Chapter 14

So universities here were just as free-spirited. Had she known, she would have brought Jiujiu along. Wu Ying felt a swell of emotion.

She had no idea what this scene meant to anyone else, but to Wu Ying, it spoke volumes about the school's atmosphere. She was full of anticipation when she heard scolding up ahead.

Wu Ying didn't stop walking, but in her predetermined path, a man in a security uniform was holding a hoverboard, while the girl across from him hung her head and took the scolding, her robot companion waiting quietly nearby.

Watching the commotion was a side bonus; Wu Ying silently quickened her pace. But before she could get close to the scene, the security guard's gaze shifted over, his icy glare making Wu Ying shrink her neck and immediately straighten up.

I'm just passing through, she thought, keeping her eyes fixed forward to project innocence.

“Don't let it happen again. School rules: copy the regulations one hundred times, due next week.”

The guard snapped a picture of the hoverboard before handing it back to the robot. He uploaded the photo to the academic affairs system, and within moments, the penalty notice was sent directly to the student's Light Brain.

So this bold pioneer had already made the ultimate sacrifice. Wu Ying silently mourned.

Federal University's architecture retained the same stark, rough style of earlier eras, wasting not a single inch of land. Steel behemoths rose from the ground, but at the entrance to the College of Plant Science stood a colossal tree, said to be as old as the school itself. Its shade covered most of the gate, yet they refused to cut it down, instead spending a fortune each year to maintain it.

The living mascot of plant science. Wu Ying joined the crowd beneath it to pay her respects. When the wind blew, the leaves rustled and whispered, singing an ancient song to the students below.

After her moment of reflection, Wu Ying wiped her face and continued following the navigation on her Light Brain to find her dorm.

She'd been assigned to Building 1, Room 401, a four-person suite with no bunk beds. Her school life, long missed, was back—only in a different time and space, she'd returned to cozy dormitory living.

It should be cozy, Wu Ying thought as she stood in the living room with her luggage, staring at the other three occupants. This was a bit awkward. She had no idea why she'd walked in on two future roommates mid-argument.

Her arrival instantly added a new point of contention. The girl in red asked flatly, “Which room do you want? The second one on the left has the best lighting. Do you want it?”

The girl in white spoke up immediately: “What do you mean? I already said I'm taking that room. Why are you asking her?”

“For fairness. Why should you get it just because you said so? Others might want it too.”

“I got here first. Why can't I choose first?”

“I've already told you, I was here first. I just went to get a drying rack.”

The girl in red—Su Yi—pointed at the drying rack, her expression still calm. Meanwhile, Cynthia across from her was clearly furious, cheeks flushed, torn between anger and helplessness.

“You just want to snatch that room for yourself, don't you?”

Su Yi nodded thoughtfully. “If you insist on taking that room by unfair means, then yes.”

Cynthia understood now; this girl was deliberately trying to provoke her.

Wu Ying thought, her roommates were lively—almost unrealistically so. But this stalemate wasn't doing anyone any good. “How about rock-paper-scissors to decide?”

“Winner takes the room.”

Wu Ying maintained her usual outward image—a faint smile at the corner of her lips, innocent and sincere eyes, the very picture of a delicate flower. Her looks were deeply deceptive, and she wielded this persona with practiced ease.

Her idea was to leave the decision to luck. Su Yi agreed without objection, but Cynthia refused to accept it, pouting. “She doesn't even like that room herself. Why does she have to fight me for it?”

She turned to Wu Ying and asked, “Do you like that room too?”

Wu Ying shook her head. “I'm fine with anything. How about you let me inside first, and you two take your time to sort it out?”

She suggested in a small voice, clearly not wanting to get involved in their dispute.

“No way. This concerns the whole dorm's interests. You can't leave.”

Su Yi remained firm. She just couldn't stand Cynthia's entitled attitude, and the girl's rude tone. She wasn't about to indulge her.

“Ooh, what's all the commotion?”

A voice came from the doorway. It was the fourth roommate. Wu Ying looked up—huh, this person looked familiar. She was the one whose hoverboard got confiscated earlier.

Huo Lin strolled in at a leisurely pace, casually draping an arm around Wu Ying's shoulder. Seeing Wu Ying's wide eyes, she winked.

Wu Ying froze for a few seconds, then, seeing the other two hadn't reacted, volunteered what she knew.

After Wu Ying finished, Su Yi said, “Alright, now that we're all here, let's hold a quick meeting. Cynthia, state your request again.”

Cynthia took a deep breath and said, word by word, that she wanted the second room on the left. Then going clockwise, it was Wu Ying's turn.

“No objections.”

“No objections either.”

Su Yi saw that neither had objections, added, “No objections from me,” then announced the meeting adjourned. She turned and walked toward the room nearest to her. “Then I'll take this one?”

The other two nodded, while Cynthia glared at her, fuming. “You had no objections, and you still argued with me this whole time!”

“I told you, for fairness.”

Click. The door shut.

Wu Ying and Huo Lin exchanged a glance, then each headed to the nearest room.

Wu Ying had a feeling dorm life was going to be interesting. The more people she met, the deeper her realization grew—the people in the protected zone lived in a world that seemed a universe apart.

Of course, this was also Wu Ying's first time communicating with people from outside Yuanji Star, and the sensation was different again. The effects of war radiated outward in rings; the further out, the lesser the impact.

Under the overall atmosphere of suppression, everyone had their own little quirks.

Wu Ying looked around the room, quickly organized her luggage, then held her Light Brain to supervise Jiujiu. Her flower room couldn't afford any mishaps.

Luckily, every plant and seedling was intact.

Beep-beep. Her Light Brain sounded. Wu Ying saw she'd been added to group chat 1-401—a straightforward name.

Starting with Su Yi, everyone posted their room number and name. Wu Ying promptly followed suit to fit in, and finally Cynthia reluctantly posted hers.

No one spoke in the chat. The living room was eerily quiet as everyone stayed in their own rooms.

Wu Ying was getting a bit bored, poking aimlessly at her Light Brain. After a moment's thought, she sent Asher a message saying she'd arrived at school, along with a lively recount of the drama she'd walked into right from the start.

She noticed that each roommate had a distinct personality, and they matched their looks. Su Yi was a classic beauty—light brown eyes and black hair, looking gentle and reserved, but actually obsessed with rules, almost to the point of compulsiveness. Cynthia was spoiled and willful, with fiery red hair that looked passionate but was actually soft and pliable.

Huo Lin, the last to arrive, had a roguish air about her. Combined with the hoverboard incident, Wu Ying guessed she was bold and wild—and especially forward. With short chestnut hair, she leaned androgynous.

While Wu Ying was analyzing her roommates so thoroughly, the room next door was talking about her. “And that yellow-haired one, what's her name—Wu Ying? Pretty name, but she looks easy to push around. I'm going to hang out with her from now on, not Su Yi. She's insufferable, always trying to pick fights with me.”

Cynthia was complaining to her mother, brushing off her mother's words about “Su Yi's a good girl, I'm reassured you're with her” without comment.

“Alright, alright, I got it.”

The easy-to-bully pushover. Wu Ying had earned herself a nickname in the dorm.

So the next day, when the class was gathering, Cynthia came knocking on Wu Ying's door with her little bag, asking her to go together.

“Sure.”

Her assessment of Cynthia was basically the same—yep, easy to push around. Birds of a feather flocked together.

The two hit it off instantly, chatting away, ready to head out. Just as they were about to leave, Huo Lin opened her door. “I thought we were closer than this, Wu Ying-ying. You're not ditching me, are you?”

The duo became a trio, then a quartet, and the whole dorm set out together.

On the way, Cynthia held Wu Ying's hand but kept exchanging glares with Su Yi, the two occasionally launching eye attacks at each other. Wu Ying silently lowered her head to give them space.

Plant science freshmen had always been the fewest in the entire school, and the teachers doted on these rare sprouts. Who'd have thought that this year the new dean had lost his mind and insisted on sending these delicate flowers off to military training.

In the college auditorium, a sea of students sat below. The first-year students mostly had youthful faces and weak mental power. Even without the military district's instructors drilling them like real soldiers, a fair number dropped out every year.

Teacher Bart walked up to the podium and, with a flourish, laid out the college's founding philosophy and the goals of the military training, ending with: “Classmates, you are the hope of plant science. The purpose of this training is to temper you, not torment you. Don't fear it. If you have any problems, report them to the teachers in charge promptly. Remember, your safety comes first.”

Down in the audience, Wu Ying looked up with a face full of question marks. She needed a translation of this. What did that mean? She desperately sought answers from Su Yi, the most reliable of the group.

Then, under Wu Ying's intense gaze, Su Yi nodded affirmatively.

That's right. The College of Plant Science had protective teachers. In every pre-training speech before, the emphasis was always on students protecting themselves, plus the announcement of how many doctors were assigned—meaning “even if you all collapse, it's fine.”

Of course, that was a summary from a senior sister who'd come before, and Su Yi happened to know her.

Huo Lin also glanced over quietly. Their eyes met, and they couldn't help but exchange knowing smiles.

It had to be said, the pre-training assembly was absolutely necessary. After it ended, Wu Ying felt her worries melt away.

Seeing the students all visibly relieved, the teacher on stage knew he'd said enough. With a wave of his hand, dismissed!

As soon as the assembly ended, Wu Ying overheard people all around whispering about the military training. She eavesdropped for a moment and confirmed—she'd really understood correctly.

In the cafeteria, the group snagged a table together.

“I heard from my family that Federation military training is super strict. I was worried I'd get points deducted,” one of them said.