Chapter 5: The Predator in the Mess Hall

POV: Commander Lin

Location: Briefing Room, Northern District Military Command

Time: Immediately after the hospital room confrontation

Commander Lin stood at absolute military attention, his spine straight as a ruler, though his brain was still trying to process the strange, intense look in Miss Li Qiao's eyes before they left the medical ward.

Across the steel briefing table, General Lin—the officially retired but deeply influential veteran who still pulled the strings behind the scenes—was already focused on the maps. The fiery anger from his granddaughter's scolding had completely vanished, replaced by the sharp, calculating gaze of a warlord.

"Commander Lin, gets the tactical feed from the northern valley border on the main screen," General Lin ordered, his voice dropping into a low, serious rumble. "That Class-3 smuggling caravan the lieutenant mentioned isn't an isolated incident. They're utilizing the blind spots in our old radar rotation."

"Understood, General," Commander Lin replied, swiftly tapping his electronic tablet to pull up the encrypted satellite telemetry. "The high-command terminal is requesting your off-the-record tactical advice on troop deployment to seal the perimeter. They believe the smugglers are using heavily armored transports."

"Idiots," General Lin grunted, leaning over the digital map. "They're deploying too far right. Tell the garrison to bottleneck them at the ravine. If we don't catch them at the choke point, they'll slip straight into the civilian transit lines."

Externally, Commander Lin executed the orders with flawless military precision, relaying the General's strategy directly to the border units. Internally, however, his mind kept drifting back to the teenager in the hospital bed.

It’s fascinating, Lin’s inner voice mused, a cold sweat pricking at his neck. The General can read a battlefield like an open book, but his own granddaughter is a completely unreadable anomaly. When she critiqued that same perimeter fence earlier, she spoke with the exact same tactical coldness the General is using right now. Did she somehow inherit his military brain overnight from a concussion?

Once the border authorization codes were sent and the crisis was managed, General Lin straightened up, rubbing his tired eyes.

"What's the medical status on Qiao-Qiao?" the old man asked, his tone shifting back to that of an exhausted patriarch.

"The doctor states she requires two full weeks of strict rest to clear the cranial concussion," Commander Lin reported, adjusting his uniform. "After that, her body should be fully healed from the impact."

"Good," General Lin barked, a strict, no-nonsense glint returning to his eyes. "The moment those fourteen days are up, I want her on the mandatory behavioral reform curriculum. No slacking, no special treatment because she's my family. Put her through the paces, Lin. Let's see if that stubborn attitude of hers can survive a real training course."

"Understood, General. I will handle it personally."

Two Weeks Later.

Location: Base Cafeteria

Time: 12:30 PM

Commander Lin marched into the youth sector mess hall with the printed curriculum slip tucked firmly under his arm. He had his stern, unyielding 'instructor face' locked in, fully prepared for the inevitable crying, shouting, and tantrums that the original Li Qiao always threw whenever she was forced to do physical labor.

But as he scanned the massive, stainless-steel cafeteria, he froze.

The fifteen-year-old girl wasn't sitting at a table weeping about her broken nails. She was currently standing at the service counter, leaning her small hands on the metal, boring holes into the face of the base's heaviest, most terrifying civilian head cook.

Her face was completely serious, narrow-eyed, and colder than a northern winter.

"Bring it out, and nobody gets hurt," Lin heard her whisper in a flat, dangerous monotone as he approached.

The massive chef was actually trembling, clutching a ladle like a shield. "I told you, kid, there is no Lao Gan Ma chili oil on the official behavioral reform menu!"

What in the world is she doing? Commander Lin’s mind shouted in absolute disbelief. Is she... is she extorting my kitchen staff for contraband condiments? With a face that serious? She looks like she’s negotiating a hostage exchange over a bowl of unseasoned mash!

"Miss Li," Commander Lin interrupted loudly, stepping into the fray before his head cook filed a formal complaint against a teenager.

Zai didn't flinch. She slowly turned her head, her dark eyes locking onto the Commander with a chillingly calm, analytical expression that made his military instincts feel strangely defensive.

"Your medical leave is officially over," Commander Lin announced, forcing his voice to remain a strict, authoritative rumble. "General Lin has personally authorized your behavioral curriculum. Since you have recovered from your curfew violation, your new training begins tomorrow at exactly zero four hundred hours."

He handed her the paper slip containing the nightmare schedule: a 5-kilometer weighted ruck run, level-1 hand-to-hand combat, and endless obstacle course loops.

Lin braced his core, waiting for the classic Li Qiao meltdown. Here it comes. The tears, the screaming, the throwing of the mashed potatoes...

Instead, Zai simply snatched the paper, her eyes scanning the text with lightning-fast, mechanical speed. Her face didn't break its deadpan, stone-cold mask.

"Ten kilograms is a bit light for the vest, Commander," she said completely straight-faced, casually stuffing the grueling punishment slip into her pocket as if it were a grocery list. "But it will do for a warm-up. Tell my grandfather I accept his challenge."

She grabbed her tray of boiled chicken and strolled toward an empty table, her movements completely fluid and relaxed.

Commander Lin stood frozen by the metal counter, his arm still extended in the air, his mouth slightly open.

Did she... did she just call a mandatory military punishment ruck 'light cardio'? his inner voice screamed in utter shock, his brain completely short-circuiting. What happened to the girl who used to cry when her shoes got muddy?! Who is this person?!

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***