Chapter 22

When Bai Jike saw the three men standing in a perfectly straight line, their police-dog-sharp gazes fixed on him, he finally realized what was happening.

"That wasn't a CPU alarm just now, but an emergency assembly?"

Zhuo Yang nodded solemnly. "Of course!"

With that, he gave Qiao Huan a smug look.

I told you he wouldn't know!

Qiao Huan, however, was still watching Bai Jike, unwilling to let the slightest microexpression escape him.

He had played quite a few roles during his years undercover and had learned a thing or two about it, but he couldn't see through Bai Jike's reaction just then.

His confusion was simply too convincing. If it wasn't real, his acting had to be among the best Qiao Huan had ever seen.

"Let's hurry downstairs, or we'll be punished with push-ups again!" Zhuo Yang reminded them, though he didn't dare sound too stern, afraid he would dampen Qiao Huan's enthusiasm for this kind of life.

"The other dorms are already moving."

Qiao Huan set his emotions aside. "Okay."

He knew Zhuo Yang was especially passionate about this kind of life. The earlier interview record had also confirmed that Zhuo Yang had attended martial arts schools throughout his childhood, where life was somewhat similar to life here, so Qiao Huan didn't find it particularly strange that he had woken up immediately.

Of course, Qiao Huan had considered the possibility that Zhuo Yang was the other undercover agent, but his appearance was far too striking. No agency was likely to pick someone so tall and burly to train as an undercover agent.

On top of that, he was a little too straightforward and always liked to go places with other people... Besides, he had once told Qiao Huan about his longing to wear a military uniform. Qiao Huan didn't think a genuinely well-trained undercover agent would bring such things up of his own accord.

Ye Yiwei's reaction, however, surprised Qiao Huan.

Ye Yiwei was perceptive. Seeing Qiao Huan look at him, he said coldly, "This room is too dirty. I haven't fallen asleep yet."

Qiao Huan: Oh...

That naturally didn't dispel all his doubts, but for now, Bai Jike still ranked first on his list of suspects.

A meal had to be eaten one bite at a time. Qiao Huan fixed his gaze on Bai Jike again.

Bai Jike, meanwhile, was still distracted, wondering what he should do if it really was the CPU...

The assembly ground.

The four of them had dragged their feet on the way over, assuming they would be the last of all the trainees to arrive, only to find they were actually no better or worse than the people from the other two dorms.

The only difference was that they walked over calmly and unhurriedly, while the eight from 402 and 403 were panting for breath.

Jiang Ting wore a stern expression. "The way you lot are, if a war really broke out, your squad leader would have cursed you to death!"

The eight weren't even awake and mumbled, "Right, right, right..."

"Don't say right!" Jiang Ting raised his voice. "Say yes!"

The eight immediately nodded again. "Yes, yes, yes..."

Jiang Ting's expression changed in an instant.

These young entertainers were even more undisciplined than he had imagined!

And so, what should have been a failed emergency assembly they could get through with push-ups was somehow turned into "Military Training Basics 101" by the completely out-of-the-loop trainees. The twelve of them had to listen to Jiang Ting lecture them for half an hour before they were finally allowed back to their dorms.

The cameras that had long been set up naturally recorded the scene—

Night hung low, the sky was starless, and twelve faces were weary... It was something of a metaphor for the starting point of their growth.

Once Jiang Ting finished his lecture, he put away his stern expression and turned to ask his older brother, "These guys aren't much good. You said you could make them into positive-role-model idols for a new era. Is that really going to work?"

Jiang Ji looked at the four members of Dorm 404, whose backs remained ramrod straight in the darkness not far away, and said earnestly, "Just watch."

Early the next morning, the official training program began.

The appetizer for the first day... was, of course, standing at attention.

"Three tucks: tuck your chin, stomach, and buttocks!"

"Three straights: straighten your neck, chest, and legs!"

"Eyes wide open, look ahead! Push the top of your head upward, that's it!"

The twelve stood in a four-by-three formation, listening as Jiang Ting explained the essentials of standing at attention.

They were all carefully selected trainees, after all, and naturally well coordinated. The movements weren't hard to master, and at first they all stood tall and imposing.

Several other formations on the training ground were also practicing standing at attention. At a glance, Star Radiance's twelve didn't look any less impressive. They stood in neat rows, like Little White Poplars.

"Oh, beautiful!" Pei Dahai arrived late and was delighted from the bottom of his heart to see how seriously his artists were taking it.

He had spent the past few days overseeing the post-production editing of the first short episode of Star Radiance's internal talent show, planning to release it quickly while yesterday's livestream was still drawing attention.

Seeing the scene before him, he immediately started a livestream.

"A livestream this early!"

"Oh my god, Star Radiance is so hardworking. Let me see what they're doing..."

"I slowly typed out '!'"

When Star Radiance announced that the OSOK reserves were training at Azure Dragon Base, many people had been against it. They thought idols should just sing and dance, so what was the point of doing all this weird stuff?

But when they entered the livestream, intending to complain, they couldn't find anything to say.

Because the trainees looked far too good!

"I suddenly understand why they're being trained like this!"

"Oh my god, men standing ramrod straight look amazing! I think this is the most handsome pose a man can have!"

"Isn't it? @Heyao Entertainment @Ganbei Entertainment, please send your idols to military training right now too!"

"Boo-hoo, my Xun-baby really was an athlete. His physique is so bewitching!"

Word spread from ten to a hundred, and soon more and more people poured into the livestream.

The trainees heard Pei Dahai reporting the good news that the viewer count had reached a new high. They didn't dare smile under Jiang Ting's imposing presence, so they could only try even harder to stand straight.

Especially Li Xun.

Seeing the four insurmountable mountains standing in front of him, he fought even harder to get every detail as perfect as possible!

An extreme sports athlete never admitted defeat!

The four members of Dorm 404, whom he was staring at so intensely... felt nothing except a little heat on the backs of their heads.

They had been placed in the very front row and couldn't see how the other trainees were doing.

For Qiao Huan, standing at attention could practically count as a break.

So he began plotting again.

Bai Jike's behavior the night before had truly caught him off guard. The man was so young that he didn't look like someone who could be so calculating.

Not to mention that while putting on an act, he had even managed to say "CPU," something that fit his persona.

It was truly suspicious.

He looked toward Bai Jike out of the corner of his eye, wanting to see how he was doing now.

But Zhuo Yang stood between him and Bai Jike, blocking his view like an iron tower.

Helpless, Qiao Huan could only sway back and forth ever so slightly, trying to catch even a glimpse of Bai Jike.

But the perceptive Zhuo Yang quickly caught the little movement.

"Are you tired?" Zhuo Yang asked quietly while Instructor Jiang wasn't paying attention.

"You can shift your weight between your feet," Zhuo Yang said, enthusiastically sharing his experience. "Don't sway back and forth, or you'll be spotted easily."

Qiao Huan: ...

Qiao Huan: "Okay, thanks."

A person could move and thrive, but a tree would die if moved. Qiao Huan had no choice but to change his strategy—every so often, when Zhuo Yang wasn't paying attention, he would sway gently back and forth once, hoping to escape his notice.

But Zhuo Yang had the advantage of height and still caught Qiao Huan moving a few times. His heart sank.

What should I do? Is A-Huan reaching his limit?

Jiang Ting kept patrolling the formation, making Zhuo Yang even more anxious. He was terrified the instructor would notice.

He had already worn his clothes wrong. If he got criticized again, wouldn't Qiao Huan hate it here even more?

Suddenly, he thought of a solution.

Whenever Qiao Huan swayed, he would sway slightly too. Wouldn't that keep their row aligned?

And so, for the rest of the time, the two grown men began swaying in irregular synchronization, like two willow branches in the wind.

Rumor had it that if you shook your head in sync with a phone on vibrate, you would see a still image.

Qiao Huan, unaware that he had been forced to vibrate at the same frequency as Zhuo Yang, now saw a perfectly still image: Zhuo Yang's profile.

The veins bulging on Qiao Huan's forehead gradually formed the shape of a hash mark.

He silently promised himself that he would never help Zhuo Yang build muscle again.

How do his pecs and glutes manage to block my view every single time? Is that a shape a human body is supposed to have?

While a battle raged in Qiao Huan's heart, Li Xun saw the two in front swaying like waves of wheat in the wind, and his lips curved into a victorious smile.

Hah. I thought Qiao Huan and Zhuo Yang's physical stamina was a treacherous peak I could never climb.

Well? Didn't they get tired of standing too, just like me!

At that thought, Li Xun stood even straighter.

Time gradually passed as the group schemed against one another on entirely different wavelengths.

The sun had climbed high in the sky, and it was nearly noon.

Qiao Huan had been so focused on contending with Zhuo Yang's broad frame that he hadn't noticed how long they had been standing.

The scrolling comments had gradually changed from "Oh my god, they look so good standing at attention" and "Sure enough, men look their best in this uniform" to "They must be exhausted after standing so long" and "Wow, the formations next to them are already resting, but they still haven't stopped..."

Li Xun's victorious smile didn't last very long.

He had concentrated so hard on holding his posture that he had overexerted himself, and now his muscles and joints ached all over.

His knees and arms in particular had nearly gone numb.

In fact, of the eight trainees from 403 and 402 in the back two rows, only Li Xun was still holding on through sheer competitiveness. Everyone else's posture had long since fallen apart.

Jiang Ting had noticed their condition long ago. Half the reason he hadn't called a stop was a mischievous desire to mess with the young trainees, and the other half was that he wanted to see how much longer the guys in front could last.

"I don't know if you noticed, but the four Shura Field brothers are actually the only ones still holding perfect form!"

"Yes! Li Xun was doing okay too at first, but now he's started shaking!"

"And the eight from 402 and 403 have sweated enough to fill a truck, but the four from 404 are only sweating a little!"

"Other than the veins on Qiao Huan's forehead looking a little prominent for some reason, all four of them seem completely fine..."

At last, a trainee from 402 who usually cultivated a delicate image fell straight down on the spot.

Jiang Ting and the viewers both thought something was wrong with him. Jiang Ting hurried forward and asked nervously, "Are you all right?"

To their surprise, the trainee's little face was deathly pale. He let out a long breath and pointed furiously toward the front. "They... they're trying way too hard to outdo everyone!!!"

As soon as he said that, the entire Star Radiance company toppled like dominoes, falling to the ground and howling—

"Exactly! How much longer do we have to stand here?!"

"Zhuo Yang, hand on your heart, aren't you tired?!"

"Xiu Si, I really give up!!!!"

The viewers immediately lost it and flooded the screen with laughter. As the trainees' howls grew louder, the comments stopped dividing into two distinct camps and dissing each other; everyone joined in, begging for mercy and making jokes:

"Hahahahaha, Xiu Si, please stop!"

"Xiu Si, stop trying so hard to outdo everyone! Take a break!"

"Look how exhausted you've made the other kids!"

Li Xun had reached his limit too.

His eyes were full of grievance, envy, and unwillingness to accept defeat.

At last, he couldn't hold on any longer and fell.

But at that very moment, the scene before his eyes seemed to unfold in slow motion as he fell—

The four people in front seemed to receive some kind of signal and fell one after another as well.

Their movements were so synchronized and exaggerated that they looked like extras getting shot in a cheesy anti-Japanese war drama.

At that moment, he understood.

It turned out that not only was he unable to catch even a glimpse of the backs of those four treacherous peaks in physical stamina, but their emotional intelligence was also beyond his reach.

In fact, because the sound of people falling behind them had come so suddenly, it had taken Qiao Huan and the other three a little while to figure out what had happened.

So ordinary people could get tired this easily just from standing!

Unfortunately, they had realized it far too late, which directly resulted in their particularly clumsy performance as they fell together.

Clearly, the viewers noticed it too:

"Hahahaha, Xiu Si, emotional intelligence maxed out!"

"They're in the same cohort, after all. They have to look after the others!"

"Are these four really that in sync? They all fell down together in an instant!"

"Required Xiu Si: 'Emotional Intelligence.'"

Unfortunately, the four were too focused on falling to see one another's expressions. Otherwise, they would certainly have felt something was off.

Seeing everyone react that way, Jiang Ting finally waved his hand. "All right, you've not only challenged yourselves, but also shown a strong collective spirit of resistance. Your reward is lunch five minutes early!"

The trainees felt as though they had been granted a pardon and shouted in unison, "Yes!"

Faced with a common enemy, they were especially united.

Only Li Xun's voice was subdued.

Having climbed so many high peaks, he gazed at the four before him and suddenly felt a little awed, wanting only to admire them from afar.

After everyone dispersed, Jiang Ji walked over to his younger brother. "What do you think?"

Jiang Ting looked at the four dragging their feet at the very back and curled his lip. "They're all decent people and don't like showing off. I just don't know what their relationship with one another is like."

Jiang Ji was full of confidence. "Don't worry about that. Their relationship is especially—"

"Brother Zhuo, farewell."

"Kid, your physical condition isn't up to scratch. Come work out with me some more! The gym here is great!"

"No need. Don't bother me."

Qiao Huan and Zhuo Yang swept past the Jiang brothers like a gust of wind.

Jiang Ting was very curious. "What were you saying about their relationship being especially what?"

Jiang Ji was momentarily at a loss for words. "...Especially interesting."

After a great deal of effort, Qiao Huan finally shook off Zhuo Yang, the greatest obstacle to identifying the other undercover agent.

After the midday break, Jiang Ting showed great mercy and let everyone explore the base freely for a while. Qiao Huan didn't even stop to eat before he began searching for Bai Jike.

Bai Jike was neither in the dormitory nor at the training ground.

Where else could he have gone?

It suddenly occurred to Qiao Huan that, now that they had come to the training base, this counted as "his turf"...

Based on his experience as an undercover agent, if Bai Jike was also undercover, he wouldn't pass up such a precious opportunity to meet his contact.

Heaven didn't disappoint those who persevered. After searching high and low, Qiao Huan finally spotted Bai Jike on a stone path beside a flower bed downstairs.

Bai Jike had deliberately avoided the crowd and was walking along an empty path.

Qiao Huan was highly skilled at tailing people, so naturally, the worldly inexperienced nineteen-year-old internet addict didn't notice him.

But the farther Qiao Huan followed him, the more something seemed off.

Along the way, Bai Jike kept stopping and starting, clearly unfamiliar with the place, and his basic counter-surveillance awareness was practically zero.

It made the advanced tailing techniques Qiao Huan was using look almost comical.

Had Bai Jike really put all his skill points into acting?

Qiao Huan slowly slid down from the concealing canopy of a tree, a giant question mark forming in his mind.

Bai Jike, meanwhile, was entirely focused as he headed farther and farther into the base, until he finally arrived at a building in the deepest part of Azure Dragon Base.

He checked the sign by the entrance several times before going inside.

Qiao Huan hurried after him.

Inside the building, he discovered that although Bai Jike had little counter-surveillance awareness, he was quite adept at basic undercover skills such as sneaking in, picking locks, and avoiding cameras.

At last, Bai Jike entered the room at the end of the top floor.

Qiao Huan saw that Bai Jike had been inside for quite a while without any movement, so he walked up to the room.

Two large characters were written prominently on the door—

"Server room."

They were even in a distinctly old-fashioned font.

Undercover agents usually met their contacts on rooftops or in plazas, places where it was easy to make a getaway. Why had Bai Jike chosen the server room?

Qiao Huan wanted to look inside, but there was no window by the server room door, so he could only open it and tiptoe in.

Fortunately, Bai Jike was completely absorbed in what he was doing, his fingers flying across the keyboard with a clatter that nicely covered Qiao Huan's movements.

In moments, Qiao Huan had reached his back.

But when he looked up, he froze.

Bai Jike was exceptionally focused on... playing a game?

And it was a browser game, a particularly shoddy one at that!

Aside from the colorful little figures, the interface displayed large gilded words—

"If you're my bro, come slash me!"

Qiao Huan: ???

Was this kid's internet addiction really that bad????

Xiao Bai looked at the character he had just created and threw himself into the game.

He had noticed two days ago that the game's server was in Country M and suspected it was an overseas scam website. He really didn't want to delay too long and let his compatriots be scammed, so he had had no choice but to sneak into Qinglong's server room to get online and check.

But he didn't seem to have brought headphones.

Xiao Bai tried to grab a pair of headphones from beside him and looked back.

Ah...

Why was there someone there?

Qiao Huan hadn't expected Bai Jike's train of thought to jump so quickly. One second, he had been so focused that he was practically buried in the screen; the next, he turned around without warning.

The two good roommates, who had barely spoken before, locked eyes.

The atmosphere instantly dropped to absolute zero.

Just then, a game sound effect came from the computer.

"If you're my bro, come slash me! Reduce my health bar to 0 and you can withdraw 5,000 yuan! My current health is 1 point, and 999 bros have already slashed me!"

The emotionless, Siri-like electronic voice echoed through the cramped server room.

The two of them: ...

This server room really was cold.

Now that things had come to this, Qiao Huan instantly composed himself. His mind raced as he went straight into the standard process for fishing out information—

"Bai Jike, have you heard of an app called the Anti-Fraud App?"