Chapter 187 - 139: This Shot, A Fulfilled Life

"Firefighting! All the maneuvers may seem complex and diverse, but you only need to remember, the maneuvers are set up with only two main objectives!"

The first is to quickly rescue people!

The second, to aggressively extinguish fires!

The One Hundred Meters Ladder Attack Drill is exactly that, aggressively extinguishing fires! In high temperatures, burning environments, quickly enter the interior of a building or the surrounding high-temperature area, to implement close combat firefighting!

Why are there two assault teams putting out water at the same time?

One for straight stream fire suppression! The other for fogging, to cool down and prevent fire for the number one assault team in the strong attack!

Therefore, the entire maneuver demands a great water pressure, to effectively achieve the effect of fire suppression and cooling!

Which adds a great deal of difficulty for us!"

Cao Yi continued with the introduction, then pointing at the single-log bridge behind him:

"The operation setup is very simple, two teams operating at the same time!

But it’s impossible for two teams to be on the half-meter-wide single-log bridge at the same time. Therefore, before going onto the bridge, the two teams’ hoses must be merged, with each Number One Staff shouldering two hoses together, to attack in concert!

Each group’s number 34 staff, located in the middle, Fang Huai, you are responsible for the smooth transition of both hoses onto the bridge!

We believe in your upper body strength, stability, and flexibility, which is why we put you in this position, don’t let me down!

Zhang Yang, you’re not going on the bridge! Straighten the hoses on the ground, ensure smooth water supply before entering the obstacle area, then help them with the hoses at the back!

This position requires great observational skills and mobility! If you slip here, everyone’s efforts will be in vain!

As for the rest, you’re all veterans, so I won’t mention each of you separately!

When entering the obstacle area and dragging the hoses on the ground, they can easily collide with some irregular parts inside, leading to disconnection. The connection must be stable!

We are now going to do a dry run of the maneuver, followed by a wet one!

Doing a run is quick, but gathering the hoses, putting the equipment back in place and preparing again can take up to 25 minutes! Please cherish the opportunity to operate! The other conscripts are in charge of assisting!"

"Okay!"

Everyone voiced their encouragement loudly.

Fang Huai looked at the stacks of hoses being loaded onto the truck and couldn’t help but sigh.

This most grueling drill just happens to coincide with an era of antiquated equipment.

All with buckle-type hoses.

The buckle-type interface, compared with the quick-connect interface of later generations, is like the difference between a Type 81 and a Type 56 Semi-automatic.

One can shoot a burst with a single pull of the trigger, while the other fires one bullet per pull. It’s hard to say which is more accurate, but one is certainly faster.

The buckle-type interface is irregular like the ring of a gas stove. It has to be aligned with the notch, pushed on, and then tightened by twisting.

The quick-connect interface, however, is a cylindrical connection that locks automatically with a single push.

If the quick-connect version is already bustling with activity, the buckle-type hoses are downright deadly.

"Places everyone, begin!"

The first run started a bit chaotically, but still fairly well, as the empty hoses weren’t very heavy.

The sound of clanging hoses being connected echoed everywhere, and in two seconds, the hoses were connected.

Fang Huai didn’t make any mistakes. Carrying two coils of hose with one hand, he slung another over his shoulder in a ready position.

Cao Yi started pacing from the truck, keeping pace with everyone, representing the speed of the water flow. When he reached the Number One Staff, he patted him, shouting, "Water’s here, charge!"

The commanding Number One Staff issued an order: "One, two! Go!"

From above, two long hoses transformed into two racing dragons, vying to rush forward!

Behind them, Cao Yi kept shouting, "I’m coming! I’m coming!"

It was somewhat childish, as if a child was playing house.

But nobody dared to take it lightly, as the rate at which Cao Yi advanced represented the speed of the oncoming water flow. If Cao Yi passed by any unconnected hose, it meant the water had already passed that point and there would be no more chance to connect it.

Meaning failure.

Everyone worked against the clock, performing the first hose extension at the bridge.

The so-called ladder attack meant advancing step by step, extending the hose during the attack. Reaching this point represented extinguishing the first fire source and extending the hose in hand to charge further in.

You couldn’t just connect seven or eight coils of hose and rush forward with them all at once. First, the hoses could easily get tangled, and secondly, even with a few people, the hose fully loaded with water would weigh over a thousand pounds—try dragging that.

A maneuver represents a story, a kind of fire scenario. This maneuver epitomizes encountering fire barriers layer by layer in a fire, discovering small fires outside and big fires inside, and progressively extinguishing them as you advance.

Approaching the single-log bridge.

The two coils of extension hose in Fang Huai’s hands were quickly thrown open.

Crack! Stretched straight!

After connecting the hoses, he handed them to Hao Chengbin, who was holding the water gun.

Hao Chengbin loosened his grip on the water gun, aligned its connector with the extension hose, and then went to the ground to find the other end of the extension to connect to the water gun.

Unexpectedly, Fang Huai had already extended both coils of hose before him, picked up the connector, and handed it over.

Hao Chengbin paused for a moment, and then, realizing that all the hoses were connected, hurriedly signaled the truck at the back:

"Speed up the water supply! It’s already connected!"

Behind him, Zhang Yang came up ready to sort out the messy hoses, but he stopped short when he saw.

They were laid out so straight, and the hose connectors so firmly in place that he thought, what’s there left for me to do!

Fang Huai’s precise laying and connecting of the hoses at the single-log bridge saved everyone a great deal of time.

"Go, the water’s coming, onto the bridge!" The number two assault team’s shielder, Huang Yong, hoisted the two hoses onto his shoulder and tapped Hao Chengbin in front of him.

"It’s time! Watch your step!"

At every node, the person in front used a phrase or a command to remind the one behind.

Once the hoses on the ground were filled with water, they became clumsy and heavy, so everyone had to exert force simultaneously.

The following staff members were also reminding:

"Xiong Jie! The hose slipped off your shoulder!

Keep a firm grip!"

Xiong Jie, breaking from his usual placid image, turned and laughed, "Serving the people!"

Fang Huai let out a chuckle.

Damn, his ability to pick up on cues is as good as mine.

The hoses were not heavy, and the single-log bridge was dry, making for a steady crossing.

"Number four staff, switch hoses!"

"Get ready, into the tunnel!"

"Duang!"

Someone’s helmet violently struck the obstacle wall, with a loud bang.

"Damn, go easy! Don’t wreck the obstacle equipment!"

Cao Yi stood outside, yelling inhumanly.

"Shit...charge! To the training tower!" Hao Chengbin clutched his head as he rushed out, clearly the culprit behind the noise.

"Make sure the hose behind is lined up properly, we have to climb the stairs!"

"Old Cao, keep up with the water pressure. You have to hit the ball hanging on the second-floor exterior wall from the window with the water jet to count!"

Cao Yi, standing outside the training tower, didn’t bother going in, and shouted loudly, "Water is coming! Water is coming!"

That meant the hose was pressurized.

Two nozzlemen rushed to the second-floor window and yelled that they were ready.

Drip.

Cao Yi pressed his stopwatch, somewhat dissatisfied:

"One minute seventeen seconds! How comes it’s so slow without water?"

"Bang!"

Hao Chengbin threw down the hose, took off his helmet, and came downstairs to face Cao Yi, pointing to the sweat beads on his head:

"What do you mean no water? This here is all water!"

This whole operation, wearing full gear throughout, carrying the hose, also being mindful of obstacles on the way is comparable to weighted tower running as a supreme sweating method.

Cao Yi saw the results but was too lazy to bicker with him, saying annoyed, "But there was no water, man! You charged too slowly in front!"

Hao Chengbin’s eyes bulged: "Clearly, it’s your water that was slow, okay?"

One minute seventeen seconds, in fact, was not slow at all. Their target set by the Squadron Department was one minute twenty.

This was a championship-winning time, even competitive enough for the nationals.

But this time, no water came out.

Cao Yi chuckled, patted his butt, and walked towards the starting point, saying, "Alright! This time for real! I’ll give you enough water pressure!"

...

The Instructor and Captain Hao waited at the starting point for everyone to reel in the hoses, constantly arguing and analyzing where they could save time and effort.

The post-training blame game made everyone somewhat tense.

Before the second actual run began, Cao Yi yelled:

"This time let’s see if there’s a problem with you, Number One Staff! If not, I’ll replace you!"

Hao Chengbin grumbled: "Fine, just you wait!"

After that, he stared at the people behind him and said, "Hurry up later! I won’t wait for you guys!"

The second staff member named Jiang Jun was startled by Hao Chengbin’s fierce glare, shivering slightly.

...

"Take your positions!"

"Ready, begin!"

The vehicles roared simultaneously, the roll-up doors opened, and every staff member quickly started their tasks.

Fang Huai also waited until the second staff member connected the hose before he squeezed through to grab his own hose.

This time Cao Yi was content being just the Commander, and as soon as he saw the hose connected to the truck, he raised his hand, signaling the driver to pressurize.

The driver switched to water output mode, stepped on the gas, and gradually increased pressure with his foot.

The vehicle started to thunder.

"Boom!"

The hose disconnected, flying and hitting Fang Huai’s combat uniform.

Greater pressure followed the water torrent, and Fang Huai was sent flying before he even had a chance to react, struck by the sudden 3-megapascal burst.

Those in front turned around just in time to see Fang Huai twisting in the air.

Fang Huai had intended to do a backflip but landed too quickly and didn’t complete the turn, falling face-first to the ground.

The worst part was, the jet continued to blast his helmet, pushing him backward!

"Turn off the water! Oh my god, turn it off!" Hao Chengbin roared as he turned back.

Jiang Jun, seeing that it was his mistake with the hose that caused Fang Huai to be knocked away, frantically rushed to help Fang Huai.

But just as he got close, the immense water pressure knocked him down too.

Landing right on top of Fang Huai.

This was a combo, Q (disconnected water hose) + W (water column jet) + E (continuous jet after Fang Huai falls) + R (Jiang Jun falls).

Four stints of damage, skill connected.

Only then did the fire truck depressurize.

Since Fang Huai fell, he felt continuous damage befalling him.

Struggling to lift his head, he saw Han Yong staggering through the pool of water toward him.

If he hadn’t seen it wrong, Han Yong was about to slip, finishing with one final critical blow—the slide tackle.

"Stay away!!" Fang Huai shoved the Jiang Jun off him and immediately rolled aside.

His battered body couldn’t withstand any more damage.

...

Half a minute later, Fang Huai sat on the ground.

The duet performed by Hao Chengbin and Cao Yi was ruthlessly interrupted, and they could only help Fang Huai take off the helmet, urging him to collect himself.

His arm hung limply to one side, the bandages he had just wrapped yesterday completely soaked.

"Are you okay?" Hao Chengbin and Cao Yi asked with concern.

Fang Huai shook his head, unable to help but stare blankly at the dark mouth of the water gun.

Damn it, they say a firefighter’s career isn’t complete without being whipped by a hose.

He had avoided it for five years in his past life.

This life, it seemed, was finally complete.