Chapter 16: Ants!

“One, two, three, four!”
“One, two, three, four!”
...
The soldiers were running drills!
Their spirited chants echoed ceaselessly!

Qin Yuan stood alone by the roadside, carrying the package that Fan Tianlei had prepared for him.

After a moment, a tall, slender captain and a scowling, stout man approached briskly.

The captain was none other than Instructor Gong Jian of the Iron Fist Regiment!
The stout man with the dark expression was Sergeant Lao Hei!

Lao Hei complained with a troubled look as they walked, “Gong Jian, what do you think the regiment commander is playing at? I heard we’re about to undergo a major evaluation, but he insists on assigning a new recruit to our Fourth Company. Isn’t he deliberately dragging us down?”

Gong Jian frowned slightly. After six months of training together, the veterans and new recruits had begun to mesh well. The moment of truth—the inspection—was imminent.

Yet, now Commander Kang Lei had inserted a new recruit into their Fourth Company, claiming it was a direct order from higher-ups, praising the recruit’s overall excellence.

But as a seasoned soldier, Gong Jian knew better. No matter how outstanding a new recruit might be, how formidable could he truly be? A well-trained veteran could easily handle him. The so-called excellence was usually just a minor edge in some area, nothing more.

“Lao Hei, we must not speculate about higher command’s decisions,” Gong Jian said after a pause, shaking his head. “As soldiers, our duty is to obey orders.”

As the company’s political instructor, Gong Jian’s sense of discipline was unquestionable.

“But, Gong Jian... even from the higher-ups, it’s not fair! One bad apple spoils the bunch. Assigning a new recruit now is a heavy blow, especially to our squad and to us,” Lao Hei lamented deeply.

“One bad apple spoils the bunch?” Gong Jian’s brows shot up, reproving him sternly. “Lao Hei, that’s a serious statement! Once you put on this uniform, we’re one family. There’s no room for judgment.”

Startled, Lao Hei instantly realized his mistake.

“No matter how great a soldier is, he all started as a recruit!” Gong Jian continued sharply, leaving no room for argument. “Lao Hei, the higher-ups sending us a new recruit means they trust our Fourth Company. They believe we can take on the heavy responsibility of training him during this critical time. It’s a weighty task.”

“Lao Hei, don’t say such things again. I won’t tolerate a second time. Understand?”

“What we need to do now,” Gong Jian said firmly, “is assess the recruit’s physical and skill attributes, then teach him according to his abilities. We must integrate him into the Fourth Company family as quickly as possible.”

“Alright, alright, I was just venting, don’t mind me,” Lao Hei said sheepishly, quickly backing down.

Gong Jian smiled. “That’s the spirit. Actually, your concerns are understandable. Bringing in a new recruit suddenly will affect your squad’s performance, no doubt. But there are other ways to handle it. If we want to avoid impacting the evaluation scores, it’s simple.”

“Oh? Instructor Gong, you already have a plan?” Lao Hei’s eyes lit up, his frown vanishing in an instant.

At that moment, the two of them approached Qin Yuan.

Gong Jian’s eyes brightened upon seeing him.

A slightly youthful yet handsome face, an unusual aura of nobility radiating from head to toe.

Tall and upright in posture.

This was the new recruit?

Judging by appearances alone, he could easily join the honor guard!

No denying it—Qin Yuan’s presence was truly remarkable, his looks exceptional.

He was clearly no ordinary man.

Even Gong Jian considered revising his plan.

“You must be Qin Yuan?” Gong Jian’s gaze shone with interest.

Looking beyond the surface, he sensed that Qin Yuan had something special.

“Reporting, sir! Recruit Qin Yuan, here to report!”

Qin Yuan’s eyes lit up upon seeing them; he gave a crisp military salute and spoke loudly.

He hadn’t expected to be met by Gong Jian and Lao Hei.

He had a good impression of both men.

“Good, very good!” Gong Jian was pleased by Qin Yuan’s demeanor. Then, turning to Lao Hei, he introduced, “Recruit, welcome to the Sharpshooter’s Fourth Company. This man will be your squad leader from now on—you can call him Sergeant Lao Hei. Why don’t you greet your squad leader?”

“Greetings, Sergeant!” Qin Yuan smiled calmly, nodded, and returned the salute.

Lao Hei, having just received a stern talk from Gong Jian, dared not slack off in front of the only new recruit.

“Hello, recruit! I’ll be your squad leader. If you have any questions or difficulties, feel free to ask me!” Lao Hei smiled, reassured by Qin Yuan’s arrival.

“Come on, Qin Yuan. I’ll take you to our company now,” Gong Jian said with a smile, leading the way. “Our Sharpshooter Fourth Company is the strongest in the Iron Fist Regiment. It’s a cradle for countless snipers—the finest soldiers of the entire regiment are here. Every soldier in the Fourth Company takes pride in serving here. Joining us is a great honor…”

Along the way, Gong Jian boasted shamelessly.

Qin Yuan could only laugh and shake his head.

He never expected Gong Jian to be so vain.

The three of them stopped at the training ground of the Fourth Company.

“Qin Yuan, since you’re a new recruit, we don’t know much about your physical condition or skills. So we need to do a preliminary evaluation,” Gong Jian said earnestly.

“According to Commander Kang, you’re extremely outstanding. You were personally recommended by the leader of the Wolf Fang Special Operations Brigade. So we’ve decided to test your limits. Hope you don’t mind,” Gong Jian said, signaling to Lao Hei.

Lao Hei immediately understood—Gong Jian had been waiting for Qin Yuan here. They were an old team.

If they were going to test him, of course they’d pick the best soldiers from the Fourth Company to compete against Qin Yuan.

Otherwise, if a new recruit outperformed them, the Fourth Company would lose face completely.

Lao Hei strode off to find He Chenguang and Wang Yanbing, two outstanding new recruits running drills.

“Hope I don’t mind?” Qin Yuan raised an eyebrow.

Gong Jian’s words were a veiled challenge, forcing him to accept.

But Qin Yuan had no intention of refusing.

He sensed this “test” might be the 30-kilometer cross-country mission issued by the system.

He intended to complete the task and earn the reward.

Now, he just wondered how he could quickly improve his physical fitness.

Just then—

Amid the grass on the ground, a small army of ants crawled leisurely by.

Qin Yuan’s eyes brightened. “They say ants can carry 400 times their own weight. What if I captured one in my inventory? What would happen then?”