Chapter 258 - 257 Xiaoxiao,
"You’re trying to scare me to death?" Xiaoxiao slapped Gao Jiaxing again.
"Xiaoxiao, I’m so happy, so happy." Gao Jiaxing was almost bursting with joy. Today, when Xiaoxiao came over, Gao Jiaxing brought up marriage, and got doused with cold water by Xiaoxiao. But now, a grand opportunity lay before him, just like rain after a long drought. It was as good as it could possibly be.
Watching the elated Gao Jiaxing, Xiaoxiao smiled too, "Brother Gao, you can certainly do it."
"For the sake of marrying Xiaoxiao, I must try my hardest." Gao Jiaxing had faced setbacks in his exams repeatedly, and he could not afford to lose this opportunity now.
Xiaoxiao told him to slow down and not to fall, but Gao Jiaxing walked as if he had night vision, steadying his way.
By the time they returned to the recruits’ barracks, everything was already quiet, except for the guards, everyone had gone to sleep.
"Xiaoxiao, go to sleep," Gao Jiaxing said as he walked Xiaoxiao back to her place.
"Okay, you should go to sleep early too," Xiaoxiao nodded.
Gao Jiaxing added, "Remember to take your gun and bolt the door."
"Got it," Xiaoxiao waved her hand and closed the door.
Soon after she heard Gao Jiaxing walk away outside, Xiaoxiao instantly slipped into the space.
Shitou said, "You need to watch your defense, don’t mess around before you’re married."
Xiaoxiao immediately looked at Shitou and said, "Didn’t I throw you into the space? How do you know?"
"You can tell just by looking at you," Shitou’s voice came through.
Xiaoxiao was speechless. She was glad it was late and she had Gao Jiaxing to cover for her on the way back, otherwise, it would have been quite embarrassing.
Xiaoxiao hurried to wash her face with spring water and applied some lip balm, trying her best to look normal as soon as possible, otherwise it would be awkward if someone saw her tomorrow.
Outside, Xiaoxiao exited the space and heard Shitou say, "Gao Jiaxing is sleeping at your doorstep."
Ah, Xiaoxiao was startled, "Why is he sleeping at my door?"
"He moved a couple of benches together and is lying outside, you don’t need to worry about him, he has brought his blanket, he won’t be cold," Shitou said.
Xiaoxiao felt touched, but, thinking of his early morning training, she didn’t go out to see Gao Jiaxing, fearing she might disturb his rest.
Lying back in bed, Xiaoxiao tossed and turned, gradually falling asleep after a long while.
At two in the morning, a sharp whistle sounded. Gao Jiaxing was already awake. He moved the benches to one side, took his blanket and pillow, and returned to the dormitory.
Everyone was up by this time, and knowing that Gao Jiaxing had spent the night outside Xiaoxiao’s room, they all laughed. However, everyone was busy making their beds, folding blankets, and hastily washing up for an urgent assembly.
Thus, very soon, Xiaoxiao heard everyone reciting books in unison, followed by the sound of drills.
Unable to sleep, Xiaoxiao simply got up. When she stepped outside, cold wind rushed in, so she wrapped her coat around herself and headed to the cafeteria.
Due to morning training, the cafeteria was empty, and the guards outside had already gone back to sleep.
Xiaoxiao set about making steamed buns and vegetable buns for everyone. It was a lot of work for one person, especially the kneading of the dough, which exhausted Xiaoxiao completely.
But, thinking of letting Gao Jiaxing train well and have a full meal energized her for the work.
Xiaoxiao made the steamed buns and dim sum, steaming them from two in the morning until seven-thirty, keeping busy non-stop for five hours.
By this time, Gao Jiaxing and others had already gone far away, and Xiaoxiao was not sure where they had gone. When she gradually finished steaming the buns, the group returned.
Looking at them, Xiaoxiao exclaimed, "Wow, you all brought back a big net full of fish."
"Did you go to the seaside to fish?" Xiaoxiao asked, amazed.
Liu Yuanchao smiled, "Yes, we went fishing by the seaside, got quite a haul. The sea is close by, sometime let Jiaxing take you for a coastal walk."
Gao Jiaxing said, "We’ll go in the evening."
Xiaoxiao smiled and nodded slightly. Suddenly, someone shouted, "Wow, so many buns and steamed buns."
"Sister-in-law, you really are a Tianluo Girl."
With that remark, everyone laughed.
Xiaoxiao laughed, "You all must be hungry, go ahead and eat, I’m not sure if it’s enough for everyone."
Xiaoxiao had made a lot, almost too many to count. She felt that in this cold weather, they could last a few days without spoiling.
Each person took two buns, and being hungry, they quickly consumed half of them.
Looking at their netted fish, Xiaoxiao suggested, "Let’s make fish soup today. The sauerkraut I pickled yesterday might not be sour enough, but we can use it to make sauerkraut fish."
"There’s a type of sour bean here, we can also use it to cook the fish," someone suggested.
Then, they started butchering the fish. Xiaoxiao said, "If we can’t finish, we can dry them to make dried fish, or salted fish, or even spicy fish sauce."
Hearing this, everyone was delighted and very eager to follow Xiaoxiao’s instructions.
Soon, Xiaoxiao had prepared two pots of sauerkraut fish and cooked a big pot of rice, enough to last them through the evening.
The remaining fish was left to dry, to be made into salted or spicy fish.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, and after washing, cutting, and laying out the fish to dry, they resumed training. They ate at eleven and then took a midday nap.
By observing, Xiaoxiao understood their training schedule: they started at two in the morning, trained until seven, made food, and then from nine to eleven, they trained again, had a meal, rested for an hour and a half, and then got up to train until five in the afternoon.
In the evening, the training was from seven to eight-thirty. They went to bed at nine, starting another daily cycle.
In the evening, Xiaoxiao and Gao Jiaxing went for a coastal walk. Living in a coastal area, Xiaoxiao was familiar with the sea, which was still very blue and clear, not yet polluted.
Under the setting sun, the sky turned a brilliant red, and the remaining glow of the sunset was equally dazzling, as if blending them into its radiance.