Chapter 58: Assembly and Introduction
Hua!
The unexpected voice was like a scoop of water pouring into a boiling pot of oil.
“What? How did Big Li lose? Both of them hit the 10-rings. Is there something wrong? It’s clearly a tie! Which eye saw Big Li lose?!” A rebuttal came immediately.
“Look at the paper targets, and you will understand immediately.” The person who suddenly jumped out stuck to his opinion.
“Paper targets? What’s there to look at on the paper targets?” The paper targets returned from the automated equipment and passed through everyone’s hands as they tried to find the evidence of Big Li’s loss.
Suddenly, a series of people sucking in cold air sounded one after another.
Although no one spoke, Big Li felt something amiss. Someone found the evidence that he lost.
“What’s the matter? How did it become a loss?!” Big Li did not believe it, so he snatched the paper targets that the others around him were comparing.
Every piece of paper target that cost five yuan to manufacture clearly recorded the results of Lin Mo and Big Li’s small competition.
“Look at the place where the bullets hit!” Someone reminded Big Li and those who had not realized.
“F*ck!” someone finally exclaimed.
After hearing the other’s remainders, he stared at the paper targets in his hand. Then he grabbed the paper targets from the others again to confirm. “F*cking shit!” These two words burst out of his mouth as his eyes widened.
“I lost!” Big Li deflated completely. The several paper targets clearly showed the difference in impact points. Lin Mo’s paper targets had three round bullet holes that intersected with each other, and every sheet was exactly the same. On the other hand, the middle of Big Li’s paper targets almost exploded. Although they were all within the 10 ring, the impact points were irregular and different.
Those present were all veterans when it came to guns. Everyone knew that it was not difficult to hit a bullseye, but it required terrifying strength and strength control to achieve almost exactly precise impact points like in Lin Mo’s case. After each shot, the position of the muzzle would change due to the recoil. But for three consecutive shots, being able to return to the original position quickly and repeat this was simply a miracle and almost at a non-human level.
If someone were to argue that it was good if only one bullet hole was left in the bullseyes, that would only be from a single shot after careful aiming. Achieving it with three consecutive shots could only happen when there was a miracle.
Everyone gazed strangely at Lin Mo involuntarily. They both hit their targets, but the difference in their strength control was immediately apparent.
“I lost. The five hundred yuan is yours!” Big Li took out five red notes from his pocket and stuffed them into Lin Mo’s pocket without another word.
“Thanks!” Lin Mo did not refuse. He was extremely poor since Gold Coin had swallowed his laptop. He gave the gun back to Big Li. “I’ll give you the gun back. It’s really good. Let’s practice again in the future!”
His wrist twitched suddenly, and Gold Coin’s smug voice came into his mind. Exploration done. It actually penetrated and explored the rifle from inside out while the others were not paying attention. Now, it could transform into such a gun at any time in the future. In other words, it could become any gun that Lin Mo wanted and be usable as long as he had bullets.
This would be amazing for the Army, but it did not make much sense for Lin Mo since he was in the Air Force. It was probably impossible to let a jet fighter pilot shoot a gun on the battlefield.
“Which part of the Army did you come from? Why is your marksmanship so good?!” Big Li could not figure out which part of the Chinese Army could train up such a character.
“I…” Lin Mo was about to answer when an ear-piercing whistle sounded. Beep~! A very loud voice yelled, “Everyone, assemble!”
“Let’s go!” Big Li’s expression changed. He hurriedly put the gun back onto the table and said anxiously to Lin Mo, “Quickly go and assemble. If not, we’ll be in deep shit!”
Everyone dispersed immediately like wild animals when they heard the whistle and the shout. Except for the logistics personnel, everyone gathered in the small plaza in the middle of the training ground and formed into lines.
It was Lin Mo’s first time here, so he did not know where to stand. But he saw Old Hu, who was already standing in line, look at him pointedly and point toward a small team of only twenty people. Lin Mo nodded and hurried over.
Discipline, the first principle of a soldier was discipline. When the order for assembly sounded, except for special departments, everyone had to put down everything on hand and assemble, no matter how busy they were.
“Second Lieutenant Lin Mo, welcome to our aerial team! I’m Pan Rongyong, the leader of the aerial team.” A middle-aged man in his forties saluted Lin Mo while showing a welcoming smile on his weathered, squarish face. His dark-yellowish skin had wrinkles, and a long centipede-like scar stretched from the corner of his mouth to the corner of his eye on the left side of his face. His training uniform was washed out. This was Lin Mo’s team leader from now on.
Team Leader Pan could obviously recognize Lin Mo, and he pointed to his side. “Come and stand here with me.”
Lin Mo quickly returned the salute and stepped into the team formation. He made eye contact with a few others in greeting.
They were now divided into combat squadrons and various departments, and all of them assembled in just fifteen seconds.
A brawny, dark-skinned man in his thirties stood in front of everyone motionlessly like a sculpture. He looked at everyone expressionlessly and had a green whistle hanging around his neck. He was the one who shouted the order to assemble just now.
Pan Rongyong, the aerial team leader, made eye contact with Lin Mo. Lin Mo nodded. This soldier in front of everyone was Colonel Feng Chenye, the brigade commander of Dark Night.
“Report! 1st Squadron has assembled! We should have sixty-seven people. Sixty-six are here!”
“2nd Squadron has assembled! We should have fifty-five people. All five-five are here!”
“3rd Squadron has assembled! We should have sixty people. Fifty-one are here!”
“4th Squadron has assembled!” We should have forty people. All forty are here!”
“5th Squadron has assembled! We should have fifty-one people. All fifty-one are here!”
“Equipment team has assembled! All are here!”
“…”
Reports from various squadrons echoed throughout the extremely wide training ground.
Lin Mo saw Big Li and the others he met last night standing among the 1st Squadron. It seemed like they were front-line combat troops. No wonder they were so good with guns and had great physiques.
After all the people responsible reported the situation, the brigade commander of Dark Night, Feng Chenye, swept his gaze over everyone with a serious and stern expression. His tone was expressionless, but his words were very clear. “I gathered everyone today to announce the commendation that the higher-ups have for the 5th Squadron for successfully completing their combat mission last week. They killed 121 terrorists, captured 7 people, and had 0 casualties. Therefore, the 5th Squadron has won the collective third-class merit award.”
Hua! A burst of applause resounded without anything taking the lead.
Brigade Commander Feng raised his hand, and the applause disappeared immediately. His gaze went into the direction of the aerial team. “Second Lieutenant Lin Mo, come forward!”
“Yes, Sir!” Lin Mo took three steps forward instinctively. A soldier’s discipline had been deeply ingrained into his bones from the time he was in the other world.
“Welcome Comrade Lin Mo as a new member of our Dark Night. From today onward, he will be our jet fighter pilot! He will provide reconnaissance and fire support for the combat troops. Everyone welcome him!” Brigade Commander Feng Chenye deliberately said with vigor.
Another round of resounding applause came. But there were gasps with unclear meaning, and many people’s eyeballs nearly fell out.
“Big Li! What sort of expression is that?! Do you not welcome our new comrade?!” Colonel Feng Chenye barked at Li Xiuwen, who had the biggest reaction from the 1st Squadron, and anger immediately appeared on his face.
“Nonono!” Big Li shook his head like a rattle drum. How could he dare to question Colonel Feng’s authority? He stammered, “S-shouldn’t he be in the ground troops?”
The eyes of the others, especially those who met Lin Mo last night, showed the expression that this was naturally right.
Shouldn’t this strength, this marksmanship be used in ground combat? How could he be a fighter pilot that was so incompatible with his skills? Was the Air force so powerful now that it could even rob the Army of its jobs? How could it be such a bully?
Feng Chenye’s face hardened. This Big Li was giving him trouble again. He said in an unpleasant tone, “Did you not hear what I said? Second Lieutenant Lin Mo is a fighter pilot, a member of the aerial team!”
“But…” Big Li swallowed his words when he saw Brigade Commander Feng’s face and stood at attention. “Yes, Sir!” He did not dare to speak up again, but he was still thinking to himself, He has better marksmanship than me and more strength than me. Clearly, he should be the ace of the ground forces?! How did it become the aerial force?! He shook his head secretly, unable to comprehend.
The authority of the brigade commander of Dark Night could not be challenged.
It was not just Big Li, but other people’s minds were full of question marks.
“Dismissed!” Brigade Commander Feng took a last look at everyone and ended the assembly.
A man with a rough, ruddy face stepped in front of Lin Mo, stretched out his hand, and shook Lin Mo’s hand. He said with a smile, “Second Lieutenant Lin Mo, I am the squadron leader of the 1st Squadron, Huang De. Welcome to our brigade. I look forward to your support in the future. You’ve met my subordinates, Big Li and the others last night. Don’t put it to heart. This group is just like that. They lack discipline! Please hang out with them when you have the time.”
Big Li and the others smiled as they raised their thumbs toward Lin Mo and made a few gestures.
Squadron Leader Huang might look like a ruffian, but he probably already heard the news that his subordinates had tried out Lin Mo, which was why he came over to greet him. Strength determined status here. Relationships alone could not convince others of your capabilities in grassroots combat troops.