Chapter 15: Going This Hard Right from the Start?

Evening had fallen.

The soldiers had just finished training. It was time to eat and rest.

“Qin Yuan, I’ve realized—I’m really growing more and more fond of you,” Fan Tianlei said with a beaming smile, his admiration heartfelt.

Qin Yuan raised an eyebrow upon hearing this.

“You old flirt!” he thought.

“Hold on, Chief of Staff, I’m not into men!” Qin Yuan said, utterly speechless as he glanced at him.

“Hey, Qin Yuan, don’t get me wrong. What I mean is, your performance has truly surprised me. As a leader, I have high hopes for your future!” Fan Tianlei quickly cleared his throat and explained, then added, “Come on, I’m taking you somewhere to eat something delicious!”

Fan Tianlei had Qin Yuan drive straight to the regiment commander’s office.

The guards were startled to see Fan Tianlei arrive and promptly prepared to salute.

After all, Fan Tianlei was a colonel in the army.

The saying goes: higher rank crushes all.

In the military, the hierarchy and discipline were even stricter.

Fan Tianlei smiled and motioned for the guards not to speak.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Without hesitation, he knocked loudly on Kang Lei’s door.

“Who is it?” came a suspicious voice from inside.

As expected!

In the Iron Fist Regiment, Kang Lei was the big boss.

No one had dared to bang on his office door until now.

Click.

Fan Tianlei pushed the door open, a broad smile on his face. “Haha… Old Kang, I knew you’d be in here!”

“Huh? Chief of Staff?” Kang Lei was delighted to see Fan Tianlei. He immediately stood up and saluted him. “Old Fan, you busy man, what brings you here? Ah, surely not just to pay me a visit, right?”

Fan Tianlei chuckled. “Alright, alright, don’t be so formal with me. I did come with a purpose. Let’s talk over dinner!”

“Haha, sounds good! Let’s eat and chat!” Kang Lei’s smile was radiant.

For a subordinate to receive a visit from a senior officer was a great honor.

On the third floor of the military district canteen, Fan Tianlei deliberately ordered some of the more expensive stir-fry dishes.

First, it was to welcome Qin Yuan properly.

Second, it was to make Kang Lei, who was notoriously stingy, loosen his purse strings a little and get used to it.

After all, in a while, his Wolf Fang Special Forces Brigade would be coming to the Iron Fist Regiment to recruit men.

Sure enough, when Kang Lei saw the dishes Fan Tianlei ordered, his face darkened, turning a rather unpleasant shade.

“Chief of Staff, with this kind of order, you’re really trying to bleed me dry!” Kang Lei finally could not hold back and voiced his pain.

“Haha, Old Kang, I only come here once or twice a year. Don’t you want to make a good impression?”

Fan Tianlei laughed off Kang Lei’s reaction, showing no concern. “Besides, I didn’t come just to enjoy these delicious dishes. I brought two bottles of good wine!”

Fan Tianlei smiled and gave Qin Yuan a knowing glance.

Qin Yuan immediately brought over two wine boxes wrapped in black plastic bags.

Unwrapping them revealed two bottles of premium Fenjiu!

“Oh my! Chief of Staff, you come here and bring such fine wine?” Kang Lei’s eyes sparkled as he eagerly took one bottle, examining it from top to bottom.

“Wow, this bottle must be worth several hundred yuan, right?” Kang Lei scanned the room excitedly, sighing in admiration.

Compared to the expensive wine, the meal in front of him was hardly worth mentioning.

Especially since there were two bottles!

Fan Tianlei smiled magnanimously and waved his hand. “I knew you liked this kind of thing, so when I come to visit my old subordinates, I can’t just bring cheap wine, can I?”

Kang Lei’s face instantly brightened. Carefully, he tried to open the packaging. “Haha, I knew the Chief of Staff cared about us! Today, I truly feel it again! Chief, just because of these two bottles of Fenjiu, no matter what orders you give in the future, I, Kang Lei, will do my best to carry them out! If I can’t, I’ll go through fire and water to accomplish them!”

Faced with such fine wine—especially brought by Fan Tianlei—Kang Lei was utterly unabashed and spoke with generosity.

“You kid, I knew you’d react like this when you saw good wine,” Fan Tianlei chuckled.

As the gourmet dishes began to arrive, the two old comrades chatted heartily after a long time apart.

Qin Yuan, meanwhile, remained detached, focusing on savoring the canteen’s stir-fry.

Not bad at all.

After seven days in the XG, living like an emperor with delicacies and fine wines every day, now the simple stir-fry tasted surprisingly delicious.

After three rounds of drinks, Fan Tianlei and Kang Lei had finished one bottle of wine.

Qin Yuan helped open the second bottle.

“Old Kang, I came to see you today partly to catch up, but mainly because of him, Qin Yuan!” Fan Tianlei’s face was flushed, having drunk half a catty of baijiu, invigorated and spirited.

“Oh? Because of him? This young brother?” Under the influence of the alcohol, Kang Lei relaxed his military demeanor and took on the role of an elder statesman.

“That’s right! Old Kang, Qin Yuan is no ordinary recruit! I spent a hefty price to get him enlisted. Now, I’m giving you one month to help him get familiar with military protocols and etiquette. Within a month, I want you to train him into a real soldier. Can you do it?”

“One month?” Kang Lei immediately frowned. “Chief of Staff, no one may know my skills in leading troops, but surely you do. One month? You’re really underestimating me! Give me half a month at most, and I’ll have him fully trained into a soldier!”

“Haha, good! Then I look forward to your performance!” Fan Tianlei laughed heartily, having been waiting for Kang Lei to say just that.

Both men were seasoned drinkers.

Two bottles of baijiu—just over two catties.

After finishing the wine, their faces neither flushed nor altered, their steps remained steady.

In the end, Kang Lei assigned Qin Yuan to the Sharpshooter Fourth Company and arranged for him to report to Gong Jian at 7 a.m. the next day.

As for the night? Qin Yuan was to sleep directly in Fan Tianlei’s office.

At first light, Qin Yuan set off alone, driving to the Sharpshooter Fourth Company.

“Ding dong~”

At that moment, a clear system notification sounded.

Qin Yuan raised an eyebrow. What now? Was the system about to issue a mission?

After a few days of interaction, Qin Yuan had grown somewhat accustomed to the system’s alerts.

“Ding dong~ System mission released: Achieve first place in the upcoming 30-kilometer armed cross-country race. Success will unlock a new skill slot!”

“Holy crap… 30 kilometers armed cross-country?” Qin Yuan’s eyes widened.

“Starting off with something this brutal?”

“But… with my physical condition… there’s no way my body can handle 30 kilometers of armed cross-country!” Qin Yuan found himself deeply troubled.