Chapter Seventy-Nine: With Me Here, You'll Never Go Hungry

At last, they finally reached their destination. After walking for half an hour under the blazing sun, they had arrived. The school had already cleared the weeds here beforehand and had also provided plenty of supplies.

“Rest where you are, then the boys will set up the tents, the girls will prepare the food,” the instructors of each class directed.

A chorus of groans rose from the students.

Luo Yixia sat down on the ground, drinking water. Gan Yanyan complained beside her, “What are we going to do? I can’t cook at all.”

“Me neither,” Luo Yixia shook her head and continued sipping her water.

“What are we supposed to do then?” One after another, the girls all sighed, looking worried and dejected.

In the end, the instructor began dividing them into groups. Unable to bear their distress, Song Zeming decided to mix the two classes together, so Wen Li and Song Chengyi ended up in the same group.

Song Zeming sighed softly to himself—he was making it easy for them, too.

There were six people per group, with two tents. There were already few girls in the clinical medicine major, so Luo Yixia and Gan Yanyan were assigned to Song Chengyi’s class. Apart from Yu Bin, there were two other boys whom Luo Yixia didn’t recognize.

When the groupings were announced, Gan Yanyan let out a long sigh. “We’re doomed. The two of us have to cook for six people—we’ll starve!”

Luo Yixia simply lowered her head in silence. Inwardly, she felt conflicted; she didn’t want to be with Song Chengyi, but at the same time, she didn’t want not to be.

The group gathered together.

Yu Bin greeted them with a smile, “Hey, we’re in the same group again.”

“Yes, yes, we’ll be troubling you once more, senior,” Gan Yanyan replied, her eyes crinkling into crescents as she smiled. Though she was a petite and cute girl, her manner was always boisterous and bold.

“Little junior, I didn’t expect to see you again,” one of the boys in the group suddenly said, looking at Luo Yixia.

Luo Yixia was surprised. She glanced at the boy, but didn’t recall knowing him.

Song Chengyi also lifted his eyes briefly and glanced at them.

Chen Nan, seeing that she didn’t remember, laughed and said, “On the first day, I helped you carry your luggage.”

At this, Luo Yixia seemed to find him vaguely familiar.

But not knowing what to say, she merely replied, “Thank you for your help that day, senior.”

Song Chengyi’s demeanor instantly cooled. So that day, when she refused his help, she ended up accepting help from another boy?

“What are you thanking me for? I didn’t really help. I wanted to, but you refused,” Chen Nan laughed.

That only made Luo Yixia feel more embarrassed, as if she had been ungrateful for his offer.

Hearing this, Song Chengyi felt much more at ease.

Chen Nan wanted to say more to Luo Yixia, but Song Chengyi pulled him away to set up the tents.

Yu Bin and another boy also went to help.

Yu Bin, still a bit concerned, turned back and asked, “Can you two cook?”

The two girls shook their heads in unison.

“I see. Well, just get things ready for now. It’s fine, he can cook. We’ll let him do it in a bit,” Yu Bin gestured toward Song Chengyi.

“Really? Senior Song can cook too?” Gan Yanyan was visibly excited.

“He sure can,” Yu Bin grinned mischievously.

Gan Yanyan made an “OK” sign and, together with Luo Yixia, went to collect the ingredients and cooking utensils.

The two girls queued up, looking at the prepared portions ahead of them.

Gan Yanyan whispered, “I used to think the school was stingy, but they’re being pretty generous this time. Look at all these supplies, for so many students—must be thousands—what a big investment.”

“Just wait, in the end, we’ll have to pay for all this,” Luo Yixia, well-versed in the school’s ways, replied.

Gan Yanyan pouted, “Typical school move.”

When it was their turn, Song Zeming handed them their items and said, “If you need anything, come find me.”

“Thank you, Instructor,” Gan Yanyan replied at once.

Luo Yixia carried the food, while Gan Yanyan lugged a pot, six sets of bowls and chopsticks, and several plates back to their group.

It had to be said, the school had chosen a wonderful spot this time. An entire hillside, probably taken up entirely by students from A University. There was even a small stream running through the valley. Each group was close to the water.

Luo Yixia surveyed the food: everything was portioned and even the seasonings were complete. Now, all that was left was to wash and cut the ingredients.

“Yanyan, take the pot and tableware to the stream so we can wash them,” Luo Yixia said, picking up the vegetables and heading over.

The two girls squatted by the stream.

Gan Yanyan asked, “Do you know how to cook?”

“No, but I know how to wash vegetables.” It was true—Luo Yixia had barely ever entered a kitchen, having been pampered since childhood. She’d only occasionally helped Zhou Yun wash some vegetables and dishes.

Luo Yixia swiftly washed the tableware.

“Xiaxia, we have cabbage, broccoli, eggs, a chicken leg, and rice,” Gan Yanyan said, unpacking the food.

“Let’s tear the cabbage and broccoli to wash them,” Luo Yixia suggested, though she wasn’t entirely sure herself.

The two of them washed everything several times.

“Xiaxia, do you think the stream water is clean?” Gan Yanyan looked at the clear water, but wondered how many bacteria might be in it.

“Don’t worry, cooking will kill any germs,” Luo Yixia replied. She had spent her early years living with her grandparents in the countryside; if not for recent events with Song Chengyi, she would have spent this summer there as usual.

When the two returned, the boys had already set up one of the tents.

“Wow, you’re so fast!” Gan Yanyan ran over.

“Are you done preparing the food?” Yu Bin asked, seeing them carrying so much.

“It’s ready, but we don’t know how to cook,” Luo Yixia said, lowering her head.

“It’s time for our head chef Song to step up,” Yu Bin chuckled, pushing Song Chengyi forward.

Another boy added, “You go help them cook, we’ll set up the other tent.”

“Yu Bin, you guys should go gather some dry wood—we need to make a fire,” Song Chengyi instructed after a glance.

“Alright, we’ll go now,” Yu Bin replied, taking Gan Yanyan with him to gather firewood nearby.

The other two continued working on the tent.

So, Luo Yixia and Song Chengyi ended up alone together once again.

Balancing the ingredients awkwardly, Luo Yixia said, “So… what do we do?”

Song Chengyi seemed unfazed. “Did you wash everything?”

“Yes.”

“Give them to me,” he said, taking the food and beginning to prepare it on a flat patch of ground.

Luo Yixia stood by, feeling a little bored. She regretted not joining the others to collect firewood.

“Hand me a plate,” Song Chengyi requested.

Luo Yixia quickly brought one over for him to hold the vegetables.

As she watched Song Chengyi work, Luo Yixia glanced around. Everyone was busy with their own tasks, paying no attention to them.

She muttered softly, “The school is really putting us through it. Who knows when we’ll actually eat?”

“It’s only five days. After that, we go back to base for training,” Song Chengyi replied without looking up.

“But here, we can’t shower, and we have to fend for ourselves,” Luo Yixia said with a sigh.

“Don’t worry. With me here, you won’t go hungry,” Song Chengyi said, looking up at her drooping head.

Luo Yixia looked up as well, her eyes suddenly bright. She nodded, “Okay.”

Song Chengyi then got up, found some large stones to support the iron pot, and began to set up the cooking station.

Just then, Gan Yanyan returned with an armful of firewood.

“There’s plenty more with Yu Bin. I brought some back first,” she said, dropping the wood before hurrying off to gather more.

Luo Yixia watched as Song Chengyi took out a bundle of paper from his backpack and easily got a fire started.

He cooked with practiced ease, while Luo Yixia quietly handed him whatever he needed.

By the time Yu Bin and the others returned, the dishes were already done; most of the other groups were just starting their fires.

Luo Yixia’s admiration for Song Chengyi grew.

When the last dish was finished, everyone else had wrapped up their tasks and now gathered around, waiting for the rice to cook.

“It smells so good. I’m starving,” Gan Yanyan said, casting longing glances at the food Song Chengyi had made.

Yu Bin called everyone over, “Since we have some free time, let’s talk about what to do next. We’ll be living here for five days.”

“First, the school will provide food, and we’ve set up our tents. What we’ll need is firewood, which we can collect ourselves,” Yu Bin began.

Song Chengyi added, “The afternoons are all free, so you should gather as much firewood as possible. With so many students, dry wood will become harder to find.”

Everyone agreed.

“I checked the schedule. Other than distributing food, the school won’t oversee us these five days. That means we won’t be able to shower, but there’s a stream right here,” Song Chengyi explained, and everyone understood.

“We guys can manage, but for the two girls…” Yu Bin glanced at the two girls, both sweating, especially Gan Yanyan, whose face was a mess after running around for firewood.

“I’m fine,” Luo Yixia said, shaking her head. “I brought several sets of clothes, so I can change.”

“If I’d known, I wouldn’t have brought all those useless things. I even brought dresses and a ton of makeup. Look, my makeup’s ruined,” Gan Yanyan said, covering her face.

“I’ll take you to wash up,” Luo Yixia said, pulling Gan Yanyan toward the stream.

Watching their retreating figures, Chen Nan commented, “There are so few girls in our department. I noticed all the other groups are just boys.”

“I saw that too. We’re lucky—two cute junior girls,” another boy said.

Song Chengyi pressed his lips together, while Yu Bin glanced at him, sensing that he wasn’t particularly pleased.

After Gan Yanyan had washed her face clean, she sighed with relief, “That’s much better.”

Luo Yixia washed up as well, her bangs now damp.

Gan Yanyan eyed Luo Yixia’s long hair, tied up at the back, and voiced her concern, “Your hair is so long. How will you manage? A month of military training—you’ll roast.”

Luo Yixia fell silent. Song Chengyi had suggested she cut it short, but she hadn’t been able to bring herself to do it.

Now, the thought of not being able to wash her hair was already troubling enough.