The Strongest Brain in the Interstellar

“She’s awake, she’s awake! Woke up so quickly? I thought she’d sleep through the whole thing…” Jiang Hui opened her eyes, fully alert the moment she exited the mental space, and quickly assessed her surroundings.

The classmate who had carried her over met her clear gaze, thinking she might be confused about the situation, and said, “Hey, we’re at the temporary rest point now.”

“You fainted at the simulated shooting range earlier, and we just got to the tent a little while ago. Hold on, I’ll call the medic for you.”

This person looked somewhat familiar… Jiang Hui was actually quite clear-headed, not dazed as the person assumed. She realized that the guy was the one who had been walking ahead of her in the team the whole time, right?

Yes, even the red ink stain on his collar was exactly the same, no doubt about it. Was he the one who brought her here?

While Jiang Hui was piecing things together, Zhou Xiu Wen had already brought the medic over. The medical personnel expertly examined her, used a machine to check her brainwaves… The final diagnosis was that Jiang Hui had simply overexerted her mental and physical energy. As long as she took enough supplements and rested, she would be fine.

So it was really due to overexertion? Although she could judge that from her physical condition, Jiang Hui glanced at the report data. Compared to the last time she fainted, the numbers were much higher. No wonder she felt so hungry in the mental space this time—it all made sense. Jiang Hui thought to herself.

The classmate who brought her over was clearly very considerate. Instead of leaving after handing her over to the medics, he stayed to listen to the diagnosis and even actively went to get her some special medicine.

By the time he returned, Jiang Hui had already finished her wandering thoughts.

When he came back, Jiang Hui followed his gaze to the special medicine in his hand, her expression showing a hint of curiosity.

Zhou Xiu Wen seemed to catch on to her thoughts and, looking a bit embarrassed, said, “I should thank you, Jiang, for helping out earlier. If you hadn’t helped on the road, I might have dragged the whole team down, and I really wouldn’t have been able to face anyone.”

Jiang Hui didn’t stand on ceremony. She accepted the special medicine he handed over, briefly glancing at the sealed label from the medical unit, then nodded and said, “I should thank you for bringing me to the medical tent. I’m Jiang Hui, from the second class of the Combat and Special Operations department. I didn’t get your name yet?”

He probably knew her surname from seeing the report earlier. Even though it seemed a bit redundant now, it was still polite to formally introduce herself and ask for his name, rather than just calling him “classmate” all the time.

“I’m Zhou Xiu Wen from the Logistics Department,” the boy said, a bit surprised. He had indeed seen Jiang Hui’s name on the medical report by chance. It wasn’t intentional—he just happened to glance at it—but it didn’t list her major or class.

So he was genuinely surprised that this delicate and refined-looking classmate, Jiang Hui, turned out to be from the Combat and Special Operations Department. No wonder… He had wondered why, as a tall, strong guy, he couldn’t match her endurance. It made sense now—their majors were quite different.

Still, he couldn’t help but inwardly berate himself for his own weakness.

Even though Jiang Hui was a student of Combat and Special Operations and naturally talented, she was still just a freshman. They had all just started training recently, and yet she had already reached such a high level. Meanwhile, he had been quietly proud of breezing through the first few weeks of military training. Now, looking back, he found it embarrassing.

That’s why today’s field exercise gave Zhou Xiu Wen a wake-up call.

He decided he needed to strengthen his physical training. After all, even as a logistics student, it was still related to the military, and he couldn’t just slack off because less was expected of his major.

While Zhou Xiu Wen was silently making this resolution, Jiang Hui was also surprised. She had assumed, based on his gentle demeanor, that he was in a general, non-military program, but it turned out he was also in a military-related field.

Although the Logistics Department is somewhat on the fringe of military-related majors and holds a rather awkward position, it is still a legitimate military field. Their training, in theory, follows the same standard as everyone else’s. It seems Zhou Xiu Wen is another person who ended up in a field that doesn’t quite suit him.

“Zhou, should you return to the team for assembly? I still have to stay here for the observation period after taking the medicine…” Jiang Hui asked hesitantly, noticing that Zhou Xiu Wen had been staying by her side without moving.

During field exercises, the mid-session breaks were never very long. Last time, they only rested for fifteen minutes, and she wasn’t sure how long she’d been unconscious this time. Although no one had come to rush them yet, it felt like quite a bit of time had passed.

As the one who had passed out, Jiang Hui felt she had rested enough and was ready to rejoin the team to finish the exercise and get back to rest as soon as possible. However, Zhou Xiu Wen staying there with her seemed like a bit of a waste of time.

Jiang Hui’s question was meant to remind him that it might be time to head back. The purpose of military training was to toughen students and foster a sense of unity and collective discipline. Everyone had to take responsibility for their own actions, sometimes even paying the price for them.

This classmate Zhou’s intentions might be well-meaning, but his kind gesture, without understanding priorities, is misplaced. If he stays here any longer, he’s bound to get reprimanded.

Jiang Hui, knowing she’s much older than these actual teenagers and appreciating Zhou’s good intentions, didn’t want to hold him up any longer, so she mentioned it.

However, Zhou replied that there was no rush for her, and she could rest a bit more. They had only been at the temporary rest stop for less than ten minutes, and this break was a bit longer—about an hour. He said it would be better for her to rest here than head back to the camp.

Jiang Hui, surprised, asked, “An hour?”

Zhou Xiu Wen’s face turned slightly bitter as he explained, “Yes, but it’s not really an hour of rest for us. It’s for reorganizing the team.” It was a sort of punishment, as he heard that reaching the finish late would result in losing points.

“The instructor already mentioned that any students hit by the plastic guns during the simulated shooting exercise need to stay here for an hour for reorganization. Even those not hit but whose physical condition doesn’t allow them to continue can also stay for the hour. However, points won’t be awarded for this stage.”

Jiang Hui: “What about the others…”

Zhou Xiu Wen replied, “Oh, the students who weren’t hit naturally have to keep moving forward. As usual, they rest for fifteen minutes before continuing.”

“Has the fifteen minutes passed yet?” Jiang Huai asked.

“We’ve only been at the camp for about seven or eight minutes, so they probably haven’t set off yet. Wait… Jiang, are you thinking of joining the team?” Zhou Xiu Wen asked in disbelief.

Of course.

After finally dodging those hidden shots, she definitely wanted to take advantage of the lead she had gained. Otherwise, all her efforts would have been in vain.