Salted Fish

"Beep beep... beep..." The melodious reveille sounded from the loudspeakers outside. The neat and tidy barracks immediately became restless. All five sets of bunk beds, a total of 10 beds, stirred instantly. Only one bed seemed not to have heard anything, remaining completely still.

The raised blanket maintained its shape, clearly indicating this wasn't the first time. The other soldiers completely ignored that particular bed. In just over ten minutes, the entire barracks had quieted down again.

About two hours after the reveille, the raised blanket finally showed signs of movement. A groggy person sat up from the bed, showing no surprise at their surroundings. They got up lazily, dressed lazily, and washed up lazily.

The blanket on the bed was casually piled up, with dirty clothes and worn socks tossed on top, forming a stark and glaring contrast to the neat "tofu-block" folds of the other beds, as if they belonged to two different worlds.

This was the farm at the logistics department of the Iron Fist Regiment. Jiang Yan Hai was a New Recruit assigned here just a month ago.

With a toothbrush in his mouth and white foam around his lips, Jiang Yan Hai looked at his reflection in the mirror, his mind somewhat hazy, as if recalling past events.

If someone were from the same place as Jiang Yan Hai, hearing the name "Iron Fist Regiment" would make them understand that this was the Iron Fist Regiment from the "I Am a Special Forces Soldier" TV series.

That's right, Jiang Yan Hai wasn't originally from this world. He had transmigrated into the world of the TV series as an ordinary person.

Moreover, he had transmigrated into this world ten years ago. At that time, Jiang Yan Hai was only 8 years old, an orphan living in a small village in the countryside. It was in that village that Jiang Yan Hai learned about two people about ten years older than him: one named Cheng Cai, and the other named Xu Sanduo.

At that time, with the mind of an adult, Jiang Yan Hai knew he had transmigrated. The moment he realized he had transmigrated, Jiang Yan Hai desperately wanted to return to reality.

Because no one wanted to live in the world of a TV series, even though everything around him felt so real.

Perhaps it was a perk of transmigration, but Jiang Yan Hai's brain was exceptionally intelligent. In 10 years, with the help of a primary school principal, Jiang Yan Hai completed a triple jump in his education!

Just a few months ago, at the young age of 18, he had obtained his Peking University graduation certificate and degree!

Although he only had a bachelor's degree, he had simultaneously completed studies in mathematics as his major, and physics and chemistry as his minors, obtaining his degree certificates.

After completing his undergraduate studies, the 18-year-old Jiang Yan Hai resolutely decided to join the army! This was because, by chance, he had discovered another person's name in the news reports this year: He Chen Guang! This was also the reason why Jiang Yan Hai resolutely decided to join the army.

He Chen Guang's appearance, apart from a slight discrepancy in the timeline, had no other differences from the TV series.

He pondered that if he wanted to leave this world, he might need to join the army. Because this world had "Soldiers Sortie" before it and "I Am a Special Forces Soldier" after it, and he might inevitably have to connect with these events. Perhaps then, he would have a chance to return to reality.

Who knew, it was all a lie! He successfully joined the army. Of course, with his intelligence, joining through the most ordinary recruitment methods would definitely attract attention from above. Because when he enlisted, he did so alongside He Chen Guang's group. He had even met Fan Tian Lei!

But nothing went as planned. He joined the army, but nothing unusual happened. This world didn't change, and there was nothing special about it. It continued to follow its predetermined course.

Jiang Yan Hai deliberately became a Salted Fish. If he was destined to stay in this world, why would he join the army? Wouldn't it be easier to be a scholar? So, he deliberately slacked off throughout the entire basic training period and was eventually assigned to the farm at the logistics department of the regiment, raising pigs. He had been there for a month.

He wanted to get through these two years of compulsory service and then go out to make a living. Since he wasn't planning to develop his career in the army, he naturally wanted to find a comfortable place.

But Jiang Yan Hai knew that the army also valued high-caliber talents like him. Fan Tian Lei must have spoken to the people in logistics, probably to stimulate him or to avoid wasting such a promising talent.

Otherwise, why would the old Squad Leader say nothing to a New Recruit who just arrived, didn't wake up to the reveille, didn't eat on time, and didn't even work properly?

Even though this was the logistics farm, which was much more lax than regular troops!

Although Jiang Yan Hai had just joined the army, he wasn't naive. If no one had intervened, try that with an ordinary New Recruit, and I'll lose if the old Squad Leader doesn't beat you to a pulp.

His brain in this world was extremely useful. From the old squad leader's occasional concern and heart-to-heart chats with him, it was clear that the military truly saw him as a talent.

However, if he couldn't go back, Jiang Yan Hai really didn't want to develop in the army. In peacetime, even with his sharp mind, striving for decades might not even make him a general... so he had no motivation at all. He decided to just coast for a couple of years and then go develop outside.

As of today, it had been a month. For the latter half of the month, the old squad leader hadn't chatted with him much. He probably gave up, right? Thinking of this, Jiang Yan Hai shook his head. Once Fan Tian Lei and the others gave up, he figured he'd be stuck here for the next two years.

Just as Jiang Yan Hai was about to spit out the foam in his mouth, a mechanical voice suddenly sounded in his mind: "Detected problem with target's mental state. Red Star Auxiliary Engine activated early. Scanning data."

"Name: Jiang Yan Hai"

"Age: 18"

"Permission: Recruit (0/100)"

"Attribute detection complete as follows:"

"Physical Fitness: 80"

"Neural Reaction: 120"

"Brain Activity: 180"

"The above standards are the average attributes for healthy adults aged 18-40, which are 100 for all three. Individual fluctuations exist."

"Basic Data Scanning Auxiliary Recording System activated according to rank."

"Mission System activated. Current mission: None."

"Data detection complete."

The mechanical voice only disappeared at this point.

With a "clang," the rinsing cup in Jiang Yan Hai's hand slipped and fell into the sink. His mouth was wide open, and it wasn't until the toothbrush also slid out that he snapped back to reality.

"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!" Jiang Yan Hai couldn't help but curse three times after snapping back.

My god! Jiang Yan Hai almost bit his tongue. I've already decided I don't want to mess around in the army? So the cheat system shows up? And it activated early?

Jiang Yan Hai couldn't help but ponder. Before he came to this world, in his previous life, although he was a shut-in and an orphan, was he also someone with a system?

After all, he always felt like he was someone with a system, it just hadn't activated by the time he was in his thirties. The problem is, you're really playing it safe, aren't you? Couldn't you have appeared sooner? Then I wouldn't have been a salted fish during my recruit period! Maybe I would have been assigned to Sharpshooter Fourth Company by now.

He threw the messy emotions in his mind out, and Jiang Yan Hai began to ponder the information brought by the voice in his mind just now.

Red Star Auxiliary Engine? Is this a system or not?

Forget it, don't think too much. Activated early? This damn thing means this auxiliary engine was supposed to activate much later?

Thinking about how He Chen Guang and the others would become Special Forces Soldiers in the future... according to normal procedures, wouldn't it only activate when he himself became a Special Forces Soldier?

Jiang Yan Hai couldn't help but grin. You really have confidence in me, activating only when I become a Special Forces Soldier?

Serves you right for activating early! Is it that easy to become a Special Forces Soldier?!

Jiang Yan Hai felt a bit of schadenfreude, but before the emotions in his mind could dissipate, with a "ding," the mechanical voice of the Red Star Auxiliary Engine instantly sounded again.