Chapter 175 - 128: Would you please teach?

Zhang Zhongting stepped out to make a lengthy phone call.

During that time, he kept coming back to ask Fang Huai when they were planning to buy and when to donate.

His parents were hit by one shock after another.

Millions of yuan were discussed as if they were mere pocket change by their son.

Thus, they also incessantly inquired with Fang Huai.

Fang Huai explained until he was hoarse.

The core message was: this venture could make money, a lot of money!

(The writing about making money through writing songs and the relationship with the 2008 subprime crisis warning and the "Household Appliances to the Countryside" policy can fill five Chapters, saving 90 credits.)

After much back and forth, Zhang Zhongting, hardly enjoying his meal, was busy for over half an hour.

At last, he told Fang Huai:

There was no problem with purchasing stock, he mentioned the specifications, and the supplier was willing to offer a cost price of 2,200 yuan per set.

Simply put, there was an overstock that, with some modifications and added features, could be sold to him.

On the Firefighting side, although he hadn’t made a firm commitment with the supplier, if the supplies were in place, it would be a good thing. The Sichuan General Team would be willing to coordinate appropriately, contact the townships, and enhance their fire protection publicity through the "Township Connection".

The leadership was different, they even had a name picked out already.

Fang Huai immediately decided with a grand gesture: Let’s start with 1,500 sets! Pay an 800,000 yuan deposit at the start of March, receive the goods and settle the account at the beginning of April, and then donate them right away!

Zhang Zhongting, seeing how decisive Fang Huai was, felt somewhat envious: You are in Guizhou, aren’t the townships here townships too? Firefighting awareness in Guizhou’s townships also needs to be enhanced!

Fang Huai laughed awkwardly: Definitely next time! Besides, the "Household Appliances to the Countryside" just started as a pilot program in Shandong, Henan, and Qingdao, Sichuan in three provinces and one city! Once I’ve made money, I’ll launch a "Fire Awareness Into the Guizhou Townships"!

When he headed back, Fang Huai asked his parents to find a hotel to stay in first to help him with the follow-up work.

The explanations from Fang Huai and the earnest attitude of Zhang Zhongting made the couple set aside their prior plans and wait calmly to visit the ringtone company the next day to verify Fang Huai’s income.

If it was true, this would be a game-changing family upheaval.

No... it would be a boom! The kind that hits you right on the head!

...

Back at the squadron, there was no special treatment.

Everyone looked at Fang Huai differently, especially a few First-class soldiers, but no one approached him to talk.

Perhaps what needed to be said had already been discussed before Fang Huai returned.

They happened to be in the middle of training.

Normally, there would be no training on weekends, but the First Squadron had arrived.

The First Squadron needed to borrow equipment for training.

Their kayak was broken and sent for repair, and the long-distance pneumatic life-saving thrower also malfunctioned, so they were applying for new equipment.

But the Cadres insisted there was no time to waste and wanted to borrow equipment from the Second Squadron to study.

The First Squadron had an instructor ready, so Instructor Cao naturally had everyone from the whole squadron come down to learn together.

Natural Disasters, everyone had to be prepared.

That’s the way Firefighting was, especially strange over weekends and holidays, always seeming to have something come up unexpectedly.

Forget about resting, even if you were proposing...

Let’s drop it, Squad Leader Hao had his proposal, need to accumulate some good karma.

Of course, sometimes the strange reasons originated from the Squadron Department Cadres who did not want to use regular training time to learn about equipment, always finding some excuse to squeeze everyone.

As Fang Huai thought this, he changed into his uniform and went downstairs to join the training.

Instructor Liu from the First Squadron said that experts predict there might be substantial rainfall nationwide this year, which could lead to floods.

This statement left Fang Huai taken aback.

Expert predictions?

These damn experts can actually get predictions right at times!

It can’t be that your Squadron Cadres made this "prediction" themselves, can it?

In the transition between spring and summer in 2008, many areas across the country experienced floods.

Guizhou was not widely affected, but Wangmo County in the southwest suffered severely.

Major flash floods and mudslides.

In his past life, he had a squad leader who took part in that rescue mission. Whenever he spoke of it afterward, it was with a face full of lingering fear.

Now, as Fang Huai recalled that squad leader’s words, they resonated with extraordinary clarity:

"The power of heaven and earth cannot be resisted...

Standing on the bridge, watching the flood carrying an entire roof towards you, mountains along the way collapsing, sweeping by right beneath you, what it carries nearly enough to crush the bridge you’re on. You can then feel that powerlessness. Everyone’s shouting face to face, but you can’t hear a thing. Once you’re in the water, you become a mere grain of sand. Wherever the water directs you, there’s where you can only go."

After he finished speaking, he added one more line:

"But you still have to go. The six of us stood on that bridge just to see where a cow and a piglet, not even six months old, would drift. They were all that was left of a farmer’s possessions."

As Fang Huai pondered this, a sense of dejection settled in his heart.

He wondered how many people his arrangements would wake up in time and save when the time came.

How many of the radio loudspeakers left afterward would remain?

He stopped thinking about it; no matter how great the force of nature, one more beam of light, even if it can’t penetrate the clouds, can still outline a silver lining against their backdrop.

...

"Kayaks! There are four inflation valves that need to be evenly inflated!

Inflate to 50%, then install the floorboard. After the floorboard is in place, inflate further to about 80%!

Don’t overinflate! It can cause the glue to come apart and blisters to form!

There are paddles clamped on both sides of the kayak!

It also has an external motor, an outboard motor! A Yamaha, filled with unleaded gasoline!"

Attached to the stern by screws, it hangs there like a shark’s tail! But you need to attach a safety rope to prevent the screws from coming loose and causing the motor to fall into the water!

The power mode is similar to a motorcycle’s, though the direction is reversed, twist it to the left, and the boat turns to the right.

For the outboard motor’s water recovery, open the cover, unscrew the spark plug..."

Apart from the outboard motor used for propelling the kayak being somewhat troublesome to maintain, everything else is pretty straightforward.

The lifesaver thrower is even simpler.

A large air rifle, it can inflate with air pressure, shoot at a 30-degree angle, and fire a life-saving bullet that expands into a lifebuoy upon contact with water, reaching distances out of human reach.

A slim and durable cotton rope is also attached to the back of the bullet, securing salvation for anyone who grabs either the rope or the lifebuoy.

Even if the shot is off target, as long as it’s far, you can pull the rope onshore towards the direction of the person needing rescue.

It also serves the purpose of land-based throwers, sending a rope over which allows one side to reel it in and retrieve the equipment tied and sent by the shooter.

Should not be shot directly at people.

Although simple, these equipment explanations have to be reviewed yearly, it’s a refresher for the old comrades and an introduction to the new ones.

The new recruits watched intently, while the older soldiers stepped forward to check the wear and tear on the equipment.

Fang Huai, unlike everyone else.

He was responsible for tormenting the First-class soldiers.

The equipment study’s good, huh! From yesterday to today, the Task Completion Degree only went up by one point, and in this little time, he’s gained another point, making it 19 now.

He’s about to receive his reward!

The three peers were all studying hard without needing his attention, while the three First-class soldiers kept glancing at Wen Jingsong from time to time, clearly distracted.

What are you looking at him for? Study hard!

Fang Huai approached the three First-class soldiers with a cheerful smile and began to ask in a sly whisper:

"Squad Leader, how powerful is that outboard motor? Do we need to add oil to the gasoline? What was the second step you just mentioned about draining the water after intake?"

The three First-class soldiers were feeling uneasy inside.

Damn it, he’s at it again.

There’s no avoiding him.

Alas, they now dared not mess with Fang Huai any longer.

Damn, with strong capabilities, Squadron’s favor, protection from the older soldiers, and such a solid background.

What’s the cure for worry? Only to be awesome.

No sooner had this thought crossed their minds than they saw Zhang Yang pull out something thin from his pocket.

It turned out to be a booklet.

Upon closer examination— "Firefighting Equipment Encyclopedia".

Zhang Yang had only flipped through a dozen pages or so when he focused intently on one section for a long time, then raised his head to ask Fang Huai, "What did you just ask?"

Fang Huai was stunned.

Son of a gun.

The class enemy has evolved.

Fang Huai had also seen that booklet; it was on the second shelf of the third book in Squad Four’s study room, beside "Reader’s Digest".

He even had a copy in his pocket, which he would pull out to read occasionally. It was all to have something at hand to test the First-class soldiers with or to teach the same year soldiers when he was out of inspiration.

Despite its compact size, it was quite comprehensive.

He never expected that now Zhang Yang, setting aside all shame, would take away his qualifications as a monitor and move straight to an open-book test!

Unexpectedly, Wen Jingsong’s laughter resounded from the other side.

"Haha, Zhang Yang, you’ve got to look up the answers in a book to teach a new recruit, no wonder..."

Wen Jingsong paused as he saw Hao Chengbin standing by the kayak, leaving the words "no wonder you First-class soldiers can’t control the new recruits" unsaid.

Zhang Yang immediately snorted coldly, "Could you answer the questions he’s asking?"

Fang Huai’s inquiries into the equipment were extremely detailed, progressing from simple to complex. No matter how solid your learning, he would always find a way to poke at your weak spot.

Wen Jingsong could not possibly be immune to Fang Huai’s focus on weak points, which was his greatest confidence.

It simply showed that Wen Jingsong underestimated Fang Huai’s shamelessness. He actually chuckled and said, "What can’t I do?"

As soon as these words slipped out, the three First-class soldiers opposite stopped talking. Squadron Leaders from Second Squadron and a bunch of old soldiers seemed quite intrigued, folding their arms.

Wen Jingsong immediately became more cautious and added, "I meant just these two pieces of equipment!"

Inside, Fang Huai was already laughing merrily.

With three peers and three First-class soldiers all present, you better ask something challenging and let everyone learn a good lesson.

"Squad Leader, I just wanted to ask, what’s the full name of this outboard motor?"

Wen Jingsong immediately smiled, "Yamaha, right? Doesn’t your squad leader even know this?"

Fang Huai smiled but remained silent, looking at Hao Chengbin.

Hao Chengbin, squatting by the kayak, glanced up at Wen Jingsong and snorted, saying:

"He’s asking for the full name! It’s called the Yamaha F30BETL, a 4-stroke outboard motor!"

Wen Jingsong was stunned.

But Wen Jingsong also had his allies.

One of the First-class soldiers beside him, sensing a new recruit from Second Squadron stirring up trouble, immediately chimed in:

"Are you asking about the performance parameters of this outboard motor? Wen Jingsong isn’t an Equipment Technician; he doesn’t know, ask me instead."

Oh ho ho.

Seeing someone step up, Fang Huai’s heart began to sing with delight.

All the better, let’s all learn together.

I wonder if the conscripts from First Squadron studying count towards Task Completion Degree.