Give Me Another Smile

On the military training field, rows of freshmen dressed in camouflage uniforms anxiously stood in formation under the scorching sun as they listened to the principal on the podium giving a lengthy speech. Today was the last day of military training, so a closing ceremony was necessary.

As soon as the speech concluded, enthusiastic applause broke out across the field as the last word fell.

Immediately afterward, the instructors standing at the bottom of the podium led their respective classes on a performance to showcase the fruits of their training. By the time this process was completed, two hours had already passed.

Once the closing ceremony ended and military training officially concluded, the instructors fled the field before the freshmen were even dismissed. It was especially so for the younger and more handsome instructors. They fled the field the quickest out of everyone.

Most freshmen would experience an "imprinting" phase when they first enter university. After spending half a month interacting with their respective instructors, it was only natural they would develop a strong bond. This, in turn, would lead to many freshmen insisting on taking group photos and exchanging contact information with their instructors. Most instructors wished to avoid the trouble of getting pestered by dozens of freshmen, so they chose to flee and avoid the problem altogether.

Tang Yu didn't really do any bonding with her instructor as she wasn't the proactive kind of student. So, after the dismissal, she walked alone toward the direction of Willow Lake.

Willow Lake was quite some distance from the student dormitories, and it wasn't on any routes students needed to take to attend classes. And as most freshmen wanted nothing more than to return to their dormitories to wash up and rest after hours of activities under the sun, only a few people walked in Willow Lake's direction.

Tang Yu was informed that Yin Zhao-an would be visiting Zhao Yu at the hospital today, as it would seem that Zhao Yu had already regained consciousness. This also meant that Yin Zhao-an would be skipping school today. Although Tang Yu had repeatedly told Yin Zhao-an to avoid skipping school so as to not lag behind in her studies, Yin Zhao-an never listened, always looking confident and fearless.

Had everything gone according to the original plot, Tang Yu should have entered university at the same time as Yin Zhao-an. Moreover, they would attend the same university. However, because of the butterfly effect, Yin Zhao-an was still stuck in her third year of high school while Tang Yu had already entered university in this life, and Tang Yu couldn't help but wonder how this would impact their lives in the future.

Before Tang Yu even stepped within viewing range of Willow Lake, she heard a noise that sounded like an argument between a man and a woman.

Tang Yu didn't have a hobby of eavesdropping on other people's arguments, so she decided to take another route to Willow Lake. However, hearing a particular person's name being mentioned made her stop in her tracks.

"Wu Na, I've told you many times what happened that day was an accident. I'll give you money, so can we just forget about it?"

"No way! Since you slept with me, you have to take responsibility. How can you just forget about the physical relationship we shared?"

Tang Yu's current expression was as if she had been struck by lightning, looking confused and bewildered. Her heart was also in turmoil, and she couldn't help but wonder if she was being pranked.

Since heaven had decided to bestow a huge gossip onto her, it'd be unreasonable for her not to accept it with open arms. Hence, she promptly dismissed her thoughts of taking a detour and stood in place to continue eavesdropping on the argument.

Fortunately, Tang Yu stood some distance away from the two arguing people. There were also shrubs and lush willow trees keeping her hidden from the two people. Meanwhile, through the shrubs, she could vaguely see a young and handsome instructor wearing a worried look as he faced the person standing before him.

"I've already said I was drunk that day. I didn't even know who took me into the room, let alone that you were inside..."

The more the instructor spoke, the more he felt a headache coming on, and he couldn't help but pinch his forehead, muttering to himself that alcohol was a magnet for problems.

Meanwhile, Wu Na was like a little cat retracting its claws, cautiously pulling the instructor's hand and softening her voice as she said, "I'm a girl, after all. Since we've had a physical relationship, why don't you try going out with me and see how it goes? If it doesn't work out later, we can break up, and I promise I won't continue clinging to you."

The young instructor seemed to hesitate for a moment, looking like he was on the cusp of changing his mind. But just as he was about to speak, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. It was a sound unique to the military instructors' leather boots.

Another one?

By now, Tang Yu had already sat down on a stone bench outside Willow Lake. When she heard the arrival of a third person, she promptly perked up her ears. She also made sure to set her phone to silent to avoid the TV drama trope of being caught eavesdropping.

"Gong Jun? Why are you..." The young instructor "arguing" with Wu Na was somewhat surprised at the arrival of the other instructor named Gong Jun. Then, his expression quickly turned ugly.

In response, the instructor named Gong Jun spoke in a deep voice, "We're preparing to return. Why are you still here? Don't you plan on going back?"

"I..."

"He can't leave until he promises to take responsibility for me," Wu Na interjected.

"Oh?" Gong Jun looked at Wu Na with a faux smile. Then, he shot a sharp gaze at the embarrassed instructor in front of him. "Are you saying you two had sex?"

"Yes. It happened last night at the bar," Wu Na answered confidently.

Gong Jun sneered and pulled the young instructor's hand to leave but was stopped by Wu Na. His expression grew colder, and his grip on the young man's hand tightened.

The young instructor gritted his teeth in pain but didn't dare to make a sound, only furrowing his brows tightly.

Running out of patience, Gong Jun leaned in close to Wu Na with a frigid gaze and said in a low voice, "Only I can make Jiang Shuyang hard, so how could he have had sex with you?"

Without another word, Gong Jun left with Jiang Shuyang.

It took a moment for Wu Na to process Gong Jun's words. Then, with eyes full of sadness and devoid of sadness, she screamed at the two men walking away hand in hand, "You guys are perverts! Disgusting homosexuals!"

Tang Yu's fingers trembled uncontrollably, and her lips twitched a little. She didn't hear what Gong Jun had whispered to Wu Na, but she heard Wu Na's screaming loud and clear. She didn't think one of her roommates would be a homophobe.

Meanwhile, Wu Na angrily paced around, trampling the nameless flowers planted around Willow Lake into a mess. Her anger made her face look fierce, completely unlike the leisurely and natural appearance she had when Tang Yu first met her in the dormitory.

Tang Yu pulled her military cap down and quickly left while Wu Na wasn't paying attention to her side. Only after hiding behind a small hill near the library and sitting down could she let go of the breath she was holding. What started as an innocent goal to listen in on some gossip had nearly ended up giving her a panic attack.

Though, looking back now, Tang Yu couldn't help but doubt Wu Na's claims of having slept with the young instructor named Jiang Shuyang. After all, if what she claimed really did happen, she wouldn't have let the two leave so easily. At the very least, she would have tried to make a big deal out of it.

Tang Yu didn't want to speculate on other people's motives, but this incident still made her slightly wary of Wu Na. While not fully certain, Wu Na probably disliked homosexuality, so Tang Yu decided she should no longer openly make phone calls in the dormitory.

Thinking of this, Tang Yu reluctantly opened her phone and dialed the number of the person listed at the top of her contact list. Of course, she didn't go out of her way to put her on the top of the list. It was just that "An-An" started with an "A." This saved her the trouble of making up an excuse to pin her to the top of the list.

…

When Yin Zhao-an arrived at the hospital, Luo Hui, Gao Rang's mother, was feeding Zhao Yu honey water. As Zhao Yu had only recently awakened from his coma, his complexion was sickly pale.

"Zhao Yu, you're awake!" Yin Zhao-an greeted. She had bought a bunch of light pink carnations for her visit. After politely smiling at Luo Hui, she placed the bouquet on the bedside table.

"Yes," Zhao Yu spoke softly with slightly upturned lips.

Yin Zhao-an sat down by the bed and calmly observed Zhao Yu's current state. His short hair was scattered over the bandage on his forehead, and there was faint bruising on his cheekbones. Bandages were wrapped around his shoulders and exposed chest, and his originally pale skin looked even more translucent due to excessive blood loss.

After a low sigh, Yin Zhao-an softly asked, "Why do this to yourself?"

"Would you do the same for Big Sis Tang?" Zhao Yu replied with a question, his expression no longer that of a naive youth.

Zhao Yu's response momentarily stunned Yin Zhao-an. Then, with a wry smile, she shook her head and said without hesitation, "If it is for Tang-Tang, I will do it even if it means death."

Zhao Yu lowered his head and took a sip of the honey water that Luo Hui handed him, the warm and sweet honey water slid down his dry throat and penetrated into his lungs. Then, he returned Yin Zhao-an's question, asking, "So, why do this to yourself?"

Yin Zhao-an felt she was constantly getting outsmarted by the people around her, and she couldn't help but feel frustrated. After sighing, she said, "Each and every one of you… Do you all get a kick out of messing with me?"

"Something like that," Zhao Yu frankly said.

Yin Zhao-an suddenly got the urge to put Zhao Yu back into a coma. Though, jokes aside, seeing that Zhao Yu had the energy to mess with her, the boy was probably on his way to making a speedy recovery already.

Luo Hui suddenly stood up from her seat. When Yin Zhao-an turned around to see what was going on, she saw that a certain Doctor Gao had returned.