Chapter 6: 6. Chapter 6 Foreign Language Class

Chapter 6: Foreign Language Class

In the study room, rows of wooden desks and chairs were arranged neatly. On the front wall, the blackboard hung with faint, mottled traces of age.

A temporarily moved desk served as the lectern; it was somewhat rudimentary yet unexpectedly solemn, with a few pieces of chalk resting on its surface.

A platoon of soldiers, dressed in neat uniforms, sat upright in their seats. Their postures were as straight as pines, motionless yet radiating an aura of tenacity.

Everyone sat quietly in their respective places, hands resting naturally on their knees and backs held straight, demonstrating the discipline and rigor unique to soldiers.

On each soldier's desk lay a slightly worn but very tidy notebook, accompanied by a pencil.

Meng Youyou gently pushed open the door to the study room. The moment she stepped into the classroom, the gazes of the entire platoon of soldiers instantly converged on her like spotlights.

Meng Youyou froze momentarily, her body pausing slightly. She experienced a strange illusion of being a lamb waiting to be slaughtered; having a group of soldiers staring at you continuously was indeed quite intimidating.

Her heart rate quickened involuntarily. Those sharp gazes made her feel somewhat uneasy. She bit her lip lightly, actively adjusting her state to regain her composure.

In modern society, Meng Youyou was a top student from the Foreign Language Department of a prestigious university. Her GPA had always been among the highest, making her a bona fide "beauty scholar" whose professional competence was in no way inferior to her looks.

At this moment, she stood on the lectern, brimming with confidence and grace.

A crisp, pleasant voice rang out from the front of the classroom: "Hello, comrades. I am Meng Youyou, the translator who has just reported to the unit. I will also be responsible for your Mang language instruction during this period. It is a pleasure to meet you all. If you encounter any knowledge you don't understand in the future, you are welcome to come and discuss it with me; I am more than happy to answer your questions. As I am new here, I will need your guidance in many matters moving forward."

As she spoke, a proper, gentle smile played on her lips.

Huo Qingshan watched the woman standing on the lectern delivering a series of polished, polite remarks. At this moment, there wasn't a trace of the flamboyant and unrestrained demeanor she had shown him earlier; she truly looked like an elegant, scholarly lady from a distinguished family.

An outsider would certainly be deceived by this facade of docility and gentleness, but Huo Qingshan knew all too well that this woman was merely a fox wearing a little white rabbit's skin, skilled at using an appearance of innocence and ignorance to mislead her opponents.

She seemed non-aggressive, but it was nothing more than her usual act; in reality, she was quite domineering and the type who wouldn't let anyone get the better of her.

After a brief self-introduction, the foreign language class proceeded in earnest: "As a unique language, Mang possesses a distinctive grammatical system, and its pronunciation is also full of character..."

The soldiers listened with rapt attention, while Meng Youyou monitored their reactions as she lectured.

Just as Meng Youyou finished explaining the last vowel letter of the Mang language, a sudden spark of inspiration hit her, and she decided to make things difficult for Huo Qingshan.

Don't think she didn't notice his playful, mocking expression while she was introducing herself earlier. What was so funny? What was there to laugh about?

*Just wait and see if you can keep that smile on your face later!*

"Comrades, I have just finished introducing the shapes and corresponding pronunciations of the 33 consonants and 21 vowels in the Mang language system. Now, I would like to test how well you have mastered them."

As soon as she finished speaking, the classroom fell into a deathly silence. It was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. The soldiers, acting with remarkable tacit understanding, all lowered their heads one by one to avoid making eye contact with Meng Youyou.

Watching this scene, Meng Youyou couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing. It turned out that these people, who always rushed into the most dangerous places and frequently bled without changing their expressions, reacted exactly like anyone else when faced with a teacher's question during class.

They were no different from ordinary people.

Suddenly, the soldiers before her felt more vivid and three-dimensional in her eyes; they were, after all, just a group of real, lovely, ordinary people.

When faced with questions they couldn't answer, they would fear being called upon, fear embarrassment, and attempt to avoid being selected by lowering their heads.

But there was one exception among the crowd of ordinary people—a type Meng Youyou summarized simply as a "troublemaker."

Amidst the sea of lowered heads, the troublemaker, Huo Qingshan, sat with his head held high and eyes fixed forward, standing out exceptionally. It was difficult for Meng Youyou not to notice him.

*Fine, fine, fine. Even with disaster looming, you're still going to act so composed?*

This was the first time Meng Youyou had encountered someone even more of an actor than her childhood friend, Shen Xin.

*Alright, alright, you insist on acting? Let's see how long you can keep it up!*

*I was aiming for you from the start, and now you're putting on this smug, fearless act. Don't blame me for being ruthless—just take the hit!*

Meng Youyou cleared her throat twice, "Ahem, ahem..." then pretended to scan the classroom seriously.

She then seemingly accidentally met Huo Qingshan's eyes, squeezed out a formulaic smile, and said in a relaxed, natural tone, "How about Battalion Commander Huo? You are their leader; why don't you lead by example and set a good tone for everyone? The soldiers will surely be more motivated to learn if they have you as a role model."

Meng Youyou deliberately flattered him in advance, setting his pedestal very high. The higher one flies, the harder the fall when things go wrong.

There were 54 letters in total. While she had said she finished the introduction, she had actually only just read them all through once.

Furthermore, the pronunciation of the Mang language was extremely unique. For someone encountering it for the first time, it was nearly impossible to memorize all the letters and pronounce them accurately after hearing them only once.

Upon being called on, Huo Qingshan did not hesitate and stood up directly. He stared intently at the strange symbols on the blackboard, falling into a brief silence.

Meng Youyou felt a secret joy in her heart. The show was beginning...

The other soldiers present also broke into a cold sweat for their battalion commander. *Sigh... what should he do?*

*The very first question from Translator Meng is this difficult? It's over. What if he didn't remember a single one?*

Just as Meng Youyou was preparing to tease the man, Huo Qingshan suddenly began to read without warning: "(k), (kh), (k), (kh), (ng), (ch), (chh), (j), (chh)..."

Hearing this, Meng Youyou could hardly believe it. He actually got them all right! Most amazingly, his pronunciation was incredibly standard—even more standard than two-thirds of the students in her university's Mang language department!

*This... how is this possible?*

*Impossible, this is absolutely impossible. He must have only remembered the pronunciations of the first few simpler consonants; he definitely won't remember the complex vowels later.*

But the man's voice continued in an orderly fashion: "...(u), ( ), ( ), ( ), (u), (i), (ka), (ki), (ke), (ku)..." Huo Qingshan recited all 54 letters in one breath.

Although Meng Youyou was indoors, her mind felt as if it were spinning in a storm. She was stunned!

*Is this... reasonable???*

*Is this scientific?*

*Have I encountered a genius?*

*Is he performing some kind of dimensional strike?*

*Fine, fine, fine. You were silent for so long just to prepare a big move! Alright, you're great, you're noble, you're amazing, okay?*

*Since you're so capable, why don't you come and be the teacher?*

Now look at this—not only had she failed to embarrass Huo Qingshan, but she had instead allowed him to successfully show off on the spot.

Having failed to prank him and instead feeling humiliated, Meng Youyou was now completely demoralized!

What Meng Youyou did not know was...

Since childhood, Huo Qingshan had demonstrated learning and memory abilities far exceeding those of his peers. In high school, he could memorize classroom content after hearing it just once.

During the college entrance examinations, he entered the military academy with top-tier scores.

During his time at the military academy, whether in military theory courses or technical training, Huo Qingshan repeatedly broke historical assessment records since the academy's founding, earning high recognition from his instructors.

After graduation, he fully applied what he had learned to the daily work of the border defense forces.

During daily patrols, he could precisely memorize the complex terrain, topography, and various markers of the border, acting like a living map.

Every piece of information gathered during patrols—such as the behavioral characteristics and frequency of movement of border personnel—was etched into his memory. Once integrated by his brain, this information became a vital intelligence resource.

Faced with complex border facility conditions and maintenance data, he could also remember them clearly, detecting even the slightest changes immediately.

He performed exceptionally well in the arduous border defense work, completing all tasks brilliantly. His extraordinary personal abilities were precisely why he had been promoted to battalion commander within just a few short years of graduation.

Unfortunately... Meng Youyou knew nothing of this!

For the remainder of the half-period, Meng Youyou was somewhat dazed, still reeling from the aftershocks of Huo Qingshan's "extraordinary maneuver."

*Fine, fine, fine, you really showed me! Am I the clown here?*

Seeing that her "underhanded" scheme was not working, the "petty" Meng Youyou decided to abandon subtlety and switch to an overt strategy.

Standing on the lectern, Meng Youyou said her closing remarks with a beaming smile: "Comrades, that concludes today's Mang language class. I hope you will all review seriously after class to fully grasp the knowledge. To that end, I am assigning a small piece of homework: every comrade must copy the 33 consonants and 21 vowels taught today ten times each and submit them before the next class. However, due to his excellent classroom performance, Comrade Huo Qingshan must copy them 100 times."

*What grace? What integrity? What magnanimity? To hell with that! I'm throwing all that aside. I am going to retaliate against you openly, otherwise, I'll never get over this resentment.*

*Anyway, right now I am the teacher and you are the student. It is only natural for a teacher to assign homework and for a student to complete it on time and in the required amount!*

*Not happy? If you're not happy... just deal with it!*

After assigning the homework, Meng Youyou shouted "Class dismissed!" with great momentum.

She then strode out of the classroom, leaving behind a retreating figure that appeared extremely dashing but was actually somewhat flustered.

Witnessing Meng Youyou's series of "elementary school-style retaliations," Huo Qingshan did not get angry, but instead laughed.

*She truly is a young lady raised in pampered luxury!*

He estimated that... she had likely never suffered even the slightest grievance since childhood. She had been protected so well that even a small matter here could cause her to hold a grudge for so long.

While such a free-spirited and uninhibited personality might be somewhat cute in isolation, if placed in a border defense unit, these traits would inevitably hit walls repeatedly.

If one chooses the wrong environment, even the most beautiful traits will be eroded; it is destined to be unsuitable from the start. A princess should live in a beautiful castle drinking afternoon tea; there is really no need to come to such a remote and harsh place to build a resume.

One cannot have it both ways. You cannot want people to envy your natural beauty while also wanting them to praise your virtue and talent. There is no such thing as having it both ways in this world.

Soil that is too barren is destined to be unable to nourish a blooming rose, and flowers that grow in a greenhouse for too long cannot withstand the wind and rain.

Only thorny cacti and dusty, thick-skinned sweet potatoes can grow here.