To Get Married - Chapter 22.2

Chapter 22.2

Suddenly, something began to quietly take root and sprout in the heart of that previously unconfident child.

After registering, Zhang Ziyun dragged Lu Yudong to the girls’ dorm building to pay the boarding fees. After getting the keys, with the help of Manzhu and Zhang’s mother, they picked up the sheets, pillows, quilts, and so on. They climbed all the way up to the fifth floor and found the “523” dorm room assigned to them by the residential advisor.

Two girls were already in the room, and their parents were helping them unpack.

The high school dorm was not much different from the junior high one. It still had three sets of bunk beds, accommodating a maximum of six people. Two of the lower bunks were already claimed by the earlier arrivals.

Zhang Ziyun wanted a lower bunk, so Lu Yudong chose the upper bunk above Zhang Ziyun.

Once the beds were settled, the four girls were urged by their parents to make brief self-introductions.

After making her bed, Lu Yudong put some daily necessities and two sets of clothes for changing and washing into her chosen cabinet. Then she stood up and walked over to Manzhu, lightly pulling her wrist.

“All packed up. Shall I go now?” Manzhu asked.

“Mhm,” Lu Yudong nodded.

“Tell me if you need anything. I’ll bring it to you,” Manzhu said again.

“Mhm!” Lu Yudong kept nodding.

Manzhu thought for a moment, as there seemed to be nothing else to say. She stroked her head: “Then I’ll leave now. I’ll pick you up after military training.”

Only then did Lu Yudong reluctantly let go.

The parents left one after another, leaving only the four girls who would be living together for the foreseeable future.

Wu An’an, who had the lower bunk across from Lu Yudong, couldn’t help but ask: “Classmate, was that your mother just now? She looks so young.”

“Me?” Lu Yudong pointed to herself in confusion.

“Yes,” Wu An’an nodded.

“No, she’s not. She’s not my mother,” Lu Yudong quickly explained. “That’s my sister.”

“Your sister is so beautiful, like a big movie star,” said the short-haired girl in the lower bunk next door, Zhao Wen, who had also introduced herself earlier.

Soon, Zhao Wen and Wu An’an started chatting back and forth. They were all from Wenhhai’s junior high division but were in different classes.

Being former schoolmates gave the girls many common topics, and Zhang Ziyun quickly joined in.

Lu Yudong quietly climbed onto her bunk, sitting on the made bed in a daze. She responded to the other three’s casual conversation with occasional words, and the afternoon passed like that.

After the four of them had dinner in the cafeteria, a fifth girl moved into the dorm. Her name was Wang Yan.

The day before military training was also the first night of boarding school.

The new dorm, new roommates—everyone was excited. They kept whispering and chatting until the lights in the entire dorm building were turned off. It wasn’t until the residential advisor knocked on the door twice that they finally quieted down completely.

Lu Yudong lay flat on the bed that was all hers, instinctively leaning against the wall. It took a long time with her eyes closed before she slowly fell asleep.

At 2:30 AM.

Manzhu returned home and stared at the empty little bed by the window, momentarily lost in thought for a few seconds.

The little girl had started boarding school. She really was… not used to it.

On the second day after the high school freshmen enrolled, the school’s military training began.

During military training, students weren’t allowed to carry cell phones. Everyone’s phone had to be kept in the dorm room.

During military training, the first thing Lu Yudong did every day when she returned to the dorm was text Manzhu. Manzhu also basically replied instantly.

Lu Yudong: This morning, we selected a few temporary class leaders. The teacher said the instructor will be here this afternoon. This is my first military training. Zhang Ziyun said it’s especially tiring. The sun outside is so bright and scorching.

Manzhu: Then are you going to get tanned into a little coal ball? Lu Yudong: QAQ

Lu Yudong: Sister, I learned how to fold the military quilt! I’ll fold it for you to see when I get home!

Manzhu: What does a military quilt look like? Lu Yudong: A block of tofu! A perfectly square block of tofu!

Lu Yudong: The instructor for Class 8 is so handsome! Our instructor is so mean QAQ

Manzhu: You’ve grown up, you’re complimenting men on being handsome now.

Lu Yudong: He’s not that handsome, actually! All the classmates said he was handsome, so I just followed suit with the compliment!

Lu Yudong: A girl in our class fainted today!

Manzhu: Are you okay?

Lu Yudong: I’m fine! I don’t feel very tired. With my spiritual power protecting me, I don’t feel very hot either.

Manzhu: That’s good.

Lu Yudong: Zhang Ziyun actually lied to the instructor and said she was on her period! She sat on the side and rested for a long time!

Manzhu: Why don’t you learn from her? Lu Yudong: That wouldn’t be right _(:з”∠)_

Manzhu: Wouldn’t it? You could rest.

Lu Yudong: Not quite right.

Lu Yudong: It rained today. We stood at attention in the rain.

Manzhu: Don’t catch a cold.

Lu Yudong: I won’t! The teacher asked the class president to give every dorm some Banlangen. I’ve already mixed and drunk mine.

Manzhu: Mhm.

Lu Yudong: Tonight, we sat on the field and sang battle songs. It was so lively.

Manzhu: What songs?

Lu Yudong: Cold wind blows, leaves fall, the army is a green flower…

Manzhu: Huh?

Lu Yudong: Dear comrade, don’t miss home, don’t miss mama…

Manzhu: Are those lyrics?

Lu Yudong: And others! I’ll sing them for you when I get back!

Manzhu: Okay.

Throughout these days, Lu Yudong never complained about being tired. Only during the one time they spoke on the phone did she mention that she felt very unaccustomed to sleeping at school.

The day after Lu Yudong said that, Manzhu sent the white, crooked-neck puppy doll she usually slept with.

Manzhu couldn’t enter the school gate, so she left the puppy with the security guard. Lu Yudong only found out Manzhu had visited during the day when she returned to the dorm after dinner and checked her text messages.

She rushed down the dorm building and went to the security booth to bring the little white dog back to the dorm.

Wang Yan couldn’t help but tease her when she saw the puppy: “Lu Yudong, how old are you? You still need to hold a doll to sleep?”

Lu Yudong just smiled without a word, placing it by her pillow. Looking at its silly, tilted head, she couldn’t stop smiling.

That night’s dreams seemed especially sweet.