Chapter 25: If You Don’t Do Stupid Things, You Won’t Die
[ 不作不死 (No Zuo No Die): lit. If you don’t do stupid things, you won’t die; fig. If you don’t push your luck, you won’t get into trouble.]
"I feel like my entire body has been hollowed out. My body no longer belongs to me," Yang Jiabo collapsed onto the bed, his whole body aching.
"Jiajia, can you hold on?" Wei Jing frowned as he looked at him. In his impression, Yang Jiabo had always been frail and prone to illness.
"It's fine. Tomorrow, I'll be as lively as a dragon again," Yang Jiabo said, though he was certain he wouldn’t want to get up.
Wei Jing: "Go wash up first, then come back and rest early."
Yang Jiabo really wanted to just sleep like this. "Let me lie here for five more minutes."
Wei Jing didn’t say anything but pulled Yang Jiabo, who was slumped like a pile of mud, to his feet. The two of them grabbed their basins and headed to the washroom. The weather was hot, so everyone used cold water to wash up. When they reached the washbasins, Wei Jing told Yang Jiabo to wait. He left with his basin and returned shortly with a basin of hot water. "Use this to wash up. Soaking your feet later will make you feel better."
"Let’s share," Yang Jiabo divided the water, leaving half for Wei Jing.
After washing up, they returned to the dormitory. Many of their classmates had regained their energy and were chatting together. Yang Jiabo knew tomorrow wouldn’t be any better, so he lay down without even taking off his clothes. Sleeping in clothes was uncomfortable, but it would save time in the morning. Wei Jing did the same, and the two of them lay side by side.
"Jiajia, if you can’t keep going, just ask for leave. Don’t push yourself too hard," Wei Jing was worried about Yang Jiabo’s stubbornness.
"Don’t worry, my body is absolutely strong. It just needs some time to adjust," Yang Jiabo said, then suddenly thought of something. "I sleep restlessly. Did I kick you last night?"
"No, but the frogs outside were too noisy."
"You’ll get used to it. There’s no way to fix that. Maybe you can stuff some paper in your ears?"
"No, the sound of the paper rubbing would be just as annoying."
"Oh, so you’ve already tried it, huh?" Yang Jiabo laughed heartlessly.
"Go ahead and laugh. Let’s see how you get up tomorrow."
"How else? I’ll just crawl out of bed," Yang Jiabo said, scooting closer to Wei Jing and whispering, "Where did you hide my candy? Bring some with you tomorrow."
Wei Jing: "If the instructor catches you sneaking candy, he’ll make you stand as punishment."
"I have low blood sugar. I need to replenish it, or I’ll feel dizzy and panicked," Yang Jiabo lied.
Wei Jing actually believed him and quickly asked, "Should I ask for leave and take you to the school doctor?"
"No, no, it’s not serious. I just need some sugar," Yang Jiabo felt that sweetness could improve his mood, and he was almost addicted to it. So he shamelessly pretended to have low blood sugar.
"Are you sure?" Wei Jing seemed to catch on.
"Of course. Speaking of which, the cafeteria food is terrible," Yang Jiabo’s eyes wandered as he forcefully changed the subject.
Wei Jing: "It’s not good. I think the teachers probably don’t know how to cook for large groups."
Yang Jiabo: "It’s fine. Starting tomorrow, even pig slop will taste delicious to everyone."
Wei Jing: "Is it really that bad?"
Yang Jiabo: "Absolutely. Their snacks are probably almost gone by now."
Wei Jing: "We don’t have much left either. You should save some for yourself."
Yang Jiabo blinked. "I know."
"Jiajia, I’m going back to Beijing for middle school," Wei Jing suddenly said.
Yang Jiabo was stunned. Although he had known this was coming, he still felt a little sad. But he smiled and said, "That’s a good thing. The teaching quality here really can’t keep up, and the learning environment isn’t great either. You’re so smart, you should go to a better place. Staying here would only hold you back."
"What about you, Jiajia? You’re smarter and more capable than me."
"My home is here. My parents are here, and my roots are here too. Actually, I’m a homebody. I can’t leave home," Yang Jiabo said softly. He also wanted to see the wider world, but he wanted a home that was completely his own, undisturbed by anyone.
The two of them lay head to head, whispering together until they fell asleep.
On the second day of the summer camp, they practiced standing at attention and marching in formation, exhausting everyone. On the second day, they went for a run in the wild, continued marching, and practiced military boxing, still exhausting. On the third day, they repeated the previous day’s training, but in the afternoon, they had an extra hour where the instructor explained military equipment.
On the fourth day, they continued training in the morning and visited a military base in the afternoon to see how poorly they compared, which was a blow to their confidence. By this point, the summer camp was more than halfway over. Many students had adapted to the training but started to miss home, crying under their blankets after training.
Emotions are contagious, and soon more and more people were crying, their eyes red like rabbits. However Yang Jiabo and Wei Jing didn’t cry. The two of them had plenty to talk about, and they had both been away from home for long periods before, so being away for seven days was nothing to them.
While others were crying their eyes out, Yang Jiabo pulled Wei Jing under the blanket to laugh at them. For someone with a lot of dark history, watching others’ embarrassing moments up close was a form of self-comfort.
Yang Jiabo: "Brother, look at how miserably they’re crying. Should we pretend to cry too?"
Wei Jing: "You look like you’re enjoying this. Can you even cry?"
Yang Jiabo thought for a moment and said, "Hmm, that might be a bit difficult."
Wei Jing: "I think I hear crying from the next room too."
Yang Jiabo: "Oh no, soon the whole dorm will be crying."
Wei Jing: "I wonder if the instructor can handle this. They can’t just let them cry like this, right?"
Yang Jiabo: "You’re underestimating the instructor."
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