The Cannon Fodder Roles I Play All Become White Moonlights [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 26.2

As soon as Su Qingmeng stepped out of the car, she ran into Lin Wangbei.

The pale-faced young man had shed all the arrogance he’d displayed the day before. His demeanour was gentle, and he even took the initiative to apologize: “I’m sorry, Comrade Su. I spoke too harshly yesterday. I was just… concerned about you.”

“We have no relationship. Don’t worry about me, it might lead to misunderstandings,” Su Qingmeng replied, her words as cutting as ever. Lin Wangbei seemed accustomed to it and didn’t mind, even following behind her.

Su Qingmeng ignored him and stopped directly in front of the changing room door. With a smile, she asked, “I’m going in to change. Surely, you’re not going to be a rogue and follow me in, are you, Instructor Lin?”

Lin Wangbei gritted his teeth, suppressed his temper, and forced a smile. There would be time for this later.

In the days that followed, Su Qingmeng behaved quite obediently. She arrived at the cultural troupe on time every day, practiced dance with Instructor An, and never asked for leave. When it was her turn to lead the dance, Instructor An finally witnessed her terrifying learning ability and comprehension.

How could it only have been a few days? Su Qingmeng had visibly improved again.

Instructor An’s feelings were complicated. She had never believed in so-called geniuses, thinking that skill came only through diligent practice. But meeting Su Qingmeng made her realize that true geniuses did exist—their innate talent completely overshadowed the efforts of those like her, who relied on hard work to compensate for their shortcomings.

At lunchtime, Instructor An didn’t eat with the others. She picked up two steamed buns from the canteen and left. Su Qingmeng noticed her figure and glanced up at the blazing sun overhead. Letting out a long sigh, she nevertheless opened her umbrella and followed Instructor An, eventually arriving with her at the seaside.

Nanjiang Island was located in the south of the country, at the junction of the inland and outer seas. The water was azure, blue, the sand golden. By late April, even at noon, it wasn’t cold to walk barefoot on the beach.

Instructor An took off her shoes and walked along the shore. A wave washed over her feet, and when she looked back, the rows of footprints she had left behind were already gone. Suddenly, a look of confusion and helplessness crossed her face, until she saw the girl with the umbrella approaching her step by step from a distance…

“Even if the waves wash it away, the long distance you walked from there to here is the mark you left behind.” Su Qingmeng walked up to Teacher An, glanced at the confusion and helplessness on her face, and reluctantly explained, “There’s no one in this world who relies solely on talent. Everyone has to practice, it’s just that some practice happens where you can’t see it. I get up at five every morning to train and don’t sleep until eleven at night.”

Teacher An understood and was suddenly moved. She wanted to hug this awkward girl but then heard Su Qingmeng’s next words: “Hurry up and leave, hurry up. This place is usually deserted. If you died here, no one would even find you.” Su Qingmeng certainly knew how to ruin the mood. Still, Teacher An felt somewhat grateful to her, as her own despondency had lessened. “Alright, let’s go back.”

After all, she was an awkward person too and wouldn’t voice her gratitude to Su Qingmeng.

“Oh, then hold the umbrella for me. I’ve been following you all this way, worried you might do something drastic, and I’m exhausted.” Su Qingmeng pouted and shoved the umbrella into Teacher An’s hands.

Teacher An’s eye twitched but seeing Su Qingmeng’s fair cheeks flushed red from the walk, she took the umbrella anyway.

“Do you even know how to hold an umbrella? I’m getting sunburned!” Su Qingmeng complained unhappily.

Teacher An snorted, “Of course, I’m holding it over myself first. If you don’t want to get sunburned, move closer.”

The two drew closer and closer, eventually linking arms and sharing a smile.

Suddenly, Su Qingmeng’s gaze sharpened. She spun around and called out toward the shadows beneath the reef, “Teacher Lin, what are you doing here?”

Lin Wangbei was taken aback by Su Qingmeng’s sharp perception. Adjusting his expression slightly, he stepped out of the shadows and said with a smile, “I was worried about you two, so I came to check.”

“Really? Then we should thank you for your concern.” Su Qingmeng smiled sweetly, though her tone carried a hint of sarcasm.

Lin Wangbei narrowed his eyes slightly and began walking toward them.

Su Qingmeng frowned, snatched the umbrella from Teacher An’s hands, and swung it at Lin Wangbei. As he dodged backward, she grabbed Teacher An and sprinted toward the nearby road.

Teacher An, caught off guard, instinctively followed her. Only when they reached the road did she gasp for breath and pull Su Qingmeng to a stop. “Why are we running? I can’t run anymore.”

“Yes, why are you running?” The seemingly frail young man, familiar with the area, had somehow appeared behind them without notice.

Su Qingmeng faced him directly, her peach-blossom eyes icy and piercing. Lin Wangbei thought those eyes were incredibly beautiful.

He took another step forward.

Just then, a military jeep sped toward them at full throttle. The vehicle stirred up a gust of wind as it neared the trio, then slammed on the brakes. Before it had even fully stopped, a figure leaped out. In a flash, before anyone could clearly see him, he had pinned Lin Wangbei to the ground.

Clang! A metallic object clattered to the ground, a wrapped scalpel slipped from Lin Wangbei’s inner pocket, gleaming ominously in the sunlight.

Lin Wangbei struggled to get up, but he was no match for the man. Upon seeing the scalpel, the man’s already expressionless face turned even colder. He tightened his grip, and with a sharp crack, Lin Wangbei’s pale face grew even paler as he passed out from the pain.

“Division Commander Jiang?” Su Qingmeng’s peach-blossom eyes lost their icy edge, shimmering like the sunlit sea in spring, brimming with pleasant surprise.

Jiang Lingfeng looked at her, a faint smile softening his stern expression as he hoisted Lin Wangbei up with one hand. “Are you alright? Do you know this man?”

“Oh, he’s from the Beijing Cultural Troupe,” Su Qingmeng replied casually.

“Carrying a knife around, that’s suspicious. I’ll take him back to the military base for questioning.” Jiang Lingfeng frowned. “Xiao Zhang, pass me a rope for tying him up.”

Xiao Zhang expertly tossed a rope to Jiang Lingfeng, who tied Lin Wangbei up even more skillfully than the throw, swiftly binding him hand and foot.

Su Qingmeng had no objections, but Teacher An trembled with fear, stammering, “Lin Wangbei’s father is highly regarded in Beijing, a favorite of the top four… This… this might not be a good idea…”

Jiang Lingfeng immediately realized who Lin Wangbei’s father was but paid it no mind. He stuffed Lin Wangbei into the trunk of the car. “No matter whose son he is, if he brings a knife onto the island, I’ll question him thoroughly. I’ll take you back first.”

Worried that Lin Wangbei might wake up and cause a disturbance, Jiang Lingfeng stuffed a cloth into his mouth before getting into the car. As expected, Lin Wangbei regained consciousness just as the car reached the Cultural Troupe’s entrance, whimpering from the trunk. Jiang Lingfeng ignored him and simply let Su Qingmeng and Teacher An out of the car.

Watching the departing jeep, Teacher An swallowed hard, her body still trembling. “Is… is this really alright?”

“Don’t worry, it won’t involve you,” Su Qingmeng reassured her.

Teacher An grew anxious. “It’s not that I’m afraid of being implicated, but…” she feared it might affect many others.

Su Qingmeng shook her head, signaling her to stop. Teacher An paused, suddenly noticing how bright Su Qingmeng’s eyes were. Because of Su Qingmeng’s usual independent nature, she had always assumed the girl was naive and unaware of the world. Only now did she realize that Su Qingmeng might be the cleverest one of all.

“Why did you take me and run earlier?” Teacher An asked.

“It doesn’t matter anymore,” Su Qingmeng replied, glancing down at her bare feet. “I’ll get you a pair of shoes. Don’t go to that beach alone again.”

Teacher An pressed her lips together, sensing that Su Qingmeng knew something but refused to share it. She thought again of the scalpel Lin Wangbei had dropped.

Li Jianhua was initially pleased to see Jiang Lingfeng return, but his smile vanished the moment he saw him dragging Lin Wangbei out of the car. His jaw nearly dropped. “Division Commander Jiang, what are you doing? This is Old Lin’s son! Let him go at once!”

Jiang Lingfeng cast a cold glance at Lin Wangbei. “He was following two young women and carrying a knife.”

If he hadn’t gone with Xiao Zhang to pick up Su Qingmeng and noticed this man’s suspicious behavior, trailing Lin Wangbei all the way, who knew what might have happened.

Li Jianhua furrowed his brow and stepped forward to remove the cloth from Lin Wangbei’s mouth. “Xiao Lin, tell us what really happened?”

Lin Wangbei’s lips were pale, but he remained conscious. Recognizing Li Jianhua, he said coldly, “Political Commissar Li, I traveled all the way from the capital to support Nanjiang Island, and this is how you treat me?”

Li Jianhua wasn’t intimidated. Lin’s cold demeanor was nothing compared to Jiang Lingfeng’s steely resolve. Even if Lin’s father held considerable influence in the capital, his reach couldn’t extend into the navy or Nanjiang Island, one of the reasons Li had chosen to serve here in the first place.

With a calm smile, Li replied, “Division Commander Jiang is right. You were following a young woman and carrying a knife. As the ones responsible for Nanjiang Island’s security, we had to ask.”

Lin Wangbei endured the pain in his hand as he defended himself, “Both of them are my colleagues. I saw two young women going out together and was worried about their safety, so I followed them just in case.”

“You carry a knife with you, and that knife has touched blood.” Jiang Lingfeng took out the scalpel. Although Lin Wangbei had washed the blade thoroughly, Jiang Lingfeng, having weathered true storms of blood and violence, recognized at a glance whether the weapon had been used or not.

Lin Wangbei was taken aback and couldn’t help but take a closer look at Jiang Lingfeng. When the man’s expression hardened completely, it was different from the civil officials in the capital. The oppressive aura he carried from the battlefield nearly suffocated Lin Wangbei, but he was no ordinary man either.

He laughed and grew more familiar with Li Jianhua. “Uncle Li knows that I used to be a surgeon before switching to the cultural troupe, so I’ve gotten into the habit of carrying a scalpel with me. As for whose blood the knife touched… if you let me go, I won’t be able to escape with so many people around anyway.”

Li Jianhua thought it over and, unwilling to offend anyone too severely, stepped forward to untie Lin Wangbei. However, the knots Jiang Lingfeng had tied were impossible to undo. He had no choice but to look at Jiang Lingfeng, who remained unmoved. Helpless, Li Jianhua called for a knife and spent a considerable amount of time cutting through the ropes.

Lin Wangbei didn’t look at Jiang Lingfeng, but he had already memorized the man. His right hand was fractured and immobile, so he extended his left hand, bit open the left sleeve, and showed Li Jianhua the dense cut marks on his arm. He smiled gently, “If there’s any blood left uncleaned on the knife, it’s my own.”

Li Jianhua felt a chill run down his spine. He smoothed things over between Lin Wangbei and Jiang Lingfeng, saying with a smile that everything was clear now. Then he took Lin Wangbei to the hospital and escorted him back to the cultural troupe before returning to find Jiang Lingfeng.

He sighed, “How could you break his hand? He makes a living with his hands.”

Jiang Lingfeng replied, “I only used one move.”

“Don’t you know how much force is behind one of your moves?” Li Jianhua said irritably. The top fighter in the military could kill with a single move. He sighed again, “His father is a petty man.”

And a petty man currently in power, at that.

Jiang Lingfeng glanced sideways at him, straightened his clothes, and walked out.

“Where are you going?” Li Jianhua asked, following behind him.

“To pick someone up.” Jiang Lingfeng walked quickly, leaving only his back in view.

“Wait!” Li Jianhua waved his hand, calling Jiang Lingfeng back. “Jiang Lingfeng, let me tell you, she’s not interested in you. Don’t push your luck and hinder her from developing her career in the capital.”

Jiang Lingfeng froze. He wanted to explain to Li Jianhua that he had no interest in Su Qingmeng, but… but what?

Suddenly, he realized that he did, in fact, have feelings for Su Qingmeng.