Chapter 20: Preparation for Regimental Assessment

"Squad Leader, do you have any coarse salt?"

Lao Ma, wearing a bellyband made from a door curtain, looked at Feng Yuxiu in surprise.

This soldier had been here for more than two months, getting up at four o'clock every day and not knowing where he went, coming only at meal times.

"Xu Sanduo, although this is the Gobi Desert, it is still the army. What does the army want? Discipline."

Feng Yuxiu said coldly, "Discipline? You guys do nothing but sleep or get up to play cards, and you're talking to me about discipline?"

Lao Ma was speechless for a moment; he had completely thrown He Hongtao's warning to the back of his mind.

Inertia wasn't like defecating; you couldn't just discard it by exerting force.

"Then what do you need coarse salt for? You've already taken three bags in these two months." Lao Ma's voice was a little lower.

Feng Yuxiu didn't speak, walked to the kitchen on his own, shouldered a bag of coarse salt, and walked out.

Lao Ma put down the rag and walked outside the dormitory door.

The sky full of yellow sand had turned this place into a desolate silence.

He cupped his hands in his sleeves and slowly squatted in the corner of the wall.

"Pair of 8s!" This was Li Meng's voice.

"Pair of Js! Hehe, beat you by one." Lao Wei said in a muffled voice.

"Don't want it, pass, pass." Xue Lin, with a cigarette in his mouth, said vaguely.

"Where's the squad leader? What's he hiding in the kitchen for? Not studying his bridge?" Li Meng asked.

"Don't know. Ever since the instructor left last time, he hasn't touched bridge. Don't know what he's thinking about." Xue Lin threw down his cards and said helplessly.

"I'm very panicked with the squad leader like this. It's like the squad leader has fallen; someone is missing." Lao Wei also had no heart to play.

"What about that lonely person?" Li Meng looked at the two of them.

"Who knows? He doesn't talk to us all day. He gets up earlier than a chicken, and last night he didn't even come back. Don't know where he slept."

Outside the door, Lao Ma, who was squatting in the corner, slowly stood up.

His expression became resolute, "That's right, I can't go on drifting like this!"

Bang!

The rusty dormitory iron door was kicked open.

"Yo, Squad Leader is here? We're one short, hurry up and sit!" Li Meng tore off the paper strip on his face and hurriedly made room.

"You all intend to drift like this? You all intend to drift through the days? Huh?!" Lao Ma's expression was gloomy, his voice deafening.

The three of them looked at each other.

Lao Wei laughed, walked up to Lao Ma, "It's not that, Squad Leader. You lost last night, and you cooking for us today is the punishment. Why are you changing your face again?"

"All drifting through the days, huh? All drifting!"

Lao Ma turned and rushed out.

He Hongtao's parting words kept ringing in his ears.

"Xu Sanduo is a potential soldier king, it's just that his shooting is no good. Helping him is helping yourself! Lao Ma, don't let yourself walk away."

For some people, making a decision happens in an instant.

Saying you won't smoke after years of smoking, and not touching it the next day.

This kind of sudden whim happened to Lao Ma.

The decadent aura on him was blown away by the yellow sand. The environment couldn't be changed; it had been like this for how many years.

But a person's concept could be changed.

Leaving this place and changing the environment—wasn't the environment changed?

Lao Ma circled around and searched a three-kilometer radius.

He just couldn't see any trace of Feng Yuxiu.

On the loess slope, Lao Ma narrowed his eyes, "30KG bag of coarse salt. Is his physical strength really that good? Can he run this far?"

At this moment, cold sweat broke out on Lao Ma's forehead.

There were no people here.

If this soldier had an accident and died somewhere.

Or if he walked too far and accidentally fell into some ravine and fainted.

This would be a major demerit for the Red Third Company.

Not training, not performing, and a person guarding the pipeline is gone.

There was no way to explain it.

"This kid, what on earth is he doing?"

Lao Ma's face turned pale, he caught his breath, and continued to walk forward.

Finally, he found something in a ravine ten kilometers away.

A rectangular trough built from old wooden boards and rubble.

It was even covered with a wooden board to prevent wind and sand from blowing in.

Inside were water bottles, dry steamed buns, and some quilts and clothes.

He picked up the clothes and looked carefully; this was the military quilt issued by the Red Third Company.

When he walked out of the ravine and looked from three meters away, his whole person felt bad.

From this direction, this was a coffin.

"What on earth does this kid want to do? Is he here to be a soldier?"

Lao Ma felt a bit hair-raising.

——

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!"

Feng Yuxiu folded his whole body into a spherical shape, his chest rising and falling constantly, and his whole body's bones made crisp cracking sounds.

His arms, thighs, and cheeks were all rubbed with blood streaks by the coarse salt.

With a crisp cracking sound of his large bones, his body was slowly stretched out quite a bit.

"Hoo!"

He slowly stood up, his chest rising and falling constantly, exhaling a faint hot breath.

"Three months of recruit training, forging day and night, finally considered an entry."

The calluses on the web of his hands had accumulated several layers.

He stood up, expressionless, walked to a dead tree two feet in diameter, his whole body began to tremble, and his right arm smashed out with a bang.

Boom!

The dead tree, which had been smashed for more than two months, broke completely.

Then he picked up a wooden stick and continued to practice.

In his previous life, he almost died at the hands of a sword master.

If it hadn't been for that master having no killing intent, he would have been stabbed to death long ago.

In this life, he must forge himself into a well-rounded master.

When night fell, Feng Yuxiu buried himself in the yellow soil, closed his eyes, and breathed rhythmically with his chest.

The most important thing in practicing martial arts is endurance; whoever runs out of strength first loses.

Three days later, the water bottles and dry steamed buns he brought were eaten up.

Feng Yuxiu ended his training and walked toward his base.

He lifted the wooden board and narrowed his eyes.

There was a note inside.

"Xu Sanduo, this is the army, you can't be so undisciplined anymore. Tomorrow is the company's assessment for each squad, you must participate! —Squad Leader Lao Ma."

Feng Yuxiu threw away the note, packed his clothes, kicked the wooden board to pieces, and walked toward the Fifth Squad.

The preliminary preparations were perfect. Hong Kong only returned last year.

He still had plenty of time.

According to his current strength, he was definitely not Xiahou Wu's opponent.

He needed further training.

And he also needed to find someone to spar with.

These people in the Fifth Squad who were drifting through the days were definitely not in his consideration.

He had to return to the Steel Seventh Company.

——

Night fell.

Lao Ma stood guard at the Fifth Squad's grassland position, looking at the dark night.

His gaze was no longer constrained or wandering.

After a year of decadent days, he had thoroughly found himself back.

He was a veteran, the best veteran squad leader!

"Hmm? Someone?" Lao Ma's body tensed, holding his long gun aimed at the dark night, "Stop! Password!"

Feng Yuxiu paused, "Moon, return password!"

"Sun!"

Lao Ma's body relaxed. Seeing Feng Yuxiu's face, he couldn't help but shout: "You count as a soldier too? It's been so long, free and undisciplined, where do you look like a soldier!"

Feng Yuxiu put down his pack and said coldly: "Do you?"

Lao Ma was speechless, then continued, "People from the regiment are coming tomorrow. Although this place of ours is bird-doesn't-poop, every assessment must be participated in. You better prepare well."

Feng Yuxiu nodded and walked toward the dormitory.

"Xu Sanduo, I heard your shooting is no good? Do you want to listen to my advice for a night? Don't look at me like this, my shooting used to be ranked in the regiment."

"No need, Squad Leader."

In the dark night, only Lao Ma's gaze watched the dormitory, "What's the use of being able to run? Every assessment must be passing. Looks like I have to show off tomorrow, otherwise this kid won't respect me!" ===== CHAPTER 21 =====