Chapter 14: I Choose Lu Yang as Assistant Squad Leader—Who Dares Oppose?

"Let's just hold a simple squad meeting and implement a few things."

"I'm preparing to make Lu Yang our Assistant Squad Leader; who is for it, who is against?"

On a weekend morning, the recruits were unprecedentedly allowed to sleep an extra half hour.

After getting up, the routine remained unchanged: making the bed, washing up, morning exercises, and breakfast.

Fortunately, there was no physical training on the weekend, giving everyone half a day to relax.

During the subsequent squad meeting, Zhou Kaidong's gaze symbolically swept over the new recruits, soliciting everyone's opinions.

But when he saw Ding Tengfei's butt seemed unable to stay still, he frowned slightly and spoke again.

"If anyone in the squad handles internal affairs better than Lu Yang, can run the three‑kilometer in the top of the whole platoon, or can help the company produce the bulletin board, they may also stand up and volunteer."

"......"

Ding Tengfei's butt suddenly became much more settled.

Zhou Kaidong sneered inwardly, thinking the kid still had a bit of self‑awareness.

Just then, the Third Platoon Leader summoned him to a company meeting, so Zhou Kaidong had to hastily end the squad meeting early.

Before leaving, he emphasized: "Those who haven't memorized the regulations yet, tighten up; when I'm not around, Lu Yang will be in charge of squad discipline."

"Understood."

"Come out with me for a moment."

Lu Yang followed the Squad Leader out, not knowing where they were going.

But as soon as Zhou Kaidong's front foot left, the squad erupted into chaos.

At eighteen or nineteen, they're at the age that loves to play; after being in the unit for a few days, every day is training, internal affairs, and ideological education, a constantly oppressive life, and today is the first weekend, so naturally they want to have a little fun.

Ding Tengfei folded up his folding stool and plopped onto Lu Yang's bed, not caring whether he wrinkled the sheets.

He glared at Kong Long across the way, flipping the regulations with a clatter, and sarcastically said, "Hey, we just chose the assistant, why didn't you stand up? I was going to pick you, picking you is better than picking that idiot."

Kong Long looked up and glared at him: "Who the hell are you talking to every day? Clean your mouth!"

Ding Tengfei said irritably, "I didn't say anything about you, why are you so anxious?"

Then he turned to the others and said, "Is it that this squad just doesn't like Lu Yang? Always pretending to be the same, showing off at any chance, ha ha, ha ha..."

No one responded, so he could only laugh awkwardly and continue muttering to himself.

After spending these days together, they've come to understand Ding Tengfei's nature well.

He doesn't work hard himself, yet forbids others from being diligent—a typical petty, small‑minded person.

Whenever someone is praised in training, he has to make two sarcastic remarks.

He says what's the point of working so hard, money rules this society, and soldiers are all good‑for‑nothing.

Yes, this guy often scolds himself, a classic left‑brain/right‑brain clash; so everyone is too lazy to bother with him, let alone argue.

Instead, Kong Long, with his blunt temper, tossed something onto the bed, stood up fiercely, and gave him a push.

"Who the hell gives you the right to say Lu Yang is annoying, can't even beat him in the three‑kilometer, yet you're always at the bottom of the class, how dare you?"

"Damn, I just overexerted, ran out of breath!"

"You're weak, train more, stop the damn whining. People like you are the most annoying, running to the Instructor to give the Squad Leader a petty report like an idiot, you deserve being nagged all day!"

"You're spitting nonsense!"

Ding Tengfei, furious, vehemently denied it.

He had indeed secretly reported the Squad Leader smoking in the dormitory a couple of days ago.

At the time, the Instructor told him it would be dealt with strictly and kept confidential; how did it become known so quickly?

"What a damn mountain cannon!" Kong Long laughed at him: "You're still out there mixing, what the hell are you doing!"

"Kids know they shouldn't file petty reports, yet you go tell the Instructor about the Squad Leader, idiot?"

Ding Tengfei, angry and defensive, already concluded in his mind that it must have come from Lu Yang!

Since Lu Yang is close to the Instructor, it must have been mentioned when the bulletin board was being made, and the Instructor unintentionally brought it up, then this guy found out.

"Damn his mother, it's really hometown betrayal, shooting two rounds from behind!"

"This damn dog, actually pulling a backstab?"

At that moment, Lu Yang returned, cheerfully carrying a black plastic bag.

"Tell everyone, today is the weekend, the Squad Leader specially approved everyone to play on their phones."

"WTF!"

Everyone instantly boiled over, swarming Lu Yang like hungry newborns.

Lu Yang was almost knocked over by the crowd, hurriedly opened the bag and handed out the phones.

"The Squad Leader said, those without phones can use his to call home; he'll cover the long‑distance charges."

"Wow, the Squad Leader is that generous!"

"But long‑distance isn't cheap; if we all use his phone to make marathon calls, he'll go bankrupt this month!"

"Assistant, let me go first, let me go first, I'm the farthest from home!"

Lu Yang gave the Squad Leader's phone to the soldier who lived farthest from home.

Watching him take the phone, he rushed to the window and dialed his home number.

The excitement, joy, and longing for home in his eyes were impossible to hide.

The last phone was a brand‑new Moto Mola model, obviously not cheap.

Before Lu Yang could check the name on the back cover, someone snatched it away.

Seeing Ding Tengfei's angry stare, Lu Yang asked, "What are you up to now?"

Kong Long leaned close to his ear and briefly recounted what had happened earlier.

Hearing the other mistakenly think it was his own loudspeaker, Lu Yang was left speechless.

In the troops, reporting one's Squad Leader to the Instructor with a petty report is a taboo among taboos, especially over such trivial matters.

It's equivalent to a student running to the academic affairs office to file a complaint against his homeroom teacher, claiming the teacher picks his toes while grading papers.

At first, he thought Ding Tengfei was simply just unable to get up, but didn't expect his stupidity to be so thorough?

Does he really not know that veterans are all in the same camp and that information is shared among them?

Lu Yang is too lazy to explain; there's nothing to say to him, and there's no need.

"Kong Long, aren't you going to call home?"

Lu Yang saw that the moment Kong Long got his phone, he was listening to music and scrolling novels, so he asked out of curiosity.

Kong Long chuckled, "I lived in the dorm for all three years of high school; my parents are used to me not being home, so calling later is fine."

Lu Yang was very curious: "You lived in the dorm all through high school, so how did you develop that muscular physique?"

Even after only a few days of enlistment, Kong Long's muscles had shrunk a bit, but because his frame is still there, he still looks much more robust than an average person.

Kong Long laughed, "I work at a gym during winter and summer breaks; the membership points are free and I can train for free. So you just tell me whether to bring the crew or not, bro!"

"Smart! What novel are you reading?"

"The Girl Next Door…"

"Written by Lao Liu?"

"Whoa, damn, you've read it too?"

Lu Yang suggested, "Switch to another book; this one's a dud. Go read the school belle's close‑up… I guess you've been discharged, and the novel is still being updated."

Kong Long was startled, clasped his fists and bowed, "No wonder you're a scholar, very professional. When I hit a book drought later, I'll come to you!"

In his previous life, Lu Yang read too many web novels, causing his grades to drop sharply.

So in this life, he can firmly avoid it, because the addiction to that thing is truly strong.

But if someone wants to read, he will still sort and recommend excellent books of all genres; this thing can hook one person into a pit, and he'll hook another.

On the corridor, Lu Yang pulled his home landline number from the contacts, pressed the dial, and a familiar hulusi melody came through the receiver.

The piece "Moonlight over the Phoenix Tail Bamboo" has a light, breezy tune, wrapped in a sense of era that hits you, and it inexplicably calmed him.

The phone rang, and within a moment it was answered; the mother's voice immediately came through the receiver.

"Hello… son?"

"Mom."

Even though they'd been apart for less than half a month, hearing his mother's voice again still gave Lu Yang an indescribable feeling.

That, it seems, is called homesickness.