Chapter 15: You

On the phone, Yuan AiQin also, the instant she heard Lu Yang's voice, inexplicably reddened her eyes.

A son traveling a thousand miles worries his mother, let alone it's his first time being so far from home to enlist.

These days she hasn't been eating or sleeping well, has lost several jin, and every day hopes her son will call.

The couple, after hearing from their third nephew that the unit usually distributes phones on weekends, have been stationed at the phone since morning, not daring to move an inch.

"Son, how does it feel in the unit, is the food good, is the sleep good, is the training tiring?"

"Good, actually great; the mess has four dishes and a soup, fruit after meals, even better than at home."

"Sleep is solid too; after daytime training we fall asleep at night, we get a noon break, and at night the Squad Leader even tucks us in."

"Now I can eat several bowls at a time, run many laps; a couple days ago I helped the Instructor with the bulletin board, and by the way, I even became Assistant Squad Leader...."

Hearing that Lu Yang is doing well in the unit and has become a squad officer, the old couple's faces were full of smiles.

But immediately after, a footstep sounded on the other end, along with his older cousin's slightly incredulous voice.

"What, Assistant Squad Leader?"

"Lu Yang, you've already gotten a position?"

Hearing his cousin's surprised voice, Lu Yang's face bore a hint of pride.

Because he knows that when his cousin was in the army, he left without even achieving the "four virtues".

So his cousin regrettably told him that military life is like a snowball; fall behind one step, you fall behind at every step.

If he had at that time actively performed in the New Recruit Company, become Assistant Squad Leader, and later transferred to a teaching team or the like, he wouldn't have come back after two years of Conscript service looking downcast.

His cousin's voice turned sour: "You kid, aren't you just teasing your brother on purpose? A squad has eight or nine people, the rest of them you've outshone?"

Lu Yang, seeing his disbelief, turned and shouted toward the dorm.

When the voice from the other end said, "Assistant Squad Leader, what's up?"

His cousin's tone was utterly indifferent: "No, little brother, why, why did you become Assistant Squad Leader?"

Lu Yang laughed: "Because you all taught me well, I performed actively as soon as I entered the unit, never stepped on any landmines, and the Squad Leader thought I was especially clever."

Hearing this, his cousin's head, which had been lowered, lifted again: "Little brother, keep it up! Be Assistant Squad Leader in the New Recruit Company, then Squad Leader in the next company, later take the entrance exam for the military academy, become a Platoon Leader with a bang!"

Lu Yang also took his cousin's good words to heart; this has been his main motivation to actively strive since enlisting.

In the unit, as long as you work hard enough, you can reap what you want.

Those with good physical ability can break records, join competitions, and earn honors.

Those good at writing can produce more articles, publish them, or help with the bulletin board, easily becoming a literary officer.

Those who can cook, the Cook Squad people all scramble for them; even if the basic training's barracks and drills are a mess, the Platoon Leader will smile at you.

Lu Yang knows that Squad Six has a new recruit who graduated from New Oriental Culinary School and holds a chef's certificate.

Every now and then he goes to the Cafeteria to help the cook, then brings food and drinks back for the squad's new recruits.

In their squad, that soldier is almost like a star surrounded by the moon.

So, now that you're here, don't hide it; the unit is a big stage to showcase yourself.

The cousin left, the phone returned to the parents, and this time the speaker is father Lu YongQiang.

Unlike the mother, the father's concern always seems more restrained, with a hint of formality and stiffness.

"In the unit, you must obey the Squad Leader, have you gotten into any conflicts with others?"

"No, everyone is fine."

"The Squad Leader letting you become Assistant Squad Leader is a sign of trust and regard; from now on you must work harder, cannot be proud...."

"Alright, alright, why are you telling your son this? Doesn't he know? Go, go, over there, I'm talking to my son......"

Listening to the mother's incessant reminders and concern on the other end, Lu Yang's smile warmed.

In his parents' eyes, the child never grows up.

When young and ignorant, one never hears the parents' nagging.

Only after growing up does one gradually realize that besides parents, no one will unconditionally and sincerely be good to you.

The marginal bits of society, the parents' small pride, only parents will care whether you're tired, suffering, or eating well.

But when many finally truly understand this, they find time has already stained their temples, bent their backs, and blurred their images in your memory.

"Son, could you send a photo? Mom misses you and wants to look at it."

"Mom, the unit has a rule, can't just take random photos."

"Oh, I see...."

The mother on the other end was clearly a bit disappointed, but Lu Yang told her.

"However, our Squad Leader said that when we soon move to the next company, they'll take a separate photo for us, and I can write a letter to send back."

"Alright, alright, that works!"

After a few more simple chats, asking about the elders' health at home and learning all is well, Lu Yang felt much more at ease.

For the reincarnated Lu Yang, everything in the unit is novel and unfamiliar.

Everything he previously knew came from his cousin and two comrades' accounts, plus information he found online.

Fortunately, with system assistance, he can better explore and understand this brand‑new "life copy" of the unit.

This also makes him look forward more to the upcoming life, especially after the next company.

Putting his phone back in his pocket, Lu Yang just returned to the dorm and saw Ding Tengfei filming the regulations with his phone.

When the flash lit up, Lu Yang's pupils contracted sharply, and he rushed up to stop it.

"What are you doing?!"

"None of your damn business!"

Ding Tengfei shoved Lu Yang aside, raised his hand, and prepared to take two more shots of the dorm environment.

But the next second, the phone was snatched away, and he, angry, went up to fight Lu Yang.

Damn, you're looking for trouble, huh? You don't even have a phone, yet you're giving me grief!

Get someone to pull him away!

But before his fist could even touch Lu Yang, several people had already subdued him.

Infuriated, Ding Tengfei swore loudly and struggled fiercely: "Damn it, let go of me! If you don't let go, I'll kill you all—you're all just fucking dogs...."

Kong Long flicked his forehead: "Shut up, move again and I'll slice you!"

Ding Tengfei was held down firmly on the bed by a group of people, but his mouth was as if laced with poison—his cursing never stopped.

Lu Yang didn't bother with him at all, anxiously flipping through Ding Tengfei's photo album and his phone chat logs.

When he saw, several chat windows displayed classified photos about the military.

And that extremely stupid military uniform selfie in his QQ space made his face instantly turn as ugly as possible.

Lu Yang turned his head, looking at Ding Tengfei still struggling and shouting on the ground, took a deep breath, and said: "Ding Tengfei, you're dead meat—even if the heavenly king himself came, it wouldn't help. What I said......"

Ding Tengfei's mouth remained relentless: "Fuck your mother, trying to scare me? I've been scared since I was young?!"