Chapter 26: Night Whispers

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The movie ended, and everyone returned to their respective dormitories.

The night was still young, and the dormitory building was buzzing with energy; every now and then, one could hear someone loudly singing "Boundless Oceans, Vast Skies."

Lu You rolled up his pant legs and hummed a tune while washing his clothes on the balcony. Meng Yi was beside him, preparing instant noodles for a late-night snack. The dorm rules dictated that any food with a strong odor, like instant noodles, had to be eaten on the balcony or outside the dormitory.

"Lu You, are there any specific rules for the songs we have to sing on Friday night?"

Lu You scrubbed his military training uniform vigorously and said casually, "No specific rules, but it's best to choose something positive and uplifting. Try to avoid too much romance."

"Have you decided what you're going to sing?"

"If everything goes as planned, I'll go with 'Plum Fragrance As Before' and 'As You Wish.'"

"Why don't you give us a preview?"

"No way. I've already practiced them several times today. I'm not singing them just for you." Lu You ignored his request.

"You could sing them for our dorm first. Maybe we could offer some feedback," Meng Yi persisted.

"Let's talk about it tomorrow." Lu You poured the dirty water out of the bucket and turned on the faucet. "Bending over to wash clothes is bad for my back, and it's late. If I keep howling, I'm afraid the 'Blue Shirts' will put me on their list."

"By the way, I heard we're going out of the base tomorrow afternoon to help the local village with some farm work."

"What kind of work? Harvesting rice?" Lu You asked curiously.

"Who harvests rice at this time of year? It's not the season yet. If it were actual harvest time, I'd have to ask for leave to go home and help. I wouldn't be able to be here for military training."

"Does your family farm for a living?"

Meng Yi shook his head. "No, I live with my grandparents. We have a few acres of land."

"Are your parents working away from home?"

"Yeah, they come back once a month or during long holidays."

Lu You felt a sense of shared experience. His life in his previous existence was much the same; his parents were rarely around, though he had left home early to pursue his studies.

"Do you miss them?"

Meng Yi scratched his head and said, "I haven't really thought about it. Even though they aren't by my side, my grandparents and the people in the village have always treated me well. Maybe I'm just used to it?"

"How so?" Lu You looked at Meng Yi, smiling as he waited for an answer.

"It's a bit hard to explain." There was a hint of awkwardness in Meng Yi's tone. "Maybe it's different for me than for most people. To me, my parents are just two names. The ones who taught me how to be a decent person were the local elementary school teachers; the ones who cooked for me and attended parent-teacher meetings were my grandparents; and the ones I played with were my friends in the village."

"Don't you ever envy others for having their parents by their side?"

"No." Meng Yi said calmly. "Everything others have, I have too, so why would I be envious?"

"I thought you were like the 'left-behind children' you see on television."

"How could that be?" Meng Yi looked at Lu You as if he were an idiot. "I don't live deep in the mountains. My material and spiritual life are very full. I don't lack love."

"Then do you want them to come back and stay with you for good?"

"Forget it. Once a month is enough. If they stayed, I'd be worried about the family's finances," Meng Yi said heartlessly.

"We are quite different, it seems," Lu You muttered to himself.

"Hm? What did you say?"

"Nothing." Lu You raised his head and smiled. "Is your noodle ready? It'll get soggy if you soak it any longer."

"I almost forgot, thanks for reminding me." Meng Yi hurriedly opened the lid of his food container.

...

In the girls' dormitory.

Tang Wan lay on her bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, occasionally giggling to herself.

Xu Nian, who was chatting with others nearby, couldn't stand it anymore and grabbed a pillow, throwing it at her. Their dorm was on the fifth floor, so they weren't afraid of mosquitoes, and since they wanted to save time in the morning, they didn't bother hanging mosquito nets.

The pillow hit Tang Wan squarely in the face. She sat up and threw it back, saying unhappily, "What are you doing?"

"Stop giggling. It's creepy."

Tang Wan reached out to rub her cheek. "Is it that obvious?"

"We all heard it," several girls said in unison.

Tang Wan put on a serious face and said earnestly, "You're having auditory hallucinations. I heard this place used to be a graveyard; you've probably seen a ghost."

"Under the red flag, there is no place for demons or monsters!" Xu Nian retorted boldly.

Tang Wan had nothing left to say. She lay back down and put on her eye mask. "I'm sleepy. Goodnight."

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After Xu Nian finished talking to the others, she leaned over toward Tang Wan.

"Come on, tell me, what did you two talk about while watching the movie?"

Tang Wan: ...

"Don't play dead. I know you're not asleep."

Tang Wan slowly removed her eye mask. Thinking back to their conversation during the movie, she couldn't help but smile again.

Xu Nian reached out and pinched Tang Wan's cheek, urging her, "Stop smiling and tell me!"

"I'll tell you! Let go! You're going to pinch it red." Tang Wan pushed her hand away and rubbed the spot.

"He told me he knew I was on my period, and that the ibuprofen and ginger brown sugar tea were things he had you bring to me."

"He told you? Then I don't have to keep it a secret anymore." Xu Nian let out a sigh of relief.

Tang Wan changed positions, lying on her stomach. "Hey, Niannian, do you think a freshman like him would know about these things?"

"You're thinking that too? When I asked him how he knew all this and why he was so practiced at it, he just said he wanted to do it, and that was it. Did you ask him?"

Tang Wan tilted her head, recalling for a moment, then shook her head. "I didn't ask, but I did ask how he had those things with him. He said his mom gave him the medicine, and the ginger brown sugar tea was from his roommate."

"Wanwan, do you think... he's casting a net?" Xu Nian asked tentatively.

"I also asked him if he had a girlfriend, and he said the first time he ever touched a girl's hand was mine."

"Holy crap!" Xu Nian sat up abruptly, gasping. "You already held hands?"

"Um, what held hands? Is there gossip?" The surrounding girls immediately turned their attention to Xu Nian and Tang Wan.

Tang Wan quickly sat up, putting on a standard smile. "Nothing, just a crappy drama we're complaining about." After saying that, she pressed down on Xu Nian's shoulder, and they both lay back down on the bed.

"Do you want us to die? So loud!" Tang Wan was both angry and anxious, with a hint of shyness.

"You guys are progressing that fast? You're already holding hands." Xu Nian looked shocked.

"No, there was just an accident," Tang Wan tried to brush it off.

Xu Nian said in a serious tone, "Tell me the details of the accident."

"Is that the point? The point is he said he hasn't touched a girl before," Tang Wan said, exasperated.

"Pfft." Xu Nian curled her lip. Seeing that Tang Wan didn't want to talk about it, she stopped pressing. "Do you believe him?"

"I'll believe him for now, but I'll keep observing."

"Ha!" Xu Nian couldn't help but sneer, her tone laced with sarcasm. "Naive! Those guys in middle school who weren't even as handsome as him had already gone through who knows how many girlfriends—and we were only in middle school! I don't believe someone at his level doesn't have a girlfriend."

"Then what do you think of my level? Do I have a boyfriend?"

"Uh..." Xu Nian and Tang Wan had known each other for years, so they knew everything about each other.

Tang Wan added, "You're pretty too, so what about you? You still just play video games all day."

Xu Nian was left speechless. She was a homebody who spent her time gaming and watching shows, and Tang Wan was pretty much the same.

"You can't judge a person's behavior by their appearance. Besides, we're only freshmen; we haven't experienced that much. What he said should be credible."

"Fine." Xu Nian was convinced. "But you need to be rational. Don't fall for him too quickly. You have to see what kind of person he is before deciding if you can take things further."

"What are you talking about?" Tang Wan scolded. "Our current task is to study hard. What 'taking things further'? You trying to get into an early relationship?"

Xu Nian was speechless. You've said both the good and the bad; what else is there for me to say?

"I don't know who it is that stares at boys all day and gets all flustered by a couple of words from someone else."

"Who? I don't know. Anyway, it's not me." Tang Wan gave a triple denial, then turned over and put on her eye mask. "Going to sleep. Goodnight."

"Hmph! I really don't believe that if Lu You really sets his mind to pursuing you, you'll be able to resist." Xu Nian finished, turned over, and lay flat.

Tang Wan closed her eyes and repeated silently, "I will get into Tsinghua or Peking University, I will get into Tsinghua or Peking University..."

In the boys' dormitory.

The lights-out bell had already rung. Lu You lay on his bed, eyes closed, trying to drift off.

"Class monitor, it's so hot. What should I do if I can't sleep?"

"Then don't sleep," Lu You replied calmly.

"But I want to sleep."

"Then sleep."

"Can't you give some constructive advice?"

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"I already did."

"How about we chat? Talk about something interesting?"

Lu You opened his eyes, feeling helpless. "If you don't sleep, others want to. Whatever it is, talk about it tomorrow."

"I think the vice class monitor is really pretty. Her eyes are big and bright, her voice is nice, and she looks like she's in great shape."

"I think so too!"

"Me too!"

"Great minds think alike."

Several voices chimed in at once.

...

Damn! As soon as they talk about girls, they're all wide awake, huh?

A few veins throbbed on Lu You's forehead.

"Class monitor, what do you think?" the first voice asked.

"What do I think? I think I'm sitting here listening to you," Lu You replied sharply.

"Don't you have any thoughts after working with her for a few days? And you're even sitting behind her?"

Before Lu You could respond, Meng Yi, who was sleeping under his bed, added gloomily, "How could he possibly have thoughts about the vice class monitor? He spends his days at his desk doing test papers or reading stuff that's all in English."

"Is it that intense as a freshman?"

"Of course. His heart is already set on someone in Class 2. If he doesn't work hard, how's he going to make it happen?"

The moment the words left his mouth, the dormitory atmosphere turned into a gossip session.

"Oh? Tell us more about the person he's interested in!"

"I want to know too!"

"Who is it? Is she pretty? How does she compare to the vice class monitor?"

...

Lu You couldn't take it anymore. He said sternly, "That's enough. Stop spreading rumors. Go to sleep. Wasn't the punishment from the instructor today tiring enough?"

Hearing that he was genuinely angry, Meng Yi had to back down. He said evasively, "You guys can observe for yourselves; I'm afraid of being taken out by the class monitor."

"Why are you only telling half the story? Finish it! What are you afraid of the class monitor for?"

"Yeah, with us here, he wouldn't dare touch you!"

"Tell us!"

Bang! Bang! Bang! A violent knocking on the door echoed through the room.

"It's your dorm again! I could hear you talking from across the hall. You didn't get enough training today, and you don't want to sleep, right? Fine, everyone out, right now."

The boys in the dorm immediately went silent and pretended to be asleep.

Seeing no response, the person outside said, "Do you think I'm joking? You have three minutes to get downstairs to the streetlamp and line up. Not a single person is allowed to be missing!"

Five minutes later, the entire dorm stood in their slippers under the streetlamp, undergoing punishment.

Meng Yi stood next to Lu You, stomping his feet from time to time and whispering, "There are so many mosquitoes here."

Lu You had the foresight to spray mosquito repellent before coming down, so he was fine. He glanced at Meng Yi and said, "I told you not to talk while trying to sleep, but you insisted. Now look, you're here feeding the mosquitoes. Happy now?"

"I..." Meng Yi started to argue, but he was interrupted.

"You're still talking after coming here? You're not afraid of death, are you? Who was talking in the dorm just now? Stand out! Or just point them out yourselves."

No one moved.

"Oh, very united, aren't you? Then I'll assume the whole dorm was talking! Which platoon are you in? Who is your instructor?"

Still, no one spoke.

"Mute now? Fine, if you won't talk, you can keep standing here!"

Lu You watched the instructor walk away, completely indifferent. Punishment was just punishment; it wasn't like he hadn't experienced it before. He looked up at the pitch-black night sky and drifted into his own thoughts.