So, faced with Houdel's sudden enthusiasm, Claude was left in the dark.
He instinctively replied with a "good" and then continued to stare at the tip of his shoes, evidently not wanting to say much.
However, Houdel was not ready to let him off so easily. He intimately grabbed Claude's arm and deliberately started chatting loudly about the Second Battalion Commander soon becoming the Second Regiment Commander.
Behind him, the reserve officers from other counties were startled by Houdel's loud voice, and the sounds of laughter abruptly ceased.
Claude initially responded politely for a few sentences, but soon felt weary and finally pleaded with a forced smile, "Monkey, I'm really not in the mood to chit-chat with you now... go find someone else."
"Not in the mood?" Houdel knowingly asked, "Why aren't you in the mood?"
"Stop playing dumb with me," Claude said, both amused and exasperated, "Aren't you also taking the exam?"
