Chapter 114 - 71: The Story After the New Soldier Survey

Twenty minutes later.

The new recruits straightened up as the Chief of Staff personally entered with a stack of documents, instructing two of his staff to distribute them.

The squad leaders and company leader of the Seventh Company had been called out.

When Liang Longhui arrived in a hurry from who-knows-where and tried to catch a glimpse, he was coldly blocked by Advisor Zhang.

He was blocked with a hand.

The punishment report concerning Liang Longhui didn’t just deal with two new soldiers, the team leader, Advisor Zhang, also received a severe reprimand from the Chief of Staff.

The Chief of Staff turned his head, and with a sharp look, glanced at Liang Longhui, sending shivers down his spine.

He had been on his way back from the hospital outside when the signal for assembly in the regiment sounded.

It was the weekend today, and of course, he had taken leave to visit his wife. He hadn’t planned to return, but having offended the leadership over the last couple of days, he didn’t dare spend the night outside.

When he entered the building, there wasn’t a soul in sight. It was only after asking the non-commissioned officer on duty that he learned everyone had gone to carry out a questionnaire survey.

He checked his mobile phone, not a single missed call; from the company leader to the non-commissioned officers, not one person had notified him.

He had a hunch about what was going on.

God damn it, the regiment was ruthless! They intended to send him back bearing humiliation!

The New Soldier Survey was like a People’s Congress election before a cadet officer is officially promoted—usually unproblematic, but if there is a problem, it’s a big one.

Liang Longhui turned and hurriedly walked outside, searching for the people from the Seventh Company.

When he saw Wang Jian and his crowd standing around a corner smoking, he approached them with questions.

"Why wasn’t I informed about this? Didn’t the Regiment Department give prior notice? Isn’t this too sudden, aren’t you afraid the new recruits might fill it out incorrectly? Did you guys give the new recruits a heads-up?"

A series of loud queries was met with a cold sneer from Hao Chengbin and silence from the company leader and the other non-commissioned officers.

Liang Longhui’s heart sank.

Wang Jian, who had been arguing with him just days ago, finally let out a sigh and pulled him aside to a secluded spot.

Wang Jian spoke in a gentle voice.

"I’ve discussed it with them, and everyone has decided to save you some face and not let you return with a notice from the Regiment Department.

Hao Chengbin and Fang Huai both agreed.

You better submit a report to your Detachment for sick leave right away.

In the future... don’t be so assertive all the time, listen to others’ opinions more."

Wang Jian’s words felt like a light echo in Liang Longhui’s ears, resounding beside him.

...

Fang Huai looked at the questionnaire in front of him and couldn’t help but laugh inwardly.

All the new recruits were staring wide-eyed.

This... this is different from the ones we filled out during school, isn’t it?

The first question was routine: Did you enlist voluntarily?

The second: Who had the greatest influence on you joining the military?

From the third question on, the visual shock began!

3. Does your squad leader hit people? How many times on average?

A. More than three times, B. 1-3 times, C. Don’t know.

Everyone was looking around, but in the Seventh Company’s study room where they sat, with the Chief of Staff on stage, not many dared to speak.

Probably other study rooms had already started discussing.

The Chief of Staff sat watching the new soldiers below and said with a smile, "What are you looking at others for? It’s all anonymous, just fill it out truthfully! I’m personally collecting the papers, do you still fear others seeing them?"

Fang Huai couldn’t help but chuckle to himself.

Mainly because in his previous life at the base government agency, particularly in the War Training Department, he had also helped compile these surveys.

No matter the results, whether they would act against you was still up to the Regiment Department to decide.

Moreover, he had heard from comrades that the survey was also a way to screen for psychological problems in new soldiers. Filling it out with nonsense complaints could also get you reported to the staff privately.

Don’t think they can’t find out who you are. There’s a seating order, and cameras are overhead.

This year’s questionnaire had one explosive question after another.

4. Folding blankets on the ground at four a.m., cold or not?

A. Cold, B. Not cold, C. Get up at five, D. Don’t know.

Tricky question, two pitfalls in one.

5. What is normally used to wash the squad leader’s clothes?

A. Don’t know, B. Soap, C. Laundry detergent

6. Where does the squad leader throw his cigarette butts?

A. Anywhere, B. Trashcan, C. Don’t know, D. In my cup

In subsequent questions, the "correct" option of "Don’t know" kept changing places to prevent new recruits from ticking off the last answer mechanically.

Just collect this kind of questionnaire, and if the Regiment Department wants to target any squad leader, they can simply look for it in the pile of papers.

The military is becoming increasingly serious about addressing the issue of "old soldiers bullying others."

There were more tricky questions and a series of psychological ones to follow.

Did you spend money to enlist?

A. Spent money, B. Used connections, C. Didn’t spend money or use connections, D. Unclear

Do you have any relatives who serve in the firefighting forces?

Do you think that your relatives, as firefighting soldiers, have any special privileges?

...

Do you have a girlfriend? What if you break up?

What would you do if criticized?

Do you often suffer from insomnia?

Do you frequently hear sounds that others can’t hear?

Are you satisfied with your current appearance?

When Fang Huai saw this question, he cursed inwardly.

Unsatisfied, so can you offer me a makeover? This sounds like a job for a cosmetic surgery clinic, doesn’t it?

...

The last few questions were the pitfall of today; the Regiment Department will definitely take a look at the ones from the Fifth Company.

Do you think the Company Leader is better, or is the Instructor better?

Why?

Do you think there are people in your company who are being targeted by the squad leader or company cadres?

The specific situation is:

Do you often see the Company Leader and the Instructor?

About how many times a week?

These three questions essentially targeted Liang Longhui.

Fang Huai completed them quickly.

He left the last three questions blank.

In the improvement suggestions section, he unforgettably wrote "not enough food."

Afterward, he signed his own name on the first page of the survey.

Before everyone handed in their papers, Cao Peng and a few new recruits who had good relationships with the Evening Exercise team kept looking in his direction, pointing to the last part of the paper.

He understood their meaning; they wanted to speak up for him.

Fang Huai just kept shaking his head.

Today, Wang Jian had a talk with him and Hao Chengbin.

It was probably still about not wanting Liang Longhui to leave like this, and they threw in a topic that was hard to refuse: doing this would be a blow to the honor of the Fifth Company.

After thinking it over for half a day, Hao and Huai looked at each other and agreed.

When they agreed, the system unexpectedly gave him a mission reward without any mission, probably as an affirmation for Fang Huai’s repeated refusal of the PY transaction.

Liang Longhui’s trade of not punishing for fighting in exchange for writing a review was a PY transaction, and the Chief of Staff using this method to punish Liang was the same.

It made sense but was against the rules.

When Fang Huai saw the reward notification, he regretted it to his guts.

If only he knew that when Advisor Zhang asked him to "make peace" with Zhang Yizhang, he should have proactively asked for a warning penalty!

Damn, a warning is just a warning, right? What if there was another reward??

...

Two days later, Liang Longhui left.

The company’s surveys, in the end, didn’t cause any significant issues, thanks to the squad leaders’ early caution.

No one reported Liang Longhui.

It was only on the question "Do you think the Company Leader or the Instructor is better" that most people chose the Company Leader.

As for how often they saw the Company Leader and the Instructor each week, everyone answered "very often."

The Chief of Staff once visited Wang Jian to ask him what happened.

Wang Jian shifted the blame to Hao Chengbin and Fang Huai, saying they didn’t want the company’s honor to suffer or to leave the new recruits with a memory of an "Instructor being reported and transferred away."

They thought this would affect how new recruits perceived the sacred position of Instructor.

The Chief of Staff didn’t say anything else, but pulled out one of the survey forms from the Fifth Company’s file bag and asked Wang Jian to show it to Liang Longhui.

Liang Longhui saw the blank space on the last page of the survey signed by Fang Huai, and he felt a flood of emotions.

Before leaving, he asked Wang Jian to give Fang Huai a pair of his captain bars, wishing him success in the Military Academy.

Of course, Fang Huai didn’t accept this kind of blessing.

This Liang Longhui, didn’t understand him at all.

Getting into the Military Academy is just my baseline; what I’m aiming for is promotion!

However, he did take that pair of bars and carefully placed them in his camouflage bag.

He hoped that one day, like his uncle, when he looked at those bars, he could smile at the memories of his new recruit days.

But unlike his uncle’s hardship, his would be quite splendid.

...

The days that followed were like a leading express courier drifting smoothly downstream — everything went well.

Fang Huai smoothly won the second place in the individual new recruit competition on regulations.

He seriously underestimated the power of the base number of 800 new recruits; in the final buzzer round, despite the complex questions, there were quite a few recruits and cadres who knew the answers. It all came down to who was the quickest.

Fang Huai was the fastest to raise his hand, of course, but the referees on stage didn’t necessarily notice that.

They frequently selected Fifth Company.

The first place was taken by Fifth Company once again.

Latter, rumors spread: Why was Fifth Company always so strong?

Because Fifth Company’s Company Leader was a relation of General Luo.

— Part of the same banner as Han Yong.

True or not, who knows.

But later, everyone stopped fussing over why Fifth Company always came first. Whether it was true or not, it became powerful evidence for NCOs to tease their Company Leaders and Instructors.

Whenever the officers in each company complained about the NCOs falling short and not scoring points, the NCOs would privately scoff at the officers, asking why they didn’t have strong enough relationships to secure the "target" of first place?

Wang Jian was teased quite a bit by everyone.

Hao Chengbin’s remarks were even sharper.

During one hygiene inspection, Fifth Company was first again, and the Fifth Company remained third; Hao Chengbin patted Wang Jian’s shoulder seriously and said, if it doesn’t work out, then let Han Yong be the Company Leader.

It was the first time Captain Wang lost his temper in embarrassment.

That day, many of the new recruits saw Captain Wang, with one shoe off in his hand, chasing Hao Chengbin from the Joint Office down to the ground floor.

The two nearly thirty-year-old old soldiers, caught in some spirit, Hao Chengbin running and cursing, Wang Jian chasing and cursing, were like two five-year-old kids shouting everywhere throughout the New Training Building.

And they dashed about, passing by the third floor’s Regiment Department; even the Chief of Staff, seeing them, didn’t get involved, just smiled as if thinking it’s normal for the troops to have schemes and calculations, and childish fun and games as well.

This lively scene quickly spread throughout the regiment, becoming a symbol of the sincere and beautiful moments among the new recruit group in the eyes of the new recruits.

Years later, when the new recruits matured into old soldiers, holding beers and barbecues, having fun in conversation and dreaming about the past’s setting sun, dreaming of the wind, dreaming of the rain.

They would suddenly realize that the wind is necessary, the rain is necessary, and the playful bickering under the setting sun is also indispensable.

Childlike innocence is the romance of a soldier.