Chapter 38: Leave Request

Old Comrade Zhou was very angry.

Yes, very angry.

That's right, he is a soldier, but the premise is that he is a person.

Being a person means having emotions.

When facing anything, it is inevitable to be swayed by emotions.

Don't mention being impartial and selfless; those are just exceptions.

Not to mention those ancient examples of beheading one's own nephews and relatives; no one knows what actually happened back then, or under what circumstances it was done.

Anyway, Old Comrade Zhou couldn't do it.

Especially after learning the full story, Old Comrade Zhou's tone changed; he was filled with righteous indignation, his words were passionate, and foam gathered at the corners of his mouth as he spoke.

"Old He, Old Fan, you two don't need to handle this; I'll go see Deputy Commander Gao myself to explain the situation! Right is right, wrong is wrong—what era is this? Still trying to pull that black‑white reversal trick? What's wrong with officers? Can officers just punish soldiers at will? Who set that rule? A person may travel a thousand miles but cannot get around the principle; I simply don't believe there's no place to reason!"

Seeing the emotionally agitated Old Comrade Zhou, He Zhijun and Fan Tianlei exchanged a glance, both seeing in each other's eyes the smile of a scheme succeeding.

Frankly speaking, if we set aside professional value, Tang Xinyi indeed has shortcomings in her everyday conduct.

Even her deputy, Qin Yuxi, often had to endure resentment in daily life.

Of course, this is also related to her upbringing and family environment.

From childhood she was a top student, her family conditions were good, from elementary school through middle school to university Tang Xinyi's path was smooth, and she can be said to have grown up in an environment where everyone revolved around her; her personality is inevitably somewhat aloof and arrogant.

After joining the unit, she held herself to very strict standards; her scores in every training subject were first in her cohort, and combined with her expertise, she inevitably felt a sense of lofty accomplishment.

Precisely for this reason, she would become angry and embarrassed after being publicly contradicted by Liu Xiaotian in class, further intensifying the conflict.

But with Zhou Tianzuo, it doesn't matter who she is or how great her achievements are in the professional field.

Speaking of professionalism, Zhou Tianzuo could rely on aircraft repair to reach the rank of first‑class master sergeant in the unit; its importance is absolutely at least two levels higher than Tang Xinyi's.

In information engineering, Tang Xinyi is not the only one, and such skills can be cultivated short‑term; but someone like Zhou Tianzuo, a senior repair technician, is forged from years of experience and painstaking technical study, which requires ample time and accumulation of experience.

Moreover, Zhou Tianzuo is absolutely not someone prone to impulsiveness.

On the contrary, Zhou Tianzuo is a rather rigorous and calm person.

Otherwise, how could he handle such an important job as repairing aircraft? It is said that Old Comrade Zhou's aircraft‑repair tools have all been "wrapped in lacquer and paste"—not to mention that even with his eyes closed, as long as it is his toolbox, he can pull out even a tiny wrench precisely.

The main reason he is so agitated today is not because Liu Xiaotian gave him those few sheets of paper, finally giving him a chance to be promoted and access higher‑level, more precise maintenance data and methods, but because he believes Liu Xiaotian himself is a rare talent.

In terms of future potential and effect, he is far more valuable than Tang Xinyi, who spends all day playing with computers.

Frankly, this is also what He Zhijun and Fan Tianlei think.

Half an hour later, He Zhijun received a report saying that after Zhou Tianzuo returned to the parachute training base, he took out the helicopter that Liu Xiaotian had flown the previous few days from the warehouse, and then… it flew away.

Yes, it just flew away.

It didn't even contact the ground command center.

As for this, He Zhijun and Fan Tianlei weren't the slightest bit worried.

The parachute training base where Zhou Tianzuo is stationed is actually just in name attached to the Wolf Fang Special Forces Brigade.

Even that training base was specially approved for construction by higher authorities; the Wolf Fang Special Forces Brigade's soldiers doing parachute training there can be said to merely have the advantage of being close to water.

Its true function is the aircraft maintenance and overhaul center for the entire military region.

Otherwise, how could a mere brigade‑level unit's parachute training base be on such a scale?

Twelve runways capable of letting fighter jets take off and land—what's the cost? Don't say they are the Wolf Fang Special Forces Brigade; even if upgraded to the Wolf Fang Special Forces Division, they would not match such a scale.

As for Old Comrade Zhou directly flying a helicopter to the military region, that's nothing new either.

Normally, after repairing aircraft, Zhou Tianzuo often flies them himself to deliver them door‑to‑door, and on the way stops by Deputy Commander Gao's office to pick up the tea leaves distributed according to rank.

On the few tea trees of Mount Wuyi there is no Big Red Robe, but there is still high‑grade Pu'er tea aged ten or twenty years.

Now they just need to "await good news."

In the brigade hospital, Tang Xinyi leans against the bed, sitting expressionlessly.

Qin Yuxi originally intended to stay and look after her, but she refused.

Now, what plays on repeat before her eyes is Liu Xiaotian's kick aimed at her.

Angry? Actually, she isn't really angry.

Willful as she may be, Tang Xinyi is not so far gone as to fall into the category of being unreasonable or unreasonably obstinate.

One could also say that it was precisely Liu Xiaotian's kick that made her much clearer.

From childhood onward, she has always been the outstanding one in her small circle of acquaintances, and over time she has become accustomed to this pattern.

Even after entering the unit and beginning military training, facing male soldier opponents, she has never lost.

She simply never considered that someone among them might have deliberately let her win.

If she weren't completely confident, how could she have told He Zhijun, "I'll handle it myself"? She just didn't expect that this time she would kick an iron plate.

It must be said, Tang Xinyi is still very smart.

After calming down, she quickly realized that those past "achievements" of hers might not all be genuine.

Among them, it's possible that someone deliberately let her win.

It's just that this vigorous young soldier didn't do that.

Frankly, for someone who has always been full of confidence to suddenly start doubting themselves, the feeling is truly unpleasant.

Wanting to believe and face reality requires not only courage.

After a long while, Tang Xinyi lightly sighed and closed her eyes.

Her stomach still ached with cramp‑like pains, but compared to the psychological sense of defeat, the physical pain was nothing.

As for whether to cling to this matter, Tang Xinyi now has not considered it at all.

Or rather, in her heart she has already decided that He Zhijun and Fan Tianlei will surely give her a satisfactory resolution.

That is to say, reflection aside, the habitual mindset she's grown used to makes it still unrealistic to expect change in a short time……

(End of chapter)