「The next day.」

A buzz of excitement filled the Northwest Military Region. It was a day of rest for all the soldiers. A stage occupied the entire training ground, and the official performances were set to begin at ten in the morning.

Wen Ci and Yu Qing had the finale performance.

Their makeup call was for after lunch.

Having caught up on sleep over the past two days, Wen Ci was full of energy. She stretched lazily in bed, but the spot beside her was cold. She slowly sat up.

She hadn’t seen Huo Jingyuan for nearly ten days.

’I really do miss him.’

Wen Ci heaved a long sigh. She wanted Huo Jingyuan to see her Water Sleeve Dance performance more than anything. ’But it can’t be helped. Soldiers have to obey orders, and missions are more important.’

At nine o’clock, the guest area of the base was already filled with family members. Wen Ci headed to the cafeteria for breakfast; today, they were serving soy milk and fried dough sticks without a time limit.

As Wen Ci was eating a limp fried dough stick, she spotted a melancholic-looking Xue Li. She raised her hand and called out to him, "Xue Li, come sit over here."

The moment Xue Li saw Wen Ci, he reacted like a mouse seeing a cat, scrambling to get away. He dropped half a fried dough stick but didn’t even stop to pick it up, simply bolting.

"Huh?"

Watching Xue Li flee in a panic, Wen Ci frowned. Her woman’s intuition told her something was very wrong, but she couldn’t put her finger on what it was.

’I’ll just have to catch him later and ask him properly.’

When she arrived at the training ground, a sharp-eyed Xiang Qin spotted her and waved eagerly. "Wen Ci, over here! You can take Sister Jing’s seat."

As the head chef, Zhu Jing had to manage the food preparation for the entire Northwest Military Region.

Several head chefs were all on duty. For the annual Military Art tour, not only did the soldiers get a day off, but the food was also free all day—a luxury they didn’t even get during the New Year celebration.

For the New Year, the Northwest Military Region only handed out a serving of dumplings to each person.

But today, all sorts of meat dishes were available.

Wen Ci made her way through the crowd and sat beside Xiang Qin. "Where are the little kids?" she asked curiously.

"They’re performing on stage, too."

Wen Ci’s eyes widened. She then remembered that Jiang Ye was now at the school here in the Northwest. ’With her background, she’d see this as a great opportunity for the children to perform on stage.’

"But don’t performers have to put on makeup?"

Wen Ci smiled. "My performance is this afternoon, so I won’t be getting my makeup done until after lunch."

"Oh, I see."

Backstage, makeup application was in full swing. People had to get up before dawn, as there were only a handful of female soldiers in the art troupe who knew how to do makeup.

As music swelled, the stage curtain slowly drew back. The performance tour had officially begun, and every act from the art troupe was spectacular.

As noon approached, it was time for the final performance of the morning.

The little kids stood on stage in child-sized military uniforms. Jiang Ye stood before them, holding a red flag. As the national anthem began to play, the children sang along in their sweet, piping voices.

As the anthem ended, the curtain closed to a round of applause.

Xiang Qin said admiringly, "Teacher Jiang is really something else. I heard she volunteered to transfer from Beijing to teach here in the Northwest. She’s got such incredible vision."

Wen Ci nodded.

She couldn’t deny that Jiang Ye had a broad perspective.

’Jiang Ye may be the cuckoo in the nest, a false daughter of the Jiang Family, but the elite education she received growing up was very real. Her motives might be questionable, but when it came to the children of the Northwest Military Region, she was anything but careless.’

’But the college entrance exams are coming up soon.’

’Does she really plan on staying in the Northwest for good?’

’After the college entrance exams were reinstated, the Jiang Family’s position was still unstable. The eldest son gave up the exam to join the military, while the youngest daughter had been lying low at home.’

’Only when their father was promoted to a ministerial position last year did Jiang Ye finally get the chance to take the college entrance exams. And as an older student, she would only get one shot at it.’