Chapter 367: When the Heart Holds the Sea, Everywhere Is Maldives

"The order has officially been issued; take a look."

Early the next morning, in the Sixth Company office.

Lu Yang took the folder Ma Qing'an handed over, opened it, and found a red‑header document.

It is an official written document adapting to the Navy, with a deadline marked at the top.

In other words, they have less than four days left before officially leaving Iron Foot and heading to that new environment.

Four days later, they will no longer be Army soldiers but Navy soldiers.

Ma Qing'an unusually pulled a pack of Huazi cigarettes from his pocket; the packaging was still unopened, clearly fresh.

He lit one for himself, then tossed one to He Zhen Tao: "I've known this for a while, but the moment the order came down officially, my feelings are still mixed; before it seemed the days dragged, now they seem to fly by?"

He Zhen Tao also lit his cigarette: "I've only been here a year, and I'm already reluctant to leave, let alone you."

Ma Qing'an, holding his cigarette, let his gaze drift aimlessly around the office.

The once‑ordinary tables, chairs, cabinets, embroidered flags, and walls now seemed to have something to say.

He reached out to stroke the battered old desk before him, sighed through his nose: "I still can't let go, I just can't."

Lu Yang stood there without speaking, quietly watching the two senior officers reflect.

He knew they had summoned him only to vent their lingering reluctance, and there must be something else.

He was accustomed to getting work done first and thinking about other matters later; after all, it was still early morning, unsuitable for such gloom.

Ma Qing'an pulled him to sit: "Sit, don't just stand there, you're blocking my sunlight."

He Zhen Tao: "Lu Yang, there are a few things I want to discuss with you."

"Hmm."

Lu Yang nodded seriously.

Ma Qing'an scratched the top of his head with the hand holding his cigarette: "The adaptive training has been going on for a while, and everyone's performed well. But the Instructor and I still feel something's missing."

"There are only four days left; to secure our footing in the Navy later, shouldn't we make one final push?"

"Anyway, no matter how hard or tiring, it's just a few days."

He Zhen Tao added: "Old Ma means, is there any method more efficient than the land swimming device?"

"It's a last‑minute kick; even a hurried cramming can help a bit."

"After all, everyone knows real Navy training won't be as 'messy' as ours."

Lu Yang: "Regarding that, I've actually thought about it. I was planning to report to you this afternoon, but the higher‑up order arrived first. Though there are still four days, the sprint training is already sufficient."

Ma Qing'an smiled: "Since you have a plan, you don't need to go through us; just get started."

"I, as Company Commander, am about to finish my term anyway; during these four days, the Sixth Company is yours to run."

He Zhen Tao agreed: "That's what I mean—consider it a commander‑in‑training card. For the last four days, do whatever you like. No matter the result, even if you spend the four days playing with everyone, we won't blame you."

"Follow your own ideas; don't let the two of us interfere."

Although they spoke in a half‑joking tone, Lu Yang could see pure reluctance in their eyes.

At this point, words of comfort were useless; the ship had already set sail.

All Lu Yang could do was promise to stand his final watch and fulfill the Company Commander's and Instructor's orders with quality and quantity.

"One more thing."

He Zhen Tao said: "According to past practice, the theme of this blackboard bulletin needs to change, it should be new."

"I think the bulletin still has to be posted; it's the face of the company and reflects our spirit."

"You're good at drawing, as usual, so it's yours."

"Content, layout, graphics—design them, and I'll help you; how about it?"

Lu Yang gladly accepted.

Since he transferred to the unit, he's been handling the Sixth Company's bulletin; that's what they call the capable taking on more work.

In the past, unit bulletins were mainly for superior inspections, to echo the spirit call.

Now, the bulletin is for the Sixth Company's own eyes, for peace of mind, to stand the final watch, to have a proper beginning and end.

……

"Whoa, lunch is this good today?"

"Winter melon and pork rib seaweed soup, white‑boiled large shrimp, stir‑fried squid, sweet‑and‑sour fish slices—almost a banquet!"

At noon in the Cafeteria, looking at the sumptuous dishes on the table, the soldiers' mouths watered.

Unlike the nauseating curry set from a few days ago, today's food looked truly appetizing.

Seafood is pricey now, and being inland, they rarely get a chance to eat such things.

Lu Yang explained that this was an early adaptation to the lifestyle of the Navy side.

Hearing that they could eat this well over there got many food lovers excited, and even the afternoon training got a boost.

……

After the meal, the soldiers trained breath‑holding in the water room.

Afterward they moved to the courtyard downstairs, using Lu Yang's invented land swimming device to practice land‑based swimming strokes.

It looked ridiculous, but it was the only option.

There's no pool nearby, and the nearest creek is far from the camp.

With limited funds, this was all they could do.

But unlike before, this time Lu Yang deliberately attached elastic cords to each person's wristband during training.

That meant that when they flailed, their limbs had to exert extra force.

The purpose was simple: improve muscular endurance and increase strength.

"Ready, go."

Lu Yang held the whistle in his mouth and blew.

The soldiers then began swinging their arms left and right.

Because of the added elastic rope, everyone clearly felt an extra layer of resistance, making the difficulty several times greater than before.

But as the difficulty increased, Lu Yang's demands became stricter, and he even began correcting everyone's swimming posture.

Only four days left; grit your teeth and persevere, and you will reap more in the future and take deeper root.

Fortunately, everyone could also understand his good intentions, so they were very cooperative during training.

During breaks between sets, everyone was panting from exhaustion; the same land-based equipment training, with the elastic rope added, was more than three times as difficult as before.

At that moment, two trucks slowly drove in from the distance and came to the outside of the field.

Everyone seeing this was utterly puzzled.

"Please watch out, reversing; please watch out, reversing!"

"Reverse, reverse, reverse, yes, this way, exactly here!"

After the demonic brainwashing reverse sound, two truckloads of sand were dumped onto the track.

Lu Yang blew the assembly whistle, gathered everyone, and announced the upcoming training content.

"In a moment, use shovels and big brooms to spread this sand as evenly as possible on the track."

"Why is this?"

"We'll do physical training and drills here for the next few days."

Kang Changyi suddenly understood: "Oh, I get it—treat this as half a sea training field!"

Lu Yang snapped his fingers: "Smart! Now everyone, take off your shirts, go barefoot to feel what it's like to run drills on a beach; those who like to go naked, don't be shy—let loose now!"

"Hahaha!"

Everyone laughed together; even Ma Qing'an and He Zhen Tao, standing at the entrance of the liaison department, smiled.

It seems no matter when, this kid Lu Yang always helps steady the situation and always comes up with various clever ideas.

He Zhen Tao looked emotional: "This is what they call, 'with the sea in your heart, everywhere is the Maldives!'"