Chapter 56: Punished Again
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“Why are you here?”
“Hehe, Company Commander, I must confess that I don’t hold you in high regard. However, after careful consideration, I mustered up the courage to come here and seek your guidance so that I can improve!”
In the office of the company commander, the usually stoic Ye Sanshi revealed a side that Class Five had never witnessed before.
To his remark, the captain responded with an expressionless face, “Get lost!”
“Company Commander…”
“Humph!” The captain coldly snorted and took a sip from his teacup. After spitting out a tea leaf, he glanced at Ye Sanshi and continued, “Blackface Ye, 1 don’t mind if you’re lazy, but there is a good soldier in your class who also happens to be the vice class monitor. Next time, don’t approach me with such a lifeless attitude. Otherwise, i’ll reprimand you severely!”
“Yes, sir!” Ye Sanshi immediately snapped to attention.
The captain waved his hand dismissively. “Alright, get lost. Go retrieve your phone. You have one hour!”
He already knew the purpose behind Ye Sanshi’s visit. They had a history together, and he understood that Ye Sanshi had a girlfriend back in his hometown. It was natural for him to want to communicate with her, and the captain was pleased to see it happen.
In reality, the army wasn’t as strict as Ye Sanshi had made it seem when it came to confiscating phones. His statement of “If I have the chance, I’ll distribute them on Sunday,” was simply a fabrication. It was still 2009, and the army only allowed phone calls during major holidays to contact family members. On weekends, phone calls were permissible, but only for official purposes, and using the company’s landline was the preferred method, as long as there was a valid reason. Technically, Ye Sanshi hadn’t lied. If a soldier performed well in training and daily tasks, the company commander might occasionally grant permission to retrieve their phone during weekends for personal use. However, this privilege was often taken lightly by recruits in their first year.
“Just one hour. And make sure you bring something valuable back to your class. The selection for the outstanding class flag bearer will begin next week. If you fail to secure it, don’t bother me afterward. The same goes for the following week and even the next three months. If you can’t fulfill your duties as a class leader, forget about pursuing romantic endeavors. You’ll remain a bachelor for the rest of your life!”
As Ye Sanshi walked toward the door, the captain suddenly remembered something and turned around to shout, catching Ye Sanshi off guard. Regaining his composure, Ye Sanshi stood at attention and saluted before the door.
“Yes, I promise to complete the mission!”
Upstairs, the members of Class Five were unaware of the events unfolding in the company commander’s office below. If they had known, they would have surely complained. After all, success couldn’t be achieved by simply idling away!
Moreover, the recruits were competing against each other within their classes. If anyone wanted to stand out, they had to put in more effort than their peers.
To put it bluntly, they had to go the extra mile.
For the sake of his girlfriend and to avoid being single, Ye Sanshi was determined to train everyone in the class.
“Salutes can be divided into hand-raising, spear salutes, rifle salutes…”
An hour later, Ye Sanshi returned to the dormitory right on time.
Under Wang Ye’s supervision and intimidation, even though the recruits’ scalps grew numb from reading regulations, and some even dozed off, there was no noise.
As Ye Sanshi entered the room, everyone immediately sat up straight without a word.
Ye Sanshi didn’t say anything. He looked at Gu Yingnan and asked a simple question: Tell me the different types of salutes and their requirements.
He didn’t expect them to elaborate on the specific details. After all, an hour wasn’t enough time for that level of comprehension.
Yet, even with this consideration, Gu Yingnan’s eyes darted around as she struggled to recall the information. He mentioned hand-raising and even stuttered while attempting to recall more.
“Look at what you’ve memorized. It’s such a simple thing. You should have remembered it after reading it once. Your lack of attention during the past hour is evident.”
Saying this, Ye Sanshi threw the notebook he had taken from Gu Yingnan’s hand back at him.
“Anybody else wants to give it a try?”
His gaze turned towards Wang Ye, but after a moment’s hesitation, he redirected his attention elsewhere. As the one who had chosen the vice-class monitor, even if it was just an act, he couldn’t let him lose face.
It didn’t matter whether Wang Ye knew the answer or not. It was safer to avoid embarrassing him.
He decided to approach Qin Li, who was sitting beside Wang Ye.
“Qin Li, come here. Tell me, what are the salutes?”
At that moment, Qin Li’s scalp tingled with nerves.
While Gu Yingnan had tried his best to pay attention and remember, Qin Li was the kind of person who didn’t even bother trying. Although he had been holding the notebook, he had merely pretended to flip through it. He hadn’t actually absorbed any of the information.
Why did some students excel while others became slackers in compulsory education? They all attended the same classes every day, yet the outcomes varied.
Unfortunately, most of the recruits in the dormitory were like Qin Li—students at heart.
“To… Salute… There are different types… Hand-raising… Spear salute…”
Qin Li strained himself to recall and glanced at Wang Ye.
But with Ye Sanshi standing less than two meters away, Wang Ye didn’t dare utter a word.
Hence, Qin Li relied on Gu Yingnan’s previous answers. However, since Ye Sanshi had explicitly stated that the spear salute was incorrect, Qin Li had to come up with an alternative. He improvised and blurted out “handshake” instead.
“Puff!”
Laughter erupted in the dormitory.
“What are you laughing at? Find something amusing?” Ye Sanshi’s face darkened as he pinpointed the source of the laughter—Liang Fan.
Liang Fan scratched his head sheepishly, and in his embarrassment, he became the target of Ye Sanshi’s shoe, which was promptly thrown at him. Ye Sanshi bent down to take off one of his shoes.
“I’ve mentioned discipline numerous times. Do you think I’m joking around? Why are you scratching your head instead of answering my questions? Drop down and do a hundred push-ups!”
“Yes, sir!” Liang Fan promptly responded.
After reprimanding Liang Fan, Ye Sanshi turned his attention back to the rest of the recruits. “And what are you all looking at? If you can’t answer such a simple question, it proves that you haven’t been paying attention at all. Drop down and do 50 squats!”
With that command, he fixed his gaze on Wang Ye. “You’re the vice-class monitor. 1 assigned you the responsibility of managing everyone’s studies. Is this how you manage them?”
“Sir!” Wang Ye didn’t argue.
Though this turn of events was unexpected for him, he had to remember that he wasn’t just an ordinary person now. He held the position of vice-class monitor and was a leader. He couldn’t complain about a little extra hardship.
Moreover, every situation had two sides.
By enduring this extra burden, he could pay closer attention to the others in the future. After all, he had to look out for himself. If they didn’t work hard, he would face even harsher consequences. In such circumstances, he had to be more diligent.
If they didn’t listen to him, it wouldn’t be his fault for making things difficult. Instead, it would be their fault for making things difficult for him.