At this, Teacher Kuang suggested, “Commissar Xue, now that the teams are set, can the two groups discuss separately in the remaining space?”
“That makes sense. Although friendship comes first and competition second, there’s still some rivalry involved,” Xue Wei smiled. “Meeting adjourned. Team leaders, you arrange your groups!”
After the announcement, Xue Wei left the Mess Hall.
Teacher Kuang led his team to the back, found a spot, and quietly started planning.
Qian Duoduo’s team—
Cui Yurong pulled winter jujubes from his pocket, biting into one with a crisp crackle. Listening to the laughter nearby, he teased slowly, “Look at Teacher Kuang putting on such a mysterious act. I bet for Friday’s first round of ‘battle dishes,’ he’s going to bring out a full Manchu Han Imperial Feast.”
“Whatever the other team cooks, I won’t guess,” Qian Duoduo smiled. “Let’s focus on what we’re making for Friday. Any ideas?”
The young soldiers looked at each other with puzzled faces.
Qian Duoduo patiently waited, and when no one spoke, she softly said, “Okay then, I’ll come up with ten dish ideas and confirm with you tomorrow.”
“Report!” Xiao Honghua suddenly spoke up.
Qian Duoduo was still unused to soldiers’ formal way of speaking and paused before asking, “Comrade Xiao Honghua, what would you like to say?”
Xiao Honghua stood straight, “Teacher Qian, I’ve read the government document Commissar Xue issued. It clearly says we need to make hometown dishes.”
Wen Hao: “Isn’t that obvious? Who can’t read?”
Seeing the two bickering, Qian Duoduo quickly tried to smooth things over. “We’re all on the same team—no need to quarrel over such a small matter…”
Cui Yurong laughed, “Teacher Qian, you don’t know these two jokers. They always like to bicker. It’s just their nature; if they don’t argue all day, they feel itchy inside. It’s not really fighting; you’ll understand once you get to know them.”
The team members chatted briefly.
Suddenly, Qian Duoduo remembered something and pulled out her phone from the down coat pocket.
Smiling, she asked, “By the way, if everyone’s okay with it, how about I create a WeChat group? We can communicate there anytime.”
Everyone responded enthusiastically.
The soldiers took out their phones.
Qian Duoduo opened WeChat’s scan function, added Cui Yurong first, then Cui created the group and added everyone at once.
Looking at the new group chat on her screen, Qian Duoduo pondered for a moment before renaming the group “Chuanhua Little Master.”
“Done. This group is for our team’s communication,” Qian Duoduo smiled. “I won’t keep you any longer—meeting adjourned. Hope everyone has a good night.”
“Goodbye, Teacher Qian!” “Let’s go, team leader…” The soldiers were polite, greeting her before leaving.
Cui Yurong and Qian Duoduo walked last.
After putting some distance between them and the others, Qian Duoduo lowered her voice and asked mysteriously, “Squad Leader Cui, is there still some cold shredded chicken from dinner tonight?”
“Yeah, there’s about one bowl left. I put it in the fridge and was going to give it to Xiao Bai later,” Cui Yurong replied suspiciously. “Teacher Qian, are you planning to study the recipe?”
Qian Duoduo didn’t elaborate and said simply, “Just give me a small bowl, and you can keep the rest.”
“Done. No problem.”
***
About twenty minutes later, Qian Duoduo arrived at the dormitory building, holding the cold shredded chicken dish.
She climbed the stairs to the fourth floor.
She went straight to Room 408 and stood still in front of the door.
Inside was quiet. Through the door’s crack, a faint white light spilled out, indicating someone was there.
Qian Duoduo hesitated for two seconds, then raised her hand and gently knocked.
Knock knock, knock knock.
Soon, footsteps sounded from inside.
Plastic slippers tapping on the tiled floor? The pace neither hurried nor slow, carrying a calm and steady rhythm.
Grasping the plastic food container with slender fingers, she subconsciously drew herself inward.
Biting her lip, she took a deep breath. Strangely, she realized a subtle, indescribable nervousness in her emotions.
Maintaining composure was a must for public figures.
Before the door opened, Qian Duoduo had already adjusted her expression.
The dormitory corridor was brightly lit.
Lu Qiming opened the door, and his lowered gaze met a delicate face smiling with eyes curved, holding a plastic food container.
Peaceful and composed, she was like the morning light— warm and gentle.
The surrounding air carried a scent, a strong aroma of food that even masked the fresh, light sweetness around the girl.
Lu Qiming subtly raised his brow and looked at her with an unchanged expression.
“Sorry to bother you, Team Leader Lu.”
Qian Duoduo smiled, “I came to get my spicy strips and brought you something to eat, too.”
Lu Qiming’s eyes scanned the container in her hands and paused for half a second before saying, “Please come in.”
The smile on Qian Duoduo’s face instantly stiffened.
Please come in?
Into where?
“Someone might come out in the corridor,” Lu Qiming lowered his gaze to her. “If we stand here eating, people might see us. I’m afraid it might affect you.”
Qian Duoduo felt embarrassed and inwardly cringed.
She thought: In this comrade’s view, they either stand and eat outside together or go in and eat inside together.
Can’t he just hand me the spicy strips and I give him the shredded chicken, then we each eat in our own rooms?
Must we be together?
Before Qian Duoduo could voice this question, Lu Qiming calmly stepped aside, creating a path and gesturing for her to enter.
Qian Duoduo hesitated slightly and stammered, “It’s late already; maybe I should just—”
“Are you afraid of me?” Lu Qiming suddenly asked.
Qian Duoduo’s eyes flickered as she looked up at him. “What?”
“Are you afraid I’ll misbehave with you?”
“…Of course not!”
She denied this without hesitation. “I trust you, Team Leader Lu. Besides, this is a military camp with strict discipline and rules; there’s no way you’d behave improperly.”
Lu Qiming lowered his eyelids to look at her. Whether she was really emphasizing trust or just psyching herself up, he found it amusing.
A faint smile crept into his dark eyes. “You already know this is a military camp. I absolutely wouldn’t do anything untoward. What’s there to be afraid of?”
“I’m not afraid,” Qian Duoduo took a deep breath and corrected him, “I’m just worried it might be inconvenient for you.”
Lu Qiming: “I’m very convenient.”
“…”
No way. Qian Duoduo couldn’t find a response and reluctantly stepped inside.
Lu Qiming’s single-occupancy dorm room had the same layout as Room 406.
After entering, Qian Duoduo instinctively turned her head to look around.
The first thing that caught her eye was the military-style bedspread.
Military green, perfectly squared, sharp edges without any softness. Every wrinkle obediently folded at a fixed angle.
The wardrobe was closed tightly, concealing its contents.
At the foot of the bed stood a small black acrylic storage rack with compressed rations, water purification tablets, tourniquets neatly arranged in a grid.
The whole room was clean, tidy, monotonous, cold, and hard—purely militarized.
Only the unopened instant noodles revealed a faint trace of daily life.
Seeing Lu Qiming’s living conditions, Qian Duoduo’s eyes widened in surprise.
She suddenly recalled following her dorm’s supervisor and roommates to inspect the boys’ dormitories during school.
She remembered that the boys’ dorm halls always reeked before even entering the rooms.
Inside, it was worse— cigarette butts and discarded shoes and socks piled everywhere.
She hadn’t expected a man’s room to be like this.
It didn’t look like a place people lived.
More like a weapons depot, kept ready for sudden alert and battle.
Just as she was marveling quietly, a voice came from behind.
“What would you like to drink? Hot water or tea?”
Qian Duoduo came back to herself and waved her hand with a smile, “No thanks. I’m not thirsty.”
Lu Qiming said nothing but bent down to take a clean transparent glass from the cabinet under the desk, poured hot water, and placed it in front of her.
Then he casually pulled the only chair over for her. “Sit.”
Qian Duoduo nodded and sat down with the shredded chicken, lowering her eyelids, feeling tense from head to toe.
Lu Qiming sat on the edge of the bed, eyeing the food container in her hand. His chin moved slightly. “Is this the extra dish you brought me?”
“Yes.” Qian Duoduo realized and quickly reached to open the lid while explaining, “Cold shredded chicken. Squad Leader Cui said there was one bowl left. He originally planned to save it for someone else, but luckily I asked in time.”
“Here, I grabbed some for you. Otherwise, Team Leader Lu, you wouldn’t have any good fortune.”
When the lid was opened, the spicy chili oil aroma filled the entire room.
Lu Qiming looked a bit puzzled and asked, “Who was Squad Leader Cui planning to save the dish for?”
“I don’t know,” Qian Duoduo shook her head honestly, recalling, “I heard him call the person… I think he said Xiao Bai?”
The moment she said this, the entire Room 408 suddenly fell silent.
The usually stern man was quiet for a full ten seconds, then lowered his head and smiled.
At first, it was a small, soft smile, but soon it grew into a light laugh.
Qian Duoduo’s mind filled with a question mark: ?
Seeing Lu Qiming’s smile, her expression gradually grew puzzled. She furrowed her brow and asked, “Team Leader Lu, what’s so funny about what I said?”
After finishing his laughter, Lu Qiming looked up at her again. His sharp gaze carried a mix of amusement and interest.
After a moment, he calmly said, “Xiao Bai is a military dog I keep in my yard. He’s three years old and is a Belgian Malinois, skilled in handling various high-intensity tasks.”
What?
A military dog?
So that leftover shredded chicken was actually intended as dog food?
Faced with this fact, Qian Duoduo was completely embarrassed.
Her pretty face flushed from pale to white to bright red, even her small ears blushed deeply.
“No matter what, thank you, Teacher Qian, for feeding him,” Lu Qiming smiled gently, his mood indescribably good. “Competing with my dog for food— very touching.”
Qian Duoduo: “…” OTZ