The Incident

Hao Chengbin followed Wang Jian to the company office and immediately saw Jiang Peng's discouraging face again. Pan Zhaohui was sitting beside him, phone in hand, tapping the table every couple of seconds.

"What is it? The Eighth Squad's recruit got into trouble—that's not my responsibility, is it?"

Hao Chengbin pulled over a chair and sat down, sounding utterly unconcerned.

Having played the suona for years, he had seen plenty of weddings and funerals.

Judging by everyone's expressions, he had already guessed most of it.

Pan Zhaohui's lips moved as he cursed viciously, using words involving body parts.

Wang Jian sighed.

"Jiang Peng secretly took Pan Zhaohui's phone this morning and sent a text. The other party replied. It was an internal short number, probably his uncle-in-law."

The phones commonly used by fire service officers had short numbers from the Public Security Department. The officer short numbers were updated every year; the first three digits identified the detachment, while the last three corresponded to the department and rank. Usually, just seeing the short number told you the unit and which leader it belonged to.

Soldiers who had worked at headquarters also had short numbers, so since Jiang Peng had sent the message from Pan Zhaohui's phone, the other party knew exactly who had sent it.

Hao Chengbin abruptly rose to his feet, his tone noticeably more serious.

"Pan Zhaohui, Wang Jian, you're veterans too. Do you really need my opinion on something like this? Or is it that you can't bring yourselves to act, so you want me to do it?"

Jiang Peng hurriedly edged away.

Wang Jian sighed.

"Old Pan, let Old Hao see the messages."

Pan Zhaohui stood and handed the phone to Hao Chengbin.

"That bastard soldier—I finally understand why even you can't handle him."

With that, he went outside to get some air.

Hao Chengbin took the phone, glanced at Jiang Peng, then lowered his head to read.

The message sent read: Uncle-in-law, I'm Jiang Peng. I really can't stay here anymore. The squad leader beats me every day. I changed squads, and the new squad leader beat me too. I want to go back to my original squad, but my old squad leader won't let me go back either. Can you let me return to my original squad?

The reply read: You're in recruit training. How can you be using a phone? Who gave it to you? Hand it over immediately. I'll be there shortly!

Hao Chengbin gave a cold laugh as he read it.

No wonder they had not dealt with Jiang Peng.

His uncle-in-law really knew how to talk. He pointed out Jiang Peng's mistake first, then said he would come over shortly.

The man was coming over soon. How could they still rough Jiang Peng up?

He had made it clear that he was protecting Jiang Peng, yet no one could find fault with a single word in that text.

"Jiang Peng, you're a fucking disaster!" Hao Chengbin cursed, putting the phone down on the table.

Jiang Peng had already begun to regret it. Earlier, he had thought that since he had notified his uncle-in-law, there was no way they could do anything to him.

He had not expected Pan Zhaohui to show him the reply from his uncle-in-law directly.

And as a junior college graduate fresh out of school, he had completely failed to understand the hidden meaning in his uncle-in-law's words. He only thought his uncle-in-law was coming to settle accounts with him too.

Of course, if he had been able to grasp that implication, he would not have ended up where he was now.

Hao Chengbin gave Wang Jian a look and headed outside.

Wang Jian followed him.

After closing the door, the three of them walked farther away.

"What do we do?"

Pan Zhaohui spoke first. He was the squad leader now, and he had been the one who hit the recruit yesterday.

The regiment commander had just issued an order yesterday. If this got out, it would not merely be defying orders—it would be playing with fire.

Wang Jian rolled his eyes. "Brother, you were ruthless enough to beat someone the moment the meeting ended, and now you're asking me?"

"Fuck, Wang Jian, we're Fellow Recruits!" Pan Zhaohui was nervous too.

But Hao Chengbin waved a hand. "As long as the person has any sense, he won't keep pressing this point. Let's first discuss what to do with this recruit."

Wang Jian immediately shook his head. "Sending him home is impossible unless Jiang Peng's family requests it themselves. With that connection, it'll be difficult.

"I think... in the end, the Chief of Staff may have to make the decision."

"Anyway, don't shove that recruit back onto me. I'm not taking him." Hao Chengbin knew Wang Jian wanted to smooth things over, so he cut off that possibility outright.

Hao Chengbin was a little worried too. Wang Jian was an officer, after all, and officers viewed problems differently from NCOs. Their first priority was avoiding trouble. Wang Jian could normally cover for something like this, but since it happened over the past two days, the regiment might make an example of him.

Seeing Hao Chengbin's guarded expression, Wang Jian immediately put on an indifferent face.

"Ah, I don't give a damn. If it comes to it, they can just send me back! It's almost New Year's, and the company is busy as hell!

"If it weren't for Old Pan, I fucking wouldn't want to deal with this!

"But if the Chief of Staff orders him transferred back, there's really nothing I can do! Old Hao, you'll have to talk to the Chief of Staff yourself!"

At Wang Jian's position, things were already difficult. Above him, he had to watch the leaders' attitudes. Below him, he had to preserve solidarity among the veteran soldiers. Every now and then, colleagues had their own troubles, and they had to look out for one another. The Political Instructor had been in the hospital since training began, leaving Wang Jian alone to manage the company office, so he could only be understanding.

With veterans like Hao Chengbin, he could not simply issue orders without considering their feelings. He could only act friendly on the surface, then explain his own difficulties.

Life was not some hot-blooded military drama. You could not go around barking orders and telling people to get lost if they did not obey. Unless your personal ability completely overwhelmed the veterans and made them fully convinced, or you had far more years in service.

Hao Chengbin knew Wang Jian was shirking responsibility.

"Heh, then let's see what Old Hei says! Taking care of a recruit is like coaxing a damn child. What a pain!"

Hao Chengbin walked toward the Ninth Squad with his hands behind his back, leaving Wang Jian and Pan Zhaohui behind.

"Can't we really send him home?" Pan Zhaohui asked with a frown.

Wang Jian shook his head. "It won't be easy. It's not that recruits can't be sent home, but if we send one home after only a week of training, we can make up for the first one. A second time, though, the higher-ups will definitely investigate.

"What if there's a situation later where we really have no choice but to send someone home?

"And he'd be sent home over something like this, while also being a leader's relative. That's just making trouble for the regiment. Even if we submitted a report, it wouldn't be approved."

Pan Zhaohui could not help spitting. "Fuck, I thought I'd come up here to train recruits and treat it like a vacation in the provincial capital. Instead, I got nothing out of it and ended up covered in shit!"

But Wang Jian smiled and advised him, "It's not entirely a bad thing. Since the leader has already stepped in, you need to keep this recruit stable. If you train him well, maybe he can really help with your transfer to the detachment. At the very least, you've opened a path here in the provincial capital. Think of a way on your end with the Anshun Detachment, and it might just work out.

"If you really get transferred to the provincial capital because of this, wouldn't that turn misfortune into a blessing? All you have to do is be a little gentler in how you train recruits. What's so hard about that?"

Since Hao Chengbin could not be persuaded, Wang Jian could only work on Pan Zhaohui.

Hearing that, Pan Zhaohui's heart stirred, and half his anger faded.

But he still wore a disgusted expression as he said, "Forget it. I'd rather trade him for someone less troublesome! If you aren't strict when training recruits, what can you possibly train them into? You don't think Hao Chengbin used to get good results because he was some nice guy, do you?

"You've only just started training recruits, so you don't know. I've trained recruits with him before! He used to be a famous recruit killer too!

"Now there's an Assistant Squad Leader in his squad who can handle things and has made him look good several times, so he's begun to let go!"

Over the past few days, the Ninth Squad's Assistant Squad Leader had displayed obvious ability. From morning inspections to maintaining order in the squad, he deserved praise. Meanwhile, Hao Chengbin was often absent from the squad during free time.

Even Pan Zhaohui had to acknowledge Fang Huai's ability.

Once Wang Jian was reminded, he finally remembered something and smiled. "That Fang Huai really is a good soldier. Put him in any position and he won't go wrong."

Pan Zhaohui saw through his thoughts and chuckled slyly. "Too bad he's probably going to get snatched away to Guiyang!... Hey, Company Commander Wang, transfer that kid to our squad, and I guarantee I'll help you snatch him over to Anshun!"

Only then did Wang Jian burst out laughing. "Fuck, Old Pan, are you trying to force Hao Chengbin to come fight me to the death? I know the troop assignment system better than you do. You think you can fool me? It's not like recruits can go wherever they want!

"I'll tell you the truth. I already reported his name to Chief of Staff Huang at the detachment! Once he gets to Anshun, he'll be a soldier in our Development Zone Company!

"Hao Chengbin is working so hard just to train him for us in the end!"

"Fuck, you really are crafty!"

After breakfast, Hao Chengbin wandered around downstairs for a while. He did not run into the Chief of Staff, and he was still unsure what to do, so he did not go directly to the Chief of Staff's office.

The moment he returned to the squad room, he rubbed his forehead.

The recruits stood and said softly, "Good morning, Squad Leader!"

Hao Chengbin waved a hand. After seeing the recruits sit down and lower their heads to recite their materials, murmuring away, he felt his anger ease slightly.

These kids were still obedient.

Fang Huai had actually been secretly writing lyrics on his materials just now.

He had racked his brains over a song, "The Lone Warrior," but he could not write it out. He only remembered a few lines of the chorus and the tune. He had heard the verses countless times, but simply could not remember the lyrics. It looked like he really needed to improve his memory.

He had come up with the idea after hearing Hao Chengbin say, "The fire service doesn't have Cultural Soldiers."

If this song came from the hands of a fire service soldier, then with some publicity, it would fit the theme perfectly and earn him merit points and awards.

Military academy would take another four years, and by the time he graduated, the reforms would nearly be complete. What the hell would be the point? If this got enough publicity and met the requirements, maybe he could even become an officer!

Besides, there were not many chances for battlefield merit. He could not keep thinking about taking credit from his comrades. He needed to find more opportunities outside!

That morning, from the company commander to the squad leaders and even Fang Huai, the Assistant Squad Leader, everyone was making their own calculations.

"Squad Leader, why do you look so angry?" a voice came from the last row of the squad room.

Seeing that it was Han Yong speaking, Hao Chengbin quickly reined in his emotions and waved his hand.

"It's nothing. Keep memorizing your material... bring honor to the squad!"

Fang Huai noticed something was wrong.

He was not a god. No one could guess what had happened while Hao Chengbin was out.

But he had an information advantage. Thinking carefully, he realized Hao Chengbin had indeed seemed emotional after coming back.

He decisively stood up.

"Squad Leader, there's something I need to report to you privately."

Hao Chengbin frowned, but out of trust, he opened the door and stepped outside the squad room.

Fang Huai followed out and closed the door.

"What is it?" Hao Chengbin glanced toward the company office, then walked another couple of steps away.

"Squad Leader, was what happened when you went out just now related to Jiang Peng?" Fang Huai asked directly.

Hao Chengbin froze, but he did not immediately show his position. Instead, he asked.

"What happened? What do you know?"

Fang Huai told him about what had happened that morning.

After hearing him out, Hao Chengbin became somewhat angry. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Fang Huai sighed. "If I told you, wouldn't that be the same as indirectly revealing his connections to you?

"Squad leader transfers and recruit reassignments aren't things I can meddle in.

"Not saying anything is what a recruit like me should do!"

Hao Chengbin was left speechless.