Chapter 143: He came, he came, he came with a third-class merit

The soldiers of the Third Squad stared at each other, not knowing for a moment whose orders to follow.

Although Kang Changyi was not well-liked in the company, his position and rank were there.

Only after being glared at fiercely by Zhou Kaidong did they then complete the training content in order.

The training area of the Sixth Squad was actually not far nor near the Third Squad; Lu Yang and his group happened to be training in reverse drills.

He watched the scene, not knowing what the argument was about, yet secretly admired Zhou Kaidong's stubborn character.

If it were another squad leader, they probably wouldn't have the nerve to argue with the platoon leader.

But the platoon leader wasn't the type to let it go easily; he directly started arguing with Zhou Kaidong on the spot.

The commotion was quite big, soon drawing the attention of everyone around, though many veteran soldiers had already grown used to it.

Because, during the time Zhou Kaidong was leading troops in the New Recruit Company, the platoon leader had already been on bad terms with the first and second squad leaders.

However, they weren't as stubborn as Zhou Kaidong; they just gritted their teeth and endured some things.

Although non-commissioned officers and officers differ by only one character, their treatment and rank are worlds apart.

Although during the internship everyone treated him as nothing, now that he's been confirmed and retained, no one wants to offend him badly, otherwise they'd get sabotaged later.

Soon, Sixth Company Commander Ma Qing'an rushed over angrily upon hearing the news, seeing the two with red faces, and immediately scolded Zhou Kaidong.

"Zhou Kaidong, what are you doing? In broad daylight you're not focusing on training—you're asking for death!"

"Company Commander, I......"

"What 'I'? Get out of the way!"

After scolding Zhou Kaidong, Ma Qing'an's anger flared onto the platoon leader.

"I ask you, what time is it now? Drill time—is this the time to listen to your nonsense?"

"You can't lead troops in training, all you do is flap your lips; you run five kilometers like a pile of shit—how dare you apply to stay in the Iron Foot Company?"

"Lu Yang just came down from the company, his casual run scores better than yours; not even a rookie can match you—I'd rather you find a crooked tree and hang yourself!"

Kang Changyi was scolded until his head was bloody, wishing he could find a crack in the ground to hide.

It seems Ma Qing'an is truly angry this time, giving him no face at all.

He directly stripped him bare in public, his words like poisoned blades, each sentence a critical hit.

Especially that line: "Lu Yang's casual run beats you; not even a rookie can match you"—it struck straight at the soul.

Finally Pan Yuan stepped in to smooth things over, slightly easing the atmosphere and persuading the company commander to leave.

"Come on, come on, calm down, calm down, have a smoke."

"Why isn't it Yuxi?"

"You're still picking? Forget smoking then!"

"Smoke, smoke, smoke—anything's better than my Red Tower Mountain!"

"You say you're also a big company commander, always smoking cheap cigarettes, saving money to give your sister as a dowry? Otherwise later, sell your Ducati and live a tight life."

Ma Qing'an took the cigarette, waved his finger at him: "Motorcycle is faith; being stingy is life. Cigarettes are always best when given by others, just like wives are always someone else's beautiful one."

Seeing Ma Qing'an's string of jokes, Pan Yuan laughed and asked: "Hey, you're not angry anymore?"

Ma Qing'an, cigarette in mouth, chuckled: "I wasn't really angry at all; it's not worth it, nor necessary."

"Then why did you just flare up so badly and curse so harshly?"

"I did it on purpose."

"Huh?"

"I just wanted to embarrass that Kang kid, make him lose face, let him know the Sixth Company isn't easy to stay in; either he adjusts his state and rhythm, gains approval from veteran NCOs, gradually adapts to the Sixth Company's pace, or he'd better wisely file a report and quit, otherwise I'll catch him every now and then and give him a dressing-down."

"Aren't you afraid he has connections in the division, and later will give you small shoes?"

"Tch~"

Ma Qing'an took the lighter he offered, lit it, took a deep breath, and lightly exhaled a smoke ring: "Just him having background?"

Pan Yuan exclaimed: "Oh my, I didn't notice, deeply hidden. Working with you for so many years, we're about to split, I didn't know you still had background?"

Ma Qing'an waved his hand, saying lightly: "I'm just low-key; however that connection can only be used once, I'm saving it for my sister's wedding, to make it as grand and impressive as possible."

Pan Yuan wondered: "Since you said that, this connection surely isn't in the division, at least it must be in the army?"

Ma Qing'an glanced at him and left a meaningful sentence: "You're underestimating me too much."

Pan Yuan was startled, looking at that meaning, this connection could go straight to the headquarters!

He suddenly felt he had taken a wrong step, barely having risen to the regiment level.

He thought he was moving up another level, only to find the thigh right beside him?

"Squad Leader, what happened earlier, why were you arguing with the platoon leader?"

During a drill break, Lu Yang went to the Third Squad to find Zhou Kaidong, wanting to get a clear answer.

Zhou Kaidong was still angry at the moment, taking the chance to harshly curse that platoon leader idiot.

"He has no ability at all, yet likes to take a chicken feather as a command arrow; I really despise such people."

"Good thing you were assigned to the Second Platoon; if you were in the First Platoon, you'd have to suffer."

"Lu Yang, remember this: as a soldier you must be capable; even if you later apply to military academy, you can't be as weak as Kang."

"Heh, he looks like a platoon leader, pretty imposing, but in the unit he has no real skill—who cares about him? If it weren't for the company commander finally arriving, I'd have kicked him twice!"

Lu Yang laughed and cried; if they really fought, he'd definitely go to break it up.

But during the intervention, he couldn't guarantee whether he'd help Zhou Kaidong and secretly kick that guy twice.

As for Zhou Kaidong's final remarks, Gao Feng had actually told Lu Yang the same thing before.

They advised him not to rush into taking the exam immediately, but first to solidify basic skills.

Only then could he enhance his core competitiveness and become a more versatile and comprehensive officer.

After a brief chat, Zhou Kaidong's anger also subsided considerably; with the company commander backing him, that guy didn't dare do anything.

After all, if we truly discuss seniority, Zhou Kaidong's time since enlisting is actually longer than that of the First Platoon Leader, so he's not really a junior to him.

The army values martial prowess; strength is supreme. Without ability or skill, even if one becomes an officer, junior soldiers will look down on them.

Lu Yang asked: "If that's the case, why does the Company Commander still tolerate him staying in our company?"

Zhou Kaidong frankly said: "You think the Company Commander doesn't want to drive him away? During the internship we could see this guy had no real ability; we thought he'd pack up and leave after the internship ended, but who knew he'd inexplicably stay?"

I heard from the Instructor that if this guy had left, they likely would have transferred Guo Yongwen to our company to take over the First Platoon Leader's post.

The result was confusing; he clung on and wouldn't leave, who knows how that happened? Rather than have such a useless person over us, I'd rather Guo Yongwen's kid come here as Platoon Leader—at least he'd have real skill.

Lu Yang also quite agreed with this; if that were the case, it would truly be a win-win.

Besides being surrounded by acquaintances, the Sixth Company's strength could also be greatly increased.

But the army has very strict educational requirements.

Moreover, most military academy graduates' performance during their graduation internship is not very ideal.

Transitioning from theory to combat, from campus to grassroots units, requires a period of adjustment and integration.

However, this guy doesn't take the veteran non-commissioned officers seriously, and he takes too seriously what he learned at the military academy, so the adjustment isn't smooth and they don't get along well.

Zhou Kaidong didn't want to continue talking about this: "By the way, I saw you guys practicing falling techniques earlier, but I noticed your movements when you fall are still a bit nonstandard."

"Watch me do it once, follow along, and I'll help you adjust your posture; doing this movement wrong can easily injure yourself, and later there are backward falls and side falls."

"Especially the backward fall—if done poorly you'll end up hitting the back of your head; let me demonstrate first."

Having said that, Zhou Kaidong's body, at attention, pitched forward straight and began the demonstration.

Just as his body aggressively contacted the ground, his arms shot out like springs.

Both forearms firmly planted on the ground, supporting his body while his waist and back stayed tight.

Lu Yang followed behind, repeating over and over, constantly adjusting the movement details, striving for perfection.

Falling technique is the foundation of grappling arts, greatly training a person's reaction to sudden attacks.

Especially when someone suddenly pushes you down from behind, the unconscious action of planting your arms on the ground can greatly reduce head impact injuries.

With enough training, this becomes a muscular reflex; when ambushed, the body can trigger a defensive command even before the brain processes it.

After the company change, training basically shifted toward practical combat; to boost his own fighting ability, Lu Yang trained even harder and more earnestly than during the New Recruit Company period.

A few people resting from the Sixth Squad watched Lu Yang not far away, repeatedly throwing their bodies down under the Third Squad Leader's instruction.

The ground kicked up dust as they fell, their arms smacking with bangs, making them involuntarily suck their teeth.

How painful this training is, how it abuses the arms—those veteran soldiers know best.

Yet the more he endures, the more eagerly Lu Yang trains, leaving them bewildered.

Liu Ziqiang sighed: "I bet he's got some masochistic tendency, definitely a grudge against his arms!"

Sun Chen rubbed the back of his head: "Ah, I'm not afraid of forward falls, just scared of backward falls hitting the back of my head; even now my movements are still a bit off."

Cheng Jun, hearing their conversation, sneered: "You really should thank the army reforms that removed the jumping backward fall from training; otherwise you'd suffer. Back when we trained, we truly had to leap up and slam down hard."

The veterans' sturdy bodies shuddered, their backs and backs of heads already beginning to ache faintly.

At least we're lucky timing-wise; but if this training were still around, it would definitely hurt them to the point of agony.

When the break ended, Cheng Jun was about to call Lu Yang back from over there when the duty officer's assembly whistle sounded in the distance.

All squads quickly gathered there and stood in formation.

Soon after, Company Commander Ma Qing'an arrived, bringing an old acquaintance, chatting and laughing as they walked over.

Seeing the visitor, Lu Yang first froze, then felt delighted.

Because this old acquaintance was none other than the New Recruit Company Instructor, He Zhen Tao.

"He's here, he's here, he's come with a Third-Class Merit!"