When Ruan Mian arrived at the army, he followed Lu Yang’s instructions and went to the small road next to the military base to wait for Wang Dali. Lu Yang said that Wang Dali had a way to bring him to the military base.
Lu Yang hadn’t detailed how Wang Dali would manage it over the phone; he only said to wait by the roadside with peace of mind.
Ruan Mian put his bag on the ground and breathed a sigh of relief. He had carried a lot of things, and his arms were tired from the journey. He saw people passing by occasionally on the roadside, so he hid behind a tree with a guilty conscience and waited quietly.
After a while, Ruan Mian heard the sound of a car horn. Peeking out from behind the trees, he saw a small truck pull up and stop by the roadside. Wang Dali got out of the truck and stood by the road, looking around, probably searching for him.
Ruan Mian waited until there was no one around, picked up the bag, looked at Wang Dali, and waved excitedly, “Dali! Here!”
Wang Dali turned around and saw the large and small bags on him. He couldn’t help but want to complain, but seeing Ruan Mian’s dusty face and excited smile, he held his words back.
The little rabbit came all the way here, he should not discourage the little rabbit’s enthusiasm.
He walked over and took the bag, holding it in his hand with some disdain. He worried that if this little rabbit carried it any longer, he might end up crushed.
“How are you going to take me in?” Ruan Mian looked at Wang Dali, his voice couldn’t help but be a little anxious. The closer he was to the base, the more anxious he was to see Lu Yang quickly.
“He is training now, so he can’t sneak out.” Wang Dali put the bag on the car and pointed to the trunk, “I’m using this to take you in.”
Ruan Mian glanced in the direction Wang Dali was pointing, noticing that the truck’s rear was filled with a large amount of produce, including fruits, vegetables, and various meats. With such a quantity, it seemed to be intended for the military camp.
Ruan Mian looked at the groceries in surprise and asked, “Did you come out to buy these?”
“Yes,” Wang Dali replied, opening the car door for Ruan Mian to get in.
Ruan Mian climbed into the passenger seat and, still astonished, said, “How come the military allowed you to go out to buy groceries? Isn’t Lu Yang busy with training? Don’t you have training duties as well?”
Wang Dali stroked his hair calmly and said, “I’m in kitchen duty.”
Ruan Mian was silent for a few seconds, trying to digest the news, “You said you would come to the army to accompany Lu Yang for training, so you mean to accompany him in the kitchen?”
“…” Wang Dali coughed and explained, “After I came to the army, because I am also a pure-blood, Captain Song assigned me to the top team in the army, which is the team Lu Yang is on now.”
“Isn’t that great?” Ruan Mian was a little envious. How lucky he was to be assigned to the same team as Lu Yang. Since Wang Dali wanted to pursue Lu Yang, shouldn’t he be staying there happily?
Wang Dali looked up at the sky, tears in his eyes, and was silent for a while before saying, “Can you imagine what it feels like to be a rooster, and the people standing at attention next to you are all wolves, snakes, tigers, wild leopards, and other ferocious beasts?”
Ruan Mian thought about it. As a little rabbit, if he stayed with the people Wang Dali mentioned every day, he would probably just tremble and hide in Lu Yang’s arms and dare not come out.
As a rooster, Wang Dali probably wasn’t in a much better situation than him.
Pure-blood Alphas and Omegas are often exceptionally capable and fierce, while those with non-aggressive animal forms like rabbits or roosters tend to fall short in comparison. Apart from being somewhat better-looking and having superior learning abilities, they are significantly outmatched by the more formidable beasts. Sometimes, their animal forms not only fail to be an asset but can even become a liability due to their inherent nature. Ruan Mian deeply understood Wang Dali’s feelings in this regard.
He couldn’t help but pat Wang Dali’s shoulder and sighed softly, “You’ve suffered so much.”
Wang Dali thought about the sadness of the first few days and couldn’t help wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes, “Actually, it’s okay. Since I was assigned to be in the kitchen, I don’t have to stay with them. Now I can finally breathe freely and feel a lot more relaxed.”
Ruan Mian nodded. Wang Dali has grown a lot since he joined the army this time. He looked at the vegetables in the back compartment and asked, “Are you going to let me hide in these vegetables and sneak into the army later?”
“No, the army is very strict. You will be discovered even if you hide in it.” Wang Dali shook his head and suddenly showed a mouthful of white teeth. He smiled grimly and looked at Ruan Mian and said, “I came out to buy vegetables. Aren’t you a little rabbit?”
The rooster bared its teeth, but it was really not threatening. In order to cooperate with him, Ruan Mian could only try to pretend to be terrified.
Wang Dali took out a cage from somewhere, opened the door of the cage, and patted it gently, “Little rabbit, come in quickly, the army will eat meat for lunch today.”
…
Twenty minutes later, Wang Dali, carrying a rabbit cage in hand, wobbled through the military camp’s back door storage and transport corridor, leading Ruan Mian inside.
When passing by for inspection, Ruan Mian squeezed in a group of rabbits, discreetly moved his feet, and hugged the rabbit ears nervously.
Fortunately, the guard only took a glance and let Wang Dali pass. Wang Dali’s father was an officer in the barracks, so the guards did not check him very strictly. Anyway, as a member a military family, he would never betray the empire. In the end, it was because this military base was not the main barracks of the empire, so inspections and their defenses were not as strict.
Wang Dali brought Ruan Mian in smoothly and put him in the military kitchen. He took the key to the rabbit cage and wanted to let Ruan Mian out.
He lifted the cloth covering the rabbit cage and saw the rabbits that looked similar inside. His movements suddenly stopped, and he was stunned.
According to Lu Yang’s description, he bought more than a dozen lop-eared rabbits that looked similar to Ruan Mian in advance. Now that Ruan Mian was squeezed among them, he couldn’t recognize which one was Ruan Mian.
“… Ruan Mian?” He looked at the rabbits in the rabbit cage and tried to ask.
A dozen little rabbits heard the voice and looked at him at the same time. Their eyes were dark, one brighter than the other.
“…” Wang Dali thought about it and had to change to another method, “Lift your arm… No, I mean, lift your leg.”
Wang Dali raised his arm to demonstrate, and the little rabbits thought he was going to feed them, and all jumped up excitedly, lifting the two little rabbit legs in front of them, kicking in the air, eagerly waiting to be fed.
“…” Wang Dali touched his head worriedly, and he really couldn’t tell which one was Ruan Mian.
He had to let Ruan Mian out so that Ruan Mian could turn back into human form.
If he released these dozen rabbits together, he would not be able to catch so many rabbits. If the rabbits ran around, it would attract the attention of the superiors. If he brought them one by one to test, he would not be able to remember which one he had just tested. He might keep doing it over and over again.
Ruan Mian tried hard to lean out and remind Wang Dali where he was, but the rabbits beside him were increasingly squished and larger than him. He attempted to stand up several times but was pushed back each time. In his frustration, his ears drooped down.
The space in the cage was too small, and there were too many little rabbits. It was good enough for him to stand firmly in the cage. He really couldn’t do more.
Wang Dali was annoyed that he had not thought it through well enough just now. After thinking for a while, he said with some guilt: “Hold on for a while, I’ll go find Lu Yang to see if he can recognize you. If not, we can think of other ways.”
After he finished speaking, he hurried out while no one came to the kitchen. Lu Yang was training now. It’s unknown if he can find a chance to sneak him out.
Ruan Mian was about to stand up when the rabbit next to him pushed him to the ground with its buttocks raised. He hid in the corner of the cage with stars in his eyes, and watched Wang Dali walk away hurriedly.
The kitchen was quiet, and the rabbits next to him kept squeezing each other. He could only shrink in the corner and hide himself with his rabbit ears.
By the time Lu Yang rushed over, Ruan Mian had been knocked to the ground by another rabbit. He struggled to crawl out from under a rabbit’s leg that was pressing down on him, his fur in disarray and looking like a complete mess.
He sat on the ground blankly, panting lightly, his ears drooping, revealing an unspeakable grievance.
Lu Yang strode into the room, took a look, and hurriedly opened the rabbit cage, took Ruan Mian out from among the many rabbits, put him in his arms, and stroked his rabbit fur with heartache.
Wang Dali was stunned. He looked at Lu Yang, then at the rabbit in his arms, and asked in surprise: “How did you recognize him so quickly? Are you sure it’s Ruan Mian?”
He looked at the rabbit in Lu Yang’s arms with suspicion. In his opinion, these rabbits all looked the same, and there was no difference. The one in Lu Yang’s arms was just a little better looking than the other similar rabbits.
With so many rabbits mixed together, it was difficult to tell the difference between them, let alone look at them carefully. How did Lu Yang find Ruan Mian at a glance? He didn’t quite believe it.
Lu Yang gently comforted the frightened, lop-eared rabbit in his arms, smoothing out the rabbit fur strand by strand. He lovingly scratched his chin. Hearing Wang Dali’s question, he couldn’t help but look up, exasperated, and said, “This is my Tutu. How could I mistake him for anyone else? Even if he showed only a single strand of fur, I’d still recognize him.”
Wang Dali curled his lips and felt that Lu Yang’s words were a bit exaggerated, but looking at Lu Yang’s expression just now, he did recognize him at a glance after entering the room. From his firm movements, he seemed to have no doubts at all, and was very sure that this was Ruan Mian.
Ruan Mian wearily pressed his rabbit ears against Lu Yang’s chest, rubbing them gently. He rested quietly for a while, finally feeling a bit of relief. He couldn’t help but let out a soft sigh, and he unexpectedly felt a touch of the poignant sentiment of searching far and wide for a loved one.
Wang Dali observed the little rabbit’s limp, chubby body and sighed with a touch of sadness. He found the sight oddly amusing and couldn’t help but be tempted to reach out and give him a scratch.
Wang Dali was lost in thought and didn’t notice his hand reaching out.
Ruan Mian, initially looking dejected with his head lowered, saw Wang Dali’s hand and silently pulled his head back, staring at him with wide, round eyes.
Lu Yang frowned, quickly turning to shield Ruan Mian from Wang Dali’s hand. He looked up at Wang Dali with a displeased expression and softly ground his teeth, “Are you trying to get rid of your feathers again?”
Wang Dali took his hand back wisely and shook his head vigorously, “I want them! I want every one of them!”
Feathers and hair are both things to be fiercely protected!
