Chapter 24

Next to her, Li Jiao heard every word of the conversation among the girls.

Suddenly she realized, yeah, with the instructor being so handsome, he wouldn’t be married early, would he?

Li Jiao lifted her head and looked not far away, where the tall and slender figure was surrounded by several boys from the class, chattering away.

Because it was an art class, most of the students were girls, with fewer boys. Boys naturally admired the strong. Zhang Jiuling’s temperament was already formidable, plus, being born as a Special Forces soldier, and a few days ago they saw Zhang Jiuling demonstrate that set of military boxing, flowing like clouds, every punch powerful!

In an instant, they were conquered. They preferred talking to the instructor during breaks rather than chatting with the girls.

Zhang Jiuling stood there, surrounded by five or six boys. Even from a distance, Li Jiao could feel the cold aura emanating from him, his lips slightly pursed, his features elegant, and those black pupils slightly cold but not impatient.

One boy, with a playful smile, was doing military boxing in front of him.

“Instructor, how’s my self-created move, the Da Peng Spreads its Wings?”

(T/N:The Da Peng Niao, where “Da” means “big” or “great” and “Niao” means “bird,” is the largest bird in Chinese mythology. It was first recorded in the Taoist classic, Zhuang Zi, an ancient text from the late Warring States period (476–221 BCE), where it states the Da Peng Niao can transform into a massive sea creature named Kun and vice versa.)

As he spoke, the boy stood on one leg and flapped his arms vigorously in the air.

Zhang Jiuling glanced at him lightly, raising an eyebrow slightly.

In the same cool tone, “Call it Chick Takes Flight.”

“Pfft—”

“Hahaha…”

At the words, several boys nearby burst into laughter.

“Hahaha, Huang Yuan, give it a rest. With your build, you’re more like a chick than a Da Peng.”

“Yeah, hahaha, Huang Yuan, listen to the instructor and just call it Chick Takes Flight; it’s more fitting, hahaha.”

The boy called Huang Yuan, chubby, awkwardly scratched the back of his head, looking at Zhang Jiuling.

“Instructor, do you think I have talent in martial arts? My lifelong dream has been to be a hero who saves the people! What do you think, Instructor?”

The chubby boy looked at him expectantly, his triple chin almost popping out. Zhang Jiuling raised an eyelid, glancing at him.

“Find a different dream.”

…

Not far away, those boys were laughing and joking with the instructor, but Li Jiao, watching, couldn’t quite feel happy.

Instructor, does he have a girlfriend or not?

“Linlin,” she called out to the person beside her. Su Linlin was talking to Zhang Yue, and both of them stopped to look at her.

“Jiao Jiao, what’s up?”

Glancing at the two, Li Jiao bit her lip and asked, torn with indecision.

“Linlin, boss, do you think the instructor is single?”

Zhang Yue scratched his head. “Well, he’s so stern, I don’t think so.”

“Not necessarily,” Su Linlin said. “It’s possible that the instructor has a girlfriend, and he’s just being reserved, keeping his distance from others.”

At her words, Zhang Yue nodded.

“Sounds reasonable.”

Their conversation left Li Jiao even more uncertain, feeling a bit flustered.

“Instructor, the instructor probably doesn’t have a girlfriend, right?”

If the instructor really did have a girlfriend, and she had been crushing on him for so long…

Seeing her like this, Su Linlin could guess a bit. Li Jiao had been staring at the instructor every day for the past few days, her gaze burning with desire. Su Linlin wasn’t stupid. How could she not see that Li Jiao had developed feelings for him?

Unfortunately, Zhang Yue didn’t catch on, speaking bluntly.

“Hey, what does it matter to us whether he has a girlfriend or not?”

Su Linlin nudged her, stopping her from speaking. Then, she looked at Li Jiao, who was clearly feeling down, and comforted her.

“Jiao Jiao, don’t worry, we were just talking nonsense.”

“Instructors like him, who seem so difficult to approach, probably don’t have girlfriends.”

Li Jiao pursed her lips, absentmindedly nodding. It was obvious she was still feeling low.

Zhang Yue, puzzled beside them, said, “Hey, why don’t we just ask if he has a girlfriend? Then we’ll know.”

“Just wait, Jiao; I’ll ask for you.”

With that, Zhang Yue got up, pretending to walk towards Zhang Jiuling.

“Hey, boss, boss, boss.”

Li Jiao and Su Linlin quickly pulled her back.

“Boss, boss, don’t go, don’t go.”

Su Linlin held her back and said, “Are you crazy? You’re just going to run over there and ask him?”

Zhang Yue, perhaps sun-dazed, asked in a silly manner, “If we don’t ask, how will we know if he’s single or not?”

Su Linlin thought for a moment, then turned and looked at the instructor from the next class. She smirked, “Got it.”

Immediately, the three of them found a classmate from the next class whom they knew, and together they blended into the crowd of the next class.

The next class was on break. A bunch of people were sitting in a circle on the ground, with the instructor in the middle, telling a story.

He spoke in a Sichuanese accent, passionate and stirring.

“Let me tell you, back in our time, we carried guns and ammunition…”

The group of people surrounded him, hanging on to his every word.

Li Jiao and her friends slipped in behind the classmates from the next class, successfully blending into the crowd.

After the classmate from the next class sat down, she started chatting with the person next to her, probably her roommate.

After a while, she turned around and said to Li Jiao and the others, “When the time comes, we’ll start the commotion first, and then you guys ask the questions.”

Su Linlin nodded, made an OK gesture, then turned to Li Jiao and Zhang Yue, who both nodded in agreement.

The instructor from the next class, Instructor Liu, who had previously helped Li Jiao when she fainted, was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the grass, spitting while he talked.

“Really, let me tell you guys, the situation back then was really urgent; you can’t imagine how…”

He went on and on, his mouth drying up, and he paused for a moment.

The classmate from the next class, following the plan, started the commotion.

“Instructor, oh, we’ve heard all this before; can you tell us something else?”

“Yeah, instructor, tell us something different.”

“Instructor, talk about something else; tell us about the other instructors.”

The classmate’s roommate also joined in enthusiastically, adding fuel to the fire.

Instructor Liu wiped the sweat from his forehead. “What do you want me to talk about?”

At this moment, Su Linlin quickly jumped in and said, “How about talking about the instructor from Class 1?”

After speaking, she quickly withdrew her head.

The classmates from Class 2 started to join in the commotion.

“Yeah, instructor, tell us about the instructor from Class 1.”

“That’s right, tell us about him.”

“Talk about the instructor from Class 1.”

The other classmates from Class 2 also caught on. The instructor from Class 1? Wasn’t he the really handsome one?

For a moment, the whole group joined in the commotion.

“That’s right, Instructor, tell us about him.”

“Instructor, talk about the instructor from Class 1.”

“Tell us, tell us.”

…

The group was buzzing with excitement and chatter.

Instructor Liu waved his hand, and gradually the voices quieted down.

Looking at everyone, he gave a knowing smile and said, “Oh, I know.”

“You guys just want to hear about how handsome he is.”

At his words, everyone chuckled sheepishly.

Instructor Liu cleared his throat. “Alright, I’ll tell you a bit about the instructor from Class 1.”

Among the crowd, Li Jiao heard this and felt her heart leap into her throat.

Her big, watery eyes blinked steadily, fixedly staring at the instructor from Class 2.

Facing the expectant gazes of the crowd, Instructor Liu smiled and began.

“Well, actually, I don’t know him very well.”

“Ah~”

“But I’ve heard some things.”

“The instructor from Class 1 used to be in the special forces; he’s really amazing.”

“Wow~”

The crowd sighed in admiration, and Instructor Liu looked as if he were basking in the praise, continuing on.

“He, he just retired this year and was supposed to go back to Beijing. I heard that it was because the original instructor for Class 1 was suddenly called for a mission, so he came over to help.”

Oh, so that’s how it is.

Li Jiao and the other three students from Class 1 nodded silently in the crowd.

But that’s not the key point.

Su Linlin glanced at Li Jiao and gritted her teeth, thinking, “Jiao Jiao, I’m going all out for your love.”

Then she raised her head and boldly spoke up.

“Instructor, does he have a girlfriend?”

At her words, Instructor Liu turned his head. Seeing an unfamiliar face, he furrowed his brows.

“You are…”

As he spoke, he noticed Li Jiao beside her; this girl seemed familiar. “Hey, you are…”

Just as he was about to speak, the classmates from Class 2—those classmates from Class 2 were afraid that they would be seen and recognized—quickly chimed in.

“Instructor, does the instructor from Class 1 have a girlfriend?”

“That’s right, Instructor, he’s so handsome; does he have a girlfriend?”

“Instructor, please tell us.”

…

Other people were also curious, and with those classmates interrupting, everyone else joined in, asking questions one after another, which effectively diverted attention away from Li Jiao and her friends.

After hearing the answer, the three of them quickly slipped out of the crowd of students from Class 2.

Su Linlin said, “So, Jiao Jiao, feeling relieved now?”

Li Jiao nodded, thinking of what the instructor from Class 2 had said earlier.

“Girlfriend?”

“Well, let me put it this way: I’ve known him for so long, and I’ve never seen him with a girl beside him, except for his comrades or military medics.”

“And he used to be in the special forces, so besides missions, it’s all training every day, no time for dating.”

Great, the instructor doesn’t have a girlfriend; does that mean she has a chance?

With that thought, Li Jiao suddenly felt jubilant, a sweet smile forming on her lips, revealing two adorable dimples.

“But, whether this instructor has a girlfriend or not, what does it have to do with us?”

“We’re not his mother; why bother about his lifelong affairs?”

Even now, Zhang Yue still hadn’t figured out what was going on.

Su Linlin, beside her, couldn’t help but sigh, “Boss, I really worry for your future boyfriend.”

Back in their classroom seats, another round of training began quickly.

Zhang Jiuling soon noticed that the girl was acting strangely again; her fiery gaze fixed on him, and wherever he went, her eyes followed.

With her burning gaze, she seemed determined to grill him thoroughly.

Later, because she kept staring at him, she made a mistake in one of her movements. Zhang Jiuling pulled her out and, as usual, punished her with twenty squats.

The girl didn’t seem unhappy either, doing the squats while still looking at him, a smile lingering on her lips.

It was just… very peculiar.

Could it be that his training intensity was so great that it had made her lose her mind?

When the training ended, the girl was still acting strangely. She ran up to him, smiling brightly.

“Instructor, see you tomorrow.”

With that, she ran off.

Watching her disappearing figure, Zhang Jiuling furrowed his brow slightly, rare confusion flashing in his cold eyes.

This… was truly baffling.

“Boss.”

Turning around, the instructor from Class 2 approached, glancing at the direction Zhang Jiuling had been looking before, and chuckled.

“Boss, that girl is quite interesting.”

At his words, Zhang Jiuling’s brow furrowed even deeper as he replied with a clear voice.

“What’s wrong with her?”

Instructor Liu smiled and said.

“Today, she sneaked into my class and asked me a question.”

“What question?”

“She asked if you had a girlfriend.”

Zhang Jiuling’s eyes flickered slightly as he looked at him. “What did you say?”

Instructor Liu shrugged casually. “Of course, I told her the truth. I said that you, such a handsome, charming, and dashing guy, are still single. It’s truly envy-inducing.”

As he spoke, he even sighed with admiration.

So that’s how it was. Zhang Jiuling turned his head again to look in the direction where the girl had run off, but she was nowhere to be seen.

Suddenly, his cold and lonely eyes seemed to change, and his lips curled slightly, as if he had smiled.

Did the fact that he didn’t have a girlfriend make her so happy?

“Hey, seriously, boss, when are you going to get a girlfriend?”

“You’re so outstanding; which girl are you going to spoil?”

Beside him, Instructor Liu leaned in, gossiping.

“Boss, when are you going to sort out your lifelong affairs?”

Zhang Jiuling turned his head, the curve of his lips diminishing, and glanced lightly at the person full of gossip.

His voice was clear, with a hint of a Beijing accent.

“You don’t have one yourself; why worry about others?”

“Mind your own business.”

Mind your own business.

*Splutter—*

Critical hit!

The single dog, Liuzi, received 10,000 points of damage from Zhang Jiuling.

Boss, I’m just looking out for you.

How could you treat me like this, oh…

Tears couldn’t help but flow.

－－－－－－Side Note by The Original Author－－－－－－

Regarding the scenario where Zhang Jiuling, a retired special forces soldier, comes to university to assist with military training, I’m not sure if this is realistic. It’s just for the sake of the plot, so let’s not get too caught up in the details. Anyway, the instructor for our military training was a member of the People’s Armed Police who came to help out. Consider it a special case.