Resist High-Interest Loans, Starting with Me!

Mission complete.

Generating reward...

Fang Huai gave a sweeping salute and stepped down.

Company Commander Wang took the stage, deeply moved.

"Comrade Fang Huai's speech was profound and highly insightful! This is what we should take away after watching Xinwen Lianbo!"

Company Commander Wang had even forgotten his lines, calling it a "speech" instead of a "comment."

The new recruits all felt like they were watching science fiction. How could the martial arts champion be so scholarly too?

What the hell was that... that saying? Civilian talent rivaling Su Shi, martial prowess rivaling Yue Fei?

Forget watching Xinwen Lianbo tomorrow. You should just perform it yourself.

This was dimensional suppression. Complete dimensional suppression.

An orderly competitive system within an entire company had just collapsed. There was a cheater in the revolutionary ranks!

As Fang Huai stepped down, Hao Chengbin waved his hand. Peng Yingqirui, Lu Zexian, Zhao Bing, and the other men from First Squad all shifted one seat inward, leaving the two outermost seats open.

"Squad Leader, do you want to sit here?"

Fang Huai pointed at the seats and asked, then quite naturally sat down.

Hao Chengbin sat beside him with a grin.

"Little Fang, you've got real practical skills! You trained for this back in school, didn't you?"

Fang Huai found that rather speechless and answered casually.

"I read some materials on how to write speeches, Squad Leader."

This Squad Leader Hao was a staunch believer in practical experience!

Whenever something went beyond the ordinary, it had to mean someone had practiced it. It couldn't possibly be that someone on their side was simply gifted?

Well, he actually had practiced.

When he first entered that public institution after leaving the military, the old hands spent their days slacking off and fooling around. The newcomers like them were the fish and dogs being worked to the bone. Speech drafts, meeting PPTs—if you had the skill, they would squeeze every last drop out of you.

Back then, Fang Huai had still been a hot-blooded young man. If he didn't know something, he learned it. He believed that if Heaven entrusted a great task to a man, then as long as he worked hard, he would surely receive Heaven's mandate and live forever in glory.

He had a big appetite and couldn't get full even after eating three flatbreads a day.

"Young people need to endure more hardship. Every leader has endured hardship."

"Everyone else can do it, so why can't you? Work a little harder than others, and you'll gain a little more."

"There's no harm in learning more skills."

"Salary isn't important. The platform is what matters. When you handle matters on behalf of the organization, do you know how many people envy that?"

"Stop coming to ask me whether it's your job or mine. When you become a leader someday, what will you do if your subordinates ask you questions like that?"

"When it's time to leave, don't just think about leaving. Think about how much work you completed today, whether you summarized your experience, whether you can help your colleagues shoulder some of the burden. Only those who can carry a burden can be entrusted with great responsibility."

Those flatbreads had been damn tasty.

He had dreamed of becoming a leader for two or three years. It was only after the newcomers he had mentored became his superiors that he woke up and resigned.

He had never imagined that the hardships he had endured in his previous life would amount to nothing, while all that outdated experience would instead make him seem unusually capable now.

Leaders truly never lied. There was no harm in learning more.

In another life, it would come in handy.

"Today's news commentary was meant to develop everyone's speaking and summarizing abilities, and also to change your attitudes. Don't think that entering the military means you no longer need to study. You must set your attitudes straight in the future! Learn more from Fang Huai. The military in this new era needs talented people who can excel in both literary and martial pursuits!

"Next, I'll teach you our firefighter military song, 'The Red Police Camp, The Red Me'!"

"Red are the camp, red are the trucks

Red is our youth, red are we

How many times have we sweated like rain on the training ground

How many times have we silently stood watch

Calm and steadfast

Remembering our mission, we fight bravely

We hone our skills and find joy in hardship

For the peace and happiness of the people

We firefighter soldiers stand ready at all times!"

Fang Huai sang loudly along with everyone else. When Hao Chengbin left his seat and went outside for a smoke, the system finally gave him a prompt.

Please choose your reward.

1. Memory Lv1 (Description: The past gives birth to the present, granting you a stronger hippocampus.)

2. Heart Enhancement

3. Slight Leg Strength Improvement

Fang Huai swallowed.

He made his decision inwardly: Only children have to choose. I want them all.

After a while, the selection screen remained where it was.

The test had failed.

Fang Huai felt a little helpless. If possible, he would have borrowed a high-interest loan from the system to select all three at once. There wasn't a single reward among them that he didn't desperately want.

The instant that thought arose, a line of text abruptly appeared.

If you select all three rewards simultaneously, the system will charge one-third interest. You will be unable to receive rewards for the next nine missions. (The next nine missions cannot be refused. Otherwise, all three rewards from this selection will be reclaimed.)

Fang Huai: ???

What are you doing?

Was that really necessary? There really were high-interest loans? One-third interest?

No, wait! Let me sort this out!

Three rewards, nine missions. I'd already completed three. I was borrowing six. One-third of that should be the interest on two missions. I should only need to repay eight!

Making me repay nine meant interest on three missions. Wasn't that a loan with prepaid interest?

That was illegal, brother! Calculating interest on principal that hadn't even been lent out was fraud under the central bank's regulations! I wouldn't even have to repay the principal, you know?

Interest rules modified: interest rate adjusted to 50%, interest unchanged.

Things suddenly became reasonable.

The prepaid interest was gone. Now it was just a pure high-interest loan, and the principal was legitimate.

The problem was, he still couldn't escape the interest! Did this system even need violent debt collection? It could just deduct it directly from his paycheck!

Was Gao Qiqiang the lender?

If he didn't repay it, would it make him go donate blood?

Within these 9.6 million square kilometers, there was actually a lawless zone inside his own mind.

I choose Heart Enhancement! I'm not borrowing!

Resist high-interest loans, starting with me!

Fang Huai felt his back straighten at once.

Not owing money felt great.

Actually, Memory Lv1 was what he most wanted to try. After all, memory was a necessary condition for intellectual development. His mother had constantly repeated that line when forcing him to drink that "Life No. 1" supplement as a child.

And for a reincarnator like him, memories were the most valuable thing he possessed.

But given the system's usual behavior, it was hard to say how powerful this supposedly important "Lv1" really was.

Could there be more than a dozen levels?

Without activating the enhancement of the heart, the core internal organ, he couldn't proceed with other enhancements. Over time, he was genuinely afraid that his increasingly unbalanced body would develop serious problems. Just like when he had done the Parallel Bars and Horizontal Bar exercises today, he had clearly felt some discomfort.

He couldn't say exactly where it hurt.

But he knew that a cheetah could only run at high speed for three minutes before overheating to death.

Even a single weakness in the body could trigger serious consequences.

A current of warmth surged up from within him, and Fang Huai soon found his breathing a little smoother.

His mind also cleared somewhat, and he felt stronger.

When the center responsible for maintaining blood circulation—the heart—improved, it brought quite a few buffs with it.

Though he had no idea how much of that was psychological.

As he carefully sensed the changes, the final repetition of the song came to an end.

Wang Jian glanced toward the back door and said loudly.

"This song describes our lives as firefighters. It is also the firefighter military song, and everyone must learn to sing it! The Regimental Headquarters has already notified us: starting tomorrow, we'll sing it continuously for a week before meals! Squad leaders, collect the Regulations and Ordinances manuals afterward for the new recruits to study!"

"The whole company, assemble outside! Form three columns and return!"

On the way back, they continued singing to the beat while Company Commander Wang explained that military songs were usually in 4/4 or 2/4 time to make them easier to sing while marching.

Listening to him, Fang Huai suddenly had an inspiration.

His first pot of gold!

Plagiarize! Songs!

When Hao Chengbin returned to the squad room, Fang Huai was bent over the table by the door, scribbling and drawing.

"What are you writing?"

Hao Chengbin asked as he casually handed Fang Huai a copy of Regulations and Ordinances.

"Put it in the desk drawer."

"Just writing something random, Squad Leader." Fang Huai came back to himself and stood up, not immediately sure how to answer.

"Let me see?" Hao Chengbin asked, but he didn't wait for Fang Huai's answer before craning his head over.

After looking for a while, he asked suspiciously, "You write poetry too?"

The nine comrades behind Fang Huai all perked up their ears.

"Reporting, Squad Leader, they're lyrics!" Fang Huai said helplessly.

"You can write songs too? ...'Wind crossing the wilderness, walk a little slower. I tell you with my silence that I am drunk...' This looks pretty good! Does it have a tune?" Hao Chengbin read on, sounding increasingly impressed.

In his entire life, he had never seen such an all-around soldier—and this one was still a new recruit.

"I wrote the lyrics to the melody of a Mongolian folk song, Squad Leader. If you want to hear it, just give me a guitar and I'll play it for you!"

He could play guitar too!

All ten men, including Hao Chengbin, thought the same thing.

"If you had this kind of talent, why didn't you mention it before? We should register it! If there's a performance or something, the company can arrange for you to go on!"

"Reporting, Squad Leader! I only just remembered. It's not much of a talent—I just learned it for fun before." Fang Huai chuckled.

Hao Chengbin had already decided that he absolutely had to call the officers at the new company.

What kind of soldier was this? He could serve as a clerk or a fighter, spoke well, and could even put on a program if there was some kind of arts performance!

Take him to the new company, teach him equipment, have him qualify as an equipment technician—wouldn't he become an all-around model for the whole detachment?

He had brought him from the New Recruit Regiment to his unit... This was a soldier he had personally trained!

"Fang Huai." Hao Chengbin thought for a moment, then suddenly spoke.

"Here!"

"Your training results from today have to be reported to the Regimental Headquarters. I've already spoken to the company, so don't report them too high. Just put eight reps for the Parallel Bars and Horizontal Bar. But in future tests, give it your all, understand?"

Fang Huai was confused. "Huh? Squad Leader, what do you mean?"

Hao Chengbin reminded him, "Didn't the Chief of Staff say it this morning? Twenty reps! Outstanding Soldier! You started out with more than thirty. What room is there for improvement then?

"Right! Give everyone a heads-up. If anyone from the Regimental Headquarters comes to talk and asks how everyone usually does in Physical Training, Zhao Bing is the best in our squad!

"I know everyone at the Regimental Headquarters! If anyone talks nonsense, I'll hear about it! That means you've got a problem with confidentiality awareness! Understand?"

The new recruits of First Squad nodded indignantly.

Their squad leader was playing favorites so hard he had completely forgotten all restraint!

Fang Huai understood as well, and he felt touched.

"Thank you, Squad Leader!"

"Alright, don't sit around now. Straighten out your blankets!

"I already found you some tools... Fang Huai will supervise! Lights-out whistle is at nine-thirty. Wash up on time. I'll be at company headquarters. If anything comes up, have Fang Huai come find me!

"And those cigarettes I promised you... we'll talk after the Three Kilometer Run assessment the day after tomorrow!"

After giving his instructions, Hao Chengbin took two bamboo strips and two pairs of chopsticks from his pocket, put them on the table, and walked straight out.

There was a long silence.

Chen Zhongqiang looked stunned.

"Why is it... the day after tomorrow again?"

Jiang Peng did not seem to care much about smoking. He merely looked resentful as he said sarcastically, "Assistant Squad Leader Fang, I want to use the bathroom."

"Damn it, Boss Jiang, what are you talking about?" Fang Huai was startled. "Don't flatter me to death! I'm not the Assistant Squad Leader! If you need the bathroom, I'll go call the Squad Leader for you!"

Peng Yingqirui looked equally resentful. "Sigh, no chance again!"

Yue Tao wore a gossipy expression. "What, Shorty? You want to be the Assistant Squad Leader too?"

"Bullshit!" Peng Yingqirui leaned against the bed frame and rolled his eyes.

"I thought Fang Huai had been secretly writing something over there to pass intelligence to some overseas organization. If the Squad Leader caught him, we'd at least get three days without training!"

Everyone burst into laughter.

Only Fang Huai's face was dark. "Damn it, Shorty. If I become the Assistant Squad Leader, even if you're terminally ill, I'll carry you to the training ground. As long as I'm alive, don't even think about living easy!"

"Don't, Brother Fang! I was just joking! I'm still waiting for you to help me fold my blanket!" Peng Yingqirui immediately caved.

After hearing that, Fang Huai stopped writing. He picked up the bamboo strips and chopsticks from the table.

"Come on, friends. The greatest difference between humans and animals is the use of tools. The Squad Leader already arranged it. Today, I'll teach you how to evolve into humans."

A chorus of wailing erupted.

"Damn, it's already nine! We've only got half an hour before we have to undo the quilts! Why bother folding them?!"

"Yeah, Assistant Squad Leader Fang, don't make a mountain out of a molehill!"

Fang Huai smiled. "You don't want to fold quilts, huh? Didn't you hear anything just now? I was sitting by the door, and I heard it loud and clear."

Curious, Yue Tao walked over to the door. "What sounds?"

Fang Huai turned around and pulled open half the door.

Before long, howls came from next door.

"Reporting, Squad Leader!"

"Shut up! Hold it! Anyone who comes down gets another five minutes!"

Fang Huai turned back with a smile. One by one, they had already unfolded their little stools and sat down beside their quilts.

Peng Yingqirui was especially serious, pinching and tugging at the corners of his quilt with both hands.

"Fang Huai, teach me already! Folding quilts is way too fun!"

Nothing happened that night.

The recruits hit their beds and immediately fell sound asleep within five minutes.

At the company headquarters, Wang Jian and several noncommissioned officers were eating grilled fish.

"Company Commander Wang, are we really letting them off like this today? ...Aren't we going to teach them how to pack their bedrolls or something? They're all worn out from training tonight. I just checked—they're all sleeping like logs. This is the perfect time!"

Sun Yi, the First Squad Leader, rubbed his hands together eagerly.

Wang Jian said helplessly, "How could the company arrange something like that? It has to be organized by the regimental headquarters! Our company's Parallel Bars and Horizontal Bar test was done early today, but the regiment-wide physical fitness test won't be until the day after tomorrow. You should hurry up and teach them the bedroll ropes over the next two days. Don't let the whole regiment make fools of themselves when the time comes!"

Hao Chengbin smacked his lips twice and spat out several fish bones.

"By the way, have you picked candidates for assistant squad leader in your squads?"

"Isn't that too soon? They just got here, and we're already appointing assistant squad leaders?" Sun Yi frowned.

Xiang Zhiyuan, the Second Squad Leader, shook his head as well. "The ones in my squad are all hopeless. I don't see anyone suited to be assistant squad leader, so I'm not planning to appoint one."

After thinking it over, Hao Chengbin also felt it was a little inappropriate.

But Wang Jian smiled. "You don't have any recruits qualified for the position, but Fang Huai in Old Hao's squad... he really does have the ability. We can promote him to assistant squad leader early."

Hao Chengbin had led soldiers for years and was undeniably a veteran. If even he approved of Fang Huai as assistant squad leader... then when it came to dividing up the soldiers, Wang Jian would have an easier time speaking to the detachment headquarters and getting them to make an effort to transfer Fang Huai over.

Pan Zhaohui was unhappy when he heard that.

Old Ghost Hao was qualified to appoint an assistant squad leader early, but he wasn't?

He set down his chopsticks.

"Company Commander Wang, what do you mean by that? Zhang Yinzhang from my squad isn't good enough? If Old Ghost Hao appoints one, then I'm appointing one too!"

Hao Chengbin glanced at Wang Jian, then said thoughtfully, "Forget it. Let's observe them a little longer. I don't think it's mature enough yet, considering he's still a recruit."

Wang Jian probably had thoughts of poaching him too. It would be better to wait until Hao Chengbin had contacted Guiyang Special Services first.

Over a meal of grilled fish, the new, green squad leaders were only thinking about how to train the recruits tomorrow, while the old hands each harbored their own thoughts.