Chapter 82: The First Day of Military Training

  At 8 o'clock, a male teacher in his 40s walked into our class. He looked quite dignified with regular features and was over 1.75 meters tall according to my estimate. His casual attire made him seem like an easy-going teacher. However, the bald spot on his forehead was hard to ignore, making him look somewhat comical, just like the "Mediterranean" hairstyle.

  The teacher walked up to the podium, patted it, and said: "Everyone, please quiet down. First, let me introduce myself. My name is Sun Rui'an, and I'm the head teacher of Class 10 as well as your math teacher. Welcome, everyone, to this big family of Class 10. I hope we can get along very harmoniously in the future.

  Next, I'll talk about today's schedule. Today is the first day of military training, and we need to go pick up our uniforms first. Since the ratio of boys to girls in our class is roughly three to two, boys, please show your gentlemanly demeanor and line up to get the clothes. After everyone changes into their uniforms in the bathroom, I'll take you all to the playground to meet the instructor. For the next eight days, the instructor will lead you through military training life, and I'll drop by occasionally to check on you.

  Alright, that's it. Boys, line up and follow me to get your clothes."

  It turns out that our class teacher is a math teacher, isn't this the ultimate in cleverness? Understandable. After the boys left, a girl said: "The class teacher asked the boys to help us carry our clothes, how would they know what size we wear?"

  Another girl sneered: "Gan Lingling, do you think this is your home or are you in a shopping mall trying on clothes? It's up to you to choose, I guess they're all roughly the same size, you have to wear it whether you like it or not."

  So this is Gan Lingling, who just made a sour comment. She looks quite sweet and tall, at least taller than me. My height, you're stuck at 1.5 meters and won't budge. Gan Lingling pouted and said: "Lei Wuxiao, do you want to quarrel with me? We've been in the same class since kindergarten, and now we're still in the same class. You always go against me. What's your intention? I'll tell you, if this dress wasn't suitable today, I wouldn't have worn it, how about that?"

  That girl named Li Wuxia replied casually, "What can I do to you? Miss Gan, whatever you want to do, just do it. It's none of my business." I like this Li Wuxia, and I guarantee it's absolutely not because Gan Lingling said something about me before, and she doesn't get along with Gan Lingling. They say the enemy of an enemy is a friend, after all. Can't quite put my finger on why, maybe it's just a matter of aura.

  The head teacher brought back the boys' clothes, and indeed the sizes of those clothes were all the same, except for a few that were smaller or larger, considering our class would have particularly petite or particularly tall girls.

  I saw the clothes being distributed, so I went up to get mine. Originally, I wanted a small size. However, there were only two pieces in total, and surprisingly, our class had two girls who were even shorter than me. Although wearing a medium size didn't fit me well, it would likely be even more ill-fitting for them. So, I handed the small size I was holding to the shortest girl. The shortest girl smiled sweetly at me and said: "Thank you, Nan Xixi, my name is Li Qiaoqiao, and like you, my name is in the 'abb' format, nice to meet you!" I also smiled and replied: "No need to thank me, I've remembered your name, you're Li Qiaoqiao, nice to meet you too."

  Gan Lingling really acted like a spoiled little princess, didn't go to try on clothes, and in the end all the other classmates had finished choosing, leaving only one large size left. Her height was still not quite suitable for it, so she said in a soft and delicate voice: "Teacher Sun, my clothes are too big, I can't wear them."

  The head teacher said: "I didn't tell you to adjust with each other just now, and I also asked if anyone was not suitable, why didn't you speak up? Now even the teaching affairs office doesn't have clothes. There's no other way, fortunately, the clothes are a bit big, not small, so just make do with them, it's only eight days."

  Gan Lingling wanted to say something else, but the head teacher didn't give her a chance and said: "Classmates who have gotten their clothes dirty, hurry up and go to the bathroom to change, it's already 8:30, I'm going to take you to the playground to meet the instructor, if we're late, the good instructors will all be taken, and you'll be the ones to suffer."

  All the classmates in the class have changed their clothes, and those who haven't changed are in the toilet. The only one who hasn't changed is Gan Lingling, so the teacher's words are obviously directed at her, both urging her to hurry up and change, and tempting her with benefits. This head teacher is not simple. Originally, how could a first-rate school let someone with no standards become the head teacher of the only reinforced class? He must have some tricks up his sleeve.

  The head teacher led us to the playground, and only then did I realize that there were already five or six classes on the playground. I saw my brother-in-law wearing camouflage gear looking very handsome, and Xiaoxiao standing in the first row, so I knew that two of the classes were Class 2 and Class 3. The head teacher was neither strict nor smiling, saying: "Everyone's movements need to be faster, our class is the best class, but you see, several other classes have already arrived, and even the instructor has been chosen, now they're standing at attention. We can't just be a class that only studies well, but not good at anything else." The old head teacher didn't explicitly say he wanted us to be first, but his words implied that he hoped we could do well in all aspects, indeed students who are only good at studying are not truly good students.

  We chose a surname officer named Shangguan, I heard that the instructors this time are all from N City Artillery Academy. This instructor's shoulder badge is different from other instructors, and it seems to be a small head among these military training instructors. Officer Shangguan is about 1.8 meters tall, with dark skin, obviously weathered by wind and sun. After he said something to the class teacher, the class teacher left. He took us to a relatively independent area on the playground and said seriously: "Everyone is here, now let's line up in five rows of nine columns, from left to right, from tall to short, you have five minutes, start timing now."

  When we heard that we were going to be timed, we were all stunned at first, and then everyone started moving, but it was a bit like headless flies. First, no one knew each other, and secondly, some people who recognized each other wanted to stand together. Ji Fengyuan saw this situation and stood up, saying: "Quiet, everyone listen to me, first line up in order from low to high, then nine people per row, divided into five rows."

  Ji Feng suddenly showed his leadership skills, and with a few words, the whole class lined up in a single file. Then he pointed at you and said "you two switch places", and then they switched, forming five rows.

  "Five minutes and five seconds, exceeding the time I gave you. Actually, I originally wanted to give you three minutes, but I estimated that you wouldn't be able to finish it, so I gave you five minutes. Unexpectedly, you still couldn't finish it in five minutes. If it weren't for that boy just now, how long were you planning to take? You're still the best students, but I think you're not as good as students from other classes. I'm very disappointed. Next, be mentally prepared, I will train you well. Did you hear me?"

  Everyone was scared by the instructor's sternness and said in unison: "We heard it." "What did you say? The voice is too small, not loud enough, not uniform enough." We could only say it again loudly: "We heard it." "This is almost enough. But next time, I want to hear it even louder and more uniform, otherwise, I'll let you shout until I'm satisfied. By the way, what's your name, that boy just now?"

  Only then did Ji Fengyuan say fearlessly, "Reporting to the officer in charge, my name is Ji Fengyuan." "Ji Fengyuan, that's right. You should have participated in military training before, I remember you. How many of your classmates participated in military training in elementary school?"

  Nobody dares to speak, not that they haven't attended before, but rather it's just for show. "Since basically none of you have attended military training before, I'll start from the basics and teach you what real military training is like. Everyone look at this! Feet slightly apart, shoulders open, hands tightly against the seam of your pants... You're all morning sunshine at 7 or 8 o'clock, so be lively and don't be dull!"

  This time we learned from last time and loudly said: "Look carefully." "Okay, then start standing at attention. If anything happens, report it. Did you hear?" "Heard." "Everyone has to stand at attention for an hour." As soon as the instructor finished speaking, many girls' faces showed difficulty under the scorching sun. Standing for an hour was already hard enough for them, and they were still required to stand like that, which would exhaust them to death. Some girls whispered among themselves, and of course, the boys weren't much better off either.

  The instructor's eyes narrowed, his eyebrows furrowed, and he said, "What? Didn't you hear what I just said? Everything has to be reported. Who was whispering down there just now? Step forward." No one stepped forward, probably because they all thought they might get lucky and the instructor hadn't seen them after all. But who it was, only the instructor knew.

  "Since no one stood up and no one reported, you all will be punished together. Stand at attention for two hours, and that's it for this morning." As soon as the words came out, everyone grumbled in discontent. Those few girls who had spoken up surprisingly could still stand upright. It seemed like standing for two hours was a done deal. Officer Shang looked like he meant business, so we continued to stand at attention. After half an hour, we saw some classes being dismissed, and many students ran under the trees to rest. How enviable!

  Before long, a girl couldn't help it and said, "Reporting." "Speak." "Instructor, I'm thirsty. I want to drink water." "Endure it. It's only been half an hour. Wait until you really can't stand it anymore before telling me again." Some classmates were still looking at the instructor, thinking that if they agreed, they could also report and ask for a drink. But the instructor's words made them feel hopeless.