50s: Starting with a storage ring

Chapter 247 Testing the Waters
The soldier from Guangdong Province was named Xiong Yaoyang, and he served in the Northwest; the soldier from Chaoshan was named Tang Ziwen, and he served in the Northeast.

The two of them had been at the base for a week, during which time they had been constantly challenged by others, and they had also been constantly challenging others.

They now have a clear understanding of their current strength level, which is below average.

Based on the standard of selecting 30 people, they can say with certainty that they are out of the running for selection, which is quite disappointing.

They came all this way, only to receive no honor and slink back home. Where would they put their pride? They were unwilling to accept this.

So when Commander An from the base came to ask them if they were willing to give it a try, they sensed an opportunity.

Sun Zhiwei then had long talks with the two separately and learned about their personalities. He realized that their discontent stemmed more from inner restlessness, and they hoped for some changes in their lives.

Sun Zhiwei's invitation was an opportunity for them to change things, and they didn't want to let it go.

Sun Zhiwei wasn't sure if choosing these two people was the right or wrong decision.

People with this kind of personality are unwilling to be ordinary. They may achieve great things, or they may have lofty ambitions but lack the ability to achieve them.

However, having made his choice, he no longer hesitated.

From now on, Xiong Yaoyang and Tang Ziwen will be members of his team, and they will be learning various new things at this base for some time.

Although it's called a team, it's actually a temporary group. After all the training is completed, they will be sent to different places to carry out missions.

Who knows when they will meet again in the future? In this era without cell phones and WeChat, such separations are perfectly normal.

However, as long as they are alive and well, there will always be a day when they reunite.

After arranging the training plan for Xiong Yaoyang and Tang Ziwen at the secret base, Sun Zhiwei returned to his unit to report the recruitment situation to Xu Yimin.

He didn't have time to train with the two of them; he just needed to wait for the training results from the base before arranging the next round of training for them.

When Xu Yimin heard that he had only recruited two people, he asked him with some surprise, "Didn't you go to compete with them for people? How come you only managed to recruit two?"

"No, I only realized after looking at their information that this group of people might not be the kind we need."

"It's very likely that most of the people we need didn't even pass the initial screening."

"The first batch only has two people, so let's use these two to try it out. We may have to find another way to recruit people later."

"By the way, section chief, how did we recruit people in the past?"

"In the past? In the past, they recruited from soldiers in the army, but in the end, there were probably very few who could meet your requirements."

"What I need here are military officers to be dispatched to various places, not so many skills."

That's impossible, right? Any random soldier can become a military attaché? That's probably a trendy, lame joke.

Sun Zhiwei simply did not believe that this method could select a qualified military officer.

After a moment's thought, he asked Xu Yimin, "Director, there are many foreign military officers in the country. How do our military officers compare to those of other countries?"

Xu Yimin was speechless when he heard his question. After a long while, he answered with difficulty, "Far from as good."

Hearing this answer, Sun Zhiwei felt much more relieved, because it proved that his judgment was correct.

A qualified military attaché should also be a qualified intelligence agent, a qualified soldier, and a qualified diplomat. If he or she is lacking in any of these areas, problems will arise.

It's obvious that there were problems with our previous selection of personnel, but it's no one's fault. We didn't know before, but it's not too late to know now. "Director, let's prepare to recall the dispatched military officers in batches for training. Every little bit helps. If we don't take care of them, they'll become useless."

"Yes, I already had a plan. Let's start next month."

What lessons do you think they need to learn first?

"The first course is intelligence gathering. Gathering intelligence doesn't necessarily require infiltrating someone else's secret department."

"Newspapers and news in society, even the price fluctuations of daily necessities, are very useful information. The key is to learn how to distinguish and summarize them."

"I have already compiled the course content. I will teach the first group of students when they return. If there are any particularly outstanding students, I would like to keep them as teachers."

“If you can’t do it, I’ll find your former colleague to teach the first batch of people. You have other tasks to complete.”

"A new mission?" Sun Zhiwei didn't expect that he would receive a new mission after only a few days back.

"Yes, but there's no rush. Please continue."

"Okay, the second course is international relations. Understanding this will allow you to collect information more effectively and avoid getting lost in the vast and complex information network."

"This course is based on the intelligence data I collected and organized. They don't have to learn all of it. They can learn the content of the country whose military attaché they are from."

"If I am transferred to another country in the future, there will be time to catch up on the lessons later."

"Okay, I agree with that. Anything else?"

"Yes, the third course is a learning course, which teaches them how to learn quickly."

"We also need to cultivate their habit of learning at any time, and encourage them to put aside their pride and learn from everyone who is worthy of their attention."

"For example, if another country is conducting military exercises, our military attachés, whether generals or junior officers, must become professional photographers, sound recordists, radio interceptors, radar observers, and computer operators."

"The last lesson: learn to make friends. People from all walks of life are friends, and we treat everyone equally, regardless of their background."

"That's all I ask of them. I won't mention the basic military skills. Please remember to tell them to be self-motivated and catch up on their own."

"Oh, and what else? What are you referring to?"

"Which ones? Driving Section Chief, a military attaché is a representative of our country's military personnel."

"Such a model soldier, if he doesn't recognize the most advanced tank models? If he can't fly a helicopter? If he can't read a nautical chart?"

"Don't they feel ashamed? Shouldn't the ability to drive in all areas be a basic requirement for a military officer of a country?"

"Ah, right? Yes, it's basic etiquette." Seeing Xu Yimin's shifty eyes, Sun Zhiwei guessed that even their director hadn't mastered domain piloting.

"What's wrong, sir? Are you feeling unwell?"

"No, no, you're absolutely right."

"I know there are military officers from several countries in the capital who have all-around driving skills. They can drive any equipment or vehicle they get their hands on. They are really amazing."

Seeing that he had changed the subject, Sun Zhiwei didn't press the matter. After all, he was a leader, so it was best not to expose him.

He believed that now that he had pointed it out, our department head would definitely secretly go back to make up for it afterwards.

(End of this chapter)