Whirr, whirr, whirr.
The ceiling fan spun rapidly, barely pushing away the oppressive summer heat. Yet, the restlessness in the students' hearts only grew stronger.
The long-awaited National Founding Festival, a fifteen-day holiday, was about to begin. Less than two minutes remained until the end of the final class.
Most of the students in Class 5 of Grade 11 were already packing their bags or gazing out the window. After all, the current "culture class" seemed unimportant to them.
However—
A boy sitting at a desk against the wall was still attentively taking notes, his gaze darting between the blackboard and his notebook as he tried to record as much as possible.
Ding-ding.
The bell signaling the end of class rang.
The restless students left the classroom in groups of three or five, some sprinting as if afraid of being trapped in school.
The boy, however, only began packing his books after ensuring his notes were complete, moving at a leisurely pace.
At that moment, a shadow crept over his desk, spreading and covering its surface.
Instinctively, the boy clenched his fist and turned around quickly. What he saw, however, was a pair of hands resting lightly on the edge of his desk. Following the fair but toned arms upwards, he found a familiar, gentle smile that quickly dissolved his wariness.
The owner of the shadow was none other than Wu Wen, the current class president of Grade 11, Class 5.
Standing at 1.7 meters tall with near-perfect proportions, Wu Wen’s high ponytail and sporty appearance made it clear she was an athletic type.
Today, being the day before the holiday, there was no need to wear school uniforms. Wu Wen was dressed casually in summer sportswear: a white T-shirt layered with a light-colored sun jacket, snug athletic shorts, and white sneakers.
After confirming it was the class president, the boy relaxed and continued packing his books.
"Hey, Luo Di," Wu Wen said. "I’m planning to go out for a couple of days during the holiday. Do you have time to join?"
"No."
The president, undeterred by the straightforward rejection, leaned closer and lowered her voice.
"It's not just for fun. My family pulled some strings, and I got us an early opportunity for fieldwork. You know how important that is—it’ll be recorded in our personal files and help with next year’s college admissions."
Luo Di didn’t respond immediately and continued packing his books.
The president, showing remarkable patience, waited quietly.
Finally, after he packed his last book, he spoke. "Who else is going?"
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
"If you join, there’ll be four of us. There’s someone from our class who’s been on leave, plus a friend of mine from outside school. She’s a girl, by the way. Two boys and two girls—perfect balance."
"Don’t worry," she added, "we’re all top athletes. No one will hold you back."
Fieldwork opportunities were rare, and Luo Di nodded in agreement.
The president extended her arm into his view, nearly blocking his line of sight, and pointed to the flexible metal wristband on her wrist.
"The fieldwork is scheduled to start in seven days. We’ll call you the day before departure to meet up and buy the necessary supplies together."
"Okay."
Just then, the school’s broadcast system came on.
≮All teachers and students are required to swipe their cards and leave the school within fifteen minutes. The school will conduct a comprehensive pre-holiday inspection. Those who fail to leave on time will receive a demerit and be sent to the school clinic for a full check-up.≯
"Luo Di, how about a race? Let’s see who gets to the school gate first!"
"No."
Already poised to run, the president could only sigh in disappointment. "Alright, fine."
The two walked through the campus, one behind the other. No matter how eagerly the president waved at him to hurry, Luo Di maintained his steady walking pace. It seemed he had calculated the time perfectly and wasn’t worried about being left behind.
By the time he reached the gate, the president was already seated in a luxurious private car.
Luo Di could faintly sense someone inside the car watching him. But he was used to such stares and paid them no mind.
Instead, he boarded a familiar bus, taking a seat in the last row by the window. Just as he was about to take a nap, a loud announcement echoed through the vehicle.
Buzz, buzz, buzz.
Three high-pitched tones emphasized the importance of the broadcast.
"Tomorrow marks the annual National Founding Festival, granting all citizens a fifteen-day holiday. We would like to remind everyone to enjoy their vacation responsibly while strictly adhering to the National Corner Safety Law.
Those designated as regional service personnel during the holiday are expected to fulfill their duties and will receive corresponding holiday compensation afterward.
When traveling during the holiday, citizens must comply with the Corner Law regulations of different areas.
For those planning to visit suburban regions, please make the necessary preparations, present a health certificate before leaving the city, and undergo a comprehensive psychological evaluation upon returning."
The first part of the announcement was in Russian.
Although Luo Di was a citizen of the Huaxia nation, he understood it perfectly, as Russian was a mandatory subject in cultural classes.
The subsequent announcements were repeated in Chinese, English, German, and Italian.
Luo Di’s original plan was to spend the entire holiday at home, but now he had to reconsider due to the upcoming fieldwork.
≮Next stop: No. 13 Resettlement Community. Doors will close in ten seconds.≯
After getting off the bus, Luo Di quickly walked to the deepest part of the community—to his Home.
At the entrance, a family photo of four hung above the shoe cabinet: Luo Di, his parents, and his sister.
A note left on the cabinet informed him that his parents had taken his sister on vacation. This year, the responsibility of watching the house fell to him, the busy high school student.
Far from complaining, Luo Di was delighted.
He loved being home alone. Traveling, on the other hand, was pure torture for him.
From the fridge, he took out frozen beef and green peppers, steaming two large buns to go with them.
While cooking, he retrieved a beautifully packaged DVD and a 25kg dumbbell from his bedroom, placing them in the living room.
Buzz.
The TV turned on, and the DVD player began to spin.
The title "Friday the 13th Part III" appeared on the screen, accompanied by an old-school soundtrack.
Holding a bun stuffed with beef and green peppers in one hand and the dumbbell in the other, Luo Di alternated between bites and bicep curls.
Throughout the entire meal and workout, his eyes never left the screen, even though he had watched the movie more than thirty times.
Yes.
He had loved this genre of film since childhood, particularly the characters within them.
Unlike the class president and others who underwent systematic training, Luo Di trained his body in the most ordinary ways, inspired solely by the physiques of movie characters.
Dumbbells, weighted squats, push-ups, and nightly runs of over ten kilometers were his regimen.
He believed that, with persistence, he would one day become as physically imposing as the killers in the movies he admired.