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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 110: Werewolf (Part Three)
As I stepped out of the Battalion gates, my first thought was to return to the Unit. Besides handing over responsibilities with the Company Commander, I also needed to bring people along. Twelve non-commissioned officers meant I had to select four from our Unit, and then mix them with the core members from other Units.
Just as I reached the bottom of the Unit building, a sharp-eyed soldier spotted me. "Wang Pai is back!" A few voices shouted, and suddenly a crowd rushed out. I was surrounded, unable to move an inch. As usual, someone grabbed my Backpack, but thankfully I had already given cigarettes to the Company Commander, so I felt relieved.
When the Company Commander finally came out, the group of eager soldiers dispersed in an instant. I couldn't help but chuckle as I straightened my clothes and saluted the Company Commander. He smiled and asked, "Are you ready for another heavy responsibility?" Surprised, I replied, "How does everyone know everything?"
The Company Commander waved me over to follow him into the Company Headquarters. I hurried after him. It turned out that he had also heard some news from the previous Company Commander. If everything went smoothly, once the new recruits arrived at our Unit, he would officially leave, and I would take over his position. At this point, I felt a wave of sadness; after more than a year together, the Company Commander had taught me so much.
During our conversation, the Company Commander spoke candidly about many topics: how to manage the Unit, how to lead soldiers, and the existing issues within our Unit. He analyzed everything for me and assured me that even if he was at the New Recruits Company, I could call him if anything came up; he would do his best to help.
I was deeply touched but didn't know how to respond other than nodding repeatedly. Finally, the Company Commander patted my shoulder and told me to choose my leading team. Standing up, I solemnly saluted him again before turning to leave the Company Headquarters.
First, I gathered my squad together. It turned out that this morning was designated for political education, and everyone was present. After checking in on their situation and confirming that all was well, I felt relieved. I shared some amusing stories about receiving new recruits and chatted with them for a while before informing them about my transfer to the New Recruit Company. To my surprise, their reaction was quite intense; several squad leaders nearly got into a fight over who would get to follow me as a squad leader! I couldn't help but laugh at their antics and had to intervene.
"What are you all doing? Do you think we can leave our home unattended? We only have four squad leaders in our platoon—two will come with me while two stay behind; both are important! Also, since the New Recruits Company is being disbanded, we might have to switch Units again. Who doesn't want to be part of Sharp Blade Company? Raise your hand!" My words silenced them momentarily before they began pushing responsibility onto one another.
Finally losing my patience, I said, "Do you really think I'm asking for your opinions? Xuanhua! Zhang Sheng! Pack your bags and come with me!"
The two of them exchanged wide-eyed glances before obediently going off to gather their things. Along with Xuanhua from my platoon and an experienced squad leader named Zhang Sheng, we also had Wei from Second Squad and Dio from Three Rows (who looked foreign enough to have a nickname). I was familiar with these individuals; they had solid military skills and a strong sense of responsibility. Most importantly, they followed orders without any tricks.
With the support of the Company Commander, I quickly assembled a leading team consisting of squad leaders for the New Recruits Company. Thus, leading this group of A Squad members, we entered the Recruit Training Camp's Camp and began setting up our New Recruit Company's operations...
The tense preparations were set aside for the moment. At the upcoming Sunday evening meeting, the team indeed announced the order: the Recruit Training Camp was officially established on January 15, 2001. The Company Commander of the Recruit Training Camp would be the Deputy Chief of Staff, while the Instructor would be the Political Affairs Deputy Director. I was assigned as the Company Commander of the New Recruit Company, Wu Yan was appointed as the Company Commander of the Second Company, and Zhang Kai took on the role for the Three Teams. The other two Company Commanders were military academy students, while I was the only local student. There were no deputy positions in each company; the orders for Instructors and Squad Leaders had also arrived. My Instructor would be Tang Kun, whom I knew; he was a local university student and served as the Deputy Company Commander of the Three Teams, also a local student, majoring in Aquaculture. When I learned about his major, I couldn't help but chuckle.
On the second day after the meeting, new recruits began to arrive one after another. To ensure fairness, each group of new recruits was arranged by height before receiving their labels in sequence and then taken away by their respective New Recruits Company. Among those I received, only Mo Ping was assigned to my unit.
The empty Three-Story Building quickly filled with people. What had been silent moments before suddenly erupted into a cacophony of voices. As I stood at the front of the building as Company Commander, I felt a bit dazed, wondering if this was all a dream. Sometimes good things come too quickly, making them feel particularly unreal.
Since not all recruits had arrived yet, we were in a preparation phase while waiting for everyone to gather. The unit needed to assign classes to new recruits, distribute winter training uniforms, physical training outfits, toiletries, and more. We also had to arrange haircuts, clean up, and assign sleeping quarters—there were so many tasks ahead of me! It became clear that being a Company Commander was no easy feat; many decisions awaited me regarding internal affairs—how to arrange everything, how to organize rooms, how to delineate hygiene areas—what the hell! Even whether the handles on the first, second, or third-floor doors should tilt left or right fell to me to decide. The most troublesome part was managing meals; at that time, there was no cafeteria operating yet—all companies prepared their own food. What the hell! How was I supposed to know who could cook and who couldn't? I had no choice but to designate each squad to take turns cooking for a week starting from A Squad's leader. The ingredients were purchased from a social welfare center; however, each squad's cooking skills varied greatly. It wasn't until three or four weeks later that I managed to gather all those who could cook into a Culinary Team, and only then did our meals gradually become palatable.
Fortunately, I had already held a mobilization meeting beforehand. Old Bao served as Squad Leader; I assigned Xuanhua and Wei to A Row as A Squad Leader and Fourth Squad Leader respectively. Dio was placed in Second Squad as its leader while Zhang Sheng took charge of Three Rows as its leader. Corresponding tasks were already distributed among them; each Squad Leader had their responsibilities while Instructor Tang oversaw daily life and internal affairs. Since it wasn't my turn yet, I simply wandered around various barracks without saying much—just observing each new recruit's reactions, demeanor, and speech to gauge their spirit and adaptability. There was also a secret: wherever I went, every time a new recruit saw me they would immediately stand at attention and shout “Leader!”
This was my first time being called "Leader," and it made me quite happy; it turned out that being a Leader was so easy!
However, unexpectedly during the first afternoon of our preparation period, something happened in our unit that caught me off guard. That afternoon I hadn't even gotten out of bed when I was awakened by a commotion outside. After getting dressed and stepping out to see what was happening, I found Old Bao arguing with a new recruit while Xuanhua stood nearby anxiously wringing his hands! I couldn't help but find it amusing; Old Bao was supposed to be a Squad Leader—how could he stoop so low as to argue with a new recruit?
Although Old Bao wasn’t exactly my type of person like Old Bi and me, he wasn’t bad at heart—just a bit showy and vain. I walked over with an air of seriousness and said, “Ahem! What’s going on here?”
At that moment, the new recruit stood at attention immediately and exclaimed, “Leader! I demand to keep my razor!”
“What razor?” I asked in confusion. “Old Bao! What’s going on?”
“Company Commander,” Old Bao quickly defended himself. “We’re standardizing internal affairs arrangements; razors can’t be left out in public areas since many use electric shavers kept in their lockers for personal use. He insisted on placing his razor in the washroom alongside toothbrushes—doesn’t that affect aesthetics? So I confiscated it.”
Old Bao’s greatest strength was that he never defied orders from superiors. True enough—the standardization of internal affairs arrangements had been my idea because I wanted my unit to appear neat and orderly from top to bottom!
I said nothing further but looked at this new recruit standing before me—he was quite tall, nearly six feet three inches with a robust build; he must have been one of my unit's tallest recruits! Looking up at his face revealed a square jaw with stubble that hinted at potential sideburns—indeed he needed that razor! I waved my hand dismissively and said, “It seems you really do need this item back; I'll return it to you—but remember you can only take it out during your evening wash-up.”
"Thank you, Leader!" the new recruit shouted loudly, causing my ears to buzz a bit.
"First, shave that beard clean, big guy. You're a soldier now; pay attention to your military appearance!" I waved my hand and turned away, putting my hands behind my back as I began to stroll around. This was something the Company Commander taught me; after all, when you strike this pose, no one knows what you're thinking. As long as you don't speak, everyone remains curious and feels the pressure. Sure enough, wherever I went, the new recruits hurriedly picked up their pace.
Well, it works quite well!
Entering this city in winter, the nights are dry and chilly. The moon gradually shifts from a crescent to a full moon during these nights. Perhaps due to the overwhelming pressure, my sleep has been getting worse and worse. The most noticeable thing is that I have been having many dreams at night. In fact, one night I even dreamt that I heard wolves howling! What nonsense! I chuckled in my dream; it must be the stress getting to me!
(To be continued; more exciting content tomorrow!)
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