บท 9: Chapter 6: Revelation Youth Class_1
The canteen conditions in Tianjing are quite good, especially for the Mech and Starship departments. Marlon was indulging himself today, heading straight to the second floor, where you could order a variety of individual dishes. From time to time, they even had some unique ingredients, like ones from the Moon, Mars, or even Titan's specialty dishes.
Of course, all were based on Earth's cuisine; the main difference was the raw materials. The beef produced on Titan is unique, and its price tops the chart. It absolutely deserves the nickname "too beef." The meat is juicy, packed with rare energy gifted by Titan's unique elements. For warriors, it was a great supplement. Marlon was clearly happy, everyone had a steak, everyone ate cheerfully.
"Did you guys hear that Principal Long was seriously dissatisfied with the performance of the Mecha department last year? So this year, they're choosing the combat teams. A few captains have already been appointed and one of them is your class president... I bet on her. Hong Tu and Zhao Zhihan they're not competition, they're playing games." Finished his small beer, Marlon's mood was soaring, "Musashi, surely you're one of them?"
Musashi nodded, silently ordering another steak. Marlon's mouth twitched, he'd ignored his friends' appetites; just earlier, he was bragging about treating them to eat.
I was indeed careless.
"I'll have another too." Zuo Xiaotang didn't stand on ceremony, opportunities to take advantage of Marlon's generosity were few and far between.
"Damn, where's your humanity? You can add one at most, not anymore, I'm running out of money!" Marlon, seeing the situation turn sour, quickly turned the conversation back, "Has Big Sis chosen her team members yet?"
"So far, just me. Not sure about the others."
"Really, our dorm's third guy has the most promising future among us. Maybe we'll all be depending on you." Marlon said bluntly. After all, Musashi was from a traditional martial arts family, clearly trained strictly, lacking any trace of laziness, and the hardest worker of them all. If someone this resourceful, talented, and hardworking didn't succeed, who would?
Musashi blushed; then, Sheng Man arrived, "I'm sorry, I was held up. Are we celebrating something? You're ordering such fancy food?"
Before anyone could respond, Marlon hurriedly replied, "It's the first day of school, gotta motivate my brothers, darling, come, sit!"
Marlon had already prepared a place for Sheng Man. Sheng Man, a junior now, exuded a mature charm, everything from her glance to her laughter had a special allure. Although they had been dating for a year, their relationship was going great. As soon as Sheng Man arrived, Marlon stopped dealing with the others.
Luckily, Li Hao and the others were already used to this. However, for some reason, the beef in their plates suddenly lost its flavor.
Just then, two other people arrived with their trays, looking for a spot. The whole canteen's volume dropped a few decibels, filled with whispering.
It was Zhou Naiyi and Ye Tong. The news of Ye Tong's arrival at Tianjing Mech had spread, the star student with her outrageous popularity, caught everyone's attention. People anticipated her to choose NUP, since, honestly, NUP had better offers, but she chose Tianjing.
Zhou Naiyi noticed Li Hao, "Ye Tong, I need to talk to Li Hao, it'll be just a moment."
"Naiyi, since we've met, why don't we eat together?" Ye Tong suggested.
Zhou Naiyi didn't mind, they both walked over. Ye Tong went straight to Zuo Xiaotang's side, giving him a slight smile, "Elder Brother, can I sit here?"
Zuo Xiaotang was stunned and instantly jumped up, "No problem, here you go!"
Ye Tong sat down on Li Hao's side with her tray. Zhou Naiyi took the seat opposite to Li Hao. Everyone else was clueless about the two's agenda. Sheng Man greeted them warmly, as a journalism student, she knew Zhou Naiyi well and was interested in Ye Tong.
"Li Hao, Principal Long has reformed the selection process for the Mecha competition this year. I'll be in one of the selected teams. Do you want to join?" Zhou Naiyi asked.
Everyone at the table froze, even Li Hao was taken aback, "Me? I think I'll pass. Having Musashi from our dorm is enough."
"And what if Principal Long specifically asked for you to join?" Zhou Naiyi stared intently at Li Hao, trying to ascertain something from his expression.
The old principal moved him from the Journalism Department to the Mecha Department, and Principal Long gave him this opportunity. Considering Long Danni's character, it wasn't about saving anyone's face, there definitely was something unusual about Li Hao.
"Can I refuse?" Li Hao paused, wondering what they were driving at. Could it be...?
Somehow, Zhou Naiyi sensed Li Hao was avoiding something. From the moment he proposed to help him train yesterday, upon reflection, there was a certain bothersome lack of interest expressed in his words.
Yes, that was it — indifference. And it made Zhou Naiyi slightly uncomfortable.
"No, it's a direct order from the principal. You must participate, and whether you'll be allowed to stay will depend on your performance," Zhou Naiyi said with determination.
Li Hao shrugged helplessly, "Class leader, I can participate, but as you know, I often work overtime at night, so my training schedule might not be very consistent."
Off to one side, Ye Tong's eyes contracted slightly and with a snap, she knocked on her plate, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
Ye Tong smiled, "Senior, I'm really looking forward to being teammates with you. With great power comes great responsibility, and sometimes it can be better to take the initiative."
It was clear that Ye Tong's words carried a hidden meaning. But who was she talking about... Li Hao?
"Li Hao, you sure play your cards close to your chest. Acting uninterested in everything. But when did you get to know Goddess Tong?" Sheng Man asked curiously. The personalities of the 4396 were all distinctive. Wuzang was obsessed with martial arts, only caring about training and becoming stronger. She had even tried introducing Wuzang to her girlfriends, but he didn't even show up. Zuo Xiaotang was a typical homebody, yet surprisingly talented in shooting, and as for Li Hao, he was the least noticeable, but it was hard to ignore him, perhaps due to his unplaceable confidence and nonchalance.
Ye Tong looked at Li Hao, "Senior, it seems they're not aware of your true identity. After all these years, your character really hasn't changed."
Zhou Naiyi and others put down their chopsticks, watching Li Hao and Ye Tong.
"Um…dear junior sister, it seems there might be a misunderstanding," Zuo Xiaotang couldn't help but say. He knew about Li Hao's situation, having grown up in an orphanage and having attended some kind of training in between, before coming to the preparatory class in Tianjing. He later joined Tianjing Mechanics. This was something the others also knew about.
"Are you all aware of the Solar System Apocalypse Youth Class?" Ye Tong asked.
"Who doesn't know about it? That youth class has pretty much become a legend. The first and only time the four federations collaborated, they churned out one top-level warrior after another. Apparently, due to some major incident, they never organized it again, what a shining beacon," Marlon said. Many of the strong competitors in this year's Mechwar Championship were from that youth class.
"Li Hao, would you like to tell them, or shall I?" Ye Tong asked, with a cryptic smile.
Li Hao was taken aback, chuckling wryly, "What's the big deal? Yes, I did attend that youth class. But then something happened, and they dismissed it. That's an old story."
Clatter…
Marlon's spoon dropped onto his plate. Everyone at the table looked flabbergasted at Li Hao, especially Zhou Naiyi. She had wanted to join that class back in the day. The general public might not know how important it was to the higher-ups in the major federations. She was part of the initial selection process but got eliminated in the first round.
"Are you saying you know the Lunar War God Maxis? You know Sky King Van Lit, and you...were classmates with the Martian Wolf King Bastha in the youth class?"
(I remember when we first started university in 2000, and the six brothers in our dorm all complained about coming from poor backgrounds. Everybody tried to outdo the others with their pitifulness. But one day we found a locker full of Nike and Adidas shoes, and were we supposed to just tolerate that? After some "sincere exchanges" among the other five of us, he finally admitted he was a landowner in Shanghai, a second generation rich kid. We were all in the same boat already, couldn't run now. The rest of our university time passed quite comfortably. Here's the third update, partners, I encourage monthly subscriptions, thank you!)
ของขวัญ
-- ได้รับของขวัญแล้ว สถานะพลังงานรายสัปดาห์
-- การจัดอันดับด้วยพลัง 
-- หินพลัง