Zhou Yuwen's words imdiately drew everyone's attention to him.
Chang Hao hesitated for a mont but quickly added, " too! We bought the burgers together! There's evidence back in my dorm!"
"..."
Zhou Yuwen couldn't help but give Chang Hao a look of disbelief. He hadn't realized before just how clueless Chang Hao could be.
The sudden appearance of the two boys made the instructor frown, but he didn't pay much attention to Chang Hao. In such situations, the first person to speak up mattered much more than the second.
The instructor approached Zhou Yuwen, scrutinizing him closely.
Zhou Yuwen remained calm, in contrast to Zheng Yanyan's defiant attitude. He seed completely unconcerned.
"Do you know what you're saying?" the head instructor asked.
"It has nothing to do with them! I was the one who snuck out to buy the burgers!" Zheng Yanyan, loyal as ever, imdiately spoke up when she saw the instructor focusing on Zhou Yuwen.
"It wasn't their fault; our dorm bought it." Su Qing, who had remained silent earlier because she didn't see herself as primarily responsible, now spoke up. She wanted to protect Zhou Yuwen after he had spoken out.
However, the head instructor was no longer interested in what others had to say. His focus was entirely on Zhou Yuwen.
"I know what I'm saying. I brought the burgers for them," Zhou Yuwen stated.
"And why?" the instructor asked.
"What reason do I need? There's a girl I like in their dorm," Zhou Yuwen replied casually.
"?" The girls were taken aback.
The head instructor raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying your girlfriend is in their dorm? Then tell , who is your girlfriend?"
Zhou Yuwen looked around.
Two of the girls were visibly nervous.
Su Qing had already braced herself.
Zhou Yuwen pointed at Zheng Yanyan. "Her."
The head instructor turned to Zheng Yanyan. "Is that true?"
"Why would I lie? Of course, it's true," Zheng Yanyan responded quickly. Zhou Yuwen was bound to na her in this situation since the incident was primarily their doing. Zheng Yanyan bore the main responsibility, with Zhou Yuwen being secondary. If there were consequences, they'd face them together.
Unlike the conflicted others, Zheng Yanyan confidently stood beside Zhou Yuwen and told the instructor, "I was craving KFC, so I had my boyfriend bring so. What's the big deal?"
The two of them were perfectly in sync at this mont.
The instructor looked back and forth between Zheng Yanyan and Zhou Yuwen, then asked, "With all the security, how did you manage to get out?"
"The fence behind the cafeteria was broken. I slipped out through there, and since I had morized the KFC delivery number before training, I had them bring it to the back of the school," Zhou Yuwen explained calmly.
The instructor continued questioning Zhou Yuwen, but Zhou Yuwen answered every question without fear or hesitation, yet without the casual defiance of Zheng Yanyan. This left the instructor unsure how to respond.
The instructor asked if Zhou Yuwen understood the consequences of his actions.
"The consequence is that I'll fail military training, right? This happened because of
and my girlfriend, so whatever punishnt you give us, we'll accept," Zhou Yuwen said.
"And you're okay with your girlfriend being punished?" The instructor found this statent strange.
"She made a mistake, so she should be taught a lesson," Zhou Yuwen replied.
Zheng Yanyan was speechless at this.
The instructor stared at Zhou Yuwen for a while and then suddenly said, "I rember you two. You haven't participated in military training much, have you?"
"Health issues, nothing we can do," Zhou Yuwen responded.
The standoff continued for a bit longer. The instructor wanted to escalate the situation, but with Zhou Yuwen taking full responsibility, there wasn't much he could do.
"You two, co with
to the administration building. Everyone else is dismissed," the instructor finally said, deciding not to let Zhou Yuwen and Zheng Yanyan off so easily. Mistakes had to be punished.
Hearing that they were going to the administration building, Chang Hao felt uneasy and couldn't help but say, "Instructor, can't just one of them go? Why both?"
The instructor ignored him.
He led Zhou Yuwen and Zheng Yanyan away.
Once the crowd dispersed, Li Qiang quickly approached Lu Lin to check on her. "Are you okay, Lu Lin?"
Lu Lin ignored him and joined Su Qing and Shen Yu in discussing the situation.
Chang Hao watched Zhou Yuwen and Zheng Yanyan's retreating figures with a sense of loss. He regretted not speaking up earlier to take the bla for Zheng Yanyan, but his hesitation had cost him the opportunity.
Now that they were headed to the administration building, they'd deal with the counselor.
Shen Yu suggested that Su Qing contact the counselor to see if they could help.
Su Qing was already on the phone.
At the administration building, the instructor began discussing the matter with the director in charge of military training. The director frowned and said, "There's a situation like this?"
"Alright, Instructor Tan, I'll handle this. Thank you for your hard work," the director said, maintaining a serious deanor while playing a ga of cards on his computer. The instructor, who couldn't see the screen from where he stood, continued complaining about rules and discipline.
The director smiled and praised the instructor for his diligence, calling him a role model.
Once the instructor left, the director finally looked at Zhou Yuwen and Zheng Yanyan. Zhou Yuwen, dressed in the school-issued gray T-shirt and camouflage pants, looked tall and well-built. Zheng Yanyan, in her youthful and attractive white blouse and dark blue denim shorts, stood beside him, and it was clear they were a good-looking couple.
"So, how did you know the fence behind the cafeteria was broken?" the director asked curiously after finishing his card ga.
"I like to wander around at night. I found it by accident," Zhou Yuwen replied.
"Oh." The director nodded, noting Zheng Yanyan's bored expression.
"Girlfriend?" he asked.
"Yes," Zhou Yuwen replied.
"Boyfriend?" he asked Zheng Yanyan.
"Yep," she nodded.
"You two look like a good match."
"Hehe, thank you, Director!" Zheng Yanyan smiled, finding the director easy to talk to.
Zhou Yuwen gave Zheng Yanyan a light tap, signaling her to be more serious.
But Zheng Yanyan playfully stuck out her tongue at him.
The director, seeing this, couldn't help but smirk. With his southern accent, he said, "Young man, you're quite the romantic."
"Even bringing KFC! Is KFC that good?"
"It's delicious! Director, have you never had it?" Zheng Yanyan asked.
"What are you thinking? Of course, the director has had KFC," Zhou Yuwen teased.
Zheng Yanyan quickly added, "But what if the director's wife is strict, and he doesn't get to eat it often?"
"..." Zhou Yuwen shot her a look, and she stuck her tongue out at him again.
The director, finding their banter amusing, said, "Alright, alright, save the affection for later."
"Does that an we can go now?" Zheng Yanyan asked hopefully.
"Oh, I see you're not just pretty but also quite optimistic!"
"Hehe, thank you, Director!" Zheng Yanyan bead.
The director took a sip from his thermos and said, "During military training, there are indeed rules against storing food in the dorms."
Hearing this, Zheng Yanyan's expression fell.
But the director continued, "However, since this is your first offense, I won't give you a formal punishnt."
"Thank you, Director! You're so kind—I connected with you the mont I saw you!" Zheng Yanyan was overjoyed, relieved she wouldn't be in serious trouble.
The director waved her off, saying that while there wouldn't be any formal punishnt, they still had to face consequences for their actions.
"You each owe
a 2,000-word self-reflection essay," the director said.
"What? No way, Director! I struggle to write 800 words!" Zheng Yanyan protested, looking pitiful.
"Then have your boyfriend help you," the director suggested.
Zheng Yanyan's eyes lit up as she looked at Zhou Yuwen.
"What are you dreaming about? You're writing all 4,000 words yourself. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you," Zhou Yuwen replied, having already anticipated this outco.
"Oh, co on! What's wrong with helping your girlfriend with a little howork?"
"Get lost."
"Pretty please, boyfriend~"
After their close call, Zheng Yanyan and Zhou Yuwen's relationship deepened. Now that the crisis was over, she was in high spirits and didn't even consider maintaining a proper distance. She grabbed Zhou Yuwen's arm and began to pout and plead.
"Forget it. You're writing all 4,000 words."
"No way, boyfriend~" she continued to whine.
The director, unable to take any more, said, "You two, go flaunt your relationship elsewhere! If you keep this up, I'll punish you formally."
"Go on, get out!"
The director shooed them away, but not before reminding them not to spread the word about what happened. If the instructor asked, they were to say they'd received a major derit.
Zheng Yanyan, still a bit worried, asked, "But, Director, the instructor said we'd fail the training."
"They don't have that kind of authority."
The director confidently dismissed her concerns.
"Hehe, thank you, Director, you're the best!"
The sky had already darkened when they were being punished outside the girls' dorm.
It was completely dark when Zhou Yuwen and Zheng Yanyan left the administration building.
It was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the moon in the sky was full and bright.
To be honest, the instructor's fierce deanor had scared Zheng Yanyan earlier. Although stubborn, she was still just a girl, and the instructor's intimidating questioning made her nervous.
But in that critical mont, Zhou Yuwen had stepped in and claid the burgers were his.
Zheng Yanyan was genuinely grateful to Zhou Yuwen at that mont.
As they walked, Zheng Yanyan had been worried that she'd dragged Zhou Yuwen into trouble.
But now, she felt a lightness, a sense of relief after the storm.
Zheng Yanyan let out a long breath. "Whew, Zhou Yuwen, I was really scared back there. I thought they were going to expel ."
Her words made Zhou Yuwen chuckle. "There's no way. It was just a minor issue."
"Hehe, weren't you scared at all?"
"What was there to be scared of?"
Zhou Yuwen showed no expression, calmly walking ahead, completely unbothered.
This nonchalant attitude didn't sit well with Zheng Yanyan. "Hey, I was moved by what you did, and you're acting like you don't care at all."
"Hey, what were you thinking when you spoke up earlier?"
"What do you an?"
"Didn't you think that if you took the bla for , you might get punished instead?"
"It's just a minor issue. No one's getting punished for that."
"But what if?"
"Then I'd take the punishnt."
"So, you were ready to take the bla for ?"
"Yeah, sure."
They walked along the school's path, flanked by tall, dense tasequoia trees. The moonlight cast long, shadowy patterns on the ground, making the concrete path pale.
Their shadows stretched out on the concrete, as they exchanged words here and there.
Zheng Yanyan did most of the talking.
Zhou Yuwen answered each of her questions.
Zheng Yanyan finally said, "Zhou Yuwen, you really deserve a beating."
"Oh? So, are you going to hit ?"
Zhou Yuwen stopped in his tracks, turned, and looked at her.
Zheng Yanyan, who had been following him, was startled when he suddenly turned around.
They were standing very close. Under the moonlight, Zhou Yuwen's sharp features were especially clear.
"No," Zheng Yanyan replied, and Zhou Yuwen rolled his eyes at her.
But the corner of Zheng Yanyan's lips curled up in a mischievous smile.
Tonight's moon was exceptionally bright, casting their shadows clearly on the ground.
The boy's shadow was sharp and stood by half a head taller than the girl's.
The girl's shadow, with its long hair, slender figure, and long, shapely legs, even showed the outline of her denim shorts.
"Zhou Yuwen," she said.
"What?" he responded.
"Do you want to be my boyfriend?"
"?"
In the shadows on the ground, the girl stood on her tiptoes and turned her head before the boy could react.
"Muah."
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