Chapter 4: The Reward in Hand

“Old Hei, go check on that new recruit who fainted. If he’s not okay, send him to the infirmary to rest!”
“Yes, sir!” Old Hei saluted Company Commander Xu Guoqing and responded.

Then, rushing over to Song Wei, he gave a quick check before turning back to shout,
“Nothing serious. That kid pushed him too hard; he couldn’t catch his breath and just collapsed from exhaustion!”

With that, Old Hei pressed his right thumb firmly against Song Wei’s philtrum.

Two seconds later, Song Wei’s face twisted in pain as he slowly regained consciousness.

“Try to stand up. I’ll take you to the infirmary to rest.”

“No need, squad leader. I’ve recovered.” Song Wei struggled to his feet.

At that moment, he could truly feel his body was weak—his limbs heavy and lifeless, especially his legs, as if filled with lead.

Not just running; even walking seemed difficult.

“Good spirit. Then hang in there. I’ll wait for you at the finish line!”

Old Hei slapped Song Wei heavily on the shoulder and quickly dashed back to his position.

The force of the slap nearly knocked Song Wei over.

Steadying himself, he staggered forward, taking shaky steps.

But before he could take many steps, a familiar figure dashed past him like lightning, heading straight for the finish line!

“Whoosh!”

That silhouette was far too familiar to Song Wei!

If not for that figure, how could Song Wei have ended up in such a state?

He wanted to speak up, to ask if the other was overreacting—after all, he had nearly collided with him but posed no real danger.

But then he saw that figure crossing the finish line smoothly, standing there with hands clasped behind his back, completely at ease.

Most importantly, Qi Tian, with hands behind his back, raised both middle fingers pointed directly at Song Wei!

The meaning was unmistakable!

Half a minute later, Zhang Meng and Jiang Chong crossed the finish line almost simultaneously.

By then, three had completed the five-kilometer cross-country run.

Their total times were all under seventeen minutes, a rather impressive level.

Song Wei could have done the same, but his stamina was severely depleted.

Having set his heart on winning the cross-country race, he could only follow behind, running the course with others whose endurance was lacking, pushed and pulled along by the squad leaders.

“Fate will bring us together again. We’ll see about that!”

---

Standing in formation, Song Wei’s eyes were fixed coldly on Qi Tian in front of him, his voice icy inside.

Meanwhile, the ten squad leaders of the recruit company began selecting their preferred soldiers one by one.

Qi Tian, having won first place in the five-kilometer run, was naturally taken under the wing of Old Hei, who served as both platoon leader and squad leader.

Yet Qi Tian’s attention was not on Old Hei but was somewhat distant, his gaze vacant ahead.

Just as the formation had been assembled, the voice of the strongest soldier system rang clearly in Qi Tian’s mind:

[Ding dong! Congratulations, host Qi Tian, on winning first place in the five-kilometer race! Reward: Elite-level interior management skills, now being granted!]

With the cold mechanical voice fading, a wealth of military housekeeping techniques and experiences flashed through Qi Tian’s mind.

These were time-tested skills, especially detailed in every aspect.

Seconds later, the memory fully integrated with Qi Tian’s consciousness.

The rigid and complicated internal rules became clear and easy to grasp for him.

From that moment on, regarding interior regulations alone, Qi Tian’s understanding surpassed even those who had drafted the rules.

“Hey, what are you spacing out for?”

Just after absorbing the reward, Qi Tian felt a light push from next to him.

“Didn’t you hear the squad leader ask you to introduce yourself?!”

“Reporting! My name is Qi Tian, from Donghai City, high school graduate, enjoy basketball, and I guess I have a girlfriend. Nice to meet you all.”

Almost instinctively, Qi Tian spoke loudly.

Old Hei showed a flicker of interest on hearing this.

He ignored Qi Tian’s earlier distraction in formation and walked up with a puzzled look, asking,

“Make it clear. Either you have a girlfriend or you don’t. What do you mean by ‘I guess’?”

“Squad leader, does online dating count as a relationship?”

“Of course, as long as it’s genuine feelings, it counts as love. And online dating is very common in the army.

I don’t oppose you seeking a future partner, but remember, never divulge any military information.

Next, you…” Xu Guoqing’s gaze swept over the dozen or so soldiers he had picked, finally resting intentionally on Song Wei, signaling him to speak.

“Reporting, my name is Song Wei, graduated from Donghai City Sports Academy, specializing in sprinting. That’s all!”

“So you’re a sprinter. No wonder your endurance was a bit lacking. Next!”

As soon as Song Wei finished, Old Hei shifted his gaze to the third new recruit.

---

That casual remark dealt a harsh blow to Song Wei’s already wounded pride.

He gritted his teeth, vowing inwardly to train harder and make up for the loss to Qi Tian as soon as possible.

...

There were ten squads in the recruit company.

After all had introduced themselves, each squad leader led their men to the mess hall for lunch.

Normally, recruits would have time to rest in the afternoon.

But since this was their first day in the army, many survival skills still needed to be learned.

Thus, the ten squad leaders proposed to Company Commander Xu Guoqing that they use the dormitory assignment and the recruits’ rest time to teach these rookies how to tidy up their quarters.

The focus was on bed-making.

“I’ll demonstrate first. Watch how to fold a quilt into a neat, square block!”

On the clean and tidy parade ground, Xu Guoqing laid a quilt flat on the ground.

Smoothing it out quickly, he folded it into thirds, moving slowly step by step.

Minutes later, a quilt with sharp corners and perfectly straight edges appeared before them, truly like a block of tofu.

Having watched Xu Guoqing’s straightforward procedure, the recruits all rubbed their hands eagerly, eager to try it themselves.

Only Qi Tian remained calm, staring at the military quilt on the ground.

In his mind, he reviewed the details of Xu Guoqing’s folding.

His hands moved subtly, combining the interior management knowledge in his mind to analyze the commander’s technique.

While everyone else was impatiently rushing to try their hand at the newly learned bed-making skills, Qi Tian had a more mature, seasoned insight:

“The key to folding a military quilt isn’t just how you fold it, but how you adjust it afterward.

Commander Xu Guoqing didn’t fold very quickly; about eighty-five percent of the time was spent refining the corners and details.

That is the most crucial part of learning to fold military bedding!”