If it were a month ago, Chen Rong would have thought no one could possibly hit that coin.
But now, he would only blame his own poor marksmanship.
Because Lu Senbao had personally demonstrated it to him at least three times! And every single time, he hit the coin with ease!
Chen Rong no longer had any doubts about his squad deputy's claim to being a sniping god. As his own shooting skills gradually improved, Lu Senbao's marksmanship seemed all the more unfathomable in his eyes!
Even if he cheated by doubling his marksmanship skill index, it still couldn't match Lu Senbao! Chen Rong had already tried this in secret.
Just like his squad leader, Ma Shouliang.
To this day, Chen Rong was still no match for Lu Senbao in actual combat, and against Ma Shouliang, Lu Senbao would be dealt with in a single slap...
He had been in the logistics squad for almost half a year now. If Chen Rong still thought his squad leader and squad deputy were just two ordinary non-commissioned officers, he would have lived these two lifetimes in vain.
Hoo!
Chen Rong let out a long breath, shook off the distracting thoughts in his mind, and began to aim with complete concentration.
"Find the pattern of the target's movement, imagine the bullet's flight trajectory, and seize the exact point where they intersect!" Recalling Lu Senbao's words in his mind, Chen Rong controlled the muzzle to move within a millimeter-level range.
Bang!
A gunshot rang out.
Lu Senbao immediately stood up and raised his binoculars.
In the lens, the coin had vanished, leaving only a thin string swaying in the wind.
"Not bad, you've finally grasped the basics." Lu Senbao curved the corners of his mouth and patted his backside. "Let's go, time to head back and eat. Old Ma is still waiting for us!"
......
......
"Old Fu, come over and have a bite with us!" At the entrance of the logistics squad quarters, Lu Senbao called out to Fu Xiaohong, who was just coming out of his room.
Fu Xiaohong smiled. "I still have to go back to have a gathering with my guys. You guys hurry inside and try my cooking!"
"Thanks, Squad Leader Xiaohong!" Knowing that Fu Xiaohong had cooked several dishes himself tonight, Chen Rong quickly expressed his gratitude.
Fu Xiaohong waved his hand and headed back to the dog kennel unit.
Chen Rong stepped inside. Five or six substantial dishes were already set out on the table, sending out an appetizing aroma.
In the food basin on the floor, several large chunks of beef and a whole roast chicken had been placed, and Xiao Heizi was sitting nearby, looking on with eager eyes.
"You're back? Let's eat!" Ma Shouliang smiled as he arranged the cups and chopsticks, looking over at Lu Senbao. "A-Bao, bring out your good liquor!"
"You got it!" Lu Senbao immediately took two bottles of white liquor out of the cabinet, ripped off the packaging in a flash, and poured three large glasses to the brim.
Today was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and it was also Chen Rong's last day experiencing the life of a combat squad. Starting tomorrow, teams participating in the grand competition would begin moving into the base one after another.
"Come on, bottoms up!"
"Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!"
"Cheers!"
"Woof woof!"
This was Chen Rong's first time drinking strong white liquor. Hearing Lu Senbao call out for a toast, he tilted his head back and drank the entire glass in one go.
"Cough, cough..."
A burning, spicy sensation rushed straight into his nasal cavity, immediately making him cough until tears streamed down his face.
Ma Shouliang and Lu Senbao looked at each other in dismay—this kid was really too honest.
"That's not how you drink liquor! You have to take it slow. Quick, eat a piece of meat to settle it!" Ma Shouliang picked up a sparerib and put it in Chen Rong's bowl.
Lu Senbao blinked at Chen Rong. "Twenty-year-old Baiyunbian. How about it, got some kick?"
"Spicy!" Chen Rong panted heavily and hurriedly started gnawing on the sparerib.
"Heh! You're just not used to drinking yet. Later on, you'll know how good it tastes!" Lu Senbao raised his glass and clinked it with Ma Shouliang's again.
Ma Shouliang glanced at Xiao Heizi, who was quietly devouring its meal, and said to Chen Rong, "I just told Fu Xiaohong, starting tomorrow, Xiao Heizi will stay with the dog kennel unit for a while and come back after the competition is over."
Xiao Heizi raised its head, looked around at everyone, and seeing that all their expressions were normal, lowered its head and went right back to eating.
"Yes!" Chen Rong nodded.
"You've used up all your bullets too, haven't you? How do you feel about these past few months?" Ma Shouliang asked with a smile.
"I feel it's been extremely fulfilling, and I've made huge progress!"
Lu Senbao smiled. "Huge progress? Right now, probably none of the soldiers who enlisted the same year as you can compare to you!"
Chen Rong poured himself another glass of liquor, stood up, and said, "Squad Leader, Squad Deputy, thank you for your guidance over the past few months. I'd like to propose a toast to you both!"
Ma Shouliang quickly said, "Just take a tiny sip, don't go gulping it all down straight like before!"
"Hahaha!"
amid laughter and cheers, the three men and one dog spent their very own Mid-Autumn Festival right here in this base.
Chen Rong, experiencing alcohol for the first time, was soon drunk. He vaguely remembered that before climbing into bed, Ma Shouliang had handed him some kind of box and given him a few parting instructions.
"Little Rongrong's got game, drinking over half a jin on his first time!"
"How's his sniping coming along?"
"Not bad, pretty much the same as me back in the day."
Amidst the sound of the two men chatting, Chen Rong drifted into a deep sleep.
......
......
At six o'clock the next morning, Chen Rong opened his eyes right on time. The first thing he saw by his bedside was a medical kit and a medic's arm patch.
He vaguely remembered that Squad Leader Ma Shouliang had handed these to him last night.
Giving his head a vigorous shake, Chen Rong finally remembered what this medical kit was for.
Ma Shouliang had told him last night that once people moved into the base, everything within the base during their stay would be managed by the incoming units.
During this upcoming all-army grand competition, their logistics squad only needed to handle some simple logistical support work.
Ma Shouliang's task for Chen Rong was for him to act as the base medic during this period. He was to wander around the training grounds when he had nothing to do, and if he found anyone suffering from heatstroke or injuries, he was to hand out Huoxiang Zhengqi liquid, Band-Aids, and the like.
Figuring everything out, Chen Rong tiptoed out of bed. In the room, Ma Shouliang and Lu Senbao were still fast asleep. Without waking them up, Chen Rong changed into his physical training uniform and went out for his morning run alone.
With the entire summer past, morning physical fitness and combat training had already become second nature to him.
"Starting today, the base is going to get lively!" Chen Rong looked at Xiao Heizi trotting along beside him and said with a smile, "You'll stay with the dog kennel unit for a while, and take the chance to work out with the military dogs."
Woof!
Xiao Heizi seemed to understand Chen Rong's words and let out a bark in response.
After finishing his training, Chen Rong took another tour around the base. Confirming that nothing needed maintenance, he headed back.
Ma Shouliang and Lu Senbao had already finished washing up and were cleaning the rooms.
Chen Rong tidied up briefly and took Xiao Heizi over to the dog kennel unit. By now, Xiao Heizi had grown quite familiar with the military dogs; all its initial stiffness was gone, and it swaggered from kennel to kennel to greet them.
The military dogs in the kennels didn't even deign to look at it straight, but their attitude toward Chen Rong was exceptionally good. Whenever Chen Rong passed a kennel, the military dogs inside would stand up and wag their tails at him.
Chen Rong had also noticed long ago that as his beast taming skill index continued to increase, these military dogs had become more and more docile in his presence.
"Squad Leader Xiaohong, I'll leave Xiao Heizi with you for now!" Chen Rong said to Fu Xiaohong while picking up his meal.
"No problem at all, we've got plenty of empty kennels. You can rest easy!" Fu Xiaohong readily agreed. "I'll have Xiao Heizi join the military dogs for training later."
After breakfast, Chen Rong attached the medic's arm patch to his shoulder, slung the medical kit over his back, and followed Ma Shouliang and Lu Senbao to the main gate.
Two teams participating in the grand competition were arriving today: personnel from the 1st Mobile Division and the Chuanyu Corps. Ma Shouliang and the others were responsible for assigning their quarters.
Around nine o'clock, a troop transport truck arrived first.
"Chen Rong! How are things over here, are you getting used to it?"
The vehicle came to a stop, and a non-commissioned officer stepped out from the passenger seat. It was none other than Liu Chuan, Chen Rong's recruit platoon squad leader.
"Doing great, Squad Leader!" Chen Rong replied with a smile.
"Old Ma is here too! Oh, A-Bao! You finally decided you could tear yourself away from the hospital?" Liu Chuan greeted them warmly.
"Is our division completely out of people? How come every time there's a competition, you show up?" Lu Senbao slanted a glance at Liu Chuan, but just as he was about to say more, his expression suddenly shifted, and he quickly snapped to attention and saluted.
"Good day, Captain!"