By the tenth day, all the freshmen had to embark on a 20-kilometer force-march, leaving at midnight with a knapsack tied up with a blanket and shoes, testing their physical strength and willpower.
This brutal march took place every ten days, which meant that during the thirty days of military training, they would undertake it three times, before the parade ceremony.
Because roadwork was underway at the school’s entrance on the day of the march, and the workers chose to work in the wee hours when no one was around, passersby who saw them couldn’t help but stare, gasping in amazement.
"Good gracious, look, just look at those people, it’s imperessive, it’s Tsinghua alright. They’re even digging trenches during military training!"
Zhou Yiyi just happened to hear this comment and, whether it was said in jest or earnest, it nonetheless provided some motivation for their nighttime training, haha. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ NoveI~Fire.net
By the time they returned from nighttime training, it was already dawn, and everyone gathered on the training ground to rest. To cheer them up, the instructor started encouraging students to perform.
Performances were organized by the college, and as one of the only four girls in their department, she was naturally among the first to be called up.
Qiao Shan stood up boldly and danced an energetic modern routine for everyone. Even without music, every move seemed right on beat, and Qiao Shan’s figure attracted the men’s howls of praise. Blushing, Qiao Shan gestured an invitation to the neighboring Electronic Engineering Department.
In fact, there were fewer than twenty girls in the entire Information College, but Qiao Shan, being the boldest and most charming, naturally became the department’s belle, haha. To select a department belle from just four girls was no easy task (gag gag gag~~~~)
The Electronic Engineering Department had six or seven girls, just a few more than their own department, but all wore glasses and looked like top students.
One girl stood up bravely, but she quickly said, "I can’t dance, how about I sing instead?"
The guys from her department, of course, showed unconditional support for their comrade, clapping immediately, "Sure, why not? Sing one, sing one!"
Unexpectedly, the girl who looked somewhat like a tomboy from the Northeast, opened her mouth and out came a loud and clear folk song from Sichuan Province, sung with such flavor that everyone from the Institute applauded and cheered. The girl explained,
"My mom’s from Sichuan and my dad’s from Shenyang. I learned this song when I visited my mother’s hometown. Please forgive any shortcomings."
Then, representatives from the Automation Department and the Microelectronics Department also stepped forward, performing a folk dance and a ventriloquist act, respectively.
Indeed, among the ranks of the academic elite, talent was abundant!
After the girls’ performances, it was time to rest.
Then, they plunged back into the rigorous training. This time, Zhou Yiyi didn’t get a chance to perform, but Qiao Shan had already brought glory and color to their department. With Qiao Shan’s looks, she was definitely the belle of the first year at the Information College. As for whether there were more outstanding upperclassmen in Year Two, Three, or Four, they hadn’t seen them yet, so naturally they couldn’t say for certain.
In these ten days, Zhou Yiyi could be considered a model for the entire department, for she performed the movements exceptionally well. The instructor often singled her out to demonstrate to the students, saying she could stand in the front row of the formation in the future. As for the three leading the college, they were the top three ranks who were admitted on recommendation and the top scorer, with Hua Yang in the center, Zhou Mo on the left, and another from a different department.
As time went on, their training became increasingly strenuous, with them chanting slogans daily.
"Left foot Tsinghua, right foot Beijing, Beijing and Tsinghua, capture them all."
Finally, it was Special Company Seventeen’s turn to head to the live ammunition firing range. On the first day of training, Zhou Yiyi achieved an impressive score of perfect tens, attracting frequent glances from the military leaders. At first, everyone thought she was just guessing, but no matter which firing point she was assigned to, she could always hit the bullseye, clearly a sharpshooter in the making!
In fact, Zhou Yiyi couldn’t help being so conspicuous, it had just been too long since she last handled a gun and she couldn’t control herself, and so it happened just like that.
Through this training, the military identified quite a few promising recruits, and they tried several times to persuade them, how about considering a military academy?
It was not just Zhou Yiyi who was approached, but also Zhou Mo, since he excelled in physical fitness and stood out in the college, leading to discussions with the leadership.
Unfortunately, in the end, they were all ruthlessly rejected, haha~