Chapter 182: The Sixth Company's Glory, Solely Favored

Liu Cheng glanced at it and snorted: "Second Battalion, they just won a battle."

Ding Tengfei wondered: "How can you tell? Their uniforms are the same, and there's no obvious insignia."

Liu Cheng: "Look at their spirited state—could they be so happy if they'd lost? Second Battalion is sure to win, just like our Third Battalion definitely will."

"Every time the regiment's drills end, it's the Second and Third Battalions fighting it out, but Sixth Company's Iron Foot definitely can't beat our hard-headed Seventh Company—who let us have an armored cluster?"

Ding Tengfei envied those who could participate in the drills as combat team members.

Even if they got killed or lost the battle, at least they participated.

Unlike me, I never even saw what a drill looked like from start to finish, and could only be assigned to do odd jobs.

Liu Cheng seemed to know what he was thinking: "Don't bother, we don't have that fate—not everyone can make it into the combat team. Like us rookies, we don't even qualify as cannon fodder; just handle logistics support."

Coincidentally, at that moment a group appeared ahead, shouldering guns, carrying cannons, faces grimy, marching on foot.

Liu Cheng laughed: "Hey, see that? Those drooping heads—look like they just lost a battle; definitely First Battalion folks."

Ding Tengfei peered ahead, and sure enough, each looked like stragglers with no morale, a stark contrast to the vehicle convoy that had passed earlier.

Suddenly, Ding Tengfei saw in the retreating troops ahead an extremely bulky yet utterly miserable figure.

"Hey, what are you up to?"

"I ran into a comrade from the New Recruit Company—I'm going down to say hello!"

"Hurry up—we need to get the stuff back before dark, can't delay dinner!"

Seeing Ding Tengfei suddenly appear before him, Kong Long was also quite surprised.

"Ding Tengfei, what are you doing here?"

"Um... I just happened to be passing by."

Ding Tengfei really felt embarrassed to say he had gone out to purchase supplies.

Kong Long excitedly asked: "Have your drills ended over there? Who won, and how many did you kill on the battlefield?"

Ding Tengfei's face flushed red, and he hastily changed the subject: "Never mind me—how about you?"

"Utter defeat—Second Battalion's attack was too fierce, especially the Mechanized Infantry Sixth Company; their motorcycle charge—I hadn't even seen anything like it!"

Kong Long recalled the scene of being struck down and still felt downcast, but then he perked up: "Still, I took out three—too bad Brother Yang didn't give me another chance; if he'd been a minute later, I could have gotten one more!"

Ding Tengfei blinked: "You mean, Lu Yang?"

"Yeah, I'm the assistant machine gunner in my squad—I finally got a chance to fire, but before I could show anything, he blew my head off."

"Our squad leader and assistant squad leader were both killed by him, plus a platoon leader—oh god, I can't even count, he's devastated me......"

Ding Tengfei stared wide-eyed in disbelief: "Lu Yang, is he really that fierce now?"

"What do you think?"

"First in the division's 5km race, second in marksmanship—are you just messing with me?"

Kong Long beat his chest and stomped his feet: "If it weren't for Brother Yang being too ruthless, a single shot in the chaos took out our battalion commander; our battalion could have held on a while longer, at least until dark."

Ding Tengfei was utterly shocked and couldn't speak.

Although Tenth Squad belongs to Seventh Company, because they guard the armored training ground in a remote area, they don't share information with the company.

So he wasn't aware that Lu Yang had participated in the division competition and earned results, and naturally didn't know how swiftly he'd developed after transferring to another company.

Kong Long: "I heard your Third Battalion won—congratulations. Tomorrow when we meet Sixth Company on the battlefield, you'll see just how fierce Brother Yang is—he's basically a one-man army."

But before Ding Tengfei could think of how to brush it off, Wan Baoshan ripped open his fig leaf.

As the regiment's know-it-all, any fresh news from any unit never escapes his ears.

"Why are you telling him this? He's not even in the combat team—he hardly ever gets a chance to go to the battlefield, so how could he see Lu Yang?"

Kong Long blinked, looking at Ding Tengfei's continually reddening face, as if he too realized something.

"What? You didn't even take part in the drills—you weren't assigned to Seventh Company, so why aren't you let into the combat team?"

"Company Commander Gao is being too harsh—how long ago were the New Recruit Company's incidents? He surely hasn't kept a grudge over your past mistakes, has he?"

The Heavy Machine Gun Squad Leader had stayed silent earlier, but listening to both sides' conversation he roughly understood what had happened.

From the New Recruit Company, a squad that emerged, Lu Yang is undoubtedly the best—far superior to most veteran soldiers.

From his performance on this battlefield, it's clear that anyone exposed to his gunfire basically can't escape death.

Kong Long may be a bit slow-witted, but he has strength, is willing to endure hardship, and can endure it.

Although we lost this drill, we can still stay optimistic and motivated, growing braver with each setback.

Moreover, Kong Long wields a heavy machine gun, focusing not on precision but on battlefield firepower suppression to disrupt enemy attacks.

Therefore, the difficulty of improving is far less than Lu Yang's marksmanship; as long as one is willing to study earnestly, becoming a non-commissioned officer is easy.

As for this soldier named Ding Tengfei, during his time in the New Recruit Company he was overbearing and domineering, which directly led to his being sidelined by the company after transferring down.

He wasn't even qualified to join the drills and fight alongside everyone.

However, one can see that this soldier also has a sense of shame.

The Heavy Machine Gun Squad Leader spoke in the tone of someone who's been there, offering comfort.

"Everything depends on human effort; if you want to improve and move up, no one can stop you."

"Conversely, if you want to slack off and live an easy life, no one can stop you either."

"Two years of conscript service isn't long or short—half a year has already passed in the blink of an eye."

"Lu Yang is a fine example; Kong Long has always looked up to him, and there's much about him that we veteran soldiers can learn from."

"Alright, you've got work to do, and your comrades are waiting—no need to say more."

Over there, Liu Cheng was impatiently honking the horn, urging them on, and Ding Tengfei bade farewell to everyone and returned to the minivan.

Liu Cheng put down his phone and said: "We still need to take a detour later to the vegetable market to buy some pork—we have to hurry."

Ding Tengfei exclaimed: "We just finished purchasing—why didn't you say so earlier?"

Liu Cheng pursed his lips: "The Director of Affairs said the neighboring Sixth Company needs an extra meal, short-staffed so they're sending us on a run. Apparently someone performed outstandingly in the drill, shooting down the enemy battalion commander with a single shot, and their company commander specifically requested to give him a Yangzhou Lion's Head as a reward."

I've only heard of that thing, I've never actually eaten it, and I don't know if it's good or not.

By the way, you're not from Guangling, right? How's the taste?

Ding Tengfei sat in the seat with a vacant stare, looking as if his soul had been sucked out.

When the New Recruit Company first started, he had resented Lu Yang for feigning work, and had been jealous of him.

But nowadays the gap is so huge that he can't even muster a hint of jealousy.

Although Ding Tengfei had always known Lu Yang was superior to him, he didn't know Lu Yang had become this formidable.

First in the five-kilometer run, second in marksmanship, and now he's wreaking havoc on the battlefield.

He is the pride of the Sixth Company, and the entire Second Battalion is cheering for his performance.

Even the extra meals are prepared according to Lu Yang's taste preferences.

Besides envy, there's only envy.

Looking at that face in the rearview mirror, Ding Tengfei felt for the first time that he had made himself into a joke.

At this moment, he recalled again the words Lu Yang had said to him a few months earlier.

"The Seventh Company is a good place, but you don't have that kind of grit, and you've ended up looking exactly the way Gao Feng despises most."

"Don't let the days get you mixed up."

"Thanks, sorry for the trouble."

"Eh, just something I did on the side."

Twenty minutes later, Liu Cheng handed the purchased pork over to the Sixth Company's cook squad.

On the field training ground, the cook squad had already prepared the field stoves and lit fires to cook.

Although it was a last‑minute addition to the menu, given that we won the battle, the cook squad worked happily.

Moreover, to save effort, they had the meat stall vendor grind the meat in advance, making it easy to shape into balls.

Throughout the process, Ding Tengfei never got out of the car, but kept his head down, hiding inside.

He was afraid to see Lu Yang, and even more afraid to see Squad Leader Zhou Kaidong of the New Recruit Company, who had once devoted his efforts to him.

Only after Liu Cheng restarted the car and drove off did Lu Yang slowly emerge from behind a field tent on the side.

In fact, he had spotted Ding Tengfei long ago and knew he had no chance to join the drill, so he left him this dignity.

What needed to be said, Lu Yang had already said earlier; whether he can change is up to him.

You can't wake someone who's pretending to sleep; someone who wants to get up early doesn't need to be shouted at.

Zhou Kaidong came over and said, "I was just looking for you—how did you end up here?"

Lu Yang didn't mention that Ding Tengfei had come by, saying he was just out for a casual stroll.

"What's up, Squad Leader?"

"The instructor is thinking of taking the cooked rice, stir‑frying it in a pot to make Yangzhou fried rice, and wants to know what you think."

"Ah, isn't that a bit too much trouble?"

"Eh, what's the trouble? You're our company's main fighting force, and you've made such a big contribution. Everyone's eaten and drunk their fill—tomorrow we'll have the energy to crush the Third Battalion and ravage the Seventh Company!"

"Then let's do it the instructor's way. Still, next time it'd be better to use leftover rice for a better texture."

"Or why don't you go talk to the instructor yourself?"

"Hahaha, I was just joking."