Arc 6: Interstellar Art Soldiers Chapter 4
After waking up, Ke Ning recalled the situation and found that his mind only held a very blurry memory. It seemed like a scene of Erman resisting, but he wasn’t able to resist successfully and was then forced by him.
Although this world is open-minded when it comes to sexuality, forcing others into a sexual relationship is a very serious crime. If someone were to find out that an instructor forced a student into such a situation, Ke Ning’s life would be over.
Ke Ning felt panicked and filled with regret, while Erman, despite looking sad after being forced, still comforted Ke Ning and said that he wouldn’t tell anyone about this matter, so Ke Ning could rest assured.
Erman was extremely afraid and worried when he did such a thing for the first time. If Ke Ning were to notice that something was wrong and went for an examination, Erman would be the one whose life would be ruined. Fortunately for him, Ke Ning genuinely believed that Erman had been forced by him because he had some blurry memories, so he didn’t notice anything wrong.
As a result, Ke Ning felt both guilty and grateful for Erman’s reassurance. From that day onwards, Erman acted as if nothing had happened, but Ke Ning couldn’t help but pay attention to him.
While Ke Ning was dating Luo Xi, he couldn’t help but be concerned about Erman. Because of his guilt, Ke Ning later met Erman secretly. When Erman asked to meet, Ke Ning agreed to go.
During this period, Ke Ning noticed that Erman was more adventurous and interesting compared to Luo Xi. Although Luo Xi was much more attractive in appearance, being raised in a prestigious and high-ranking family, his demeanor and conduct were refined but somewhat boring.
Especially in private interactions, Luo Xi would only allow Ke Ning to embrace and kiss him at most, but going further was not permitted. Ke Ning felt that compared to Luo Xi, Erman was more interesting. Erman was more open-minded but not overly frivolous. When Ke Ning spent time with him, he felt happier.
In truth, Luo Xi did not oppose being intimate with Ke Ning. In this world, people naturally engage in physical relationships when they are in a romantic relationship. However, Luo Xi didn’t want Ke Ning to think of him as someone casual. He wanted to wait until their relationship became more stable before allowing things to progress naturally.
Erman, on one hand, seduced Ke Ning and took advantage of Ke Ning’s guilt towards him. He would act pitiful, saying that if they could be together, he would have no regrets even if he died. Although Ke Ning found Erman appealing, he couldn’t let go of Luo Xi in his heart. Then Erman used his own life as a threat to manipulate Ke Ning, leaving Ke Ning with no choice but to agree to be with him1.
Suddenly, Ke Ning initiated a breakup. Luo Xi was deeply affected and couldn’t understand why Ke Ning wanted to break up with him. He was Luo Xi’s first love and the first person who made him feel moved. Luo Xi tried to understand the reasons behind it and win Ke Ning back. However, Ke Ning simply told him that he felt they were not suitable together, and he wasn’t happy when they were together, so it was better to break up. Ke Ning also mentioned that they never had a physical relationship, so they were never truly together.
Luo Xi’s first love came to an end without any particular reason, and he was heartbroken and sad for quite some time. Eventually, Ke Ning’s two-year tenure as their instructor came to an end, and someone else replaced him. Erman openly declared their relationship, stating that he and Ke Ning had decided to start dating. The entire class became aware of their relationship. Luo Xi, although not showing it outwardly, was deeply hurt by this.
Even before Tao Yuan traveled back in time, Luo Xi still felt upset. When Tao Yuan learned about his feelings, he sighed and remarked that first love is indeed the most heart-wrenching, but it wasn’t worth it for someone like Erman.
Tao Yuan finished organizing and packing their belongings and waited in the room for the meeting notice. He opened the communication device and saw several messages from the original host’s parents, elder brother, and Madam Rui Ya, asking if they had arrived and how things were going.
Tao Yuan responded to each message and then changed into the military uniform. For the uniforms of the literary soldiers, it was essential to be both attractive and dignified. Even though the body was entirely covered by fabric, it was important to showcase their long legs, a slim waist, and a well-proportioned figure.
The original host had a slender figure, neither too fat nor too thin, with straight and long legs and a well-proportioned waist. After putting on the military uniform, Tao Yuan looked even more tall and graceful, exuding a refined elegant presence.
As Tao Yuan walked into the meeting room, even the leaders who were accustomed to seeing well-built and attractive literary soldiers couldn’t help but take an extra glance. They couldn’t help but think that such a person, with such a remarkable physique and appearance, standing there motionless, would undoubtedly become the dream lover of many soldiers.
Just as Tao Yuan was about to find a seat and sit down, he noticed Lin Ya waving at him, so he walked over to sit beside him.
“I originally thought that once we all put on this military uniform, we would all look more or less the same. But when you walked in, I couldn’t help but feel like this uniform was tailor-made specifically for you. Why is it that you look better than everyone else in it?” Lin Ya whispered to Tao Yuan before the meeting had begun.
“Because I have a good foundation,” Tao Yuan replied with a smile.
“You really aren’t modest at all, huh?” Lin Ya widened his eyes and said, “Although it’s true, you could at least pretend to be modest, right?”
“In time, you’ll come to know that I’m not one for pretense and politeness,” Tao Yuan said.
“Great, I like being friends with someone as straightforward and genuine as you,” Lin Ya extended his hand and said, “Team Leader Luo Xi, please take care of me in the future.”
“Deputy Leader Lin Ya, I’m quite lazy and don’t like dealing with administrative tasks. I’ll leave those responsibilities to you from now on,” Tao Yuan said, shaking his hand.
Lin Ya suddenly had a foreboding feeling that he would be treated as free labor in the future.
As the meeting time arrived, the soldiers immediately closed the doors of the meeting room, and the leaders sitting at the front wasted no time and started the meeting without delay.
The leaders’ time was precious, so they focused on the essential matters during the meeting. The trivial details would be conveyed by the respective team leaders.
The main content of the meeting was to inform them about the upcoming work arrangements. Originally, there was supposed to be a welcoming ceremony and celebration for Tao Yuan. However, their planned departure to the border was moved up by a month, and the ship was scheduled to set sail in a few days. They, as part of the literary soldiers, had to prepare for the journey and didn’t have time for a welcome ceremony or celebration.
They also discussed the regulations and guidelines to strictly follow once they were on board the ship. After some words of encouragement and motivation, the meeting was adjourned.
They had dinner at the cafeteria, then everyone returned to their rooms to rest.
After taking a shower, Tao Yuan lay on the bed and read the messages sent by Zuo Lei.
Zuo Lei is currently leading troops for training on another planet and will return to the base in a few days. However, as the captain of the special operations team, Zuo Lei will definitely be part of the border mission, so they will return to the base before departure. But for Tao Yuan and Zuo Lei to meet, they will have to wait until they are on the ship.
Tao Yuan realized that without openly declaring their relationship, it would be inconvenient to meet on the base, where their movements were restricted and surveillance cameras were present everywhere. Although the ship was smaller than the base, it would be more convenient for them to meet.
Knowing that Zuo Lei is currently with the soldiers, Tao Yuan couldn’t use holographic communication, so they decided to chat through text.
At the moment, Zuo Lei was leaning against a tree trunk, taking a rest. There were several soldiers sitting or lying around. Since it wasn’t a combat training session, there was no need to be on guard. During rest time, everyone relaxed and rested.
Zuo Lei is usually a person of few words and has never been fond of chatting. However, he finds it remarkable that every time he talks to Tao Yuan, he doesn’t want the conversation to end.
As Zuo Lei read the messages sent by Tao Yuan, he couldn’t help but curl up the corners of his mouth, revealing a smile.
One of the soldiers, who was lying in his sleeping bag and playing a game, noticed Zuo Lei’s smile as his eyes shifted. He quickly sat up and looked at Zuo Lei, saying, “C-Captain, what are you looking at? Why are you smiling so happily?”
Upon hearing his words, the other soldiers also turned their attention towards Zuo Lei. The smile on Zuo Lei’s lips had not completely disappeared, and they caught sight of it.
Zuo Lei looked up and saw everyone looking at him. He immediately put on a serious face and said, “What are you all staring at me for? Am I not allowed to smile now?”
The reason they found it surprising wasn’t just because Zuo Lei was smiling. Although Zuo Lei was usually serious, he had smiled before. However, the smile he had just shown was completely different from his usual smiles. It had a ripple effect, carrying a feeling that could only be associated with someone in love.
Yi Bin crawled out of his sleeping bag and quickly walked over to Zuo Lei’s side. He curiously said, “Captain, let us see too. What made you smile so affectionately?”
“Let us have a look, Captain.”
“We want to see too, we want to see too.”
The other soldiers also gathered around curiously.
As Yi Bin stood up, Zuo Lei had already closed the communicator. He couldn’t let them see his conversation with Tao Yuan.
Zuo Lei stood up and looked at them, saying, “Since you all seem so restless, let’s skip resting and begin the night training.”
“Don’t do that, Captain,” Yi Bin quickly took a step back and said, “We only have a little over an hour of rest time, and then several hours of training.”
“Either rest properly now, or start training immediately. It’s your choice,” Zuo Lei said with a stern face.
The soldiers immediately returned to their original positions to continue resting. Although Yi Bin felt reluctant, he could only return to his sleeping bag and lie back down.
“Deputy Captain,” a soldier moved closer to Yi Bin and asked in a low voice, “Did you see what the Captain was looking at?”
Yi Bin shook his head and whispered back, “No, I couldn’t see it. But whatever it was, it must have made him smile so happily.”
“No,” Yi Bin thought about it and still felt curious, so he sat up again and deliberately asked Zuo Lei, “Captain, are you watching something? It’s more fun to enjoy things together. Show it to everyone.”
The other soldiers didn’t dare to express their opinions but looked at Zuo Lei with expectant eyes.
“Do you think I’m like you? Spending rest time watching something? I don’t have those things with me,” Zuo Lei said, not even bothering to look at Yi Bin. He opened his communication device screen and sent a message to Tao Yuan, telling him to rest well.
“I’m the type of normal man who doesn’t have a love life. So, of course, I rely on watching something to comfort my lonely and empty heart,” Yi Bin said, lying back down. “Someone like you, who hasn’t been in a relationship for years and rarely watches anything, is probably becoming extinct. I think you should be protected as a rare species.”
Zuo Lei ignored him and said goodnight to Tao Yuan before leaning against the tree trunk and closing his eyes to rest.
Seeing Zuo Lei ignore him Yi Bin closed his eyes and was about to take a nap when he suddenly remembered that today was the day the new batch of literary soldiers would be joining the fleet.
“What a pity. Our fleet is receiving a new batch of literary soldiers today, but we won’t be able to feast our eyes on them right away. It’s such a shame,” Yi Bin said with his eyes closed.
Zuo Lei’s heart stirred when he heard Yi Bin’s words.
After saying goodnight to Zuo Lei, Tao Yuan knew it was still early for bed, so he engaged in a projection conversation with his family for a while.
According to the original plan, the month before departing for the border was meant for the new literary soldiers to familiarize themselves with the environment and adapt to fleet life. However, due to a sudden order from above to depart a month earlier, the adaptation period was waived. They had used these past few days to gather all the necessary information and make quick preparations for departure.
A few days later, Zuo Lei returned with the soldiers who had been on an external training mission. Although these soldiers were eager to see the new batch of literary soldiers, as members of the special operations team and the most important mech combat unit, they had to be the first to board the ship. They would have to wait until the literary soldiers boarded the ship to see them.
Once all the soldiers had boarded the ship and everything was arranged, the literary soldiers finally boarded the ship in the last few hours before departure.
The boarding of the literary soldiers was also a sight to behold. As the soldiers who had already boarded the ship and were free to move around, they didn’t want to miss this scene.
There were a total of five ships departing for the Border Constellations this time. Tao Yuan’s squad would board the main ship. As the leader of the special operations team, Zuo Lei would certainly be on the main ship as well. This meant that they would have convenient opportunities to meet during the one and a half months of the journey.
The soldiers had gathered early, but they couldn’t blatantly surround the area, so the first level was definitely off-limits for standing. The corridors on the second and third levels were already filled with soldiers, craning their necks to watch the literary soldiers board the ship.
Of course, Yi Bin was also involved in this kind of thing. He and the other team leaders had secured their positions early on.
Suddenly, Yi Bin turned his head and saw Zuo Lei walking over. He widened his eyes in surprise and said, “Captain, you wouldn’t also be here to watch the literary soldiers board the ship, would you?”
“Since all of you are here to watch, is it strange for me to be here too?” Zuo Lei said expressionlessly.
“Not at all, not at all,” Yi Bin hurriedly replied, then with a comforting expression like that of an old father, he said, “Captain, you’ve finally come to your senses. Every time I invite you, you never come. Such a beautiful sight is something no man should miss.”
“What are you all standing there for? Quickly make room for the Captain!” Yi Bin urgently called out to the other soldiers. “Hurry up, everyone, squeeze a bit more and give the Captain, who is seeing the literary soldiers boarding the ship for the first time, a good view.”
Zuo Lei didn’t refuse and walked over to the vacant spot after they made room for him.
After the ground assembly was complete, everyone, led by their respective team leaders, began boarding the ship, dragging their small luggage.
The team leaders walked beside the troops, and as the team leader of the first team, Tao Yuan walked at the front of the formation.
“They’re here! They are coming!”
“Come on, they’re starting to board the ship!”
“Can you see them? Can you see?” The soldiers asked anxiously who were in the back row, whose view was partially blocked, asked anxiously.
“Yes, I see them, I see them! Wow! The first one looks so handsome! Are the standards for literary soldiers’ appearance this high now?”
“Indeed, he looks quite good!”
“Is ‘quite good’ even the right term? He’s clearly exceptionally handsome!”
“What about the others behind? How do they look?”
“The others? Let me see… Well, they’re all good-looking, but…”
“But what?”
“But none of them are as good-looking as the first one. The first one is still the best-looking. I thought this group of literary soldiers would all be as good-looking as the first one, but it seems like I was expecting too much.”
Do people actually read TN?
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If there are any mistakes/error, feel free to comment it down below.
24
- Raws said it was Luo Xi who threatened Ke Ning, but I think this is a typo since he broke up with Luo Xi soon and started his relationship with Erman [↩]