Chapter 144: Fancied?
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
“TSSSSSK”
“Does it hurt?”
Under the tree, there was no shade left as the sun had set. Wang Ye placed his hand on the table, and in front of him was a female military doctor with the rank of lieutenant, helping him clean his wounds.
“Ouch…”
She seemed sweet, with a gentle appearance, but her way of treating injuries was quite rough. She cleaned the wounds with alcohol and then nervously asked if it hurt.
“Tssssss… No… It’s fine!” Wang Ye had nothing to say and couldn’t possibly cry out in pain at this moment.
He was not alone here; there were other new recruits nearby enduring the pain, saying, “It doesn’t hurt, go ahead and do whatever you need…”
As the vice class monitor of Class Five, he couldn’t embarrass himself.
“Well, let me wash it again for you!”
Ouyang Mingyue glanced at Wang Ye and poured some more alcohol on a cotton pad before starting to clean the wound.
Let’s talk to distract you from the pain!” The woman focused on treating Wang Ye, but her voice reached him.
“Well… what… Tssssssssss!”
She stopped and looked at Wang Ye, suddenly laughing. “You really look like Daniel Wu, just a little darker!”
As she spoke, Ouyang Mingyue blushed and lowered her head, giggling to herself.
At that moment, Wang Ye felt a sense of hostility around him.
When he turned around to look, he saw several veteran squad leaders who were helping new recruits with their wounds, all staring at him fiercely.
Not just the veteran squad leaders, even the nearby new recruits, were looking at him with pain in their eyes.
After all, Wang Ye had become the center of attention.
Because when he came over earlier, he was actually walking toward the medical officer, but she took the initiative to call him over and help him.
In this situation, it was natural for everyone to be envious.
After all, there were only so many women, and this one was younger and more beautiful…
Honestly, some squad leaders wanted to loudly declare, “You can’t be together. You’re not compatible in age. Wang Ye is still in high school, and you’ve already graduated and started working. Are you really going for the cradle-robbing route? Why don’t you take a look at us, the older grass? We’re experienced and durable…”
“Hehe… actually… sigh… I used to be quite fair-skinned before 1 enlisted!” Wang Ye didn’t know what to say and casually chatted.
Of course, this was also the truth.
Before enlisting, Wang Ye was truly addicted to the internet, playing computer games at home and in internet cafes and sleeping in class at school. He had limited exposure to sunlight, so how could he be dark?
But he had been in the army for fifty days now.
From the beginning, standing in military posture to later doing tactical drills, especially the daily physical training, running in physical training gear.
After so many days, Wang Ye might not be as dark as Ye Sanshi and the others, but the concept of being “fair” had long left him.
“It’s actually good to be a little darker as a boy. It gives you a sunny and handsome look. Besides, Daniel Wu is not that fair either!” The woman spoke as she started to apply medicine and bandage the wound.
This time, Wang Ye remained silent until the bandaging was done, then he said, “Thank you.”
He stood up and waited on the side; his day was finally over.
However, he still had to wait for the other new recruits to have their wounds treated.
“Unity is strength, this strength is iron…” Before dinner, a loud singing voice echoed in the cafeteria as usual.
Soon, the new recruits entered the cafeteria, and the painful process began.
Ouch! 1 can’t hold chopsticks!”
“Me neither!”
Although their hands were already bandaged, using chopsticks now was a bit difficult.
Their fingers felt numb, painful, and weak; it was hard to control the chopsticks.
Ding!”
Wang Ye watched as the chopsticks in his hand fell down. He felt like crying but had no tears. He was very hungry, but he couldn’t use the chopsticks now.
“What’s the point of not being able to use them? Just use some force, the wounds have been treated and bandaged. Endure the pain and eat, of course, you can choose not to eat!” Ye Sanshi said nonchalantly.
Not eat? Was that even possible?
They were all starving to death, so how could they not eat?
“I’ll eat even if I have to die!” Qin Li gritted his teeth, tremblingly holding the chopsticks to pick up the food.
Wang Ye glanced at him, then picked up the chopsticks from the table again.
It hurt, it was sore, hot, and a bit numb. Every movement felt like the skin on the back of his hand was tearing apart.
But Wang Ye gritted his teeth and endured it.
He had to eat; he had to eat.
“Hey, Bother Wang, that beautiful female military doctor seems to be interested in you!”
During the break after dinner, Ye Sanshi had gone to smoke, and in the dormitory, Yan Zhiming leaned toward Wang Ye, winking.
Wang Ye gave him a look and said without humor, “Stop it! She is at least 23 or 24 years old, while 1 am only 19. Do you think we are suitable?”
“Hehe, they say women like older men. Although she has more than one ‘gold brick,’ she’s still pretty!” Qin Li also smiled playfully, joining the fun.
Compared to the other squad members and squad leaders who were worried sick, the members of Class Five seemed to have a much better mindset.
Of course, mainly because they admitted that Wang Ye was better looking.
Also, it was the time to establish brotherhood and camaraderie. The fact that girls showed obvious interest in Wang Ye naturally didn’t lead to any improper thoughts from them.
However, Wang Ye didn’t really have that intention. He spoke without much enthusiasm, “Forget it. I’m not here to chase girls. Besides, it’s too early. If we wait a couple of years, and if there’s a girl like that, by that time, 1 might be an officer or something, and then I’ll have the leisure and time to consider it.”
He acknowledged that Ouyang Mingyue was indeed attractive, with dimples and a smile that would meet the criteria of many men looking for a partner.
But he was not the kind of guy who stumbled around helplessly in front of a woman.
He didn’t join the army to pick up girls. If he wanted to do that, why would he join the army in the first place?
Moreover, it was too early now. If he waited a couple more years, and if he became an officer or something by then, he would have the time and energy to consider such things.
“Hey, Brother Wang, love and army life don’t conflict. You might miss this opportunity. After all, she is a military doctor and even an officer!” Yan Zhiming continued.
At this point, Wang Ye couldn’t help but give them a playful smile. “Alright, enough about this. If you guys like her, go for it. Don’t drag me into it.”
Having said that, he stood up to get some water.
“Okay, okay, we won’t mention it. Let’s talk about your 400-meter run tomorrow. Are you confident you can get the third-class merit?” Yan Zhiming said as he followed Wang Ye.
Behind him, Yan Zhiming endured the criticism without minding it and quickly spoke again.
But this time, he changed the topic.
“Yeah! Brother Wang, do you have confidence for tomorrow? You’re just a little over a second away. Can you beat him this time?” Gu Yingnan also chimed in.
Today was already Saturday, and tomorrow was the weekend.
Although the new recruits hardly had any rest during the weekend, in a day, except for the physical training in the afternoon, they wouldn’t be training.
In the morning, they would shower and do laundry, and in the afternoon, they would clean up.
Of course, that was for other people. Over the past two or three weeks, Wang Ye had been running the 400 meters every weekend.
Occasionally, he would go during lunch or afternoon physical training as well. As a result, Wang Ye’s 400 meter hurdles level had already reached level two (2/20).
However, Wang Ye’s results hadn’t improved much.
His current best time was one minute, thirty-three point fifty-four seconds.
It seemed like the gap wasn’t big; Huang Dayong’s best time was one minute, thirty-two point forty-five seconds.
But, this was the 400 meter hurdles, and after reaching this limit, everyone believed that as you went higher, you needed to consider your condition and performance.
Moreover, Wang Ye’s last two runs had slipped to one minute, thirty-four seconds.
In everyone’s eyes, he was already at the limit.
Even Ye Sanshi consoled Wang Ye not to take it too seriously, as the drop in performance was mainly due to being too tired during training recently.
He asked him to rest well on the weekend and relax before trying again.
But only Wang Ye knew that he was deliberately controlling his performance.
Because he wanted to wait for marksmanship.
If someone in the brigade won the 400 meters run, they would be awarded third-class merit as the battalion commander had already decided.
This was effective for the new recruits before they went down to their platoons.
But Wang Ye felt that if he won this third-class merit now, he might not be able to do well in marksmanship.
In the marksmanship training for new recruits, it was possible for others to get a third-class merit if they scored full marks, but if it was him, it was likely he would only receive an award of merit.
Even during the new recruits’ final assessment, if he became a training model, excelled in all categories, and secured the top position, it would be the same.
There was no way he could get three or even four third-class merits.
Even if he earned them through his own efforts, the battalion commander would need to think about it.
If they really did that, the matter might need to be escalated to the division headquarters or even higher for approval.
After all, a new recruit who hadn’t even gone down to his platoon, getting three or four third-class merits, was indeed too much.
However, Wang Ye still wanted to get them.
So, he wanted to hold back his time a bit and see if he had a chance to get that third-class merit in marksmanship.
After all, over the past ten days since he received the rifle, he had been training his aim every day. After converting his aiming skills, he was quite confident that he could achieve a score of fifty.
In this situation, how could he not try?
As for whether he could win the third-class merit now, and then later win another one, and whether the battalion commander would change his mind, Wang Ye only wanted to say that was up to the brigade commander. He would do his best to fight for it.
If he could get one more, then one more.
Wang Ye, who was drinking water, heard that and couldn’t help but smile bitterly. “I don’t know, but I feel the chances are slim. Just look at my hand…”
“I told you to skip training today but you refused, and now you’re saying this?!” Ye Sanshi entered the room at this time.
Wang Ye looked at Ye Sanshi and immediately slowed down his speech. “Class Monitor, 1 can’t keep avoiding training. I feel that this weekend might not be successful either, so 1 might as well participate in the training now. As for running tomorrow, I can use it as a chance to get familiar with the track and gain experience. Actually, I’ve had this idea for the past few times, trying to see if there are any easier techniques and rhythms. 1 want to wait for a day when I’m confident and call the company commander over, asking him to notify the higher-ups that 1 will break the record!”
Although Wang Ye deliberately controlled his performance, he still wanted to give them some preventive measures so that they wouldn’t worry too much about him reaching the limit of his abilities and not being able to improve in the future.
“Huh?” Ye Sanshi was surprised, as Wang Ye had never mentioned this before.
But now he didn’t think too much about it and nodded, “That’s good, just be sure to know your own limits. But remember, we don’t have much time left in the new recruits’ training, only about 30 or 40 days. You have to speed up!”
“Yes, sir!” Wang Ye saluted with his bandaged hand..