Chapter Fourteen: The Best Is Yet to Come

  The second day of formal military training, the gap between student soldiers and other new recruits began to emerge. Although the physical fitness and endurance of student soldiers were far superior to those of new recruits from rural areas, their understanding ability was indeed much higher than that of rural soldiers. The main training on the second day was queue and basic military skills, while few rural soldiers could recognize words, let alone distinguish left from right.

  The student soldiers' formation was soon in order, while the new recruits were still in disarray. Seeing this, Huang and the other three officers couldn't help but crack a smile.

  Because of this, the training of student soldiers has been greatly simplified. Wang Ban is in charge of teaching theoretical knowledge, which actually only involves having students read "Infantry Drill Manual" repeatedly. Zhou and Liu are responsible for military skills training, but at most, it's just to quickly improve the physical fitness of student soldiers. According to their words, the training of student soldiers is simply to familiarize them with military skills as soon as possible. Currently, the mortality rate of low-level officers in the national army is too high, and there is an urgent need for young people with a certain level of knowledge to supplement them, and student soldiers are the best source of troops.

  Slowly, the training of student soldiers also became regular. In the morning, they studied theoretical knowledge, intensively indoctrinating them with military knowledge such as army drills, coordination between different branches, and firepower configuration. In the afternoon, they engaged in rigorous exercises to cultivate qualified physical strength and endurance within a short period. For Lin Xiaotang, this was child's play. He also understood the current predicament of the National Army: after several major battles, the casualties of National Army soldiers exceeded 200,000, and all battlefields urgently needed troop reinforcements. The training of new recruits like these was extremely rare; basically, they were just recruited, put in uniform, given a rifle, and sent to the battlefield.

  So, Lin Xiaotang really couldn't muster up the interest to face such intense training. But even if he deliberately concealed his true abilities, Huang Ban Zhang still caught a glimpse of something. ?? Counterattack Republic's Special Agent 14

  Outdoor weight-bearing exercises. Although Lin Xiaotang's ranking was always in the middle, after running, his face was not red and he was not panting, forming a sharp contrast with other students; Morning theoretical knowledge learning. Although he often dozed off or sneaked out to smoke, as long as the class leader asked questions, there were no answers that he couldn't come up with; Shooting training, first time holding a gun, three consecutive shots hit the bullseye. And so on and so forth, all of which made Huang Class Leader take a keen interest in Lin Xiaotang.

  At night, after the lights were turned off, he specially called two deputy squad leaders. The three of them opened a pack of peanuts and a bottle of wine, drinking while talking. What Huang Squad Leader didn't expect was that the two deputy squad leaders actually had the same doubts as him. Especially Wang Deputy Squad Leader, who had previously run to the battalion headquarters to flip through Lin Xiaotang's file, but still gained nothing.

  Three people added up and decided to report the matter to their superiors, after all, such a freak had appeared among the soldiers under their command, and they had to let their superiors know. However, at present, all the superior officers were training new recruits in various camps, and only Battalion Commander Chai Yixin (note 1) was here, so the three men decided to report to Battalion Commander Chai early tomorrow morning.

  But unexpectedly, early next morning, before Huang was ready to move, Chai came to his door himself.

  Chai Yingchang was accompanied by a colonel, who was not very old and not very tall, but looked very sturdy. According to Chai's introduction, he was He Canmou from the Changsha Garrison Command looking for someone. And it just so happened that the person he was looking for was Lin Xiaotang.

  Huang Ban Chang's heart skipped a beat, and he hastily invited Chai Ying Chang to one side. He told the officer about Lin Xiao Tang's situation in great detail. After listening, Chai Ying Chang was also taken aback: "Are you sure he's a new recruit?"

  Huang Ban Zhang nodded in agreement: "His file also says so, we've all checked it out. Moreover, there are two of his classmates from Nanjing University in our class, I indirectly asked them and found out that he is indeed a native of Nanjing, never left until Nanjing fell not long ago and came to Changsha."

  Chai Ying Chang sank into deep thought for a moment, looking at He Canmou not far away: "So, that He Canmou is here to see Lin Xiaotang. In a while, I'll ask him from the side."

  Huang Ban Zhang was about to leave, when Chai Ying Zhang called out to him again: "Since we're all here anyway, go ahead and set up a confrontation between the officials and soldiers. I'll take a look. Remember, think of a way to force him to reveal his true abilities!"

  "Brothers, I've got some good news to share with everyone. Some socialites and gentry from Changsha will be visiting our camp later to boost morale and take a look at the training situation of you student soldiers. So, we'll have to make some temporary changes to today's training content. The officers have brought along several military officials to engage in an officer-soldier confrontation with us, and also to assess your performance over the past half month. Therefore, I'm counting on all of you to help me, Huang, save face. If we do well, tonight we'll have a bonus dinner, braised pork, and I and the two deputy squad leaders will provide some cigarettes and fine wine for everyone to enjoy. How does that sound?"

  The student soldiers heard this and suddenly cheered, even Lin Xiaotang couldn't help but swallow a mouthful of saliva when he heard the words "braised pork and cigarettes". He had been here for half a month, every day was just vegetables and tofu, his taste buds were almost numb. Especially now that his nicotine addiction was severe, his stored supplies had been divided up by his wolf-like brothers, and he was about to run out of food, but now there was finally something to look forward to.

  Wang Ban Chang had asked for instructions from Chai Ying Zhang, and confirmed that the competition would include a 5km loaded cross-country run and a fixed-point shooting event. Chai Ying Zhang stood on the hillside, while He Chong hid behind a tree on the hillside, quietly observing the progress of the competition.

  Chai Camp Commander selected the top five members of the entire camp to participate in the competition, all of whom were platoon leaders and seasoned veterans. He also announced on the spot that if any student soldier managed to enter the top five in either event, it would be considered a victory for the student soldiers, and he would personally toast the winner with wine that night.

  Today, most of the new recruits went to Yuelu Mountain for outdoor training. There were not many people in the training ground, but still, including the cooking team, communication team, medical team, military police and so on, they all gathered at the edge of the training ground, with over 200 people waiting to see the excitement.

  He Chong quietly walked out from behind the tree and went to Chi Yixin's side: "Brother Ze Gao (Chi Yixin's courtesy name is Ze Gao), want to make a bet?"

  Xia Yi Xin was very surprised: "Shi Min, little brother, this doesn't seem like your personality?"

  "What a sly smile! 'People can change. In one sentence, dare you or not?'"

  "What's the bet?"

  "I bet that brother Lin Xiaotang can make it to the top three." He Chong said resolutely. ?? Counter-attack Republic's special agent 14

  Chai Yi's eyes widened: "Did I hear that right?"

  He Chong smiled and nodded slightly.

  "Alright, don't say I didn't warn you! Your friend may be impressive, but he's still a rookie. My men are all top-notch fighters from the 57th Division, and they're among the best in the entire army. Don't think I'm bullying you!"

  He Chong's face was filled with smiles: "Let's talk about the stakes!"

  Chai Yi thought for a moment and smiled: "I'm still missing one piece of equipment, take a look?"

  He Chong clapped his hands: "No problem!"

  "He Qiong continued: 'If I win, your Japanese cavalry saber will be mine.'"

  Chai Yi Xin didn't hesitate and gave He Chong a high-five: "It's settled!"

  On the field, Huang Class Captain had already selected his candidates. He also sneaked a glance at Lin Xiaotang and saw that he was full of confidence and ready to make his move, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

  The student soldiers all moved out, and in less than ten minutes, both sides had packed their bags and stood together at the starting line.

  With a loud command from Huang, the team leader on the sidelines, more than 20 men rushed out like dragons rushing into the sea.

  The sidelines immediately echoed with cheers, the cooks in the cooking class waved their spatulas and stomped their feet to cheer on the student soldiers, while a few young nurses from the health team arrived, drawing extra attention in the crowd.

  He saw several female nurses in military uniforms at a glance, and suddenly came to power. Two long legs opened, and he ran to the front of the team in a few steps, waving his hands constantly at the nurses, and his big head shook back and forth, not to mention how proud he was.

  Lin Xiaotang was still running in the middle of the team, but he was more cautious than usual. The five new officers were all physically fit and ran with even breathing and steady pace, clearly professionals. For the sake of tonight's cigarettes and braised pork, Lin Xiaotang had to be extra careful, closely following behind a few officers and keeping the same rhythm as them.

  Five laps have passed, and the team has gradually become several small groups. The leader is Da Tou and two student soldiers, but the advantage is not obvious. Da Tou's face is already sweating, and when passing by the nurse, he no longer waves his hand. The second group consists of five military officers and Lin Xiaotang, who are lined up in a straight line, seemingly unintentional, but actually tightly blocking Lin Xiaotang's path to overtake. However, Lin Xiaotang also seems to have no intention of overtaking, only closely following behind them. The third group is far inferior, with Xiao Pi bringing up the rear, and their formation is scattered and disorganized.

  At the seventh lap, five officers and Lin Xiaotang had already started to overtake Da Tou's first group. When Lin Xiaotang finally overtook Da Tou, he also slapped a loud slap on Da Tou's fat buttocks. Da Tou let out a sharp cry, quickly caught up with Lin Xiaotang, panting heavily and staring at him viciously.

  Off the court, there was a burst of loud laughter.

  Xia Yin Xin looked at Lin Xiao Tang, his face full of curiosity: "This kid is not bad, he's a professional."

  He Chong splashed a smile: "Ze Gao brother, you can continue watching! The wonderful is still behind."

  Chai Yi turned his head and looked at He Chong: "I have a feeling that I've been completely deceived by your kid."

  At this time, the ninth lap had already been run on the field, with two laps remaining to the finish line. The five officers were still in a leisurely manner, and it could be seen that they did not take these student soldiers seriously. However, their superiors were watching from the sidelines, so they did not dare to slack off and began to consciously speed up.

  In fifth place was a lance corporal in his early twenties, with dark skin and not very tall, but his legs moved at an extremely fast frequency. The result of the discussion between the previous few officers was that he tightly blocked the route for the student soldier to overtake from behind. As he watched the four officers ahead gradually pull away, he also started to speed up. Although the footsteps behind him were steady, he didn't put his heart into it. To be honest, he felt that he hadn't used his full strength yet. ??Rebel Agent 14 of the Republic

  Suddenly, the footsteps behind him disappeared, which made his heart suddenly startled. Before he could use the corner of his eye to glance around, a strong gust of wind blew past beside him, and a figure quickly overtook him from his right side. By the time he reacted, that figure had already left him ten steps behind.