First Battlefield Commander! - Chapter 132

Chapter 132: Disguise

Hearing their vivid and emotional analysis and complaints, the instructor in the shadows nodded with satisfaction. "An excellent soldier must also be an excellent actor. Not bad, not bad."

At this moment, the students in the main group heard the instructor announce a break and guessed there wouldn't be any sudden changes, immediately letting down their guard. They put away their weapons and sat down in twos and threes, waiting for the next command.

They were halfway through the process and had been thoroughly tormented along the way, leaving them physically and mentally exhausted.

They pulled over a few stragglers from Team 1 and asked, "How did you guys end up arguing with the instructor? You've got some guts."

A male student shook his head sagely. "It's a long story... The main thing is, when it's time to make a move, you just have to do it..."

Over on Team 1's side, the instructor waved his hand. The students lying in ambush raised their guns, popped their heads out, and began firing wildly.

Bullets flew from all directions, tearing through low bushes, skimming across the ground, kicking up fine snowflakes.

The tranquility shattered in an instant.

The students sitting on the ground heard the explosions, their hearts sinking. Pushing off the ground with their right hands, they sprang up and looked towards the source of the gunfire. What they saw, however, were several students wearing familiar military uniforms. They were instantly stunned. "Holy crap! What the hell is going on?!"

Thanks to the various nerve-wracking traps they had encountered during this field march, although they didn't understand the situation, they reacted immediately, entering a combat-ready state and seeking cover. This controlled the initial wave of casualties.

A student shouted, "Enemy attack! Large-scale enemy attack! Everyone be alert!"

They had the numbers, after all. Regardless of which direction the enemy came from, they first aimed randomly at a spot and fired two warning shots as a deterrent. Gaining a moment's respite, they hid behind trees to assess the situation.

Lian Sheng shouted, "Focus on retreating once the surprise attack succeeds! Don't get bogged down in fighting! Comrades, remember to constantly change positions and maintain distance!"

Although this activity was led by the instructors as a surprise attack exercise without a designated commander, Lian Sheng had unconsciously taken on this heavy burden.

The instructor looked at her and said, "Yo, quite self-aware, aren't you? Like being a commander?"

Lian Sheng lowered her gun. To avoid revealing her position, she crouched behind a cluster of bushes. Hearing his words, she replied, "It's alright, it's alright. After all, there aren't many command students here."

The instructor chuckled. "Not many, indeed. Team 1 seems to only have two. I heard last year there were a few with good command potential. You people are quite ambitious."

This base was, after all, for special training geared towards the mech selection competition, which was an individual-focused event. Generally, command students seeking special recruitment through the military wouldn't participate in this. Their normal path involved preparing resumes and reports, then submitting them for defense and assessment.

The other combat exercises emphasizing teamwork were more suitable for their resumes.

Lian Sheng smiled slightly, but the high collar of her clothes hid her mouth, concealing the curve of her lips.

She glanced sideways. Because the distance between them was too great, she couldn't grasp her teammates' current status or know their individual positions. They didn't have walkie-talkies here; every word spoken would fall into the enemy's ears.

These conditions weren't suitable for a commander to operate effectively.

Amidst the chaos.

The students of the main group looked closely and realized the figures darting past weren't disguised instructors, but the members of Team 1 who had vanished from the starting point.

Caught completely unprepared, the damage from that first wave was enough to increase their burden until they returned to the base.

"An enemy attack from Team 1?" The students began to realize, exclaiming frantically, "Damn! Were we played?"

They immediately turned back, found the Team 1 students who had stayed behind, and aimed their guns at them. Fiercely, they demanded, "What's the situation with your Team 1? Who are you people? What's your objective? Are you spies sent by the other side?!"

That male student looked completely bewildered. "I don't know! Didn't I say I fell behind? I don't know what arrangements they made!"

Another male student had already thoroughly pulled the instructor into his own camp. He waved his hand, knocking down the instructor's weapon, and declared righteously, "If you don't believe us, you can ask the instructor! What's the meaning of interrogating us like this?"

The instructor squatted casually to one side, covering his ears upon hearing this. "What are you saying? I don't know anything."

The few Team 1 students immediately chimed in, "Even the instructor doesn't know, so we definitely don't know either! Are we responsible if the other side goes crazy?"

The two sides confronted each other for a moment. The Team 2 students finally lowered their weapons.

Facing this complicated situation, they began to grow restless and anxious. "What the hell is going on, damn it!"

Seeing that the other side didn't immediately launch a counterattack, Team 1 consciously adjusted their angles, preparing for a second harvest. They were veterans when it came to offense, needing few instructions, capable of analyzing the battle situation and seizing opportunities on their own.

The black figures moved like ants around the perimeter. Another gunshot signaled the start of a renewed assault.

The attack suddenly intensified. Team 2 students hastily dodged aside, cursing, "Damn it, are you guys crazy?! This is a field march training, not a competition! What good does shooting us do you?"

"Can you stop messing around? We have penalties here! I've never seen people who take pleasure in others' misfortune like you. Team 1, you're going too far."

"We can't be brothers anymore! Just you wait! We won't be polite either!"

The instructor watched the show from the side without saying a word. Attacked repeatedly, the students couldn't bear it any longer and prepared to counterattack.

"Hey, hey, hey!" The Team 1 boy pressed down their weapons. "Who knows what the arrangement is now? Be cautious about opening fire."

A student retorted angrily, "Cautious about what? They attacked first! Twice!"

The boy had dark skin but bright eyes. He calmly said, "That's why I said I don't know the other side's arrangement. Have you forgotten what happened before? This whole field march has been bizarre. It's always about making us defend when we should attack, and attack when we should defend. Let me ask you, is the current battle situation clear or not?"

Everyone was bluffed into a stunned silence. Thinking about it carefully, they felt it made sense. They nodded. "It's clear."

"Exactly, it's clear!" The boy waved his arms. "Because it's so clear, it feels strange."

He raised his hands, looking innocent. "I don't mean anything else, I'm on your side now, just raising reasonable doubts. Don't we all know the people in Team 1? They're just students. After being oppressed for so many days, it's more likely they'd go after the instructors. How could they possibly take the initiative to target you? There must be something fishy going on."

The students were persuaded. They hesitated for a moment, looked at the instructor, and asked, "Instructor, what do you think?"

The instructor revealed a friendly smile, offering no comment.

Seeing the instructor's reaction, the few Team 1 boys left behind felt completely reassured.

"Are you stupid? If there really is something fishy, who arranged it? From the beginning of the field march, all the ridiculous rules, who set them?" He carefully pointed at the instructor. "You ask him? This reaction of his is perfectly normal, okay?"

The crowd was thoroughly convinced.

The instructor watched him scrutinizingly, a cryptic smile playing on his lips, then nodded.

This student reacted quickly and had a sharp mind. Being able to enter Team 1 likely meant his physical fitness was also good. A promising future ahead.

"What's going on? I'm getting scared," Lian Sheng muttered, crouching behind cover. She seized the rare opportunity to attack again, saying, "They've been hit right on the head, and still no reaction from the other side after so long? Are those few boys still alive?"

Lian Sheng roughly understood that those few had managed to stabilize the opposition. She turned her head and asked, "Who are the people who went to negotiate?"

The instructor smiled. "Didn't I tell you? Team 1 still has another commander."

Lian Sheng asked with interest, "Who?"

"A student from the National Defense University. Yan Shuo," the instructor said. "You're going too far, it's been this long and you still don't know him?"

Lian Sheng thought for a moment. "The name... sounds a bit familiar. Oh!"

Lian Sheng recalled him – the person outside the training room earlier who wanted to challenge Zhao Zhuoluo.

So belligerent, yet he was a commander?

They maintained their hidden positions and continued the assault. They heard a loud shout from the other side: "Team 1, what exactly is your objective? If you don't speak up, we will attack you."

The comrades in Team 1 were somewhat amused.

Lian Sheng also responded loudly, "We are innocent! We were coerced!"

The main group was somewhat bewildered, discussing amongst themselves.

"So, can we kill them or not?"

"Being coerced into submission makes them traitors, right? Of course, traitors can be killed."

"Are there any other steps? Let's ask." A boy hiding in the shadows adjusted his cap. "Damn it, I don't even dare to shoot anymore. What the hell is going on with this field march?"

Lian Sheng's team of over a hundred people firmly pinned the main group within the woods.

The front ranks, unaware of the truth, dared not attack rashly. The comrades at the rear received no information feedback and could only hold their position. Their slow reaction time gave Team 1 an excellent window for attack.

Some of the boys in Team 1 grew bolder. After gradually spreading out, they moved down along both flanks, launching fierce assaults to rack up kills.

The woods constantly echoed with gunfire and curses.

Lian Sheng turned her head and asked, "What's the shot count? Are we past halfway?"

The instructor glanced at the data and nodded. "Not bad, almost three hundred already."

For the main group, the situation was grim.

"This won't work! If we keep getting hit, we won't be able to shake off our penalties either. Let's take them out first, it's just a one-time weight penalty," a Team 2 member said. "Comrades, stop thinking about it. Attack!"

"Deal with them first, everyone take defensive measures," Yan Shuo said. "Regardless of whether we can fight back or not, we can't just sit here and wait to die. Have the rear teams move up. Team 1 has fewer people; intimidate them with numbers, it should be very effective."

In the main group, the instructor wasn't managing things, there were many people, and no recognized leader, making it seem chaotic. People's thoughts subconsciously followed those with a firm attitude because they needed direction.

Although Yan Shuo's identity was awkward, his reasoning was sound. Finding no fault in his suggestion, the crowd decided to follow his advice.

So a group of people shouted strenuously, "People at the back, come up and prepare to engage! Enemy attack!"

Hearing the commotion, Lian Sheng followed suit, shouting, "Retreat, retreat, retreat! Everyone, attention, retreat! Don't get bogged down in fighting anymore!"

"Comrades, spread out! Don't retreat in the same direction! Pull apart horizontally first, then fall back," Lian Sheng said. "Fight flexibly! The enemy has numbers, be careful of being surrounded."

As she spoke, she beckoned to a few people nearby with her fingers.

The few students from Alliance University knew her well enough and hesitated for a moment. Others, not having received the signal, didn't understand.

Zhao Zhuoluo nodded slightly. "Go!"

Ye Buqing and the others successively put away their weapons and sprinted towards Lian Sheng.

Lian Sheng's position was relatively far from the battle zone; she had deliberately maintained distance. Knowing her escape speed wasn't fast, she was prone to bad luck if counterattacked. Hiding at the rear also allowed her to observe the battle situation more clearly.

Team 1's combat strength was formidable; they didn't really need her assistance.

She also began to withdraw, but not towards the base, instead moving leftward. While running, she kept looking back to check on her comrades' situation.

During the previous attack, Team 1 members had continuously pushed forward from both flanks. Now, the leading units had already penetrated deep into enemy lines.

Lian Sheng shouted, "The enemy is starting to counterattack! Comrades on the flanks, it's too late! If you want to shake them off, don't run towards the base! Run sideways first to lose the pursuers! Did everyone hear me?"

Hearing the shouts from that side, Yan Shuo paused for half a beat, then suggested, seemingly genuinely, "Frontline troops, quickly extend sideways to block the enemy's escape route! Don't let them return!"

Halfway through the weighted field march, the stamina of the main group's students was a major issue. Chasing sideways at this time meant lengthening their march distance, dispersing the team, and needing to regroup – simply not worth the cost. If a student got caught by the enemy and couldn't escape, it would be even worse. After all, the penalty was shared by the entire team. So they definitely wouldn't choose to pursue deeply.

Moreover, Team 1 now only carried ten kilograms, half the weight, making them light as swallows, running with exhilarating speed. The main group couldn't catch them even if they wanted to.

The Team 2 students stopped in place, shouting at the group of escaping rabbits, "Why are you running? Weren't you coerced? We're here to liberate you!"

"Isn't it good to be alive?" a Team 1 student retorted. "We want to live. We appreciate the kind thought."

The students cursed angrily, "Damn! A bunch of menaces!"

Lian Sheng, Zhao Zhuoluo, and the others successfully regrouped on the flank of the main force, hiding to the side, temporarily observing and waiting. She called over the teammates escaping from the rear, having them join her in selecting ambush positions.

Confronting the enemy head-on with a small number of people was very taxing. They had to prepare for offense while dedicating most of their energy to defense. Even with their advantage in weight, they would eventually be worn down.

If time dragged on too long, the comrades who fell early wouldn't have enough time to rush back to the base. The rule was they needed to return before 6 PM, and the base was still over twenty kilometers away.

Therefore, they needed not only to complete the mission but to complete it efficiently.

If they circled around to the rear of the main group, their task would become much easier.

If the enemy wanted to advance, they would have their backs to them. If the enemy wanted to pursue, they would have to consider the distance of the march. They could mentally pressure the enemy while using sneaky probing attacks to achieve their goal.

After all, their mission wasn't to defeat these thousand-plus people, but to achieve five hundred shots. Now, less than two hundred remained.

In this snowy terrain, all tracks would be exposed.

Although the ground on the main path was trampled into chaos, the sides had remained clean. A clear line of footprints could be seen, extending from the front to the flank of their group.

It was understandable for members deep in the enemy lines to circle sideways to evade pursuit, but these people were at the very front of the team. Why circle around? If they really wanted to retreat, they could just run straight towards the base.

Someone in Team 2 had been watching them, noticed their maneuver, and immediately reported back: "The enemy stopped at the side, probably planning to continue ambushing."

"They got so many kills and still aren't satisfied? What exactly is their mission? To defeat us? Dream on. Let's just go crush them with numbers, stop letting them disgust us here."

The main group was like scattered sand, but their reason remained. If Team 1 refused to let them go, clinging like maggots to bone, impossible to shake off, then the twenty-plus kilometers ahead would be very difficult. The best option was still to cut the grass and remove the roots, for the sake of satisfaction.

Yan Shuo pondered slightly, knowing Lian Sheng wanted to circle to the rear of the main group to harvest the remaining shots. He promptly interrupted their discussion, turned around, and said seriously, "Brothers, what are you all thinking? Kill what kill? Now is the time to take the opportunity to rush past! They voluntarily moved to the side, which means the path ahead is safe. Let's seize the chance and head straight for the camp. Don't delay any longer."

Several students exchanged glances, hesitating. "Isn't that... unethical?"

In this field march, Team 1 was special; they set off first. The following four teams, led by Team 2, departed sequentially.

Naturally, penalties between different teams were not shared.

Team 3 and Team 4 were currently behind Team 2.

If the enemy refused to stop and gave up sniping them, it was obvious who the new target would be. Running away now meant leaving the danger to the unsuspecting brothers behind them.

"What? Playing charity? This is called tactical choice, minimizing losses," Yan Shuo said. "How much more weight do you want to carry? The training camp isn't over yet, there are still several days left."

The crowd thought for a moment. They felt that when it was time to be unscrupulous, one had to be unscrupulous. They temporarily gave up the attack and chose to speed up.

After finishing their discussion, they waved to the brothers beside them and discreetly began their move.

The instructor beside them asked with folded arms, "Decided to leave?"

Everyone nodded.

The instructor shouted loudly, "Withdraw! Everyone prepare to withdraw!"

Not yet fully disengaged from the combat state, the instructor didn't make them stop to add weight, merely directing people in the correct direction.

Team 2 departed swiftly, with Team 3 and Team 4 following closely behind.

However, they were unaware of the situation at the front line. Seeing the column suddenly start moving quickly, they assumed the enemy had been repelled and quickly followed suit.

The change in speed at the front amplified by the time it reached the rear of the column. The Team 4 students jogged with their heads down to keep up. They had been blocked earlier, and now the pace had quickened again.

Suddenly, gunfire erupted from the rear of the column, followed by continuous, dense shots.

The crowd paused in a daze, their steps faltering, glancing backward.

"Holy crap! They're behind us!" a student snapped back to reality. "Enemy attack from the rear! Tell the front to wait, come back and support!"

Team 4 urgently began redeploying troops, assuming battle stances.

Lian Sheng lowered her gun and shouted, "Retreat! Increase the distance!"

Their group consisted of only about twenty people, all hastily recruited stragglers Lian Sheng had picked up along the way. Two instructors accompanied them.

They avoided all direct confrontations, striving to preserve their combat strength.

Team 4 had already begun engaging the enemy, but Lian Sheng and her group retreated decisively.

Now leaderless, they were suddenly at a loss.

"Do we pursue?"

"How? We'll separate from the main group."

"We're already separated from the main group. Damn! These guys run too fast when trouble hits. Team 3's people broke through."

"Don't pursue too deeply, friends, we're still on the field march. Don't fall into their trap."

"What's the enemy's objective?"

"If they were requisitioned by the instructors, then their objective is the instructors' objective: to hinder our successful completion of the field march," a boy analyzed with seeming authority. "Comrades, don't be fooled by them. Hold steady, don't pursue!"

A comrade gritted his teeth. "I deeply hate the instructors' tricks."

Everyone deeply agreed. Leaving four or five scouts behind to monitor the situation, the main group continued marching towards the base.

Lian Sheng peeked at the situation ahead and nodded. "Same plan. Two as bait, the rest provide full cover. Go!"

The faster Zhao Zhuoluo and Ye Buqing decisively stepped out. The two rushed forward, fired two shots as a feint to attract attention, then rolled sideways to take cover.

Lian Sheng and the remaining teammates unleashed fierce fire from the rear, aiming at the four scouts walking at the very back of the opposing column.

Team 4 was once again forced to halt, rescue teammates, and assume an engagement posture, only to face the empty, dense forest again.

"Damn it!" The students were getting annoyed. "Do we chase or not?"

"The enemy is fast, can you catch them? If you run far off with them, can you even get back? Falling behind isn't allowed in the field march, friend."

"Then what do we do?"

"Everyone be careful. We have numbers, are we afraid of such probing attacks? Maintain speed and advance! We must return to the base before six!"

The two sides constantly pulled back and forth. After an hour of attritional guerrilla warfare, the members of Team 4 were on the verge of collapse.

Lian Sheng roughly estimated that they should have completed the mission.

"I don't believe it!" Lian Sheng half-knelt, looking at the instructor. "How can it not be five hundred yet? Are you doing this on purpose? Or did you reduce our shot count?"

It wasn't just their side getting kills; the main force ahead should also be getting kills. Their actions might be more clumsy, but as members of Team 1, it was impossible for them to have achieved nothing.

Hearing her urging, the instructor finally shouted, "All Team 1 personnel, attention! The count has been reached! Prepare to return to camp! Friendly reminder, it is now 15:25. Please arrive at the base within two hours, otherwise, it will also be treated as mission failure!"

Everyone jolted, shouting protests. "Isn't it six in the afternoon? How can you be like this, going back on your word?"

"Instructor, be honest, how many extra shots did you trick us into making? This is too much."

"Six o'clock was the minimum deadline. You completed the mission early, so naturally, you should return early. Besides, it's only a difference of thirty-five minutes, are you really going to make a fuss?" The instructor pointed at his optical computer. "Timing has already started. How long do you plan to chat?"

Everyone grabbed their weapons and immediately ran towards the base. Lian Sheng followed behind.

She had been crouching in the ice and snow for over eight hours, and her feet below the ankles were numb. The pant legs around her calves, wet from crossing the river earlier, clung coldly to her skin.

Suddenly standing up, a sharp pain shot through her right ankle bone. She reflexively lifted her foot, lost her balance on her left leg, and twisted sharply sideways.

Lian Sheng fell to the ground, stating expressionlessly, "Twisted it."

Everyone: "..."

Everyone: "..."

Lian Sheng waved her hand. "You guys go first, I can crawl back myself."

"Don't be so hesitant," the instructor said. "They might actually do it."

A boy honestly said, "We can't, Instructor. If she doesn't reach the base on time, you'll definitely punish us all together."

The instructor's eyebrows twitched. "Ooh, ooh, ooh~"

"What are you talking about?" Another boy stepped forward, slapping him on the stomach. "Lian Sheng, as the de facto commander of our team, made huge contributions to this activity. We've developed a deep camaraderie. No matter what, it's impossible for us to leave her here."

Lian Sheng got up on one foot, tried hopping on the snow, and said, "Who can carry my weight pack and help me hop back?"

Zhao Zhuoluo stepped forward, frowned, and without a word, unfastened his weight pack with one hand, tossing it to Cheng Ze. Then he stepped forward again, took off Lian Sheng's backpack as well, and tossed it to Ye Buqing.

He bent down, squatting in front of Lian Sheng. "Get on!"

"Excellent!" Fang Jianchen sniffled nearby. "Never seen you like this. Your old and frail dad is still here..."

Cheng Ze clicked his tongue. "The old and frail dad should just be left here. He's just a burden."

Lian Sheng looked at Zhao Zhuoluo's back, feeling somewhat overwhelmed by the favor.

Previously, when she was weak and breathless, Zhao Zhuoluo had carried her gun and her pack, but he had never had the bright idea to carry her. Now he was actually volunteering.

Seeing no movement for a long time, Zhao Zhuoluo urged, "Let's go."

Lian Sheng climbed onto his back, placed her hands on his shoulders, and said with relief, "Comrade Zhao Youxiu【Zhao Excellent】, I'm so moved. Truly worthy of us having faced life and death together several times. And thanks to classmates Cheng Ze and Ye Buqing for their familial support."

The two chuckled lightly.

Carrying a person would inevitably slow them down. They needed to start moving immediately, with no time for idle chat.

Zhao Zhuoluo adjusted Lian Sheng higher on his back, a breath catching in his chest.

Wearing padded clothing already made the body rounder and less flexible. Combined with the uneven terrain, deep snow, and various other factors, it felt much harder than imagined.

"Your weight..." Zhao Zhuoluo silently swallowed the rest of the sentence and started walking.

Lian Sheng reached up and patted his head. "Your General Lian has been eating a bit much lately to replenish energy. But rest assured, I've already digested lunch, just haven't... evacuated yet."

Zhao Zhuoluo: "..."

Lian Sheng's team finally truly retreated, but the poor souls of Team 4 couldn't believe it.

The Team 4 scouts watched their figures. "They left? Judging by the direction this time, it seems they really left."

"Just like that? Is it a trick? We're not there yet."

"Don't know if it's a trick, but they definitely have issues."

Lian Sheng's roommates huddled within the team, not daring to make a sound, lips pressed together, pretending they heard nothing.

Lian Sheng had twisted her ankle, but it wasn't extremely serious. After some initial rest, she could still walk with persistence.

Zhao Zhuoluo carried her at a fast pace for an hour, then Cheng Ze took over for another stretch. Only after her repeated insistence did they finally let her down.

The group ultimately managed to reach the base within the time limit, receiving a collective enthusiastic welcome from the members of Team 2.

Lian Sheng used the excuse of going to the infirmary to make a timely escape, while the remaining Team 1 members were pinned down and relentlessly teased by their own schoolmates.

Not long after, the people from Team 4 returned. Their heads were still spinning, completely unable to understand Team 1's objective, chasing after them to get a clear explanation.

Once they compared notes, everyone realized that Yan Shuo had successfully deceived them the entire way, easily reaching the base, and then rolling off to rest without a care in the world.

Comparing the two situations, everyone cursed vehemently. So shameless! How could such a brazenly shameless person exist in the world!

The first day of the field march ended successfully. Although the process was somewhat tortuous, because ample time was given, all teams ultimately succeeded.

There wasn't any special feeling. Normally, after a day of arduous trekking, both feet should have been barely able to support them, but because they were so frozen, accustomed to the stiffness, the pain was actually masked. Only after soaking in hot water did the stinging sensation flow with the blood, transmitting to the brain.

Including the small hearts that had been deceived and fooled, and the shoulders chafed raw by the weight packs. Their field march this time could be described as covered in scars.

There were no extra arrangements for the evening, considered a rest period for them. The next morning, everyone continued with indoor training.

The instructors assigned training loads based on their performance during the field march. Those who received demerits were once again grabbed by the neck for strict drilling.

Lian Sheng and her two roommates ground away in the second-floor training room until evening before returning.

Following her foot injury, Lian Sheng once again suffered a muscle strain in her arm.

After completing this indoor training session, only the final major field march remained, and this training camp would conclude.

No one dared to slack off. They speculated amongst themselves about the rules the instructors might come up with, the atmosphere unprecedentedly fervent.

The instructors stood by, quietly watching their clamor.

After nine o'clock, those who finished training returned to their dorms early to rest.

Lian Sheng's dormitory was peaceful.

A roommate lay limply on the bed, suddenly sighing, "I don't know why, but even though it feels like it's almost over, I don't feel any excitement at all."

Lian Sheng pillowed her head on her neck. "Because before it ends, there's still something that doesn't make people happy."

The roommate turned over, facing Lian Sheng's bed. "Actually, the field march was quite interesting. You can clearly feel your teammates' concern for you, the whole atmosphere feels different. Usually, it's individual training; collective activities are rare."

Another person said, "Is it concern for you, or concern for the team's result?"

Lian Sheng interjected, "It's the same thing. We are members of the team."

The roommate lay there a while longer, then covered her ears. "I seem to hear a rumbling sound. Is my tinnitus acting up?"

Lian Sheng rolled over. "Unless we're all experiencing collective tinnitus, that rumbling sound should be real."

None of the three felt curious enough to get up and look, so the topic died down again.

Another person said, "Let's sleep."

All three were exhausted. The roommate giggled foolishly a couple of times, then hugged her quilt and drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, Lian Sheng got ready and waited as usual in the training camp's main hall.

People were gathered together, bustling about, talking about something unknown. Lian Sheng silently joined Zhao Zhuoluo's group.

Fang Jianchen said, "The instructors seemed to have left yesterday. I wonder if the field march will continue today."

Lian Sheng: "Left?"

"Yeah," Cheng Ze said seriously. "It seems they were transferred to the front lines overnight. Quite a few people left the base. Although they were reserve forces doing final training here anyway, their departure was too sudden."

The problem was, they couldn't find any related information on their optical computers.

The crowd discussed in low voices for a while before an instructor walked out from inside. His face was indeed unfamiliar.

Everyone formed ranks, waiting for him to speak.

He stepped forward, scratching his head. "Here's the situation. Originally today, your instructors were supposed to lead you on the final three-day field march. But they were called away on business, so I'm temporarily taking over. Additionally, the base received an emergency notice prohibiting outside personnel from entering. Since you were going on the field march anyway, go back and pack your luggage now, we'll leave the base ahead of schedule. After the march, return directly to school, no need to come back here. Any questions?"

Everyone answered, "No!"

New Instructor: "Then pack your things, we're setting off now."

The previous field march itinerary had been jointly designed by several instructors. They left in a hurry and had no chance to hand things over. So, with the new instructor, it became a very conventional field march.

Daily trekking, doing ordinary response drills, arriving at the lodging place each day, helping clean up a bit, resting for a night, then continuing the journey during the day.

After experiencing various abnormal training regimes, such an itinerary felt simple to the point of being uncomfortable.

The major field march ended uneventfully, and this training camp also reached its conclusion. They bid farewell at the final lodging point, then returned to their respective schools.

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