Part 2
Xie Ren curled his lips. “Aren’t some of you always curious about what missions I performed in Zone 9? Every time I come back, you ask incessantly, looking very yearning. In reality, the interstellar battlefield isn’t as majestic and glamorous as you think. Soldiers fight desperately every day. One second you might be oiling your mecha, the next you might be blown to pieces. I only had one thought there: to survive.”
Everyone looked at him quietly. Everyone present wanted to go on missions with the Falcon Regiment and had applied several times, but few were selected.
Xie Ren shook his head. “War isn’t glorious, nor is it hot-blooded. No good soldier loves war, but accidents might befall us suddenly any day.”
“Guardian. I like this name very much. During the hundreds of days and nights piloting it, I could feel myself guarding this land. Remember the entrance oath? Fight for the people.”
Zhao Yi clinked glasses with him, making a ding sound. “Fight for loyalty.”
Others said, “Fight for peace.”
“Soldiers of the Sundial only die in battle; they never retreat.”
This passage was the NDU school motto.
Xie Ren turned to Yu Shi and said sincerely, “Thank you for creating the Guardian.”
Yu Shi nodded faintly, his expression softening considerably.
Previously, Zhao Yi said Xie Ren admired his achievements. He thought it was just the kind of admiration from reading papers. He didn’t expect it to be a genuine “admiration” in action.
There were only ninety “Guardians” with nano-coating globally. Due to the coating’s wear, each mecha had a lifespan of six hundred uses. Xie Ren had been in Zone 9 for four or five years; only by using several Guardians could he know its structure like the back of his hand.
Yu Shi thought, If I slip a Guardian design blueprint into that pile of homework, he should be very happy.
After the interlude, everyone happily played guessing games again.
Near the end, Yu Shi went to the front desk to pay the bill but was told he didn’t need to pay.
“Why not?” he asked in confusion.
The manager smiled. “You must be Instructor Yu. Not only is it free at our place, but you also don’t need to pay on this entire street. This is our Young…”
Seeing Xie Ren walking over, he called out, “Young…”
Xie Ren mouthed: Get lost.
The manager quickly wiped his smile, nodded to Yu Shi, and vanished from the front desk in a second.
Yu Shi: ?
Xie Ren’s voice sounded from behind, “He means NDU people can put it on a tab.”
Yu Shi said, “I’d better settle it. I intended to treat everyone anyway.”
“Um, I already paid,” Xie Ren bullshitted, bracing himself.
“Where did you get the money?” Yu Shi frowned, then realized, “Did you use your allowance? This meal isn’t cheap. What will you do for the next month?”
Xie Ren wailed internally. Why is pretending to be poor so hard?
So what should he do for the next month? Pick up cans at the gate for show? If an acquaintance saw him, he might as well not live.
Yu Shi sighed helplessly. “You really don’t need to care so much about face. Forget it, eat with me this month. If you need anything, swipe my card first. Don’t be embarrassed.”
Dizzy from the sudden good news falling from the sky, Xie Ren stared blankly at Yu Shi’s moving lips.
“Did you hear me?” Yu Shi asked unhappily, thinking he was being stubborn.
“…Ah, heard, heard it.”
Until they walked out of the restaurant, Xie Ren still felt it was incredible. If he had known this earlier, he should have gone to pick up cans at the school gate yesterday.
After the meal, everyone went their separate ways. A few Alphas remained, unwilling to give up, surrounding Yu Shi to ask for some direction on the final exam questions.
Yu Shi rarely encountered such thick-skinned students. Those who did experiments with him were mostly honest folks, unlike this group of Alphas, childishly bickering with witty remarks.
Ye Bingyang even boldly bargained with him. “Instructor Yu, just give us a little hint. Afterward, I’ll call a bunch of brothers to vote for you in the Teacher Beauty Pageant—ptui, I mean Teacher Evaluation, and brush your score to full marks!”
Yu Shi found it hard not to suspect his slip of the tongue was intentional.
Zhao Yi said, “Go queue in the back. Instructor Yu, do you like my Range Rover? Take it and drive it as you please. I just have one small request: can you deduct fewer points from my daily score?”
“…No.”
Li Yang walked at the very back sending messages: [Principal, the dinner is over. Instructor Yu gets along very well with them; everyone likes him.]
Tang Jiadong said: [Good, keep up the good work. Strive to get Excellent Teacher at the end of the term /thumbs up/]
Yu Shi fended off the Alphas, saying, “Behave yourselves normally. Don’t be late for class, don’t play on phones, don’t eat. I won’t deduct points without reason. As for the final exam questions, the papers haven’t even been set yet. What’s the rush? Study hard and you won’t fail.”
“T-T-Then, I didn’t hand in my homework last time. Can I not get points deducted?”
“Instructor Yu, I answered the question correctly. Can I get a reward?”
“Instructor Yu…”
Xie Ren, hands in pockets, said impatiently, “Can’t understand human language? He said he won’t deduct points that shouldn’t be deducted. Shut up, all of you. Can’t you see you’re blocking the way? Move!”
The chattering Alphas quieted down and grinningly made way for Yu Shi. Helpless, he walked toward the school across the street.
Just two steps later, a group of drunken people walked toward them.
A familiar face flashed within that group. Yu Shi paused, his gaze meeting Zheng Xiao’s directly.
Too coincidental.
He calmly looked away, and Zheng Xiao also turned his head as they passed shoulders.
Suddenly, someone in the crowd shouted, “Hey, isn’t this that Omega from the private room the other day? Can’t believe I ran into him here.”
The person’s voice was drunken, and the volume was certainly not low. He sized up Yu Shi with a lecherous look.
The chattering Alphas quieted down and looked at him, their faces showing disgust, thinking it was a drunkard making a scene.
Yu Shi didn’t react at all, preparing to leave as if he hadn’t heard.
But that person got excited and reached out to grab his arm. “Hey, ignoring people when called? You’re out selling anyway. How much for a night? Let me have some fun too.”
Before he could touch Yu Shi, a hand seized his wrist, and the sound of bone shattering instantly followed.
The man let out a miserable scream of pain. When Yu Shi turned around, the man was already kneeling on one knee.
Xie Ren held his wrist bone, eyes scary cold, spitting out two words: “Seeking death.”
Zheng Xiao originally couldn’t be bothered, but after hearing this, he suddenly looked up and glared fiercely at Xie Ren.
Xie Ren narrowed his eyes, sensing this Alpha was unusual. Unlike the fair-weather friends around him, this man had an unconcealable murderous aura.
“Let him go,” Zheng Xiao said coldly.
He looked more like an android than an android, but Yu Shi knew clearly that this guy’s attack power was much more terrifying than an android.
Xie Ren mocked, “Looks like you want to die too.”
Zheng Xiao clenched his fist, knuckles cracking.
At this moment, the person on the ground screamed heartbreakingly, “You fucking stinking bitch, selling your ass yet setting up a monument to chastity! You can sell to Qin…”
He spoke fast, but not as fast as Yu Shi’s movement.
Before anyone could react, Yu Shi lifted his foot and kicked him in the abdomen. This kick was extremely ruthless; even Zhao Yi beside him shuddered. The man clutched his stomach and went silent, curling into a ball as blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Yu Shi looked up at Zheng Xiao and said clearly, “Control your dog.”
For some reason, Xie Ren felt a strange sensation in his heart. He tilted his head to look at Yu Shi, unable to see the expression on his face clearly.
Zheng Xiao took a deep breath as if trying hard to endure.
Someone took the lead and shouted, “This drunkard dares to harass Instructor Yu! Get him!”
“Fuck, bullying our instructor? Kill him!”
The crowd swarmed up, starting an indiscriminate brawl. Before Yu Shi could stop them, the Alphas began fighting with earth-shattering momentum like fierce fighting dogs released from their pens.
Li Yang had just received a new message. Tang Jiadong said: [These brats used to cause trouble for me every day, fighting every other day. Since Yu Shi came, except for that time with Han Po, they’ve been quiet for almost a month. He really saves me worry.]
Li Yang typed happily: [Of course, Instructor Yu loves peace…]
Hearing the commotion, he looked up to see a dozen people gang-beating someone, and nearly blacked out on the spot.
Translator’s Note: From the author: Ice-breaking (x), Gang Fight (√).
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