Early July 2020.
The room was dark and was dimly lit only by the small table lamp glowing a feeble yellow.
The curtains rustled as night winds blew against them. The gloomy room was as silent as a graveyard.
Click. Someone pushed the tightly shut door open.
The lamplight shined downwards, bouncing off a pair of polished military combat boots walking over a slightly decrepit floor.
The person who entered the room stopped in front of the mirror, taking off their sweat-drenched jacket using the light available to see what they were doing.
The person began to undress, one piece of clothing at a time until all that was left was a strange white bandage across their chest.
Xiao Jing: the fourth son of the Xiao family. They hailed from one of the Empire's Three Great Families. Xiao Jing was born into the Xiaos by the third wife of Great Marshal Xiao.
Over the generations, the Xiaos had produced five Marshals and countless Generals. The family was extremely powerful and influential and led a quarter of the Empire's military.
An unspoken rule formed: the Xiao family would never have daughters! The Xiaos would produce Generals and Generals only!
Xiao Jing smiled wryly as she undid the white bandage across her chest. Her nerves, which had been highly strung all day, slowly began to relax.
The torso that seemed quite flat at first now looked slightly arched. Was that a woman's body?
Xiao Jing couldn't help but let a bitter smile spread across her face. She could almost hear her mother's worried words before she entered the force.
"Jing, I won't be disappointed even if you don't bring honor and glory to the family, so long as you make it through the five years in one piece. No matter what, you must remember that you are not a man."
Yes, how could she ever forget? She was not a man.
"Jing, I know that you're upset and angry with me, but I had no choice! The Grand Madame sees no one but her grandsons!"
She was right. In the eyes of the Grand Madame, the one most esteemed in the family, the only people that mattered were her grandsons.
Xiao Yu. The eldest brother. Leader of the Empire's Eight Great Generals.
Xiao Hong. The second elder brother. Deputy Head of the Empire's Highest Office of General Staff.
Xiao Zheng. The third elder brother. Head Executive of the Special Forces Third Team.
Xiao Ye. The fifth child and her younger brother. Rumor has it that there was an unprecedented decision to promote him, making him the youngest General of the Empire.
When she thought about that, Xiao Jing could not help but ruffle her hair in slight embarrassment. Despite how large the Xiao family was, she seemed to be the worst in terms of performance. She had been in the military for three years, but she was still an insignificant Second Lieutenant.
She dropped the white bandage and fell flat onto her planked wood bed.
The light in the room was far too dim, and moonlight spilled onto the floor. Xiao Jing was in Jiana Border City, which was three thousand kilometers from the Capital City. Her mother had called in favors to send her to the border. It was for one reason that they both knew: even if people saw her as a good-for-nothing, they could not discover that she was not a man.
The night grew silent.
The next day, a series of hurried footsteps drew near as they marched down the corridors. Then, without hesitation, the visitor knocked on the last room along the hallway.
Xiao Jing opened her eyes in sleepy confusion. Her mind went blank for a split second as she woke up startled.
"We have guests, Deputy Commander. Are you up?" the man at the door asked urgently.
Xiao Jing leaped off the bed almost instinctively. She hastily put on her clothes while keeping her eyes fixed on the locked door.
Creak. The door opened from the inside.
Upon seeing that Xiao Jing had opened the door, the soldier caught his breath slightly before he continued, "We received an urgent message. The higher-ups will be sending a Commander over in two hours."
Xiao Jing could not help but frown at his words, "Reason?"
"I heard that they've sent someone from the Special Command Unit."
Xiao Jing's expression became solemn at his words. They were in a god-forsaken border city in the middle of nowhere. All they have were rich men still leeching off their families. It couldn't be that the higher-ups were dreaming about scouting talents from a bunch of wealthy boys who couldn't eat without being served by their servants?
"Deputy Commander, the Captain needs you right now. It seems like our guest today is quite the VIP."
Xiao Jing gave a slight nod as she headed downstairs.
The morning rays stung her eyes. When Xiao Jing exited the barracks, a jeep drove straight towards her without braking.
The jeep pulled to a sudden stop when it was only a mere step away from Xiao Jing.
"What's going on?" An officer quickly snapped out of the scare and immediately ran towards them. He glared at the jeep that tried to run riot in an army camp.
A man got out of the jeep. With a straightened back and puffed chest, he stated, "I am Major Mu Xichi from Military Area SS501. We contacted Commander Lian Qing of your camp before making our way here."
When the officer saw the glistening epaulet on his shoulder that had two stripes and a star, he hurriedly stood in attention and saluted firmly. "Yes, Sir."
Mu Xichi looked at the unresponsive Xiao Jing. He retracted the stern look on his face and waved a hand in front of her face. "Scared stiff?"
Xiao Jing quickly recovered and noticed the man's rank. She answered, "Yes, Sir. I am Deputy Commander Xiao Jing."
"Where's your Commander?" Mu Xichi looked around and saw nothing but calm. It was long past the time for morning training, but the grounds were unusually quiet and vacant.
Xiao Jing tugged at the officer's jacket and asked quietly, "Yeah, where's our Commander?"
The officer replied in a hushed voice, "He's knocking the doors one by one. The young masters always sleep until the sun is high in the sky. They never wake up before noon."
Xiao Jing stole a glance at the smiling Major. She wondered if he genuinely planned to bring back a phoenix egg or two among the second and third-generation wealthy sons to hatch and train.
Mu Xichi glanced at his watch and told the soldier behind him, "Sound the air-raid siren."
The soldier dared not waste another second and sounded the siren as fast as possible.
Loud warning sirens echoed the entire camp area.
The soldiers, who were taking their sweet time dressing, bolted out of their rooms when they heard the alarm, panic-stricken. Some didn't even manage to button their pants properly, falling on their faces as they tripped over themselves.
The Commander of the camp was none other than Lian Qing, the current Deputy. He was the first to make it to the parade square when he heard the siren go off.
"What's going on? Who sounded the alarm?" A man quickly ran to the field, still holding his pants up with his hand.
"Silence." Lian Qing noticed the unfamiliar face not far away. He knew that he had to be the big shot that the higher-ups had informed him of.
Mu Xichi seemed to be saying something to the man in the vehicle. It was quite clear that the man still sitting in the car must be the mysterious big shot.
Upon receiving the affirmative, Mu Xichi nodded and directed his gaze back at the sorry-looking team. He said, "I am here for a single reason. Steel Eagle, a special forces team under Task Force S, is recruiting new blood. Is there anyone who would like to volunteer?"
Not a single person on the vast parade square dared to make a sound.
Xiao Jing stood at the very front of the team. She could not help but ridicule them in her mind. So they were trying to find a phoenix from a pack of wild pheasants, and they dreamed of finding a high-grade golden phoenix at that.
He was a big shot, all right. They would do anything that made him happy.
"Looks like no one has got the guts to step up." Mu Xichi looked at Commander Lian Qing, who stood in front as their leader. "I am very disappointed in you."
After he said that, he made a thumbs up at everyone, then slowly turned it down so his thumb pointed directly at the ground.
It was an unmistakable insult. A blatant insult.
Lian Qing straightened as though someone had pointed a dagger at his back. His reply was powerful and resonating, "We would lay our lives down to serve the people! All soldiers are to charge ahead! Ten Obstacle Course!"
The moment Lian Qing said that, the group of hot-blooded youths pulled their pants up and charged. They scaled the tall walls, crawled under the barbed wire, jumped over bars with a single arm, and then propelled themselves across the muddy pits.
Everyone was beyond excited because they could finally complete all ten obstacles in one go.
Xiao Jing was the third to finish. She stood with the team as she panted profusely, her posture rigid. She was quick to complete the course. The quality of her course completion, however, was questionable.
Oh, well. As long as she was happy.
Mu Xichi couldn't help but raise his eyebrows at the team falling left and right despite being so fired up. Were the higher-ups serious when they wanted them to choose a man for Steel Eagle from the pathetic soldiers?
The more he thought about it, the more his head hurt. These men? He was tempted to break their bones with a slap so that they knew just how lacking they were.
It was a complete waste of time trying to recruit from these people here, f*ck.
Thud! The jeep shook slightly as a man stepped out of the vehicle. He wore a pair of combat boots as well as an army cap. He had a cape wrapped around his shoulders, which gave him an eerie, menacing aura, as if warning all strangers to keep their distance.
Xiao Jing stared at the figure that walked straight at them, tongue-tied and wide-eyed. She looked up and saw the burning sun right over their heads. The man had wrapped himself like a rice dumpling in such scorching weather. Was he trying to make a statement? A dazzling entrance befitting for a big shot who always enters last?
Mu Xichi quickly stood straight and saluted once he saw the man come. "We found no suitable candidates, Commander."
The sunglasses he wore reflected the sunlight away from his eyes so that nobody could see the gaze hidden behind the glasses. However, everyone present could feel the crushing mental pressure that spilled from him. Although he was wearing lots of layers, the first impression he gave was intense coldness. Like a sudden snowfall in the middle of winter, his aura was cold enough to make their teeth chatter.
"You, you, you, and you. The four of you are to try again." He picked the soldiers out one after another in an icy tone. The gloves the man wore were unusual, Xiao Jing noticed.
Xiao Jing stared at him in surprise, because he had called her name as well.
She clenched her fist unwittingly. A drop of warm sweat rolled down her forehead.
"You're Xiao Jing!" The man said her name.
Xiao Jing stiffened, surprised that the stranger knew her.
"Take off your clothes."
"What?" Xiao Jing blurted.
"You're burning up." The man's glove paused on her forehead.
Xiao Jing fell a step back subconsciously. She stared intently at the man in front of her without batting an eye. She didn't know if the sun was too blinding or if she was honestly baking, but she could feel her sweat drip through her clothes one drop at a time, slowly drenching her entire shirt.
Mu Xichi scanned them and sneered coldly. "A bunch of useless soldiers. They are nothing but a waste of our time. Are we still going to watch, Commander?"
"While we might not be those guys from the special forces, we are all soldiers with backbone and hot blood! Take your clothes off, brothers! Let's do this seriously."
The riled soldiers were all fired up as they threw their clothes onto the ground, giving everything they had and charging as if their lives depended on it.
All except for Xiao Jing, who remained still on the field.
She could easily hide her capabilities and disguise as a useless good-for-nothing. However, there was no fucking way to bluff her way out over this thing on her chest!
What was she supposed to do? She would look terribly out of place amid topless men if she refused to take off her top, but she'd look even more suspicious if she took it off.
The man laid his flickering gaze on Xiao Jing, who froze rooted to the ground.
Lian Qing followed his gaze and quickly walked up to Xiao Jing, frowning. "Why aren't you undressing?"
"I don't feel hot." Xiao Jing explained with a false smile.