Chapter 178: Return to Academy

He walked out of the alley, Qin Song turned his head and saw Wan Lao and Wan Da Niang still standing at the door, waving at him and Guanghui.

Qin Song waved back at them, then he and Guanghui left Old Street without looking back.

Sitting in the car returning to the Academy, Guanghui said to Qin Song, "Those two elders are nice; it seems the Commander has run into kind people."

"Hehe, that's only natural; they treat me like their own son." Qin Song said with a hint of nostalgia.

"Should we come visit them more often in the future?" Guanghui said.

"Sure, when we have free time we can drop by to see them. Besides, there are lots of interesting things in Old Street; I think they'll like it here." Qin Song said, smiling.

"That's right; it's not only lively but also has beautiful scenery. Let's come together again next time." Guanghui nodded.

"Mm."

As night deepened, the two returned to the Commander Academy. The other fleet members had also come back, but they all stayed in the public rest area, their faces showing anxious expressions.

When everyone saw Qin Song and Guanghui walking up the stairs together, they all rose from their seats and approached the two.

"Commander, where did you go? Why are you only back now?" Prince Ou Gen Qin Wang said to Qin Song.

"I went to the outskirts' Old Street with Guanghui; we were supposed to return in the afternoon, but we ran into an acquaintance, so we were delayed." Qin Song told the crowd.

"An acquaintance? The Commander shouldn't have many acquaintances in this world, right? And the two people you're closest to should be in Minghai City; there shouldn't be many acquaintances in Shenhua City." For Prince Ou Gen Qin Wang, who knew Qin Song's background, it was natural to know how many people Qin Song knew in this world.

"Yes, but this time they really are acquaintances." Qin Song explained to everyone, "Wan Lao and Wan Da Niang from Ninghai City have come to Shenhua City and are living in Old Street. When I and Guanghui returned from there, we happened to see them, so we chatted for a while.

"But not wanting you to worry, we didn't stay long; we came back after it got dark."

"I see, so the Commander now has another place to go when he's free." Prince Ou Gen Qin Wang said.

Qin Song smiled, "Yeah, next time we have free time I'll bring you all to have a look. Besides, we can have fun in Old Street; I went today, it felt quite lively, and there are lots of fun things. I and Guanghui bought some extra specially, so she can bring them back for you."

After Qin Song finished speaking, Guanghui laughed as she walked to the table in the public rest area, then opened her ship-equipment space and took out the items she had bought in Old Street one by one.

"What is this? It looks rather large," Si Peng Si said, pointing at an object.

"This is probably called a kongzhu," Biyu said to Qin Song.

"That's right, it really is called a kongzhu. You take two sticks, string a rope between them, and play by shaking it." Guanghui said to Biyu.

"Shake it to play?" Si Peng Si wondered.

Qin Song smiled, "The space here is small; a kongzhu is more fun to play in an open area. When I have time tomorrow, I'll take you to the reception house's entrance to play."

"Thank you, Commander," Si Peng Si said to Qin Song.

After spending some time together, Si Peng Si no longer seemed as fearful in front of Qin Song, occasionally uttering a few sentences, but most of the time she still appeared timid, as if she might burst into tears at any moment.

"No problem," Qin Song said, smiling.

The others also picked a few things they liked from the items on the table. Seeing everyone's happy expressions, Qin Song couldn't help but smile; it seemed this trip to Old Street had been worthwhile.

Not only did he have a fairly complete date with Guanghui, but he also met Wan Lao and Wan Da Niang, and the toys he brought back were liked by the others, making it a pretty good journey.

"Right, master." Hai Lun Na walked up to Qin Song's side and asked, "I don't know if you and Miss Guanghui have eaten out together."

Qin Song shook his head. "Not yet; dinner is being prepared for us to eat together, but because we ran into Wan Lao and Wan Da Niang, we came back later."

"I see; actually nobody has eaten yet, we've been waiting for the two of you to come back, so I'll go heat up some food for everyone." Hai Lun Na said.

"All right, thank you for the trouble, Hai Lun Na." Qin Song nodded.

"No trouble, this is what I should do." Hai Lun Na laughed.

After Hai Lun Na went to heat the food, everyone gathered around Guanghui, asking what they had encountered during their date with Qin Song.

Guanghui, not being stingy, sat down and began to tell everyone what she had encountered during her date with Qin Song, and she also took out her cherished figurine for everyone to view; this naturally made everyone start to yearn for Old Street.

Watching the harmonious group of girls together, Qin Song suddenly felt an endless warmth; perhaps continuing such days wouldn't be bad either.

Hai Lun Na didn't need long to heat the meal; soon it was ready, she placed it in her ship-equipment space and brought it over. Afterwards, everyone ate while sharing interesting things they had encountered during their commission missions.

Amid the laughter, even Hai Lun Na, who had previously looked sorrowful, became calm.

Thereafter the days continued like this—constant training, constant commissions—Qin Song's shipgirl strength steadily improved step by step. Meanwhile, his first academic year was drawing to a close, and the current second-year students were about to face their graduation ceremony and awarding ceremony.

This time is also the busiest period of the school year; not only the instructor team at the school is busy, but the students about to graduate have also begun to get busy.

Because they were about to face graduation, and after that war, excitement, anticipation, and anxiety swirled in the graduates' hearts, making the already hot summer even more restless.

Qin Song, who originally thought it had nothing to do with him, was preparing to go early to the warehouse to take on a few better tasks during this period, but he hadn't expected that the Prince of Wales had already arranged his assignment for him.

But when he saw the specific task details, Qin Song still felt a bit nervous, because the Prince of Wales had conspicuously added his name to the list of awarding instructors……