Chapter 25: Scout Training Quota

At night, the target range of the reconnaissance company echoed with sharp whistle blasts.

“Bang, bang, bang.”

Under the black night sky, more than ten points of light flickered rhythmically, accompanied by the sound of gunfire.

At the firing line, Su Yang finished shooting, checked his Type 95 rifle to ensure it was safe, and upon hearing the signal officer’s call, stood up and returned to the formation, yielding his spot to the soldiers of the second squad.

This was a live-fire training exercise conducted at night, and Su Yang had been through several of these.

Regarding live-fire training, Su Yang truly appreciated the advantage of being in an elite reconnaissance company—that is, frequent opportunities to fire live rounds, unlike some other units where one might go an entire month without even touching a live round.

A few days ago, he had met Yu Wei from the artillery company at the regiment headquarters, who complained bitterly.

The guy lamented that he’d been incredibly unlucky through eight lifetimes. He had thought that being assigned to the artillery company meant he’d get to handle cannons, but instead, he was relegated to the wired communications squad within the battalion.

Not only did he rarely get to fire artillery, but he hadn’t even experienced live-fire training more than a few times. Every day from dawn till dusk, he was either laying lines or climbing poles.

He even bragged that in a few months, Su Yang might not be able to keep up with him.

Su Yang nearly laughed out loud. He had heard veterans say there’s an old saying: “The reconnaissance soldier works hard, the wire soldier is exhausted, but the radio soldier has it easy.”

Yu Wei’s experience perfectly illustrated that adage.

Beside the first squad, Chen Guotao, with a headlamp strapped on, picked up the walkie-talkie and gave a few instructions. Then, listening to the target reports over the radio, he quickly recorded the data onto his personal log sheet.

“Xiao Chen!” Company Commander Miao appeared by Chen Guotao’s side without warning.

“Commander Miao, you’re back?” Chen Guotao turned and saluted promptly upon hearing the voice.

“Back already. How did the guys perform? Especially the new recruits?” Commander Miao’s dark face blended into the night, revealing only his bright eyes and clean white teeth.

“They’re doing alright. The few lagging new recruits have improved their shooting accuracy as the training intensity increased,” Chen Guotao replied, handing over the log sheet and removing his headlamp to shine it for Miao.

Commander Miao carefully flipped through the log, then paused and said, “That kid Su Yang performed well. I remember he rarely made mistakes. This time again, he’s the best among the newcomers. Even Old Pao lost to Su Yang in night shooting.”

Night shooting for infantry is much harder than daytime shooting due to the darkness, so the usual measure is the number of hits on target after careful calculation and practice.

Seeing Su Yang’s five shots, five hits on the log, Commander Miao was delighted.

“Yes, Commander Miao, Su Yang is indeed impressive. Except for the first time he did night shooting, when he missed once, he hasn’t missed since. Even Old Pao sometimes slips once or twice, but Su Yang’s consistency is frightening,” Chen Guotao said seriously.

“Consistency is good—it shows excellent emotional control. This kid is a promising sniper. Xiao Zhuang, although a college student, lacks Su Yang’s emotional management. Otherwise, his shooting wouldn’t be bad either. But with his personality, being an assault soldier suits him better,” Commander Miao said with a smile, glancing at Zhuang Yan nearby, whispering with Xiwa and Su Yang.

Then he added, “By the way, the regiment just sent a notice that the division’s annual reconnaissance training camp is about to start. This year, not just veterans but newcomers can also compete for spots.”

Chen Guotao hesitated, “Isn’t it too soon for the rookies? They just joined the company recently. If they go, won’t the veterans have objections?”

As a platoon leader, he knew what the reconnaissance training camp entailed.

It gathered the best reconnaissance soldiers from each company for a grueling three-month training. Those who returned from the camp usually earned promotion to the next level of non-commissioned officers at the end of their service, often becoming candidates for squad leaders.

Each company had very few soldiers eligible to attend, making the competition fierce.

Commander Miao responded firmly, “Why not? Are the newcomers not soldiers of our Night Tiger Recon Company? If the veterans are afraid to compete with the rookies, then I think those veterans should pack up and leave early. The Night Tiger Recon Company doesn’t tolerate cowardly or mediocre soldiers who shy away from competition.”

After his fiery words, Miao calmed down briefly and said to Chen Guotao, “Even if the rookies go to the training camp and come back, do you think they won’t be able to compete?”

Chen Guotao, seeing Miao’s resolve, nodded and decided to support the commander’s decision.

...

“Xiwa, Su Yang, what are you two up to? Where is everyone else in your squad?”

On the weekend rest day, Zhuang Yan walked into the first squad’s dormitory holding a deck of playing cards. Seeing only Xiwa and Su Yang, he asked curiously.

Su Yang put down his pen and looked up. “Today’s a rest day. Those who play basketball went to play, and the others went out.”

“Right. Xiwa, you’re reading? Stop that and come play cards,” Zhuang Yan nodded and walked over to Xiwa, who was holding a high school chemistry book, frowning as if the book contained some terrible horror.

Xiwa didn’t look up. “Zhuang, don’t disturb me. I’m doing chemistry problems.”

Zhuang Yan chuckled, “You really want to be a special forces soldier, huh? Fine, fine, I won’t bother you.”

Letting Xiwa be, Zhuang Yan turned his attention to Su Yang. “Su Yang, you don’t have to work so hard. I looked at your test papers—they’re almost all perfect scores, way better than I was in high school.”

“Zhuang Yan, since you have the time, why don’t you teach Xiwa chemistry? I still have to go with Old Pao to fix the vehicle later,” Su Yang shook his head, declining.

Su Yang didn’t mind playing cards; there weren’t many relaxation activities in the unit, and cards were one of the few pastimes during rest time.

Unfortunately, he had no time today. Though the Night Tiger Recon Company wasn’t like the Steel Seventh Company with its array of infantry fighting vehicles, it still had vehicles for troop transport.

As reconnaissance soldiers, knowing how to drive and perform basic vehicle maintenance was essential.

So Su Yang, eager to master these skills quickly, had bought several packs of cigarettes for some of the veterans in his squad to get them to teach him.

He spared no opportunity to learn.

“You don’t have to push so hard for military academy. With your ability, normal training should be enough to get you into the Command Academy, right?” Zhuang Yan pulled up a stool and said, somewhat helplessly.

Having taken the college entrance exam and seen the military entrance exam questions, Zhuang Yan knew that with Su Yang’s learning ability, the academic subjects wouldn’t be problematic. His military skills were even more impressive; Su Yang was the most hardworking and dedicated soldier in the company.

“How did you know I want to go to the Command Academy?” Su Yang laughed.

“Isn’t it obvious? Platoon Leader Chen graduated from the Command Academy. I heard from him that most soldiers who take the military academy exams aim for the Command Academy,” Zhuang Yan replied.

“That’s indeed the Command Academy!”

Su Yang nodded meaningfully, then his gaze drifted to a military book on the table in front of him, and he fell silent, lost in thought.