After lunch, the recruits of the new recruit company took their midday break in the barracks.
"Assistant Squad Leader, you're seriously awesome!"
Wang Yan lay with his hands behind his head and asked with a chuckle, "What times did you all get?"
"Two thirty-five. Just barely missed passing."
"I got exactly two thirty. Felt like I was going to die."
The recruits all chimed in with their results, and Xu Sanduo on the top bunk did the same.
He leaned out from the upper bunk, craning his neck. "Wang Yan, I ran it in two fifteen!"
"Good job, but don't get cocky. You still need to keep working hard and keep breaking through. A soldier who's content just to pass isn't a good soldier."
Wang Yan gave Xu Sanduo the emotional validation he needed. Sure enough, the latter grinned like a fool. In the end, Xu Sanduo wanted recognition from others too. No one wanted everyone to hate them; people were social animals, after all.
From childhood until now, no one had ever told him he was capable. So far, only two people had acknowledged him: Shi Jin and Wang Yan. That was why Wang Yan's affirmation was especially important to Xu Sanduo.
Wang Yan glanced over the others and said, "Same goes for you lot. Those who haven't passed need to work toward passing, and those who have passed need to work toward faster times. Our squad's results are currently the best in the entire company, so keep it that way. Don't slack off and let another squad overtake us. I asked the company commander—everyone in the best-performing squad gets an honorary reward, and it goes into our records. It'll count as extra points when we transfer to NCO status later."
"Definitely. We'd sooner die than let anyone pass