Ironically, due to this, her family had always considered her a strange child, even for a while suspecting that she might have a condition where she was unable to feel pain! They had taken her to the hospital for both major and minor check-ups, not resting until they’d done all possible tests.
Song continuation became more chaotic towards the end of the military training. Nobody knew how it started, but in the later stages, it evolved into singing all sorts of songs - nursery rhymes, pop songs, anything goes. The next team had to start their song with the last word of the song sung by the previous team. Teams that failed had to mimic the sound of a particular animal.
Just imagine the scene - an entire squad, including the instructor, imitating the barking of a dog, or the meowing of a cat. It was both hilarious and embarrassing.
The bustling auditorium didn’t disperse until 10 at night. After the freshmen dismissed, the instructors stayed behind in the small auditorium, restoring it to its original state.
As they were heading in different directions to their dorms, He Zhilan and Jiang Biyun separated from Tan Heqian. On the way back, Biyun had been hesitant to speak for a while, before finally asking Zhilan about why her sudden crying in the auditorium.
Zhilan pursed her lips and didn’t answer, and it was then that Jiang Biyun changed the topic. "How did you know that military song was called ’Sending off the Red Army’? Did you figure it out from the lyrics?"
"Not really. When I was little, I heard a relative singing it. I couldn’t remember the lyrics, but for some reason, I remembered the song title," Zhilan explained.
Zhilan raised her gaze to the dark sky as she spoke. Biyun followed her gaze, and even though the sky was studded with stars, it felt a bit oppressive for some reason.
Biyun sighed, "Looking at the sky, it seems like tomorrow will be sunny again. I wonder when it will rain. I hope it could rain, so we won’t have the military training. It’s so tiring... But then, if we don’t have the training, we won’t get to see the handsome instructor Lin Deng anymore! I hope it’s sunny. Oh, what a dilemma!"
That was Biyun’s constant chatter, but her gaze fell on Zhilan. Hearing Zhilan’s explanation, Biyun thought she understood why Zhilan had suddenly started crying. The familiar song must have reminded her of the relative who had sung it to her, and perhaps, this person was no longer with her.
Understanding this, Biyun did not press any further and deliberately changed to another topic. She understood the feeling of missing a family member who is no longer there as sometimes she would suddenly miss her deceased grandparents.
The military training for the freshmen lasted only one week. By the last evening, many faces were tear-streaked thinking about parting ways with the instructors they had spent the entire week with.
"Instructor Lin Deng, since your military school is in the capital, couldn’t you leave your contact information for us? When free, you could meet and catch up with us!"
"No, it’s against military and school rules! You’re my students, and we’re not allowed to keep in touch with our students," Lin Deng replied unequivocally.
Disappointed, one male student sighed, "Instructor, no matter whether we meet again or not, please be assured, I will always remember your advice. If I want a girlfriend, I must help female students!"
This light-hearted comment immediately livened up the melancholic atmosphere of saying goodbye.
"Instructor, if I could successfully court the girl who I helped carry back to the girls’ dorm that day, and marry her after graduation, even if you’re at the ends of the earth, I will find you to be our officiant, and I’ll also give you a big red envelope for your matchmaking!"