s not possible is it? Didn’t the squad leader explain to him?
It’s no use, you were the only one missing.
Zhao Long sighed and his brows furrowed into a frown. He scratched his head irritably and spoke no further.
Shu Ning shook his head, he really can’t get through him at all, if he can’t see the bigger picture after he’s spoken to this stage, then you couldn’t blame Shu Ning anymore. He was the only one missing when they did the room check, and what did that prove? This was a set up, the one who had yet to return, returned by himself before nine, the squad leader who went out to look for said person had also returned at nine, so Zhao Long was the only one whose name had been jotted down.
Shu Ning had already noted that the squad leader wasn’t present when he returned at eight fifty, after taking a quick shower he stared at the clock, then the squad leader returned at the fifty-ninth minute. With his head still drenched as if he had just went out running for several kilometres, he swept his eyes with worry across the room, then breathed a sigh of relief when he found Shu Ning:
Oh goodness, I thought a student would have to have their name taken tonight, thank god, that really gave me a fright.
Hearing these words, everyone consoled the captain and praised him, but nobody at all thought that there were any merits to Zhao Long’s actions, instead they felt that Shu Ning was too insensible. The squad leader came to Shu Ning’s side:
Have you showered yet? We have a minute left.
Another person quickly spoke up:
You should hurry up too, squad leader, there’s no time left.
Mm, you’re right!
Shu Ning had observed him carefully and found that the back of the squad leader’s shirt was not wet. If you’re gonna put on an act, then do the whole show, what’s with leaving out parts of the details like that? But Shu Ning did not point it out, there were bitches everywhere, green tea bitches, attention whore bitches, white lotus bitches, as long as he doesn’t get targeted, he didn’t care what he did, Shu Ning was indifferent. It was easy to understand why the squad leader acted like he did, so he kept his probing down.
He performed outstandingly during the military training, so naturally he will become the class leader when school starts, then into the student council, setting his power in stone.
It was nothing rare to see someone going up in position by stepping on the heads of others, and the ones who were stepped on could only blame their bad luck, who asked you to be so stupid? Just like Zhao Long. Shu Ning had clearly pointed out to him but didn’t he still look up to the squad leader in praise, talking enthusiastically with him? The person making the rounds arrived, and everyone got in bed to sleep. The night went by silently, and when Shu Ning got up to wash his face in the morning, the squad leader came to him.
What were you up to yesterday? Everyone was worried about you, I heard you were with the company commander?
So turns out that he got Zhao Long to go because he had seen him, conveniently stabbing the guy on the back while he was at it, Shu Ning will remember this:
I ate too much so I went for a stroll and bumped into the company commander. He noticed I cramped my leg so he taught me a few tricks.
So it turns out he really was an opportunist bitch after all, his evaluation will definitely be very high if he butters up to the company commander. Actually, the evaluation was nothing. Squad Leader An Yi raised his eyebrows and put on an amiable smile:
You’ve got such fair skin, even those girls are gonna have trouble beating you, it’s an attractive tone. You shouldn’t run about at night, we should all come together more for a chat, we have four years here and if you make another friend that’s another connection you get to keep.
An Yi showed him a look of concern, but Shu Ning only replied with an
mm
and did not look at him. But An Yi did not find anything out of the norm either, he just turned to leave, off to show his worry to someone else. Shu Ning didn’t appear while everyone was doing their training, so the company commander prepared some chicken drumstick to share with Shu Ning.
This uncle still hasn’t forgotten about the chicken drumstick →_→
There were only the two of them in the room. Szeto Dong took a sip of water before turning to look at him with a soft gaze:
Is it good? You should have some porridge too, better not hurt your stomach.
Did my brother tell you that?
Mm,
No way Shu Heng would say that, he didn’t even mention he had a little brother, it was his dad who mentioned it. Szeto Dong knew very well of this:
Have a try of these side dishes, they were prepared just this morning, they’re very fresh.
Shu Ning did not show it on his face but in his heart, he felt that this person really looked too much like Shu Heng, even their little habits were the same, as if……No, that can’t be……right?
His dad was Shu Heng’s adoptive father, so this couldn’t be his real dad, could he? No, that’s impossible, but maybe it wasn’t impossible. Shu Ning’s brain had turned to mush, and felt a little dizzy. Szeto Dong noticed, and immediately his gaze sharpened:
What’s wrong?
Shu Ning knew his own capabilities, and in front of an expert he couldn’t hide his true feelings at all, so he just closed his eyes:
It’s nothing, I just feel a little dizzy.
Dizzy?
Szeto Dong knew that Shu Ning had a weak constitution so he immediately helped him to lie down diligently:
I’ll go find a doctor, don’t move, wait for me here like a good boy.
Mm.
Szeto Dong left, but Shu Ning opened his immensely bright eyes. When he was holding him, Shu Ning managed to get one strand of hair from him, all he had to do to figure him out was to do a simple test. Not long after, Szeto Dong returned with the doctor. After looking Shu Ning over, he told him that there was nothing wrong with him, but perhaps he may have been close to getting a heat stroke because of the hot weather.
Shu Ning wasn’t willing to leave, and Szeto Dong did not force him either, he just allowed him to receive an IV drip in his room. It wasn’t convenient for Szeto Dong to stay here because the other students were about to return, and after a few words the doctor left. After a while, An Yi pushed the door in as he was speaking with the other students, and on their way back they had been talking about Shu Ning. They felt that he was very unreasonable, and weaker than a girl, time and time again he skipped training, no no no, it would be more correct to point out that he hardly participated in anything at all.
He was being protected.
Did he have any connections? Thinking back to that company commander, it was hard for An Yi not to overthink things. Seeing that Shu Ning wasn’t a picky eater and didn’t have many issues with where he slept, he may dress well and speaks well too, but wasn’t this the case with everyone? It’s just an act, and who doesn’t know how to act? Many people eat instant noodles all day, but weren’t that just so they could buy a few clothes worth looking at? Maybe the company commander’s getting ideas from how Shu Ning’s skin is so fair with such red lips, and his body was so nice and slender, am I right?
The squad leader smiled with ambiguous intents. Looking into the room he frowned, he really got sick?
Zhao Long gasped in fright but held his mouth, then after realizing this may be inappropriate, he put his hand down and asked quietly:
Oh heavens, you didn’t get a heat stroke did you? A few of the girls fainted from it too.
This quickly got everyone talking, it meant that Shu Ning was even more feminine than a girl, and that implied that he wasn’t like a man at all.
Qiao Hai raised his eyebrow arrogantly as he looked towards the squad leader, this guy really knows how to act the good guy but why isn’t he saying anything now? He doesn’t seem to be anyone of any good intentions:
It’s not like Shu Ning was the first guy to go down, there’s two just next door, they don’t usually have the habit of exercising and now the weather’s hot too, so it’s very normal to get dizzy if you’re not keeping hydrated, we’re all classmates so we should help each other out.
A flash of distaste flittered past An Yi’s eyes, and he immediately went forward to Shu Ning’s bed in worry to look at him:
Ah, it’s all my fault, if I paid more attention perhaps Shu Ning may not have gone down.
Chen Ming was angered by his words:
It’s his own fault for not paying attention, what does this have to do with you, squad leader?
Enough,
Shu Ning suddenly spoke, and this caused everyone to jump in shock:
What are you guys arguing about? I’m not dead yet. And you too, squad leader, it’s my own problem whether or not I faint so how is this your fault?
Facing Shu Ning’s question, An Yi was stunned for a moment before he put on a smile:
It’s cause I’m the squad leader, you know?
I know you are, it was everyone’s responsibility to choose the squad leader, aren’t you tired of caring so much? How many would remember your good deeds?
Every sentence was powerful, it may seem caring on the surface but they were words laced with sarcasm, and this ruffled his feathers.
Shu Ning had no intention of letting An Yi who planned to pressure him go:
For one guy missing you send a bunch of people out, how many people did you think got their names taken because of the curfew check? Do you think blaming yourself can solve everything?
An Yi’s face was red a moment, and white the other, he felt slightly embarrassed but he still kept his smile:
I……
Shu Ning cut him off:
It’s not your fault, everyone’s watching, and they can see that you’ve done well. Well, I’m tired, you guys should go eat, I’ve eaten so you guys don’t have to bring anything back for me.
An Yi had just thought of a way to set his image straight but he didn’t expect to hear that Shu Ning had already eaten, how unlucky:
If that’s so, then you should rest. It’s hot so remember to drink more water.
And the group left after retrieving their things. Zhao Long went forward to him:
Squad leader means well so don’t say it like that, you’re going to hurt his feelings, well I’m leaving now so rest well.
Stupid, you didn’t even know you were sold off like a pig. Shu Ning had taken time off, but more or less the eight of them had their names taken, only the squad leader was safe. Well you know what they say, you have to learn from your mistakes, since Zhao Long likes the squad leader so much, then Shu Ning can only part ways with him. It’s not like Zhao Long’s a bad guy, he’s a great guy, he’s passionate in helping others but at the same time it’s easy for him to get used, and you couldn’t blame him either because it wasn’t like he asked for it.
In the afternoon, Szeto Dong came to visit again with some fruits. He knew as well that Shu Ning enjoyed eating fruits, especially grapes. Shu Ning got up to thank him while Szeto Dong brought a slice of watermelon to Shu Ning’s mouth. Shu Ning received it with his hands and brought it to his own mouth. Shu Heng had a great tendency to get jealous, and Shu Ning had already gotten used to paying attention to such details.
When those people returned in the evening, Chen Ming with his nimble nose wondered:
Why does it smell like watermelon in here?
An Yi’s eyes brightened up and immediately followed up:
Is there? How could that be possible?
Chen Ming nodded:
That’s right, it’s the smell of watermelon, but the smell’s quite light.
Everyone looked towards Shu Ning, and An Yi didn’t speak this time. As the straightforward one Chen Ming immediately asked:
Shu Ning, have you been eating watermelon?
I did, the instructor brought it over and asked if I need to go to the hospital to get checked, but I didn’t go.
Is it that serious?
Qiao Hai frowned. Seeing Shu Ning’s red complexion, he went over to touch his forehead:
It’s nothing big since you don’t have a fever.
The door was left open and a big soldier who passed by came back again carrying something on one hand, he gave the door a few knocks to grab everyone’s attention:
Who here is Shu Ning?
