Chapter 23: Her Lover, the Deceiver Part 2

Lieutenant Colonel Wu pressed his lips together. But thankfully, he didn’t stop her, tacitly allowing it as a hair tie accessory.

Seeing Jia Hua comply, Lieutenant Colonel Wu took a deep breath. “Hmph, follow me.” With that, he walked toward the hovercar parked at the entrance.

Jia Hua pinched the bridge of her nose and followed.

Jia Hua took Lieutenant Colonel Wu’s hovercar to the front of Zhen Yan’s villa. She found Zhen Yan already standing ramrod straight at the door waiting for them, looking full of vigor and energy. Lieutenant Colonel Wu couldn’t help but nod.

Zhen Yan was truly the most suited for the military academy.

Zhen Yan got into the back seat, sitting close to Jia Hua. They exchanged a smile, very sweet. But luckily, they knew not to continuously provoke Lieutenant Colonel Wu, for fear of him suffering a mental breakdown. If a different, more meddlesome officer were assigned to manage them, it wouldn’t be so easy to deal with.

After setting the destination, Lieutenant Colonel Wu turned to the two and said: “Before I take you to report, I need to first take you to the infirmary for an enrollment health check. Every academy student has to do this. You don’t mind, do you?”

Both knew about this and nodded: “Fine.”

One had an official fake; the other had a ring fake. The two feared nothing.

The hovercar stopped before the entrance of the Imperial Fourth Military Academy’s infirmary. Though called an infirmary, its scale was practically a hospital.

Lieutenant Colonel Wu led the two straight to the Dean’s office and handed them over to a rather elderly female Beta.

“Dean, I leave them in your care,” Lieutenant Colonel Wu said.

“You can rest assured.” Dean Chen stood up and said to the two, “Little comrades, come, follow me.”

The two followed Dean Chen through a series of scans and tests. After completing the last one, the Dean settled them in a waiting room.

Dean Chen smiled warmly: “You two sit for a moment. I’m going to check the results.”

Due to Zhen Yan’s special circumstances, this check-up could only be performed by the Dean herself.

The two sat in the waiting room, sipping tea and eating fresh fruit. Meanwhile, in the Dean’s office, Dean Chen and Lieutenant Colonel Wu were both looking at the results with extremely serious expressions.

Dean Chen carefully reviewed the results several times. Finally, she took off her glasses and said to Lieutenant Colonel Wu: “Xiao Wu, this Zhen Yan—her mental power truly is S-rank. And looking at all the test results, even though she’s an Omega, her physical fitness is in no way inferior to an Alpha. This likely relates to her previously being an Alpha.”

Dean Chen became increasingly agitated. Her eyes glowing, she looked at Lieutenant Colonel Wu: “As long as you train her well, she will definitely become a new-generation War God for our Empire! Leading our Empire to glory!”

“Yes, ma’am! We will!” Lieutenant Colonel Wu was equally excited. Who knew that even after her sex-change differentiation, Zhen Yan’s physical fitness could still rival an Alpha’s!

“As for the other comrade,” Dean Chen paused, “she is indeed just a D-rank Omega. But her physical fitness is also quite good. Since she’s come to the military academy, she should be able to handle the standard training.”

Dean Chen split the four sets of test results, handing two each to Lieutenant Colonel Wu. “These two real copies are for General Qin. These two falsified copies are for the two comrades outside.”

“Alright, thank you for your hard work, Dean.” Lieutenant Colonel Wu placed the real test results into his document bag, took the fake ones, and went out.

“Here are your test results,” Lieutenant Colonel Wu said. “The academy infirmary has more precise mental power detection instruments that can further subdivide a single rank into five sub-levels. So Zhen Yan, you are a 5A-rank Alpha. Qin Hua, you are an A-rank Alpha.”

“Additionally, the tests found that both of your physical fitness levels are decent. So,” Lieutenant Colonel Wu looked at Jia Hua, “Qin Hua, you are capable of completing the foundational training. We hope you will enthusiastically participate in training and experience the spirit of unity and cooperation in group training…”

“Growl~~~”

Lieutenant Colonel Wu’s voice trailed off. Following the sound, his gaze landed on Jia Hua’s stomach.

Jia Hua clutched her stomach, pursing her lips in a smile: “Teacher Wu, can we eat breakfast first? I’m hungry.”

Lieutenant Colonel Wu: “…No. I’ll take you to report first, then send you to the canteen. Let me finish my mission first.”

Jia Hua clutched her stomach: …Fine.

Lieutenant Colonel Wu took the two to the administrative building. With an officer accompanying, they breezed through everywhere with a green light, quickly completing the enrollment procedures.

On the hovercar ride to the canteen, Lieutenant Colonel Wu gave each of them a school ID card printed with the Imperial Fourth Military Academy emblem.

“This is your school ID card. It contains your basic information. This ID card is your pass within the military academy. For places like the canteen, library, training rooms, simulation rooms, etc., you just need to swipe this card. The school deposits 10,000 Yuan into your card on the 1st of each month. If the money isn’t enough, you can go to the academy’s Mission Hall to accept missions for pocket money.”

The hovercar stopped in front of the gate marked “Canteen No. 3.”

Before the two got out, Lieutenant Colonel Wu said: “After you finish eating breakfast, go find your homeroom teacher, Teacher He Tong, yourselves. Also, Qin Hua, remember: absolutely make sure your identity stays hidden. Don’t let anyone find out. That’s all for now. Goodbye!” With that, he sped off into the distance in the hovercar.

Why hadn’t he noticed before? This Teacher Wu was so long-winded?

The name “Canteen No. 3” was simple, but that didn’t mean its exterior matched the name.

It was a seven-story, fully transparent glass building, with an irregularly shaped exterior, emitting a yellow light, yet it wasn’t blinding. It didn’t affect the surrounding buildings either.

Strange indeed.

The two walked into the canteen. Inside, floors one through five were student canteens, while the sixth and seventh floors were teacher canteens. Teachers could come down to the student canteens to eat, but students could not go up to the teacher canteens.

All the food in the canteen was made by cooking robots—no wasted manpower.

Zhen Yan: “What should we eat?”

Jia Hua: “Buns, I guess.”

Zhen Yan: “Fine. Over there.”

The two followed the signs to the bun window on the first floor. Jia Hua used her card to buy eight meat buns, three sticky rice chicken wraps, and two cups of soy milk. The card deducted 160.

Looking up at the price list:

【Meat Bun: 10 Yuan】

【Sticky Rice Chicken Wrap: 20 Yuan】

【Soy Milk: 10 Yuan】

The two: “…”

No wonder Teacher Wu kept talking about not having enough money to spend and so on. So the prices inside here were this high!

Thank goodness they got the school to sponsor a bit. Otherwise, attending this military academy would bankrupt your family!

The two ate breakfast unhurriedly. Just as they finished, they received a message from homeroom teacher He Tong: 【9:30 AM. Meet at the library entrance. — Freshman Class A Homeroom Teacher He Tong】

Looking at the time, it was already 9:15.

The two placed their trays on the recycling processor at the entrance. Outside the canteen, they saw a row of hovercars parked neatly. They inserted the school ID into the activation slot, set the destination, and the hovercar doors automatically closed, speeding off towards the library.

Seated together, the two didn’t speak. They just silently gazed at the campus scenery of the military academy. Two slender, well-proportioned hands were tightly clasped together.

This place was very unfamiliar to them. But as long as they had each other, they feared nothing.

The hovercar stopped at the hovercar parking point in front of the library. Jia Hua pulled out the school ID card and saw a prompt deducting 20 Yuan.

The two: …This campus shared hovercar isn’t cheap either.

Getting out, they saw a female Alpha in military uniform and military cap looking at them, her gaze extremely sharp.

The two walked over to greet her:

“Hello, Teacher. I am Zhen Yan, Freshman Class A student, 5A-rank Alpha.”

“Hello, Teacher. I am Qin Hua, Freshman Class A student, A-rank Alpha.”

The two glanced at the rank insignia on He Tong’s shoulder: two bars and four stars. Senior Colonel.

A Senior Colonel leading a class. It seemed this Class A was indeed extraordinary.

He Tong looked deeply at Zhen Yan and incidentally glanced at Jia Hua. She nodded: “Hello, students. I am He Tong, temporarily your homeroom teacher. Come on, I’ll take you to get your books, then to your classroom.”

Then the two packed their received textbooks into their backpacks and followed He Tong onto the hovercar, heading to the teaching building. He Tong inserted her card.

Before the row of freshman teaching buildings was a super-large square. Right in the center of the square stood an incredibly tall, massive display pillar. All four sides displayed the same thing: 【Imperial Fourth Military Academy Freshman Student Comprehensive Test Score Rankings】

Many students would lean on the window sills during breaks, gazing at the display pillar, counting their own rank, and envying those at the very top.

Ranking changes on the display happened in two ways: one, teachers adjusted the rankings based on monthly student assessments; two, students could challenge higher-ranked students to duels at the Combat Arena, where designated teachers would judge the outcome and modify the rankings.

The reason so many cared about the rankings was, first, that they represented ability and honor, and second, because the top 100 received scholarships.

1st to 10th place: 100,000 to 10,000 Yuan monthly, decreasing sequentially by rank. 11th to 20th: 8,000 monthly. 21st to 50th: 5,000 monthly. 51st to 100th: 3,000 monthly.

Although not much, it was better than nothing.

Just during the break after the first morning class, two names on the display screen shot up from the very bottom, soaring rapidly.

One name ascended to the top, pushing the original first to second. All previous ranks dropped down one spot. The other name wedged itself between 31st and 32nd, becoming 32nd. All ranks below it dropped another spot.

All the students leaning on the window sills were stunned, eyes wide with disbelief, struggling to read who these two sudden arrivals were.

First place: Zhen Yan. Thirty-second place: Qin Hua.

These were two unfamiliar names…

Suddenly, many people’s eyes lit up. These were the two people who had been late for Class A’s morning run this morning, right?!

Compared to the curiosity and speculation from Classes B, C, and D, Class A was shrouded in dark clouds. Everyone’s face was grim.

Why should they be parachuted directly into Class A! And straight to first place!

“Shuoqing, in our hearts, you’re still number one! These rankings were earned through test after test. Who does this Zhen Yan think she is, parachuting into first place?! It’s not fair!” Du Han, formerly third place, now fourth, complained to Ji Shuoqing, who was sitting quietly in her chair reading a book.

“It’s fine.” Ji Shuoqing closed her book and looked up at her friend. A faint, cold smile curled at the corner of her mouth. “What their strength is really like—we’ll know once we spar.”

What was rightfully hers, no one could snatch away.

Just as the entire Class A was seething with rage, He Tong, leading Zhen Yan and Jia Hua, stepped into the Freshman Class A classroom.

“Quiet! Everyone, back to your seats, now!” He Tong stood on the podium and shouted.

He Tong held a high position in the students’ hearts, so generally her words were obeyed. Thus, even though they were indignant, Class A’s students obediently returned to their seats, glaring fiercely at Zhen Yan and Jia Hua on the podium.

“Go ahead, introduce yourselves. Qin Hua first.” He Tong stepped off the podium and looked at Jia Hua.

Jia Hua remained perfectly composed under the many malicious stares. Her expression indifferent, she said: “Qin Hua, A-rank female Alpha.”

With that, she stepped aside, yielding the center spot to Zhen Yan.

Zhen Yan stepped forward, her face cold: “Zhen Yan, 5A-rank female Alpha.”

If you give us dirty looks, you think we’ll smile at you? Dream on!

When Zhen Yan said “5A-rank female Alpha,” the entire Class A was stunned. Truly, their pupils were shaking!

5A?!?

In the entire military academy, from freshmen to seniors, not a single student’s mental power rank was 5A. Originally, there was only one 4A—Ji Shuoqing of Freshman Class A—which was why she topped the freshman leaderboard.

But now, a 5A actually appeared?

The students of Class A silently shifted their gazes between Zhen Yan and Ji Shuoqing. They wondered—would Ji Shuoqing challenge Zhen Yan, whose mental power rank was just one sub-level higher than hers?

Even though it only looked like a single sub-level difference, between 4A and 5A, the gap was like heaven and earth.

Ji Shuoqing’s eyes fixed on Zhen Yan. After contemplating for a long time, she stood up. She looked at Zhen Yan and suddenly smiled: “Hello, I’m Ji Shuoqing, 4A-rank female Alpha. I now formally challenge you. Please agree to a spar with me. Thank you.”

Jia Hua, arms crossed, watched Zhen Yan and that girl named Ji Shuoqing, her eyes smiling.

Zhen Yan was never weak.

Zhen Yan looked at the beautiful female Alpha. She shook her head: “Sorry, I’m here to learn, not to fight.”

Ji Shuoqing chuckled lightly. She stretched out her hand, pointing out the window at the towering display pillar: “But your entrance didn’t tell us that.”

Zhen Yan and Jia Hua turned their heads to look out the window. They saw a display pillar full of names. Zhen Yan’s name was first; Jia Hua’s name was thirty-second.

“I didn’t know.” Zhen Yan turned her head to look at He Tong. “Teacher, where do Qin Hua and I sit?”

“Zhen Yan! I’ll put up a million-Yuan challenge fee. If you win, the million is yours. If you lose, you don’t need to give me a million!”

Zhen Yan slowly turned her head to look at Ji Shuoqing. Her voice was cold: “Fine. I accept your challenge.”

Jia Hua walked over to He Tong’s side, reaching out to pat her lightly. She said softly: “Teacher, this is about to turn into a fight. Aren’t you going to manage it?”

He Tong shook her head, expression indifferent: “This is within the school rules. It’s also a way to encourage self-improvement.”

“In the Imperial Fourth Military Academy, martial strength reigns supreme.”