The sixth lap, the seventh lap…

By the time He Yan finished her final lap, she looked like she had been pulled out of water.

Xiao Mai jogged over and handed her a water flask, “Brother A He, drink quickly.”

He Yan tilted her head back and gulped down the water.

While she was drinking, Instructor Liang walked past, looking her up and down before shaking his head and leaving. That look indicated he thought He Yan could only be a cook.

“How did you finish running?” Hong Shan said, “You’re stubborn. I saw others running fewer laps – they’re smarter than you!”

He Yan was too tired to speak much, only saying, “I don’t want to be a cook.”

“What’s wrong with being a cook? Don’t look down on cooks, they might live longer than us,” Hong Shan said dismissively.

“I agree,” Xiao Mai’s face was full of yearning, “If you become a cook, you can make food for everyone, make lots of delicious things!”

He Yan: “…If you want to cook, you should have become a chef, not joined the military.”

Xiao Mai looked pitifully at Shi Tou, “Big Brother made me come.”

What kind of people are these, He Yan sighed internally to the heavens.

She was truly exhausted, her legs feeling weak. Hong Shan and Xiao Mai supported her from both sides as they walked forward, sighing, “It’s only the first day, how long can you last?”

I’ll last as long as I can last, He Yan thought to herself.

This day passed in exhaustion. Head Instructor Shen was cold and merciless. At noon, those few soldiers who had tried to slack off by running fewer laps were caught and beaten with military sticks in front of everyone, screaming worse than chickens. This served as a warning, and at least during afternoon training, no one dared to slack off anymore.

As He Yan had expected, the first half-month was all physical training, nothing but weighted running, standing in the sun, formation drills, and similar tasks. Skill training would begin after half a month, and after a certain period of skill training, they would be assigned to different camps.

In her previous life, He Yan had been in the vanguard camp, and she still wanted to join the vanguard camp now. But the problem was that with Xiao Jue’s training methods, she would be eliminated before reaching the vanguard camp. After all, physical strength was her weakness now.

She thought about this while drinking her porridge.

The porridge was thick rice porridge with various wild vegetables, fruits, and beans added. Morning rations were half a dou of rice, and evening rations were one-third dou of millet, occasionally with some dough drops. On good days, there might be soup pancakes, and meat.

But as they were just starting, there was only porridge.

Though bland in taste, because she was so tired today, she felt ravenous. Almost no one spoke in the dining area, all focused intently on eating.

“If only we had wine,” Hong Shan smacked his lips, “Now I finally understand why they say don’t join the military unless you have no other choice. This isn’t work fit for humans.”

“I miss hunting,” Xiao Mai looked miserably at Shi Tou, pouting, “Big Brother, I want to eat roasted rabbit.”

Shi Tou: “…Wait a few days.”

He Yan found it amusing. Wait a few days? Even after waiting a month, there would be no chance to hunt. Trying to leave after joining the military meant becoming a deserter, and deserters were executed.

After dinner, everyone went to bathe. Hong Shan hesitated, asking, “A He, are you not going?”

After being in the sun all day and sweating so much, everyone smelled of sweat, sticky and uncomfortable. The river was as crowded as dumplings in a pot. Hong Shan said, “Don’t be afraid, I’ll hold onto you, guarantee you won’t fall in.”

He Yan looked troubled, “Never mind, Brother Shan. I’ll wait until late night, get a few buckets of water from the riverside, and rinse off in the shallows.”

“Alright then.” Hong Shan didn’t insist, “You rest first.”

After Hong Shan and the others left, He Yan finally relaxed.

This was perhaps the most inconvenient aspect of joining the military – common soldiers had no private rooms in the garrison and no private tents in the field, making bathing a major problem. She had once lived through a period of having to be extremely careful because of this, always on guard while sleeping to avoid revealing her secret. But later, as she was gradually promoted to vice general and then general, having her tent and room, these issues disappeared.

Unexpectedly, starting over again meant walking her old path once more.

He Yan rested on her bed for a while, waiting until those who had gone to bathe at the river had returned and everyone had settled down. When Hong Shan’s snoring began beside her, He Yan finally woke up. She looked at the moon outside the window, estimated it was around midnight, then climbed out of bed, stepped over Xiao Mai, gathered clean clothes, and silently slipped out the door.

Outside the Liangzhou garrison, the wilderness was vast, with a bright moon shining clearly. Perhaps because it was the frontier, the moonlight was different from that in the capital. He Yan crept carefully to the riverside.

The river that wound around the garrison flowed under White Moon Mountain and had an interesting name – Five Deer River. Legend had it that one night, a fisherman returning home by boat saw a lightly made-up immortal maiden riding five-colored deer across the river’s surface, hence the name.

There were many large rocks by the river. He Yan found one and placed her clean clothes behind it to keep them from getting wet, then removed her outer garments and walked into the water.

What she had told Hong Shan was true – after being drowned in the pond at the Xu family’s house, she didn’t dare get too close to the water. If not necessary, she wouldn’t have come to the riverside. Even when entering the water, she only dared stay in the shallows.

The river water was cool, perfect for the hot summer. The river breeze was also refreshing. He Yan wiped her face, feeling the fatigue from carrying sandbags during the day completely wash away, every part of her body feeling comfortable and soothed. Here, the moon was cold as frost and snow, shining over the boundless wilderness and vast river, naturally magnificent and elegant.

“White Moon Mountain, Five Deer River…” He Yan mumbled softly. The names were extremely elegant and truly fitting. Looking at the silvery-white moon, she thought that all that was missing was a lightly made-up beautiful immortal maiden. If a fisherman passed by now, she might be mistaken for that legendary “beautiful immortal maiden.”

Thinking this, she found it amusing and couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

“Who’s there?” A voice broke the silence, strange yet familiar.

He Yan nearly swallowed a mouthful of river water.

Really? Even at this hour, someone else was here?

The person’s footsteps paused briefly, then headed toward He Yan’s direction. He Yan was stunned for a moment before quickly hiding behind a large rock in front of her. Since she was already in shallow water and not far from the bank, she could see the newcomer.

It was a young man wearing a dark blue gauze-deep robe embroidered with cranes. The embroidered cranes seemed ready to ride the wind home. He was exceptionally handsome, refined, and elegant, with features as beautiful as a painting. The long sword at his waist gleamed like ice and snow in the moonlight, making his expression seem even colder.

This beautifully featured youth was none other than the Right Army Commander, Xiao Jue.

When He Yan saw who it was, she wailed internally.

What an unfortunate encounter.