CHAPTER 457: CHAPTER 273: THINKING OF YOU

After more than two months apart, the campus brought everyone a sense of unfamiliarity. The bare branches by the roads, grass turning yellow in the small garden, the neatly arranged buildings... It was only the occasional green figures with red epaulettes passing by that made everyone feel familiar and close!

The car came to a stop, and the students alighted in single file, their hearts filled with excitement and trepidation. They surveyed their surroundings, trying to find the shadows in their memories. After all, they had lived here for just over a month and hadn’t truly become acquainted with this place.

"Form a line!" Mo Datong ordered.

The students quickly lined up in a row.

"At ease!"

He carefully surveyed the group, as if etching each student’s face into his memory. After a while, a smile broke across his stern face: "The more than a month I spent with you all has been a joyous time. Your performance is no less than any soldier’s. I believe, in the not too distant future, you will shine even brighter. And I will be proud and honored to have been your instructor, looking forward to the day when we can truly fight shoulder to shoulder!"

"Salute!" Zhan Hao shouted.

The synchronized action, the erect posture, the solemn expressions, and the eyes, slightly reddened with the reluctance to part, signified everyone’s respect and fond remembrance of their instructors.

"Salute over!"

Zhan Hao rushed forward with a small package: "Chief Instructor, this past month will be an unforgettable experience for life! Here are some bracelets made by the 16 of us, please accept them!"

Mo Datong opened the package in puzzlement, revealing sixteen bracelets strung with Grass Plate Beads. On the glossy grey beads with fine patterns, there were tiny inscriptions. He squinted his eyes for a better look and smiled brightly: "Alright, I’ll accept it on behalf of everyone. Although it’s not quite seemly for a grown man to wear these, they will make fine gifts for your girlfriends. You’ve engraved the instructors’ names on them, that’s the point, right?"

"Yes!" the students answered in unison, their smiles unfolding warmly like the autumn sunshine.

Grass Plate Beads are the seeds of a plant found on the training ground, fine and smooth to the touch. Local residents like to string them into bracelets, anklets, and necklaces to wear. The plant producing Grass Plate Beads is incredibly resilient, growing without cultivation even in the driest weather, embodying the spirit of a soldier. After much discussion, the students decided to give this to their instructor.

"Who did the engraving?" Mo Datong asked, holding up a bracelet.

"Reporting, sir! It was me," Zhan Hao answered.

"Good job, Zhan Hao, you truly are a man of many talents. Even if you don’t pursue a military career, you won’t starve," Mo Datong joked.

"Reporting!"

"Step out!"

Wu Zetian stepped forward: "Reporting, Instructor, I cleaned the grass seeds inside the beads."

"Do you want me to praise you?" Mo Datong asked with a smile: "The problem is, kids four or five years old in the village can do that job. Wu Zetian, are you sure you want me to praise you?"

A burst of laughter rose from the ranks.

"Reporting, Instructor, no need to praise me," Wu Zetian said with an awkward smile. "We’re about to part ways, and I just can’t bear to see the instructor leave. I wanted to delay it a little longer."

"Fall in!" Mo Datong’s stern face softened slightly.

"Yes!" Wu Zetian returned to his spot.

"At ease!"

"Thank you all!" Mo Datong gestured, and the instructors stepped forward, saluting the students in unison.

"Thank you, Instructors!" the students saluted back.

"One month is enough time to become attached, it really is hard to part ways," Hang Menglin walked over, her serious face not showing a hint of a smile. Behind her followed the platoon leader of Team 6, Liu Aiguo, a soldier in his forties with an amiable face and dimples that made him look like he was always smiling. It was quite a comical sight next to Hang Menglin.

Mo Datong turned to the two: "Instructor Hang, Captain Liu, all 16 students from the students’ platoon have been brought back. From now on, they are under your care."

"Yes!" The two saluted back: "Thank you, Instructor Mo!"

"Goodbye, students!" Mo Datong waved his hand and turned towards the direction of the office building. Yue Santie glanced at Hang Menglin and followed with the other instructors.

"Take care, Instructor!" Liang Xiaorao shouted out.

Ji Sisi kicked her: "What kind of farewell is that?"

"Quiet!" Hang Menglin rebuked sharply.

Liu Aiguo smiled and waved his hand: "Team 6 students, come with me."

Yan Han, Jing Feng, Lu Jian, Wang Tianlin, and Li Midong stepped out, silently waving to the others, and followed Liu Aiguo towards Team 6’s area.