Yang Le and Li Dazhuang were dumbfounded, their foreheads beading with cold sweat. This little girl was way too fierce!
Yang Le had noticed earlier that Lin Bao'er's lunchbox contained not just potato chicken but also scrambled eggs with tomatoes, along with freshly cooked rice, still steaming and fragrant. And she had just thrown it all over Xie Zhiyuan's face?
Setting aside the question of whether it was wasteful, it was clear that these two girls had packed plenty of good food in their heavy suitcases. Losing one meal was no big deal—they could always snack later. But did she not worry about burning him with the hot food?
Li Dazhuang, who had been quite upset with Tang Guo and Lin Bao'er, thinking they were heartless for not caring that Ye Qiu was being punished for their sake, suddenly felt a wave of satisfaction seeing Lin Bao'er's actions. It seemed she had just exacted a bit of revenge on Ye Qiu's behalf. His earlier frustration evaporated, and he began to find the two girls endearing.
Tang Guo looked at Lin Bao'er, speechless. "Did you really have to throw it?"
"Sister Tang Tang, didn't you tell me to?" Lin Bao'er said, holding the empty lunchbox with a pitiful expression.
"But you didn't have to throw it in his face!"
"There wasn't a trash can nearby," Lin Bao'er explained innocently.
Yang Le, Li Dazhuang, and the others nearly fainted hearing this exchange. She had dumped the food on his face just because there was no trash can nearby?
Warriors are naturally combative, and most have a violent streak. Xie Zhiyuan was now thoroughly enraged. The scalding food on his face burned like fire, and it took all his willpower not to scream out in pain. Wiping his face with his hand, he found it covered in mashed potatoes and tomato sauce.
The group of students following him, all from the Psychology Department, were stunned. Xie Zhiyuan was a well-known figure in their department, someone even upperclassmen dared not cross. But on the first day of military training, he had been humiliated like this.
One of the quicker-thinking students handed him a napkin to clean the food off his face.
"You vile woman, I'll tear you apart!" Xie Zhiyuan, no longer caring that his opponent was female, threw the soiled napkin at Lin Bao'er and charged toward her.
Yang Le quickly pulled Lin Bao'er aside and shielded both her and Tang Guo behind him, saying, "Is that all you've got? Attacking women?"
Li Dazhuang, though physically exhausted, wasn't about to let anyone harm his brother's girl. Despite carrying several lunchboxes, he positioned his scrawny body in front of Tang Guo, standing shoulder to shoulder with Yang Le.
Seeing that the Archaeology students were ready to fight, the Psychology students quickly surrounded them, creating a standoff. They had over a dozen people, giving them a clear numerical advantage.
The cafeteria was packed, and as soon as students noticed the commotion, they flocked over, crowding the northeast corner so tightly that no one could move.
"Bullying the few with the many—what kind of cowardice is that?" one male student shouted.
"Exactly. Picking on women too. What kind of man beats up his wife at home? Whoever marries him is in for a miserable life," a female student said indignantly.
"Hey, brothers, the Psychology Department is bullying our Archaeology Department! We may be few, but we won't let them trample us. Let's go—"
The Archaeology students, who had originally come just to watch, were furious to find their classmates in the middle of the conflict. With a single call to arms, the ten or so Archaeology students squeezed through the crowd to stand beside Yang Le and Li Dazhuang, creating a face-off with Xie Zhiyuan's group.
Yang Le and Li Dazhuang were surprised to see their usually reclusive dorm mate, Wu Zhengjing, join them. He even nodded at them as he did.
"Hey, that's Tang Guo!—Economics brothers, someone's trying to bully our department's princess, come help—" The moment the Economics Department students recognized Tang Guo, one of their most popular beauties, they weren't about to back down. With a shout, a hundred or so male students swarmed over. They had initially come just to watch, but now they had a chance to get involved. Each of them was eager to show off in front of the girls.
Xie Zhiyuan's face grew more and more grim as the situation escalated. Not only were the numbers now overwhelmingly against him, but the mere idea of being caught in a group fight was terrifying. This was a military camp, not school or any other place. If they were caught fighting here, he could be sent back to school immediately, facing expulsion as his inevitable fate.
Years of hard work had gotten him into a top university like Shuimu, and he wasn't ready to throw that away. Yet the idea of backing down and letting this girl get away with what she had done infuriated him. He was trapped, unsure of whether to advance or retreat.
Suddenly, there was another surge in the crowd. Someone shouted, "Make way, make way!" The voice carried an air of arrogance and roughness.
At first, the students didn't want to move, but when they saw the fierce expressions on the newcomers' faces, they realized these were not people to mess with, so they quickly stepped aside.
"Sister Tang Tang, your suitor is here," Lin Bao'er whispered, tugging on Tang Guo's sleeve.
"I see him. No need to announce it," Tang Guo replied, rolling her eyes at Lin Bao'er.
Yang Aiguo, leading his group, made his way to the center of the circle. When he saw Tang Guo and Lin Bao'er being protected by Yang Le and Li Dazhuang, he asked, "Are you okay?"
"We're fine," Tang Guo replied with a smile.
"But not for long. They want to beat me up," Lin Bao'er said, pointing at Xie Zhiyuan.
Yang Aiguo glanced around at the densely packed crowd and asked, "Where's Ye Qiu?"
"Ye Qiu's being punished with a run," Tang Guo replied, glaring at Xie Zhiyuan as she spoke.
"What happened?"
Tang Guo repeated the story Li Dazhuang had told earlier, but with her own emotional embellishments. In her version, Ye Qiu became a hero wronged by a villain, with Xie Zhiyuan cast as the traitorous villain. She made sure to speak loudly enough for everyone to hear, causing Xie Zhiyuan to repeatedly lunge forward in anger, only to stop himself each time.
Xiao Liu and his crew, who had taken a liking to Ye Qiu, were infuriated when they heard he had been tricked into running a marathon on the first day. Their resentment toward Xie Zhiyuan grew even stronger.
"Damn, the thing I hate most is a guy who talks behind people's backs. If I get the chance, I'll cut that idiot's tongue out and feed it to the dogs," Xiao Liu cursed, having been saved by Ye Qiu once. He genuinely admired Ye Qiu and was enraged to hear he had been wronged. Forgetting any sense of decorum, he began shouting insults.
"Who are you cursing?"
"I'm cursing you. What of it? You want to fight?"
"Fighting is no problem. Do you all want to take me on together, or one at a time?" Xie Zhiyuan forced a smile, realizing how much the situation had changed in just a few moments. He was now the one trying to provoke a duel.
"Oh, this idiot really wants a fight. I'll take him," Xiao Liu said, rolling up his sleeves.
Yang Le knew about Xie Zhigao's skills, so he assumed his brother wouldn't be much weaker. Fearing that Xiao Liu might get hurt, he quickly told Yang Aiguo about Xie Zhiyuan's abilities. Concerned that Xiao Liu might not be a match for him, Yang Aiguo ordered him to stand down.
"What are you all looking at? What are you looking at?—Disperse!"
At the sound of this voice, the crowd of students immediately began to scatter. They didn't need to look back to know who had arrived. The loud, authoritative voice was unmistakably that of a soldier.
A group of instructors with stern expressions approached. It was the first time in years that a group conflict had occurred on the first day of military training. The instructors had been eating lunch when the cafeteria staff reported the commotion. Initially skeptical, they were stunned when they entered the cafeteria and saw the scene for themselves.
Lei Da was among the instructors, and when he saw that the confrontation involved students from his own squad, he nearly fainted. Xie Zhiyuan had made a strong impression on him by openly challenging his appointment, and Yang Le and Li Dazhuang were always seen with Ye Qiu, who had caught Lei Da's attention. Naturally, he had taken note of these two as well.
Veins bulging on his forehead, Lei Da realized the situation had spiraled out of control.
To read the manga version, please click the YouTube link https://youtu.be/GnU613H6xm8