After the competition ended, the three township leaders took a photograph with the militiamen who had placed, exchanged a few words, and left.
Those few words were mostly exchanged with Li Long.
The head of the Township Armed Forces Department sought Li Long out specifically. After asking about his family situation, he said:
"I proposed this combat competition, and I hope to introduce it throughout the county. If the county includes this event in its militia competition, you'll represent our township! Your mental fortitude is genuinely impressive. Keep practicing this, and you'll have prospects. I have high hopes for you!"
Once the leaders left, the militiamen from the different villages headed home.
On the way back, Xu Chengjun spoke to Li Long and the other two militiamen as they walked:
"Our township's armed forces minister came down from the county. Before that, he transferred out of the army. I get the feeling Minister Qin is still very interested in warfare.
"He missed out in '62, and he was still in the army when the incident at Tielieketi happened. When we met after he took office a while back, he learned I'd also served in the army. He was really angry when we discussed that incident. Then came '79. Most of the troops sent from our area were artillery units, and by then he'd already left the army.
"He said the days of everyone being a soldier were behind us, and we were shifting toward economic development, but the militia couldn't abandon live-fire training. He said that if our country wanted to develop further, major powers were bound to obstruct us, so military strength was very important."
Li Long thought Minister Qin had considerable foresight. But then again, looking at the long-term course of development, few countries, whether Eastern or Western,