BTO CH37

Middle schools in C City frequently organized and hosted various activities centered around different themes, which students were required to attend each semester. Put simply, National Defense Education was just a miniature military training session, except that compared to regular military training, it incorporated some observation- and practice-based projects.

As the name suggested, national defense was about imparting relevant knowledge and skills to the entire citizenry in order to safeguard national sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security.

The moment Meng Guowei uttered those words, the entire class erupted.

Tan Kai: “I heard about this last week, but I didn’t expect it to be true! I heard this time we even get to tour a simulated aircraft carrier and play with real guns…”

Tan Kai mimicked a sniper aiming an assault rifle.

Meng Guowei gave a “cough” and slammed his hand heavily against the podium: “Quiet down, what is wrong with you lot? You think you’re going on a field trip?!”

Although it was vastly different from a field trip, being able to temporarily escape the classroom made them happy no matter where they were headed.

The notification sheet was passed from the front row to the back.

Lying across his desk with one eye half-open, Xu Sheng watched as Shao Zhan took the notice and placed it right in front of him. Half of Xu Sheng’s vision was blocked by the cap pulled low over his head, while the other half landed on Shao Zhan’s hand, which hadn’t yet been pulled back.

“Stop lying down the second you wake up,” Shao Zhan said. “Old Meng’s been staring at you for ages.”

Xu Sheng forced himself to sit up straight, his cap sliding down a fraction of an inch in the process. Glancing at his phone, he saw there were still five minutes left before the end of morning self-study. Only after putting the phone down did he realize something was off about what had just been said. Pondering for a moment, he remarked, “Is this your way of helping me keep an eye on Old Meng?”

Tying a pen around one finger, Shao Zhan glanced sideways at him: “Was it not obvious enough?”

What did he mean, not obvious enough?

It would have been a miracle if Shao Zhan hadn’t confiscated his phone on the spot.

Recalling the chaotic, tumultuous beginning of their acquaintance, Xu Sheng thought to himself whether this counted as double standards on the part of his Study God desk mate.

Xu Sheng: “Did you forget you also hold the title of Disciplinary Committee Member?”

Shao Zhan didn’t deny it: “Forgot.”

Pausing mid-sentence, Shao Zhan set down the pen he was twirling, leaned back, and looked over at Meng Guowei, who was writing the precautions for this National Defense Education session on the blackboard. “Or would you prefer I keep you in line?”

Naturally, Xu Sheng would prefer no such thing.

Being able to return to a normal classroom routine without someone constantly breathing down his neck to forbid this and that—not to mention avoiding the need to live inside someone else’s body while bearing the Study God’s name and studying every single day—was a massive relief. Not long after sitting up, Xu Sheng propped his chin with his hand once more, slouching bonelessly with his oversized cap still resting loosely on his head. He curved his lips into a smile: “Thanks for showing mercy, student Shao.”

Shao Zhan had no idea what had gotten into him. Previously, he had maintained a strict set of standards for Xu Sheng, but now…

Now, whenever he ran into Xu Sheng, all those standards seemed to vanish entirely.

If Meng Guowei were to find out that his “One-on-One” plan had ultimately devolved into this, he would probably cough up three liters of blood.

I told you to keep Xu Sheng in line, not spoil him!

What on earth was wrong with his most outstanding student, Shao Zhan?! His genius boy, Shao Zhan?!

Only after finishing his thought did Xu Sheng lower his gaze back to the notice.

Dear Students,

In response to the national call, our school is actively organizing a National Defense Education event. The sophomore grade will collectively head to the Lüzhou Base on Wednesday.

This National Defense Education event will last for five days. Please prepare your daily necessities; bringing entertainment devices unrelated to this event is strictly prohibited.

…

The contents of the notice were all cliché and predictable.

Scanning it quickly, Xu Sheng folded the notice up and tossed it into his desk drawer.

After briefly repeating and emphasizing the requirements listed on the notice, Meng Guowei concluded: “Six students to a dorm. Discuss it among yourselves, and Hou Jun, collect the dorm rosters and hand them in to me before the end of class.”

The dismissal bell rang, and Class 7 erupted once more.

Hou Jun dragged Tan Kai over to form a team: “Hey brothers, any thoughts? If you two are down, I’ll just find two more people and our dorm is set.”

Xu Sheng had no objections: “Sure.”

Hou Jun turned his head toward Shao Zhan, who wore a clear don’t bother me expression: “Then—”

Before he could finish, he saw Xu Sheng directly writing Shao Zhan’s name down on the sheet of paper.

“Huh?”

Hou Jun thought to himself that Zhan-ge hadn’t even said anything yet—had he agreed?

After finishing writing, Xu Sheng said, “He tacitly agreed.”

Hou Jun looked left and right, noticing no sign of denial from Shao Zhan, before finally pulling the roster away.

On Wednesday, a line of tour buses was parked all along the road outside the school gates.

Packing a bag took boys all of two or three minutes. Before departure, Xu Sheng simply tossed a change of clothes and toiletries into a simple duffel bag and joined the main body of students lining up at the school gates.

Being tall, and the only person in the entire school not wearing a uniform, he looked exceptionally eye-catching standing in the crowd.

So eye-catching that King of Hell Gu spotted him instantly: “Xu Sheng! Step out of formation!”

The tour bus designated for Class 7 had just opened its doors.

Sauntering lazily over, Xu Sheng replied: “Here.”

King of Hell Gu was merely there to remind him to strictly follow the military training rules. Though he had only harbored vague anxieties beforehand, the sight of Xu Sheng in the flesh convinced him that if this young lord didn’t manage to stir up some trouble, his last name wouldn’t be Xu anymore: “Behave yourself once you get to the Lüzhou Base. Don’t start a shouting match with the instructors like you did back in freshman year. This time, multiple schools are training together, and if you make a scene, you won’t just be losing face for yourself—you’ll drag down the reputation of every single person here at Sixth High. If you pull any stunts, just wait and see how I deal with you when we get back! Did you hear me?!”

Xu Sheng: “I heard you, my ears aren’t deaf.”

King of Hell Gu wanted to say more, but the teenager standing at the very back of the Class 7 formation stopped in his tracks before boarding the bus: “Director Gu, it’s time to assemble.”

Facing Shao Zhan, King of Hell Gu’s expression changed instantly, breaking into a smile so wide his wrinkles showed: “Ah, right.” Yet the smile vanished the very next microsecond. Turning back to scold Xu Sheng with a stern face once more, he pointed a finger and delivered one final warning before leaving: “Behave.”

Walking right behind Shao Zhan, Xu Sheng was among the last to board, leaving only two empty seats in the back row: “I might want to sleep a bit on the bus. Do you want the window seat?”

Shao Zhan raised no objections.

Once seated, Xu Sheng lowered his head to send a message to Xu Yaping. Without waiting for a reply, he popped in one earbud and turned to gaze at the scenery outside the window.

Shao Zhan, however, couldn’t help asking: “During freshman military training, were you the one who had to read the self-reflection on stage?”

“Ah,” Xu Sheng’s reaction was a beat slow, not expecting Shao Zhan to bring this up out of nowhere. “Seems like that was a thing.”

Xu Sheng arguing with an instructor during freshman year wasn’t exactly breaking news.

During military training, students inevitably crossed paths with overly harsh instructors who enforced every single order with absolute coercion, refusing to listen to any explanations and reducing quite a few classmates to tears.

On the day of the training, Zhang Tong happened to be on her period and was forced to wear her own pants instead of the uniform trousers. Already feeling unwell, she was struggling to push through the physical exertion. Yet the instructor didn’t bother asking for reasons, launching straight into a harsh verbal assault.

Xu Sheng cut in: “Reporting.”

Instructor: “Speak.”

Standing in the back row, Xu Sheng used a lazy, unhurried tone that utterly lacked the proper attitude. He even cracked a slight smile: “Instructor, can you actually listen to what people are saying?”

Thus, on the very first day of military training, the entire freshman cohort watched a student step out from the crowd under the blazing sun, clutching a piece of paper. The flagpole was too far away to make out facial features clearly; they could only tell that the person was tall and thin, delivering his words with an unbridled, casual cadence: “Respected teachers, I write this self-reflection with a heavy heart.”

“…I failed to keep my emotions in check, but I believe the instructor should not have jumped to conclusions without listening to the student’s explanation, inflicting indelible trauma on the physical and mental health of the students.”

“If the instructor is unable to correct this behavior, I cannot guarantee that similar incidents will not occur again.”

“Student writing the self-reflection: Xu Sheng, Class 2, Freshman Year.”

Before entering high school, Shao Zhan had never been able to match the name “Xu Sheng” with a face, nor had he ever cared who this person was. Yet undeniably, no one could ignore the blazing summer sun of that year, nor could they ignore the teenager walking forward against the light.

Briefly summarizing the event while omitting the detail about Zhang Tong’s period and simply calling it “feeling unwell,” Xu Sheng asked: “What made you think of asking about that?”

“Nothing,” Shao Zhan replied.

Xu Sheng didn’t press further either. Amidst the music playing in his earbuds mixed with the sound of Hou Jun and the others playing an undercover game in the bus, the scenery outside the window blurred past. Xu Sheng had no idea when he had actually fallen asleep.

The bus ride to the Lüzhou Base took just over an hour.

When he finally opened his eyes again, what greeted his vision was Shao Zhan’s collar, and slightly higher up, the teenager’s gently protruding Adam’s apple and smoothly carved jawline: “…”

How on earth did I end up leaning on Shao Zhan’s shoulder while sleeping?

Sitting up straight, Xu Sheng scrambled for an excuse: “Is this bus… exceptionally bumpy?”

Shao Zhan punctured the lie with a single sentence: “You never sit properly in the first place, so I certainly wasn’t expecting you to behave while asleep.”

Stretching his neck and turning his head, Xu Sheng found himself meeting the glowing, sparkling gazes of Hou Jun and Tan Kai sitting across the aisle.

Was something wrong?

What kind of predatory, wolves-spotting-prey looks were those?

Little did he know, both of them were thinking: We’re genuinely exhausted. We are officially done. These two are definitely real—truer than gold.

“We’re almost there, wake up anyone who’s sleeping. Let’s drop our stuff off at the dorms first, then head over to Century Park to assemble and pick up our military training uniforms.”

Meng Guowei herded the rest awake, checking his schedule: “Morning agenda: attend the National Defense Education opening ceremony. Move quickly, no dragging your feet…”

The Lüzhou Base was a famous military training base in C City, spanning a massive area divided into eight major zones. Tour buses required a lengthy drive just to pass through the main gates. Their activities this time would primarily take place within the National Defense Education Zone, where clear waters meandered and lawns baked under the blazing sun. Passing through shaded patches of open ground, the bus slowly rolled into the residential area.

Along the paths, students dressed in military-green training uniforms could already be seen emerging from the dorm blocks.

“Those must be from No. 4 High,” a student remarked, peering through the window. “I wonder how many schools are training together this time.”

It was common practice for multiple schools to undergo military training at the Lüzhou Base simultaneously.

To easily distinguish between different institutions, Sixth High’s training uniforms featured a navy-blue color scheme, differing from the outfits worn by the No. 4 High students they had just passed.

Students who received their uniforms headed back to their dorms to change. As Xu Sheng unwrapped his plastic package and prepared to head inside with his clothes in hand, Tan Kai called out from nearby: “There’s a restroom right over here, let’s just change inside so we don’t have to run back and forth. Monkey can carry the rest of the clothes back.”

Hearing the first half, Hou Jun was nodding vigorously, praising him with a you’re truly a genius, but upon hearing the second half, his expression soured: “Hold on a second, let me interrupt. Did I agree to this? Tan Kai, do you even have a heart?”

Tan Kai: “What is a class monitor’s duty? It’s to serve the class.”

Hou Jun: “Scram, this class monitor is willing to abdicate in favor of a wiser successor.”

Xu Sheng chuckled for a good long while.

Despite his protests, Hou Jun didn’t actually refuse.

The restroom was empty, featuring only three partitioned stalls.

Shao Zhan knocked on the door, pushed it open, and after confirming it was vacant, said: “You go first.”

There was no need for unnecessary politeness over something like changing clothes.

Xu Sheng walked in with his garments.

However, things didn’t go quite as smoothly as he imagined. Just as Xu Sheng pulled on the training trousers, he ran into a snag.

Waiting outside the partition, Shao Zhan calculated that roughly five minutes had passed—long enough for Hou Jun to have changed and exited—yet the stall door in front of him remained shut. Just as he was about to ask, Are you done yet?, the partition door swung half-open from the inside.

One hand gripping the edge of the door, Xu Sheng spoke in a low voice: “Got a belt?”

Shao Zhan’s gaze caught a flash of skin swaying right before his eyes as the loose training trousers hung precariously low on the teenager’s hipbones.

Xu Sheng’s waist… was exceptionally slender.