CHAPTER 7

Sang Miao was caught in a dilemma—on one side was the male lead, on the other the female lead. If possible, she really didn’t want to offend the female lead. After all, in the novel, the original host’s ending wasn’t very good. Offending the female lead was equivalent to offending the male lead, and once they got together, she’d be the one to suffer.

After weighing the consequences, Sang Miao decisively moved one of the trays in front of Lu Xiao to the side, leaving the seat open for Zhao Weiwei.

Zhao Weiwei hadn’t expected Sang Miao to give up the seat. For a moment, she almost questioned her motives and shot her a suspicious glance, but Sang Miao’s expression was perfectly neutral.

She glanced around at the people still watching.

Biting her lip, she pretended nothing was wrong and simply sat down.

Lu Xiao watched the two of them swap seats like they’d planned it in advance. He was almost amused by Sang Miao’s move. She was being “gracious” now? Treating him like some kind of object to offer up in goodwill and letting a stranger sit across from him?

He shot a cool glance at Sang Miao, which—much to her surprise—made her feel a little guilty.

Why is he looking at me like that? She silently defended herself, Once you get together with the female lead, you’ll thank me for this matchmaking.

But now, she felt even less sure about how to bring up asking him for help. He didn’t look like he was in a good mood.

And things didn’t go as she’d expected either. There was no spark between the male and female leads. The three of them sat in silence. Lu Xiao ate quickly and didn’t say a word. Zhao Weiwei kept her head down the entire time.

The meal continued in a thick cloud of awkwardness. Sang Miao tried to say a few things to ease the mood, but failed. In the end, she also fell silent and lowered her head to eat.

Lu Xiao ate the same way he did back in the infantry camp—fast, undistracted, and not picky. He was done in no time.

Zhao Weiwei wasn’t far behind. Sang Miao, who’d just started eating, was the slowest of the three.

Once Lu Xiao finished, he nodded slightly at them, then picked up his tray and left the cafeteria without a single extra word to Sang Miao.

Zhao Weiwei had noticed every subtle interaction between Lu Xiao and Sang Miao.

Her thoughts began stirring again. Just now, Sang Miao said three things and Lu Xiao didn’t even respond once. Seems like she doesn’t mean anything special to him either.

Men like Lu Xiao—so outstanding—it’s normal for them to be aloof. The coldness she had just experienced now seemed understandable. Zhao Weiwei shook off her earlier disappointment and awkwardness, quickly finished eating, said goodbye to Sang Miao, and rushed to catch up with Lu Xiao.

In this life, people around Zhao Weiwei had changed their view of her, and she didn’t have much interaction with Sang Miao. At least on the surface, she still didn’t want to completely fall out with her.

That left Sang Miao sitting there alone, poking at her rice in frustration, wondering what to do about her dance.

She was a sensitive person, and just now, Lu Xiao really did seem unhappy.

Was it because today’s cafeteria food wasn’t good and he didn’t like the meal I got him? Or is it just that, as the villainess, I naturally can’t get along with the male and female leads?

She ran everything through her mind again but still couldn’t figure out what was wrong with giving up her seat to Zhao Weiwei just now. She was clearly caught in a fixed mindset—she had already decided that the two were a match made in heaven. It hadn’t occurred to her at all that at this point, Lu Xiao didn’t even know Zhao Weiwei. So what would it feel like for him to suddenly see a stranger being seated right across from him?

Still caught up in her slow thoughts, it took Sang Miao quite a while to finish the bit of rice left in her meal tray. She couldn’t come up with any solid explanation in the end, so she simply comforted herself—it must just be her overthinking things.

She decided to find a time to ask Lu Xiao for guidance. Once the military performance was over, she’d stay far away from both the male and female leads. That way, her mind wouldn’t be under so much pressure all the time.

—

On the other end, Zhao Weiwei had rushed out of the cafeteria right after eating, hoping to show herself in front of Lu Xiao while he was still unfamiliar with the cultural troupe. After all, in her last life, she’d never even had the chance to get close to him. She was convinced that this was an opportunity given by fate after her rebirth—some divine signal urging her not to miss it.

But Lu Xiao had long legs and a fast pace. By the time Zhao Weiwei got outside, he had already disappeared from view.

Disappointed, she could only return to the rehearsal hall—but Lu Xiao wasn’t there either.

—

That afternoon, under the scorching sun on the empty training field of the cultural troupe, Lu Xiao was in the middle of a 10,000-meter endurance run.

This was his usual training routine back in the army unit.

He had spent the entire morning in the rehearsal hall watching the performances, but since there was nothing there that required his attention—after all, he was a combat soldier, not a performer, and had no feedback to offer—he went straight to the training field in the afternoon instead.

By the time he was on his twentieth lap, a familiar figure appeared on the track, standing in his path.

Under the blazing sunlight, the figure looked nearly translucent white.

It was Sang Miao.

She had originally planned to quietly ask Lu Xiao for guidance later in the afternoon. But when she returned to the rehearsal hall and didn’t see him there, she found it strange. Since he was only temporarily assigned to the cultural troupe, he shouldn’t have returned to his infantry company—so where did he go?

Figuring he might be somewhere else, she warmed up and waited patiently for a bit, but he never showed.

Suddenly, an idea struck her. She remembered the training field she had taken him to previously. With a “might as well try” mindset, Sang Miao headed over—and sure enough, Lu Xiao was there. She stepped onto the track and waited for him.

Under the scorching sun, the man had no idea how long he’d been running. Beads of sweat rolled down his sharp-featured face.

Seeing him like this, Sang Miao couldn’t help but feel a bit of admiration. Even while injured, he hadn’t slacked on training. No wonder he was the male lead.

Just as she was lost in thought, Lu Xiao had already stopped in front of her. His tall figure nearly enveloped her completely, and the heat of his heavy post-run breathing brushed against her ear.

The intense masculine presence wrapped around Sang Miao, making her feel a little uneasy.

“What is it?” Lu Xiao lowered his eyes to look at her. With no one else on the field, it was clear she had come looking for him.

Nervously clenching her fists, Sang Miao spoke, “I… I wanted to ask for your guidance on something about my dancing.”

Lu Xiao frowned slightly, puzzled by her words. He couldn’t figure out what she meant. Why would a performer ask a combat soldier about dancing?

Seeing his expression, Sang Miao immediately realized he had misunderstood and quickly clarified, “No, it’s because Qionghua from The Red Detachment of Women is a female soldier. I don’t think I’m playing the role well enough. I wanted to learn some real combat moves from you to get into character.”

Only then did Lu Xiao start to understand. He finally realized the reason for her “enthusiasm” at lunch. Cultural troupe members wouldn’t normally have any contact with battlefield combat or military training.

“You want to learn my moves?”

“Yes! Captain Lu, please help me. I know you’ve been on the battlefield, you’re an excellent officer. I really want this military performance to be the best it can be.” Sang Miao clasped her hands together, tilting her head up slightly as she pleaded.

Lu Xiao went silent for a moment. Her soft voice and sweet words somehow soothed his mood a little.

His thoughts wandered off-topic as he asked, “You know I’m that good?”

Sang Miao jumped at the chance to flatter him and added with a bright smile, “Of course! All the girls in the cultural troupe know you’re amazing—cool, handsome, and super strong.” Truthfully, while the girls did gossip about the male soldiers often, Sang Miao hadn’t paid much attention. But since the novel clearly said the male lead was amazing—and she was asking for help now—she had to pile on the compliments.

Lu Xiao looked at her sincere expression and asked, “I’m used to training soldiers. Can you handle that kind of intensity?”

“I can!” Sang Miao stood up straight and gave him a salute, her face full of seriousness.

Despite her soft and delicate appearance, her salute was graceful and striking—like a slender, upright lotus.

“…Alright,” Lu Xiao’s thoughts wavered for a second, and somehow, he agreed without fully understanding why.

But the moment he said it, a hint of regret crept in. How had he agreed so easily?

He had trained entire companies of soldiers before, but he’d never coached such a delicate young woman. If he wasn’t careful, he might end up hurting her.

Still, he’d given his word. It wouldn’t be right to take it back now.

Sang Miao was overjoyed. She couldn’t help herself—her hands reached out and grabbed his arm in excitement as a radiant smile broke out on her face. Two tiny dimples appeared, sweet as sugar.

Lu Xiao looked down at the delicate, fair hands on his arm and fell silent. In the end, he didn’t say anything to push her away.

Only when she saw his gaze land on her hand did Sang Miao suddenly realize she was clutching his arm. His strong arm was easily more than twice the size of hers.

It was a hot summer day. Lu Xiao was only wearing a short-sleeved camo shirt, and Sang Miao’s skin was pressed directly against his. She could feel the heat from his body, as if it might scorch her.

She quickly let go, instinctively rocking back on her toes, and quietly hid her hands behind her back, pretending nothing had happened.

“Captain Lu, when would be a good time for you?” she asked shyly, drawing circles with her toe on the ground.

Lu Xiao glanced at her hands behind her back, then looked away. “Starting tomorrow, come to the training field before dinner bugle every evening and wait for me.”

“Alright! Then I’ll wait for you here every day—same time, same place!” Sang Miao said happily.

“Mm,” Lu Xiao responded in his deep voice.

Now that things had finally been settled, Sang Miao’s mood lifted. Even her steps felt lighter as she left.

Lu Xiao stood on the track, his gaze lingering on Sang Miao’s figure for a moment before he slowly retracted it. Then he resumed running. Though his left arm was bandaged, it didn’t affect him in the slightest. His tall figure moved with a steady, powerful rhythm.

—

The next evening, Sang Miao arrived at the training field just before dinner, right on time. But to her surprise, Lu Xiao was already there. She realized that since she hadn’t seen him in the rehearsal hall all afternoon, he must be doing his regular training here every day.

Lu Xiao had just finished his workout and was catching his breath.

The weather was scorching hot, and after training, sweat dripped from his sharply defined jawline. Lu Xiao lifted the hem of his shirt to wipe the sweat off his face. In the process, he unintentionally revealed his well-defined abs—tight and perfectly sculpted.

Sang Miao froze mid-step.

So… strong.

Those beautifully toned abs made Sang Miao go a little dazed. She momentarily forgot what she wanted to say.

Lu Xiao turned and grabbed his water bottle from the ground. With one hand, he unscrewed the cap and tilted his head back to drink. His Adam’s apple moved with each gulp, exuding an inexplicable kind of sensuality.

Sang Miao unconsciously swallowed too. No wonder he’s the male lead—his looks really are top-tier.

Before she even had time to speak, Lu Xiao caught sight of her out of the corner of his eye. Putting down the bottle, he asked, “You’re here?”

Sang Miao quickly snapped back to reality and walked a few steps closer. She spoke with concern, clearly showing the kind of courteous thoughtfulness of someone asking for a favor. “Captain Lu, you just finished training? Do you want to rest a bit first?”

“No need. Let’s start now.”

“Okay!”

—

Lu Xiao had real battlefield experience. He’d practiced these close-combat moves countless times during military drills. His eyes sharpened with focus as he swung a fierce punch forward, followed by a sweeping kick. The force and precision of his movements, paired with the killing intent in his gaze, nearly stunned Sang Miao.

For the first time, Sang Miao fully realized that Lu Xiao wasn’t just a paper-thin male lead in a book—he was a real soldier, a decorated officer who had seen real combat.

After demonstrating the moves twice, Lu Xiao looked at her and asked, “Got it?”

Sang Miao tried mimicking his actions. Thanks to her years of dance training, she picked up the sequence quickly. She’d been closely observing Lu Xiao’s movements.

But her own movements inevitably carried a dancer’s style. Her hands extended with a certain elegant flourish, her gestures graceful and light, full of her habitual dance finesse.

Lu Xiao frowned slightly.

“Clench your fists. Don’t let your waist go soft. Make the strikes sharper and faster,” he said, bluntly pointing out the problems.

Sang Miao tried a few more times but couldn’t quite break out of her ingrained habits. Years of ballet training had carved those graceful starts and poses into her very bones. It wasn’t easy to switch that off.

But Lu Xiao didn’t care. He kept correcting her mistakes without holding back. If you wanted to imitate the aura of charging into battle, there was no room for soft movements.

After a few failed attempts, Sang Miao’s pale earlobes flushed pink. Ever since she’d joined the arts troupe, she’d always been the most favored student, praised for her natural talent.

She had never experienced this kind of frustration before.

Now, fumbling like this in front of Lu Xiao, she even felt a little embarrassed for herself.

The more she practiced without improvement, the redder her ears got—almost as if they were about to bleed.

Lu Xiao, however, didn’t notice this little emotional spiral of hers.

Instead, he dropped his earlier nonchalance and took her more seriously. He was known for being strict when training soldiers—some fresh recruits couldn’t handle the pressure and cried secretly under their blankets.

Sang Miao, however, was a quick learner and highly responsive. A bright student like her made the process a little more enjoyable for him, even as a teacher.