Chapter 29: Do you have some masochistic tendencies?

Squad Leader sat in the front seat and did not notice Kong Long's abnormality.

But the instructor on the stage had already noticed this and furrowed his brow.

Lu Yang poked Ding Tengfei with his pen, urging him to quickly remind Kong Long ahead.

Ding Tengfei actually wanted to see him make a fool of himself and get scolded, after all this guy had always been at odds with him.

But after hesitating repeatedly, he still chose to poke Kong Long's back with his pen as a reminder.

But he didn't expect that this guy, having received some unknown stimulus, suddenly sprang up.

His head bumped the underside of the desk with a thud, nearly overturning the desk.

The huge commotion startled the other soldiers who were spacing out or dozing; they instantly woke up and pretended to be puzzled, turning their heads this way.

"What's going on?"

Kong Long hastily pretended to pick up that neutral‑colored pen, nervously explaining: "Report, I, I picked up a pen."

He Zhen Tao crossed his arms and teased: "Did you go pick it up in your dream?"

"......"

"Those who are tired, listless, or dozing—stand up and listen!"

Clatter, the sound of chairs being pushed rang out.

Nearly more than half of the recruits in the reading room stood up, which greatly angered He Zhen Tao.

He stepped down from the podium and checked each recruit's notebook; the pages were all filled with fly‑like scribbles, no idea what nonsense they were drawing.

But seeing Lu Yang's neat handwriting and dense knowledge points, his mood improved a little.

At least there was still someone listening attentively and taking careful notes!

He Zhen Tao picked up Lu Yang's notebook and held it up for everyone to see.

"Look at their notes—neat, orderly, with all the key points recorded; now look at yours—can you even face yourself?"

"Everything I just explained are key points that will be on the exam at the next company!"

"They weren't tested last round, but they will be this round!"

Lu Yang inexplicably felt that these words sounded familiar, as if he had heard them somewhere before.

He Zhen Tao snorted coldly: "I know many join the army because they don't want to study and fear reading, but I must tell you: the army values culture no less than a university campus!"

"Being a soldier—when it comes down to it, what are we really competing for? Tell me."

"Physical strength?"

The soldier who was called on answered confidently, but the instructor immediately rejected it.

"Wrong, it's the brain!"

"War is a profound discipline—not like street thugs brawling; what technical skill could that have?"

Ding Tengfei's face burned, as if he had just been slapped hard several times.

"Not to mention, bulking up like a bodybuilder is useless on the battlefield—you become a live target."

"The bigger you are, the higher your chance of getting shot; if wounded, you become a burden the unit can't carry or drag."

Kong Long also felt as if he'd just been scolded point‑blank, making him want to crawl under the desk again.

"Directing combat requires a great deal of military theory, psychology, and strategy as a foundation, then plus practice."

"Even if most of you cannot become commanders, as soldiers you must seriously study weapons‑maintenance theory, terrain survey knowledge, basic repair of tanks and automobiles, including how to ambush and conceal."

"What soldiers need to learn is no less than university studies; if you want to excel in the army, start cultivating a habit of diligent study and take good notes from now on!"

"Especially those who wish to stay in the service and later go to the training company to become squad leaders must put in extra effort here!"

"The army values physical fitness, but it has never stopped pursuing knowledge and exploration!"

"Only by mastering knowledge and skills that others lack can you go farther and broader in the army!"

He Zhen Tao spoke plainly: the army competes not just in physical strength but also in culture and knowledge.

In the 2003 major downsizing, the first large batch cut were those whose cultural education didn't meet the standard.

With the times developing, the army's weapons and equipment are constantly updated; to use them correctly requires a solid theoretical foundation as support.

For example: an enemy tank flees at 60 km/h, the distance between us is 1500 m, and our tank pursues at 70 km/h—how long until we catch up?

Moreover, when firing at a moving target you still need to calculate vehicle speed and projectile flight time.

Even hitting a target with a mortar requires calculating the elements—namely azimuth, elevation, and parabolic distance.

All of these require mathematical formulas to compute, and sometimes in specific conditions only mental arithmetic will do.

Thus being a soldier demands not only physical strength but also cultural knowledge, knowledge reserves, and various professional skills.

Fortunately, with the system's support, Lu Yang's heightened focus makes learning feel much easier than before.

He Zhen Tao returned to the front to continue lecturing, while Kong Long quietly turned his head and whispered a question to Zhou Kaidong.

"Squad Leader, I don't have a driver's license—will I still have a chance to drive a tank in the next company?"

"Others can, but you probably won't."

"Why?"

"You won't fit in; the hatch is too small."

Kong Long's face flushed with embarrassment, while the rest tried not to laugh.

But Ding Tengfei wore a look of yearning, as if he were already sitting in the driver's compartment.

Armor, tanks, artillery, engine roar—ask which hot‑blooded young man could resist the lure of that steel torrent?

After class, the Third Squad recruits were taken straight to the equipment training ground by Zhou Kaidong.

So‑called equipment training actually means practicing on the single bar, parallel bars, and similar apparatus.

Pull‑ups and dips on the parallel bars are also skills everyone must master.

During basic training, six pull‑ups count as passing, nine as good, and twelve as excellent.

Currently, Lu Yang can only do five pull-ups; he just can't manage the sixth.

Aside from Kong Long, who can do ten, the rest of Third Squad are about the same level as Lu Yang, and some are even worse.

After all, they've only been enlisted for less than a month; expecting their physical fitness to improve that quickly is simply unrealistic.

Zhou Kaidong, hands behind his back, said: "Given that you've been enlisted for so many days and still can't do pull-ups, I'm going to take some necessary measures to help you."

Having said that, he pulled a big bundle of tape from behind his back and said with a grin, "In a moment I'll use this to hang you from the bar for half an hour—I'll see who still can't do pull-ups."

Upon hearing that, the recruits' sphincters clenched and their bodies shuddered.

Is this something a person would think of? Were you hanging meat to dry back then?

【New knowledge detected: Advanced Hanging Bar!】

【Knowledge point analysis: By using tools to physically bind both hands to the horizontal bar, training can provide a threefold boost to arm strength, grip strength, and endurance!】

Lu Yang's eyes lit up—could the equipment's effect actually be better than just hanging from the bar?

This made him eager to try it out—just how exhilarating is the advanced hanging bar?

Zhou Kaidong, one by one, like hanging meat to dry, taped the recruits' hands to the horizontal bar.

What followed was wave after wave of pain and wailing, especially since Kong Long had a lot of arm hair; Zhou Kaidong, unaware whether intentional or not, also gave him a partial hair removal, hurting him so much tears streamed down.

"Get up!"

"Yes!"

Lu Yang was far more proactive than the others, with a very high sense of initiative.

Even just a few days after enlisting, he already had the bearing of a soldier.

But seeing Lu Yang's eyes full of anticipation, Zhou Kaidong couldn't help but shiver.

He seriously suspected that Lu Yang might have a masochistic tendency.

Everyone else looked like they were about to die, but he couldn't wait!

"Squad Leader, tie me up quickly, hurry up and bind me!"

"Come on, tie it tighter, make it secure, better yet wrap it a few more rounds!"

"Lu Yang, calm down, Squad Leader is getting a bit nervous....."