Chapter 80: Brothers in Hardship

"Let's head back. I'm starving, and the meal should be ready by now." Gan Yanyan tugged Luo Yixia along as they walked back.

Perhaps it was the satisfaction of having worked for their food, or simply the hunger gnawing at them, but that meal tasted especially delicious to everyone.

Song Chengyi’s group ended up being among the fastest to finish eating. While others were still ravenous, they had already cleaned their plates.

After the meal, Luo Yixia proactively offered to help tidy up. "I’ll wash the dishes. You all have been working hard for a while—take a break."

"I'll help you," Gan Yanyan said, rising to her feet.

"No need, you gathered so much firewood already. Rest a bit—you'll need to keep at it this afternoon," Luo Yixia replied considerately.

Gan Yanyan was indeed exhausted. She never did such chores at home, and today had been a long day of travel and carrying firewood.

"Let me help you, junior," Chen Nan offered, standing up.

"It's all right, I can manage," Luo Yixia refused out of habit.

"There’s too much to carry in one trip. Let me help you take it over," Chen Nan insisted, picking up the dishes and heading toward the stream.

Luo Yixia had no choice but to gather the remaining items and follow.

Song Chengyi sat beneath a tree, glancing up to watch the pair walk away.

Chen Nan set the dishes down by the water and, instead of leaving, crouched beside her. "How do you wash these, anyway?"

"It’s fine, senior. I can handle it myself," Luo Yixia replied.

"I'll help you," Chen Nan persisted, and Luo Yixia felt it would seem unfriendly to refuse again.

Skillfully, Luo Yixia applied detergent to soak the dishes, setting them aside. "We should wait a bit before washing. There might still be people downstream using this water," she observed, noting that most were only just starting their meals.

"Do you often do chores at home?" Chen Nan asked curiously.

Luo Yixia shook her head. "Not really. Sometimes I help... help my mother wash dishes," she said, biting her lip. In truth, it was Song Chengyi’s mother she’d helped—never her own. If she ventured into her own kitchen, her mother would chase her out. Over time, she simply stopped trying.

They chatted idly by the riverbank, mostly Chen Nan talking and Luo Yixia responding in short sentences.

Luo Yixia was the sort who struggled to converse with strangers, but once she became familiar, she was warm and open.

After a while, seeing most people had finished eating, Luo Yixia started washing the dishes. It wasn’t as comfortable as doing it at home, so she worked quickly, making sure to rinse everything thoroughly.

On the way back, Chen Nan carried the dishes.

"Where should we put these? There’ll be quite a few bugs out here," Yu Bin wondered aloud.

"Let's keep them in our tent. It's more spacious with just the two of us," Gan Yanyan suggested, glancing around and finding nowhere else suitable.

The tent was indeed large—enough for three or four people—so it was more than enough for just Gan Yanyan and Luo Yixia.

Once everything was stowed away, the group decided to head out together to collect more firewood.

With everyone’s agreement, they set off to search the hills while most of their classmates rested.

They split into two groups of three—each with two boys and a girl. Luo Yixia, Song Chengyi, and Chen Nan were grouped together.

"Don’t wander too far," Song Chengyi reminded them twice. "The signal here isn’t great, so you might not get any calls. Just look nearby." Even though the place was full of students on military training, they were still in the wild and needed to be careful.

Luo Yixia kept her head down, picking up sticks, but before she could gather many, they would be taken off her hands by either Chen Nan or Song Chengyi.

Song Chengyi was usually cold and distant, but today he seemed... different. Luo Yixia touched her head, wondering at the change that had come over him.

Song Chengyi was never talkative, while Chen Nan seemed eager to get close to Luo Yixia, seizing every chance to chat.

Watching the lively conversation ahead, Song Chengyi felt an unexplainable frustration smolder in his chest.

Walking alongside Luo Yixia, Chen Nan lowered his voice. "I’ve noticed all the other girls like to throw themselves at Song Chengyi. You’re the only one who keeps your distance, almost as if you’re avoiding him. Is it because, like me, you think he’s arrogant and odd?"

The sudden question caught Luo Yixia off guard.

Chen Nan’s assessment of Song Chengyi’s arrogance and oddness was not far from her own impression, but her real reason for avoiding him was something else entirely—she was afraid someone might discover her secret.

Still, she could only manage an awkward smile.

Taking her smile as agreement, Chen Nan became even more spirited, talking on with renewed enthusiasm.

Behind them, Song Chengyi saw the two chatting and laughing together, and his irritation only grew.

"Luo Yixia! Time to head back," Song Chengyi called out abruptly.

They both turned to look at him, noting the jealous glint in his eye as he stood not far away.

Luo Yixia jogged over. "Are we leaving already?"

Song Chengyi replied coolly, "What else would we do? Stay and let you two keep putting horns on my head?"

With that, he strode off ahead.

Chen Nan gathered up the firewood. "Ignore him. He’s always like that. Besides, we’ve collected plenty—let’s go back," he said.

"All right," Luo Yixia agreed, seeing they had indeed gathered enough for several meals.

When the three of them returned, Yu Bin’s group had not yet come back. They bumped into Song Zeming.

Song Zeming looked at the trio carrying wood. "Not bad—already stockpiling supplies," he said with a smile.

Song Chengyi kept his face stony, while Luo Yixia smiled.

"Song Chengyi, come with me," Song Zeming said, eyeing his younger brother’s sour expression.

Song Chengyi put down the firewood in their group’s area and followed Song Zeming aside.

Luo Yixia and Chen Nan stored the firewood.

"Is that how you greet your brother after so long?" Song Zeming frowned, watching Song Chengyi lean against a tree, making no effort to be cordial.

"What are you doing back here?" Song Chengyi looked up, a hint of annoyance in his tone.

Song Zeming couldn’t help but laugh. "Hey, have you forgotten this is my home too? It’s perfectly normal for me to come home."

"I meant, can’t you stay home unless you have business? Why come to school?" Song Chengyi grumbled.

"There you go, not even three sentences in and you’re already impatient. How could Xia Xia ever like you?" Song Zeming stroked his chin.

Just the mention of Luo Yixia made Song Chengyi bristle. The memory of her chatting so happily with Chen Nan stoked his anger again.

"So my little brother is finally growing up. You used to be indifferent about everything, but now you know what it is to be jealous," Song Zeming teased, reaching out to ruffle Song Chengyi’s hair.

Song Chengyi dodged. "What are you doing? I’m not a kid anymore," he said, coughing awkwardly.

"You’ll always be my little brother," Song Zeming said, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

Song Chengyi turned his face away.

"You’ve gotten your marriage certificate?" Song Zeming raised an eyebrow.

"Mm," Song Chengyi replied offhandedly.

"Was it sincere?"

"Mm."

"You two have a strange dynamic, though. Look, she’s standing beside another guy right now," Song Zeming noted, both of them turning to look at Luo Yixia.

She was watching them too.

Song Zeming waved with a smile.

Chen Nan asked, "Is Instructor Song waving at us?"

"I have no idea."

"Did they clash in that PK before? Their atmosphere seems odd," Chen Nan remarked.

Luo Yixia said nothing.

"Our affairs are ours to handle," Song Chengyi said, shrugging off Song Zeming’s arm.

"Tsk tsk, still so unsociable," Song Zeming grinned, stepping back.

"Also, she doesn’t want anyone else knowing about us, so don’t let anything slip," Song Chengyi added before heading off.

Back at the tents, Chen Nan asked, "What did Instructor Song say? Was it about the PK earlier?"

"He just said we should let him know before going out and to be careful," Song Chengyi replied, stealing a glance at Luo Yixia.

Yu Bin’s group returned late, but they’d managed to find far more firewood—almost twice as much as Song Chengyi’s group.

"Where did you find so much?" Luo Yixia marveled.

"The hillside is full of it. Quick, give me some water—I’m dying of thirst," Gan Yanyan said, gulping down a few mouthfuls as soon as she got her bottle.

Yu Bin collapsed on the ground, exhausted. "I could use a cold shower right now."

"Go ahead, there’s a river—pure and clean," Chen Nan joked.

"I’d love to, but there are too many girls around," Yu Bin laughed.

Gan Yanyan leaned against Luo Yixia. "Xia Xia, my clothes are soaked. It’s miserable."

"Bear with it. Later, we can fetch some river water to wash in the tent," Luo Yixia whispered.

"All right," Gan Yanyan agreed.

As the afternoon wore on, more students noticed how much firewood Song Chengyi’s group had gathered and hurried off to search for more. The later it got, the harder it became to find, and those who searched later returned with less and less.

With training starting in earnest the next day—including running sessions—the group discussed how best to divide the chores. Of the six, only Song Chengyi could cook; the rest were hopeless.

In the end, they agreed to learn from Song Chengyi and help as much as possible.

Song Chengyi had no objections, but everyone else felt a bit guilty.

As evening fell, they built a campfire, since there was no other light in the wild. Each group also had to assign members to stand night watch.

Yu Bin’s group decided to split the night in half, two people for each shift, drawing lots to decide.

Song Chengyi was unlucky—he drew the first shift, with Yu Bin taking the second. Misery loves company.

After dinner and a bit of idle talk, everyone grew tired and people drifted off.

Luo Yixia and Gan Yanyan changed into clean clothes in their tent, finally feeling comfortable. Gan Yanyan grumbled about the school as she changed.

One by one, the others said goodnight to Song Chengyi and retreated to their tents.

The school showed a bit of humanity by providing each person with a sleeping bag, ensuring at least some comfort for the night.