Chapter 103: Sudden Extra Meal? The Shivering Veteran

"If you think I'm a liar, then I hope you'll give me another chance to fool you. I want to fool you by putting on a wedding dress; I want to fool you by staying together till old age; I want to fool you for the rest of my life, three meals a day, all four seasons…"

"To my dearest neighbor girl, Wang Cuifen."

In Ruyang County, on the street‑side market town, people came and went.

Today, for the market, many mountain folk carried mountain goods to sell at the market.

Some locals nearby spread a cloth on the ground to sell home‑grown vegetables, freshly ground tofu, and eggs from their own hens.

In an inconspicuous corner stall, a plain girl in an old cotton coat and canvas shoes clutched a letter, covered her mouth and wept, tears streaming down her face.

"Hey, miss, what's wrong? Why are you crying like that? Did something happen?"

"It's nothing, nothing, ma'am, would you like to buy dates?"

"I'm just passing by, just looking. How are your honey dates priced, are they sweet?"

"Sweet—please try them, they're sweeter than the taste of first love!"

The ma'am grinned, her few remaining front teeth letting wind through on all sides.

Clearly she has hypertension and diabetes, yet she stubbornly bought more than half a jin to take home, hoping to share them with her old companion.

"Hmm? What's going on?"

"We usually eat big‑pot rice; why today the dishes are refined stir‑fries?"

One noon, after finishing training, the veterans walked into the Cafeteria and immediately sensed something was off.

Previously the dishes were served in bowls, overall rather hasty.

Although the taste wasn't bad, they certainly didn't look as refined as today's.

This time everything was on plates, and there was even a small stove, making it more upscale than a holiday banquet.

Wan Baoshan, with a cautious expression, picked up his chopsticks: "There's something fishy, definitely something fishy! Everyone step back, I, Wan Baoshan, am willing to test the poison with my own body, to let everyone taste the saltiness and blandness!"

The other veterans immediately gave him a shove: "Go over there, you're not the one to test poison. The commander, the deputy commander haven't come yet."

The rules of the training team are almost the same as those of the New Recruit Company; before the superiors arrive, no one may sit down or pick up chopsticks.

However, after a long service, many have become seasoned veterans.

Pinching two pieces of meat with the hand and tossing them into the mouth doesn't count as using chopsticks, nor does it violate discipline.

Even Lu Yang was forcibly fed a piece of sautéed liver tip by Wan Baoshan.

Obediently, this little flavor is really not bad.

"Why are you all standing? Sit down and eat!"

Guo Yongwen, smiling, walked in together with Cheng Jun, urging everyone to feel at ease.

He even shouted toward the back kitchen of the Cafeteria, asking them to bring out a few boxes of liquid grenades.

Seeing two tables of sumptuous stir‑fries and boxes of beer being brought out, the veterans exchanged glances and suddenly dared not move.

When things go against the norm, there must be something sinister; this level of treatment can't even be described as abnormal—it's bound to lead to a big incident!

"Commander, if we do anything wrong, just scold us directly, we'll definitely change!"

"Indeed, with this table of fine dishes and bottles of good wine, if we eat them and later have to vomit them out, what a waste!"

"I was wrong, I voluntarily admit my mistake; last night I shouldn't have gone to the restroom to act as a top pilot. I'm willing to run ten kilometres on my own to release the suppressed energy!"

Seeing these veterans so scared, Lu Yang was a bit confused.

Because when Guo Yongwen entered, the joy at the corner of his eyebrows and the smile at his mouth gave him a clue.

It must be that his girlfriend received a letter, contacted him proactively, and they reconciled.

As the saying goes, when a person encounters a happy event, their spirit is uplifted.

Now that the tricky matter is resolved, feeling good, he treats everyone to food and drink—totally normal, right?

But Lu Yang, as a new recruit, didn't know that in the troops, if there's no holiday or festival yet a sudden extra meal is given, the consequences are usually very serious.

Usually it means someone made a huge mistake, and then you're forced to sit on the ground and painstakingly vomit out everything you ate, no matter how comfortable the food was.

Cheng Jun smiled and waved his hand: "Alright, no one made a mistake, and no one is targeting you. You've all been in the training team for so long without a proper meal; this time, seeing the initial results of your training, the commander and I arranged this meal."

"Eat without worry, drink without worry, especially the beer—you can have two more bottles; that stuff is like water, two pees and…"

The crowd still looked anxiously at Guo Yongwen; after receiving his nod, they finally relaxed and ate and drank with confidence.

Don't be fooled that Guo Yongwen is only a fourth‑phase Non‑commissioned Officer; his current position is training team commander.

Anyone who causes trouble or looks for trouble will definitely be dealt with to death.

Many newly joined young soldiers might not know, assuming that the Company Commander and Instructor are the authority.

In fact, the ones you should cultivate good relations with are the Squad Leader first, then the Platoon Leader, and finally the Company Commander or Battalion Commander.

Because the Squad Leader is closely tied to your daily life and is the person soldiers interact with most.

He can decide who goes on official duties, who helps in the female soldiers' dormitory, who can go out this week, who can use a phone, who can go to the canteen…

Even the selection of outstanding soldiers, re‑enlistment applications, the higher‑ups heavily consider the Squad Leader's opinion.

This lunch, everyone ate with genuine satisfaction; after finishing training, drinking beer and eating stir‑fry is simply unbeatable.

Although the Cook Squad's cooking, compared with specialized small restaurants outside, is certainly a bit lacking.

But the crowd, the lively atmosphere, and people joining in the fun make the food taste even better.

At this point, the unit actually has a prohibition on alcohol, but it isn't so strict as to completely forbid drinking.

The training team is a temporarily formed unit, inherently possessing certain special attributes.

As long as it's not excessive and no drunken trouble occurs, the superiors turn a blind eye.

Moreover, the training team's daily drills are grueling; having a banquet and some beer to relax is understandable.

Especially these boxes of beer, in the coming days they'll also serve as important material for shooting training.

Having eaten and drunk enough, Cheng Jun led the veterans back to rest.

Lu Yang, without stopping, picked up the 81‑kg barbell and kept training.

It was something he just suggested himself, also to make up for his own shortcomings and catch up with the others in the team as soon as possible.

Despite the hardship, despite not being able to rest for a moment, Lu Yang's mindset remains very good, and he enjoys it without tiring.

Because, with the system's help, he can intuitively feel the progress and improvement during training.

Vision, concentration, stamina, physical strength, arm strength, and so on have all improved by a large margin compared to before joining the training squad.

"She forgave me, and even said she'll send me something, a big surprise!"

Lu Yang was walking toward the shooting range when Guo Yongwen finally stopped hiding his joy, his eyebrows almost curling into a smile.

As a return, besides that meal, he plans to give extra tutoring on things others don't know, things not found in books.

This is the experience Guo Yongwen has gathered from over a decade of rough military service, and it makes Lu Yang very eager!