Chapter 541: He is indifferent to fame and wealth, always low‑key

"I really envy you, being able to serve behind Yang Ge."

"Back when we were on the island, we received a lot of his support......"

As soon as Jiang Dahai finished speaking, Kang Changyi quickly raised his hand to stop him.

"Hold on, hold on, let me sort this out."

"What's up?"

"You mean Lu Yang also trained on this island?"

"Yes."

"When was that?"

"Hmm, you look a bit familiar—did you come to the island before and deliver supplies for us?"

"Right."

"At that stage, he was there."

When that was said, many present were startled.

Finally we understood where Lu Yang went during those two months when he vanished from the Army to the Navy.

It turned out he was secretly training on the isolated island with the people of Jiao Long, no wonder he knows the island so well.

No wonder his personal aura changed and rose so much, as if he became a different person.

Thinking back to his fierce look during the previous assessment, everyone found it reasonable.

Ding Tengfei had known this in advance, so he didn't show much surprise.

But he noticed that Zhou Kaidong and Guo Yongwen also showed little surprise, clearly having guessed the outcome from some clues.

At Lu Yang's current level, regular Zhencha Daitui can no longer outmatch him; even the elite forces of the former Division's ace Zhencha Daitui were defeated single‑handedly.

Thinking carefully, aside from the military academy, only the Special Forces could offer him further training.

Two short months is unrealistic for attending the academy, so it must be the Special Forces.

Kang Changyi pressed, "Why didn't I run into him on the island back then?"

Jiang Dahai: "His treatment differed from ours; we trained under the instructor, he trained behind the squadron leader. At that time he was rock climbing on the cliff, so not seeing him is normal."

"But later, I guessed you must have seen him, yet didn't recognize him."

"When? How could I not know?"

Zhou Kaidong looked puzzled; if you saw him, how could you not recognize him?

Jiang Dahai grinned and pointed, "Back then he was caught by the squadron leader, tied up and hung on a tree, whipped; hanging there like a drying sausage, very conspicuous."

"Whoa!"

Kang Changyi's face turned pale, and he sprang up from the ground.

So the guy who was hung on the tree and whipped was Lu Yang?

He had brought up this incident in front of Lu Yang several times, even calling him "idiot."

No wonder he always felt inexplicably targeted by Lu Yang; back then he thought Lu Yang was just mentally unstable, a psychopath, rooted in this!

Zhou Kaidong was also stunned: "What? Why did you hang him up? What did he do wrong? Or was it just part of your Special Operations training, doing some reverse interrogation?"

Jiang Dahai laughed and waved his hand: "You didn't train with us, so you don't know—our squadron leader curses without dirty words, each jab hits the lungs; during rock‑climbing training he often peed on the top, threw stones, once even set the rope on fire, leaving us angry but unable to speak."

"That day, Yang Ge tricked him to go down for a demonstration, standing on the cliff edge, pulling out his gun to pee, and the squadron leader drenched him from head to toe."

"Infuriated, they teamed up with instructor Lao Mao, caught him and tied him up; they just hung him on a tree to scare him, never actually harming him."

"Heh, if they dared to move a muscle, each of us would send a denunciation letter, all in blood, to see who could get away with it!"

Sss......

Everyone inhaled sharply.

They turned their heads toward the figure walking toward the mountain top in the distant woods.

Being able to attend Special Forces training is already impressive, but daring to pee on the squadron leader's head—this damn thing is too fierce.

Indeed, they only got his name wrong, never his nickname; wherever Yang Ge goes, they're calling him "bro", even riding on the Special Operations squadron leader's head!

"Then, what happened later?" Ding Tengfei asked.

"Later, during the assessment, he led us to a great achievement."

"He even earned merit—how big was it?"

"He received a personal First‑Class merit, and we got a Second‑Class Collective Merit; the details are confidential, but......"

Tu Hongwei scanned the surroundings, paused, and said, "In terms of danger, difficulty, and impact, it's far greater than what you're experiencing now."

Another gasp echoed, and everyone felt the poor guy was already dead cold.

How many more secrets does Lu Yang still hide, never told them, never let them know?

Being able to earn a personal First‑Class merit and a Second‑Class Collective Merit indicates a far greater danger level.

That must at least rise to the level of territorial sovereignty integrity.

Truly, doing big deeds silently!

Kang Changyi raised his hand and slapped his own face.

Back then, at the Sea Training Base, he thought Lu Yang had already become detached from them, even saying he'd raise the flag himself, and his face slapped with a loud "slap slap slap" sound.

Seeing their expressions, Tu Hongwei was a bit surprised: "What, you didn't know about his meritorious performance?"

"Uh, he never disclosed it, and we were completely unaware."

"It's normal; Yang Ge has always been low‑key."

"I have a question!"

Wu Sida raised his hand and asked, "They're so outstanding; after the training, didn't Jiao Long consider keeping him?"

Xu Ce answered, "He was kept: as Chief of Staff, the battalion commander rotated to take on duties; they even promised him a staff position and a captain's rank, saying that if he stayed, he would receive focused cultivation and even be guaranteed a future squadron‑leader slot."

Everyone's eyes were blazing, their throats dry: "How did he respond?"

Xu Ce: "He flatly refused; he said his comrades are still waiting for him to return, and that someone must shoulder the banner."

Stunned speechless, utter silence!

Who would have thought Lu Yang would refuse so decisively?

This is the staff officer role and key cultivation target of the Jiao Long Special Operations—something countless people yearn for but can't get!

Countless people sharpen their heads just for a chance to join the Jiao Long, yet here before Lu Yang, though it's within reach, they feel no stir at all!

This comradeship is higher than mountains, deeper than seas; if it were them, they'd truly find it hard to emulate Lu Yang, resisting worldly temptations.

To give up such a splendid ascent channel in the Jiao Long, instead choosing to return to a destitute place, starting from scratch with a bunch of people whose skills, talents, and abilities are all relatively limited.

Xu Ce admiringly said: "Clearly there's a shortcut, yet you don't take it, opting for a harder road—just for those former comrades of yours; that's also what I admire most about him."

Tu Hongwei: "Perhaps you don't know what he actually did; but I know how much effort he expended to get you all back together."

I truly envy you, being able to train and live alongside him.

Hey, the Special Forces is no life for a person—better stay away if you can.

I must have been out of my mind, had my head caught in a door, to sign up for that selection.

Jiang Dahai: "Before, we didn't understand Yang Ge's choice, couldn't see it; but now seeing you all, I feel Yang Ge's choice was right, because you deserve it."

However, you still have a long way to catch up to him; right now he's completely slowing his pace, his stride, stopping to wait for you—like someone waiting for a child.

These words provoke deep thought, inspire reflection, and leave everyone feeling ashamed.

At the same time, it let everyone come to know and understand Lu Yang anew.

His stature is so towering, his thought so pure, his conviction so firm.

Lu Yang, for their sake, voluntarily gave up such excellent conditions; they absolutely cannot betray this feeling, must train harder, and repay with their best achievements!

On the mountaintop, Bai Yuan took off his earpiece and lifted his chin at the approaching Lu Yang.

You sure have a lot of tricks up your sleeve?

What's up?

You want my men to go and tell your men about your past glorious deeds?

Hehe~

Lu Yang chuckled hehe and openly admitted: "Putting on airs only carries weight when others say it; if I say it myself, it looks like I'm bragging to them, and they might not believe it."

I'm doing this for their good, indirectly motivating them to improve.

Bai Yuan raised an eyebrow: "I thought you were indifferent to fame and profit, not caring about these empty honors?"

Lu Yang shook his finger: "I'm a vulgar person, vulgar to the core; if I can put on airs, I will; if I can't, I'll create the conditions to do so."

By the way, you called me up—what's the matter?

I'm preparing to launch a surprise interrogation of these two mercenaries to extract upstream leads.

Then hurry up.

But we must first contact superiors, report the current progress, and obtain approval before proceeding; this is a joint operation, so both sides' chiefs must agree, and when I report you'll need to fill in the gaps.

OK, no problem.

Bai Yuan took out a satellite phone and called the Jiao Long Base Operations Command Center.

Lu Yang then turned his gaze toward the shack where those two mercenaries were detained, thinking about how to torture them later to make them talk...