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Mei Su munched on chocolate, not forgetting to tease Gu Xiaoxi, “Come on, tell me, was it a boyfriend who gave it to you?”

Gu Xiaoxi rolled her eyes at her, “This is a Valentine’s Day gift that someone else gave to my guardian.

I saw it sitting in the warehouse, and I was afraid it would go bad after a long time.

So I decided to share it with everyone.”

Qin Chu nodded his head in understanding, “Then your guardian must be really charming.

Don’t tell me you’re from a single-parent family?”

Gu Xiaoxi curved her lips into a faint smile, her expression becoming indifferent, “I was adopted by someone else!”

Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged glances, the atmosphere turning awkward.

Mei Su naturally understood what she meant.

Only when your parents are gone would you be adopted by someone else.

Gu Xiaoxi walked out with a basin and towel, looking back at Mei Su, “I’m going to wash up, you guys eat!

Remember to share with everyone, don’t hog it to yourself!”

Mei Su immediately waved at her, “Hurry up!

There’s only ten minutes left until mealtime.”

Afterwards, she passed the chocolate to Yan Xiao.

Yan Xiao snorted coldly, “Keep it away from me, I have my own!”

Mei Su wrinkled her nose at her and then walked over to the others with the box.

Since Gu Xiaoxi was making nice with everyone, besides Yan Xiao, the rest naturally wouldn’t refuse.

Moreover, it was the rumored brand-name chocolate—who wouldn’t want to taste and see what made it different from ordinary chocolate!

That evening the troops had a sing-along, which, compared to the intense training of the past few days, turned out to be the most relaxing time.

After singing military songs, everyone was free to belt out their own songs or dance.

Ning Jiu even suggested each squad recommend someone to perform for the group.

The atmosphere became very lively at that moment.

This was the happiest evening everyone had had in days, with everyone belting out songs and showcasing their talents.

The training field was filled with laughter and cheer.

Watching the boys and girls dancing in front of her, Gu Xiaoxi felt admiration.

Among them were high achievers in music who mastered instruments like the guitar, zither, and flute.

There were also wealthy young ladies skilled in ballet and ethnic dances, and passionate young men who could write poetry and songs.

Even though they weren’t the top performers in training and physical fitness, their talents were indeed admirable.

In this grand setting, soldiers from the whole company began to interact and showcase their strengths for the first time.

When it was Squad Nine’s turn to perform.

Yuan Shang didn’t hesitate to call on Gu Xiaoxi to take the stage.

Gu Xiaoxi scowled—she couldn’t dance ballet, nor could she play musical instruments or sing.

But, being called upon, she couldn’t just do nothing!

Gu Xiaoxi had someone fetch a basketball from the warehouse before addressing the crowd, “Today I’m going to perform freestyle basketball for you all.

I’m sure many of you can play!”

As soon as she said this, many girls showed a look of disdain, clearly not the type of thing kids from wealthy families would play with.

Freestyle basketball was something loved by hooligans and riffraff!

However, many boys were filled with anticipation because freestyle basketball was difficult to learn—even if you wanted to play, without technique or balance, you couldn’t do it well, let alone master it.

And if you did, that was truly cool to the point of having no friends.

Gu Xiaoxi was indifferent to everyone’s gazes.

The basketball was thrown into the air, spinning rapidly, and when it fell, she caught it with the tip of her foot, her body leaning down and her head lowered as she raised her foot high, resembling an eagle spreading its wings.

The ball slid from her toe to her shoulder and then spun around her neck to the other shoulder…

Her movements were smooth and forceful in one breath, the basketball like a mischievous child being skillfully played in her hands.

At the beginning, she showed everyone the standard fancy basketball moves, then she mixed the basketball tricks with cool street dance moves.

Dribbling the ball with her feet, she started with a 160-degree spin, followed by a one-handed handstand, spinning the ball with her feet.

Within a mere ten minutes, the venue erupted into fervent applause.

The boys were boiling with excitement, full of admiration.

Gu Xiaoxi put away the basketball, gave everyone a gentleman’s bow, and took her seat.

Mei Su’s eyes gleamed as she immediately propped her chin with both hands, and adopted an adoring look, “Xiao Xi, if you were a guy, I’d have fallen in love with you right now.

I want to confess to you!”

“You!

With arms too short, legs too thick, and too short in height!

I don’t fancy you!

I reject you!” Gu Xiaoxi seriously patted Mei Su’s arm with a look of genuine disdain on her face.

As she finished speaking, laughter erupted from the crowd.

They had just realized that Gu Xiaoxi actually had a sense of humor.

Mei Su was speechless but said she didn’t mind and even more earnestly replied, “If I were a man, I wouldn’t give up, even if you said that.

Too bad, I’m not a man.”

Gu Xiaoxi glared at Mei Su.

This guy was getting bolder, daring to tease her.

Mei Su felt it wasn’t enough and stood up, turning to the male students of classes seven and eight with a smile, “Those who fancy our Xiao Xi better act fast!

Fair-skinned, beautiful, with long legs, and cool talents…”

Gu Xiaoxi quickly covered Mei Su’s mouth!

This guy was getting hooked!

The noise attracted the instructors’ hearty laughter, and the night passed with much joy and laughter.

After it ended, everyone still lingered, singing the resounding military songs as they walked towards the dormitories.

It was late at night and all was quiet.

Gu Xiaoxi saw that everyone was resting and sneaked out of the dormitory alone.

She left the dorm building, circled the track, and entered the mountain area behind the troop post.

No sooner had Gu Xiaoxi left the door than Yan Xiao noticed her and stealthily followed.

At night, the moon hung high like a silver plate in the sky, and the mountains and forests were shrouded in silence.

Gu Xiaoxi followed the path for about thirty minutes until she saw an ancient tree looming twenty meters tall with a ten-meter diameter, its leaves dense, with starry specks of moonlight filtering through the gaps.

With a powerful jump from her feet, she leapt up and then comfortably seated herself on the branch of the old tree.

She had come out to practice her inner strength.

Her master, Yi Haoran, had once secretly given her a book to memorize, instructing her to practice for two hours every night according to its contents.

At the time, she hadn’t taken it seriously.

Although she memorized it, she didn’t practice every day, which led to her neglecting the inner strength techniques Liu Yishou had taught her.

As a result, she was still half-baked in martial arts.

With that in mind, she crossed her legs, calmed the chaos in her mind, and started to breathe in and out, bringing herself to tranquility.

However, just as she closed her eyes, she heard someone exhale softly two hundred meters away, as if they had fallen.

Gu Xiaoxi opened her eyes and looked in the direction she had come from, certain that someone was following her.

Yan Xiao rubbed her sore buttocks, her face gloomy and displeased.

Gu Xiaoxi had disappeared so quickly.

The forest was pitch-black, and even with the moonlight, nothing could be seen inside.

Moreover, it was rumored that there were wolves here at night, which scared her into running back immediately.

Gu Xiaoxi listened as the footsteps of the person receded into the distance.

Only then did she follow the inner strength techniques once more, re-entering meditation and focusing on her breathing.