Under the blazing sun, the recruits repeated the same training exercises they had been doing every day.
The training ground was filled with the instructors’ occasional shouts. Every now and then, someone would lose focus and the formation would become crooked, leaving the instructors utterly exhausted.
They were having a real headache dealing with this group of new female recruits. They couldn’t train them too harshly. If they were too fierce, some of the girls would burst into tears at the slightest scolding. The instructors had their concerns too—they still hadn’t found wives yet. How could they afford to offend all the female soldiers?
Because of that, some of the instructors who had eagerly volunteered for the job were already regretting it. They had thought that being close to the recruits would give them an advantage in finding a wife. Instead, they might end up accomplishing the exact opposite.
The new recruits gritted their teeth and persevered. Of course, there were also those who were naturally more physically fit and could handle this level of training with ease, such as Zhang Shaoying.
There was also a petite girl named Chen Bao’er. She looked delicate and tiny, but she had surprisingly strong explosive power.
“Little Potato, take it slow~” Zhang Shaoying teased arrogantly as she overtook Chen Bao’er.
Chen Bao’er was so angry that she nearly jumped. “Zhang Shaoying, you’re way too arrogant!”
Zhang Shaoying’s laughter drifted back from ahead. “So what if I’m arrogant? Catch me if you can!”
“Just you wait!” Chen Bao’er gritted her teeth and sped up again.
The two secretly competed against each other as they ran around the training field. Following closely behind them, Wen Jiaojiao couldn’t help but admit that there really was a difference between people.
She quietly exhaled and maintained a steady pace throughout the run.
Only after completing the amount of training assigned by the instructors were they allowed to rest for ten minutes.
“I’m exhausted.” Wu Qin wiped the sweat from her face and plopped down beside Wen Jiaojiao.
As she wiped her sweat, she stared at Wen Jiaojiao’s face enviously.
“Jiaojiao, how come you don’t get tanned? Look at how dark I’ve gotten.”
Wu Qin looked at her sun-darkened hands and face and felt like crying. No woman could accept becoming uglier.
Wen Jiaojiao also looked at her own hands. After half a month of training, they had become a little rough, but she wasn’t particularly worried. Once training was over, she could buy a bottle of face cream and apply it. Her hands would recover soon enough.
Looking at her gloomy friend, she smiled.
“Wu Qin, don’t worry. Your tan isn’t that bad. You can still get your fair skin back later. Besides, someone else is even darker than you.”
There was no need to look around deliberately. Wen Lili had already earned the title of the darkest person on the entire training ground.
Wu Qin looked over and couldn’t help covering her mouth as she giggled. Deep down, she felt both sympathetic and amused by Wen Lili.
If it weren’t for her long hair, Wen Lili would look just like a dark-skinned boy by now.
She hadn’t been particularly fair to begin with, and after all this sun exposure, she had become even darker. Ever since she had been forced to write a self-criticism, Wen Lili no longer dared to spread rumors recklessly, and she barely had the time anyway because the training kept her busy.
Especially as she became darker and darker from the sun, she seemed to radiate negativity from head to toe. Every now and then, the way she looked at Wen Jiaojiao was as if her eyes concealed knives.
“Xiaocui, isn’t that Commander Meng?” Wen Lili withdrew her murderous gaze and spotted a figure walking toward them.
“Where?” Liu Xiaocui instinctively straightened her back and looked toward the approaching man.
It wasn’t just the two of them. The other female recruits noticed him as well.
Commander Meng stood together with the instructors, and they couldn’t hear what they were talking about.
After Commander Meng finished speaking with the instructors, he glanced in their direction. His gaze lingered for several seconds, as though he were looking for someone.
A blush crept onto Liu Xiaocui’s cheeks. His line of sight happened to stop in her direction, making her heart pound.
She pretended to be casual as she removed her military cap and tidied her freshly washed hair.
If it weren’t for Wen Jiaojiao, the title of the village beauty of Dahe Village would have belonged to Liu Xiaocui. She was fair-skinned and beautiful, and as the only beloved granddaughter in the Liu family, she had been spoiled from childhood.
Liu Xiaocui’s mother had always raised her daughter according to the standards of a wealthy young lady. She couldn’t bear to let her do any dirty or tiring work, and she absolutely refused to let her daughter marry some poor farmer in the countryside.
Growing up under such influence, Liu Xiaocui appeared quiet and gentle on the surface, but in reality, she was proud and vain.
Even though her family had no money, she insisted on wearing the prettiest clothes and maintaining the image of a refined young lady, even if it meant eating coarse grain and vegetables.
She had only one goal in joining the army: to find herself an officer husband so that she could live a comfortable and secure life for the rest of her years.
“Xiaocui, do you think Commander Meng was looking at me just now?” Wen Lili asked excitedly, her eyes never leaving Meng Weiguo.
At those words, Liu Xiaocui’s hand paused while she was fixing her hair. A trace of disdain flashed quickly through her eyes, but she pretended to agree.
“Maybe.”
Inwardly, however, she looked down on Wen Lili completely. Didn’t that woman know what she looked like?
If they hadn’t been from the same village, Liu Xiaocui wouldn’t even want to be seen walking beside her. It was embarrassing!
And she actually dared to set her sights on Commander Meng?
Commander Meng was hers!
After finishing her hair, Liu Xiaocui put her military cap back on and looked at Meng Weiguo with determination.
She would definitely marry Commander Meng!
Meng Weiguo didn’t stay for long before leaving. After he left, the instructor announced that they were dismissed and could head to the mess hall for lunch.
After lunch, everyone had two hours of break time.
Most of the new recruits would take a shower. It was already late July, and the weather was still hot. Without a shower, the smell coming from their bodies was unbearable.
Wen Jiaojiao wasn’t comfortable showering when there were too many people around. Although they were all women, being completely naked in front of dozens of pairs of eyes was still too embarrassing.
She usually waited until fewer people were around before showering. Wu Qin felt the same way, so the two of them always went together. Occasionally, Wang Xiaomei and Zhang Shaoying would join them.
Carrying their washbasins and a change of clothes, they heard Wen Lili’s voice as soon as they reached the bathroom.
Wen Jiaojiao’s footsteps paused for a moment, but she continued inside.
“Xiaocui, the bracelet you’re wearing is so pretty. Your mother must really love you.” Wen Lili looked enviously at the bracelet on Liu Xiaocui’s wrist.
A fleeting trace of jealousy appeared in her eyes.
Liu Xiaocui glanced at her silver bracelet and smiled smugly.
“Of course. I’ve been wearing it since I was little. It was part of my mother’s dowry.”
That silver bracelet had earned Liu Xiaocui plenty of admiration. Only families with comfortable means could afford to buy a silver bracelet as part of their daughter’s dowry when she got married.
Yet Liu Xiaocui had been wearing one since childhood, making all the little girls in the village envious.
“Your mother really loves you. The bracelet is so beautiful.” Wen Lili quickly reached out and touched the bracelet.
When she saw Liu Xiaocui subtly pull her hand away, she awkwardly withdrew her own hand.
She had wanted to ask to borrow it and wear it for a while, but she couldn’t bring herself to say so.
Liu Xiaocui was just about to wipe herself down when she saw Wen Jiaojiao and Wu Qin walk in.
She smiled and greeted them.
“Jiaojiao, what took you so long?”
Wen Jiaojiao smiled in response.
“It’s less crowded now. It’s more peaceful this way.”
Liu Xiaocui’s smile remained unchanged.
“It’s perfect right now. No one’s crowding each other.”
Wen Lili curled her lip disdainfully from the side.
“Don’t you have any manners? You see me here and you don’t even say hello?”
The moment Wen Jiaojiao saw her, the smile on her face disappeared.
She replied sarcastically, “I’m not interested in having anything to do with you. Who knows what rumors you’ll spread about me tomorrow?”
The mention of the rumors reminded Wen Lili of something.
That wretched girl had reported her, and she hadn’t even settled the score with her yet!
She threw the towel into her basin, planted both hands on her hips, pointed straight at Wen Jiaojiao’s nose, and cursed,
“Wen Jiaojiao, you little bitch! Have you completely lost your mind? Was it you who reported me?!”