Chapter 161: You Are the Team's Hope (Extra)

Hello, Chief of Staff! Hello, all leaders!

Division Chief of Staff Xiong Yao led the regiment leaders from the stands over to the shooting range.

Precision shooting has always been a popular event in the competition and has received great attention.

Unlike physical fitness tests, shooting requires not just effort but more so talent.

Just like basketball, some people are naturally good at it; even without much professional training, they can still make three-pointers every time.

The same applies to shooting: those with a good feel for the gun, combined with relentless hard training, can reach heights ordinary soldiers cannot.

Xiong Yao asked the referee: "Has the notice been passed down? What's everyone's reaction?"

The referee replied: "Most feel a lot of pressure, and there are complaints. After all, shooting in low-light conditions is completely different from shooting in bright daylight."

"With pressure comes motivation, and then the competition can begin."

Xiong Yao chuckled and said: "In past years, precision shooting has been too formulaic and too routine; a good shooter should be able to handle any complex shooting conditions. Right?"

The regiment leaders behind him nodded with apologetic smiles, but inside they couldn't help complaining.

If they had known earlier that this year's martial competition would include low-light shooting, they would have notified the subordinate units to conduct specialized training.

The vast majority of contestants spent a lot of time and energy on daytime shooting practice.

Even when they practiced night shooting, it was mostly just an afterthought.

It's like an open-book exam where suddenly the time to flip pages is limited, leaving everyone unprepared.

However, not all contestants fell into anxiety just because the competition rules changed and the difficulty increased.

On the contrary, a small minority with strong ability felt this was an excellent opportunity to perform.

If it were ordinary times, achieving a good score wouldn't be anything special.

But if one could achieve an impressive score in low-light or outright nighttime conditions, that would truly earn universal acclaim!

Lu Yang thought the same, and for him, the experience of sparring with experts was far more important than any score.

Of course, if he could defeat them while sparring, bringing back a good score would be even better.

"No matter what, we must place this time—at the very least, we need to finish third!"

"Understood, I'll do my best."

Gao Feng pulled Guo Yongwen aside and gave him a solemn warning.

Guo Yongwen knew there were many experts this time, and he changed from his usual arrogance to become steady.

Gao Feng shook his head: "It's not about doing your best; it's a must, it's essential! If you want to become a regular officer and stay in the unit, you must keep earning scores to prove your worth to the troops!"

Guo Yongwen nodded: "I understand."

Compared to before, the current Guo Yongwen has become far more down-to-earth and steady.

Everyone gains wisdom eventually; some just do it earlier, others later.

Guo Yongwen's awakening is closely related to Lu Yang.

Although it came a bit late, it truly helped him calm down and think about his future life plans.

If it had happened a few years earlier, perhaps little Guo would already have been made a regular officer, because character and mindset are important factors in the unit's evaluation of junior officers.

The more hot-headed, impulsive, and short-tempered a soldier is, the harder it is for them to get a chance to advance, no matter how capable they are.

And as a platoon leader, the most basic command unit in the troops, one must have a calm and composed heart and the demeanor of not being startled by events.

Gao Feng patted him on the shoulder: "Do well in the match; as long as you bring back a placement, I can keep pushing the application upward to help you get a chance to become a regular officer—go for it!"

"Yes!"

The sun slowly set, and the sky grew dusky.

The precision shooting competition also officially began at around five or six in the evening.

The test required using the Type 85 sniper rifle to shoot at a chest-ring target six hundred meters away, from the standard prone position.

The scoring standard also changed from before: instead of adding up ring scores layer by layer, only hits on the bullseye now count as points.

Put simply, with ten rounds from the sniper rifle, only a bullseye earns one point; otherwise the shot is ruled invalid.

This simple, blunt adjustment amounts to adding another hurdle on top of the existing low-light shooting requirement.

Before, there used to be mid-level contestants who could pull off an upset by luckily hitting a nine or ten ring.

But now, that opportunity no longer exists.

At six hundred meters, with poor light and visibility, even with a scope's help, just hitting the target is difficult, let alone hitting the center of the chest-ring target.

There were sixty contestants total, divided into six groups of ten each for the shooting.

Unfortunately, Lu Yang was assigned to the last group, which meant that by the time he took the field, it was no longer low-light shooting but actual nighttime shooting.

"First group, get ready to shoot!"

With a low shout from the referee, the first group of contestants all got ready.

Gunshots rose and fell across the open range as each soldier aimed and fired with all his might.

Unlike the noisy atmosphere of other events, the soldiers watching near the range all held their breath, keeping absolute silence.

Shooting requires silence so the contestants can steady their minds and hit the target.

"First group contestants, clear your chambers!"

"Target reporters, begin reporting!"

"Position 1, 4 points!"

"Position 2, 6 points!"

"Position 3, 5 points!"

"......"

As each score came over the walkie-talkie...

The faces of the first-group contestants who had just finished the test gradually turned grim.

Because the vast majority performed abnormally, their scores were even worse than regular training.

And as the sky grew darker, this also made the competitors in the groups lined up behind inevitably more anxious.

"Second group, get ready!"

Guo Yongwen's luck was not bad; he was assigned to the second group, and the weather was still okay at this time.

Before going up, he glanced back at Lu Yang, who gave him a thumbs‑up gesture of encouragement.

Although, before the match the two had exchanged harsh words, vowing to knock each other down.

But as comrades and friends, he still hoped Guo Yongwen would bring back a good result.

Because Lu Yang knew Guo Yongwen had not won any noteworthy honor for a long time.

Active‑duty personnel who want to advance must continually perform meritorious service.

If they stop, they will be surpassed by newcomers, and may even be "optimized" out.

At times, the military and society actually share common traits, especially after the 2003 large‑scale demobilization, when survival of the fittest seemed to become the norm in the troops.

The purpose of doing this is also to select the best from the best, to better accomplish the goal of building a strong military and enhancing national defense capabilities.

Fortunately, Guo Yongwen outperformed expectations, actually scoring an eight‑point result, becoming the highest scorer so far.

Just when Lu Yang and Zhou Kaidong thought Guo Yongwen would surely bring back a good score this time, an unexpected incident occurred.

The third group produced a perfect‑score shooter, hitting the bullseye with all ten shots.

"Damn, it's that perverted bastard again, the first‑platoon leader of the Zhencha Daitui sniper company!"

"He was the precision‑shooting champion of the last edition and the one before that—why the hell is he showing up again to join the fun!"

"They've been sent to military school to become officers, yet they still come here to compete with us non‑commissioned officers for honor—how shameless!"

The following groups had two veterans who stood out, scoring nine points.

They are said to be elites from professional shooting companies, one of whom is even a member of a local shooting team that has competed in the municipal games and won medals.

Guo Yongwen's earlier joy was instantly shattered by the sudden appearance of several shooting experts.

Just as Zhou Kaidong said over lunch, this year's precision‑shooting experts are as numerous as clouds.

In the past, in the company, Lu Yang never had this feeling, because there was nothing to compare with, and moreover the Special Third Regiment is still a heroic unit.

So he has long had the feeling that his self‑assessment is fairly good, an illusion that his shooting ability and military quality are outstanding.

But only after arriving at the division did he discover that there are simply too many talented and gifted shooters.

It is truly a case of "so many masters they're like dogs, and grand masters walk everywhere"!

Guo Yongwen, bitterly defeated, felt helpless; he made a wry smile and mouthed to Lu Yang, who was about to go up.

"From now on, it's all up to you—you are the hope of our regiment!"