Where's My Mom?

Chen Shuang's move was a bit like overestimating his own strength.

He was 1.78 meters tall, but claimed to be 1.80.

Chen Shuang was 1.68 meters tall, claiming to be 1.73.

Fang Huai was helpless. He pawed at Chen Shuang's hand, preparing to turn and pet the dog head of his brother and son.

You're so sure I'd be interested in your sister...

Brother Yang turned his head, his gaze a slight warning, telling him not to bully Chen Shuang.

His ears, however, were still flushed red with lingering shyness.

Fang Huai swallowed a mouthful of hydraulic air.

Brother Yang did have some skill.

If it were his past self, even just after high school, before the disadvantages of his family's finances became too apparent, with his height and looks, he would have been reaching a bit too high.

"I just... hey, Huang Jiaojiao, don't you know what you want? I don't want to talk to her anymore! I'll borrow your sister for a bit!"

Chen Shuang's face was full of surprise, as if he hadn't heard Fang Huai's last sentence. He reached out and made the first move, ruffling Fang Huai's dog head.

"Oh? You were crying and saying you didn't want her to dump you just the other day, and now you've figured it out?"

"I've figured it out," Fang Huai sighed.

"All my vital organs, my Governing and Conception vessels, they're all clear."

"Mmm..." Chen Shuang showed a look of relief. "That girl isn't good. I've wanted to say that for a long time. Stick to your guns, don't backslide! Wait two years after you're back from the army, and Dad will introduce you to someone good!"

He then glanced at his sister, his expression becoming wary again.

"But not your aunt! You're still a long way from being Yang Guo!"

Calling each other "Old Man" (Dad) was an unchanging topic among Chongqing kids.

"Slap!"

Fang Huai slapped Chen Shuang's hand away.

"You're leaving today, can you switch to human form and talk properly? ... Seriously, you're just going to be a soldier for two years?"

This was Fang Huai's usual way of manipulating Chen Shuang: curse him first, then ask him a serious question.

"Two years, no more, no less. If I don't come back quickly, my sister will spend all my family's money. I need to quickly make more money with my dad's money."

Chen Shuang said this with a serious expression, and Fang Huai listened, grumbling.

Other people's brothers were full of wisdom; his brother, after drinking, advised a technician to take the civil service exam.

Chen Shuang was also a self-proclaimed business prodigy.

If they hadn't partnered up to open a luxury car dealership in their past life, he wouldn't have ended up so miserable.

Although Chen Shuang had put in the bulk of the capital.

But with Chen Shuang's family's strength, him putting in 95% and Fang Huai almost getting a dry stake, responsible for running sales, was enough for Fang Huai to lose terribly.

Later... Chen Shuang's family lost money. It was said they borrowed a lot of money and invested it in a mine. The boss was arrested, their house was sold, their car was sold, and Fang Huai never got that money back before his rebirth.

"Brother, if it's not working out, tell your dad to hurry up and buy two apartments in Shanghai, a few storefronts (shops), they're going to go up, really."

Fang Huai had been reborn, but didn't have much power. He still had to go be a soldier. He could only advise his brother for now.

However, the fire department was good. They were all stationed in cities. Once he got past the initial stage of being a new recruit and gained some abilities, with some startup capital, as long as he could find suitable people to help him operate, it wasn't impossible to do something to make money.

Chen Shuang nodded, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. Mainly, he had limited influence over his parents at the moment.

"Is it decided? You're going to Guiyang, to the fire department?"

"Yeah, my uncle is there. If I need to take leave in the future, there'll be more opportunities."

"Damn, I'm jealous. I don't have any relatives in the military, so I'll just have to be a grunt in the People's Armed Police," Chen Shuang said, shaking his head, as if complaining about his unaccomplished parents.

"Both internal security and the fire department are under the People's Armed Police sequence," Fang Huai corrected him, then quickly taught him some things:

"You guys are called internal security, the pampered sons of the People's Armed Police sequence. You have the most personnel, with mobile divisions under your command, and your duties are diverse. When you get to the recruit regiment, you might be assigned directly to the recruit company. The veteran soldiers are all called squad leaders. Don't try to show off, and don't say your family is rich. Most people in the army come from poor families.

Ask fewer questions, just listen. If you're really sick or uncomfortable, don't whine. Persist until you get to the training ground, then faint. Your squad leader won't approve your leave. Only when the leaders on the training ground see you can they send you to the infirmary or let you rest in the barracks."

"I know, I know. Liu Haiyang from our courtyard is a soldier. He told me long ago. By the way, you didn't bring anything. My parents gave me a lot of food. Do you want some?"

Fang Huai nodded, then glanced at the doorway.

His parents should be waiting for him at the door, to see him off, right?

"No need, my parents brought some too. They'll hand it to me at the door later... Eat the things you brought on the way, especially the cigarettes. Once you get to the recruit regiment, you probably won't be able to get out. When you're assigned to a unit, you'll still be a new recruit, and they won't let you smoke. Smoking interferes with training."

"Okay, I'll go say a few words to my sister."

"Tell her to have your parents buy property in Shanghai, storefronts!"

"Got it," Chen Shuang waved his hand.

A lonely ten-plus minutes.

One vehicle had already gone out and stopped at the entrance.

It should be for units with very few personnel, like the Forest Gold.

There were also few firefighters, but they were leaving together with the Guiyang PAP.

During the assembly, the officers picking up the recruits stood at the front of the formation. Chen Shuang stood in the group on the right, smiling happily, and even made a face at him.

Fang Huai rolled his eyes.

Go ahead and laugh, kid. You won't be laughing for many more hours.

"Follow my command! Dress right! Forward march!"

"Board the vehicle!"

A Captain and a Sergeant in front directed the rookies onto the large trucks.

Fang Huai, with a flourish, tossed his camouflage bag up, didn't climb the ladder, and grabbed the side railing to jump up...

He was embarrassed, he didn't make it up and was left dangling in mid-air.

He quickly turned his head and shouted, "Brothers behind me, give me a push, a push!"

The NCOs behind him watched and laughed, then easily helped Fang Huai up. One of them, with a distinct Jiangxi accent, encouraged him.

"Daring to take the risky path, your courage is commendable, but your ability... well, that's still a bit lacking!"

"Thanks, Sergeant!"

Fang Huai grinned, recognizing the Sergeant.

He was a regular instructor at the firefighter recruit training corps and one of the squad leaders in the Seventh Company he was going to.

This might sound a bit confusing.

There weren't many firefighters. In the whole of Guiyang, there were only a few hundred new recruits each year. They all trained at the recruit training corps at the provincial capital's fire training base. This year... they should have seven or eight companies, with nine squads per company.

In his past life, he had been assigned to the Seventh Company.

This Sergeant was the oldest soldier in their Seventh Company.

In the military, they called him Old Ghost, and he held a high position.

Some officers with less military service... no, PAP service, also called the veteran soldiers "Sergeant."

And these veteran soldiers, although older, mostly possessed one or more astonishing skills, and their physical fitness wasn't as weak as it appeared when they walked around casually.

Actually, if you thought about it, besides the rarely seen First or Second Class Sergeant Majors, even the oldest soldiers were only in their early thirties. How weak could someone in their early thirties be...

Thinking of this, Fang Huai couldn't help but rub his lower back, recalling his physical condition before his rebirth.

Okay, actually, once you hit thirty, there's quite a decline.

"Hoo~ hoo hoo!"

The commander in front, holding a small red flag, blew a slightly leaky whistle and gestured towards them.

"Roar..."

Many Liberation trucks started up in unison and began to move slowly.

Firecrackers blazed and gongs clanged at the entrance.

Fang Huai sat on the small folding stool on the right, hands on his knees, sitting up straight. He observed the outside, hoping to present a mature and steady image to his parents when he left, to put their minds at ease.

Yang Shaoqing, who had said goodbye to her brother in the rear vehicle, hurried to catch up, waving vigorously.

"Fang Huai! Be well!"

Fang Huai nodded and waved back, shouting loudly.

"You too, study hard in university. When you have time, come to Guiyang to visit me! My phone number is still the same!"

Yang Shaoqing's eyes curved into crescents as she pointed at her phone.

"Okay, I'll call you!"

Fang Huai looked at Yang Shaoqing's bright smile and felt a surge of energy.

With this rebirth, many things had begun to change.

As the vehicles moved out, the lively sounds from the surroundings grew louder. On both sides of the entrance, various parents were mixed in, and there were even a few vegetable vendors nearby.

Very business-minded.

The parents sending off the recruits had sent away their mischievous children. Wouldn't the couple buy some vegetables to take home and celebrate with a drink?

"That's Cao Yuan's kid! See him! The one sitting in the front!"

"Wearing his hat crooked, his wife will be here soon! Zhang Yang, you'll be getting married when you get back!"

"Train well!"

Fang Huai sat up straight.

"Kid, listen to your leaders! Go to military school!"

"I got it!" The bespectacled boy next to Fang Huai adjusted his glasses, a hint of pride in his voice.

Fang Huai continued to sit up straight.

Mom and Dad must be waiting for me outside, I should sit up straighter.

The boy opposite him leaned out of the car window and shouted, "Mom! Stop fighting with Dad! If you really want a second child, just have one!"

The man outside the car immediately exploded.

"Have your mother's feet! How old are your mother and I? Just train harder!"

The vehicle had already driven out to the gate, and no one had called his name yet.

Fang Huai started to panic.

Where's Mom?!

"Mom!" Fang Huai shouted to the people around him.

"Hey!" A woman who was preparing to walk back immediately turned around and answered.

The two looked at each other, neither recognizing the other. Both Fang Huai and the woman felt a bit awkward.

Fang Huai couldn't afford to feel awkward anymore.

Damn it, Mom's gone.

This feeling was quite surreal. She had been chattering on the way here, and now that her son was leaving, she couldn't even be bothered to see him off??

She had seen him off in his previous life!

Your faces have changed so quickly, my dear parents!

You're the ones who wanted a second child, right?!

As the vehicle drove through the streets, Fang Huai watched speechlessly as people in front blew trumpets and beat drums, accompanying the troop transport vehicle as it paraded through the streets, sending off countless young men into society.

Before joining the army, one had to wear a small red flower and parade around the neighborhood to show honor and the care of the local government and citizens.

When you join the army, you wear a small red flower on your chest; when you retire, you wear a big red flower. This system, which probably used kindergarten-level thinking, sent people into a state of simple satisfaction.

The military emphasized two words: honor.

Excellent soldiers get to go to military school; receiving a third-class merit citation leads to awards and commendations; learning to drive and joining the party; a second-class merit citation results in a plaque at your doorstep; a first-class merit citation means appearing on television; honorary titles...

In peacetime, obtaining the highest honorary title for military merit is extremely difficult.

Of course, some people are still alive, but most of them live on in the hearts of many.

In regular units, it's quite difficult to earn merit. You basically have to participate in major competitions and win awards, or get selected in the year-end evaluations.

But for the fire department...

Huh?

Mom?

Fang Huai was sitting in the car shed, lost in thought, when he suddenly saw their small van parked by the roadside.

It was parked quite far away, but he could vaguely make out his father's silhouette, holding a cigarette, like a melancholic prince.

Fang Huai waved his hand, and the person opposite replied with a "beep beep."

A fellow netizen!

Fang Huai smiled, really wanting to shout, "The king of the sky covers the fierce tiger."

But whether his father replied with "chicken stew with mushrooms" or "hangs a meter and a half long," neither would be fitting for a father's seriousness.

Forget it, he wouldn't know either.

His father used to watch Neihan Duanzi a lot, but ever since his mother passed away, he hadn't smiled much.

His mother also craned her neck and waved at him, seemingly crying, wiping her face.

Fang Huai waved again.

He suddenly realized that his father... was quite handsome, and his way of sending him off was also quite cool.

Mom was too silly... crying!

In the van.

Fang Kaiyang turned to look at Zhang Mei, flicking his cigarette butt out the window.

"Seen enough? He's just like that, looking foolishly happy."

Zhang Mei rolled her eyes impatiently: "There's an ashtray in the car for you, why did you have to flick that cigarette butt out? When the kid comes back, if you haven't quit smoking yet, and you smoke again, tell him to put it out with a high-pressure water gun!"

Fang Kaiyang chuckled: "I'll quit, I'll quit."

The Fang family's hierarchy formed a closed loop.