Chapter 32: Cafeteria Duty Detail, Hauling Rice

Hello, Company Commander!

Suddenly, the veterans' expressions changed.

They hurriedly tossed the cigarette butt onto the ground and saluted the person coming through the doorway.

Zhou Kaidong flinched, quickly turning his head away.

Sure enough, Gao Feng was grinning without humor, standing behind him like a ghost.

Damn it, the Company Commander never uses the restroom here, so why the sudden change of habit?

Zhou Kaidong saluted nervously, "Hello, Company Commander…"

Gao Feng waved his hand, "Everyone else out, First Platoon Leader stay."

The others immediately filed out like fish in a line, giving him a look that said, "You're in big trouble, may you seek many blessings yourself."

Zhou Kaidong's face was full of embarrassment, and he quickly explained, "Company Commander, I didn't mean that, what I meant was…"

Gao Feng raised his hand to interrupt, "Let me correct one mistake: the New Recruit Company isn't run by my family, and the assignment of the lower company isn't decided by me alone."

"My role as the New Recruit Company Company Commander is only to draft the personnel list; the specifics still require the Regiment Commander's signature and approval, it's not that anyone can pick whoever they want."

"If I were truly that awesome, I wouldn't be here as your Company Commander, I'd be your Deputy Battalion Commander."

"Yes, yes, yes!"

Zhou Kaidong nodded repeatedly, but inwardly he was underestimating.

Who doesn't know that New Recruit Company Company Commanders always get the best opportunities first.

They prioritize snatching all the promising recruits for their own old unit, picking the best batch first before anyone else gets a turn.

Every year the Regiment holds new training, and many Company Commanders vie to become the New Recruit Company Company Commander, just to secure more good soldiers for themselves.

After all, the quality of the recruits assigned to the lower company determines the future strength of the unit, so everyone wants the best seedlings.

"When I arrived, I saw the soldiers in your squad; even without supervision they could train on their own."

"Ding Tengfei, that soldier, seems to be gradually integrating into the group and being accepted by everyone."

"That's good; we need to keep moving in that direction. You may go out."

"Yes."

Zhou Kaidong had just turned around when the Company Commander called him again.

"Did you bring cigarettes?"

"I did."

"Xiao Su? Isn't there a better one?"

Zhou Kaidong's eyelids twitched; it seemed the Company Commander had been there all along, eavesdropping from the wall outside!

He quickly pulled out the remaining Hua cigarettes; after Gao Feng took one and lit it, he shoved the rest into his pocket.

"From now on, no casual gambling, and no cigarettes either; this won't happen again."

Zhou Kaidong was also stunned; there was no benefit to be gained, so when told to confiscate, he did.

The Company Commander was a bit too scheming; if I weren't a soldier of their unit, I'd be constantly tormented.

Coming out of the restroom, he saw from a distance the Third Squad recruits training autonomously on the weapons training field, which made Zhou Kaidong feel very gratified.

They could go from each resisting training and finding ways to slack off, to voluntarily training when no one is watching.

Isn't that also a kind of progress?

These kids are being subtly transformed by the unit, little by little.

From a civilian youth, they gradually become like soldiers, eventually becoming true soldiers.

First Platoon Leader, it's your squad's turn for a duty detail; send two to the Cafeteria to help.

During training, the duty officer ran over to announce, and Zhou Kaidong immediately selected two.

Lu Yang, Ding Tengfei, fall out.

You two, go on a duty detail.

Yes.

Lu Yang left the formation and headed toward the Cafeteria together with Ding Tengfei.

A System Light Screen popped up ahead, providing a brief knowledge supplement.

【Detected new knowledge point: duty detail!】

【Knowledge point analysis: In the unit, a duty detail does not mean going out, but being assigned by officers to work for the collective. Tasks include cleaning, procurement, errands, weeding, etc.】

Although there was no double experience bonus, Lu Yang was still pleased to encounter something new.

At first, Ding Tengfei thought a duty detail meant going out, and he was excited for a while.

But after hearing Lu Yang's explanation, he immediately lost interest.

He hates work the most; he doesn't want to do any squad tasks, let alone work for the collective.

Entering the Cafeteria, Lu Yang and the other looked around, and no veteran came to assign them specific tasks.

"Hey, you two, why are you standing there like idiots?"

"Come with me!"

The two hurriedly followed him into the alley behind the Cafeteria.

An Iveco truck used for Cafeteria procurement was parked nearby, carrying at least forty or fifty bags of rice.

The mess sergeant who brought them, Liu Cheng, was a two‑armed Senior Private who spoke with an arrogant air.

"Your task is to unload all the rice, flour, oil, and fruits and vegetables from the truck and neatly store them in the Warehouse."

"Just the two of us?"

Ding Tengfei, hearing so much work, immediately became displeased.

After moving all that, won't we be exhausted to death?

This is still worse than going back to the playground to train; at least we could rest halfway.

"With so much stuff, when do we have to move it?"

"When you move it is your concern; after it's finished, pinch the rice again."

"Later, pinch the rice—how do you pinch rice?"

"Heh, fold the blankets the way you pinch the rice; it must be square and orderly, like bricks placed neatly along the wall. Hurry up!"

Having said that, Liu Cheng pretended to roll up his sleeves, glanced at the non‑existent watch on his wrist, and only then left with his hands behind his back.

In the unit, not only the blankets had to be square; the rice and the rags also had to be perfect squares.

Even the snowmen built in the snow had to be square.

But this added a huge workload for Lu Yang and the others, since there were dozens of bags of rice here.

When that person walked away, Ding Tengfei spat, "What a damn fool; he's only served a year longer than us, pointing and acting like an officer. I really want to slap both of them on the ears!"

Lu Yang rarely stands on the same side as Ding Tengfei, because he feels the same way.

The cook earlier spoke in a tone that was truly annoying, always with an air of superiority.

In the unit, there are always some guys who, having served two extra years, try to dominate the rookies to find a sense of importance.

This guy is clearly used to being ordered around in the kitchen; when he meets a rookie, he instantly puffs himself up and treats them as soft targets.

Fortunately, the system indicated that during the moving process, arm strength and waist strength could be enhanced, which steadied Lu Yang's mind a bit.

But he didn't expect that, in the middle of the work, this guy showed up again.

Holding a thermos, he stood at the side as a supervisor, constantly gesturing and nagging.

Even though the two of them were busy without a break, they were still accused of slacking, of not arranging the stacks neatly, and of handling the fruit and vegetables roughly.

They even said that if later the fruits or vegetables got damaged, they'd have to settle the accounts with them.

At this point, even the usually good‑tempered Lu Yang couldn't stand it any longer and, in anger, flung a bag of rice at his feet.

"You do it!"?