Page 39

At night, on the rugged mountain path, Gu Xiaoxi carried her pack and did a ten-kilometer weighted run, with Qin Chu and Mei Su following behind her.

“I mean, you two, why do it together?

Aren’t you tired?”

Gu Xiaoxi glanced sideways at the two women, maintaining a good pace as she ran.

She was about halfway through, and she wasn’t even out of breath.

Feeling utterly drained, Mei Su’s backpack seemed to grow heavier by the minute.

Gasping for air, she struggled to speak clearly.

“Gu Xiaoxi, what’s the matter with you?

Running for so long without even blushing or breaking a sweat?”

Qin Chu’s physical fitness was among the best of the new recruits.

Even though she kept a stable pace, she was slightly panting.

“How far can you run in an hour at your fastest?” Qin Chu asked.

“I’ve never calculated!” Gu Xiaoxi looked into the night, her eyes sparkling.

She remembered her childhood when she had a master named Lu Xi, a world-renowned race car driver, and she was only ten years old at the time.

Before she met Lu Xi, she was a naughty troublemaker who did everything she wasn’t supposed to.

Since Gu Lirou was often not at home, she found studying pointless and frequently skipped classes to go karting with her classmates.

Then she met Lu Xi and saw him driving a race car.

She loved it so much that she wanted to learn.

Back then, Lu Xi set two conditions for her, her academic grades had to reach the top ten in her grade within three months, and she had to run ten kilometers in half an hour.

So she started waking up at six every morning to run around the city before heading to school.

She became a good student for three months, climbing from the very bottom of her class to topping her grade, earning the legitimate first place.

Consequently, her teacher suspected her of cheating, and she had to take the exam again with a fresh set of papers.

Since then, she developed the habit of studying and running.

Later, in high school, it took an hour by car to get to school from where she lived, but she would run there.

“Qin Chu, stop asking her.

She’s a freak, no one can compare to her!” Mei Su complained, out of breath.

“Then why did you come to the military camp?

With your ability, you didn’t need to come here at all!” Qin Chu turned to look at Gu Xiaoxi, her forehead covered in sweat.

Capable, talented, and brave, the outside world seemed more suitable for her to thrive in.

Gu Xiaoxi’s mouth twitched, annoyance clear on her face even in the dark night.

Her lips moved as if to speak, but in the end, she remained silent.

Thinking of Quan Shaoqing, her fighting spirit surged within her.

If she couldn’t beat or outrun him, she had no choice but to obediently listen to him.

But one day, she vowed to surpass him and beat him over and over again.

“Hurry up, finish the run and go back to sleep,” Gu Xiaoxi said, wiping the sweat off her forehead, pushing thoughts of Quan Shaoqing from her mind.

Qin Chu closed her mouth and asked no more.

Mei Su gritted her teeth and persevered, continuing to run.

It was apparent that she too was a very strong-willed girl.

In the forest at night, Zhang Jingyue was also accompanied by someone running a short distance behind Gu Xiaoxi.

The two groups jogged at a leisurely pace; the wind rustled the leaves with a ‘shasha’ sound, making the night feel a little less lonely.

At Headquarters of Division Z.

Lin Mi was reporting the condition of the new recruits to Quan Shaoqing.

“Superior officer, the training for the new recruits has reached maximum intensity.

But clearly, this is nothing for Gu Xiaoxi.”

Quan Shaoqing looked out into the night and sighed.

A week flew by just like that, and that girl hadn’t responded to a single message.

He was well aware that the training was too simple for her.

His purpose in sending her to the army was not to train her physically, but to instill in her the spirit and will of a soldier, to enhance her teamwork skills.

The military is not an individual, so she can’t charge around recklessly and do whatever she pleases.

“Arrange it for tomorrow, we’ll go take a look at the new recruit company,” Quan Shaoqing said.

Lin Mi paused, “Superior officer, that might not be a good idea!

Your presence might scare the cadres over there.”

Quan Shaoqing raised an eyebrow, putting down the document in his hand, “I am just going to observe their training, not cause them trouble.

There is no need to be overly anxious.”

Lin Mi wiped the sweat from his brow!

To him, it was just a casual observation, but for those below, it was a sensation.

He had visited the new recruit company before, just a year ago.

The scene was more spectacular than sending the entire battalion to the battlefield.

Forget it, better to arrange a secret visit, Lin Mi thought to himself, speechless.

“Another thing, superior officer.

Our undercover agent has sent a message, there will be a human trafficking incident along the Southern Border Country borderline in three days.

I’ve already arranged for the sniper battalion to launch a rescue operation.”

Quan Shaoqing pondered for a moment and saw this as an opportunity.

“Bring Gu Xiaoxi along when the time comes.

Let her see firsthand what war really is.”

“Yes!” Lin Mi acknowledged the order.

Gu Xiaoxi, Qin Chu, and Mei Su were still running their ten kilometers when they encountered wolves in the depths of the forest.

A large grey wolf over a meter long raised its head high with a pair of glowing green eyes flickering like ghost fire, bearing its long, sharp fangs at the trio.

Mei Su was so scared that her legs went weak, almost hiding behind Gu Xiaoxi as she clutched her sleeve.

“Xiao Xi, I always heard there were wolves out here but never believed it.

Now we’ve actually run into one, what do we do?”

Qin Chu was already prepared for combat, “Scaredy-cat, it’s just a wolf!”

No sooner had Qin Chu spoken than behind the large grey wolf, a group of five or six large wolves raised their heads and proudly stepped out of the bushes.

Qin Chu felt her throat tighten and a touch of nervousness showed on her face.

Gu Xiaoxi, on the other hand, stared at the lead Wolf King, her expression unreadable, her dark eyes flickering.

Gu Xiaoxi recognized that wolf, recalling the days she fled through the forest.

She had encountered a wolf cub, which became fixated on her.

But as she ran too fast, the cub pursued and accidentally fell to its death from a slope.

Just as the wolf father spotted this, the Wolf King and his brothers chased her for several hours.

Talking about it, she still felt it was a huge misunderstanding.

This way, she inadvertently became the target of several wolves.

Their attitude suggested they wouldn’t rest until she paid for the wolf cub’s life.

So many days had passed, and now they had even chased her down here.