Chapter 2: The Second Newbie Brigade and I Got Hammered (Again)

  Our monthly selection was the same as the official training, that is to say those three young lieutenants mixed with us, but if they passed the assessment, they could not mix with us and had to undergo separate training to learn how to be special warfare officers. We were soldiers, they were officials, this point was very clear, what they worried about was different from what we worried about, although now mixing together. Later, after a month of mixing, the three young men were all qualified, although I was familiar with them after staying with them for a month, but since there was no further contact later, I won't elaborate here. Still talking about my bird story with that dog-headed high school team, can't help it, the habit of being a soldier came out while writing, and there's a bit of spiritual pollution suspicion in my mouth, but I think everyone can still accept it.

  The Dog Head High School team has been low-key all along, and there's nothing special about me, but I know a phrase called "not reporting is not the time". Old guns can do that, can't a proud Special Forces Lieutenant Colonel be more brilliant than him? I'm not a new recruit anymore, so this nerve has never relaxed.

  Our physical training is basically the same as what's shown in movies, TV shows, newspapers, magazines and online, you guys think it looks fun like a summer camp, but if you really try it out, you'll know how tough it is. In our reconnaissance company, we focused on speed and technique training, and when we were trained in the special forces brigade, our physical foundation was supplemented with strength training, of course, speed and technique would not be relaxed. Every day, it's just 5 sets of 100-meter runs plus mud pits plus heavy logs plus mountainous terrain loaded running plus return runs plus special obstacle courses and so on, we used to be the top among the best, but this time it's really tough, if I say that our physical fitness has improved a lot compared to the previous training, then the new training team is another big step forward. Playing with dumbbells and barbells until brothers' eyes are shining, originally very muscular, now starting to feel oily, actually we used to practice this set of exercises, but not so intensively, because there were other miscellaneous subjects, such as in our company, we also had to practice formation drills and internal affairs because of the assessment. But in the special forces brigade's new training team, we didn't practice these things because no one was competing with us, we were only competing with ourselves, isn't that crazy? Of course, we all have military standards, except for me being a private, everyone else is a squad leader or platoon leader, aren't they supposed to be strict with themselves in the army?

  I later realized why the special forces team had to pick the best candidates, because they didn't need to spend any effort on basic military training, and could start directly with intense exercises. Because Asians are naturally slender, physical training was greatly strengthened, but being slender is also an advantage. Later I found out that Western special forces soldiers were tall and large, looking very intimidating, but when we trained together, they were no match for me. This was because their bodies had a greater load to bear, not just in terms of wilderness survival skills and other subjects, but also because their larger size made their reactions slower. When I kicked them in the neck with a flying kick, their arms couldn't even block my attack, and when they tried to grab me, it wasn't easy for them either, because I was agile and nimble. As for how this would play out on the battlefield, my experience is that being tall and large means making big movements, and when you're carrying a gun with a laser simulator and charging towards a target, it's usually impossible to escape the hail of bullets, and smoke will rise from that location.

  Or let's talk about the high school team. I didn't expect him to really hit me, and in front of everyone, he hit me hard. I couldn't even tell him that as a cadre, he was hitting a soldier, it was just a beating for nothing.

  We spent a week on physical training and then started practicing basic subjects. At first, it was the usual reconnaissance drill, crawling up and down stairs and whatnot, which we were all familiar with. There was also hammering, wearing sanda gloves and protective gear, and rubber shoes (later when I joined that dog-headed brigade, hammering still required wearing rubber shoes, or else one kick would be disastrous). We were all agile contestants, so the fights looked great, and from below, I saw everyone moving really fast.

  That dog-headed high school team has been watching from the bottom without saying a word, and several junior officers and non-commissioned officers are busy recording their characteristics and movements.

  Then it was my turn, I got on the sandbag pad, and across from me was Mada. We smiled at each other, and I blinked my eyes a few times before we started sparring. Although we were familiar with each other's moves, we still didn't hold back. Mada's legwork wasn't as good as mine (he used to be a laborer and carried heavy loads, so his calves were thicker), but his punches were fierce. Every time he hit me on the head, it felt like I'd been struck by lightning, and my vision would black out for a moment. Then, he'd follow up with a combination of punches, and I'd have to quickly lower my head and get close to him to prevent him from throwing more punches. When I first joined the reconnaissance unit, I learned to kick with Chen Pai. At first, I couldn't even lift my legs high enough, and every time I tried, he'd press down on me until I was crying out in pain. He wasn't merciful at all. But later on, I improved, and from vertical kicks to horizontal kicks, I could do them all fairly well. I wouldn't say that I could kick as high as anywhere, but sidekicks, takedowns, and aerial kicks were no problem for me. My weakness was my arm strength. Usually, I'd use quick kicks of various kinds to counter Mada's attacks, and I could still score a lot of points that way.

  Ma Da was kicked by me several times, and the last time he was kicked onto the protective gear on his head, he didn't get up for half a day. I quickly went to pull him, his eyes were dizzy but he was still smiling and patted my shoulder with his right hand wearing boxing gloves.

  I had just pulled the motor up, and the high school team came up. He was still wearing those big leather boots. The high school team stretched out a hand and an officer handed him a set of sanda protective gear. He took off his beret, camouflage jacket and wide belt and threw them to the officer, slowly putting on the gear.

  I knew something was wrong at that time, he wanted to swindle me! The motor didn't know what happened and stood there stupidly.

  High school team wearing protective gear and gloves, two fists against each other, I saw that his camouflage short-sleeved shirt actually had a dog head on it. It seems that the people of Dog Head Corps are not ordinary proud. Our camouflage short-sleeved shirts don't have any logo of our own unit, of course, we really didn't have any logos. But my focus wasn't on this, I saw his thick arms and chest muscles.

  Furthermore, I saw his right foot wearing a large leather boot moving its ankle as if nothing was wrong, and then it tapped the ground with its toe and stood in place.

  As soon as I saw where he was standing, I knew he was also a leg player.

  My mom! I only learned half a year of Sanshou with Chen Pai, and I can play a few tricks with my legs. Relying on my small stature and agile body, I was still able to hold my own against Ma Da, who might have been letting me win. But the Dog Head High School team? They were obviously seasoned veterans who had trained for many years! And being able to mix in as a team leader in the Special Forces is no ordinary feat! At the time, I didn't know his true abilities, and if I had known, I probably would have fainted on the spot.

  The high school team finished their activity and then turned around to shout at Mada: "You go down."

  The motor didn't dare not go down, how could the motor not go down? The motor finally went down and stared at me with a blank expression, unsure of what to say. The brothers around us also didn't know what to do, they just stared blankly. Those dog-headed battalion officers were nonchalant, they probably had seen it all before.

  The high school team jumped up and down, then struck a pose: "Come on."

  His eyes were staring at me like that.

  My eyes just stared at him.

  I just stood there, without posing.

  The corner of his mouth in the helmet revealed a scornful smile. Many years later, he denied it again, and I don't know if I remembered it wrong or not, but I still remember it very deeply.

  Just as he laughed at me, I kicked out! I suddenly sprang into the air and kicked with incredible speed. In my memory, I could even hear the sound of the wind!

  Bang! He kicked the dog's head high school team's temple all at once.

  Bang! The Dog Head High School team fell down all at once and didn't move anymore.

  I was stunned. Unbelievable! How could this be? Everyone was dumbfounded. The Dog Head High School team stood still with their eyes closed, not moving at all. I looked again at those Dog Head military officers and soldiers, they were also dumbfounded, mouths agape, unsure of what to do. Maybe they hadn't reacted yet.

  I looked at the Dog Head High School team again, and there was still no movement. Did I kick them out? To be honest, I also kicked the ball, but twice in a row, however, I think the head of the Dog Head High School team should be harder than the ball? But he really didn't move.

  What can I do? I didn't dare hesitate any longer, and went up to support him: "High school team..."

  The word "long" didn't come out, my nose was sour and my eyes went black, then I felt myself flying up in the air, in my memory I saw myself drawing a standard arc in mid-air and falling onto the mat, then everything turned colorful and I was left with a burning face.

  A carp in the high school team suddenly got up. Son of a bitch was pretending! He threw a straight punch at my nose! His fist came out so fast that I didn't see it! I struggled to look at him, through my own blood looking at him. He waved his fist at me, meaning get up.

  Son of a bitch! I just got up, and before I could even stand up straight, he did a backflip kick right into my stomach, which was protected by the gear. I clutched my stomach and flew out, but was blocked by the padded railing and fell onto the mat.

  This time the high school team didn't wait for me to get up, they just came up and changed their tactics, neatly and smoothly punching my combination of fists and legs, straight punches, hook punches, and side kicks, until they were satisfied with playing with me, until they had no way to play anymore. Then, with a smile, he took off his protective gear and gloves, and said (later he still said there was none), standing up straight, putting on his outer clothes, tying his belt, and wearing his hat, while saying:

  "Next time, remember not to help your opponent, a dormant snake is the most dangerous."

  Then he jumped up and got into that little Jeep and left...

  My whole body ached and my face was covered in blood, and I even spat out half of my front tooth. I struggled to get up from the mat, but as soon as I got up on my knees, everything went black and I fell down again. This time, I really fainted. The last thing I vaguely remember is that Mada picked me up and urgently called out my name. Then everyone rushed over to hold me and splashed water on my face, slapping my cheeks...

  Then I didn't know anything. But the next day, except for the pain, I had no other injuries, not even internal injuries. Obviously, this was an absolute master among masters.

  It wasn't until much later that I found out the Dog Head High School team was from Qingdao, Shandong Province. They were once lay disciples of the Shaolin Temple on Mount Song and had a famous name, but I've forgotten what generation they belonged to. The principal of the most famous martial arts school today is actually their junior fellow disciple.

  He was forced to join the army by his family after he accidentally injured someone in a fight with thugs.

  No one expected him to be in office for over a decade and even attend military school to become a special operations officer of the Special Forces.

  Looks legendary, but this person is real.

  I was hammered by him during the second new recruit regiment.