The sun burned the ground until it was scorching, and the surrounding trees drooped their leaves weakly.

There were more boys than girls in Su Ci’s class, and the eleven girls in the class stood in the last row.

Su Ci stood in the middle. After just a short while of marching in place, she already felt her feet being rubbed painfully by the hard-soled shoes.

Su Ci had looked it up online. A rabbit’s heels were different from a cat’s or a dog’s. They didn’t have thick paw pads. The bottoms of a rabbit’s feet only had dense fur, and they were small, very sensitive, and especially delicate.

Even after turning into a human, her feet were still overly sensitive.

Uncomfortable shoes could rub them red, not to mention now, when she was wearing these hard, thin-soled military training shoes to practice.

Ordinary people would feel uncomfortable wearing them; for Su Ci, it was even more unbearable.

Sweat slid down the side of her face. Su Ci pressed her lips together, enduring the pain in her feet.

When the instructor finally said to disperse and rest, her originally rosy, moist lips had almost lost their color.

Once dismissed, everyone walked to the shade to cool off and drink water.

“So tired… the morning isn’t even over yet, I feel like I’m about to collapse.” Shen Xue sat weakly on the stone steps.

Su Ci took a few small sips of water. She lifted one side of her pant leg and lowered her head to look at her heel, finding it already rubbed red by the shoes.

“Ah, Su Ci, are your shoes not fitting?” Shen Xue looked over and saw Su Ci’s exposed heel, snow-white, but the spot in the middle was rubbed bright red.

Wen Duoyu, beside them, glanced over and quickly said, “I have band-aids. Stick them on your heel so it won’t rub.”

She took a few band-aids from her pocket, tore off two, and handed them to Su Ci.

Su Ci accepted the band-aids. “Thank you.”

“But Su Ci, how come you’re not sweating at all?” The tissue Shen Xue used to wipe her sweat was already soaked through, yet Su Ci still looked fresh and clean.

Everyone was drenched in sweat. Even Wen Duoyu’s bangs were wet and clinging together in strands, but Su Ci alone remained neat and spotless. It was simply a delight to look at.

Su Ci feared heat the most. She said irritably, “The clothes underneath are already soaked.”

Shen Xue looked at her and saw a few loose strands of hair sticking to the back of Su Ci’s neck.

She then realized that even when a fairy sweated, she looked better than mortals.

After resting for ten minutes, training resumed.

Hearing the instructor yell for assembly, everyone dragged their spirits and ran quickly over, not daring to waste a second.

By the end of the morning, just the simple marching, counting, and standing at attention were enough to make Su Ci’s legs weak.

But the worst was the afternoon, when the sun was at its fiercest, so harsh it made one’s eyes unable to open and one’s head dizzy.

There wasn’t a hint of wind on the field. The ground had been baked hot, and every person in the class stood straight, not moving at all.

Su Ci pressed her lips together, dark and glossy with moisture, while her red lips had gone dry.

She felt as if her legs didn’t belong to her. The band-aids on her heels had long been rubbed off, and small blisters had formed.

And on the other side of the field—

“Reporting, instructor, I’m feeling a little unwell.” A girl spoke timidly.

Under the brim of his hat, the instructor’s expression was stern. “Where are you feeling unwell?”

“I feel a little dizzy,” the girl said softly.

The instructor walked over to her, scrutinizing her for a moment. “Keep standing properly. Middle finger against the seam of your pants. Tuck your lower abdomen in.”

The girl was so nervous she didn’t dare make a sound.

“Reporting, Instructor.” Beside her, Zhao Youyou’s voice was delicate.

The instructor said, “Louder. Didn’t eat lunch?”

At that, quite a few people couldn’t help complaining in their hearts that the instructor was truly a black-faced god, showing no mercy even to girls. So scary.

Zhao Youyou’s face flushed, and she repeated loudly, “Reporting, Instructor.”

“Speak.”

“She’s not feeling well. Why won’t you allow her to rest?” Zhao Youyou couldn’t help speaking up for the girl.

She spoke with righteous indignation. “If a student is feeling unwell, the instructor should show understanding, not force her to continue training. We participate in military training to exercise and improve our physical fitness, not to risk our lives.”

The girl turned her head in astonishment. She hadn’t expected someone to speak up for her.

“Stand properly,” the instructor said sharply. “You say you’re unwell. Do you need me to have someone send you to the campus infirmary?”

The girl was so startled she shook her head quickly.

Her feet were just extremely sore, and she felt she could barely hold on.

The instructor looked toward Zhao Youyou. “If she were truly unwell, I would approve her rest. You only need to take care of yourself, not speak out rashly when you don’t understand the situation.”

Zhao Youyou’s face reddened, and she pressed her lips together in grievance, her eyes turning red.

During the rest period, the girl beside Zhao Youyou, Feng Xiaoyu, handed her a tissue. “Thank you for speaking up for me. You’re really kind.”

Zhao Youyou accepted the tissue. “We’re classmates. We should be united and support each other.”

“Youyou, you’re really beautiful and kind-hearted.” Another girl walked over. “The instructor doesn’t know how to cherish flowers at all. Youyou bravely talked back to him just now— you were so cool. I really like how you stand up for others.”

Zhao Youyou smiled. “I only said what I should say.”

Feng Xiaoyu linked arms with her. “You’re too sweet.”

After the afternoon training ended, Su Ci felt like her legs hurt so much she could no longer walk.

Everyone in the class gradually left.

“Su Ci, are you alright?” Shen Xue saw Su Ci frowning tightly, sitting on the stone steps looking extremely uncomfortable, and she felt worried.

Wen Duoyu hadn’t left either; she was also watching Su Ci with concern.

“My feet hurt a little. You two go ahead. Someone is coming to pick me up.” Su Ci had called Lu Zhe.

She hadn’t seen him for several days.

Shen Xue nodded. “Alright, see you tomorrow. If you’re really uncomfortable, just take leave tomorrow.” After today’s training, even she felt exhausted, not to mention Su Ci, who was even more delicate than her.

As soon as she finished speaking and was about to pull Wen Duoyu away with her, she saw a tall figure walking toward them against the flow of people. The boy carried a cool, aloof air that made others involuntarily turn to look.

Shen Xue had thought the person coming to pick up Su Ci would be her family. She didn’t expect it to be Lu Zhe.

But this was also within expectations.

Shen Xue turned back to look, and sure enough, the girl sitting on the stone steps instantly had her eyes light up.

Shen Xue held her forehead. She knew it.

“That is…” Wen Duoyu stared in surprise at the unfamiliar boy walking toward Su Ci.

“I know this one.” Shen Xue looked proud, since she had acted as the tool person for Su Ci and Lu Zhe’s romance. “He’s the person Su Ci likes.”

Wen Duoyu was even more shocked. Su Ci had someone she liked?

She remembered back in high school, He Ermeng from school often pursued her, but Su Ci never liked him. At that time, her deskmate often made sour remarks, mocking Su Ci for having high standards and not liking He Ermeng.

Wen Duoyu didn’t really know how to judge whether a boy was good or not, but she felt that Su Ci’s taste must be excellent.

The people on the field gradually dispersed, everyone heading toward the cafeteria.

Lu Zhe half-squatted in front of Su Ci. “Does it hurt?”

He had been worried about Su Ci’s condition the entire day.

He knew she was delicate. Before, even wearing shoes of average quality could rub her feet red. Now she was wearing hard-soled military training shoes, and after such long training, she definitely wouldn’t be able to endure it.

“My feet hurt.” Su Ci had held back during training, but now that she was in front of Lu Zhe, she didn’t want to endure anymore.

She sniffled in grievance. “I don’t want to come to military training tomorrow.”

Lu Zhe sat down beside her. “Let me take a look.”

He bent down, his large hand holding Su Ci’s ankle as he lifted her foot onto his thigh.

Su Ci moved her foot a little. After a full day of training, she felt her feet were sweaty and felt a bit embarrassed. “No need to look, just help me walk to the gate.”

“Don’t move. Let me see if the skin is broken.” Lu Zhe held her ankle firmly with one hand while the other went to take off her shoe.

Su Ci was wearing pure white short socks. Her small foot looked especially cute in Lu Zhe’s large hand.

Lu Zhe said, “I’ll help you take off the sock.”

Since he didn’t mind, Su Ci simply played dead and let him do as he wished. She scooted back a little, trying to hide her body behind the big tree.

Lu Zhe gently removed her sock. Her round toes were rubbed red, and blisters had formed on the sides.

Lu Zhe’s brows furrowed tightly.

He then looked at her heel. The blister there had already burst and was bleeding, with blood staining the inside of her sock.

No wonder she felt pain.

Lu Zhe examined her foot very carefully.

He took off her other shoe as well; that foot, too, had its blister rubbed open.

Lu Zhe collected her socks, helped her put her shoes back on, then bent down and lifted Su Ci into his arms in a princess carry. “I’m taking you to the campus infirmary for medicine.”

Su Ci nodded obediently.

Lu Zhe chose a small path. At this time, most of the students were in the cafeteria, so there was no one else on the road.

Su Ci nestled comfortably in Lu Zhe’s arms. She lifted her head to look at him, and at a glance saw his sharply defined jawline.

Yesterday, she had even been imagining what Lu Zhe would look like in camouflage.

Now, looking at the boy holding her—under the brim of his cap, his face was handsome and refined, his features deep and well-defined, his thin lips pressed lightly together, carrying a cold aura.

His figure didn’t even need to be mentioned. Lu Zhe was tall, broad-shouldered with a narrow waist, long-legged, and because he exercised often, even through his clothes she could feel the firmness of his chest.

Su Ci liked it so much she couldn’t stand it.

She lifted her chin, leaned closer to Lu Zhe, and kissed his cool thin lips.