"Yes..." the freshmen shouted weakly.
Under such scorching heat, having to go through high-intensity military training would drain the spirit out of anyone. Hearing the scattered replies, Instructor Li frowned and raised his voice abruptly, "Did you not eat today? You don't even have the strength to shout a single word? I'll ask again, and if you're still this listless, all of you will stand at attention for an hour first!"
"Do you have the confidence?!"
"Yes!!!" The shout was deafening, as no one wanted to stand at attention under the blazing sun for that long.
"Good!" Instructor Li nodded in satisfaction. "Now, platoon instructors, take your squads to train!"
"Sir!"
At the order, the various platoon instructors stepped out and led the freshmen of their respective squads to their designated training grounds.
Lu Huai'an and his group were assigned to the Fifth Platoon. The instructor was a young soldier in his early twenties, short in stature but looking sharp and capable.
"Let me introduce myself first. I am your instructor for the Fifth Platoon. My surname is Ou." Instructor Ou's voice wasn't as booming as Instructor Li's, but it was crisp, decisive, and carried an unquestionable authority.
"From now on, you are my soldiers. I hope that in the training ahead, you will hold yourselves to strict standards, fear neither hardship nor fatigue, and become qualified soldiers. Do you have confidence?"
"Yes!" the freshmen of the Fifth Platoon shouted in unison, their voices much more aligned than before.
"Very well. Now, we will start with standing at attention training," Instructor Ou said. "Squad, attention!"
With a sharp snap, everyone stood bolt upright.
"Heels together, toes apart at an angle of about sixty degrees, legs straight, lower abdomen slightly pulled in, chest naturally out, upper body upright and leaning slightly forward, shoulders level and pulled slightly back, arms naturally hanging at your sides, fingers together and naturally slightly curled, the tip of your thumb touching the second joint of your index finger, middle finger pressed against the seam of your trousers, head upright, neck straight, mouth closed, chin slightly tucked, both eyes looking straight ahead..."
While explaining the key points of the posture, Instructor Ou paced back and forth inspecting the ranks.
"You there, why are you hunching your chest? Head up, chest out, eyes forward!"
"And you, standing like you're taking a walk in the park? Suck that stomach in! Don't slouch like a boiled shrimp!"
"And you, standing with your legs apart—are you trying to do the splits? Put your legs together, don't splay them!"
Instructor Ou's voice echoed continuously across the parade ground. No one dared to move; sweat trickled down their foreheads, itching uncomfortably, but nobody dared to raise a hand to wipe it.
"None of you move! You're hot, and I'm hot too. If you move, report to me. If anyone moves without my permission, well..." A malicious smile crept onto the corner of Instructor Ou's mouth. "...you'll run five laps around the playground!"
"Ah..." A few cries of lament arose from the crowd.
"What 'ah'? Ah again and you'll run ten laps." Instructor Ou's voice was as cold as ice.
Everyone immediately shut their mouths, holding their breath even lighter than before.
Jiang Chuan stood next to Lu Huai'an. His back was already soaked through with sweat, his camouflage uniform sticking to his skin, itchy and extremely uncomfortable.
Unable to help himself, he twitched his shoulders and muttered in a low voice, "Damn, Lao Lu, is this instructor even human? Standing at attention this long in such heat..."
"Don't talk to me, I don't want to run laps." Lu Huai'an's lips moved slightly, his voice squeezed out almost through clenched teeth.
"Hey, where's your human decency..." Before Jiang Chuan could finish, Instructor Ou's voice suddenly exploded in his ear.
"You there, whispering! Yes, you, step out!" Instructor Ou pointed straight at Jiang Chuan and shouted unceremoniously.
Jiang Chuan was stunned. He looked left and right, and realizing the instructor was calling him, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and step forward.
"Instructor, I..." Jiang Chuan wanted to explain, but Instructor Ou gave him no chance at all.
"What 'I'? Whispering while standing at attention, do you have any regard for discipline left?" Instructor Ou raised his volume an octave, making Jiang Chuan's ears ring.
"Report to the instructor, I was wrong!" Jiang Chuan quickly snapped to attention and loudly confessed his fault. He certainly didn't want to actually run laps; in this scorching heat, five laps could cost him half his life.
"Where did you go wrong?" Instructor Ou put his hands on his hips and glared at Jiang Chuan.
"I shouldn't have talked while standing at attention," Jiang Chuan answered honestly with his head lowered.
"And?"
"I... I shouldn't show disrespect to the instructor." Jiang Chuan racked his brains, completely unable to figure out what else he had done wrong.
"Hmph, and the most important point!" Instructor Ou gave a cold snort. "You shouldn't have distracted others! Look at the classmate next to you—he was standing properly until you disturbed him and ruined his posture!"
Lu Huai'an stood in place, unmoving, but inside he was blooming with joy. That'll teach you to have a sharp tongue, now you're getting your karma!
"And you, step out!"
The smile on Lu Huai'an's face froze instantly, and a million imaginary alpacas stampeded through his mind.
"No way, Instructor, this... this has nothing to do with me!" Lu Huai'an wore an innocent expression.
"Has nothing to do with you? Did he talk to you or not?" Instructor Ou wasn't buying any of that.
Lu Huai'an felt utterly wronged. What kind of nonsense was this? Caught in the crossfire while just standing there?
"Instructor, I..." Lu Huai'an still wanted to argue.
"No nonsense, step out!" Instructor Ou's tone left no room for doubt.
Helplessly, Lu Huai'an could only step forward and stand side by side with Jiang Chuan.
"You two, run five laps around the playground for me. Now, immediately, at once!" Instructor Ou pointed at the track without a shred of mercy.
"Everyone else, dismissed for a twenty-minute break."
"Yay!"
"Huh?" While everyone else cheered over the dismissed break, Jiang Chuan and Lu Huai'an let out simultaneous wails.
"What, you have an objection?" Instructor Ou raised an eyebrow.
"N... no." How could the two of them dare to have an objection? They had no choice but to accept their fate and start running laps.
The two of them set off, jogging along the track, while everyone else on the playground—whether still training or resting in the shade—watched the pair running.
Under the blazing sun, sweat quickly soaked through their clothes, sticking clammy and uncomfortably to their bodies.
"Lao Lu, I... I can't go on..." Jiang Chuan panted heavily, feeling as though his lungs were about to explode.
"Hang on... just hold on..." Lu Huai'an was in no better shape, but he gritted his teeth and kept going.
Supporting each other, the two of them inched forward step by step.
"I'm done, I... I'm going to die..." Jiang Chuan plopped down onto the ground, refusing to get up no matter what, completely giving up.
"Get up! Don't slack off!" Lu Huai'an tried to pull him up, but Jiang Chuan was dead weight and couldn't be budged at all.
"Lao Lu, you... you run first, leave me alone..." Jiang Chuan said weakly.
"What are you talking about? If we die, we die together!" Seeing Jiang Chuan's thoroughly defeated attitude, Lu Huai'an lost the will to run either and sat down hard on the ground, gasping for breath.
The two of them sat there on the playground, staring at each other with big eyes.
"I said, what are you two doing? Do you still want to go back or not?" Instructor Ou's voice suddenly rang out behind them.
Startled, the two of them scrambled up from the ground in a hurry.
"Instructor, we... we can't run anymore..." Jiang Chuan said with a miserable face.
"Can't run and you still have to run! That's an order!" Instructor Ou said with a straight face.
"Instructor, we really can't go on..." Lu Huai'an also began to plead.
"Cut the crap! Don't run and I'll add more laps!" Instructor Ou remained completely unshakeable.
With no other choice, the two of them had to resume running.
"Lao Lu, I... I hate you..." As he ran, Jiang Chuan didn't forget to shoot a "resentful" glare at Lu Huai'an.
"You have the nerve to blame me? If it weren't for you, would I be running?" Lu Huai'an rolled his eyes back at him.
Grumbling at each other with mutual "resentment" and supporting one another, the two of them finally finished the five laps.
When they finally returned to where their dream began, they were utterly exhausted, collapsing onto the ground like two dead dogs.